Valorant

The Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination delivers exceptional performance in Valorant, with the data showing frame rates that far exceed the requirements of competitive play. Across all tested resolutions and settings, the average FPS never drops below 283.7, indicating that this pairing is heavily overqualified for the game’s demands. The benchmark results reveal a system where the CPU’s architectural strengths and the GPU’s rendering capabilities combine to produce a remarkably smooth experience, even at 4K Ultra settings. This analysis examines the measured performance data to understand the specific roles each component plays, how the system scales across resolutions, and what the numbers suggest for optimal in-game configurations.

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

The Intel Core i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its benchmark profile shows a single-thread score of 909 in 3dmark and 3481 in Passmark, which are critical for a game like Valorant that relies heavily on per-core performance. The processor’s 18 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 cache per core provide the low-latency data access that competitive FPS titles demand. In the context of this combo, the CPU’s ability to maintain high clock speeds under load directly supports the exceptionally high frame rates observed, particularly at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the bottleneck.

The data indicates the i5-12400F sits in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19221. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-8700K with a deltaPct of 0.1, meaning the i5-12400F performs essentially identically, and the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS which trails by 0.7 percent. This positioning suggests that while not a top-tier processor, its single-thread capability is more than sufficient for Valorant’s engine. The measured FPS at 1080p Low settings reaches 530.8, a figure that would be impossible without a CPU capable of feeding the GPU with enough frames. The 3dmark 2-thread score of 1699 and 4-thread score of 3067 further emphasize that the processor scales well with the limited thread usage typical of esports shooters.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 272.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock of 2460 MHz and base clock of 1830 MHz, combined with 3072 shading units, allow it to process the relatively simple geometry of Valorant with ease. The GPU’s Passmark G3D score of 19545 places it in the 66th percentile of all GPUs, with its nearest rival being the AMD Radeon RX 6600M, which is 0.6 percent faster, and the Intel Arc B580, which is 0.7 percent slower. This level of performance is far beyond what Valorant’s engine requires, as evidenced by the 4K High setting still producing 299.9 average FPS.

The RTX 4060’s 15.11 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 236.2 GTexel/s texture rate are more than adequate for the game’s visual effects. Interestingly, the GPU’s memory configuration does not become a limiting factor in any of the measured scenarios; even at 4K Ultra, the frame rate drops to 283.7, which is still substantially higher than the refresh rates of most monitors. The data suggests that the GPU’s role in this combo is primarily to render frames as fast as the CPU can issue draw calls, and at no point does the VRAM capacity or bandwidth constrain performance. The 8 GB frame buffer is never stressed, as Valorant’s textures and effects are modest, allowing the GPU to operate well below its maximum capacity.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of diminishing returns as resolution increases, which provides insight into which component is the limiting factor. At Low settings, the frame rate drops from 530.8 at 1080p to 506.3 at 1440p, a reduction of only 24.5 FPS or about 4.6 percent. However, moving from 1440p to 4K at Low settings brings the frame rate down to 467.1, a further drop of 39.2 FPS or about 7.7 percent. This relatively modest scaling indicates that at Low settings, the CPU is the primary bottleneck, as the GPU has plenty of headroom to handle the increased pixel count without significantly impacting performance.

