Valorant

The Intel Core i5-10400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER delivers exceptionally high frame rates in Valorant, placing this combination at rank 2866 out of 3708 tested combos in the database. This position in the 77th percentile of all tested systems indicates that while this pairing is not at the absolute top tier of performance, it sits comfortably in the upper quartile, providing a smooth competitive experience. The combination's strength lies in its ability to maintain very high average frame rates across all settings and resolutions, with the lowest recorded average being 243 FPS at 4K Ultra settings—a figure that still exceeds the refresh rate of most high-end gaming monitors. The data shows a system that is well-balanced for this specific title, where the modest CPU and mid-range GPU work together to produce results that are competitive with far more expensive configurations.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 2866 out of 3708 tested combinations places it in the 77th percentile of all systems tested with this game. This is a strong showing, indicating that the i5-10400F and RTX 2060 SUPER are well-matched for Valorant's engine, which tends to favor high single-thread performance and adequate GPU throughput. The ranking suggests that this pairing outperforms roughly 77% of all other tested configurations, a notable achievement given the CPU's modest specifications. The data reveals that the bottleneck in this system is rarely severe, as frame rates remain high even at 4K resolution, which typically places more strain on the GPU. When compared to the CPU's overall percentile rank of 68 against all processors, the combo performs slightly better in Valorant, indicating that the game leverages the CPU's strengths effectively. The GPU, sitting at the 62nd percentile against all graphics cards, also contributes positively, and the combination's performance in this game exceeds what its individual component percentiles might suggest, pointing to efficient scaling within the game's engine.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture with a 12 nm process node from TSMC, featuring a chip with 10,800 million transistors on a 445 mm² die. Its memory configuration includes 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s, which is ample for Valorant's relatively low memory demands. The GPU's base clock runs at 1470 MHz, boosting to 1650 MHz, with memory clocked at 1750 MHz or 14 Gbps effective. These clock speeds are moderate by modern standards, but they prove more than sufficient for a game that is not graphically intensive. The GPU's shading units, 2176, and texture mapping units, 136, along with 64 ROPs, handle the game's simple geometry and effects with ease. The RTX 2060 SUPER's performance in this context is demonstrated by its PassMark G3D score of 16462, which places it in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs. In Valorant, the GPU's role is to render the game's clean, stylized visuals at high frame rates, and the data shows it does so without becoming a limiting factor, even at 4K resolution where the average FPS never drops below 243 across all settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the user's priority: maximum frame rate or visual fidelity. For competitive play where frame rate is paramount, the Low preset at 1080p delivers the highest average FPS at 386, providing a significant margin above the refresh rates of most gaming monitors. At 1440p, the Low preset still offers a very high 366 average FPS, making it an excellent choice for those with higher-resolution displays. If visual quality is more important, the High preset offers a balanced experience, with 324 average FPS at 1080p and 307 at 1440p, both well above the 240 FPS threshold that many esports monitors target. The Ultra preset, while offering the best visuals, shows a slight performance dip, with 319 average FPS at 1080p and 302 at 1440p, but this is still more than sufficient for smooth gameplay. For users with 4K displays, the Low preset at 340 average FPS is the best choice for competitive play, while High at 255 average FPS provides a good balance for those who prefer better visuals. The Medium preset at all resolutions offers intermediate performance, with 329 FPS at 1080p, 312 at 1440p, and 268 at 4K, making it a solid all-around choice.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the combo achieves its highest frame rates. The Low preset yields an average of 386 FPS, while High follows at 324, Medium at 329, and Ultra at 319. The Medium preset at 1080p shows a min FPS of 280 and a max of 379, indicating some frame variance but still maintaining a playable minimum. Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS drops slightly but remains exceptionally high: Low at 366, High at 307, Medium at 312 with a min of 265 and max of 359, and Ultra at 302. At 3840x2160, the resolution scaling becomes more apparent, though performance remains impressive. The Low preset at 4K averages 340 FPS, High at 255, Medium at 268 with a min of 227 and max of 308, and Ultra at 243. The data shows a clear trend: as resolution increases, frame rates decrease, but the drop is not severe enough to compromise playability. The difference between 1080p Low and 4K Low is 46 FPS, a 12% reduction, while the difference between 1080p Ultra and 4K Ultra is 76 FPS, a 24% reduction, suggesting that higher settings place more strain on the GPU at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo?

A: The highest average FPS is 386, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low preset. This is the maximum frame rate recorded across all tested settings and resolutions.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 243 at Ultra settings to 340 at Low settings. This indicates that the combo can handle 4K gaming with playable frame rates, though lower settings are recommended for competitive play.

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

A: The lowest min FPS recorded is 227, which occurs at 3840x2160 resolution with Medium settings. This is still well above the typical 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

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

A: The difference is minor. At 1080p, Medium averages 329 FPS while High averages 324 FPS, a difference of just 5 FPS. At 1440p, Medium averages 312 FPS and High averages 307 FPS, also a 5 FPS difference. At 4K, Medium averages 268 FPS and High averages 255 FPS, a 13 FPS difference.

Q: How does the combo's performance scale with resolution?

A: From 1080p to 4K at Low settings, average FPS drops from 386 to 340, a 12% reduction. At Ultra settings, the drop is from 319 to 243, a 24% reduction. This indicates that higher settings increase the GPU load more significantly at higher resolutions.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 2866 out of 3708 tested combinations, placing it in the top 23% of all systems. This is a strong performance, indicating that the i5-10400F and RTX 2060 SUPER are well-suited for Valorant.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Comet Lake architecture, manufactured on a 14 nm process. Its base clock is 2.90 GHz, boosting to 4.30 GHz, with a TDP of 65 W. The CPU features 12 MB of shared L3 cache, with 64 KB L1 and 256 KB L2 per core, and supports DDR4 memory with a dual-channel bus providing 42.7 GB/s of bandwidth. In benchmark tests, the CPU scores 10283 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1451 in single-core, placing it in the 68th percentile of all CPUs. The single-core performance is particularly relevant for Valorant, which relies heavily on CPU speed for game logic and physics. The CPU's PassMark single-thread score of 2541 and 3DMark single-thread score of 688 indicate strong per-core performance. In this combo, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with frames, and the data shows it does so effectively, as the GPU never becomes fully saturated even at 4K resolution. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads provide enough headroom for background tasks while maintaining high frame rates.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the nature of the bottleneck in this system. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 386 at 1080p to 340 at 4K, a reduction of 46 FPS or 12%. This relatively modest decrease suggests that at Low settings, the CPU is the primary limiting factor, as the GPU has sufficient headroom to handle the increased pixel count without significant frame loss. At Ultra settings, the average FPS drops from 319 at 1080p to 243 at 4K, a reduction of 76 FPS or 24%. This larger drop indicates that at higher settings, the GPU becomes more of a limiting factor, as the increased graphical load reduces its ability to maintain frame rates at higher resolutions. The data shows a clear trend: the system is CPU-bound at lower resolutions and settings, transitioning to a more balanced or GPU-bound state as resolution and settings increase. At 4K Ultra, the GPU's 8 GB of VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient, but the rendering load begins to impact performance. The scaling pattern suggests that for users prioritizing maximum frame rates, 1080p Low is the optimal configuration, while those with 4K displays should consider Low settings to maintain competitive frame rates.