Undisputed

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 580 produces a playable but heavily GPU-bound experience in Undisputed, with performance collapsing at higher resolutions and settings. The data shows a classic bottleneck scenario: the processor has ample headroom, while the graphics card dictates the frame rate ceiling from 1080p to 4K. This combination ranks in the bottom 10% of tested configurations, indicating that while it can run the game, it does so with significant compromises at the top end.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates reveal a steep performance cliff as resolution increases, directly pointing to the GPU as the limiting component. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 122 FPS, which is smooth and fully playable. Moving to 1440p at the same settings drops the average to 88 FPS, a reduction of 34 FPS. At 4K Low, the average falls further to 56 FPS, meaning the system loses over half of its 1080p performance when scaling to 4K. This pattern—a 66 FPS drop from 1080p to 4K on Low settings—is characteristic of a GPU that is saturated by the pixel count, not a CPU that is struggling to feed frames.

The scaling becomes even more punishing at higher presets. With High settings, the transition from 1080p (73 FPS) to 1440p (53 FPS) yields a 20 FPS loss, and moving to 4K drops another 20 FPS to just 33 FPS. The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic collapse: 47 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p, and a barely interactive 21 FPS at 4K. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 35 FPS, while the same comparison at 1080p is 75 FPS. This widening gap at higher resolutions confirms that the RX 580's rendering throughput, not the CPU's processing power, is the determining factor in every scenario.

Benchmark results indicate that the i5-12600KF is not the constraint in this pairing. The CPU's 3DMark scores show strong multi-threaded performance (7,956 in the 16-thread test) and solid single-thread capability (1,016 in the single-thread test). In a game like Undisputed, which is a sports title with limited AI and physics demands, the processor's 10 cores and 16 threads are more than sufficient. The evidence from the scaling data is clear: when the resolution increases, the frame rate drops proportionally to the pixel count increase, which is the signature of a GPU-bound system. The RX 580, with its 8 GB of VRAM and 256-bit memory bus, simply cannot sustain high frame rates at 4K regardless of CPU headroom.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580 is the decisive factor in this configuration's performance, and its specifications explain why the frame rates plateau so quickly. The card operates with a base clock of 1257 MHz and a boost clock of 1340 MHz, paired with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory running at an effective speed of 8 Gbps. The memory bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s, while respectable for its generation, becomes a limitation at higher resolutions where texture fetching and frame buffer demands increase exponentially.

The GPU's compute capabilities are modest by modern standards, with a FP32 performance of 6.175 TFLOPS. This translates directly to the measured results: at 1080p Medium, the card averages 88 FPS, but at 4K Medium, it falls to 40 FPS with a minimum of 34 FPS. The 48 FPS drop from 1080p to 4K on Medium settings illustrates how the Polaris 20 chip, built on a 14 nm process with 5,700 million transistors, struggles to maintain fluidity when pixel count quadruples.

The VRAM capacity of 8 GB is sufficient for the game's requirements at 1080p and 1440p, but the data suggests it may contribute to the severe drop at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS falls to 21. While the fact pack does not list VRAM usage, the pattern of performance degradation—particularly the 19 FPS drop from High (33 FPS) to Ultra (21 FPS) at 4K—indicates that the card is hitting both compute and memory bandwidth walls simultaneously. The GPU's percentile ranking of 53 among all GPUs places it in the mid-range, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER and the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, both of which show similar average benchmark scores. In Undisputed, this mid-range positioning means the card can handle esports-level settings but is not designed for 4K gaming.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF plays a supporting role in this pairing, and the data indicates it never becomes the bottleneck. With 10 cores, 16 threads, and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, the processor has ample headroom for a sports title like Undisputed. The CPU's benchmark scores support this assessment: its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23,391 and single-core score of 3,302 are strong figures that place it in the 79th percentile of all CPUs.

The processor's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-10900K and AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, with deltaPct values of -0.3% and -0.3% respectively, indicating that the i5-12600KF performs essentially identically to those higher-tier parts in synthetic benchmarks. This parity matters in Undisputed, where the game's AI and physics calculations are unlikely to stress even a 10-core processor. The fact that the FPS drops by roughly 50% when moving from 1080p to 4K across all settings—while the CPU's workload remains constant—proves that the processor is delivering frames far faster than the GPU can render them.

