Valorant

Valorant is a competitive FPS where frame rate often matters more than visual fidelity, and the data for the Intel Core i5-9400 + NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 combo shows a system that is clearly capable of delivering high refresh rates, but with significant caveats depending on your resolution and settings preferences. The measured rows reveal a pattern where the game's engine scales efficiently across the board, yet the GTX 1650's 4 GB VRAM becomes a limiting factor at higher settings. This combination ranks near the very bottom of all tested combos, which is expected for a mid-range CPU from 2018 paired with an entry-level GPU from 2019, but the actual gameplay numbers tell a more nuanced story about where this system can still excel.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and reveals exactly where the bottleneck sits. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 286.9 FPS, which is a massive number that will easily drive a 240Hz monitor. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 240.4 FPS, a 16% reduction, and then at 4K Low it falls to 194 FPS, which is another 19% reduction. This scaling pattern indicates that at lower settings, the CPU is doing most of the heavy lifting, and the GPU has enough headroom to keep up even at higher resolutions.

However, the story changes completely when you enable High or Ultra settings. At 1080p High, the average is 178.6 FPS, but at 1440p High it drops to 153 FPS (a 14% loss), and at 4K High it plummets to 123.1 FPS (a 20% loss from 1440p). The Ultra preset shows an even steeper decline: 168.6 FPS at 1080p, 141.7 FPS at 1440p, and 113.4 FPS at 4K. This pattern strongly suggests that the GTX 1650's 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and 128-bit memory bus become saturated as texture quality and shader complexity increase, making the GPU the primary limiter at higher presets. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 80.6 FPS, which is enormous and confirms that resolution scaling is not linear—it's heavily influenced by settings.

The data also shows that Medium settings behave very similarly to High at every resolution, with 1080p Medium at 187.9 FPS versus 178.6 FPS for High, and 4K Medium at 124.7 FPS versus 123.1 FPS for High. This suggests that the game's Medium preset is not substantially less demanding than High, and that the real performance jump comes from dropping to Low. For players targeting 144Hz or higher, the choice between Low and Medium at 1440p is the difference between 240.4 FPS and 159.1 FPS, which is a massive 81.3 FPS swing.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific CPU+GPU pairing ranks 1607 out of 1650 tested combos in Valorant, placing it in the bottom 2.6% of all configurations. That rank reflects the hardware's age and tier, not its absolute capability in this specific title. The Core i5-9400 has a 50th percentile ranking against all CPUs, meaning it sits exactly in the middle of the pack for general processing power, while the GTX 1650 has a 43rd percentile ranking against all GPUs. When combined, they produce results that are better than the raw rankings suggest because Valorant is not a graphically demanding game by modern standards.

Looking at the nearest rivals for each component provides context. The i5-9400's closest CPU competitor is the Intel Core i3-10305, which has an average benchmark score that is only 0.2% higher, and the Intel Xeon E-2134 is 0.4% ahead. On the GPU side, the GTX 1650's closest rival is the NVIDIA Quadro P2200, which is 0.5% slower in average benchmark scores, while the AMD Radeon 550X is 0.4% faster. These tiny deltas mean that in synthetic benchmarks, this system is essentially interchangeable with several other older mid-range parts, but the measured FPS in Valorant shows that the combination still holds up well for competitive play.

The rank of 1607 out of 1650 should not be interpreted as a failure. The data shows that even at 4K Ultra, this combo manages 113.4 FPS, which is playable for casual gaming. The real issue is that for competitive Valorant, where players often push for 240Hz or 360Hz displays, this system will fall short at higher resolutions and settings. At 1080p Low, the 286.9 FPS is competitive with much more expensive systems, but the hardware's age means it cannot sustain that level of performance when visual quality is prioritized.

GPU Role

The GTX 1650's specifications directly explain the measured performance patterns. It has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 128.1 GB/s of bandwidth, which is modest by modern standards. The base clock is 1485 MHz with a boost clock of 1665 MHz, and the card has 896 shading units, 56 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The pixel rate is 53.28 GPixel/s and the texture rate is 93.24 GTexel/s, which translates to 2.984 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. These numbers are all consistent with an entry-level GPU that was designed for 1080p gaming at medium settings when it launched in April 2019.

In Valorant specifically, the GPU's role becomes more prominent as resolution increases. At 1080p Low, the GTX 1650 is barely taxed, allowing the i5-9400's six cores and six threads to drive the frame rate to 286.9 FPS. But at 4K Ultra, the GPU's 4 GB VRAM is likely being pushed to its limit, resulting in the 113.4 FPS figure. The 128.1 GB/s memory bandwidth is also a constraint, as higher resolution textures require more data to be transferred per frame. The card's 12 nm process node and 75 W TDP mean it runs cool and efficient, but it simply does not have the raw throughput for high-fidelity 4K gaming.

