To The Core

The Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 pairing delivers exceptional performance in To The Core, placing 12th out of 1,756 tested combos. This idle-genre title is surprisingly demanding at high frame rates, and the data shows a configuration that crushes 1080p and 1440p while remaining highly playable at 4K. The CPU’s 20 cores and 28 threads are more than sufficient for this workload, but the RTX 5090’s raw graphics throughput is what pushes frame rates into the hundreds. The measured results indicate that this combo is a top-tier choice for enthusiasts who want maximum headroom, though the scaling patterns reveal where the bottleneck shifts as resolution increases.

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 Refresh architecture, built on Intel’s 10 nm process. Its base clock is 2.10 GHz with a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, and it carries 33 MB of shared L3 cache. For a game like To The Core, which is classified as an Idle title, the CPU’s role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics data. The benchmark data shows the i7-14700F holds a 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54,097. In Cinebench R23, it scores 35,443 in multi-core and 5,003 in single-core tests, indicating strong per-thread performance that avoids holding back the RTX 5090.

Comparing the i7-14700F to its nearest rivals, the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X scores 54,450 on average, which is 0.6% higher, while the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D scores 54,681, a 1.1% advantage. The Intel Xeon Phi 7290 trails by 1.2% with a score of 53,469, and the AMD EPYC 7313P is 1.7% behind at 53,206. These deltas are small, meaning the i7-14700F is effectively on par with the fastest competing chips in general compute. In To The Core, this translates to a processor that never becomes the limiting factor. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo hits 630.8 FPS, which suggests the CPU can sustain extremely high frame rates without stuttering. The 5.40 GHz boost clock is critical here, as idle games often have single-threaded logic that benefits from high frequency.

The CPU’s 65 W TDP and dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support mean it is a practical choice for a high-end build, but the data does not show memory bandwidth as a constraint in this game. The GPU’s 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus with 1.79 TB/s bandwidth is the dominant resource. The 14700F’s 94th percentile ranking, combined with the RTX 5090’s 94th percentile among GPUs, creates a balanced pair, though the GPU’s average benchmark score of 84,306 far exceeds the CPU’s 54,097, indicating graphics-bound behavior at higher resolutions.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to hit over 300 FPS?

A: At 2560x1440, the combo exceeds 300 FPS on High (315.1 FPS), Medium (358.3 FPS), and Low (423.7 FPS) settings. Only Ultra dips below 300 FPS at 250.4 FPS.

Q: How much faster is Low versus Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low produces 630.8 FPS while Ultra produces 375.3 FPS, making Low 255.5 FPS faster, a 68% improvement in frame rate.

Q: Does the RTX 5090 bottleneck the i7-14700F at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the combo still produces 175.3 FPS on High and 243.8 FPS on Low, suggesting the GPU remains the primary driver, but the CPU’s 20 cores prevent any frame rate collapse.

Q: How does this combo rank against all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 12th out of 1,756 tested combos in To The Core, placing it in the top 1% of all pairings.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the CPU and GPU?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F has a launch MSRP of $359, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 has a launch MSRP of 1,999 USD.

Q: Which setting shows the largest FPS drop from 1080p to 4K?

A: Low settings drop from 630.8 FPS at 1080p to 243.8 FPS at 4K, a decrease of 387 FPS, which is the largest absolute drop among all settings.

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

The measured FPS data reveals a classic GPU-bound scaling pattern. Going from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440, the frame rate drops by roughly 33% across all settings. For example, High goes from 464.9 FPS to 315.1 FPS, a decline of 149.8 FPS, while Low goes from 630.8 FPS to 423.7 FPS, a 207.1 FPS drop. This proportional reduction indicates that the RTX 5090’s rendering throughput is the limiting factor even at 1440p, as the CPU has ample headroom with its 28 threads.

The jump from 1440p to 4K shows a steeper drop. At 2560x1440 High, the combo yields 315.1 FPS, but at 3840x2160 High, it falls to 175.3 FPS, a 44% reduction. This is consistent with a GPU that is running out of pixel-pushing capability, despite its 32 GB of VRAM and 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 performance. The RTX 5090’s 423.6 GPixel/s pixel rate is high, but 4K resolution demands four times the pixels of 1080p, and the data confirms this. At 4K Low, the combo still manages 243.8 FPS, showing that even the most demanding resolution is playable on high-refresh monitors.

