To The Core

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER delivers a surprisingly strong showing in To The Core, ranking 2146th out of 3725 tested combos. This places the pairing in the top 58% of all configurations, a respectable position given the GPU's age. The data indicates that this combo is well-suited for high-refresh-rate 1080p and 1440p gaming, with the CPU providing ample headroom to push the RTX 2070 SUPER to its limits. However, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck at 4K, where frame rates drop significantly, revealing the limits of the 8 GB VRAM and Turing architecture.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 2146 out of 3725 tested configurations places it in the upper-middle tier of all systems tested with To The Core. This is a nuanced position: it is not a top-tier enthusiast setup, but it comfortably outperforms the majority of systems. The ranking reflects the balance between a high-end 14th-gen CPU and a mid-range 2019 GPU. The CPU's percentile of 94 against all CPUs suggests it is performing near the top of its class, while the GPU's 65th percentile against all GPUs indicates it is slightly above average but far from flagship territory.

The delta between the CPU and GPU performance is the defining characteristic of this combo. The i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor that can drive frame rates well beyond what the RTX 2070 SUPER can render. In practical terms, this means the combo is rarely CPU-limited in To The Core. The benchmark results confirm this: at 1080p Low, the combo hits 291 FPS, which is likely near the GPU's maximum output. The CPU is not the constraint here; the GPU is. This imbalance is not necessarily a flaw, as it provides a clear upgrade path—swapping in a faster GPU would yield immediate performance gains without needing to change the processor.

Compared to other combos, the data suggests that the i7-14700KF is performing as expected, with an average benchmark score of 70163. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F (0.2% slower), the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.4% slower), and the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.9% slower). Only the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K edges it out by 1%. This tight grouping indicates that the i7-14700KF is right at the top of the CPU performance curve for its class. The GPU, with an average score of 20282, sits just below the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (1% faster), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (1.2% faster), the Intel Arc B570 (1.3% faster), and the Intel Arc A750 (1.5% faster). This shows the RTX 2070 SUPER is holding its own against newer budget and mobile options, but it is firmly in the past generation's performance tier.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is the limiting factor in this pairing, and its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth is the primary constraint. In To The Core, the GPU's role is to render the scene, and its memory capacity and bandwidth determine how well it handles higher resolutions and texture loads. The 8 GB capacity is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming at most settings, but at 4K, it can become a bottleneck. The measured FPS data supports this: at 4K Ultra, the average drops to 66 FPS, a significant decrease from the 172 FPS at 1080p Ultra.

The GPU's clocks are a mixed bag. The base clock is 1605 MHz and the boost clock is 1770 MHz, which are modest by today's standards. However, the memory clock is 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective), which is adequate for the time. The GPU's processing power is rated at 9.062 TFLOPS for FP32, with 2560 shading units and 64 ROPs. These specifications place it in a performance tier that is well-suited for 1440p gaming, but it struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K with demanding settings. The data shows that at 4K Medium, the average FPS is 95, with a minimum of 80 and a maximum of 109. This is playable, but it is not a smooth 144 FPS experience.

The GPU's 12 nm process node and Turing architecture are also relevant. The 12 nm process is less efficient than newer nodes, meaning the GPU draws more power (215 W TDP) and generates more heat relative to its performance. The suggested PSU of 550 W is a consideration for system builders. The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4 API compatibility ensure it can run modern games, but it lacks the dedicated hardware features of newer cards. The 40 RT cores and 320 tensor cores are present, but they are first-generation and not as powerful as those in later cards. For an idle game like To The Core, these features are less critical, but they do influence the overall performance ceiling.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K clearly illustrates the GPU's bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 291 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 196 FPS, a 32.6% decrease. At 4K Low, it falls to 112 FPS, a 61.5% decrease from 1080p. This scaling pattern is typical of a GPU-limited scenario: as resolution increases, the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become the limiting factors, and the CPU's performance becomes less relevant.

The trend is consistent across all settings. At High settings, the FPS drops from 213 at 1080p to 143 at 1440p (a 32.9% decrease) and then to 82 at 4K (a 61.5% decrease from 1080p). At Ultra settings, the drop is even more pronounced: from 172 at 1080p to 115 at 1440p (a 33.1% decrease) and then to 66 at 4K (a 61.6% decrease). These percentages are remarkably consistent, which suggests that the limiting component is the same across all settings: the GPU.

