Valorant

Valorant, a tactical FPS released in 2020, is known for its scalability across hardware. The data for the Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 580 shows a combination that delivers high frame rates at all tested resolutions, with the performance ceiling determined by an interplay between the CPU's six cores and the GPU's Polaris architecture. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS data to clarify where the bottlenecks lie and how this specific combo ranks against the broader test pool.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, but the magnitude of that drop is heavily dependent on the graphics settings. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 323 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 274.1 FPS, a decrease of approximately 15%. At 4K Low, the average falls further to 218.4 FPS, which is still a substantial 32% reduction from the 1080p figure. This scaling suggests that even at lower graphical fidelity, the rendering workload at higher resolutions begins to tax the GPU more significantly.

The pattern shifts when examining higher settings. At 1080p Ultra, the average FPS is 189. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 161.4 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it reaches 130.6 FPS. The relative drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings is roughly 31%, which is similar in percentage to the Low settings drop. However, the absolute difference is smaller (58.4 FPS at Ultra vs. 104.6 FPS at Low). This indicates that while the GPU is the primary limiter at higher resolutions, the CPU still provides a robust baseline that prevents a catastrophic collapse in frame rates.

The data reveals that the scaling efficiency is best between 1440p and 4K. For instance, at High settings, the drop from 1440p (167.4 FPS) to 4K (132.8 FPS) is about 20%, while the drop from 1080p (196.9 FPS) to 1440p is a steeper 15% decline. This suggests that the RX 580's memory bandwidth and compute resources are being utilized more efficiently as the resolution increases, though the overall trend is a predictable decline. The game remains highly playable at 4K even on Ultra, with an average of 130.6 FPS, indicating that this combination is not overly constrained by the GPU for this particular title.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580, built on the 14 nm Polaris 20 chip, is a significant factor in these results. Its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient to handle the textures and assets at 4K resolution without severe penalties. The GPU's base clock is 1257 MHz, with a boost clock of 1340 MHz, and it contains 2304 shading units. These specifications translate to a pixel rate of 42.88 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 193.0 GTexel/s, which are directly relevant to fill-rate demands of a fast-paced FPS.

The GPU's benchmark data places it in the 53rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13559. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 and GTX 950, with deltaPct values of 0 and 0.1 respectively. This indicates that the RX 580 is a mid-range performer that is essentially on par with those older NVIDIA cards in synthetic tests. In Valorant, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced at higher settings. The difference between Low and Ultra settings at the same resolution is notable: at 1080p, the gap is 134 FPS (323 vs. 189), and at 4K, it is 87.8 FPS (218.4 vs. 130.6). This shows that the GPU's shading units and ROPs are actively engaged when processing the more complex lighting and effects at Ultra, but the game's engine is not so demanding that it overwhelms the 8 GB frame buffer.

The FP32 performance of 6.175 TFLOPS is adequate for this esports title, which is not known for heavy compute shaders. The data suggests that the RX 580 is not the primary bottleneck at 1080p, where CPU limitations become apparent, but it does set the ceiling at 4K Ultra. The GPU's consistent performance across the resolution scale, with no anomalous min FPS data provided, points to a stable driver and sufficient power delivery for the 185 W TDP.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a six-core, six-thread processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. Its 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth are typical for this generation. The CPU's benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 and a single-core score of 1125, place it in the 50th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i3-10305 and Core i3-1125G4, with deltaPct values of 0.2, indicating that it is a solid mid-tier performer for its time.

In Valorant, the CPU's influence is most evident at lower resolutions and settings. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 323, which is a very high number, but it is still lower than what a more powerful CPU might achieve. The boost clock of 4.10 GHz is crucial for the single-threaded performance that Valorant's game logic and physics rely on. The data shows that as resolution increases, the CPU's role diminishes relative to the GPU. For example, the gap between 1080p Low (323 FPS) and 1440p Low (274.1 FPS) is 48.9 FPS, which is a larger absolute drop than the gap between 1440p Low and 4K Low (55.7 FPS). This suggests that the CPU is still contributing significantly at 1440p, but the GPU begins to take over as the limiting factor at 4K.

The six cores and six threads are sufficient for modern game engines, and the lack of hyper-threading does not appear to cause a severe penalty in this title, given the high frame rates. The CPU's L3 cache of 9 MB is adequate for the game's data sets. The data indicates that the i5-9400 provides a strong foundation for high-refresh-rate gaming, but it is not the absolute top-tier performer, as evidenced by its 50th percentile ranking. The combination with the RX 580 allows the CPU to be fully utilized at 1080p, where it pushes frame rates beyond 300 FPS, but the system is balanced enough that neither component is completely idle at any tested setting.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 580 achieves a rank of 1517 out of 1650 combos for Valorant. This places it in the lower percentile of tested systems, which is surprising given the high absolute frame rates. This ranking suggests that while the combo delivers smooth gameplay, there are many other combinations of newer CPUs and GPUs that offer even higher average FPS, likely due to superior single-core performance or higher memory bandwidth.

The combo's rank is more a reflection of the competitive landscape than a criticism of its performance. With an average FPS of 189 at 1080p Ultra, it is far above the playable threshold, but the benchmark database accounts for all tested combos, including those with flagship CPUs and GPUs that push into the 500+ FPS range. The data indicates that this combo is not a top contender for esports enthusiasts seeking the absolute maximum frame rates, but it is a competent and balanced setup. The GPU's 53rd percentile and CPU's 50th percentile rankings are consistent with the combo's overall rank, showing that it is a pairing of two mid-range components that work well together without a significant bottleneck in either direction.

The deltaPct values for the CPU's nearest rivals are all within 0.6%, and the GPU's are within 1.1%, meaning that small upgrades would not yield significant gains in synthetic benchmarks. However, in Valorant, the actual frame rates are high enough that the rank is likely influenced by the CPU's single-thread performance and the GPU's ability to maintain high fill rates. The data shows that this combo is positioned for solid 144Hz gaming at 1080p and 1440p, but it is not optimized for 240Hz+ esports displays, which would require a higher-ranked combination.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with Low settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings is 323 FPS, which is the highest recorded result for this combination across all tested settings and resolutions.

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

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 130.6. This is a substantial decrease from 1080p Ultra (189 FPS), but it remains well above 60 FPS, indicating that the RX 580's 8 GB of VRAM is sufficient for this title at 4K.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the main bottleneck at 1440p High?

A: At 2560x1440 High, the average FPS is 167.4. The data suggests a balance, as the drop from 1080p High (196.9 FPS) is 15%, while the drop from 1440p High to 4K High (132.8 FPS) is about 20%, indicating the GPU begins to take a more dominant role as resolution increases.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: This combination ranks 1517 out of 1650 tested combos for Valorant. This places it in the lower percentile, indicating that while it performs well in absolute terms, many other systems provide higher average FPS.

Q: What are the nearest rival GPUs to the RX 580?

A: The nearest rivals by average benchmark score are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 and GTX 950, with deltaPct values of 0 and 0.1, respectively. The AMD Radeon Pro 455 is also close, with a deltaPct of 1.1.

Q: Does the CPU's lack of hyper-threading affect performance?

A: The i5-9400 has 6 cores and 6 threads, with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. The high frame rates at 1080p Low (323 FPS) suggest that the lack of hyper-threading is not a severe limitation for Valorant, as the game benefits more from the high single-core boost clock.