To The Core

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 pairing delivers exceptional performance in To The Core, an Idle game released on 2024-02-14. The measured data shows this combination ranks 226th out of 3725 tested combos, placing it in the top 6% of all configurations. This is a high-end pairing where the benchmark results indicate the system is capable of extreme frame rates even at 4K, making it suitable for high-refresh-rate displays. The data suggests that while the GPU is the primary driver of visual fidelity, the CPU's architecture ensures no bottlenecking occurs, even at lower resolutions where frame rates exceed 500 FPS.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, codenamed Granite Ridge. It operates on the AMD Socket AM5 platform with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. This 65W TDP chip is built on a 4 nm process by TSMC, featuring 8,315 million transistors on a 70.6 mm² die. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 32 MB L3 cache. Memory support is limited to DDR5, running on a dual-channel bus with 89.6 GB/s of bandwidth and ECC support included.

In terms of raw processing power, this CPU scores in the 94th percentile when compared to all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 69996 places it in close competition with several top-tier rivals. The data shows it is 0.2% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX, 0.7% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, and 0.9% ahead of the Intel Core i7-14700K. Conversely, it trails the Intel Core i7-14700KF by 0.2%. These numbers indicate that the 9700F is a top-tier desktop processor, with performance essentially neck-and-neck with the previous generation's flagship models.

For To The Core, which is an idle game, the CPU's single-thread performance is crucial. The PassMark single-thread score is 4691, which is a strong indicator of how well it handles the game's logic and simulation loops. The multi-thread score of 36470 also ensures that any background tasks or complex calculations will not cause frame drops. The benchmark results reveal that at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 552 FPS average. This exceptionally high frame rate suggests the CPU is more than capable of feeding the GPU, and the limiting factor is not the processor's ability to calculate game state, but rather the GPU's rendering speed.

The processor's architecture, with its high boost clock of 5.50 GHz and efficient Zen 5 design, is well-suited for this title. The data shows that even at 4K Ultra, where the GPU is heavily taxed, the average FPS is 125. This is a playable frame rate, but the significant jump to 212 FPS at 4K Low indicates that the CPU is not holding back performance at higher settings; the GPU is the primary constraint. The 9700F's performance with the RTX 4080 shows no signs of a CPU bottleneck, as the scaling from Low to Ultra at any resolution is consistent with GPU-bound behavior.

FAQ

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 9700F compare to the Intel Core i7-14700KF in average benchmark scores?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700F has an average benchmark score of 69996, which is 0.2% lower than the Intel Core i7-14700KF's score of 70163. This makes them effectively tied in overall performance, with the Intel chip having a negligible lead.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in the measured data?

A: The highest average FPS is 552, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This is the peak performance point in the dataset, showing the extreme upper limit of this system's capabilities in To The Core.

Q: Is the RTX 4080's performance closer to the RTX 4080 SUPER or the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB?

A: The RTX 4080's average benchmark score is 54247. The RTX 4080 SUPER scores 54209, making the RTX 4080 0.1% faster. In contrast, the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB scores 55698, which is 2.6% faster than the RTX 4080. Therefore, it is much closer in performance to the RTX 4080 SUPER than to the AMD card.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: At 2560x1440 resolution with Medium settings, the minimum FPS is 267. This represents the lowest frame rate experienced in that specific configuration, ensuring a smooth experience above common 144Hz refresh rates.

Q: Does the data suggest the CPU or GPU is the limiting factor at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The data suggests the GPU is the limiting factor. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 125. When settings are dropped to Low at the same resolution, the average FPS jumps to 212. This large increase in frame rate when lowering graphical fidelity indicates the GPU is the bottleneck, as the CPU workload remains relatively constant.

Q: How does the 9700F's multi-threaded performance compare to the Ryzen 9 7950X?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700F has an average benchmark score that is 0.7% higher than the Ryzen 9 7950X. Despite having fewer cores, the 9700F's average score of 69996 edges out the 7950X's 69515, indicating superior overall performance in the benchmark suite.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of scaling as resolution increases, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p with High settings, the system achieves 405 FPS average. Moving to 1440p High drops this to 272 FPS, a reduction of 133 FPS. At 4K High, the average FPS is 156, a further drop of 116 FPS from 1440p. This progressive decline with each resolution step is a classic indicator that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080's rendering capabilities are the limiting factor, not the CPU.

The scaling pattern is even more pronounced at lower settings. At Low settings, the frame rates are 552 FPS at 1080p, 371 FPS at 1440p, and 212 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is approximately 33%, and from 1440p to 4K is approximately 43%. This suggests that as pixel count increases, the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become increasingly taxed, leading to larger relative performance hits at higher resolutions.

This behavior confirms that the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is not a bottleneck in this configuration. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see similar frame rates across different resolutions, as the CPU's workload is largely independent of resolution. Instead, the substantial FPS decreases at higher resolutions demonstrate that the RTX 4080 is working harder to render more pixels. For users with high-refresh-rate 1080p or 1440p monitors, this system will provide exceptionally high frame rates. For 4K gaming, it still delivers very playable performance, especially on High settings, but the frame rates are lower than at lower resolutions.

