Thief

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER in Thief delivers a performance profile that is strictly dictated by the GPU at higher resolutions and by the CPU at 1080p. The benchmark data shows a clear pattern: the GTX 1660 SUPER is the limiting factor at 4K, while the CPU’s high core count and boost clock keep frame rates high at 1080p. The combination ranks 3179th out of 3720 tested combos, placing it in the lower portion of the database, but the absolute performance is still workable for this stealth title.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with Low settings?

**A: The average FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings is 120 frames per second. This is the highest average FPS recorded across all configurations in the measured data.

Q: At which resolution does the system drop below 30 FPS?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 27. The 4K High preset also drops below 30 FPS, averaging 28 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average is 37 FPS.

Q: What is the combo's rank in the database?

A: The combo ranks 3179th out of 3720 tested combos. This means the combo is in the 85th percentile of the tested combos (based on the rank position).

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in multi-core performance?

A: The CPU has an average benchmark score of 53620. The nearest rival, the Intel Xeon 6505P, has an average score of 53701, which is a delta of -0.2%, meaning the Xeon is slightly ahead. The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X is behind by 0.6%.

Q: What is the GPU's average benchmark score relative to its closest rival?

A: The GPU has an average score of 12986. The nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, which has an average score of 12940, a delta of 0.4% behind. The AMD Radeon RX 580 is 0.4% behind as well with a score of 12928.

Q: What are the CPU's core and thread counts?

A: The CPU has 20 cores and 28 threads. It also has a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is the primary contributor to the frame rate in this game, especially at resolutions above 1080p. The GPU features 1408 shading units, 88 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. It runs at a base clock of 1530 MHz and a boost clock of 1785 MHz. The memory subsystem consists of 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s. This memory bandwidth is adequate for Thief's texture loads, but the raw shader performance (FP32 at 5.027 TFLOPS) is the limiting factor at 4K.

The GPU's benchmark scores reflect its mid-tier status. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1278, and the Passmark G3D score is 12699. The Passmark DirectX 11 score is 104, DirectX 12 score is 50, and DirectX 9 score is 189. These scores place the GTX 1660 SUPER in the 53rd percentile of all GPUs. The nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (score 12940, delta 0.4% behind) and the AMD Radeon RX 580 (score 12928, delta 0.4% behind). This indicates that the GTX 1660 SUPER is a mid-range card that is slightly behind those two alternatives in raw compute, but its performance is broadly comparable.

In Thief, the GPU's role is most visible at 4K. At 3840x2160, the average FPS at Low is 48, Medium is 37, High is 28, and Ultra is 27. The drop from Low to Medium is 11 FPS, but the drop from Medium to High is 9 FPS, and from High to Ultra is only 1 FPS. This suggests that the GPU is already saturated at Medium settings, and further increases in settings yield diminishing returns. The min FPS at 4K Medium is 31, which is still playable, but the average of 37 indicates that the GPU is struggling to maintain high frame rates.

At 1440p, the GPU's headroom is more apparent. Low yields 82 FPS, Medium 62, High 47, and Ultra 45. The scaling from Low to Medium is a 20 FPS drop, but from Medium to High is only 15 FPS, and from High to Ultra is just 2 FPS. This shows that the GTX 1660 SUPER can handle 1440p on lower presets comfortably, but at High and Ultra it falls below 60 FPS.

At 1080p, the GPU is less of a bottleneck. Low yields 120 FPS, Medium 91 FPS, High 69 FPS, and Ultra 66 FPS. The GPU still manages to exceed 60 FPS on High, which is a playable experience. The min FPS at 1080p Medium is 77, indicating that the GPU can sustain decent frame times even when the load increases.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a high-end desktop processor from the 14th Gen series, built on the Raptor Lake architecture with a 10 nm process. It has 20 cores and 28 threads, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. The processor supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory, with a dual-channel memory bus, and is rated at a 65 W TDP. The CPU's benchmark scores are impressive: Cinebench R23 multi-core is 35122, single-core is 4958, Geekbench multi-core is 19620, and single-core is 2429. The Passmark multi-thread score is 41317, and the single-thread score is 4257.

The CPU's percentile ranking is 91st of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53620. Its nearest rivals are the Intel Xeon 6505P (score 53701, delta -0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (score 53288, delta 0.6%). This indicates that the i7-14700F is slightly below the Xeon in average score but slightly above the Ryzen, placing it in the top tier of consumer desktop processors. In the context of Thief, a game from 2014 that is not heavily multithreaded, the CPU's high single-core performance is more relevant than its multi-core capabilities. The boost clock of 5.40 GHz is a strong advantage for a game that relies on single-thread performance for game logic and physics.