The scaling behavior changes when settings are increased. At Ultra settings, the FPS falls from 418.7 at 1080p to 359.2 at 1440p (a 14.2 percent drop), and then to 283.7 at 4K (a 21.0 percent drop from 1440p). This steeper decline at higher settings suggests that the GPU becomes more involved as visual effects and texture quality increase, though it still never becomes a hard bottleneck. The data shows that the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens with resolution: at 1080p, the difference is 112.1 FPS (530.8 vs 418.7), while at 4K, the difference grows to 183.4 FPS (467.1 vs 283.7). This indicates that the RTX 4060’s rendering workload grows more substantially with settings at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s frame-generation capacity remains relatively constant.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the system achieves its highest frame rates across all settings. The Low preset delivers an average of 530.8 FPS, which is the maximum measured in the entire dataset. Medium settings produce 450.7 FPS, High settings yield 442.1 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 418.7 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 112.1 FPS, representing a 21.1 percent reduction. This suggests that even at the highest settings, the system retains over 78 percent of its peak performance, indicating a well-balanced configuration.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high. Low settings produce 506.3 FPS, which is only 24.5 FPS lower than at 1080p. Medium settings deliver 394.7 FPS, High settings achieve 375.8 FPS, and Ultra settings result in 359.2 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 147.1 FPS, or 29.1 percent, showing a slightly larger performance penalty for higher settings compared to 1080p. At 3840x2160, the system still delivers outstanding results. Low settings reach 467.1 FPS, Medium settings produce 313.5 FPS, High settings yield 299.9 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at 283.7 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 183.4 FPS, or 39.3 percent, indicating that the GPU’s workload at 4K significantly impacts performance, but the absolute numbers remain far above competitive thresholds.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 ranks 740th out of 1650 tested combos in Valorant, placing it in the 44.8th percentile of all configurations. This ranking might seem modest given the high frame rates, but it must be considered in context. The dataset includes many combinations with more powerful CPUs and GPUs, such as those with higher core counts or newer architectures. However, the rank reflects the absolute performance of the combo, not its efficiency or value. The fact that this combo achieves over 280 FPS at 4K Ultra while ranking only slightly below the median indicates that Valorant is not a demanding title for modern hardware.

The ranking suggests that many other combos achieve even higher frame rates, likely because they incorporate processors with higher single-thread performance or GPUs with greater raw throughput. The i5-12400F’s 77th percentile CPU ranking and the RTX 4060’s 66th percentile GPU ranking combine to place this system in a mid-tier position among all tested configurations. However, the measured data shows that the performance ceiling for Valorant is not reached by this combo, meaning there is headroom for other combinations to achieve even higher FPS. The rank of 740 out of 1650 indicates that while this system is in the upper half, it is not among the top performers, which would require more powerful components.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the user’s display refresh rate and resolution preference. At 1080p, all settings provide far more than 240 FPS, so the Ultra preset is the best choice for maximum visual quality without sacrificing competitive performance. The 418.7 FPS at 1080p Ultra is still nearly double the refresh rate of most high-end gaming monitors, making this the most balanced option. For users with 1440p displays, the High preset at 375.8 FPS offers an excellent compromise between visual fidelity and frame rate, while Ultra at 359.2 FPS remains perfectly playable for any monitor on the market.

At 4K, the situation becomes slightly more nuanced. The Ultra preset at 283.7 FPS is still far above the 240 Hz threshold, but the Medium preset at 313.5 FPS provides an 11.5 percent performance boost with only a modest reduction in visual quality. For competitive play where frame rate is paramount, the Low preset at 467.1 FPS at 4K is the clear winner, as it maximizes responsiveness. However, the data shows that even the most demanding settings do not cause the system to struggle, so the choice ultimately comes down to personal preference. The High preset at 4K, delivering 299.9 FPS, offers a strong balance for users who want both high frame rates and acceptable visuals, with a performance penalty of only 5.4 percent compared to Medium.

FAQ

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

A: The highest measured average FPS is 530.8, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the i5-12400F compare to its nearest CPU rival in terms of overall benchmark score?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19221, which is 0.1 percent higher than the Intel Core i7-8700K and 0.3 percent higher than the Intel Core i5-1335U.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset produces 506.3 FPS while the Ultra preset produces 359.2 FPS, resulting in a difference of 147.1 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 4060’s 8 GB VRAM ever a limiting factor in these tests?

A: No, the measured data shows no indication of VRAM limitations, as the frame rates remain consistently high across all settings, including 4K Ultra with 283.7 FPS.

Q: What percentile does this combo rank in among all tested configurations?

A: This combo ranks 740th out of 1650 tested combos, placing it in the upper half of all configurations tested.

Q: Which resolution shows the largest percentage drop from Low to Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160, the drop from Low (467.1 FPS) to Ultra (283.7 FPS) represents a 39.3 percent reduction, which is the largest percentage drop among the three resolutions.