Thief

The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 delivers a compelling performance profile in Thief, a 2014 stealth title. The data shows a system capable of high refresh rates at mainstream resolutions while maintaining playability at 4K, with distinct scaling patterns that reveal the balance between CPU and GPU workload.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent drop in performance as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 154 FPS at 1080p to 106 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 62 FPS at 4K. This represents a reduction of approximately 31% when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 41% drop when stepping up to 4K.

The scaling pattern at Low settings follows a similar trajectory but with higher absolute values. The system produces 232 FPS at 1080p, dropping to 183 FPS at 1440p, and then to 108 FPS at 4K. The percentage decrease from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 21%, while the 1440p to 4K transition costs about 41% of performance. This steeper decline at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor as pixel count increases.

Medium settings show the most complete data set, including minimum and maximum frame rates. At 1080p, the average is 203 FPS with a range of 172 to 233 FPS. Moving to 1440p, the average drops to 139 FPS with a range of 118 to 160 FPS, and at 4K the average falls to 82 FPS with a range of 70 to 94 FPS. The frame time consistency, as indicated by the spread between minimum and maximum, remains relatively stable across resolutions, suggesting the system does not experience severe hitches even when pushing more pixels.

Ultra settings produce the lowest frame rates across all resolutions. The system manages 147 FPS at 1080p, 101 FPS at 1440p, and 59 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is particularly steep at roughly 42%, which aligns with the pattern seen at other settings and reinforces the conclusion that resolution scaling is the dominant factor in performance degradation.

The data indicates that at 1080p, the CPU still has headroom, as even Ultra settings exceed 144 FPS. However, the diminishing returns between Low and Ultra at 1080p (232 vs 147 FPS, a 37% penalty for maxing settings) suggest the GPU is starting to become the bottleneck even at this resolution. At 4K, the gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 108 vs 59 FPS, a 45% penalty, which is proportionally similar but at much lower absolute frame rates, firmly placing the RTX 5090 as the limiting component at this resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a GB202 chip manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The GPU contains 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die, with a transistor density of 122.9 million per square millimeter. The card operates at a base clock of 2017 MHz and boosts to 2407 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz, translating to 28 Gbps effective.

The memory subsystem is substantial, featuring 32 GB of GDDR7 across a 512-bit bus, delivering 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. This configuration is far beyond what a 2014 title like Thief requires, and the benchmark results confirm that memory capacity and bandwidth are not constraining factors in this game. The GPU also offers 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 render output units, along with 170 ray tracing cores and 680 tensor cores.

In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 5090 scores 18,355 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and 396,650 in Passmark G3D, placing it in the 92nd percentile among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score is 79,842, which is 0.3% higher than the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB, 0.6% higher than the Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB, and 1.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, while being 1.4% lower than the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X.

The measured FPS in Thief shows that the RTX 5090 handles the game's demands with significant headroom at lower resolutions. The fact that 1080p Low settings produce 232 FPS while 4K Ultra produces 59 FPS indicates that the GPU's compute and memory resources scale predictably with workload. The 32 GB VRAM is never challenged by Thief's asset requirements, and the high bandwidth ensures texture streaming is not a bottleneck, as evidenced by the consistent frame times at Medium settings across all resolutions.

The GPU's 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 1,636.8 GTexel/s texture rate are more than sufficient for a game from 2014, and the data supports this conclusion — the system only falls below 60 FPS at 4K Ultra, and even then it is marginally below at 59 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX is a mobile processor from the Core Ultra Series 2, based on the Arrow Lake architecture with a 3 nm process node at TSMC. It features 24 cores and 24 threads, with a base clock of 2.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. The CPU has a 55 W TDP and supports DDR5 memory across a dual-channel bus, providing 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth.

The cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 cache per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU also integrates Arc Xe-LPG Graphics with 64 execution units, though the discrete RTX 5090 handles all rendering in this benchmark scenario.

In CPU benchmarks, the 275HX scores 35,589 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2,204 in single-core, along with 19,899 in Cinebench R20 multi-core and 2,809 in single-core. Geekbench results show 20,795 multi-core and 2,458 single-core scores. The Passmark multi-thread score is 55,759, with a single-thread score of 4,713. The CPU's average benchmark score is 67,469, placing it in the 94th percentile among all CPUs.

The nearest rivals in CPU performance include the Intel Xeon w5-3525 with an average score of 67,673 (0.3% higher), the AMD EPYC 4484PX at 67,822 (0.5% higher), the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5955WX at 67,868 (0.6% higher), and the Intel Xeon 6515P at 67,006 (0.7% lower). These comparisons show the 275HX is competitive with high-end workstation and server processors despite being a mobile chip.

In Thief, the CPU's role is evident in the 1080p results where frame rates exceed 200 FPS at Low settings. The 24 cores and high boost clock of 5.40 GHz provide ample processing power for the game's AI, physics, and game logic. The data suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at any resolution, as the frame rate drops are consistent with GPU-bound scaling as resolution increases.

