Valorant

Valorant is a competitive FPS built around high frame rates and low latency, and the measured data for the AMD Ryzen 5 7400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER shows a system that is overwhelmingly CPU-bound at lower settings, with the GPU becoming a more significant factor as resolution and graphical fidelity increase. The benchmark results, drawn from 12 distinct resolution and preset combinations, reveal a performance curve that prioritizes raw frame generation over visual complexity, making this combo a strong candidate for high-refresh-rate monitors at 1080p and 1440p, while still delivering playable frame rates at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy for optimizing the gameplay experience. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers the highest average frame rate at 559 FPS, which is a 49% improvement over the High preset's 374 FPS and a 57% improvement over Ultra's 356 FPS. This massive headroom at Low settings suggests that for competitive play, where frame timing and responsiveness are paramount, the Low preset is the optimal choice. The Medium preset at 1080p yields 392 FPS, only 4.8% lower than High, but the jump from Low to Medium costs 167 FPS, a significant drop that may not be visually justifiable in a fast-paced shooter. Given that the data shows the CPU can push well beyond 500 FPS at 1080p Low, the recommendation for players with 144Hz or 240Hz monitors is to use Low to ensure the frame rate never dips below the refresh rate ceiling.

At 2560x1440, the pattern holds but with slightly reduced margins. Low preset produces 508 FPS, while High drops to 319 FPS and Ultra to 304 FPS. The Medium preset at 335 FPS is only 5% faster than High, indicating that the settings scaling is becoming more GPU-bound. For 1440p, the Low preset remains the best for maximizing frame rates, but the High preset still offers a respectable 319 FPS, which is sufficient for most high-refresh-rate displays. The data suggests that players prioritizing visual clarity over absolute FPS can comfortably use High at 1440p without falling below the 300 FPS threshold, though the Low preset's 508 FPS provides nearly 60% more headroom.

At 3840x2160, the situation shifts. Low preset yields 406 FPS, High yields 255 FPS, and Ultra yields 243 FPS. The Medium preset, which has min/max data available, averages 268 FPS with a minimum of 227 FPS. At 4K, the GPU begins to bottleneck more severely, and the difference between Low and Medium is 138 FPS, a 34% drop. For 4K gaming, the Low preset is still the best for frame rate, but even the Ultra preset at 243 FPS is above the 240Hz refresh rate that some high-end monitors support. The data implies that at 4K, players can afford to use Medium or High without sacrificing competitive viability, as the minimum FPS at Medium (227) is still well above typical 144Hz thresholds. Ultimately, the best experience per the measured rows is the Low preset at 1080p for maximum frame rate, with High at 1440p as a balanced alternative, and Medium at 4K for those who want both resolution and acceptable performance.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. Its benchmark scores indicate strong single-thread performance, which is critical for Valorant's engine. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3072 and multi-core score of 21765 place it in the 83rd percentile against all CPUs, suggesting it outperforms the majority of processors in general workload tests. The nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-14600T, has a nearly identical average benchmark score (32707 vs 32750, a 0.1% difference), while the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H scores slightly higher at 32812 (-0.2% delta). This positioning shows the 7400F is competitive with mid-range desktop and high-end mobile parts.

In Valorant, the CPU's role is evident from the FPS scaling with settings. At 1080p, dropping from Low to Ultra only reduces FPS from 559 to 356, a 36% decrease, while at 4K, the same settings change reduces FPS from 406 to 243, a 40% decrease. This relatively flat scaling across resolutions suggests that the CPU is the primary limiter at lower resolutions. The 559 FPS at 1080p Low reflects the 4.70 GHz boost clock and the efficiency of the Zen 4 architecture. The L3 cache of 32 MB shared across 6 cores is likely beneficial for Valorant's map data and entity tracking, reducing memory latency. The processor's 83.2 GB/s memory bandwidth with DDR5 support also helps feed the GPU at high frame rates. The data implies that the 7400F is more than adequate for Valorant, as it never becomes a bottleneck severe enough to drop FPS below 240 at any resolution or preset tested. The CPU's 65W TDP and 5nm process node also suggest efficient operation, though the benchmark data does not include power consumption during gaming.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, built on the Turing architecture with a TU106 chip, features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1470 MHz with a boost of 1650 MHz, and it has 2176 shading units. The GPU's benchmark scores show a PassMark G3D score of 16462, placing it in the 62nd percentile against all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile, has a slightly higher average score (18159 vs 18093, a -0.4% delta), while the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 is -0.5% and the AMD Radeon RX 460 is -1.5% lower. This places the 2060 SUPER as a solid mid-range performer, though it trails newer mobile parts.

