To The Core

The Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 pairing delivers exceptional frame rates in To The Core, an Idle genre title. The data shows this combo is capable of pushing well beyond standard display refresh rates at all tested resolutions, making it a potent choice for high-refresh gaming. The benchmark results indicate a balanced system where neither component is an obvious bottleneck, though the scaling patterns reveal distinct roles for the CPU and GPU depending on the resolution.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. While To The Core is an Idle genre game that may not be heavily threaded, the CPU's high single-core performance is crucial for maintaining high frame rates, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the limiting factor.

Benchmark results show the i7-14700F achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35443 and a single-core score of 5003. Its Geekbench scores are 16571 (multi-core) and 2711 (single-core), with a Passmark single-thread score of 4261. These figures place the CPU in the 94th percentile of all CPUs tested. Compared to its nearest rivals, the i7-14700F is just 0.6% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X in average score, and 1.1% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D. It is 1.2% ahead of the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 and 1.7% ahead of the AMD EPYC 7313P.

The 1080p results illustrate the CPU's role. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 466.5 FPS. This high frame rate is a direct consequence of the CPU's ability to feed the GPU quickly. As settings increase to Ultra at 1080p, the frame rate drops to 275.6 FPS, showing that the GPU is becoming more involved. The CPU's robust single-core score of 5003 in Cinebench R23 and 4261 in Passmark ensures that at 1080p, the i7-14700F can process the game's logic and draw calls fast enough to avoid becoming a bottleneck. The data suggests that even in an Idle game, the processor's strength is a key contributor to the high triple-digit frame rates seen at this resolution.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture and features 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth. It has a base clock of 2325 MHz and a boost clock of 2512 MHz, with a memory clock of 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective). The GPU's 6144 shading units and 80 ROPs are more than sufficient for the demands of To The Core.

The RTX 5070's performance in synthetic benchmarks shows it is a strong contender. It scores 5077 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and 29137 in Passmark G3D, with a Passmark GPU compute score of 15787. The GPU is in the 83rd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (0.2% higher score), the NVIDIA Tesla M40 (0.5% lower), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 (0.6% higher), and the AMD Radeon Pro 580X (0.7% lower). This places the RTX 5070 in a competitive position, though its synthetic scores are closely matched by older or workstation cards.

The GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution rises. At 4K (3840x2160), the frame rates are lower than at 1440p or 1080p, indicating that the GPU is handling the increased pixel load. For instance, at 4K Ultra, the combo delivers 108.6 FPS, which is still very playable but a significant drop from the 275.6 FPS at 1080p Ultra. The 12 GB VRAM is not a limiting factor at these settings, as the measured FPS remains high even at 4K. The RTX 5070's memory bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s is crucial for maintaining these frame rates at higher resolutions, ensuring that textures and data can be fed to the GPU cores quickly.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

For the best experience, the data points to the High preset as the optimal balance between visual quality and performance. At 1920x1080, High yields 340.2 FPS, which is a 13% drop from Medium's 391.6 FPS but a significant 23% improvement over Ultra's 275.6 FPS. The jump from High to Ultra costs 64.6 FPS at 1080p, which may not justify the marginal visual gains in an Idle game.

At 2560x1440, the High preset provides 228 FPS, which is still far above the 144 Hz refresh rate of most high-end monitors. Medium delivers 266.2 FPS, and Ultra drops to 186.5 FPS. The Low preset is excessively fast at 311.8 FPS but likely sacrifices too much visual fidelity. For 4K gaming, High remains the top choice, delivering 132.5 FPS. Medium offers 148.4 FPS, and Ultra falls to 108.6 FPS, which is still smooth but closer to the edge of high-refresh territory.

The Low preset is not recommended for a system of this caliber. While it produces the highest frame rates (466.5 FPS at 1080p, 311.8 FPS at 1440p, 176.8 FPS at 4K), the visual compromise is unnecessary when High already provides frame rates that exceed most display capabilities. The Medium preset is a viable alternative for those who prioritize frame rate over detail, but High offers the most visually pleasing experience without any risk of dropping below 100 FPS at any tested resolution.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 ranks 370th out of 1756 tested combos in To The Core. This places it in the top 21% of all systems tested for this game. This is a strong ranking, indicating that this pairing is far more capable than the average system.

The ranking is particularly impressive given the game's Idle genre, which may not require top-tier hardware. The combo's position in the rankings suggests that the CPU and GPU work well together, with neither component dragging down the other's performance. The i7-14700F's 94th percentile CPU score and the RTX 5070's 83rd percentile GPU score combine to produce a system that is well above average. The 370th rank out of 1756 combos shows that there are still many systems that outperform this one, but they likely feature higher-end components like the RTX 5090 or a more powerful CPU. For most users, this rank indicates a high-performance setup that will not struggle with any current game at these settings.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K clearly indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting component at higher resolutions, while the CPU holds the system back at lower resolutions. At High settings, the FPS drops from 340.2 at 1080p to 228 at 1440p, a 33% decrease, and then to 132.5 at 4K, a further 42% decrease from 1440p.

The pattern is consistent across all settings. At Low, the drop is from 466.5 FPS at 1080p to 311.8 at 1440p (33% decrease) and then to 176.8 at 4K (43% decrease from 1440p). This scaling shows that the GPU's workload increases significantly as pixel count rises, which is expected. The fact that frame rates remain above 100 FPS even at 4K Ultra suggests that the RTX 5070 is not being overwhelmed.

The data reveals that at 1080p, the CPU is more likely to be the limiting factor, as the frame rates are extremely high and the GPU may not be fully utilized. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as the FPS drops are more pronounced. This is a classic sign of a balanced system where the CPU provides enough headroom for the GPU to stretch its legs at lower resolutions, but the GPU's raw pixel-pushing power defines the ceiling at 4K. The i7-14700F's strong single-core performance ensures it does not hold back the RTX 5070, even at 1080p Low where the system achieves 466.5 FPS.

FAQ

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

A: The highest measured average FPS is 466.5, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700F a good match for the RTX 5070 in this game?

A: Yes, the data shows a balanced pairing. The CPU is in the 94th percentile and the GPU in the 83rd percentile, with the combo ranking 370th out of 1756. The frame rates remain high across all resolutions, indicating no significant bottleneck.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X?

A: The i7-14700F is 0.6% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X in average benchmark score, making them nearly identical in performance.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 4K gaming?

A: The High preset at 3840x2160 delivers 132.5 FPS, which is the recommended balance. Ultra offers 108.6 FPS, while Medium provides 148.4 FPS if you prefer higher frame rates over visual details.

Q: Does the GPU's 12 GB VRAM cause any issues at 4K?

A: No, the measured FPS at 4K Ultra is 108.6, indicating that the 12 GB VRAM is sufficient for this game's demands at these settings.

Q: How does the RTX 5070 compare to the RTX 3090 in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5070 is 0.6% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 in average benchmark score, showing they are very close in overall performance.