To The Core

The Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers exceptional performance in To The Core, an idle genre title released on 2024-02-14. This combination ranks 51st out of 1756 tested configurations, placing it in the top 3% of all systems analyzed. The data shows a hardware pairing that completely overwhelms the game's demands, producing frame rates that exceed the refresh rate capabilities of virtually all consumer displays.

FAQ

*Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in To The Core?*

A: The Intel Core i5-14400F + RTX 4090 combination holds the 51st position out of 1756 tested combos, placing it in the 97th percentile of all systems benchmarked for this game.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the combo delivers 173.8 FPS on High settings, 198.2 FPS on Medium, 237.2 FPS on Low, and 142.1 FPS on Ultra. Even the most demanding preset maintains a smooth experience above 140 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 4090 overkill for this game?

A: The benchmark results indicate significant headroom. At 1080p Ultra, the system produces 363.8 FPS, while at 4K Ultra it still achieves 142.1 FPS. The GPU's 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth far exceed what this idle game requires.

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

A: The i5-14400F's average benchmark score of 32508 places it nearly identical to the Intel Core i7-12800H (32513, 0% delta), slightly ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 (32446, 0.2% ahead), and marginally behind the AMD Ryzen 7 250 (32584, -0.2%).

Q: What is the best settings preset for competitive play?

A: For maximum frame rates, Low settings at 1080p yields 572.1 FPS. However, High settings at 1440p provides 301.8 FPS, which exceeds the refresh rate of most high-end gaming monitors while maintaining better visual quality.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in this title?

A: The data suggests minimal bottlenecking. The CPU's 10 cores and 16 threads with a 4.70 GHz boost clock deliver strong single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3093), which is crucial for this genre. The GPU remains the limiting factor even at lower resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The 51st position out of 1756 tested combinations places this pairing firmly in elite territory. Only 50 other configurations outperform it, and the delta between this system and the top contenders is minimal in practical terms for To The Core. The game's idle genre nature means it prioritizes sustained frame delivery over complex physics or AI calculations, which this hardware handles with considerable margin.

The CPU's percentileVsAllCpus rating of 88 indicates it outperforms 88% of all processors in general benchmarks. Its average benchmark score of 32508 sits within 0.2% of its nearest rivals, showing remarkable consistency. The GPU's percentileVsAllGpus rating of 91 places it in the top 9% of all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 66473 that exceeds its nearest rival, the NVIDIA Tesla T4, by only 0.4%.

What makes this ranking particularly notable is the combination's ability to maintain high frame rates across all resolutions. The spread between the best and worst measured results—from 572.1 FPS at 1080p Low to 142.1 FPS at 4K Ultra—demonstrates that even the most demanding settings remain far above the 60 FPS threshold. This suggests the 51st rank is not due to any weakness in the hardware but rather the presence of even more extreme configurations in the database.

Settings Recommendations

For 4K displays, High settings at 173.8 FPS provides the optimal balance between visual fidelity and performance. Ultra at 142.1 FPS remains playable but offers diminishing returns for the 31.7 FPS cost compared to High. Medium at 198.2 FPS is the best choice for high-refresh-rate 4K panels, though few such displays exist.

At 1440p, High settings at 301.8 FPS is the recommended preset for most users. This delivers frame rates that exceed the 240 Hz refresh rate of premium gaming monitors while maintaining quality. Medium at 346.1 FPS is suitable for 360 Hz displays, and Low at 409.8 FPS targets the few 480 Hz panels available. Ultra at 243.3 FPS is also viable for 240 Hz monitors.

For 1080p, the choice depends entirely on refresh rate. Low at 572.1 FPS suits the fastest esports displays, Medium at 517.1 FPS offers better visuals, and High at 448.4 FPS remains exceptionally smooth. Ultra at 363.8 FPS still exceeds 360 Hz displays, making it viable for competitive play without sacrificing quality.

The data indicates that High settings across all resolutions provides the best overall experience. The performance drop from High to Ultra averages approximately 20-25%, which is not justified by the modest visual improvements in an idle game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the measured averages show a clear progression: Low delivers 237.2 FPS, Medium 198.2 FPS, High 173.8 FPS, and Ultra 142.1 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra represents a 95.1 FPS spread, with each tier costing approximately 30-40 FPS. This resolution taxes the GPU most heavily, yet even Ultra maintains frame rates above 140 FPS.

The 2560x1440 results demonstrate the system's headroom at this popular resolution. Low produces 409.8 FPS, Medium 346.1 FPS, High 301.8 FPS, and Ultra 243.3 FPS. The performance gap between Low and Ultra here is 166.5 FPS, showing that the RTX 4090 has substantial bandwidth to spare at this resolution.

At 1920x1080, the results border on extreme. Low achieves 572.1 FPS, Medium 517.1 FPS, High 448.4 FPS, and Ultra 363.8 FPS. The 208.3 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p indicates the CPU begins to play a larger role at this resolution, though the i5-14400F's strong single-thread performance keeps frame rates remarkably high.

The scaling pattern across resolutions shows a consistent ~40% performance reduction when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and another ~40% reduction from 1440p to 4K. This linear scaling is typical for GPU-bound scenarios and confirms that the RTX 4090's 24 GB memory buffer and 384-bit bus are being utilized effectively.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 serves as the primary performance driver in this configuration. Its AD102 chip on TSMC's 5 nm process contains 76,300 million transistors across a 609 mm² die. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2235 MHz and boosts to 2520 MHz, with memory running at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective).

The 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus delivers 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. This massive memory subsystem is particularly relevant for To The Core, where high-resolution textures and extended play sessions can accumulate memory pressure. The 128 RT cores and 512 tensor cores provide capabilities that, while not directly utilized by this idle game, contribute to the GPU's 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 performance.

The RTX 4090's 16384 shading units and 512 TMUs enable a pixel rate of 443.5 GPixel/s and texture rate of 1,290.2 GTexel/s. These specifications translate directly to the measured frame rates, particularly at 4K where the GPU's raw compute power becomes the determining factor.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 66473 places it in the 91st percentile of all graphics cards. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA Tesla T4, scores 66733 (0.4% higher), while the Tesla P40 trails at 66127 (0.5% lower). These close margins in synthetic benchmarks contrast with the RTX 4090's dominance in real-world gaming scenarios, where its dedicated gaming architecture provides substantial advantages.

The GPU's production status is end-of-life, with a successor in the GeForce 50 series. However, the measured performance in To The Core suggests the RTX 4090 remains more than sufficient for this title. The 450 W TDP and triple-slot design indicate the power delivery required to sustain these frame rates, though the game's modest demands mean the card likely operates well below its thermal limits.