The Technomancer

The Technomancer is a 2016 Action RPG that, on paper, should not challenge modern hardware. However, the measured data for the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combo reveals a title that is surprisingly demanding at higher resolutions and presets. The benchmark results indicate a system capable of high-refresh 1080p play, but one that rapidly runs out of headroom as resolution and quality settings scale. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across six settings and three resolutions, placing the combo's performance in context against other tested configurations.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where every preset achieves a playable average frame rate. At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset drops to a 50 FPS average, and at 3840x2160, even the Medium preset only manages a 41 FPS average, indicating that 1080p is the target for a consistently smooth experience.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score is 17639, placing it in the 61st percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the AMD Radeon HD 7790, which scores 17666, representing a negligible 0.2% difference. The AMD Radeon 780M is 0.3% behind, and the AMD Radeon Pro 560 is 0.5% behind the RTX 4060.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H a strong performer relative to other CPUs?

A: Yes, the CPU's average benchmark score of 34083 puts it in the 84th percentile of all CPUs. It is effectively tied with the Intel Core Ultra 5 338H, which is 0.3% faster. The AMD EPYC 4244P, AMD Ryzen AI 7 350, and AMD Ryzen 7 3700X are all within 0.5% of its score.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The measured data shows a 73 FPS difference. The Low preset achieves a 150 FPS average, while the Ultra preset drops to a 77 FPS average. This indicates that the Ultra preset carries a significant rendering cost compared to the Low preset.

Q: Does the combo have enough power for 4K gaming in this specific title?

A: The data suggests no. At 3840x2160, the highest average FPS recorded is 54 on the Low preset. The High preset drops to 35 FPS, and the Ultra preset falls to just 28 FPS. These results indicate that the GPU is the limiting factor at this resolution, unable to sustain smooth gameplay on higher settings.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested system configurations for this game?

A: It ranks 1709 out of 2825 total tested combos. This places it in the lower half of all configurations tested, which is notable given the hardware's modern architecture.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H and RTX 4060 handle The Technomancer. The primary target should be a stable 60 FPS average, which is the baseline for smooth gameplay. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers a 99 FPS average, offering a significant performance buffer and a much better visual experience than the Low preset's 150 FPS. While the Ultra preset at 1080p hits a 77 FPS average, which is above 60, the jump from High to Ultra costs 22 FPS for what is often a marginal visual improvement in a game from this era. For the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, the High preset at 1080p is the clear choice.

Moving to 2560x1440, the High preset yields a 64 FPS average, which is just above the 60 FPS target. The Medium preset provides a 75 FPS average, offering a more comfortable margin. While High is playable, the Medium preset is the safer recommendation for maintaining frame times and avoiding drops into the 50s. The Ultra preset at 1440p, with a 50 FPS average, falls short of the 60 FPS target and should be avoided.

At 3840x2160, no preset achieves a 60 FPS average. The Low preset is the only playable option, with a 54 FPS average. The Medium preset drops to 41 FPS, and High and Ultra are not viable for smooth play. For a more consistent experience at 4K, users would need to rely on the Low preset or consider lowering the resolution. The data indicates that the best experience is achieved at 1080p with High settings, where the system has ample headroom and delivers high frame rates.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate data shows a steep performance penalty as resolution increases. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 on the High preset results in a drop from 99 FPS to 64 FPS, a 35% reduction. Scaling from 1440p to 4K on the same preset yields another drop from 64 FPS to 35 FPS, a 45% reduction. This pattern indicates that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions.

At 1080p, the CPU is sufficiently powerful to feed the GPU, allowing it to reach a 99 FPS average on High. However, as the pixel count increases, the GPU's workload expands disproportionately. The 8 GB of VRAM and 128-bit memory bus are likely contributing factors to the performance collapse at 4K. The Low preset at 4K still only manages 54 FPS, suggesting that even with reduced shading complexity, the GPU's raw throughput is insufficient for the pixel count.

The scaling pattern from 1080p to 4K on the Medium preset shows a decline from 115 FPS to 41 FPS. This is a 64% drop in performance. The Ultra preset fares worse, with a drop from 77 FPS to 28 FPS, a 64% reduction as well. This consistent percentage drop across settings indicates that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are being saturated at 4K, regardless of the visual complexity. The results show that the system is well-balanced for 1080p, but the RTX 4060's limitations become the dominant factor at 1440p and especially at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured frame rates provides a detailed look at the combo's performance envelope.

