Undisputed

The Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER pairing represents a deliberate study in asymmetry: a six-core, six-thread Coffee Lake processor from 2018 paired with a flagship Ada Lovelace GPU from 2024. In Undisputed, this combination lands at rank 616 out of 3,718 tested combos, placing it in the top 16.6% of all configurations. The data shows a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher resolutions, yet reveals the CPU’s influence at 1080p where frame rates approach the practical limits of the processor’s single-thread capabilities.

FAQ

*Q: What is the combo's overall standing among tested configurations in Undisputed?*

A: The combination ranks 616th out of 3,718 tested combos, which places it in the 84th percentile of all systems measured. This indicates a high-performing setup that outperforms the vast majority of tested configurations.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 SUPER compare to its nearest GPU rivals in raw benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 4080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 54,209. Its closest rival, the standard RTX 4080, scores 54,247, a negligible 0.1% difference. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X sits 1.1% higher at 54,828, while the Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB and Radeon 8060S are 2.7% and 2.8% ahead, respectively.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset delivers an average of 290 FPS, while Ultra drops to 132 FPS. This represents a 158 FPS gap, meaning Ultra settings run at approximately 45.5% of the Low preset's frame rate.

Q: Does the CPU hold back performance at 1080p?

A: The evidence suggests yes. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 324 FPS, which is only 34 FPS higher than at 1440p Low (290 FPS). This relatively small gain indicates the Core i5-9400’s six threads are nearing their limit, preventing the GPU from scaling fully at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded in the measured data?

A: The only minimum FPS values provided are for Medium settings: 133 FPS at 4K, 211 FPS at 1440p, and 243 FPS at 1080p. These figures indicate that even at 4K Medium, the system maintains a frame rate well above typical 60 FPS displays.

Q: How does the Core i5-9400's multi-core performance compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2,254. It is nearly identical to the Core i7-1068NG7 (2,259, -0.2% delta) and Core i3-10305 (2,264, -0.4% delta). It slightly edges out the Core i7-10710U (2,248, +0.3% delta) and Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (2,246, +0.4% delta).

How This Combo Ranks

With a rank of 616 out of 3,718 combos, this pairing sits comfortably in the upper echelon of tested systems. The percentile placement implies that approximately 84% of all combinations tested in Undisputed perform worse than this setup. This is a remarkable result given the CPU's age and mid-range positioning; it is a processor that scores in the 47th percentile among all CPUs, meaning half of all processors benchmarked outperform it. The GPU, conversely, sits in the 86th percentile among all GPUs.

The ranking disparity between the components is telling. The RTX 4080 SUPER's raw performance (54,209 average benchmark score) is the primary driver of the combo's high placement. The i5-9400, with an average score of 2,254, is not a bottleneck in the traditional sense for most of the resolution spectrum tested. However, the data suggests that the CPU's 47th percentile standing prevents the combo from climbing higher. If the GPU were paired with a top-tier processor, the combo would likely rank significantly better, particularly at lower resolutions where the CPU's influence is more pronounced. The 616th rank reflects a system that is faster than the vast majority, but the gap between the CPU's modest standing and the GPU's elite status hints at untapped potential in CPU-light scenarios.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 provides six physical cores and six threads, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. This Coffee Lake architecture, built on a 14 nm process, features a shared 9 MB L3 cache. The processor's memory bandwidth is rated at 42.7 GB/s via dual-channel DDR4. In synthetic benchmarks, its multi-core scores range from 668 in Cinebench R15 to 6,629 in Cinebench R23, while single-core performance peaks at 935 in Cinebench R23.

In Undisputed, the CPU's role becomes evident when examining the frame rate scaling across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 324 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low only drops this to 290 FPS, a reduction of 34 FPS. This modest decline suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is limiting the frame rate; the GPU could render more frames, but the processor cannot feed it data fast enough. The boost clock of 4.10 GHz helps in this scenario, but six threads without Hyper-Threading is a limitation for modern game engines that may utilize more than six threads.

The i5-9400's 47th percentile ranking among all CPUs places it in the middle of the pack. Its nearest rivals, such as the Core i7-10710U (2,248 score) and Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (2,246 score), show that it is competitive with other mid-range processors of its era. However, the data in Undisputed shows that the CPU is not the primary constraint at 4K, where the GPU's workload dominates. The processor's six threads are sufficient to maintain playable frame rates across all settings, but the 1080p results hint that pushing beyond 324 FPS would require a more capable CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four quality presets.

