Valorant

Valorant is a competitive FPS where frame rate matters more than almost any other visual feature, and the data for the Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 shows a rig that is fundamentally capable of delivering high performance, though the headroom varies significantly depending on how you configure the graphics settings. This combination places at rank 1428 out of 1650 tested combos in this specific game, which places it in the lower-middle portion of the field, but the absolute frame rates tell a more nuanced story about where the bottleneck lies. The i5-9400 is a 6-core, 6-thread Coffee Lake processor with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost of 4.10 GHz, while the GTX 1070 is a Pascal-generation card with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus. The measured results indicate that this system is far from a slouch, but the scaling patterns reveal that the CPU is doing most of the heavy lifting in this title.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is the clearest indicator of how this combo behaves under load. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS is 366.8. Moving to 2560x1440 at Low settings, the average drops to 351.9, which is a modest decline of about 4%. At 3840x2160 with Low settings, the average falls further to 328.2. This scaling pattern is telling: the GTX 1070 is not being pushed particularly hard even at 4K, because the i5-9400 is limiting the frame rate at the lower resolutions. The delta between 1080p and 4K at Low settings is only 38.6 FPS, which is a relatively small penalty for a 4x increase in pixel count.

When you switch to High settings, the scaling becomes more pronounced. At 1080p High, the average is 306.6 FPS. At 1440p High, it drops to 260.6 FPS, a decline of 46 FPS. At 4K High, it falls to 209.2 FPS. This steeper drop indicates that the GPU starts to become a more significant factor as the load increases, but the system still maintains a very playable frame rate at 4K. The Ultra preset shows a similar pattern: 292.8 FPS at 1080p, 247.5 FPS at 1440p, and 197.3 FPS at 4K. The data suggests that this combo is CPU-bound at lower resolutions and settings, but the balance shifts toward the GPU as resolution and graphical fidelity increase, though never to the point where the GTX 1070 becomes a severe bottleneck.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 1428 out of 1650 tested combinations places this system in the 13th percentile of all tested pairings for Valorant. This might sound low, but it is important to contextualize this number. The i5-9400 sits at the 50th percentile against all CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 2305. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i3-10305 with a score of 2300 and a delta of 0.2%, the Intel Core i3-1125G4 also at 2300 with a 0.2% delta, and the Intel Xeon E-2134 at 2295 with a 0.4% delta. The only rival that beats it is the Intel Core i7-8809G at 2319, a 0.6% advantage. This means the CPU is essentially average, and in a game like Valorant that is heavily dependent on single-core performance, that average standing translates into solid but not exceptional frame rates.

The GTX 1070 sits at the 51st percentile against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 12331. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Quadro K4200 at 12241 (0.7% slower), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 880M at 12490 (1.3% faster), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER at 12504 (1.4% faster), and the NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm at 12547 (1.7% faster). The fact that both components are near the 50th percentile explains the mid-pack ranking. However, the actual measured FPS in Valorant shows that this mid-pack standing does not translate to mid-pack performance in practice; the game is so well optimized that even this average hardware easily exceeds the refresh rates of most monitors.

GPU Role

The GTX 1070’s role in this combo is to provide enough raw throughput to avoid becoming a limiting factor, and the data shows it does that admirably. The card has a base clock of 1506 MHz and a boost clock of 1683 MHz, with memory running at 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective). Its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s, which is more than sufficient for a game like Valorant that is not memory-hungry. The GPU’s 1920 shading units and 64 ROPs are also more than adequate, given that the game’s visual complexity is relatively low compared to modern AAA titles.

The benchmark data for the GPU shows a Passmark G3D score of 13498, which is respectable for a card of this era. The fact that the 4K High preset still produces an average of 209.2 FPS reflects how well the GTX 1070 handles this title. Even at 4K Ultra, the average stays above 197 FPS, which means the GPU is never truly struggling. The real takeaway is that the GTX 1070 has plenty of headroom in Valorant, and the CPU is the component that determines the ceiling. The i5-9400’s 6 cores and 6 threads are not a limitation here, but the single-thread performance is what keeps the frame rates from going even higher at lower resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

Looking at the full matrix of measured results, the pattern is consistent across all settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 366.8 FPS, which is the highest number in the entire dataset. Medium settings drop this to 315.1 FPS, High to 306.6 FPS, and Ultra to 292.8 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 74 FPS, which shows that the settings have a meaningful impact on performance, but even the lowest result is far above what any competitive player would need.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 351.9 FPS, Medium 270.5 FPS, High 260.6 FPS, and Ultra 247.5 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is particularly steep at 81.4 FPS, which suggests that Medium settings introduce a significant increase in GPU load. At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 328.2 FPS, which is still remarkably high for 4K. Medium drops to 217.6 FPS, High to 209.2 FPS, and Ultra to 197.3 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at 4K is 110.6 FPS, which is the largest single-settings jump in the entire dataset, indicating that the Medium preset is where the GPU starts to feel the load.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of running Valorant at 240 FPS on a 1080p monitor?

A: Yes, at 1920x1080, all four tested presets exceed the 240 FPS threshold. The lowest average at 1080p is 292.8 FPS on Ultra settings, while Low settings reach 366.8 FPS.

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

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 306.6 at 1080p to 209.2 at 4K, a difference of 97.4 FPS. This represents about a 32% reduction in performance.

Q: Does the GTX 1070 become a bottleneck at 4K with this CPU?

A: The data shows that at 4K, the GPU does have more influence, but it is not a severe bottleneck. At 4K Ultra, the average is still 197.3 FPS, which indicates the GTX 1070 has sufficient power for this game.

Q: How does the i5-9400 compare to its closest CPU rivals?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-8809G, scores 2319, which is 0.6% higher. The Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2300, which is 0.2% lower.

Q: What is the best preset to use at 1440p to maximize frame rate?

A: The Low preset at 2560x1440 delivers the highest average at 351.9 FPS. If you prefer better visuals, the Medium preset still provides 270.5 FPS, which is above most high-refresh-rate monitors.

Q: Is there a large difference between Medium and High settings at 1080p?

A: The difference is relatively small. At 1080p, Medium averages 315.1 FPS while High averages 306.6 FPS, a gap of only 8.5 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

For competitive play, the Low preset at any resolution is the clear choice if raw frame rate is the priority. At 1080p, Low delivers 366.8 FPS, and even at 4K it maintains 328.2 FPS, which is an extraordinary result. The data shows that the gap between Low and Medium is the largest single-settings jump at every resolution, so if you want to stay above 300 FPS, Low is the only option that guarantees it across all resolutions.

If you prefer a balance between visual quality and performance, the Medium preset is a reasonable middle ground. At 1080p, it still delivers 315.1 FPS, and at 1440p it drops to 270.5 FPS. The High preset offers only marginal visual improvements over Medium but costs about 8 to 10 FPS at every resolution, making it the least efficient choice. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, but even at 4K it stays above 197 FPS, which is still playable on most high-refresh monitors.

For most users, the recommended approach is to run the Low preset at 1080p or 1440p to maximize frame rates, as the visual difference in a fast-paced shooter is often negligible. If you have a 144Hz monitor, the Medium preset at 1440p is more than sufficient, and even the Ultra preset at 4K will keep you above the refresh rate of a standard 144Hz display. The data indicates that this combo is versatile enough to handle any configuration without dropping below playable thresholds, but the Low preset is where it truly shines.