Valorant

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 delivers exceptional performance in Valorant, a title where frame rates far exceed display refresh rates across all tested configurations. The measured data shows this combination is not merely capable but overwhelmingly dominant, with the lowest average frame rate recorded at 267 FPS in 4K Ultra settings. This analysis examines how the CPU and GPU contribute to these results, how the system scales across resolutions and settings, and where this combo ranks relative to the broader database.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with a Navi 44 chip on a 4 nm process from TSMC. Its specifications include 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU’s base clock is 1700 MHz, with a game clock of 2400 MHz and a boost clock of 2990 MHz. These clock speeds are substantial for a mid-range card, and they directly contribute to the high frame rates observed in the measured data.

In Valorant, the GPU’s role is somewhat unusual compared to more graphically demanding titles. The game is highly optimized for competitive play, meaning that even at lower settings, the rendering load is modest. The RX 9060’s 1792 shading units and 64 ROPs are more than sufficient to handle the game’s polygon counts and effects. The measured FPS data confirms this: at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 655 FPS, which is essentially a CPU-bound scenario where the GPU is not the limiting factor.

The VRAM capacity of 8 GB is not a concern for Valorant, as the game’s texture and geometry requirements are well within this limit, even at 4K Ultra. The memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s also proves adequate; the data shows that moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings only reduces the average FPS from 411 to 280, a drop of 31.9%. This indicates that the GPU’s memory subsystem is not being saturated, and the performance scaling is smooth rather than cliff-like.

The GPU’s benchmark scores contextualize its position relative to rivals. The RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014, placing it in the 59th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, which scores 16129, a delta of -0.7% (the RX 9060 is slightly slower). It also sits 1% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 370X and the AMD Radeon RX 7700. This places the RX 9060 in a solid mid-range tier, but in Valorant, these raw GPU differences are largely irrelevant because the frame rates are so high that the CPU becomes the primary bottleneck.

In practice, the RX 9060’s boost clock of 2990 MHz is a key asset. Valorant’s frame rate is often limited by draw call submission and CPU processing, but the GPU must still rasterize and present frames. The high boost clock ensures that the GPU can keep up with the CPU’s output, preventing the GPU from becoming a bottleneck even at lower resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the GPU does start to show its limits, as the average FPS drops to 267, but this is still far above the refresh rate of any mainstream monitor.

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

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on a 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. This is a high-end desktop CPU, and its multi-threaded and single-threaded performance are both exceptional.

Valorant is a game that is highly sensitive to single-threaded performance and memory latency. The 14700KF’s boost clock of 5.60 GHz is among the highest available, and its single-threaded benchmark scores reflect this: it scores 6235 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 2578 in Geekbench single-core. These scores are critical because the game’s main simulation thread often becomes the bottleneck at very high frame rates. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo hits 655 FPS, which is a direct result of the CPU’s ability to quickly process the game’s logic.

The CPU’s multi-threaded performance is also relevant, though less so for Valorant specifically. The 14700KF scores 44167 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 52425 in Passmark multithread. While Valorant does not heavily utilize all 28 threads, the presence of 20 cores ensures that background tasks and the game’s secondary threads do not interfere with the primary rendering thread. The 33 MB of L3 cache is also beneficial, as it reduces memory access latency, which is a common bottleneck in competitive shooters.

The CPU’s overall benchmark average is 70163, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival is the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F, which scores 69996, a delta of 0.2% (the 14700KF is slightly faster). The 14700KF also leads the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX by 0.4% and the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X by 0.9%, but trails the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K by 1%. This puts the 14700KF at the top of the CPU performance hierarchy, which directly translates to its ability to feed the GPU with frames.

The data shows that the CPU’s influence on Valorant’s performance is most pronounced at lower resolutions and settings. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 267, which is likely GPU-limited. At 1080p Low, the average FPS jumps to 655, which is a 145% increase. This massive scaling is a clear indicator that the CPU is the limiting component at lower graphical loads. The 14700KF’s high boost clock and large cache are the primary reasons why this combo can push frame rates so high, as the CPU is able to process game logic and issue draw calls faster than most other processors.

