Thief

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT delivers a decisively CPU-bound experience in Thief at lower resolutions, with the GPU taking over as the primary constraint only when pushing towards 4K. The data shows a processor with immense headroom—its 20 cores and 28 threads, boosting up to 5.60 GHz, are far beyond what this 2014 stealth title requires. This leaves the Radeon RX 6750 XT as the bottleneck in most scenarios, a conclusion supported by the frame rate scaling patterns across resolutions and settings.

CPU Role

The Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread Raptor Lake-R part with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its benchmark pedigree is exceptional: it sits in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 70104. This places it virtually level with the Intel Core i7-14700K (deltaPct 0%), slightly ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X (deltaPct -0.4%), and clearly ahead of the AMD EPYC 9115 (deltaPct 0.3%) and Intel Xeon Platinum 8270 (deltaPct -1.3%). In synthetic tests, its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44557 and single-core score of 6290 reveal massive parallel and single-threaded capability.

In Thief, this CPU power is largely untapped. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 195.7 FPS, which is exceptionally high. The fact that this number drops to 112.8 FPS at 1080p High, a 42% reduction, while the resolution remains constant, strongly indicates the GPU is the limiting factor even at the lowest settings. The CPU is not the constraint; if it were, changing graphics settings would have a negligible impact on the frame rate. The processor’s 33 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache provide ample bandwidth for game logic and draw calls, but the sheer geometric and shading demands of higher presets overwhelm the GPU first. The i7-14700KF’s role here is to ensure that no frame pacing or CPU-side stutter ever emerges, which the data confirms by the smooth, high average FPS across all tested configurations.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT, built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture with a 7 nm process, is the workhorse in this pairing. It features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 432.0 GB/s. Its clocks are substantial: a base of 2150 MHz, a game clock of 2495 MHz, and a boost of 2600 MHz. The card’s 2560 shading units and 64 ROPs give it a pixel rate of 166.4 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 416.0 GTexel/s, with an FP32 throughput of 13.31 TFLOPS. It ranks in the 79th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35327, placing it just ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5600M (deltaPct 0.2%) and slightly behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Mobile (deltaPct -0.3%) and the AMD Radeon 880M (deltaPct -0.9%).

In Thief, the GPU’s limitations become evident as settings rise. At 1080p, moving from Low (195.7 FPS) to Medium (147.9 FPS) to High (112.8 FPS) to Ultra (105.9 FPS) shows a steady, expected performance degradation. The card handles the game’s DirectX 12 Ultimate feature set (as supported by its API list) without issue. The 12 GB VRAM is sufficient for this title, as no resolution or settings combination would plausibly exceed it, given the game’s 2014 release date. The GPU is the clear performance ceiling: its PassMark G3D score of 20700, while strong, is not in the same league as the CPU’s 96th percentile standing, and the frame rate data reflects this imbalance.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p to 4K reveals the transition from a GPU-bound scenario to an even more GPU-bound one. At High settings, average FPS drops from 112.8 (1080p) to 79.9 (1440p) to 44.9 (4K). That is a 29% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 44% drop from 1440p to 4K. This steep decline is the classic signature of a GPU-limited system; the CPU’s frame generation capacity remains constant, but the GPU’s pixel-pushing workload quadruples at 4K relative to 1080p.

At Low settings, the same pattern holds but with higher absolute numbers: 195.7 FPS at 1080p, 135.3 FPS at 1440p, and 81.4 FPS at 4K. The relative drop from 1080p to 4K is 58%, slightly less pronounced than at High settings (60% drop), because the reduced graphical complexity lessens the GPU load somewhat. However, the fact that even at 1080p Low, the frame rate does not approach the CPU’s theoretical maximum (as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44557, which suggests far more headroom) confirms the GPU is the bottleneck at all times. The limiting component is unambiguously the Radeon RX 6750 XT, and the CPU is never the constraint in any tested configuration.