1920x1080:

• Low: 150 FPS average. This is the highest frame rate recorded in the entire data set, indicating the game is not CPU-limited at this resolution.
• Medium: 115 FPS average, with a minimum of 98 FPS and a maximum of 133 FPS. The minimum frame rate shows that even at this setting, the system stays well above the 60 FPS target.
• High: 99 FPS average. This is the recommended setting for a high-refresh experience.
• Ultra: 77 FPS average. This is still playable but represents a significant drop from the High preset.

2560x1440:

• Low: 98 FPS average. This shows that the GPU can still handle the lower shader load at a higher resolution.
• Medium: 75 FPS average, with a minimum of 64 FPS and a maximum of 87 FPS. The minimum is right at the edge of the 60 FPS target.
• High: 64 FPS average. This is just above the 60 FPS target, but frame drops are more likely.
• Ultra: 50 FPS average. The data shows this preset is not suitable for smooth play at this resolution.

3840x2160:

• Low: 54 FPS average. This is the only playable result at 4K, and it is still below the 60 FPS target.
• Medium: 41 FPS average, with a minimum of 35 FPS and a maximum of 48 FPS. This is not a smooth experience.
• High: 35 FPS average. The game becomes increasingly difficult to play at this frame rate.
• Ultra: 28 FPS average. This is a slideshow and confirms the GPU is overwhelmed at 4K.

The data clearly shows a linear progression of performance drops as settings increase, but a geometric drop as resolution increases. The Medium preset at 1440p is the highest resolution and setting combination that maintains a 75 FPS average, while the High preset at 1080p offers the best overall experience for visual quality and frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 165H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination ranks 1709 out of 2825 tested combos for The Technomancer. This places it in the bottom half of all configurations, which is a surprising result for a modern mobile CPU and a dedicated desktop GPU. The percentile ranking for the GPU is 61, and for the CPU it is 84, suggesting that while both components are individually strong in synthetic tests, their combined performance in this specific game does not translate to a top-tier ranking.

The rank indicates that a significant number of other tested systems achieve higher frame rates in this game. This could be due to the game's age and its potential preference for higher clock speeds over core counts, or it could reflect the specific limitations of the RTX 4060's 8 GB VRAM buffer being filled by the game's textures at higher settings. The combo's position in the lower half is a cautionary note for potential users. While the system is a capable 1080p performer, it does not compete with the top configurations in this particular title. The data suggests that while the CPU is a strong point, the GPU's memory configuration and bandwidth are holding the system back from a higher ranking.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is the defining component in this combo's gaming performance. Its specifications include 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 272.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU has a base clock of 1830 MHz and a boost clock of 2460 MHz. The chip, AD107, is built on a 5 nm process and contains 18,900 million transistors. These specs are critical to understanding the measured frame rates.

The 8 GB VRAM capacity is a potential bottleneck in The Technomancer. At 1080p, the game likely fits within this memory limit, allowing for the high frame rates seen on the High preset. However, at 1440p and especially 4K, the increased texture detail and resolution can exceed the 8 GB buffer, causing the GPU to rely on slower system memory or drop textures, which would explain the significant frame rate collapse. The 128-bit memory bus and 272 GB/s bandwidth also become limiting factors at higher pixel counts, as the GPU struggles to feed the shader units with enough data.

The GPU's compute power, measured at 15.11 TFLOPS for FP32, is substantial for 1080p. The benchmark results show a 61st percentile ranking for the GPU, which is modest compared to the CPU's 84th percentile. This disparity explains why the system is CPU-capable but GPU-limited at higher resolutions. The RTX 4060 is an end-of-life product, which may also indicate that driver optimizations for older titles like The Technomancer are no longer a priority. The data shows that the GPU's role is to provide excellent 1080p performance, but its memory subsystem is the primary obstacle to higher-resolution gaming. The 24 RT cores and 96 tensor cores are present, but they have minimal impact on a game from 2016 that does not utilize these features.