Undisputed

The pairing of AMD's Ryzen 5 2600 with NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5090 D in Undisputed presents a classic study in system bottlenecking. The data reveals a configuration where a modern, top-tier GPU is harnessed to a six-core processor from 2018, producing results that are as much about CPU limitations as they are about raw graphics power. While the measured frames are high, the scaling patterns across resolutions and settings tell a story of a system held back by its older processor, especially at lower graphical loads.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K clearly illustrates where the system’s performance ceiling lies. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 349 FPS. Moving to 1440p at the same Low preset drops the average to 313 FPS, a reduction of 36 FPS or roughly 10%. However, the most significant drop occurs when moving from 1440p to 4K at Low settings, where the average plummets to 264 FPS, a further 49 FPS decrease.

This pattern shifts dramatically as graphical settings increase. At High settings, the transition from 1080p (289 FPS) to 1440p (249 FPS) sees a 40 FPS drop, and then to 4K (157 FPS) sees another 92 FPS drop. The scaling is much steeper at higher settings, indicating that the GPU is becoming a more dominant factor. For instance, at Ultra settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 62 FPS (from 222 to 160), and the subsequent drop to 4K is 59 FPS (from 160 to 101). These larger deltas at higher settings suggest that while the CPU is a limiting factor at Low and Medium presets, the RTX 5090 D's workload increases substantially with more complex effects, making the GPU the primary constraint at High and Ultra.

The data implies a two-phase bottleneck. At low resolutions and low settings, the Ryzen 5 2600's single-thread performance is likely the limiting component, capping the frame rate. As resolution increases, the GPU's rendering load grows, and the system begins to shift from a CPU-bound state to a GPU-bound state. The 4K Ultra result of 101 FPS, while still excellent, shows the immense computational demand placed on the GPU, but the relatively small gap between 1080p Low (349 FPS) and 1440p Low (313 FPS) suggests the CPU is still preventing the GPU from reaching its full potential even at 1440p.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen+ architecture. Its base and boost clocks are 3.40 GHz and 3.90 GHz, respectively. In the context of Undisputed, a sports game, the workload is typically not as heavily threaded as in a simulation or strategy title. The data strongly suggests that the game's engine relies heavily on single-core performance for its main game logic. The Ryzen 5 2600's single-core benchmark scores, such as 157.3 in Cinebench R15 and 2239 in Passmark, are modest by modern standards. This is reflected in the FPS numbers; the system fails to scale to the heights the RTX 5090 D is capable of at lower settings.

The CPU's percentile ranking is 75th among all CPUs, indicating it is a mid-range part. Its nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core Ultra 5 228V (0.2% faster) and the Intel Core i9-11900H (0.5% slower), are not high-end desktop processors either. This positions the Ryzen 5 2600 as a capable but not exceptional performer. In this combo, it appears to be the clear bottleneck. The fact that FPS increases significantly when moving from Low to Medium settings at the same resolution, despite the higher GPU load, is a key indicator. For example, at 1080p, the average goes from 349 FPS on Low to 309 FPS on Medium, a drop of 40 FPS. This is a smaller drop than one might expect if the GPU were fully loaded, reinforcing the idea that the CPU is already at its limit. The CPU's 16 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support are adequate, but they are not sufficient to feed a GPU with the raw power of the RTX 5090 D.

FAQ

Q: Why does the FPS drop so much from 1080p Low to 4K Low?

A: The average FPS falls from 349 at 1080p Low to 264 at 4K Low. This drop is significant because while the CPU is likely a limiting factor at 1080p, the RTX 5090 D's rendering workload at 4K resolution increases dramatically, making the GPU a more substantial constraint even at low graphical settings.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 2600 holding back the RTX 5090 D in this game?

A: The data indicates yes. At 1080p with Low settings, the system hits 349 FPS. A less powerful CPU would likely bottleneck the GPU at this resolution, but the Ryzen 5 2600's scores (Passmark single-thread score of 2239) suggest it is the ceiling. The relatively small FPS difference between 1080p Low and 1440p Low (349 to 313 FPS) suggests the CPU is still the limiting factor at 1440p, preventing the GPU from scaling further.

Q: What is the best resolution to play at for high refresh rates?

A: Based on the measured data, 1440p with High settings is a strong candidate, offering an average of 249 FPS. This is well above the 144Hz refresh rate common on many monitors. For 4K gaming at High settings, the average of 157 FPS is also suitable for high refresh rate displays, though not as high as the 1440p results.

Q: How does the combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 194th out of 2813 tested combinations in Undisputed. This places it in the top 7% of all tested combos, indicating that despite the CPU bottleneck, the sheer power of the RTX 5090 D ensures a high overall performance level.

