To The Core

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates for the AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 in To The Core reveal a classic pattern of GPU-bound scaling as resolution increases. At 1080p with Ultra settings, the combo delivers 360 FPS average. Moving to 1440p Ultra drops that to 242 FPS, a reduction of approximately 33%. Stepping up to 4K Ultra further reduces performance to 139 FPS, which is another 43% drop from the 1440p figure.

This steep decline across resolutions indicates that the RTX 4090 is the primary performance driver at higher pixel counts, while the CPU has ample headroom at lower resolutions. The gap between 1080p and 4K at Ultra settings is 221 FPS, showing that the GPU's rendering load scales dramatically with pixel count.

At Low settings, the scaling pattern is even more pronounced. The combo produces 541 FPS at 1080p, 411 FPS at 1440p, and 235 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is roughly 57%, which is steeper than the 61% drop seen at Ultra (from 360 to 139). This suggests that at Low settings, the system is partially CPU-limited at 1080p, as the frame rate ceiling is closer to the processor's capabilities.

The Medium preset offers the most complete dataset, with minimum and maximum frame times recorded for each resolution. At 4K Medium, the average is 199 FPS with a minimum of 169 and maximum of 228. At 1440p Medium, the average rises to 347 FPS with a range of 295 to 399. The 1080p Medium average is 510 FPS, with minimum 434 and maximum 587. These variance figures are tight, indicating consistent frame pacing even at high output.

The data suggests that 4K is where the RTX 4090's massive memory bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s and 24 GB of GDDR6X memory come into play. The 4K High preset (172 FPS) outperforms the 4K Ultra preset (139 FPS) by 24%, a notable gap that points to the Ultra preset introducing effects that heavily tax the GPU. Meanwhile, the 1080p Ultra result of 360 FPS is only 20% higher than the 4K High result, showing that the GPU's capabilities are increasingly challenged as resolution climbs.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 achieves a rank of 140 out of 3,725 tested combos in To The Core. This places the system in the top 3.8% of all tested configurations, a strong showing for a CPU that was released in 2024 paired with a GPU that is already end-of-life.

The RTX 4090 alone sits in the 88th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 60,347. Its nearest rivals in general benchmarks include the Intel Arc Pro A60 (score 60,326, a 0% difference) and the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (score 61,896, which is 2.5% higher). This indicates that the GPU's raw compute capabilities are well above average, even if the specific game performance depends heavily on the CPU pairing.

The Ryzen 7 5800XT holds an 81st percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 29,879. Its nearest rivals in CPU benchmarks are the AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (score 29,868, 0% difference) and the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X (score 29,713, which is 0.6% lower). The CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads, running at a base clock of 3.80 GHz and boost clock of 4.80 GHz, provide solid multi-threaded performance for an idle game like To The Core.

The rank of 140 suggests that while the GPU is powerful enough to push high frame rates, the CPU is not the bottleneck in most scenarios. The fact that the combo sits well within the top 200 of nearly 4,000 configurations indicates that this pairing is capable of delivering a high-refresh-rate experience in this title. However, the gap between this combo and the very top ranks likely stems from CPUs with higher single-thread scores, as To The Core may rely more on per-core performance than on raw multi-threading.

FAQ

*Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo can achieve in To The Core?*

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 541 at 1080p with Low settings. The 1080p Medium preset reaches 510 FPS, while 1080p High hits 447 FPS and 1080p Ultra delivers 360 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its rivals?

A: The Ryzen 7 5800XT scores 23,794 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, which places it 0.6% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X in average benchmark score. It is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 7 7840H, which scores 29,868 versus the 5800XT's 29,879.

Q: Is the RTX 4090's performance consistent with its general benchmark standing?

A: The RTX 4090 ranks in the 88th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 60,347. In To The Core, it delivers 172 FPS at 4K High, which is a strong result for a game released in 2024.

Q: What is the largest FPS drop between settings at the same resolution?

A: At 4K, the difference between Low (235 FPS) and Ultra (139 FPS) is 96 FPS, representing a 41% reduction. At 1440p, the drop from Low (411 FPS) to Ultra (242 FPS) is 169 FPS, or 41%. At 1080p, the gap is 181 FPS between Low (541 FPS) and Ultra (360 FPS), a 33% reduction.

Q: Does the game benefit from the CPU's 16 threads?

A: The Ryzen 7 5800XT's 16 threads contribute to a 3DMark max-threads score of 7,680, which is nearly identical to the 16-thread score of 7,683. This indicates that the CPU's thread scaling plateaus quickly, suggesting the game may not fully utilize all threads.

Q: What frame rate can users expect at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: The 1440p Medium preset delivers an average of 347 FPS, with a minimum of 295 and maximum of 399. This is the most balanced setting for high-refresh-rate monitors at this resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the low-resolution results show the system's top-end capabilities. The Low preset averages 541 FPS, while Medium delivers 510 FPS with a range of 434 to 587. High settings reach 447 FPS, and Ultra drops to 360 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 181 FPS, which is the smallest percentage gap across all resolutions, indicating that the CPU can maintain high throughput even as GPU load increases.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high. Low settings average 411 FPS, Medium averages 347 FPS (minimum 295, maximum 399), High averages 301 FPS, and Ultra averages 242 FPS. The variance between minimum and maximum at Medium settings is 104 FPS, which is consistent with the 1080p Medium variance of 153 FPS. This suggests that the game's frame pacing is stable even as resolution increases.

