Undisputed

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT achieves a combo rank of 1386 out of 3718 tested combinations in Undisputed. This places the pairing in the 62.7th percentile of all tested combos, meaning it outperforms the majority of systems in the database but sits below the top tier of configurations.

The ranking reflects a meaningful imbalance between the two components. The GPU, which falls in the 67th percentile among all graphics cards, is clearly the stronger half of this pairing. The CPU, by contrast, lands in the 47th percentile among all processors. That gap of 20 percentile points suggests the processor is holding back the graphics card in this title, though the overall combo rank remains respectable because the GPU carries most of the workload in a sports game like Undisputed.

Relative to its nearest rivals, the GPU holds its ground well. The RX 7700 XT's average benchmark score of 22549 sits just 0.5% above the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile's 22435, and 1.7% above the AMD Radeon RX 5700's 22170. It trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 by 1.5% and the RTX 4060 Mobile by 0.8%. These are tight margins, indicating that the RX 7700 XT is competitive with a broad swath of mid-range and previous-generation high-end cards, with no single rival holding a decisive advantage.

The CPU's benchmark profile tells a similar story of mid-pack positioning. The i5-9400's average benchmark score of 2254 is virtually identical to the Intel Core i7-1068NG7's 2259 (a 0.2% deficit) and the Intel Core i3-10305's 2264 (a 0.4% deficit). It edges out the Intel Core i7-10710U by 0.3% and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 by 0.4%. None of these rivals create meaningful separation, confirming that the i5-9400 is a competent but unremarkable processor in the current benchmark landscape.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT brings substantial graphics resources to Undisputed. Its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus delivers 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is more than sufficient for the textures and geometry typical of a modern boxing title. The memory clock runs at 2250 MHz, translating to 18 Gbps effective, and the 96 ROPs ensure strong pixel throughput at high resolutions.

The GPU's clock behavior is notable for sustained performance. The base clock sits at 1435 MHz, but the boost clock reaches 2544 MHz, with a game clock of 2171 MHz. That game clock represents the typical sustained frequency during gaming workloads and explains why the card performs consistently across benchmark runs. The pixel rate of 244.2 GPixel/s and texture rate of 549.5 GTexel/s give the card ample headroom for high-detail rendering.

In Undisputed specifically, the GPU's role is dominant. The measured FPS data shows that at 4K resolution, even the High preset delivers 86 FPS average, which is well above playable thresholds. This indicates the RX 7700 XT is not struggling at the highest resolution tested, and the bottleneck lies elsewhere — namely in the CPU's ability to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics calculations.

The GPU's 67th percentile ranking among all graphics cards reinforces its position as a strong mid-range performer. Its PassMark G3D score of 22547 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3316 both point to a card that can handle demanding titles without breaking a sweat. The 35.17 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power provides raw shading capability, while the 54 ray accelerators offer future-proofing for games that leverage ray tracing, though Undisputed's measured data does not indicate ray tracing is a significant factor.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data across resolutions reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling at lower settings and CPU-bound behavior at higher settings. Starting at 1080p, the Low preset achieves 315 FPS average, which is an extremely high frame rate that far exceeds any display's refresh rate. Moving to 1440p drops this to 228 FPS (a 27.6% reduction), and 4K further reduces it to 144 FPS (a 36.8% reduction from 1440p). This scaling is nearly linear with pixel count, suggesting the GPU is the limiting factor at Low settings across all resolutions.

The Medium preset shows a similar scaling pattern but with tighter margins. At 1080p, the average is 227 FPS. At 1440p, it falls to 164 FPS (a 27.8% drop), and at 4K it reaches 104 FPS (a 36.6% drop from 1440p). The consistency of these percentage drops across Low and Medium settings strongly indicates that the GPU is fully utilized at these settings, with the CPU providing enough headroom to avoid becoming a constraint.