The GPU's benchmark scores reflect its mid-range standing. Its Passmark G3D score is 7880, and its Geekbench OpenCL score is 39112, with an average benchmark score of 8713. Its percentile ranking of 43rd against all GPUs places it just below the median, and its nearest rivals show it is within 0.5% of several other older cards. For Valorant, the data indicates that the GPU can handle the game at 1080p with ease, but players with 1440p or 4K monitors will need to carefully manage settings to maintain high frame rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings shows this combo's strength. Low settings produce 286.9 FPS, which is exceptional. Medium drops to 187.9 FPS, High to 178.6 FPS, and Ultra to 168.6 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 118.3 FPS, which demonstrates how much headroom the GPU has at this resolution. For a 144Hz monitor, any setting works, but for 240Hz, only Low settings are viable.

Moving to 2560x1440, the numbers are still strong but the gaps widen. Low settings produce 240.4 FPS, which is still great for high refresh rates. Medium falls to 159.1 FPS, High to 153 FPS, and Ultra to 141.7 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 81.3 FPS, which is significant. At this resolution, players can comfortably use Medium or High for 144Hz displays, but 240Hz requires Low settings.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor. Low settings produce 194 FPS, which is impressive, but Medium drops to 124.7 FPS, High to 123.1 FPS, and Ultra to 113.4 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 80.6 FPS, and the gap between Low and Medium is 69.3 FPS. This indicates that Low settings are the only way to achieve high frame rates at 4K, while Medium, High, and Ultra all cluster around the 113-125 FPS range, suggesting a VRAM or bandwidth bottleneck that prevents further scaling.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Valorant at 240 FPS in 1080p?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which produce 286.9 FPS. Medium settings drop to 187.9 FPS, so 240 FPS is not achievable at higher presets.

Q: What is the best resolution for this system to maintain 144+ FPS?

A: At 1440p, Low settings give 240.4 FPS, and Medium gives 159.1 FPS. At 4K, Low gives 194 FPS, but Medium falls to 124.7 FPS, so 1440p Medium is the highest quality option for 144Hz.

Q: How does the GTX 1650's VRAM affect performance?

A: The 4 GB GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus appears to limit performance at 4K with Medium settings and above, where all presets cluster between 113.4 and 124.7 FPS, unlike the wider spread seen at 1080p.

Q: Is the i5-9400 holding back the GTX 1650 in this game?

A: At 1080p Low, the CPU drives the frame rate to 286.9 FPS, which shows it is not a bottleneck at lower settings. At 4K High, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as FPS drops to 123.1 regardless of CPU headroom.

Q: What settings should I use for a 1440p 165Hz monitor?

A: Low settings at 1440p produce 240.4 FPS, which is well above 165Hz. Medium settings give 159.1 FPS, which is just below the refresh rate, so Low is recommended for maximum smoothness.

Q: How does this combo compare to similar hardware?

A: The i5-9400's closest rival, the Intel Core i3-10305, is only 0.2% faster in average benchmarks, and the GTX 1650's nearest rival, the AMD Radeon 550X, is 0.4% faster. The combo ranks 1607 out of 1650 tested, but still delivers playable frame rates.

Settings Recommendations

For competitive play, the data overwhelmingly favors Low settings. At 1080p Low, the 286.9 FPS is the highest measured result in the entire dataset, and even at 4K Low, the 194 FPS is sufficient for most high refresh rate monitors. The jump from Low to Medium costs 99 FPS at 1080p, 81.3 FPS at 1440p, and 69.3 FPS at 4K, which is a massive penalty for visual quality improvements that are barely noticeable in a fast-paced FPS. If you must have better visuals, Medium is the best compromise at 1440p, yielding 159.1 FPS, which is still above 144Hz, but High and Ultra offer diminishing returns with only 6.1 and 17.4 FPS differences respectively at that resolution.

At 4K, the recommendation is clear: use Low settings. Medium, High, and Ultra all produce between 113.4 and 124.7 FPS, which is a narrow range, meaning the GPU is saturated and you are not getting proportional visual benefits from higher presets. The 194 FPS at 4K Low is the only way to take advantage of a 144Hz 4K display. For players with 1080p 144Hz monitors, any preset works, as even Ultra produces 168.6 FPS, but for 240Hz displays, Low is the only option. The practical advice is to prioritize frame rate over fidelity in Valorant, and this combo's performance profile makes that an easy choice—Low settings at any resolution will give you the smoothest experience.