The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents a demanding workload that stresses both CPU and GPU. This analysis examines the measured performance of the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 across resolutions and settings. The data indicates a system capable of high refresh rates at 1080p and 1440p, while 4K Ultra requires compromise. This configuration ranks in the 79.2nd percentile of all tested combos, placing it in the top quarter of systems benchmarked for this title.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX is a 24-core, 24-thread mobile processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture. It operates with a base clock of 2.70 GHz and can boost up to 5.40 GHz, backed by 36 MB of shared L3 cache. This high core count and boost capability provide substantial headroom for the game's threading demands, ensuring the CPU does not bottleneck the GPU in most scenarios.

Benchmark data shows the processor is a top-tier performer. It achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35589 and a single-core score of 2204, alongside a Geekbench multi-core score of 20795. Its Passmark multithread score of 55759 and single-thread score of 4713 place it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. Relative to its nearest rivals, the data shows it is effectively tied with the Intel Xeon w5-3525, which scores an average of 67673, a delta of only -0.3%. It also performs nearly identically to the AMD EPYC 4484PX, which has a deltaPct of -0.5%. This indicates that the 275HX offers computational power on par with high-end workstation processors.

In the context of The Technomancer, the CPU's strength is most evident at lower resolutions where the GPU is less burdened. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 234 FPS. This high frame rate suggests the 24 cores and high boost clock are sufficient to feed the RTX 4090 with data, preventing a CPU-bound scenario. The single-core performance, highlighted by the 2204 score in Cinebench R23, is crucial for the game's main thread logic and physics calculations, allowing for consistent frame pacing even in demanding combat encounters. The processor's 55W TDP and 3nm process node also indicate high efficiency, which is relevant for sustained performance in a mobile platform, though the benchmark results focus purely on the output.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured FPS data provides a clear hierarchy of settings presets. For players targeting the highest possible frame rates, the Low preset delivers the maximum performance. At 1080p, it yields an average of 234 FPS, which is 54 FPS higher than the High preset's 153 FPS. This preset is best suited for competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays, as the data shows it provides the smoothest experience.

The Medium preset serves as a balanced option. At 1080p, it achieves an average of 180 FPS, with a minimum of 153 FPS and a maximum of 207 FPS. This indicates a stable performance envelope that is 27 FPS faster than High but only 54 FPS slower than Low. The Medium preset appears to be the optimal choice for most users, as it offers a significant performance boost over High while likely retaining more visual fidelity than Low. The data suggests it is the best compromise between speed and image quality.

The High preset is playable but less performant. At 1080p, it averages 153 FPS, which is still high, but the drop from Medium is substantial. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, yielding an average of 120 FPS at 1080p. While playable, the margin over High is small relative to the performance cost. Benchmark results indicate that the Medium preset offers the best experience per the measured rows, providing a stable and high frame rate that exceeds the capabilities of most displays while maintaining a balance between the other presets.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The performance scaling across resolutions reveals a classic pattern of GPU-bound behavior at higher settings. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 153 at 1080p to 100 at 1440p, a 34.6% decrease. Moving to 4K, the average drops further to 55 FPS, a 45% decrease from 1440p. This steep decline indicates that the RTX 4090's rendering workload is the primary limiting factor as pixel count increases.

The pattern changes with the Low preset. At 1080p, the system achieves 234 FPS. At 1440p, it drops to 153 FPS, a 34.6% decrease. However, at 4K, the average is 84 FPS, a 45.1% decrease from 1440p. The scaling here is more linear, which suggests that while the GPU is still the main bottleneck, the CPU's capability allows the GPU to be fully utilized even at 4K. The 24-core processor ensures that the game's logic is not a constraint.

At Medium settings, the FPS drops from 180 at 1080p to 117 at 1440p, a 35% decrease, and then to 65 at 4K, a 44.4% decrease from 1440p. The consistency of these percentage drops across different settings strongly implies that the RTX 4090's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the limiting components. The GPU's 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth are not the issue, but the sheer computational load of rendering The Technomancer at 4K exceeds what the card can handle at high frame rates. The data shows that the CPU is not the bottleneck; the GPU is the primary constraint on performance at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is ranked 588th out of 2825 tested combos in The Technomancer. This ranking places it in the top 20.8% of all systems benchmarked, indicating that it is a high-performance configuration for this game. The rank is a relative measure of the total system performance, not just the individual components, and it reflects how well this CPU+GPU pairing works together.

