Thief

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT delivers a solid 1080p and 1440p experience in Thief, with the GPU clearly being the dominant factor as resolution increases. The data shows a steady performance curve, but the 4K results reveal the limits of this combination. Measured FPS numbers are available for all settings, with the notable exception of minimum FPS for Low and Ultra presets.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a predictable drop in performance as resolution scales from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160, but the pattern reveals the limiting component at each step. At 1920x1080, the combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT produces average frame rates between 96 and 119 FPS across the four quality presets (Low through Ultra). The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is only 23 FPS (119 vs 96), suggesting that the CPU is providing a solid baseline but the GPU is not fully saturated at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS drops to 105 at Low, 95 at Medium, 78 at High, and 74 at Ultra. The scaling here is noteworthy: the Low preset only loses 14 FPS compared to 1080p (119 to 105), but the Ultra preset loses 22 FPS (96 to 74). This indicates that at 1440p, the GPU begins to take on a more significant role, with the CPU still able to feed frames efficiently. The Medium preset records a minimum of 81 FPS and maximum of 109 FPS, showing a stable frame delivery window at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the pattern shifts decisively. The Low preset averages 79 FPS, but Medium drops to 60 FPS, High to 46 FPS, and Ultra to 43 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is a massive 36 FPS, compared to just 23 FPS at 1080p. This confirms that the GPU becomes the primary limiting component at 4K, with the CPU's role diminishing as resolution increases. The Medium preset at 4K shows a minimum of 51 FPS and maximum of 69 FPS, indicating a playable range, but the Ultra preset at 43 FPS average puts the game at the edge of smooth gameplay.

The overall resolution scaling pattern is classic GPU-bound behavior at high resolutions. The gap between Low and Ultra presets at each resolution—23 FPS at 1080p, 31 FPS at 1440p, and 36 FPS at 4K—shows that the game's graphical settings become more demanding as pixel count increases. The data does not include any ray tracing or DLSS-style features, so the performance is purely based on traditional rasterization.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a Coffee Lake architecture six-core, six-thread processor with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. It supports DDR4 memory in dual-channel configuration with a memory bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. The processor has a 9 MB shared L3 cache and a 65W TDP, and uses PCIe Gen 3 with 16 lanes.

In Thief, the CPU's core count and clock speed are adequate for the game's engine, which was released in 2014 and primarily relies on single-core performance for game logic and scene management. The 6-core, 6-thread configuration is sufficient for this title, as the game does not fully utilize multi-threaded architectures. The boost clock of 4.10 GHz is the key specification here, as it directly influences the frame rate at lower resolutions where the CPU is more likely to be a bottleneck.

Benchmark results for the CPU show a Cinebench R20 multi-core score of 2784 and a single-core score of 392, which puts it in the 47th percentile among all CPUs. This percentile ranking means that the CPU handles the game's computational tasks adequately but is not a high-end performer. The nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 with a deltaPct of -0.2% and the Intel Core i3-10305 with a deltaPct of -0.4%, perform essentially within the same margin, reinforcing that the CPU is a middle-of-the-road part.

In practical terms, the CPU's single-core performance is the limiting factor when the GPU is not saturated. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is just 23 FPS, which is relatively small compared to the 4K gap. This suggests that the CPU is keeping pace with the game's demands, but at higher resolutions, the GPU takes over as the constraint. The CPU's performance in the game is adequate, but it is not a powerhouse, as indicated by its 47th percentile ranking among all CPUs.

The Intel Core i5-9400's memory bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s is sufficient for the game's data streaming, and the PCIe Gen 3 x16 connection is standard for this generation. The CPU's integrated graphics (UHD 630) are not relevant here, as the RX 6750 XT is a discrete GPU. Overall, the CPU role in this combo is to provide a stable frame rate in CPU-light scenes, but it cannot push the frame rate higher than the GPU allows at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT is based on the Navi 22 chip with RDNA 2.0 architecture, manufactured on a 7 nm process. It has 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 432.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth. The GPU's boost clock is 2600 MHz, with a game clock of 2495 MHz and base clock of 2150 MHz. It has 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with 40 ray accelerators (RT cores) using RDNA 2.0.

The GPU's memory capacity and bandwidth are directly relevant to Thief's performance. The game is not memory-hungry by modern standards, but the 12 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for all tested settings. The bandwidth of 432.0 GB/s ensures that textures and geometry can be loaded aggressively, which is evident in the smooth frame rate scaling at 1440p and 4K.

The GPU's FP32 performance is 13.31 TFLOPS, and its texture rate is 416.0 GTexel/s, which provides adequate fill rate for the game's visuals. The pixel rate of 166.4 GPixel/s is another indicator of the GPU's ability to handle high-pixel-count scenes. In Thief, the GPU's ability to handle shader work and texture loads is the primary factor at higher resolutions, as the data shows the frame rate dropping as resolution increases.

The GPU's benchmark results show a Passmark G3D score of 20700 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2548, placing it in the 71st percentile of all GPUs. The nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R9 M395X with a deltaPct of 0.5%, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Mobile with a deltaPct of 1.1%, indicating the RX 6750 XT is a solid mid-to-high-range performer.

At 4K, the GPU is clearly the limiting component. The frame rate drop from 1080p High (97 FPS) to 4K High (46 FPS) is a 51 FPS reduction, while the Low preset drops from 119 FPS to 79 FPS, a 40 FPS reduction. This indicates that the GPU is becoming saturated at 4K, and the CPU is no longer the primary constraint. The GPU's 12 GB memory is never a limitation, as no scene would require more, but the compute throughput is the bottleneck.