The High preset tells a different story. At 1080p, the average is 188 FPS. At 1440p, it drops to 136 FPS (a 27.7% reduction), and at 4K it falls to 86 FPS (a 36.8% reduction from 1440p). These percentages are remarkably close to those seen at Low and Medium, but the absolute FPS values are lower, reflecting the increased GPU workload from higher-quality textures and effects. The pattern holds, though, indicating the GPU remains the primary bottleneck even at High settings.

The Ultra preset breaks this pattern. At 1080p, the average is 121 FPS. At 1440p, it drops to 87 FPS (a 28.1% reduction), and at 4K it plunges to 55 FPS (a 36.8% reduction from 1440p). The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that drops below 60 FPS, suggesting that this combination of settings and resolution overwhelms the GPU. The scaling percentages remain consistent, but the absolute performance at 4K Ultra indicates the RX 7700 XT is at its limits when every graphical feature is enabled at maximum resolution.

The data across all settings shows a consistent pattern: resolution scaling is nearly uniform, with 1440p costing roughly 28% of the frame rate compared to 1080p, and 4K costing roughly 37% compared to 1440p. This uniformity indicates the GPU is the limiting component across all tested configurations, with the CPU providing sufficient frame delivery to avoid becoming a bottleneck. The i5-9400's six cores and six threads appear adequate for Undisputed's workload, which is a sports title that likely does not demand extreme multi-threaded performance.

FAQ

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1080p with High settings in Undisputed?

A: The measured average is 188 FPS. This is well above the refresh rate of most monitors, so the game will feel extremely smooth at this configuration.

Q: Is the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT strong enough for 4K gaming in Undisputed?

A: At 4K High settings, the average is 86 FPS, which is playable. At 4K Ultra, the average drops to 55 FPS, which may feel less smooth. The Medium preset at 4K delivers 104 FPS, making it a viable option for high-resolution play.

Q: How does the Intel Core i5-9400 compare to its nearest CPU rivals in benchmark scores?

A: The i5-9400's average benchmark score of 2254 is within 0.4% of the Intel Core i3-10305 (2264), Intel Core i7-1068NG7 (2259), Intel Core i7-10710U (2248), and AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (2246). Performance is essentially identical across these processors.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all graphics cards?

A: The RX 7700 XT ranks in the 67th percentile, meaning it outperforms roughly two-thirds of all graphics cards in the database.

Q: Which resolution and settings combination provides the best balance of quality and performance?

A: The 1440p High preset delivers 136 FPS average, which is both visually appealing and well above the 60 FPS threshold. At 1080p, the Ultra preset achieves 121 FPS, offering maximum quality with still-excellent performance.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at high settings?

A: The data suggests no. At 4K Ultra, the FPS drops to 55, which is a GPU limitation. At 1080p Low, the FPS reaches 315, which indicates the CPU can feed frames at very high rates. The consistent resolution scaling pattern across all settings confirms the GPU is the limiting component.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimal settings in Undisputed. The 4K Ultra preset yields 55 FPS average, which falls below the 60 FPS threshold that most players consider minimum for smooth gameplay. This configuration is not recommended for competitive or fast-paced play, though it may be acceptable for casual boxing matches where reaction time is less critical.

For 4K displays, the High preset at 86 FPS is the best choice. It maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS while delivering significantly better visual quality than Medium (104 FPS). The Medium preset offers a higher frame rate, but the visual fidelity trade-off is substantial, and the High preset already provides adequate headroom.

At 1440p, the High preset at 136 FPS is the recommended configuration. The Ultra preset at 87 FPS is playable but leaves performance on the table, while the Medium preset at 164 FPS offers diminishing returns in visual quality for the added frame rate. The 1440p High configuration provides a balanced experience that suits both competitive play and visual appreciation.

For 1080p, the Ultra preset at 121 FPS is the clear winner. It delivers the highest visual quality available while maintaining a frame rate that is more than sufficient for any display. The High preset at 188 FPS is unnecessary unless the player has a 240 Hz display that can take advantage of the extra frames. The Low preset at 315 FPS is only useful for extreme competitive scenarios where every millisecond matters, but the visual degradation is severe.