The fact that this combo ranks in the 79.2nd percentile is notable given the specific components. The RTX 4090 is an end-of-life product, and the CPU is a mobile part. Yet, the data shows that this pairing outperforms the vast majority of other tested combinations. The ranking suggests that the balance between the 275HX's computational power and the RTX 4090's graphics capabilities is well-suited for The Technomancer's engine. While the CPU and GPU individually have rivals with similar scores, the combination's rank in the game is a unique metric that validates the synergy of this specific setup.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured FPS data shows an average of 100 FPS at 2560x1440 resolution with the High settings preset.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting component. At 4K Ultra settings, the average FPS is 43, while the CPU's single-core performance is high enough to drive lower resolutions much faster, showing the GPU's rendering load is the constraint.

Q: How does the Ultra preset performance compare to Medium at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset averages 120 FPS, while the Medium preset averages 180 FPS. The Medium preset is 60 FPS faster, or 50% higher than Ultra.

Q: What is the ranking of this CPU+GPU combo among all tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 588th out of 2825 tested combinations, placing it in the top 20.8% of all systems benchmarked for this game.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 4K Medium settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Medium settings, the minimum FPS recorded is 55, with an average of 65 FPS and a maximum of 74 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's benchmark score compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX has an average benchmark score of 67469. Its nearest rival, the Intel Xeon w5-3525, scores an average of 67673, which is a delta of -0.3%. The performance is statistically similar.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The following data represents the exact measured FPS from the benchmark. All values are reported as average FPS unless otherwise noted.

1920x1080

• Low: 234 FPS average.
• Medium: 180 FPS average, with a minimum of 153 FPS and a maximum of 207 FPS.
• High: 153 FPS average.
• Ultra: 120 FPS average.

2560x1440

• Low: 153 FPS average.
• Medium: 117 FPS average, with a minimum of 100 FPS and a maximum of 135 FPS.
• High: 100 FPS average.
• Ultra: 78 FPS average.

3840x2160

• Low: 84 FPS average.
• Medium: 65 FPS average, with a minimum of 55 FPS and a maximum of 74 FPS.
• High: 55 FPS average.
• Ultra: 43 FPS average.

The data shows a consistent performance hierarchy across all resolutions. The Low preset provides the highest frame rates, while Ultra provides the lowest. The Medium preset offers a stable middle ground with recorded minimum and maximum values, indicating good frame pacing. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is significant, but the drop to 4K is even more pronounced, particularly at higher settings. For instance, at High settings, the average FPS falls from 153 at 1080p to 55 at 4K, a reduction of 64%. This quantifies the GPU load increase at 4K.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a high-end graphics card based on the AD102 chip and Ada Lovelace architecture. It features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. The card's boost clock is rated at 2520 MHz, and it contains 16384 shading units. These specifications make it a formidable GPU, but the measured data shows that it is still the limiting factor in The Technomancer at higher resolutions.

The GPU's memory capacity is more than sufficient for this game. The Technomancer, being a 2016 title, is unlikely to exceed 8 GB of VRAM at 4K, so the 24 GB framebuffer is not a constraint. The performance bottleneck is more likely the raw compute throughput and pixel fill rate. The RTX 4090's pixel rate is 443.5 GPixel/s, but at 4K with Ultra settings, the average FPS is only 43. This suggests that the game's shader complexity and geometry load at Ultra settings exceed what the card can process in real-time, even with its 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power.

The GPU's benchmark scores confirm its high standing. Its Passmark G3D score is 38194, and it holds an 88th percentile rating among all GPUs. However, the nearest rivals in the benchmark data are professional workstation cards like the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M, which scores 61896, a delta of -2.5%. This comparison is based on synthetic benchmarks, not game performance. In the game, the RTX 4090's raw power is tempered by the game's engine limitations. The data from the measured FPS shows that even with this top-tier GPU, achieving 60 FPS at 4K requires dropping from High to Medium settings, where the average is 65 FPS. The GPU is the definitive performance limiter for this game at 4K, while the CPU provides more than enough headroom.