Q: Is there a significant difference between Medium and High settings at 4K?

A: Yes, there is a substantial difference. The average FPS drops from 190 at Medium settings to 157 at High settings, a 33 FPS decrease. This suggests that the High preset introduces effects that are significantly more demanding on the GPU, while the CPU is less of a limiting factor at these higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

For players with this specific combo, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution. At 1080p, the Ultra preset yields an average of 222 FPS. While this is high, the jump from High to Ultra is only a 67 FPS drop (from 289 to 222), which is a significant cost for the extra visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 1080p offers a near-identical experience in terms of smoothness to High, with an average of 309 FPS. However, the High preset at 1440p provides a better balance of visual quality and performance, hitting 249 FPS.

At 4K, the Medium preset appears to be the sweet spot for high refresh rate gaming. With an average of 190 FPS and a minimum of 162 FPS, it is the only non-Low preset to offer a stable experience above 160 FPS. The High preset drops to 157 FPS, which is still playable but leaves less headroom. The Ultra preset at 101 FPS is the most demanding, but it offers the highest visual quality. For the best experience measured, the 1440p High preset (249 FPS) is recommended, as it delivers a very high frame rate with a significant improvement in visual fidelity over Low settings, without the performance penalty of Ultra. The data shows that the Low preset offers the highest frame rates but does not utilize the GPU's capabilities, resulting in a poor visual experience relative to the hardware's potential.

How This Combo Ranks

The "Undisputed" combo of the Ryzen 5 2600 and RTX 5090 D holds a rank of 194 out of 2813 tested combos. This places it in the 93rd percentile of all systems tested, meaning it outperforms the vast majority of other configurations. However, this high rank is almost entirely due to the RTX 5090 D's immense power. The GPU's average benchmark score of 77,712 and its 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs demonstrate its top-tier status. In contrast, the CPU's 75th percentile ranking is much lower.

The delta between the CPU's performance and its rivals is small, with the closest rival being just 0.2% faster. This suggests that the Ryzen 5 2600 is performing as expected for its class. The combo's rank of 194 reflects the GPU's strength, but it also highlights the imbalance of the pairing. A system with a more modern, higher-performing CPU would likely rank much higher, as the GPU would not be held back. The rank reflects the system's overall capability, but the FPS data shows this capability is not fully realized due to the CPU bottleneck. It is a high-performance system, but its full potential is untapped.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides a clear picture of performance across all tested configurations.

At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are:

• Low: 349 FPS
• Medium: 309 FPS (with a minimum of 262 and a maximum of 355)
• High: 289 FPS
• Ultra: 222 FPS

At 2560x1440, the average frame rates are:

• Low: 313 FPS
• Medium: 277 FPS (with a minimum of 235 and a maximum of 318)
• High: 249 FPS
• Ultra: 160 FPS

At 3840x2160, the average frame rates are:

• Low: 264 FPS
• Medium: 190 FPS (with a minimum of 162 and a maximum of 219)
• High: 157 FPS
• Ultra: 101 FPS

The Medium preset is the only one where min/max values are recorded, showing a consistent frame time at each resolution. The data shows that the system is capable of very high frame rates at all resolutions, but the performance cost of increasing settings is steep. The jump from Low to Medium at 4K costs 74 FPS, while the jump from High to Ultra at 4K costs 56 FPS. This indicates that the Ultra preset is particularly demanding, and the Medium preset offers the most balanced experience at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a flagship GPU with 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. Its base and boost clocks are 2017 MHz and 2407 MHz, respectively. With 21,760 shading units and 170 RT cores, it possesses immense computational power. Its benchmark scores are exceptional, with a Geekbench OpenCL score of 310,674 and a Passmark G3D score of 44,065. The GPU's 92nd percentile ranking confirms its position as one of the fastest cards available.

In this game, the GPU's role is to render the boxing ring, fighters, and crowds. The data shows that the RTX 5090 D is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions and settings. The FPS at 1080p Low (349) is likely near the CPU's maximum output. However, as the resolution and settings increase, the GPU's workload becomes more demanding. The 4K Ultra result of 101 FPS highlights the extreme stress this setting puts on the GPU. The GPU's performance scaling is evident; it is capable of delivering playable frame rates even at the highest settings, but the CPU prevents it from achieving its full potential. The massive memory bandwidth and 32 GB VRAM are more than sufficient for this game, ensuring that memory capacity is not a bottleneck. The GPU's performance is so high that it can only be fully utilized at 4K with High or Ultra settings, where the gap between CPU and GPU performance narrows.