The data implies that for a game like To The Core, which is not graphically demanding, the bottleneck at 4K is the GPU's ability to process the increased pixel count. The RTX 4080's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 716.8 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for this task, but the sheer number of pixels at 3840x2160 limits the maximum achievable frame rate. The performance drop from 1080p to 4K at any given setting is substantial, confirming that this is a GPU-limited scenario.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive look at the system's performance across three resolutions and four quality presets. At 1920x1080, the system performs exceptionally well, with average FPS ranging from 326 on Ultra to 552 on Low. The Medium preset yields an average of 467 FPS, with a minimum of 397 and a maximum of 537. High settings produce an average of 405 FPS. These numbers are all far above the refresh rates of typical monitors, making any of these settings viable for competitive play.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very high. The Ultra preset delivers 219 FPS average, while High settings produce 272 FPS. Medium settings at 1440p result in 314 FPS average, with a minimum of 267 and a maximum of 361. The Low preset achieves 371 FPS average. Even at the lowest point measured (267 FPS minimum on Medium), the experience is buttery smooth on any high-refresh-rate 1440p monitor.

At 3840x2160, the system remains powerful but shows the expected performance drop. The Ultra preset produces 125 FPS average, which is still playable on a 120Hz 4K display. High settings yield 156 FPS, and Medium settings reach 180 FPS average, with a minimum of 153 and a maximum of 207. The Low preset achieves 212 FPS average. The data shows that even at 4K, the system can push past 200 FPS if settings are lowered, making it a versatile 4K gaming machine.

The most detailed data points are for the Medium settings at each resolution. At 1080p, the minimum FPS is 397 and the maximum is 537, showing a frame time consistency that is excellent. At 1440p, the range is 267 to 361. At 4K, the range is 153 to 207. The gap between minimum and maximum FPS grows with resolution, indicating that more demanding scenes at higher resolutions cause larger frame rate fluctuations. However, even the lowest minimum FPS recorded (153 at 4K Medium) is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is a high-end graphics card built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, using the AD103 chip. It is manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC, with 45,900 million transistors on a 379 mm² die. The card features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. Its clock speeds are 2205 MHz base and 2505 MHz boost, with memory running at 1400 MHz (22.4 Gbps effective). The card is equipped with 9728 shading units, 304 TMUs, and 112 ROPs, along with 76 RT cores and 304 tensor cores.

In terms of raw compute, the RTX 4080 delivers 48.74 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a texture rate of 761.5 GTexel/s. Its pixel rate is 280.6 GPixel/s. The card's average benchmark score is 54247, placing it in the 86th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, which scores 54209, making the RTX 4080 0.1% faster. The data shows it is also 1.1% faster than the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X and 2.6% faster than the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB.

For To The Core, the GPU's role is to render the game's visuals, and its performance is the primary factor in the measured FPS. The 16 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for any settings at 4K, ensuring no texture thrashing occurs. The card's high memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s is also crucial for handling the increased data throughput required at higher resolutions. The benchmark results indicate that the RTX 4080 is a very powerful card, but it is still the limiting factor in this system when playing at higher resolutions and settings.

The performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at any resolution shows the GPU's workload scaling. At 4K, the difference between Low (212 FPS) and Ultra (125 FPS) is 87 FPS, demonstrating the significant impact of graphical fidelity on the GPU. The card's 320W TDP and triple-slot design indicate it is a power-hungry component, requiring a 700W power supply. Its end-of-life production status suggests it is being phased out, but its performance remains competitive in this game.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the user's display resolution and refresh rate. For users with a 1080p 144Hz or 240Hz monitor, any preset will provide a flawless experience. The Ultra preset at 1080p delivers 326 FPS average, which is more than double the refresh rate of most high-end monitors. For maximum visual quality without any concern for performance, Ultra is the best choice. However, the difference between Medium (467 FPS) and Ultra (326 FPS) is substantial, and Medium may be preferable for competitive play where higher frame rates are more critical than visual fidelity.

For 1440p users, the recommendation is to use High settings. This preset delivers 272 FPS average, which is well above the 165Hz or 240Hz refresh rates common on 1440p monitors. The Ultra preset at 1440p still provides 219 FPS, which is also excellent, but the visual difference between High and Ultra may not justify the 53 FPS drop. The Medium preset at 1440p offers 314 FPS, which could be beneficial for users with 360Hz esports monitors, but the graphical compromise is significant. High settings appear to be the sweet spot for balancing visual quality and performance at this resolution.

At 4K, the recommendation is to use High settings. This preset yields 156 FPS average, which is ideal for a 144Hz 4K display. The Medium preset at 4K provides 180 FPS, which is also excellent, but the improvement over High is only 24 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 125 FPS, which is playable on a 120Hz monitor but may not be smooth enough for some users. The data suggests that High settings at 4K provide the best experience, as it offers a high frame rate while maintaining a good level of visual detail.

In summary, the measured data indicates that High settings are the most versatile preset across all resolutions. At 1080p, it provides 405 FPS, at 1440p it provides 272 FPS, and at 4K it provides 156 FPS. This consistency makes it the recommended starting point for any user. For those seeking maximum performance, Low settings at 1440p (371 FPS) or 1080p (552 FPS) are the best options. For those prioritizing visual fidelity above all else, Ultra settings at 1080p (326 FPS) or 1440p (219 FPS) are viable, but at 4K, Ultra (125 FPS) should only be used with a 120Hz or lower refresh rate display.