At 3840x2160, the 4K results show the GPU's true workload. Low settings produce 235 FPS, Medium averages 199 FPS (minimum 169, maximum 228), High averages 172 FPS, and Ultra averages 139 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K has the smallest variance of all measured presets, with a spread of just 59 FPS between minimum and maximum. This tight range indicates that the RTX 4090 maintains consistent performance under load at this resolution.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at each settings level is relatively uniform. For Low settings, the drop is 130 FPS (541 to 411). For Medium, it is 163 FPS (510 to 347). For High, it is 146 FPS (447 to 301). For Ultra, it is 118 FPS (360 to 242). The consistency of these drops suggests a well-balanced system that scales predictably with pixel count.

From 1440p to 4K, the drops are more substantial. Low settings fall by 176 FPS (411 to 235), Medium by 148 FPS (347 to 199), High by 129 FPS (301 to 172), and Ultra by 103 FPS (242 to 139). The larger absolute drops at lower settings reflect the GPU's ability to render simpler scenes quickly, while the Ultra preset's smaller absolute drop indicates that the GPU is already heavily loaded at 1440p.

Settings Recommendations

For users targeting 4K resolution, the High preset at 172 FPS is the optimal choice. It provides a 24% improvement over Ultra (139 FPS) while maintaining visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 199 FPS offers a further 16% boost over High, making it suitable for those prioritizing frame rate over graphical detail. The Ultra preset, while visually demanding, still exceeds 120 FPS, so it remains viable for high-refresh-rate 4K displays.

At 1440p, the Medium preset delivers 347 FPS, which is the sweet spot for this resolution. It outperforms High (301 FPS) by 15% and Ultra (242 FPS) by 43%, while remaining within 16% of the Low preset's 411 FPS. The minimum frame rate of 295 FPS at Medium ensures that even the most demanding scenes stay above 240 FPS, making this ideal for 240Hz monitors.

For 1080p, the Medium preset at 510 FPS is the recommended choice. It is only 6% slower than Low (541 FPS) but provides significantly better visual quality. The High preset at 447 FPS is also excellent, offering a 12% reduction from Medium in exchange for higher fidelity. The Ultra preset at 360 FPS is the least efficient at this resolution, as the 33% drop from Low to Ultra does not correspond to a proportional visual gain.

The data indicates that the Medium preset offers the best balance across all resolutions. At 1080p, it delivers 510 FPS; at 1440p, 347 FPS; and at 4K, 199 FPS. This consistency makes Medium the most versatile choice for users who play at varying resolutions. The measured minimum and maximum values for Medium settings show stable performance, with the 1080p variance of 153 FPS being the largest, while 1440p and 4K variances are 104 and 59 FPS respectively.

For users with 144Hz or 165Hz monitors, even the 4K Ultra preset at 139 FPS is sufficient. For 240Hz displays, 1440p Medium or 4K High are appropriate. For 360Hz monitors, 1440p Low (411 FPS) or 1080p Medium (510 FPS) are the only options that can fully utilize the refresh rate.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, built on a 7 nm process. Its base clock of 3.80 GHz and boost clock of 4.80 GHz provide strong single-thread performance, as evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 959 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3,359. These figures are important because To The Core, as an idle game, may rely more on per-core performance than on multi-threaded scaling.

The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are substantial for its class. It scores 23,794 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, 9,993 in R20 multi-core, and 2,398 in R15 multi-core. The 3DMark results show a clear progression: 2 threads score 1,879, 4 threads score 3,603, 8 threads score 6,141, and 16 threads score 7,683. The scaling from 8 to 16 threads provides only a 25% improvement (from 6,141 to 7,683), suggesting that the game may not fully utilize all 16 threads, but the 8-core count is sufficient for maintaining high frame rates.

The CPU's 32 MB of shared L3 cache, along with 64 KB L1 and 512 KB L2 per core, helps reduce memory latency in gaming workloads. The dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth is adequate for this pairing, though it is notably lower than the RTX 4090's 1.01 TB/s memory bandwidth. This disparity means the GPU can process data much faster than the CPU can supply it, but the measured frame rates show that this is not a bottleneck at lower resolutions.

The Ryzen 7 5800XT's benchmark scores place it in the 81st percentile of all CPUs, with an average score of 29,879. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (delta 0%) and the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X (delta 0.6% higher). The PassMark multi-thread score of 28,053 and single-thread score of 3,535 further confirm its balanced performance profile. The CPU's TDP of 105 W and socket AM4 compatibility make it a straightforward upgrade for existing systems, though its 2024 release date is late in the platform's lifecycle.

In the context of To The Core, the CPU's role appears to be secondary to the GPU at 4K, where the RTX 4090 is clearly the limiting component. However, at 1080p with Low settings (541 FPS), the CPU's single-thread performance becomes more relevant, as the frame rate approaches the limit of what the processor can feed to the GPU. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 1,879 and 4-thread score of 3,603 suggest that the game's primary thread load is handled comfortably, even at extreme frame rates.