The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents an interesting test for modern hardware. This analysis examines the combination of the Intel Core i7-12700KF processor and the AMD Radeon RX 7700 graphics card, using measured benchmark data to provide a clear picture of expected performance. The data shows a system with substantial CPU headroom, where the primary performance limiter shifts decisively to the GPU at higher resolutions and settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall performance ranking of this CPU and GPU combo in The Technomancer?

A: This specific combination ranks 1275 out of 2825 total tested combos in the game's database, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all possible system configurations.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in The Technomancer?

A: Yes, but with compromises. At 4K with High settings, the system averages 42 FPS. However, to achieve a smoother 64 FPS average at 4K, you must lower the settings to Low, indicating that the GPU is the limiting factor at this resolution.

Q: How does the RX 7700 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 7700's average benchmark score of 15852 is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon R9 370X, which scores 15862 (a 0.1% difference). It also trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti by 1.7% and the AMD Radeon RX 9060 by 1%, while leading the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 by 1.1%.

Q: What is the CPU's synthetic performance relative to its closest competitors?

A: The Core i7-12700KF’s average benchmark score of 35365 is effectively tied with its rivals. It is 0.2% faster than the Intel Core i5-13600T and the Intel Core i7-12700K, and 0.1% faster than the Intel Core i7-13700T, while being 0.2% slower than the Intel Core 5 213PE.

Q: What kind of frame rates can I expect at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the system delivers an average of 90 FPS, with a minimum of 76 FPS and a maximum of 103 FPS. This suggests a stable and very playable experience.

Q: Is the CPU likely to bottleneck the GPU in this game?

A: No. The CPU's synthetic scores are very high, and the FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K indicates a clear GPU bottleneck. At 1080p, the system reaches 179 FPS on Low settings, suggesting the CPU is well ahead of the GPU's capabilities, especially at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is the central component for rendering in The Technomancer. It is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a Navi 32 chip and features 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 96 render output units. The card operates at a base clock of 1900 MHz, with a game clock of 2041 MHz, and a boost clock of 2459 MHz. This configuration delivers a texture fill rate of 393.4 GTexel/s and a pixel rate of 236.1 GPixel/s, which are the primary metrics for rasterizing the game's environments.

The GPU's 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. This substantial memory allocation is more than sufficient for The Technomancer's demands, which is a title from 2016. The high bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and data transfer from the VRAM to the processing cores are not a bottleneck, allowing the GPU to maintain its frame output without stuttering. The card's memory runs at a 2438 MHz clock, or 19.5 Gbps effective, which is a key factor in its ability to handle high-resolution textures.

In synthetic benchmarks, the RX 7700 scores 20974 in Passmark's G3D test and 2865 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. These scores place it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, indicating it sits just above the mid-range of current graphics cards. Its performance is closely matched with the AMD Radeon R9 370X, being just 0.1% slower. This relative positioning is crucial; while the card is capable, it is not a high-end part. The measured FPS data in The Technomancer reflects this, as the card's performance drops significantly at 4K with higher settings. The GPU's role, therefore, is to provide solid 1080p and 1440p performance, while being the clear limiting factor at 4K with Ultra settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on your target resolution and refresh rate.

For 1920x1080 (1080p) gaming, the data indicates that the system has significant headroom. Even at Ultra settings, the average FPS is 92, which is a smooth, playable experience for most users. However, dropping to High settings yields an average of 117 FPS, which is ideal for a 120Hz or 144Hz monitor. For maximum competitive performance, the Low preset achieves 179 FPS, but the visual quality trade-off is significant. The Medium preset offers a balanced 137 FPS average, with a minimum of 117 FPS, making it a strong choice for a high-refresh-rate experience without sacrificing too much visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440 (1440p), the High preset delivers an average of 77 FPS, which is a good target for 60Hz to 75Hz displays. To maximize smoothness, the Medium preset is the best choice, averaging 90 FPS with a minimum of 76 FPS, ensuring consistent frame times. The Ultra preset drops to a 60 FPS average, which is borderline for fast-paced action. The Low preset is not necessary at this resolution, as the Medium and High presets already provide excellent performance.

