The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents a demanding workload that scales sharply with resolution. When paired with the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT, the benchmark data reveals a configuration that is firmly GPU-limited at higher resolutions but capable of delivering smooth frame rates at 1080p. The measured results show a clear performance hierarchy across the four tested settings presets, with the GPU's 8 GB of VRAM and RDNA 2 architecture playing a decisive role in determining playability.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings presets, confirming that the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT is the primary bottleneck in this configuration. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 97 FPS at 1920x1080 to 63 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 34 FPS, and then further to 35 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 64% decrease in performance from 1080p to 4K, a scaling pattern typical of a mid-range GPU being overwhelmed by pixel count.

The scaling behavior at Low settings is even more pronounced. The average frame rate drops from 148 FPS at 1080p to 97 FPS at 1440p, and then plummets to 53 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 4K transition here shows a 64% performance loss, mirroring the High preset's relative drop. This consistency suggests that the rendering load, even at minimal quality, is heavily dependent on resolution, with the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth being the limiting factors rather than the CPU.

The Ultra preset exhibits the most dramatic scaling, with average frame rates of 76 FPS at 1080p, 50 FPS at 1440p, and 27 FPS at 4K. The 4K result is barely playable, indicating that this settings level is simply too demanding for the RX 6650 XT at this resolution. The data shows that the performance gap between 1440p and 4K at Ultra is a 23 FPS drop, which is proportionally larger than the gap between 1080p and 1440p at the same settings. This non-linear scaling points to memory bandwidth saturation at 4K, where the 280.3 GB/s of bandwidth becomes a critical constraint.

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265, with its 20 cores and 20 threads, is clearly not the limiting factor in this game. The frame rate differences between resolutions at identical settings are entirely attributable to GPU workload. If the CPU were a bottleneck, we would expect to see smaller performance deltas at lower resolutions where the GPU can produce frames faster. Instead, the large gaps between 1080p and 1440p, and between 1440p and 4K, indicate that the GPU is working at full capacity in all scenarios. The CPU's high single-thread performance, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5960, is more than sufficient to feed the GPU at these frame rates.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. The average frame rate of 114 FPS at this setting is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay, and the minimum frame rate of 97 FPS ensures that there are no significant stutters or dips during intense combat sequences. The jump from Medium to High at 1080p costs 17 FPS on average, bringing the frame rate down to 97 FPS, which is still playable but leaves less headroom for demanding scenes.

At 2560x1440, the High preset becomes the recommended choice, delivering an average of 63 FPS. While this is below the 144 Hz refresh rate that some monitors offer, it is a playable frame rate for an Action RPG. The Medium preset at 1440p provides 74 FPS, which is smoother but represents a noticeable visual downgrade. The data suggests that the visual fidelity gains from High settings are worth the 11 FPS sacrifice in average frame rate, particularly on a larger monitor where details are more visible.

For 4K resolution, the data paints a grim picture. The Low preset, with an average of 53 FPS, is the only setting that approaches playability. Medium at 4K drops to 41 FPS, and High falls to 35 FPS, both of which are below the 60 FPS target. The Ultra preset at 27 FPS is effectively unplayable. Users with a 4K display should either stick to Low settings or consider reducing the resolution to 1440p to unlock higher quality presets.

The Ultra preset is consistently poor value across all resolutions. At 1080p, it delivers 76 FPS, which is 38 FPS lower than Medium and 21 FPS lower than High. The performance penalty for the marginal visual improvements of Ultra over High is substantial, suggesting that this preset is intended for higher-end GPUs. For this combination of CPU and GPU, the sweet spot is clearly Medium at 1080p or High at 1440p, depending on the user's resolution preference.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT is the defining component in this configuration's gaming performance. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, the GPU has a memory bandwidth of 280.3 GB/s. This bandwidth is a crucial factor in The Technomancer, as the resolution scaling data shows significant performance drops when moving to 4K, where memory bandwidth demands increase exponentially. The GPU's 2048 shading units and 64 ROPs are responsible for the raw pixel-pushing power, and the benchmark results indicate that these are insufficient for 4K Ultra settings.

The clock speeds of the RX 6650 XT are notable, with a base clock of 2055 MHz and a boost clock of 2635 MHz. These relatively high clocks, combined with the game clock of 2410 MHz, allow the GPU to perform admirably at 1080p and 1440p. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the GPU can achieve 148 FPS, which is a strong result for a mid-range card. However, the 8 GB VRAM capacity becomes a limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings, as the game's textures and geometry require more memory than what is available.

