Thief

The Intel Core i7-12700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT delivers a robust performance profile in Thief, a 2014 stealth title. This combination ranks in the 87.5th percentile of tested combos, placing it in the top 12.5% of systems measured for this game. The data shows a clear scaling pattern across resolutions and settings, with the GPU taking a dominant role as resolution increases. The following analysis breaks down the measured performance of this specific CPU-GPU pair in Thief.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with High settings?

A: The combination produces an average of 158 FPS at 1920x1080 on High settings. This suggests the pair is well beyond the demands of a 60 Hz display at this resolution and settings level.

Q: How many frames per second does this system achieve at 4K Ultra?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo yields an average of 61 FPS. This makes the Ultra preset essentially a 60 FPS experience at 4K, with almost no headroom.

Q: What is the maximum FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The maximum FPS recorded in the measured data is 203 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Medium settings. This also corresponds to a minimum FPS of 150 at that same resolution and setting.

Q: How does the CPU's measured throughput compare to its closest rival, the Intel Core i7-12700K?

A: The Core i7-12700KF has an average benchmark score of 35365. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-12700K, scores 35287, a delta of 0.2%, meaning the 12700KF is slightly ahead.

Q: Which component is the limiting factor at 1440p Medium?

A: The data does not explicitly identify the bottleneck. The average FPS of 143 at 2560x1440 Medium indicates a substantial frame rate, suggesting that the GPU is still the primary driver of performance at this setting.

Q: Is the GPU's benchmark position higher or lower than the CPU's?

A: The GPU's percentile vs all GPUs is lower at 55, while the CPU's percentile vs all CPUs is higher at 85. This indicates that the CPU is a stronger performer relative to its peers than the GPU is relative to its own peers.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K is a key indicator of the system's balance. At 1080p with High settings, the system produces an average of 2 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440, the average drops to 109 FPS. At 4K (3840x2160), the average falls to 64 FPS. This represents a 58.9% decrease in average FPS from 1080p to 1440p, and an additional drop of 41.3% from 1440p to 4K.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings presets. With Low settings, the 1080p average is 195 FPS, which drops to 172 FPS at 1440p and then to 111 FPS at 4K. The Medium preset shows a similar trend: 177 FPS at 1080p, 143 FPS at 1440p, and 84 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset delivers 151 FPS at 1080p, 103 FPS at 1440p, and 61 FPS at 4K.

The large FPS drop between 1440p and 4K—particularly at the High and Ultra settings—indicates that the GPU is the limiting component at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the frame rates are so high (over 150 FPS on all settings) that the CPU could be the limiting factor. However, the data shows a clear trend: as resolution increases, the GPU workload increases, and the frame rate becomes more dependent on the GPU's capabilities. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at High is a 31% drop, and from 1440p to 4K is a 41% drop, showing that the GPU is increasingly the bottleneck at higher pixel counts.

The data also reveals that the gap between Low and Ultra settings at each resolution is significant. At 1080p, the difference between Low (195 FPS) and Ultra (151 FPS) is 44 FPS. At 1440p, the difference is 69 FPS (172 vs 103). At 4K, the difference is 50 FPS (111 vs 61). This suggests that the settings preset has a strong impact on the GPU load, which then directly affects the average frame rate. The scaling is not linear, but it is consistent, indicating that the combo is well-balanced for this title.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data suggests that the best experience is largely dependent on the target resolution and refresh rate. At 1080p, all settings presets deliver high frame rates. The Ultra preset at 1080p still achieves an average of 151 FPS, making it the best choice for a high-refresh-rate monitor. The Medium preset at 1080p offers a higher average of 177 FPS but with a lower visual fidelity. The minimum FPS at 1080p Medium is 150, which is still well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

At 1440p, the High preset is a strong candidate, providing an average of 109 FPS. The Medium preset offers a higher average of 143 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 103 FPS. For a 1440p display, the High preset seems to deliver a balanced experience. The Ultra preset at 1440p is still playable at 103 FPS, but the High preset offers a slight FPS boost.

At 4K, the High preset delivers an average of 64 FPS, making it the only preset that approaches the 60 FPS target. The Ultra preset at 4K yields 61 FPS, which is just at the threshold. The Medium preset at 4K gives 84 FPS, which is a strong option for those willing to reduce settings for better performance. The Low preset at 4K is the only one that pushes past 100 FPS, with an average of 111 FPS.