For 3840x2160 (4K) gaming, the GPU becomes the primary constraint. The High preset averages 42 FPS, which is below the ideal threshold for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset only improves this to 49 FPS. To achieve a stable 60 FPS target, you must use the Low preset, which averages 64 FPS. Therefore, the recommendation is to use the Low preset at 4K for playable frame rates, or Medium at 1440p and High at 1080p for the best combination of visual quality and performance. The data shows that the Ultra preset is only viable at 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The benchmark data provides a clear matrix of performance across different resolutions and settings.

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 179 FPS average
• Medium: 137 FPS average (min 117, max 158)
• High: 117 FPS average
• Ultra: 92 FPS average

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 117 FPS average
• Medium: 90 FPS average (min 76, max 103)
• High: 77 FPS average
• Ultra: 60 FPS average

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 64 FPS average
• Medium: 49 FPS average (min 42, max 57)
• High: 42 FPS average
• Ultra: 33 FPS average

The data shows a consistent and expected pattern. At 1080p, the system is clearly capable of high refresh rates, with even the Ultra preset maintaining a solid 92 FPS. The transition to High from Ultra provides a 27% performance boost, while the drop from High to Medium provides a further 17% boost. At 1440p, the Ultra preset delivers exactly 60 FPS, making it a marginal choice. The Medium preset's minimum of 76 FPS suggests excellent frame pacing. Moving to 4K, the performance drops are severe. The jump from Low to Medium incurs a 23% performance penalty, and the Medium to High jump adds another 14% penalty. The Ultra preset at 4K, with an average of 33 FPS, is not a playable configuration for this title.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K highlights the system's bottleneck characteristics. At 1080p with Low settings, the system produces 179 FPS. When the resolution is increased to 1440p, the frame rate drops to 117 FPS, a 35% reduction. Moving from 1440p to 4K at Low settings, the frame rate drops from 117 FPS to 64 FPS, a further 45% reduction. This linear and steep decline is a clear indicator that the AMD Radeon RX 7700 is the limiting component.

If the CPU were the primary bottleneck, we would expect to see a less significant frame rate drop when increasing resolution, as the CPU's workload remains relatively constant. However, the data shows a near-linear inverse relationship between resolution and FPS. This is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU, with its high 3DMark scores (9282 in 16-thread and 9983 in max-thread tests), is providing more than enough data to keep the GPU busy. The GPU's rendering workload increases exponentially with pixel count, and its 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs means it is not equipped to handle 4K Ultra settings in this title. The scaling confirms that to get more performance, you must either lower settings or reduce the resolution, as the GPU has no more headroom to give.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF is a 12-core, 20-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This combination of high core count and high clock speeds makes it a very powerful processor for both gaming and productivity. Its cache configuration includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and a 25 MB shared L3 cache. The processor supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory and uses the Intel Socket 1700.

In the context of The Technomancer, the CPU's role is to handle game logic, physics, and draw calls. The benchmark data suggests this is not a taxing workload for this processor. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 28838 and single-core score of 4071 indicate immense processing power. The processor's 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms its high-end status. Its synthetic average benchmark score is effectively tied with the Core i7-12700K and Core i5-13600T, showing it is performing exactly as expected.

The measured FPS data shows no evidence of a CPU bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 179 FPS, which is a high frame rate that could stress a weaker CPU. However, the performance scales cleanly with resolution, which is the primary indicator that the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU is capable of feeding the RX 7700 in all tested scenarios. Even at the lowest tested settings, the i7-12700KF has enough single-threaded and multi-threaded performance to prevent the GPU from being starved of data. In this specific game, the CPU is a silent partner, providing ample performance that never becomes the primary constraint on frame rate.