However, the difference between 1080p Low (232 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (147 FPS) indicates that even at lower resolutions, the GPU is still the limiting factor once settings are increased. The CPU maintains high frame rates across all settings at 1080p, and the scaling from 1080p to 4K at each settings level is proportional, which would not be the case if the CPU were causing a ceiling.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average frame rate achieved by this combination?

A: The highest average FPS is 232, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The data shows an average of 59 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, which is marginally below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 compare to its nearest rival in GPU benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5090's average benchmark score of 79,842 is 0.3% higher than the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB and 1.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, while being 1.4% lower than the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X.

Q: What is the frame rate range at 1440p Medium settings?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the system produces a minimum of 118 FPS, an average of 139 FPS, and a maximum of 160 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's performance rank among all tested CPUs?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX is in the 94th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 67,469.

Q: What is the percentage difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 154 at 1920x1080 to 62 at 3840x2160, representing a reduction of approximately 60% when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance on the optimal settings for this hardware combination in Thief. At 1920x1080, all settings levels provide excellent performance, with even Ultra settings achieving 147 FPS. The jump from Medium to Ultra costs 203 to 147 FPS, a 28% reduction, but the absolute frame rates remain high. For players prioritizing visual fidelity at 1080p, Ultra settings are viable, though Medium offers a smoother experience with 203 FPS and a tighter frame time range of 172 to 233 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the choice becomes more nuanced. Ultra settings deliver 101 FPS, which is still above 100 and acceptable for most displays. High settings at 106 FPS offer a marginal improvement, while Medium at 139 FPS provides a more substantial cushion. Low settings at 183 FPS are excessive for the visual compromise. The sweet spot appears to be Medium, which balances visual quality with a 139 FPS average and a frame range of 118 to 160 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the system reaches its limits. Ultra settings produce 59 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for high refresh rate displays. High settings at 62 FPS offer a negligible improvement, suggesting the GPU is heavily loaded at this resolution regardless of minor setting changes. Medium settings at 82 FPS provide a more comfortable margin, with a frame range of 70 to 94 FPS that keeps minimums above 60. Low settings at 108 FPS are the only option that provides a high refresh experience at 4K, but the visual compromise is significant.

The data indicates that Medium settings provide the best experience across all resolutions, offering the most balanced frame rates and the most consistent frame times as evidenced by the available minimum and maximum values. At 1080p and 1440p, Medium allows the system to operate well above 100 FPS, while at 4K it maintains an 82 FPS average with minimums above 70 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured averages are as follows: Low settings produce 232 FPS, Medium settings produce 203 FPS with a range of 172 to 233 FPS, High settings produce 154 FPS, and Ultra settings produce 147 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra is 85 FPS, with the largest single step occurring between Medium and High at 49 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low at 183 FPS, Medium at 139 FPS with a range of 118 to 160 FPS, High at 106 FPS, and Ultra at 101 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 82 FPS, and the step from Medium to High costs 33 FPS, which is proportionally similar to the 1080p pattern.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low at 108 FPS, Medium at 82 FPS with a range of 70 to 94 FPS, High at 62 FPS, and Ultra at 59 FPS. The total spread between Low and Ultra is 49 FPS, and the step from Medium to High costs 20 FPS. The minimum frame rate at Medium (70 FPS) is notably higher than the average at High (62 FPS), indicating that Medium settings provide a more consistent experience at 4K.

The frame time data available only for Medium settings shows that the range tightens as resolution increases: 61 FPS spread at 1080p, 42 FPS spread at 1440p, and 24 FPS spread at 4K. This indicates that while average frame rates drop, the frame pacing becomes more consistent at higher resolutions, likely due to reduced CPU involvement in frame generation.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 291st out of 2,851 tested combinations in Thief. This places the system in approximately the 90th percentile of all tested hardware pairings, indicating strong overall performance despite the game being released in 2014.

The rank reflects the balance between the CPU's 94th percentile standing and the GPU's 92nd percentile standing. The system's position in the top 10% of all combos suggests that this pairing is well-matched for Thief, with neither component significantly dragging down the overall result. The data shows that the GPU becomes the limiting factor at 4K Ultra, but the CPU provides enough headroom to prevent bottlenecking at lower resolutions, allowing the RTX 5090 to reach its full potential.

The combination's rank of 291 out of 2,851 means there are 290 other tested pairings that achieve higher average FPS in Thief. Given that the RTX 5090 is one of the most powerful GPUs available, these higher-ranked combinations likely feature even more powerful desktop-class GPUs or CPUs with higher single-thread performance. However, the 275HX is a mobile processor, making this ranking particularly notable for a laptop-based system, as it competes with desktop configurations while maintaining a 55 W TDP.