The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (API version 12_2) is irrelevant for Thief, which was released before DX12 was a standard, but the hardware is forward-compatible for other titles. The 40 RT cores are not used in Thief, as the game does not support ray tracing. The GPU's Vulkan 1.4 and OpenGL 4.6 support are also not leveraged by the game's engine, so the performance is purely based on the GPU's raw rasterization capabilities.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT ranks 2230 out of 3720 tested combos in Thief. This places it in the 60th percentile of all tested system pairs. The ranking reflects the balance between the CPU and GPU, which is a middle-of-the-pack configuration. The CPU's 60th percentile of rank of 47% of all CPUs and the GPU's 71% percentile combine to yield a system that is competitive but not top-tier.

In Thief, the combo's performance is largely defined by the GPU at high resolutions, but the CPU at low resolutions. The 1080p Ultra average FPS of 96 is only 1 FPS lower than the High preset (97 FPS), showing that the CPU is not the limiting factor when the GPU has less work at 1080p. However, the 4K Ultra average of 43 FPS is below the 60 FPS playable threshold, indicating that the combo is not ideal for 4K gaming in this title.

The ranking of 2230 out of 3720 means that there are over 1400 combinations that perform better, but also over 1500 that perform worse. The system is positioned for 1440p gaming, where it can achieve average FPS between 74 and 105 across presets, with Medium at 95 FPS being a sweet spot. The combo's performance is consistent with the GPU's 71% percentile, as the CPU is not a bottleneck at 1440p but the GPU's capabilities are fully utilized.

The nearest CPU rivals show that the i5-9400 is within 0.4% of the Intel Core i3-10305 and within 0.2% of the Intel Core i7-1068NG7, indicating that swapping the CPU for a slightly better part would not yield a significant improvement in this game. The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the AMD Radeon R9 M395X with a deltaPct of 0.5% and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Mobile with a deltaPct of 1.1%, show that the RX 6750 XT is effectively at the same level as these parts in the tested scenarios.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to run Thief on this combo?

A: 2560x1440 with Medium settings, which yields an average FPS of 95, with a minimum of 81 FPS and maximum of 109 FPS. This provides smooth frame rates with a good balance between visual quality and performance.

Q: Can this system run Thief at 4K?

A: The system can run Thief at 4K, but only with reduced settings. The Low preset averages 79 FPS, while Medium drops to 60 FPS, High to 46 FPS, and Ultra to 43 FPS. The High and Ultra presets are below the 60 FPS target, so they are not ideal for smooth gameplay.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the CPU is the primary bottleneck, as evidenced by the small difference between the Low (119 FPS) and Ultra (96 FPS) presets. The GPU has enough compute power to handle the lower resolution, so the CPU's single-core performance limits the frame rate.

Q: How does the RX 6750 XT compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RX 6750 XT has an average benchmark score of 26011, which is 0.5% higher than the AMD Radeon R9 M395X (25891) and 0.6% higher than the AMD FirePro W7100 (25856). It is 1.1% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Mobile (25740).

Q: What is the performance of the i5-9400 relative to other CPUs?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2254, which is 0.2% lower than the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 (2259) and 0.3% higher than the Intel Core i7-10710U (2248). The Intel Core i3-10305 is 0.4% higher at 2264.

Q: How does the combo rank in Thief?

A: The combo ranks 2230 out of 3720 tested combinations, placing it in the 60th percentile. This means it outperforms about 60% of all tested combinations in this game, but is behind about 40% of them.

Q: What is the difference between 1080p and 4K performance?

A: At 1080p High, the system averages 97 FPS, while at 4K High it drops to 46 FPS, a 51 FPS reduction. The Low preset drops from 119 FPS to 79 FPS, a 40 FPS reduction, showing that the GPU is the bottleneck at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table details the exact measured FPS data for the Intel Core i5-9400 with AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT in Thief.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

|------------|----------|---------|---------|---------|

| 3840x2160 | Low | 79 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 60 | 51 | 69 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 46 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 43 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 105 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 95 | 81 | 109 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 78 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 74 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 119 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 107 | 91 | 124 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 97 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 96 | - | - |

The data shows that the only presets with minimum and maximum FPS values are the Medium settings at 1080 and 1440p, and 4K. The Low, High, and Ultra presets at each resolution do not have recorded min or max FPS, so only the average is available. The Medium preset at 1920x1080 has a minimum of 91 FPS and a maximum of 124 FPS, indicating a stable frame rate. At 2560x1440, Medium has a minimum of 81 FPS and maximum of 109 FPS, showing a 28 FPS variance. The 4K Medium preset has a minimum of 51 FPS and maximum of 69 FPS, a 18 FPS variance, which is tighter than the lower resolutions.

The average FPS across all settings shows a clear pattern: Low settings provide the highest FPS at each resolution, followed by Medium, then High, and finally Ultra. The only exception is at 1080p, where High (97 FPS) is just 1 FPS above Ultra (96 FPS), indicating that the Ultra preset does not add significant rendering load at this resolution compared to High.

The FPS data does not include any details about the in-game weather or time of day, so the measurements are assumed to be from a consistent test environment. The lack of min/max FPS for most settings means that frame pacing and stability cannot be fully assessed from this data alone, but the Medium presets provide the most complete picture. The 4K Medium preset with a minimum of 51 FPS suggests that the game may experience occasional drops below the 60 FPS target, but the average of 60 FPS indicates that it is generally playable.