The GPU's RDNA 2 architecture, built on a 7 nm process, provides 10.79 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. This compute power is sufficient for the game's DirectX 12 rendering path, as evidenced by the playable frame rates at 1440p High. However, the architecture's 32 ray tracing cores are not utilized in this game, which does not feature ray-traced effects. The GPU's PCIe 4.0 x8 interface provides adequate bandwidth for data transfer, but it is not a factor in the measured performance differences.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19765. Its nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the NVIDIA Tesla K40m and the AMD FirePro D300, which are professional-grade cards. The RX 6650 XT's gaming performance, as measured in this game, shows that it is positioned as a 1080p and 1440p card, with 4K being a stretch goal that requires significant settings reductions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings is playable. The Low preset delivers an average of 148 FPS, which is exceptionally smooth and suitable for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Medium preset averages 114 FPS, with minimum and maximum values of 97 FPS and 131 FPS respectively, indicating consistent frame pacing. The High preset averages 97 FPS, which is still above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The Ultra preset averages 76 FPS, which is playable but represents a significant drop from High.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease across all settings. The Low preset averages 97 FPS, which is identical to the 1080p High result, showing that the GPU can handle the increased resolution at low quality. The Medium preset averages 74 FPS, with a minimum of 63 FPS and maximum of 85 FPS. The High preset averages 63 FPS, which is at the edge of playability for users who prefer 60 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 50 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target and may cause noticeable stuttering in action-heavy scenes.

At 3840x2160, the GPU struggles to maintain playable frame rates. The Low preset averages 53 FPS, which is playable but not smooth. The Medium preset averages 41 FPS, with a minimum of 35 FPS and maximum of 47 FPS, indicating significant frame time variance. The High preset averages 35 FPS, which is below the playable threshold for most users. The Ultra preset averages 27 FPS, which is effectively unplayable and will result in a poor gaming experience with noticeable input lag.

The data shows a clear pattern: the GPU can handle 1080p at any settings level, 1440p at Low through High settings, but only 4K at Low settings. The minimum frame rates at Medium settings for each resolution (97 FPS at 1080p, 63 FPS at 1440p, 35 FPS at 4K) provide a conservative estimate of performance in demanding scenes, and these values are all within 15% of the average, suggesting that the game has consistent performance without major spikes or drops.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT ranks 1823 out of 2825 tested combos in this game. This places the configuration in the bottom 35% of all tested systems, which is somewhat surprising given the CPU's strong performance. The ranking indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor, as many other combos with less capable CPUs but stronger GPUs would rank higher.

The CPU itself performs admirably in synthetic benchmarks, ranking in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 64640. Its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 4464P, has an average score of 64823, which is 0.3% higher. The Intel Core Ultra 7 265F is 0.3% lower with a score of 64438, and the AMD EPYC 7343 is 0.7% higher with a score of 64202. These close margins show that the CPU is competitive with other high-end processors, but its performance is not being fully utilized in this game due to the GPU bottleneck.

The GPU, on the other hand, ranks in the 65th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 19765. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla K40m, which is 0.6% lower with a score of 19885, and the AMD FirePro D300, which is 0.7% higher with a score of 19637. The GPU's mid-range positioning is reflected in the game's ranking, where it drags the combo down relative to systems with higher-end graphics cards.

The disparity between the CPU's high percentile ranking and the combo's low game ranking highlights the importance of GPU selection for gaming. Users with this CPU should pair it with a more powerful GPU to achieve better frame rates in The Technomancer, as the CPU has significant headroom. The data suggests that the combo is well-balanced for productivity tasks, where the CPU's 20 cores shine, but for gaming, the GPU becomes the bottleneck.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the optimal resolution, with all settings presets delivering playable frame rates. At 1080p Medium, the combo achieves an average of 114 FPS, while at 2560x1440 High, it drops to 63 FPS. For a smooth experience, 1080p is recommended.

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

A: The measured data indicates that 4K is only viable at Low settings, which averages 53 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K drops to 41 FPS, and High falls to 35 FPS. The Ultra preset at 27 FPS is not playable. Users should avoid 4K unless they accept Low settings.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The benchmark data shows that the GPU is the clear bottleneck. The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 ranks in the 93rd percentile of CPUs, while the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT ranks in the 65th percentile of GPUs. The resolution scaling pattern, with significant FPS drops at higher resolutions, confirms that the GPU is the limiting component.

Q: What is the difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 63 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 50 FPS. This represents a 13 FPS difference, or a 21% performance drop, for the visual improvements that Ultra offers. The High preset is recommended for a better balance of quality and performance.

Q: How does the RX 6650 XT's VRAM affect performance?

A: The GPU has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory with a bandwidth of 280.3 GB/s. At 4K resolutions, the data shows significant frame rate drops, particularly at higher settings, which suggests that the memory bandwidth and capacity are insufficient for the increased texture and geometry demands.

Q: What are the frame rate ranges at Medium settings across resolutions?

A: The Medium preset has minimum and maximum values of 97 and 131 FPS at 1080p, 63 and 85 FPS at 1440p, and 35 and 47 FPS at 4K. These ranges show that the game's performance is relatively consistent, with the minimum frame rate always staying within 15% of the average.