Thief

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 produces a distinctive performance profile in Thief, one that shifts from GPU-limited at high resolutions to increasingly balanced at 1080p. The measured frame rates reveal a system that can handle the game comfortably across all tested settings, though the scaling behavior highlights where the bottleneck lies. This analysis breaks down the resolution scaling, the GPU’s role, the optimal settings, and how this combination ranks among the 1,642 tested combos.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent, directly indicating that the RTX 4060 is the primary limiting component at higher resolutions. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 108.1 FPS at 1920x1080 to 71.5 FPS at 2560x1440, then down to 43.7 FPS at 3840x2160. That is a 40.3% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 38.9% drop from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is almost perfectly linear with pixel count, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario.

The data confirms this pattern across all settings. At Low, the system delivers 185.2 FPS at 1080p, falls to 125.7 FPS at 1440p, and bottoms out at 73 FPS at 4K. At Ultra, the numbers are 102.8 FPS, 71.9 FPS, and 42.7 FPS respectively. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows as resolution increases: at 1080p, Ultra is 44.5% slower than Low, but at 4K that difference shrinks to 41.5%. This compression suggests that while the GPU is still the main constraint, the CPU is contributing more of the workload at lower resolutions.

The 4K results are telling. Even at Low settings, the average frame rate of 73 FPS is respectable, but at High and Ultra the system struggles to maintain 60 FPS, with 43.7 FPS and 42.7 FPS respectively. This indicates that 4K gaming on this combo requires dropping to Medium or lower for a smooth experience. The i7-14700F, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is clearly not the limiting factor at 4K; the GPU’s 8 GB of VRAM and 128-bit memory bus are being saturated.

GPU Role

The RTX 4060 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with a 5 nm process from TSMC, featuring 18,900 million transistors on a 159 mm² die. Its memory configuration is 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, providing 272.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The base clock is 1830 MHz with a boost clock of 2460 MHz, and the memory runs at 2125 MHz (17 Gbps effective). These specifications explain the scaling behavior observed in the measured FPS.

The pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 236.2 GTexel/s are modest for a modern GPU, and they directly impact higher resolutions. At 4K, the GPU is pushing over 8.3 million pixels per frame, which stresses the 48 ROPs and 96 TMUs. The 3072 shading units are adequate for the game’s DirectX 12 Ultimate workload, but the 128-bit memory bus becomes a bottleneck when texture data exceeds what can be cached. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for Thief’s 2014-era assets, but the bandwidth is the limiting factor at Ultra settings.

The GPU’s benchmark scores reflect its mid-range positioning. It scores 19,545 in Passmark G3D, 15.11 TFLOPS in FP32, and 9,213 in Passmark GPU Compute. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it achieves 2,302. These numbers place it at the 66th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6600M (0.6% slower) and the Intel Arc B580 (0.7% faster). The RTX 4060’s performance in Thief is consistent with these synthetic scores—capable but not exceptional.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide clear guidance for the optimal experience at each resolution. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers 102.8 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay, and High is only slightly behind at 108.1 FPS. Since the difference between Medium and Ultra is narrow (137.6 FPS vs 102.8 FPS), Ultra is the recommended choice for visual fidelity without sacrificing fluidity. The GPU has headroom here, as even Ultra maintains a high frame rate.

At 2560x1440, the picture changes. Ultra drops to 71.9 FPS, which is still playable but leaves little margin for demanding scenes. High is essentially identical at 71.5 FPS, while Medium offers 95.3 FPS. For a consistently smooth experience, Medium is the safer pick, as it provides a 32.5% improvement over Ultra with minimal visual compromise. High is acceptable for those who prioritize image quality, but the data suggests Medium is the sweet spot.

At 3840x2160, the options are more constrained. Low averages 73 FPS, Medium 56.7 FPS, and High/Ultra fall to 43.7 FPS and 42.7 FPS respectively. The recommendation is Low for a buttery experience, or Medium for those who can tolerate slightly lower frame rates. Ultra is not viable for competitive play, and even High will feel sluggish in fast-paced stealth sequences. The 4K data shows that this combo is best suited to 1440p and below.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Thief?

A: The data shows 2560x1440 at Medium settings provides 95.3 FPS, which is the best balance of visual quality and performance. At 1920x1080, Ultra achieves 102.8 FPS, but the visual gains over Medium are marginal. 4K is only playable at Low settings, where it averages 73 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 perform against its nearest rivals?

A: The GPU’s average benchmark score of 23,181 puts it 0.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6600M and 0.7% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti. It is 0.7% ahead of the Intel Arc B580 and 0.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon 760M. These deltas are within noise, indicating near-identical performance tiers.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in Thief?

A: At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor, as frame rates scale almost linearly with resolution. At 1920x1080, the CPU plays a larger role, evidenced by the fact that Ultra is only 44.5% slower than Low, compared to the 4K gap of 41.5%. The i7-14700F has ample headroom with its 20 cores and 28 threads.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average is 102.8 FPS at 1920x1080 with the Ultra preset. This is comfortable for most displays, and the High preset at 108.1 FPS offers a slight improvement if you prefer higher frame rates over minor visual enhancements.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: The combination ranks 849th out of 1,642 tested combos, placing it in the 52nd percentile. This is a mid-table result, consistent with the GPU’s 66th percentile ranking and the CPU’s 94th percentile ranking, indicating the GPU is the performance limiter.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM cause issues at 4K?

A: The 272.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 128-bit bus are more likely constraints than the 8 GB capacity. At 4K Ultra, the average frame rate of 42.7 FPS suggests the GPU is struggling with memory throughput, not capacity, as Thief’s assets are relatively light by modern standards.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination places 849th out of 1,642 tested combos in Thief. This rank is surprisingly mid-table, given the CPU’s strong positioning. The i7-14700F scores at the 94th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54,097, placing it 0.6% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and 1.1% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D. It is 1.2% ahead of the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 and 1.7% ahead of the AMD EPYC 7313P. This is a top-tier processor.

The GPU, however, is the weak link. The RTX 4060 sits at the 66th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23,181. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6600M, is only 0.6% slower, and the Intel Arc B580 is 0.7% faster. The GPU’s performance in Thief is thus constrained by its mid-range positioning, which drags the overall combo rank down. The 849th position out of 1,642 means this combo is slightly below the median, which is expected given the mismatch between a high-end CPU and a mainstream GPU.

The data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where the CPU can flex its muscles and the GPU can maintain high frame rates. At 4K, the GPU’s limitations become apparent, and the combo rank would likely improve if paired with a stronger graphics card. For Thief specifically, the 849th rank is a fair representation of the system’s overall capability, as the game is not particularly demanding by modern standards but still taxes the GPU at higher resolutions.