Valorant

Valorant is a competitive FPS built around frame rate headroom, and the combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER delivers exceptionally high performance across all measured configurations. The data indicates this pairing ranks 835th out of 1650 tested combos in this game, placing it in the upper half of all systems. The measured frame rates are remarkably consistent, with every single resolution and settings combination producing average FPS well above the 240Hz threshold that competitive players often target, making this a formidable setup for high-refresh-rate monitors.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K reveals a system that is heavily CPU-bound at lower resolutions, with the GPU only becoming a limiting factor at the highest pixel counts. At Low settings, the average frame rate descends from 527.9 FPS at 1920x1080 to 502.3 FPS at 2560x1440, a modest decline of approximately 5%. Pushing further to 3840x2160 brings the average down to 445.5 FPS, which still represents a drop of only about 16% from the 1080p baseline. This pattern demonstrates that at Low settings, the RTX 2070 SUPER is rarely the bottleneck, as the frame rate remains exceptionally high even when pixel count quadruples.

The scaling behavior changes noticeably as settings increase. At High settings, the transition from 1080p to 1440p costs about 14% performance (408.7 to 349.7 FPS), and moving to 4K costs an additional 20% (down to 281.1 FPS). The Ultra preset shows the steepest relative declines, with 388.5 FPS at 1080p falling to 330.4 FPS at 1440p and finally 267.4 FPS at 4K. While these drops are more pronounced than at Low settings, they remain far smaller than what would be expected if the GPU were being fully saturated, indicating that even at Ultra 4K, the i5-12400 is still contributing significantly to overall throughput. The data suggests that in Valorant, this pairing maintains playable competitiveness at 4K but truly excels at 1080p and 1440p, where the frame rates are astronomical.

GPU Role

The RTX 2070 SUPER brings 8 GB of GDDR6 memory across a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is more than sufficient for a game as lightweight as Valorant. The GPU's clock speeds are listed at a base of 1605 MHz and a boost of 1770 MHz, and its benchmark results place it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs with an average score of 22206. The data shows that the GPU's role in this pairing is primarily to provide a high enough ceiling that the CPU can stretch its legs; at 1080p Low, the system achieves 527.9 FPS, which is only about 19% higher than the 445.5 FPS seen at 4K Low, suggesting that the GPU is not the primary limiter even with a 4x pixel increase.

When examining the nearest rivals, the RTX 2070 SUPER outperforms the AMD Radeon RX 5700 by 2.5% in average benchmark score, while sitting 2.3% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile. The GeForce GTX TITAN Z is remarkably close, with the RTX 2070 SUPER leading it by just 0.9%. This performance tier is well above what Valorant demands, and the measured FPS confirms that the GPU has ample headroom. The 12 nm Turing architecture with 2560 shading units and 64 ROPs provides the raw processing power needed to keep up with the i5-12400's output, but the true story is that the GPU rarely breaks a sweat, as evidenced by the relatively small FPS differences between Low and Ultra settings at any given resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is the star of this analysis, with 6 cores and 12 threads running at a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its benchmark scores are impressive, placing it in the 77th percentile of all CPUs with an average score of 19850. In Valorant, this processor's single-thread strength is paramount, and it delivers a 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and a passmark_single_thread score of 3456. The CPU's nearest rivals show how tightly contested this segment is: the i5-12400 is just 0.1% ahead of the Intel Core i7-9700 and 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i5-11600K, while trailing the Intel Core i7-8700 by 0.2% and the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX by 0.4%.

The CPU's impact on frame rates is most visible when comparing Low settings across resolutions, where the 1080p result of 527.9 FPS versus the 4K result of 445.5 FPS shows that even at the highest pixel counts, the CPU is still pushing out over 400 frames per second. The 3dmark_2_threads score of 1692 and 4_threads score of 3012 demonstrate strong multi-thread scaling for a game that primarily relies on a few cores. The 18 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 cache per core provide the low-latency access that competitive shooters need. This processor is clearly not a bottleneck at any resolution tested, as the FPS differences between settings presets (Low to Ultra at 1080p: 527.9 to 388.5) are driven more by GPU load than CPU limitations.

FAQ

Q: Can this system maintain 240+ FPS at 1440p with maximum settings?

A: Yes. The measured Ultra preset at 2560x1440 produces an average of 330.4 FPS, which is well above the 240 FPS threshold and provides substantial headroom for demanding scenes.

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

A: The average frame rate drops from 408.7 FPS at 1920x1080 to 281.1 FPS at 3840x2160, representing a 31% reduction. This still leaves the system with enough performance for high-refresh-rate 4K gaming.

Q: Is the RTX 2070 SUPER a good match for the i5-12400 in Valorant?

A: The data indicates an excellent balance. At Low settings, the FPS only drops 16% from 1080p to 4K (527.9 to 445.5), showing the CPU is the primary driver with the GPU having sufficient headroom.

Q: What is the single best settings preset for competitive play at 1080p?

A: The Low preset yields the highest average FPS at 527.9, but Medium at 433.9 FPS offers a significant visual upgrade while still maintaining frame rates far above any competitive monitor's refresh rate.

Q: How does this CPU compare to its closest rival in raw benchmark performance?

A: The i5-12400's average benchmark score of 19850 is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-9700's 19831, being 0.1% faster, and trails the Intel Core i7-8700's 19894 by just 0.2%.

Q: Does the GPU's VRAM capacity become a limiting factor at 4K?

A: No. The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient, as evidenced by the 4K Ultra result of 267.4 FPS, which shows no signs of memory-related stuttering.

Settings Recommendations

For players using a 1080p monitor with a 240Hz or 360Hz refresh rate, the Low preset is the optimal choice, delivering 527.9 FPS and ensuring the absolute maximum frame pacing for competitive advantage. However, the Medium preset at 433.9 FPS still provides more than enough headroom for any current display technology and offers improved visual clarity for spotting enemies at distance. At 1440p, the Medium preset at 367.3 FPS provides the best balance, as it maintains frame rates above 360 FPS while providing better image quality than Low. For 4K gaming, the High preset at 281.1 FPS is recommended, as it provides a substantial visual upgrade over Medium (291.3 FPS) with only a 3.5% performance penalty, and it keeps the frame rate above 240 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K (267.4 FPS) is only worth considering if visual fidelity is the absolute priority and the monitor can support 240Hz, as the performance remains competitive.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system produces its highest frame rates across all settings. The Low preset achieves 527.9 FPS, Medium reaches 433.9 FPS, High delivers 408.7 FPS, and Ultra produces 388.5 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 139.4 FPS, showing that settings have a meaningful impact even at this resolution, but every preset remains exceptionally fast.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates scale down predictably. Low settings yield 502.3 FPS, which is only a 5% reduction from 1080p, demonstrating the CPU's dominance. Medium produces 367.3 FPS, High delivers 349.7 FPS, and Ultra drops to 330.4 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p widens to 171.9 FPS, indicating that the GPU begins to play a slightly larger role.

At 3840x2160, the system still delivers outstanding performance. Low settings maintain 445.5 FPS, Medium achieves 291.3 FPS, High produces 281.1 FPS, and Ultra yields 267.4 FPS. The most striking observation is that even at 4K Ultra, the frame rate never dips below 267 FPS, making this combination viable for high-refresh-rate 4K gaming. The scaling from 1080p Low to 4K Low shows a 15.6% reduction, while the same comparison at Ultra shows a 31.2% reduction, confirming that the RTX 2070 SUPER is more stressed at higher settings but never overwhelmed.