Valorant

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the Intel Arc B570 delivers exceptional performance in Valorant, placing this combination at rank 2227 out of 2883 tested combos. This percentile placement of roughly the 23rd worst to 77th best indicates a highly capable setup that sits comfortably above the median for this competitive FPS. The data shows that this pairing is far from a bottleneck scenario, with the measured frame rates suggesting that players will experience smooth, responsive gameplay across nearly all settings and resolutions, making it a practical choice for those prioritizing high refresh rate monitors.

How This Combo Ranks

The comboRankInGame of 2227 out of 2883 combos places this system in the upper echelon of tested configurations for Valorant. To understand what this means, consider that the rank is a holistic measure of the pairing's ability to deliver frame rates in this specific title. The data indicates that this combination outperforms a significant majority of other CPU-GPU pairings, which is notable given the game's reputation for being CPU-bound at lower resolutions.

This ranking is supported by the individual component strengths. The Core i5-12400 sits in the 72nd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 18683. Its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 7643 with a score of 18697 (0.1% faster) and the Intel Core i7-1355U at 18730 (0.3% faster), showing that the i5-12400 is essentially on par with much more expensive server-class and mobile processors in synthetic workloads. On the GPU side, the Arc B570 holds the 65th percentile among all GPUs with an average score of 20556. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile at 20534 (0.1% slower) and the Intel Arc A750 at 20582 (0.1% faster), positioning it as a solid mid-range performer that competes closely with last generation's high-end mobile silicon.

The synergy between these two components is what matters for Valorant. The data shows that neither component is a weak link in this specific game. The ranking reflects a balanced build where the CPU's strong single-threaded performance and the GPU's raw throughput combine to produce high frame rates. For context, the system's ranking suggests it would handle competitive play with ease, as the measured FPS figures, which exceed 200 even at 4K Ultra, indicate the hardware is not being stressed to its limits at typical esports settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo achieves in Valorant?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 508 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This demonstrates the combination's ability to push far beyond the refresh rates of even the most demanding gaming monitors.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Core i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 18683, placing it 0.1% behind the AMD EPYC 7643 (18697) and 0.3% behind the Intel Core i7-1355U (18730). It is 0.9% faster than the Intel Core i3-14100F, which scores 18519.

Q: Does the GPU bottleneck the CPU at 1080p in this game?

A: No. The data shows a jump from 304 FPS at 1080p Ultra to 508 FPS at 1080p Low, indicating that the GPU is still the primary limiter even at lower settings. The CPU is capable of pushing frame rates higher, as evidenced by the significant scaling when GPU load is reduced.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for this pairing?

A: The lowest average FPS is 207, recorded at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. Even at this most demanding configuration, the frame rate remains well above the threshold for smooth competitive play, showing no weak point in the hardware.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 319 at 1920x1080 to 217 at 3840x2160. This represents a 32% reduction in frame rate, which is a modest decrease that underscores the GPU's capability at higher resolutions.

Q: Is the Core i5-12400's 6-core/12-thread configuration sufficient for Valorant?

A: Yes. The benchmark results show that the combination achieves over 300 FPS at 1080p High and 508 FPS at 1080p Low. The game is not heavily threaded, so the 6 cores with 12 threads provide ample headroom for the game engine, and the 4.40 GHz boost clock ensures high single-threaded performance.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern in how this combo scales across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 508 at Low to 304 at Ultra. Moving to 2560x1440, the averages shift to 434 at Low and 259 at Ultra. Finally, at 3840x2160, the averages drop to 347 at Low and 207 at Ultra. This scaling behavior is critical for understanding the limiting component.

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings is 74 FPS (508 to 434), which is a 14.6% reduction. From 1440p to 4K at Low, the drop is 87 FPS (434 to 347), a 20% reduction. At Ultra settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 45 FPS (304 to 259), a 14.8% reduction, and from 1440p to 4K it is 52 FPS (259 to 207), a 20.1% reduction. This consistent percentage drop across settings indicates that the GPU is the primary scaling factor as resolution increases.

