The Technomancer

The Technomancer is a 2016 Action RPG that stresses hardware in an unusual way: the gap between the RX 570's 4 GB of VRAM and the demands of higher resolutions is stark. Paired with the Intel Core i7-14700KF, this combo produces playable results only at 1080p with lower settings. The data shows a system that is heavily GPU-bound, where the CPU's immense power is largely wasted due to the GPU's age and memory limitations. At 1440p and 4K, frame rates collapse to a range that is difficult to recommend for action gameplay. This pairing is a study in bottlenecking, where the graphics card is the definitive limiting factor.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in The Technomancer?

A: The only resolution with consistently playable performance is 1920x1080. The data shows an average of 69.7 FPS at Low settings, 54.6 FPS at Medium, and 44.5 FPS at High. At 2560x1440, only the Low setting (43.6 FPS) approaches playability, while 3840x2160 is effectively unplayable across all settings.

Q: How does the RX 570's VRAM affect performance at higher resolutions?

A: The GPU has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory. At 3840x2160, the average frame rates are 18.5 FPS (High), 18.7 FPS (Medium), and 15.2 FPS (Ultra). The performance is so low that it suggests the VRAM capacity and memory bandwidth are being saturated, crippling the rendering pipeline regardless of the specific preset.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700KF the reason for high frame rates in this test?

A: No, the CPU is not the limiting factor here. While the i7-14700KF has 20 cores and 28 threads, the benchmark results indicate the GPU is the bottleneck. For example, at 1080p Low the combo hits 69.7 FPS, but at 4K Low it drops to 26.4 FPS, a clear sign that the GPU's compute power, not the CPU, is dictating performance.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to all other tested combinations?

A: The combo rank in-game is 1567 out of 1656 tested combos. This places it in the bottom percentile of all systems tested for The Technomancer, indicating that this pairing is far below average for this specific title.

Q: Which settings preset offers the most significant performance boost?

A: Dropping from Ultra to Low settings at 1080p yields a massive improvement. The average frame rate jumps from 33.1 FPS at Ultra to 69.7 FPS at Low. This represents a doubling of performance, making the Low preset the most effective way to achieve a smooth experience.

Q: Does the CPU's high benchmark score translate to better gaming performance here?

A: The i7-14700KF has a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 44557 and a single-core score of 6290, placing it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs. However, these strengths do not manifest in The Technomancer's results, as the average FPS is capped by the RX 570's limits, not the CPU's processing speed.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is an end-of-life product built on the Polaris 20 chip and GCN 4.0 architecture. It features 2048 shading units and a 256-bit memory bus, but its 4 GB of GDDR5 memory is a significant liability for modern titles. The GPU's base clock is 1168 MHz with a boost clock of 1244 MHz, and it achieves a memory bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s. These specifications are the primary driver of the performance seen in The Technomancer.

The data reveals a direct correlation between resolution and frame rate, which points squarely at the GPU as the bottleneck. At 1920x1080, the combo achieves an average of 69.7 FPS at Low settings. When resolution increases to 2560x1440, that average drops to 43.6 FPS. At 3840x2160, it plummets to 26.4 FPS at the same Low preset. This scaling is characteristic of a GPU that is running out of pixel throughput and memory bandwidth.

The GPU's performance relative to its rivals is interesting. Its average benchmark score is 30158, which places it in the 74th percentile of all GPUs. However, its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 and the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, which have average scores of 30109 and 30097 respectively, representing a delta of just 0.2%. This indicates that the RX 570 is matching the raw compute scores of much newer cards in synthetic benchmarks, but its older architecture and lower VRAM capacity prevent it from translating that score into playable frame rates at higher resolutions in a demanding game like The Technomancer.

How This Combo Ranks

This pairing of an Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Radeon RX 570 is ranked 1567 out of 1656 tested combos for The Technomancer. This places it in the bottom 5% of all systems tested, which is a poor result for a CPU that is otherwise top-tier. The data suggests that the CPU's power is entirely negated by the GPU's inability to keep up with the game's rendering demands.

The ranking highlights a fundamental mismatch. The i7-14700KF is a high-end processor with an average benchmark score of 70104 and is in the 96th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X, which has a slightly higher average score of 70420. However, in this game, the CPU's performance is irrelevant. The combo's final rank is determined almost exclusively by the GPU's output, which is why it falls so low in the rankings. A more balanced pairing with a mid-range GPU would likely have produced a much higher rank, but the data for this specific configuration shows a severe bottleneck.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system's capabilities across different resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the results are as follows: Low delivers an average of 69.7 FPS, Medium delivers 54.6 FPS, High delivers 44.5 FPS, and Ultra delivers 33.1 FPS. This is the only resolution where the system offers a range of playable options.

At 2560x1440, performance degrades significantly. The Low preset is the only one that remains marginally playable, with an average of 43.6 FPS. Medium drops to 37.1 FPS, High to 28.8 FPS, and Ultra to 22.7 FPS. These numbers suggest that 1440p gaming is only viable with the lowest settings and even then, frame pacing may be inconsistent.

The 3840x2160 results are uniformly poor. Low averages 26.4 FPS, Medium averages 18.7 FPS, High averages 18.5 FPS, and Ultra averages 15.2 FPS. None of these are acceptable for a fast-paced action RPG. The performance difference between Low and High at 4K is negligible (26.4 vs 18.5 FPS), further indicating that the GPU is hitting a hard wall, likely related to memory bandwidth or fill rate, rather than being limited by specific settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor from the Raptor Lake Refresh generation. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, with 33 MB of shared L3 cache. Its benchmark scores are exceptional: a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 44557 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2972. These numbers place it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, showing it is a top-tier processor for multi-threaded workloads.

However, in The Technomancer, the CPU's role is minimal. The benchmark results indicate that the frame rate is not influenced by the CPU's clock speed or core count. For instance, the jump from 1080p Medium (54.6 FPS) to 1440p Medium (37.1 FPS) is a 32% drop, which is a classic sign of GPU limitation. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would be more consistent across resolutions. The CPU's Passmark single-thread score of 4480 is high, but it is not being utilized to its full potential because the GPU cannot render frames fast enough to require more CPU instructions.

The CPU's performance relative to its nearest rivals is close. Its average benchmark score is 70104, which is nearly identical to the Intel Core i7-14700K's 70074, a delta of 0%. This means the i7-14700KF is performing exactly as expected for its class. But in this game, that level of CPU performance is irrelevant; the Radeon RX 570 is the sole arbiter of the frame rate.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the only sensible recommendation for a playable experience is to use the Low settings preset at 1920x1080. This is the only configuration that consistently delivers an average frame rate above 60 FPS, hitting 69.7 FPS. This provides a smooth and responsive experience for an action RPG, where timing is critical.

If you must play at 2560x1440, the Low preset is also the only option, but it comes with a compromise. The average of 43.6 FPS is below the 60 FPS target and may feel slightly less fluid, but it is still playable. The Medium preset at 1440p (37.1 FPS) and the High preset at 1080p (44.5 FPS) are alternatives if you prioritize visual fidelity over smoothness, but they risk feeling choppy during combat.

The Ultra preset is not recommended in any scenario. At 1080p it only achieves 33.1 FPS, and at higher resolutions it falls below 23 FPS. The performance cost of the Ultra preset is not justified by the visual improvements, which are marginal in this title. For a better visual experience without the frame rate hit, the High preset at 1080p is a more balanced choice, though it still requires a tolerance for frame rates in the mid-40s. Ultimately, the data strongly suggests that this GPU is best paired with 1080p Low settings for this game.