The CPU's memory support for both DDR4 and DDR5, along with its dual-channel memory bus, provides adequate bandwidth for game data. The L3 cache of 20 MB shared across all cores is sufficient for the game's working set. In the measured results, the 3DMark 16-thread score of 7,956 and single-thread score of 1,016 show that the CPU can handle both heavily threaded and lightly threaded workloads without issue. The conclusion is unambiguous: the i5-12600KF is not the limiting factor in this configuration, and upgrading the GPU would yield far greater performance gains than any CPU change.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a complete picture of what to expect from this combo across all resolution and settings combinations. At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best performance: Low settings produce 122 FPS average, Medium produces 88 FPS with a minimum of 75 and maximum of 101, High produces 73 FPS, and Ultra produces 47 FPS. The 1080p results show that the RX 580 is capable of high refresh rates on lower presets, but the 75 FPS gap between Low and Ultra highlights the card's limitations under heavy graphical load.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance drops noticeably. Low settings average 88 FPS, which remains playable on high refresh monitors. Medium averages 64 FPS with a range of 54 to 73, providing a smooth experience for most users. High settings drop to 53 FPS, which is marginally acceptable for a sports game, while Ultra falls to 34 FPS, indicating a stutter-prone experience. The 1440p data shows that the card can handle competitive play only on Low or Medium settings.

At 3840x2160, the results are largely disappointing. Low settings produce 56 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a game that benefits from high frame rates. Medium drops to 40 FPS with a minimum of 34, High falls to 33 FPS, and Ultra is nearly unplayable at 21 FPS. The 4K results demonstrate that this combination is not suited for 4K gaming, even on the lowest preset. The lack of min/max FPS data for the Low, High, and Ultra presets at all resolutions prevents a full analysis of frame pacing, but the available data for Medium settings shows a consistent pattern: the RX 580 maintains a stable frame rate without extreme dips, suggesting that the card's 8 GB of VRAM is adequate for the game's textures at Medium settings.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations, this pairing sits near the bottom. The comboRankInGame field places this configuration at rank 3,386 out of 3,718 total combos, putting it in the bottom 9% of all tested systems. This low ranking is primarily due to the RX 580's age and mid-range positioning, as the CPU is actually a strong performer relative to other processors.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 79 means it outperforms 79% of all CPUs tested in the database, while the GPU's percentile of 53 places it just above average. This disparity explains the overall ranking: the combination is held back entirely by the graphics card. The nearest GPU rivals—the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER with a deltaPct of -0.4% and the AMD Radeon 740M with a deltaPct of 0.5%—show that the RX 580 is competitive with entry-level modern parts, but that is not enough to push this combo into higher rankings.

For context, the CPU's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-10900K and AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, both of which have essentially identical average benchmark scores (deltaPct of -0.3%). This means that in a different pairing—say, a modern mid-range GPU like an RTX 3060 or RX 6600—the i5-12600KF would likely rank much higher. The data clearly shows that the CPU is not the bottleneck; it is the GPU that drags this combo down to the 3,386th position.

Settings Recommendations

Given the measured data, the optimal settings for this combination depend heavily on the target resolution. For 1080p gaming, Medium settings provide the best balance of performance and visual quality, with an average of 88 FPS and a minimum of 75 FPS ensuring smooth gameplay without sacrificing too much graphical fidelity. High settings at 73 FPS are also viable for players who prefer better visuals, but the 15 FPS drop from Medium to High may not be worth the visual improvement in a fast-paced sports game.

For 1440p, Low settings are the only reliable option for maintaining high frame rates, with an average of 88 FPS. Medium settings at 64 FPS are acceptable for casual play, but the minimum of 54 FPS may cause noticeable stutter during intense boxing exchanges. High settings at 53 FPS are borderline, and Ultra at 34 FPS should be avoided entirely.

At 4K, the recommendation is to avoid this resolution altogether. Even Low settings only produce 56 FPS, and Medium drops to 40 FPS with a minimum of 34 FPS. The Ultra preset at 21 FPS is unplayable. The data suggests that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, where the RX 580 can deliver a competitive experience on Medium or High settings. Players with 1440p monitors should stick to Low settings to maintain a smooth frame rate, while 4K displays are simply beyond the capabilities of this hardware. For the best overall experience, the measured rows indicate that 1080p Medium is the sweet spot, offering 88 FPS average performance with a stable frame time range that suits the game's gameplay mechanics.