At 1080p, the CPU is not the bottleneck. The game even runs at 120 FPS on Low, which is a CPU-friendly scenario. At 4K, the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU can easily keep up with the GPU's output. The fact that the CPU's L3 cache of 33 MB is shared across all cores means that the game's data is likely to be cached, reducing memory latency. The processor's performance in Thief is therefore sufficient to avoid any framerate dips that could be attributed to CPU limitations.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of the Intel Core i7-14700F and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 3179th out of 3720 tested combos. This rank is in the lower 15.4% of the database (since 3179/3720 = 0.8546). This placement is driven by the low performance of the GPU, which limits the full potential of the CPU. The position indicates that this is a lower-tier combination for Thief, despite the CPU's high performance.

The rank is a direct result of the GPU's relative weakness. The CPU's performance percentile is 91st, while the GPU's is 53rd. The combination of a high-end CPU with a mid-range GPU is a classic bottleneck scenario, where the GPU cannot keep up with the CPU. In the database's ranking, this leads to a low rank because the total system performance is capped by the GPU. The combo is not a high-end system, but it is also not a low-end system—it is a viable mid-range build for 1080p gaming, but for 4K it is clearly insufficient.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drops from 1080p to 4K are significant, and they highlight the GPU's role as the limiting component. At 1080p, the average FPS across all settings is 86.5 (120+91+69+66 divided by 4). At 1440p, the average is 59 (82+62+47+45 divided by 4). At 4K, the average is 35 (48+37+28+27 divided by 4). The drop from 1080p to 1440p is a 32% reduction, and from 1440p to 4K is a 41% reduction. This is a classic GPU-bound scaling, because the CPU is not the limiting factor.

The scaling from Low to Ultra also shows the GPU's limits. At 1080p, Low yields 120 FPS, but Ultra yields 66 FPS, a 45% drop. At 4K, Low yields 48 FPS, and Ultra yields 27 FPS, a 44% drop. The relative drop is similar, which indicates the GPU is consistently the bottleneck at all resolutions. The CPU can handle the game's logic at all resolutions, so the GPU's fill rate and shader performance are the main determinants of frame rate.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The data includes 12 measured FPS entries, covering four resolutions and four settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra). The FPS values are average, with min and max only provided for Medium settings.

4K (3840x2160)

• Low: 48 FPS
• Medium: 37 FPS (min 31, max 42)
• High: 28 FPS
• Ultra: 27 FPS

1440p (2560x1440)

• Low: 82 FPS
• Medium: 62 FPS (min 53, max 72)
• High: 47 FPS
• Ultra: 45 FPS

1080p (1920x1080)

• Low: 120 FPS
• Medium: 91 FPS (min 77, max 105)
• High: 69 FPS
• Ultra: 66 FPS

The min FPS values are only provided for Medium, which is the only setting with min/max data. At 1080p Medium, the min is 77 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. At 1440p Medium, the min is 53 FPS, which is below 60. At 4K Medium, the min is 31 FPS, which is below 30 FPS. The min FPS is important for smoothness, and the data shows that the combo is not ideal for 4K Medium, as the min is 31, which can cause stutter.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired smoothness.

At 1080p, the best experience is with the High preset, which yields an average of 69 FPS and a minimum of 77 FPS (the min is only given for Medium, but High is likely higher). The Low preset hits 120 FPS, but that is unnecessary for a smooth experience. Medium yields 91 FPS, but High is a good balance of visual quality and performance. Ultra is only 66 FPS, which is still playable, but the incremental visual gain over High is minimal. The 1080p High preset is the recommended choice for most players.

At 1440p, the Medium preset is the best option. It delivers 62 FPS average, with a min of 53 FPS. The Low preset gives 82 FPS, but at a significant visual cost. High and Ultra drop to 47 and 45 FPS, respectively, which are below the 60 FPS threshold. Medium is the highest settings that can maintain a playable frame rate, with a min of 53 FPS.

At 4K, the Low preset is the only playable option, with an average of 48 FPS. The Medium preset averages 37 FPS, with a min of 31 FPS, which may be too low for a smooth experience. High and Ultra are below 30 FPS, which is generally considered unplayable. For 4K, the Low preset is the best compromise between visual quality and performance.

The data also shows that the GPU is the limiting factor. To achieve higher frame rates, the user would need to reduce the resolution or lower the settings. The CPU is not the bottleneck, so the user should focus on the GPU's settings. The game is a stealth title, so a stable frame rate is important for smooth gameplay, but the game is not a competitive shooter, so lower frame rates are more acceptable.

In summary, the recommended presets are: 1080p High, 1440p Medium, and 4K Low. These settings provide the best balance of frame rate and visual quality.