In Valorant, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced at higher resolutions and settings. At 4K, the difference between Low (406 FPS) and Medium (268 FPS) is 138 FPS, a 34% drop, which is larger than the 1080p drop from Low to Medium (559 to 392 FPS, a 30% decrease). This indicates that as pixel count increases, the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become limiting factors. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for Valorant's modest texture requirements, but the 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is likely the constraint at 4K with higher presets. The GPU's boost clock of 1650 MHz is relatively modest compared to modern cards, but the data shows it can sustain 255 FPS at 4K High and 243 FPS at 4K Ultra, which are respectable figures. The RTX 2060 SUPER supports DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4, though Valorant is a DirectX 11 title, so the GPU's raw rasterization power is what matters most. The measured FPS at 1080p Ultra (356) versus 1080p Low (559) shows a 36% penalty for maxing out settings, suggesting that even at 1080p, the GPU is not fully idle when the CPU is pushing high frame rates. The data implies that the 2060 SUPER is the secondary bottleneck in this combo, only becoming the primary limiter at 4K with medium to ultra settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combination achieves in Valorant?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 559, achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low preset. This is followed by 508 FPS at 2560x1440 Low and 406 FPS at 3840x2160 Low.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in benchmark scores?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 7400F has an average benchmark score of 32750, which is 0.1% higher than the Intel Core i5-14600T (32707) and 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H (32697). It trails the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H by 0.2%.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU more likely to limit performance at 4K?

A: The data suggests the GPU becomes the primary limiter at 3840x2160. The FPS drop from Low (406) to Medium (268) is 138 FPS, a 34% reduction, which is larger than the 1080p drop from Low to Medium (559 to 392, a 30% reduction), indicating the GPU struggles more with the increased pixel load.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 227, which occurs at 3840x2160 with the Medium preset. This is the only resolution and settings combination where min FPS data is available for 4K.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations in Valorant?

A: This combination ranks 1785th out of 2883 total tested combos in Valorant, placing it in the 38th percentile of all combinations. This is a mid-tier ranking, suggesting that while it performs well, many other combos achieve higher frame rates.

Q: Does the CPU's single-thread performance correlate with FPS at 1080p?

A: Yes, the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3072 and PassMark single-thread score of 3689 indicate strong single-thread capability. The 559 FPS at 1080p Low is likely driven by this performance, as Valorant is a CPU-bound title at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the limiting factor.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the balance between CPU and GPU load. At 1080p, the average FPS across all settings is approximately 420 (calculated from 374, 559, 392, 356). At 1440p, the average is approximately 366 (319, 508, 335, 304), a 13% decrease. At 4K, the average is approximately 293 (255, 406, 268, 243), a 20% decrease from 1440p and a 30% decrease from 1080p. This scaling pattern shows that the system is heavily CPU-bound at 1080p, where the GPU has headroom to render frames quickly. As resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows, and the FPS drops more significantly.

Specifically, the Low preset scales from 559 FPS at 1080p to 508 FPS at 1440p to 406 FPS at 4K, representing a 9% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 20% drop from 1440p to 4K. The Ultra preset scales from 356 FPS at 1080p to 304 FPS at 1440p to 243 FPS at 4K, a 15% drop to 1440p and a 20% drop to 4K. The fact that the Low preset's drop from 1080p to 1440p is only 9% suggests the CPU is still the primary limiter at 1440p Low, while the 20% drop to 4K indicates the GPU is becoming more involved. For the Ultra preset, the 15% drop to 1440p is larger than the Low preset's 9%, showing that higher settings increase GPU load disproportionately. The data implies that at 1080p, the CPU is the bottleneck, as FPS remains high regardless of settings. At 4K, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, as evidenced by the narrowing gap between settings: the difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 203 FPS, while at 4K it is 163 FPS.

