Thief

Intel Core i5-9400 with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 lands in the lower-middle tier of the database for Thief, placing 1382nd out of 1642 tested combos. That percentile position puts it behind the vast majority of modern pairings, but the raw frame rates tell a more nuanced story: the combo is perfectly playable at 1080p and even manages solid 1440p performance, though it stumbles at 4K. The data shows a system that is heavily GPU-limited at higher resolutions, while the older six-core CPU still holds its own at lower settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 1382 out of 1642 tested configurations places it in the bottom 16th percentile of all tested pairings for Thief. This low standing is somewhat misleading when looking at actual gameplay, as the combination of a mid-range 2018 CPU and a 2019 GPU is capable of delivering respectable frame rates at mainstream resolutions. The CPU, Intel Core i5-9400, sits at the 50th percentile among all CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 2305. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i3-10305 (2300, 0.2% ahead) and the Intel Core i7-8809G (2319, 0.6% behind), showing the i5-9400 is essentially performance-neutral against those alternatives.

The GPU, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060, is slightly stronger relative to its peers, sitting at the 58th percentile among all GPUs with an average score of 16074. Its closest competition includes the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (15996, 0.5% ahead) and AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (16351, 1.7% behind). The delta between these rivals is minimal, meaning the RTX 2060's Turing architecture is competitive with newer mid-range parts in synthetic benchmarks. However, the combo's overall rank in Thief is dragged down by the aging CPU, which limits minimum frame rates in CPU-bound scenarios even if average FPS remains acceptable.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear picture of how settings affect performance. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers 116.8 FPS, Medium drops to 107.3 FPS, High falls to 82 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 77.1 FPS. The jump from Low to Medium costs only 9.5 FPS, making Medium the sweet spot for high refresh rate displays. High and Ultra both stay above 75 FPS, so either is viable for 60Hz monitors, but Ultra's 39.7 FPS deficit versus Low is not justified by visual gains for most players.

At 1440p, the pattern shifts. Low produces 95.9 FPS, Medium 75.8 FPS, High 56.1 FPS, and Ultra 56.3 FPS. The High and Ultra presets are nearly identical in performance, suggesting a GPU bottleneck that makes the extra settings cost negligible. Medium is the best balance here, offering 75.8 FPS which is still above 60. For 4K, no preset reaches 60 FPS; Low hits 59.7 FPS, Medium 42.8 FPS, High 35.5 FPS, and Ultra drops to 29.8 FPS. The recommendation is clear: use Medium at 1440p for the best experience, or Low at 4K if you must push resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a strong GPU bottleneck. At High settings, FPS drops from 82 at 1080p to 56.1 at 1440p (a 31.6% reduction) and then to 35.5 at 4K (a 56.7% reduction from 1080p). This steep decline is typical for a GPU with 6 GB of VRAM and a 192-bit memory bus, as the RTX 2060's 336.0 GB/s bandwidth becomes the limiting factor at higher pixel counts. The CPU's influence is minimal here, as even the modest i5-9400 can feed frames faster than the GPU can render them at these resolutions.

At Low settings, the scaling is less severe but still pronounced: 116.8 FPS at 1080p, 95.9 at 1440p (a 17.9% drop), and 59.7 at 4K (a 48.9% drop). The fact that Low at 4K still delivers 59.7 FPS suggests that the GPU is capable of handling the pixel count when shading costs are minimized, but the 1440p-to-4K gap of 36.2 FPS shows the memory bandwidth ceiling. The data indicates the RTX 2060 is the primary limiter across all resolutions, with the i5-9400 never becoming the bottleneck in these measurements.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1080p is where this combo shines. At Low settings, the average FPS of 116.8 is well above any refresh rate target, and even Medium at 107.3 FPS leaves headroom for a 100Hz display. High settings at 82 FPS are smooth on a 75Hz monitor, while Ultra at 77.1 FPS remains playable but shows diminishing returns. The gap between Low and Ultra is 39.7 FPS, which is substantial but not unexpected for a game from 2014 that is not particularly demanding by modern standards.

1440p results in a more balanced spread. Low at 95.9 FPS is excellent for high refresh rate 1440p panels, while Medium at 75.8 FPS still clears 60. High and Ultra are nearly identical at 56.1 and 56.3 FPS respectively, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional effects are not costing extra performance at this resolution. This suggests the GPU is hitting a hard performance ceiling around 56 FPS at these settings, likely due to pixel fill rate limits.

4K is the weak point. Low at 59.7 FPS is just shy of 60, making it the only viable preset for smooth gameplay. Medium at 42.8 FPS is borderline, High at 35.5 FPS is not recommended, and Ultra at 29.8 FPS is effectively unplayable. The 4K numbers confirm the RTX 2060's 6 GB VRAM and 192-bit bus are insufficient for high-fidelity 4K gaming in Thief. Users should treat 4K as a Low-settings-only scenario with this hardware.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of 60 FPS at 1080p with high settings?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 1080p High is 82, which is comfortably above 60. Even at Ultra, the average of 77.1 FPS exceeds the 60 FPS target.

Q: Can the RTX 2060 handle 4K gaming in Thief?

A: Only at Low settings, where it averages 59.7 FPS. Medium drops to 42.8 FPS, High to 35.5 FPS, and Ultra to 29.8 FPS, making 4K practical only with reduced visual quality.

Q: How does the Intel Core i5-9400 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305, which is 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i3-10305 (2300) and 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i3-1125G4 (2299). It trails the Intel Core i7-8809G (2319) by 0.6%.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 1440p 60Hz monitor?

A: Medium is the optimal choice, delivering 75.8 FPS. High and Ultra both average around 56 FPS, which is below the 60Hz refresh rate, though they remain playable if you prefer higher visual fidelity.

Q: Is the RTX 2060 significantly better than its closest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 2060 scores 16074 on average, which is 0.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (15996) and 1.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (15786). It is 1.7% behind both the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (16351 each).

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at any resolution?

A: The data does not indicate a CPU bottleneck. FPS scales downward consistently with resolution, and even at 1080p Low (116.8 FPS), the i5-9400 keeps up with the RTX 2060. The GPU appears to be the limiting component across all tested settings.