The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 action RPG, presents a demanding workload that scales heavily with resolution and settings. The tested configuration pairs a six-core Intel Core i5-9400 with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER, running the game at four quality presets and three resolutions. Measured framerates provide a clear picture of where this combo excels and where it struggles.

Resolution Scaling

The influence of resolution on the average FPS is direct and large. At 1080p with Low settings the system delivers 157 FPS, but at 1440p that drops to 102 FPS and at 4K to 56 FPS. The same pattern appears at every preset. For High settings, the sequence is 103 FPS (1080p), 67 FPS (1440p), and 37 FPS (4K). At Medium, the numbers sit at 120 FPS, 79 FPS, and 43 FPS respectively. At Ultra, they fall to 80, 53, and 29.

The margin between 1080p and 1440p is significant but the leap to 4K is steepest. At High, the drop from 1440p to 4K is 30 FPS, while the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 36 FPS. The GPU evidently becomes the limiting factor beyond 1440p. At 1080p the processor can still feed the 2070 SUPER sufficiently, as the Low preset reaches 157 FPS, but the GPU workload grows fast with resolution.

The Medium preset also includes measured minimum and maximum framerates. At 1080p Medium, the average is 120 FPS with a minimum of 102 and a maximum of 139. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 79 with a minimum of 67 and a maximum of 91. At 4K Medium, the average is 43 with a minimum of 37 and a maximum of 50. These numbers indicate that even at the minimum, the game remains steadily above 60 FPS at 1080p and above 30 FPS at 4K, but the 1080p minimum of 102 FPS is strong enough for high refresh rate monitors.

The Ultra preset reveals a more demanding scenario. It returns 80 FPS at 1080p, which is playable, but at 1440p only 53 FPS, and at 4K just 29 FPS. Clearly, Ultra is not suitable for 4K on this hardware.

For players who value smooth gameplay at high framerates, 1080p is the sweet spot. The GPU is not yet saturated at 1080p because the high CPU headroom is sufficient. Beyond 1080p, the GPU's capability is the main constraint, as evidenced by the sharp decline in average framerates.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a Coffee Lake refresh desktop processor with six cores and six threads, a base clock of 2.90 GHz, and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. It has 9 MB of L3 cache and is built on Intel's 14 nm process. Its measured performance, represented by the Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 6629 and single-core score of 935, places it at the 47th percentile across all CPUs. In the same benchmark category, it sits within a paltry range of its nearest rivals: the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 scores 2259 (0.0% difference), the Intel Core i7-10710U scores 2248 (+0.4%), the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 scores 2246 (+0.5%), and the Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2264 (-0.4%). This indicates a tight performance cluster around the 9400.

In this game, the CPU's six threads may not be fully utilized, as the average FPS at 1080p Low reaches 157, which is likely GPU-limited at that point. However, the CPU's boost clock and cache size are sufficient for the game's logic. The 47th percentile ranking against all CPUs suggests a mid‑tier part that is not a bottleneck at 1080p for the given GPU. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes the decisive factor, and the CPU's load is likely lower.

The measured FPS at 1080p Low (157) and 1080p High (103) confirm that the CPU is able to push enough data to the GPU at 1080p, but the drop in framerate when moving to 4K is entirely attributable to the RTX 2070 SUPER's rendering pipeline. The i5-9400's 6-core setup is comparable to its nearest rivals in the synthetic benchmarks, and the game does not appear to be CPU‑limited in any of the measured resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the average framerate at 1080p on High settings?

A: The average is 103 FPS.

Q: What is the minimum FPS at 4K Media at the Medium preset?

A: The minimum is 37 FPS; the average is 43 FPS and the maximum is 50 FPS.

Q: How does this combo rank against all other CPU+GPU combinations tested for this game?

A: The combo ranks 2144th out of 3696 tested combos.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the RTX 2070 SUPER?

A: The launch MSRP is $499 USD.

Q: What is the base clock and boost clock of the i5-9400?

A: The base clock is 2.90 GHz and the boost clock is 4.10 GHz.

Q: Does the RTX 2070 SUPER have enough VRAM for The Technomancer?

A: The card has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, which is ample for this title.

How This Combo Ranks

According to the benchmark database, this CPU+GPU pair ranks 2144th out of 3696 tested combinations for The Technomancer. That places it below the median; the simple majority of tested systems outperform it. The context is provided by its individual component percentiles. The i5-9400 sits at the 47th percentile among all CPUs, while the RTX 2070 SUPER is at the 65th percentile among all GPUs. The combination yields a framerate that is adequate for 1080p gaming, but it is clearly not a high-end configuration for demanding titles.

The rank reflects that while the GPU is a strong mid-tier card, its score in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 is 1651, and its Passmark G3D score is 18169. The nearest GPU rivals in the aggregate GPU benchmark are the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (20480, +1.0%), the RTX 3070 Mobile (20534, +1.2%), the Intel Arc B570 (20556, +1.3%), and the Intel Arc A750 (20582, +1.5%)—all slightly higher. The CPU's nearest competitors, as already mentioned, are within 0.4% of its average in the aggregate CPU benchmark. This synergy places the combo at a moderate standing.

In practical terms, the combo is well balanced for 1080p High or 1440p Medium, but it is not competitive on a 4K display to the same quality. The rank of 2144 among 3696 means that players with older or entry‑level GPUs will find comfortable performance, but those targeting 4K or maxed out visuals might need a stronger GPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table lists the raw measured FPS data retrieved from the test run.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS (FPS) | Min FPS (FPS) | Max FPS (FPS) |

|------------|----------|---------------|--------------|--------------|

| 3840x2160 | High | 37 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 56 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 43 | 37 | 50 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 29 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | High | 67 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 102 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 79 | 67 | 91 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 53 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | High | 103 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 157 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 120 | 102 | 139 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 80 | - | - |

At 1080p, even the Ultra preset keeps an average of 80 FPS, which is comfortable for most displays. At 1440p, the Medium preset averages 79 FPS and stays above 60 at its minimum (67 FPS), making it the sane choice for players with 1440p monitors. For 4K, only the Low preset reaches 56 FPS; Medium averages 43 FPS, High 37 FPS, and Ultra 29 FPS. The minima at Medium (37 FPS at 4K) indicate occasional dips below the average, but the game remains playable.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the sweet spot for this combination depends on your resolution. On a 1080p display, any preset is viable: High yields 103 FPS, Medium 120 FPS with a minimum of 102, and Ultra 80 FPS. If you prioritize a high refresh rate, Low gives 157 FPS, but already Medium is well above 100. There is no need to run low settings unless you have a 240‑Hz monitor.

At 1440p, the choice is between Medium and High. Medium delivers 79 FPS average with a minimum of 67, while High averages 67 FPS and does not provide frametime data beyond the average. Ultra drops to 53 FPS, which is borderline for a 60‑Hz display. A practical recommendation is Medium for 1440p, as it safely stays above 60 FPS in the worst case and still looks good.

For 4K, even the Low preset yields only 56 FPS average, and Medium is 43 FPS. None of the presets reach a consistent 60 FPS. If you have a 4K display, you would rather run at 1080p or 1440p if you do not have a high refresh rate. The data indicates that the RTX 2070 SUPER is not built for 4K gaming in this title.

In general, the Medium settings at each resolution offer the best compromise between image quality and framerate stability, as evidenced by the fact they are the only presets with reported minimum and maximum values, indicating the engine can hold the framerate within a reasonable range. For higher visual fidelity, High is still playable at 1080p and 1440p, but not at 4K.