This scaling behavior is typical for a balanced mid-range combo. The 7400F's 6 cores and 4.70 GHz boost are sufficient to drive high frame rates, but the 2060 SUPER's 8 GB VRAM and 448 GB/s bandwidth limit performance at higher resolutions. The 4K Low preset's 406 FPS is impressive, but the 4K Ultra's 243 FPS is still above 240Hz, suggesting that resolution scaling is less punishing than settings scaling at the same resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are as follows: Low preset achieves 559 FPS, which is the highest of any configuration. Medium preset yields 392 FPS with a minimum of 334 and maximum of 451. High preset produces 374 FPS, and Ultra preset delivers 356 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 203 FPS, a 36% reduction, indicating that settings have a moderate impact at 1080p. The Medium preset's min FPS of 334 is still above 330, ensuring smooth gameplay even during intense scenes.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves 508 FPS, a 9% decrease from 1080p Low. Medium preset averages 335 FPS with a minimum of 285 and maximum of 385. High preset yields 319 FPS, and Ultra preset delivers 304 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 204 FPS, a 40% reduction, showing that settings have a slightly larger impact at 1440p than at 1080p. The Medium preset's minimum of 285 FPS is still very high, but it is 15% lower than the 1080p Medium minimum of 334.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset achieves 406 FPS, a 20% decrease from 1440p Low. Medium preset averages 268 FPS with a minimum of 227 and maximum of 308. High preset yields 255 FPS, and Ultra preset delivers 243 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 163 FPS, a 40% reduction, which is consistent with 1440p. The Medium preset's minimum of 227 FPS is the lowest recorded across all resolutions, indicating that 4K with medium settings can still cause frame dips below 240Hz.

The data shows a clear pattern: Low presets always deliver the highest FPS, and the gap between Low and Medium is larger than the gap between Medium and High or High and Ultra. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Medium is 167 FPS, while Medium to High is 18 FPS and High to Ultra is 18 FPS. This suggests that the Low preset is a distinct tier, while Medium, High, and Ultra are closer together. At 4K, the differences are 138 FPS (Low to Medium), 13 FPS (Medium to High), and 12 FPS (High to Ultra), reinforcing that Low is the outlier.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 7400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 1785th out of 2883 tested combos in Valorant, placing it in the 62nd percentile of all combinations. This is a solid mid-tier ranking, which is somewhat surprising given the high frame rates measured. The rank suggests that many other combos, likely featuring newer or higher-end GPUs and CPUs, achieve even higher FPS in Valorant. However, the measured FPS values are exceptionally high, with the lowest recorded average being 243 FPS at 4K Ultra. This indicates that the ranking is relative to other combos that may include RTX 40-series or RX 7000-series GPUs with much higher raw performance.

The CPU's 83rd percentile ranking against all CPUs and the GPU's 62nd percentile ranking against all GPUs suggest that the CPU is the stronger component in this pairing. The combo rank of 1785 out of 2883 is lower than the individual component percentiles would suggest, implying that the GPU is holding the combo back in a game that can be GPU-bound at higher settings. The nearest CPU rival, the Intel Core i5-14600T, has a nearly identical benchmark score, but if paired with a faster GPU, it might achieve a higher combo rank. Similarly, the GPU's nearest rival, the RTX 3060 Mobile, is slightly faster in benchmarks, but this is a mobile part and may not be comparable in a desktop context.

The data implies that this combo is well-suited for 1080p competitive play, where it can push 559 FPS at Low settings. For 1440p, it remains strong at 508 FPS Low, but the rank suggests that other combos can exceed this. At 4K, the 406 FPS Low is respectable, but the 243 FPS Ultra shows the GPU's limits. Overall, the rank of 1785 out of 2883 indicates that this is a dependable mid-range setup, but not an outlier performer. Players seeking top-tier 4K performance or maximum FPS at 1440p Ultra would need to look at higher-tier combos, while those targeting 1080p or 1440p Low will find this combo more than sufficient.