The data suggests that for a 60 FPS target at 4K, the Ultra preset is the best choice, as it achieves 61 FPS average. However, for a higher refresh rate at 1440p, the Medium or High presets are preferable. The preset recommendations should be based on the refresh rate of the display and the user's preference for visual quality versus FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-12700KF and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT combination ranks 467th out of 3720 tested combos in Thief. This places it in the top 12.5% of all combinations tested for this game. The ranking is based on the measured FPS data across all resolutions and settings.

The CPU's average benchmark score is 35365, with a percentile of 85, meaning it is better than 85% of all CPUs. The GPU's average benchmark score is 13745, with a percentile of 55, meaning it is better than 55% of all GPUs. The combo's rank of 467 out of 3720 suggests that the actual in-game performance is quite high, likely due to the combination of a strong CPU and a capable GPU.

The nearest rival for the CPU is the Intel Core i7-13700T, which has an average score of 35403, a delta of -0.1% (slightly lower). The Intel Core i5-13600T has a score of 35305, a delta of 0.2% (slightly higher). For the GPU, the AMD Radeon 660M has a score of 13812, a delta of -0.5%, and the AMD Radeon RX 570X has a score of 13871, a delta of -0.9%. The NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile has a score of 13821, a delta of -0.5%.

The combo's rank is 4.5% of the way from the top, indicating that it is a strong performer, but not the absolute best. The data shows that the CPU is a stronger component relative to its competition than the GPU is relative to its competition, yet the in-game performance is still good.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT has a 20 GB GDDR6 memory buffer, a 320-bit bus width, and a memory bandwidth of 800.0 GB/s. The GPU's base clock is 1387 MHz, with a game clock of 2025 MHz and a boost clock of 2394 MHz. These specs contribute to its performance in Thief, especially at higher resolutions where memory bandwidth is critical.

The 20 GB of VRAM is ample for Thief, a game from 2014, and likely prevents any memory capacity issues. The memory bandwidth of 800.0 GB/s is more than sufficient for the game's texture and geometry demands. The high bandwidth is likely a reason why the GPU is able to maintain high frame rates at 4K, as it can quickly load texture data.

The GPU's clock speeds influence its performance. The game clock of 2025 MHz is the typical clock under load. The boost clock of 2394 MHz is the maximum achievable, which the GPU will use when thermal and power limits allow. The data shows that the GPU is not the limiting factor at 1080p, but at 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as the FPS drops significantly.

The GPU's 5376 shading units and 192 ROPs also contribute to its rasterization performance. In Thief, which is a DirectX 12 Ultimate title, the GPU's support for DX12_2 allows for advanced features. The GPU's performance in Thief is strong, as evidenced by the high FPS at 1080p and the playable 4K performance.

The GPU's average benchmark score is 13745, which is lower than its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, which scores 13543, a delta of 1.5% (the 7900 XT is 1.5% higher). The GPU's percentile of 55 indicates that it is slightly above average, but the CPU is much higher relative to its peers.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combo in Thief is detailed below.

At 1920x1080, the frame rates are high across all settings:

• Low: Average of 1.95 FPS (no min/max data)
• Medium: Average of 1.4 FPS, with a minimum of 150 and a maximum of 203
• High: Average of 1.4 FPS (no min/max data)
• Ultra: Average of 1.4 FPS (no min/max data)

At 2560x1440, the frame rates drop but remain solid:

• Low: Average of 8.2 FPS (no min/max data)
• Medium: Average of 4.2 FPS, with a minimum of 121 and a maximum of 164
• High: Average of 3.2 FPS (no min/max data)
• Ultra: Average of 3.2 FPS (no min/max data)

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are lower but still playable:

• Low: Average of 7.2 FPS (no min/max data)
• Medium: Average of 9.2 FPS, with a minimum of 71 and a maximum of 96
• High: Average of 6.9 FPS (no min/max data)
• Ultra: Average of 6.9 FPS (no min/max data)

The data shows that the best performance is at 1080p, with all presets exceeding 150 FPS. At 1440p, the Medium preset offers the highest average at 143 FPS, while the Low preset is the fastest with 172 FPS. At 4K, the Low preset provides the best experience with 111 FPS, and the Medium preset at 84 FPS is a good balance.

The minimum FPS is only recorded for the Medium preset at each resolution. At 1080p, the minimum is 150 FPS, which is still high. At 1440p, the minimum is 121 FPS, and at 4K, it drops to 71 FPS. The maximum FPS at 1080p is 203, at 1440p is 164, and at 4K is 96. This indicates that the system is capable of delivering a consistent frame rate, especially at lower resolutions.

This breakdown provides a clear picture of the combo's performance, showing that it is capable of running Thief at high frame rates, with the only real challenge being the 4K Ultra setting, which still manages 61 FPS.