FAQ

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

A: Based on the measured data, 1440p provides the best balance. At High settings, it delivers 79.9 FPS, which is comfortably playable, while 1080p High yields 112.8 FPS and 4K High drops to 44.9 FPS. The 1440p figure is the highest resolution that remains above the 60 FPS threshold at High settings.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Core i7-14700KF’s average benchmark score of 70104 is statistically tied with the Intel Core i7-14700K (70074, deltaPct 0%). It is 0.4% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X (70420) and 0.3% ahead of the AMD EPYC 9115 (69887). It is 1.3% ahead of the Intel Xeon Platinum 8270 (71056).

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Radeon RX 6750 XT’s average benchmark score of 35327 puts it 0.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5600M (35264) and 0.9% ahead of the AMD Radeon 880M (35646). It is 0.3% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Mobile (35435) and 1.3% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (35787).

*Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in Thief?*

A: The data conclusively shows the GPU is the limiting factor. At 1080p, increasing settings from Low (195.7 FPS) to Ultra (105.9 FPS) reduces performance by 46%, which is a GPU workload characteristic. The CPU’s 96th percentile ranking and high multi-core scores indicate it has ample spare capacity.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra at 4K?

A: At 4K, Low settings produce 81.4 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 43.6 FPS. This represents a 46% reduction in frame rate, highlighting the significant GPU cost of the highest quality preset at this resolution.

Q: How many frames per second does the combo achieve at 1080p Medium?

A: The measured average FPS at 1080p with Medium settings is 147.9. This is the highest frame rate recorded at Medium settings across all resolutions, and it is 32% higher than the 1080p High result of 112.8 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

Among all 1642 tested combinations in Thief, this pairing of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT ranks 698th. This places it in the 57th percentile of all combos, meaning it outperforms a majority of systems but is not in the top tier. The ranking is heavily weighted by the GPU’s performance, as the CPU is a top-tier part (96th percentile) while the GPU is merely above average (79th percentile). The gap between the two components’ percentiles explains why the combo does not rank higher; a more balanced pairing with a weaker CPU and stronger GPU would likely achieve a better rank in this specific game.

The rank of 698 out of 1642 is consistent with the measured FPS data. At 1080p High, the 112.8 FPS result is strong for a game from 2014, but many combos with higher-end GPUs will produce higher numbers. The core takeaway is that the CPU is not holding the system back; the GPU is the single point of limitation. For a user prioritizing this pairing, the CPU offers future-proofing for more demanding titles, but in Thief, it is the GPU that dictates the experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings average 195.7 FPS, Medium averages 147.9 FPS, High averages 112.8 FPS, and Ultra averages 105.9 FPS. The progression is smooth, with a 30% drop from Low to Medium and a 24% drop from Medium to High. The gap between High and Ultra is smaller at 6%, suggesting diminishing returns from the Ultra preset.

At 2560x1440, performance scales predictably. Low settings average 135.3 FPS, Medium averages 103 FPS, High averages 79.9 FPS, and Ultra averages 75 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at High settings is 29%, and the drop from 1440p to 4K at High settings is 44%. This confirms the GPU’s increasing workload as resolution rises.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily taxed. Low settings average 81.4 FPS, Medium averages 59.8 FPS, High averages 44.9 FPS, and Ultra averages 43.6 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra at 4K is only 3%, indicating that the Ultra preset’s additional effects are nearly free at this resolution, but all settings produce frame rates that are either marginal or below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay.

Settings Recommendations

The data points to a clear recommendation: High settings at 1440p provide the optimal experience. This configuration yields 79.9 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth play, while maintaining a high level of visual quality. Pushing to Ultra at 1440p drops the frame rate to 75 FPS, a 6% reduction that offers minimal visual gains, making it a less efficient choice.

For users prioritizing maximum frame rates, 1080p with Medium settings is the sweet spot, delivering 147.9 FPS with a good balance of quality and speed. The jump to High at 1080p costs 24% of the frame rate (down to 112.8 FPS) for a modest visual improvement, which may not be worth it on a high-refresh-rate display. At 4K, the card cannot maintain 60 FPS at any preset above Low (81.4 FPS), so users with 4K displays should either drop to Medium (59.8 FPS) and accept a near-60 FPS experience, or stick with Low for the highest frame rates. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution except 1080p, where its 105.9 FPS result is still playable, but the 6% difference from High makes it a poor value in terms of performance per frame.