At 1920x1080, the Low preset yields an average of 324 FPS. Medium increases the visual load but still manages 286 FPS, with a minimum of 243 FPS and maximum of 329 FPS. High drops to 268 FPS, while Ultra brings the average down to 183 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a 141 FPS swing, with the Ultra preset running at roughly 56% of the Low preset's performance.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high. Low produces 290 FPS, Medium achieves 248 FPS (min 211, max 285), High delivers 205 FPS, and Ultra settles at 132 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 158 FPS, with Ultra running at 45.5% of Low's speed. Notably, 1440p Ultra (132 FPS) is still faster than 1080p Ultra (183 FPS) is slower, showing that the GPU handles the resolution increase gracefully.

At 3840x2160, the demands of 4K become apparent. Low still delivers an excellent 218 FPS, Medium drops to 157 FPS (min 133, max 180), High manages 130 FPS, and Ultra falls to 83 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only sub-100 FPS average in the entire dataset, but it remains well within the range of high-refresh-rate gaming. The 4K Low result of 218 FPS is particularly impressive, indicating that the RTX 4080 SUPER has substantial headroom even at this resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is the dominant component in this pairing. It features the AD103 chip on a 5 nm TSMC process, with 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 736.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's boost clock is 2,550 MHz, with 10,240 shading units and 80 RT cores. Its FP32 compute performance is rated at 52.22 TFLOPS, and it supports DirectX 12 Ultimate.

In Undisputed, the GPU's strength is clear from the 4K results. At 4K High, the combo still averages 130 FPS, which is a demanding workload that showcases the GPU's ability to maintain high frame rates at the highest resolution. The 4K Low result of 218 FPS demonstrates that the GPU is far from being the limiting factor even at 4K. The GPU's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs is reflected in these numbers; it is a top-tier performer.

The RTX 4080 SUPER's nearest rival, the standard RTX 4080, scores 54,247, a mere 0.1% difference. This suggests that the SUPER variant offers minimal performance uplift over its predecessor in synthetic benchmarks. However, in Undisputed, the GPU's raw power ensures that the CPU becomes the bottleneck at lower resolutions. The 1080p results, where the frame rate does not scale proportionally with resolution decreases, indicate that the GPU is waiting on the CPU. At 4K, the GPU's workload increases enough to shift the balance, but even then, the CPU's six threads are sufficient to avoid major frame pacing issues.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience per the measured rows, the Medium preset at 1440p offers a compelling balance. It delivers an average of 248 FPS with a minimum of 211 FPS, ensuring smooth performance on high-refresh-rate monitors. The 211 FPS minimum is the highest among all Medium presets, and the 285 FPS maximum approaches the High preset's average. This makes 1440p Medium the sweet spot for competitive play, offering high frame rates without sacrificing too much visual fidelity.

At 4K, the Medium preset also stands out. With an average of 157 FPS and a minimum of 133 FPS, it provides a fluid experience on 4K displays with high refresh rates. The 133 FPS minimum is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold, making it a safe choice for players who prioritize frame rate stability over maximum visual quality. The High preset at 4K (130 FPS average) is also viable, but the lack of a minimum FPS figure in the data makes Medium the more reliable recommendation.

For players with 1080p displays, the High preset at 268 FPS is recommended. It provides a significant visual upgrade over Medium (286 FPS) with only an 18 FPS penalty. The Ultra preset at 1080p (183 FPS) is still very playable, but the drop from High to Ultra is steeper, and High offers a better frame rate-to-visual quality ratio. The Low preset at any resolution is only advisable for players seeking the absolute maximum frame rate, as the visual compromises are likely too severe for a game like Undisputed.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the system's balance between CPU and GPU. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 324 at 1080p to 218 at 4K, a reduction of 106 FPS or 32.7%. This is a relatively small drop for a 4x increase in pixel count, indicating that the CPU is limiting performance at 1080p. If the system were purely GPU-bound at 1080p, the 4K Low result would be closer to 81 FPS (324/4), but the measured 218 FPS shows the GPU has ample headroom.

At Medium settings, the scaling is more pronounced: 286 FPS at 1080p falls to 157 FPS at 4K, a 45.1% reduction. This suggests that as the settings increase, the GPU becomes more of a limiting factor, but the CPU still plays a role. The High preset shows a similar trend: 268 FPS at 1080p drops to 130 FPS at 4K, a 51.5% reduction. The Ultra preset exhibits the steepest drop: 183 FPS at 1080p falls to 83 FPS at 4K, a 54.6% reduction.

The pattern indicates that at 1080p, particularly with lower settings, the Core i5-9400 is the primary constraint. The GPU is capable of rendering far more frames than the CPU can deliver. As resolution and settings increase, the GPU's workload grows, and the system becomes more balanced. At 4K Ultra, the system is fully GPU-bound, with the CPU no longer being a significant factor. This analysis is corroborated by the 1440p results, which show intermediate scaling that aligns with a gradual shift from CPU-bound to GPU-bound behavior.