The Medium presets at all resolutions show the largest frame rate jumps when moving from Ultra, with 4K gaining from 55 to 104 FPS (an 89% improvement), 1440p gaining from 87 to 164 FPS (an 88% improvement), and 1080p gaining from 121 to 227 FPS (an 88% improvement). This suggests that the Ultra preset includes some settings that are disproportionately expensive in terms of GPU resources, and stepping down to Medium recovers most of the lost performance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 contributes six cores and six threads to this combination, running at a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. This processor, based on the Coffee Lake architecture on a 14 nm process, provides 9 MB of shared L3 cache, with 64 KB of L1 and 256 KB of L2 per core. The dual-channel DDR4 memory support delivers 42.7 GB/s of bandwidth.

In Undisputed, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS data shows that even at 1080p Low settings, where the CPU would be most likely to bottleneck, the average reaches 315 FPS. This indicates the i5-9400 can generate frames at a rate that far exceeds typical display capabilities. The CPU's six threads are sufficient for Undisputed's workload, which is a sports title that likely does not heavily utilize multi-threading.

The CPU's benchmark scores place it in a narrow band of mid-range performance. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 6629 and single-core score of 935 show balanced performance that is neither exceptional nor deficient. The Geekbench multi-core score of 5141 and single-core score of 1389 follow the same pattern. The CPU's 47th percentile ranking among all processors confirms its mid-pack status.

The nearest CPU rivals all cluster within 0.4% of the i5-9400's average benchmark score of 2254. This tight grouping includes the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 at 2259 (0.2% higher), the Intel Core i3-10305 at 2264 (0.4% higher), the Intel Core i7-10710U at 2248 (0.3% lower), and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 at 2246 (0.4% lower). In practice, these differences are imperceptible, and the choice between these processors would have no measurable impact on Undisputed's performance.

The TDP of 65 watts and the PCIe Gen 3 interface with 16 lanes provide adequate connectivity for the RX 7700 XT. The GPU's PCIe 4.0 x16 interface is backward compatible with the CPU's Gen 3 lanes, and the bandwidth difference is unlikely to matter in a game like Undisputed that does not rely on extreme data streaming.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for this combination in Undisputed is as follows. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers an average of 315 FPS. The Medium preset achieves 227 FPS with a minimum of 193 FPS and a maximum of 261 FPS. The High preset reaches 188 FPS, and the Ultra preset produces 121 FPS.

At 1440p, the Low preset averages 228 FPS. The Medium preset achieves 164 FPS with a minimum of 139 FPS and a maximum of 188 FPS. The High preset delivers 136 FPS, and the Ultra preset produces 87 FPS.

At 4K resolution, the Low preset averages 144 FPS. The Medium preset achieves 104 FPS with a minimum of 88 FPS and a maximum of 119 FPS. The High preset delivers 86 FPS, and the Ultra preset produces 55 FPS.

The pattern across all resolutions is consistent: each step from Low to Medium to High to Ultra reduces the frame rate by approximately 25-30%. The Low-to-Medium transition costs roughly 28% of the frame rate at every resolution. The Medium-to-High transition costs approximately 17% at 1080p and 1440p, but only 17% at 4K as well, showing a uniform cost. The High-to-Ultra transition is the most expensive, costing approximately 36% at all resolutions.

The minimum FPS data, available only for the Medium preset, shows that the 4K configuration drops to 88 FPS minimum, which is still above the 60 FPS threshold. The 1440p Medium minimum of 139 FPS and the 1080p Medium minimum of 193 FPS both maintain comfortable margins. The spread between minimum and maximum FPS narrows as resolution increases, with 4K showing a 31 FPS spread (88 to 119), 1440p showing a 49 FPS spread (139 to 188), and 1080p showing a 68 FPS spread (193 to 261). This indicates that lower resolutions introduce more frame time variance, likely due to CPU-side frame generation becoming more variable when the GPU is not the limiting factor.