Valorant

CPU Role - cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Alder Lake generation, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It uses a 10 nm process node, has 18 MB of shared L3 cache, and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration. The CPU’s 3DMark single-thread score is 910, while its 2-thread score is 1692, indicating strong per-core performance that matters for a competitive FPS like Valorant, where frame pacing depends heavily on the main game thread.

In the measured data, the CPU’s influence is visible when comparing Low settings across resolutions. At 1920x1080 Low, the combo produces 526 FPS average; at 2560x1440 Low, it drops to 491 FPS; at 3840x2160 Low, it falls to 392 FPS. This pattern suggests the CPU is capable of driving very high frame rates at lower resolutions, but the GPU becomes increasingly involved as resolution climbs. The i5-12400’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 15989 and single-core score is 2257, confirming that the processor can handle the game’s logic without becoming a bottleneck at 1080p, where the average frame rate exceeds 500 FPS on Low settings.

The CPU’s PassMark single-thread score is 3456, which places it in the 72nd percentile against all CPUs in the database. Its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 7643, has an average score of 18697 against the i5-12400’s 18683, a delta of -0.1%. This near parity in synthetic benchmarks does not translate to identical gaming behavior, but it does indicate that the i5-12400 is not an outlier in compute performance. The Intel Core i3-14100F trails by 0.9% in average benchmark score, while the Intel Core i7-1355U is ahead by 0.3%, showing that the i5-12400 sits in a tightly clustered performance band.

For Valorant specifically, the game’s engine favors high clock speeds and low latency. The 4.40 GHz boost clock, combined with 12 threads, allows the CPU to maintain high frame times even when background tasks compete for resources. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 5873 and max-thread score of 5890 are nearly identical, meaning the CPU does not scale much beyond 12 threads, which is expected for a 6-core design. In a game that typically uses fewer than 8 threads, the i5-12400’s 8-thread 3DMark score of 4745 is more relevant, and it supports the high average FPS observed at 1080p.

GPU Role - VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Arc B580 is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage generation) using a 5 nm TSMC process. It has a base and boost clock of 2670 MHz, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). The GPU carries 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 456.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its FP32 compute is 13.67 TFLOPS, and it has 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 80 ROPs. The card’s pixel rate is 213.6 GPixel/s and texture rate is 427.2 GTexel/s.

In Valorant, the GPU’s role is less about raw rasterization and more about maintaining consistent frame delivery at high refresh rates. The measured FPS at Ultra settings across resolutions shows a clear GPU dependency: 344 FPS at 1080p, 293 FPS at 1440p, and 235 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra is 109 FPS, which is a 31.7% reduction. This scaling indicates that the B580’s rendering pipeline is actively engaged at higher settings, even in a lightweight esports title.

The GPU’s PassMark G3D score is 15748, and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 3068. Its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (average score 23061, delta -0.2%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (22895, delta 0.6%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (23172, delta -0.7%). The B580’s average benchmark score is 23021, placing it in the 68th percentile against all GPUs. For Valorant, the 12 GB VRAM is far more than the game requires, but the memory bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s helps when texture quality settings increase.

The B580’s boost clock of 2670 MHz is fixed, meaning there is no thermal or power headroom beyond this figure. The card’s TDP is 190 W, with a suggested PSU of 450 W. In the measured data, the Medium settings row at 1080p shows an average of 379 FPS with a minimum of 322 FPS and maximum of 436 FPS. This range indicates that the GPU is not the limiting factor at Medium 1080p; the CPU’s frame generation capability is the primary driver. At 4K Medium, the average drops to 259 FPS with a minimum of 220 FPS, showing that the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth become more influential as pixel count increases.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average is 526 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations in Valorant?

A: The combo ranks 2522 out of 3708 tested combos in the database.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 2560x1440 Medium settings?

A: The minimum FPS at 2560x1440 Medium is 275 FPS, with an average of 323 FPS and a maximum of 372 FPS.

Q: What is the GPU’s memory bandwidth and how does it compare to its average benchmark score?

A: The GPU has a memory bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s and an average benchmark score of 23021, placing it in the 68th percentile against all GPUs.

Q: Which CPU rival has the closest average benchmark score to the i5-12400?

A: The AMD EPYC 7643 has an average score of 18697, which is 0.1% lower than the i5-12400’s 18683.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra settings at 3840x2160?