The scaling suggests the i7-14700F is not the bottleneck at any resolution. The CPU’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35,443 and single-core score of 5,003 are strong enough to keep up with the RTX 5090’s frame output. If the CPU were limiting, we would expect to see diminishing FPS drops as resolution increases, but the data shows linear GPU-bound scaling. The 14700F’s 94th percentile ranking reinforces this, as it sits just 0.6% below the Ryzen 9 9900X in average score, meaning there is no meaningful CPU deficit to overcome.

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

For 1080p users, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance. At 1920x1080 Medium, the combo delivers 534.9 FPS, which is 85% of the Low preset’s 630.8 FPS but with noticeably better graphics. Ultra at 375.3 FPS is still extremely smooth, but the 159.6 FPS difference between Medium and Ultra is not worth the visual gain in an idle game where the action is often static. High at 464.9 FPS is a solid middle ground, but Medium’s higher frame rate provides more headroom for future patches or background tasks.

At 2560x1440, High is the recommended preset. It produces 315.1 FPS, which is above the 300 FPS threshold for the smoothest experience on high-refresh monitors. Medium at 358.3 FPS is also viable, but High’s improved visuals come at a cost of only 43.2 FPS. Ultra at 250.4 FPS is playable but dips below 300 FPS, which may be noticeable on 360 Hz panels. Low at 423.7 FPS is overkill and sacrifices too much visual quality for frame rates that exceed what most displays can show.

For 4K, High is again the best choice. At 3840x2160, High produces 175.3 FPS, which is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate of most 4K monitors. Medium at 205.4 FPS is also excellent, but High’s graphical improvements are worth the 30.1 FPS drop. Ultra at 142.5 FPS is borderline for 144 Hz displays, and Low at 243.8 FPS is unnecessary. The data indicates that High is the sweet spot across all resolutions, delivering frame rates that are at least 175% of the minimum playable threshold.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 12th out of 1,756 tested combos in To The Core. This places the configuration in the top 0.68% of all pairings, which is an exceptional result given the game’s release in 2024 and the wide variety of hardware tested. The rank reflects the combined strengths of both components: the CPU’s 94th percentile standing and the GPU’s 94th percentile standing. In comparison, the RTX 5090’s nearest rival, the RTX 5090 D, has an average score of 84,241, just 0.1% lower, meaning the GPU is essentially at the top of its class.

The rank also indicates that this combo outperforms the vast majority of alternatives, including those with higher-end CPUs like the Ryzen 9 9900X3D, which scores 54,681 on average, only 1.1% higher than the i7-14700F. The GPU’s massive 32 GB VRAM and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth are key differentiators, as they allow the combo to handle any texture load without stuttering. In an idle game, the rank of 12th suggests that only a few exotic setups (likely with multiple GPUs or unreleased hardware) exceed this configuration’s performance. The data confirms that this is a flagship-tier pairing that will not need an upgrade for years.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce 630.8 FPS, Medium yields 534.9 FPS, High reaches 464.9 FPS, and Ultra drops to 375.3 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 255.5 FPS, showing that the RTX 5090 has massive headroom even at the lowest settings. This resolution is clearly CPU-light, as the i7-14700F’s boost clock of 5.40 GHz and 33 MB cache allow it to feed the GPU with minimal latency.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show more GPU influence. Low produces 423.7 FPS, Medium hits 358.3 FPS, High delivers 315.1 FPS, and Ultra falls to 250.4 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra is 173.3 FPS, which is smaller than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is beginning to take over as the limiting factor. The 14700F’s Cinebench R20 multi-core score of 14,886 and single-core score of 2,101 suggest it has no trouble maintaining these frame rates.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is fully saturated. Low yields 243.8 FPS, Medium produces 205.4 FPS, High reaches 175.3 FPS, and Ultra drops to 142.5 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 101.3 FPS, a much tighter range than at lower resolutions. This confirms that the RTX 5090’s 104.8 TFLOPS compute is the primary driver, and the CPU’s role is reduced. The 14700F’s PassMark single-thread score of 4,261 ensures that even at 4K, the CPU never introduces stutters. The combo’s performance at 4K Ultra (142.5 FPS) is still above the refresh rate of most standard monitors, making this a viable 4K gaming setup.