The data indicates that the CPU is not a factor in these scaling results. The i7-14700KF is powerful enough to feed the GPU at all resolutions, as evidenced by the high frame rates at 1080p. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see less of a performance drop from 1080p to 1440p, as the CPU would be able to maintain the same frame rate while the GPU works harder. Instead, the consistent percentage drops confirm that the RTX 2070 SUPER is the sole limiting factor. This is an important insight for users: upgrading the GPU will yield significant performance gains at all resolutions, while upgrading the CPU will not.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a detailed look at the combo's performance across resolutions and settings. The data is split into three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160) and four settings (Low, Medium, High, and Ultra).

At 1080p, the combo is exceptionally fast. At Low settings, the average FPS is 291, which is likely near the GPU's maximum output. At Medium settings, the average drops to 246 FPS, with a minimum of 209 and a maximum of 283. At High settings, the average is 213 FPS. At Ultra settings, the average is 172 FPS. These numbers indicate that the combo can easily drive a 144 Hz or 240 Hz monitor at 1080p, even at the highest settings.

At 1440p, the performance is still very good, but the GPU starts to feel the pressure. At Low settings, the average FPS is 196. At Medium settings, the average is 165 FPS, with a minimum of 141 and a maximum of 190. At High settings, the average is 143 FPS. At Ultra settings, the average is 115 FPS. These results show that the combo can deliver a smooth 144 FPS experience at 1440p on Medium settings, and a playable 60+ FPS experience on Ultra settings.

At 4K, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck. At Low settings, the average FPS is 112. At Medium settings, the average is 95 FPS, with a minimum of 80 and a maximum of 109. At High settings, the average is 82 FPS. At Ultra settings, the average is 66 FPS. These numbers indicate that 4K gaming is possible, but it requires lowering settings to achieve a stable 60 FPS. Even at Low settings, the average is just above 100 FPS, which is not ideal for a high-refresh-rate 4K monitor.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the best experience for this combo depends on the user's resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p users, the Ultra preset is the clear recommendation. The average FPS of 172 is well above the 144 Hz threshold, and the minimum FPS is likely high enough to avoid noticeable stutters. The visual quality improvement from High to Ultra is worth the 41 FPS drop (from 213 to 172), as the final result is still exceptionally smooth.

For 1440p users, the High preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. The average FPS of 143 is just below the 144 Hz threshold, but it is still a very smooth experience. The Ultra preset drops to 115 FPS, which is still playable but not ideal for competitive gaming. The Medium preset, at 165 FPS, is a good alternative for users who prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity, but High provides a better visual experience with a negligible FPS difference for most users.

For 4K users, the Medium preset is the recommended starting point. The average FPS of 95, with a minimum of 80, provides a stable and playable experience. The High preset, at 82 FPS, is also viable, but it leaves less headroom for demanding scenes. The Low preset, at 112 FPS, is an option for users who want to push higher frame rates, but the visual quality reduction is significant. The Ultra preset, at 66 FPS, should be avoided, as it is too close to the 60 FPS minimum for comfort, and any complex scene could cause a noticeable stutter.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a powerhouse that is not the bottleneck in this combo. With 20 cores and 28 threads, a base clock of 3.40 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, it provides more than enough processing power for To The Core. The CPU's L3 cache is 33 MB (shared), which helps with game data access. The 125 W TDP is modest for such a high-core-count chip, and its unlocked multiplier allows for overclocking, though the data does not suggest it is necessary for this game.

The CPU's benchmark scores confirm its high-end status. It scores 44167 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 6235 in single-core. It also scores 21462 in Geekbench multi-core and 2578 in single-core. These scores are well above what is needed for To The Core, an idle game that is not CPU-intensive. The CPU's 94th percentile against all CPUs indicates that it outperforms 94% of all processors on the market.

The nearest rival data shows that the i7-14700KF is in a tight performance cluster. It is 0.2% faster than the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F, 0.4% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX, and 0.9% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X. Only the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is faster, by 1%. This suggests that the i7-14700KF is at the very top of its performance tier, and any CPU upgrade would yield minimal gains in this game.

In To The Core, the CPU's role is to handle the game's logic, which is not demanding. The measured FPS data shows that the combo reaches 291 FPS at 1080p Low, which is a strong indicator that the CPU is not limiting the frame rate. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see lower frame rates at lower resolutions, where the GPU is less stressed. Instead, the frame rates are consistently high, confirming that the CPU is providing more than enough performance. The data suggests that users could pair this CPU with a much faster GPU and still see performance gains, as the CPU has ample headroom.