A: At 4K, Low settings average 392 FPS, while Ultra settings average 235 FPS, a difference of 157 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides four settings presets at each resolution: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 526 FPS average, Medium delivers 379 FPS, High delivers 361 FPS, and Ultra delivers 344 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 147 FPS, which is substantial, while the gap between Medium and Ultra is only 35 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p has a minimum of 322 FPS and a maximum of 436 FPS, showing a 114 FPS spread that still stays well above common 144 Hz display refresh rates.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 491 FPS, Medium averages 323 FPS, High averages 308 FPS, and Ultra averages 293 FPS. The Medium preset here has a minimum of 275 FPS and maximum of 372 FPS. At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 392 FPS, Medium averages 259 FPS, High averages 246 FPS, and Ultra averages 235 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K has a minimum of 220 FPS and maximum of 297 FPS.

The data shows that the Medium preset provides the most balanced experience across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium is 218 FPS above the minimum 144 Hz target, and even the minimum of 322 FPS exceeds that target by a wide margin. At 1440p, Medium’s average of 323 FPS and minimum of 275 FPS keep frame rates high. At 4K, Medium’s average of 259 FPS and minimum of 220 FPS remain above 200 FPS, which is a strong result for a 4K esports scenario. The Low preset offers the highest raw FPS, but the Medium preset’s visual quality improvement is not accompanied by a proportional FPS loss, making it the recommended choice based on the measured rows.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of Intel Core i5-12400 and Intel Arc B580 ranks 2522 out of 3708 tested combinations in Valorant. This places it in the lower third of the database, which is notable given the high absolute FPS values recorded. The rank reflects the fact that Valorant is highly CPU-sensitive, and the i5-12400, while capable, does not match the top-tier processors that dominate the upper ranks. The CPU’s 72nd percentile against all CPUs and the GPU’s 68th percentile against all GPUs both contribute to a mid-pack overall position.

The rank of 2522 out of 3708 means that 1186 combos perform worse than this pairing. The data shows that the combo’s performance is consistent across settings, with no anomalous drops. The CPU’s nearest rivals in benchmark scores include the Intel Core i7-1355U (0.3% higher) and AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 (0.7% higher), both of which would likely rank slightly above in a CPU-heavy game. The GPU’s nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (0.7% higher average score), could shift the rank upward if paired with a stronger CPU.

The combination’s rank is not a reflection of poor performance; it is a function of the database’s diverse hardware pool. Many combos with higher-end CPUs like the Core i9 or Ryzen 9 series, paired with flagship GPUs, will naturally outrank this mid-range setup. However, the measured FPS numbers show that this combo delivers excellent frame rates for competitive play, even if it does not lead the database.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured results are as follows: Low averages 526 FPS, Medium averages 379 FPS with a minimum of 322 FPS and maximum of 436 FPS, High averages 361 FPS, and Ultra averages 344 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a total drop of 182 FPS, with the largest single step between Low and Medium (147 FPS) and the smallest step between High and Ultra (17 FPS).

At 2560x1440, the results are: Low averages 491 FPS, Medium averages 323 FPS with a minimum of 275 FPS and maximum of 372 FPS, High averages 308 FPS, and Ultra averages 293 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra is 198 FPS. At 3840x2160, the results are: Low averages 392 FPS, Medium averages 259 FPS with a minimum of 220 FPS and maximum of 297 FPS, High averages 246 FPS, and Ultra averages 235 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra is 157 FPS.

The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum values at all three resolutions. This allows a direct comparison of frame consistency: at 1080p, the spread is 114 FPS; at 1440p, the spread is 97 FPS; at 4K, the spread is 77 FPS. The narrowing spread at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU’s workload becomes more uniform, reducing the variance that the CPU can introduce at lower resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 to 3840x2160 reveals how the combo’s bottleneck shifts. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 526 at 1080p to 491 at 1440p (a 6.7% reduction) and then to 392 at 4K (a 20.2% reduction from 1440p). The relatively small drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings indicates that the CPU is still the primary limiter at these resolutions, as the GPU has ample headroom to render the simple scenes.

At Ultra settings, the FPS drops from 344 at 1080p to 293 at 1440p (a 14.8% reduction) and then to 235 at 4K (a 19.8% reduction from 1440p). The larger 1080p to 1440p drop at Ultra compared to Low suggests that the GPU becomes more involved as texture quality and effects increase. At 4K Ultra, the GPU is the clear limiting factor, as the 235 FPS average is 55.3% lower than the 526 FPS at 1080p Low.

The scaling behavior at Medium settings shows: 379 FPS at 1080p, 323 FPS at 1440p, and 259 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 14.8% from 1080p to 1440p and 19.8% from 1440p to 4K. These values indicate that the GPU’s memory bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s and pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s are sufficient to keep frame rates above 250 FPS even at 4K Medium. The data confirms that the limiting component changes from CPU at 1080p Low to GPU at 4K Ultra, with a gradual transition through the settings presets and resolutions.