The data suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck in this game, even at 1080p. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions, but the fact that they increase by nearly 65% from 4K Ultra to 1080p Low (207 to 508) shows that the GPU has headroom to render more frames when the resolution drops. The i5-12400's strong single-threaded performance, evidenced by its 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and passmark_single_thread score of 3456, ensures that the game's logic and draw calls are processed quickly, allowing the GPU to work at its full potential. The result is a system where the GPU is the scaling component, and lowering resolution or settings provides proportional increases in FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The data provides a complete matrix of average frame rates across four settings presets and three resolutions. At 1920x1080, the performance is as follows: Low settings produce an average of 508 FPS, Medium yields 335 FPS (with a minimum of 285 and maximum of 385), High achieves 319 FPS, and Ultra delivers 304 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 204 FPS, showing that the GPU is heavily utilized at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are: Low at 434 FPS, Medium at 286 FPS (min 243, max 329), High at 272 FPS, and Ultra at 259 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 175 FPS, still indicating substantial scaling. At 3840x2160, the numbers are: Low at 347 FPS, Medium at 228 FPS (min 194, max 263), High at 217 FPS, and Ultra at 207 FPS. Here, the difference between Low and Ultra is 140 FPS, showing that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as resolution increases.

The Medium preset consistently provides the most detailed data with minimum and maximum frames. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 285 FPS ensures no noticeable stutter even in busy scenes. At 1440p Medium, the minimum is 243 FPS, and at 4K Medium, it drops to 194 FPS. These minimums are all well above the 144Hz threshold, making the Medium preset a reliable choice for high-refresh-rate gameplay. The maximums of 385, 329, and 263 FPS at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K respectively show that the system has occasional headroom to exceed the average, which is typical for a game like Valorant where frame times can vary based on scene complexity.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings preset depends on the player's resolution and refresh rate priorities. For competitive play at 1920x1080, the Low preset's 508 FPS average is the clear choice for maximizing frame rate, especially for those with 360Hz or 500Hz monitors. The jump from Low to Medium at 1080p is significant (508 to 335 FPS, a 34% drop), suggesting that Low is the only preset that fully unlocks the CPU's potential at this resolution.

For players at 2560x1440, the Medium preset offers a balanced experience with 286 FPS average and a 243 FPS minimum. This provides a 40% performance increase over Ultra (259 FPS) while still maintaining high visual quality. The Low preset at 1440p yields 434 FPS, which is ideal for 240Hz monitors, but the Medium preset's minimum of 243 FPS ensures it stays above the 240Hz threshold for most of the time.

At 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the recommended choice for high refresh rate play, delivering 228 FPS average with a 194 FPS minimum. This is the only preset at 4K that provides a minimum above 200 FPS, making it suitable for 240Hz displays. The High and Ultra presets at 4K (217 and 207 FPS) are still playable on 144Hz monitors but may dip below the refresh rate during intense moments. The data clearly shows that Medium is the sweet spot across all resolutions, offering the best balance between visual fidelity and performance, with minimums that rarely drop below the 144Hz mark.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Alder Lake-S architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a 65W TDP. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. This configuration is well-suited for Valorant, which is a game that relies heavily on single-threaded performance for its game logic and rendering commands.

The CPU's benchmark scores highlight its strengths. Its 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and passmark_single_thread score of 3456 indicate excellent per-core performance, which is critical for achieving high frame rates in CPU-bound scenarios. The cinebench_r23_singlecore score of 2257 further confirms this, showing that the processor can handle the demanding single-threaded workloads that Valorant presents. In contrast, its multicore scores, such as cinebench_r23_multicore of 15989, are solid but less relevant for this game, as Valorant does not scale well across many threads.

The data shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this configuration. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 508 FPS, which is a clear indication that the CPU can process game frames faster than the GPU can render them at lower settings. The boost clock of 4.40 GHz ensures that the processor can maintain high single-threaded throughput when needed, and the 18 MB of L3 cache helps reduce memory latency for frequently accessed game data. The CPU's performance relative to its nearest rivals—being within 0.9% of the Intel Core i3-14100F and 0.3% of the Intel Core i7-1355U—shows that it is a competitive choice for gaming, despite being a mid-range part. Its 72nd percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates that it outperforms most processors on the market, making it a solid foundation for a Valorant-focused build.