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

The measured data provides a comprehensive picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings levels. At 1920x1080, the combo achieves 411 FPS at High, 655 FPS at Low, 432 FPS at Medium, and 391 FPS at Ultra. The Medium setting also reports a minimum FPS of 367 and a maximum of 496, indicating some frame time variance but still an exceptionally smooth experience.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a step down. High averages 351 FPS, Low averages 559 FPS, Medium averages 368 FPS (with a min of 313 and max of 423), and Ultra averages 334 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across settings, averaging around 15-20% reduction, which is typical for a GPU-bound workload.

At 3840x2160, the performance is still very strong. High averages 280 FPS, Low averages 447 FPS, Medium averages 294 FPS (with a min of 250 and max of 338), and Ultra averages 267 FPS. The 4K results show that the GPU is starting to become more of a factor, but the frame rates are still above 240 FPS in all cases, which is the refresh rate of the highest-end gaming monitors.

The delta between Low and Ultra is significant. At 1080p, the difference between Low (655 FPS) and Ultra (391 FPS) is 264 FPS, a 40.3% reduction. At 4K, the difference is 180 FPS, from 447 FPS to 267 FPS, a 40.3% reduction as well. This consistency suggests that the game’s settings scale linearly in terms of GPU load, and the CPU is not a limiting factor until the GPU is fully saturated.

The Medium setting’s min FPS values provide insight into frame pacing. At 1080p, the min is 367 FPS, which is 85% of the average. At 1440p, the min is 313 FPS, which is 85% of the average. At 4K, the min is 250 FPS, which is 85% of the average. This consistent ratio indicates that the frame time distribution is stable across resolutions, and there are no major spikes or stutters that would affect competitive play.

FAQ

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

A: The highest average FPS is 655, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This is the peak of the measured data and indicates a CPU-bound scenario.

Q: Is the 8 GB VRAM of the RX 9060 sufficient for Valorant at 4K?

A: Yes. The measured data shows that at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo averages 267 FPS. The game’s memory requirements are well below 8 GB, and the 288.0 GB/s bandwidth is not a bottleneck, as the frame rate remains high.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to its nearest rival, the RTX 3060 Ti?

A: The RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014, which is 0.7% lower than the RTX 3060 Ti’s score of 16129. While this indicates a slight performance deficit in general workloads, in Valorant, the specific frame rates are so high that this difference is unlikely to be perceptible.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested combinations in the database?

A: The combo ranks 1310 out of 2883 tested combinations. This places it in the top 45.4% of all combos, which is notable given the game’s high frame rates.

Q: Which setting provides the biggest FPS jump from Ultra?

A: Moving from Ultra to Low at 1080p increases the average FPS from 391 to 655, a gain of 264 FPS. At 4K, the same settings change increases the average from 267 to 447, a gain of 180 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck at 1080p High?

A: The data suggests the CPU is the primary bottleneck. At 1080p High, the average FPS is 411, and at 4K High, it is 280. The modest drop from 1080p to 4K indicates that the GPU is not fully utilized at the lower resolution, and the CPU is limiting the frame rate.

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

The measured data shows a clear pattern in how performance scales with resolution. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 411 at 1080p to 351 at 1440p (a 14.6% decrease) and then to 280 at 4K (a 20.2% decrease from 1440p). At Low settings, the drop is from 655 to 559 (14.7%) and then to 447 (20.0%). This consistent scaling pattern is a hallmark of a system where the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as resolution increases, but the CPU is still capable of feeding the GPU at all resolutions.

The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K is approximately 31.9% for High settings (411 to 280) and 31.8% for Low settings (655 to 447). This is a relatively small drop compared to more graphically demanding games, where 4K performance is often 50-60% lower than 1080p. This indicates that Valorant is not heavily GPU-bound, even at 4K, and the RX 9060 has ample headroom.

The fact that the FPS drop is nearly identical in percentage terms across all settings suggests that the rendering load scales proportionally with resolution, and there are no sudden bottlenecks. The min FPS at Medium settings also scales consistently: 367 at 1080p, 313 at 1440p, and 250 at 4K. This linear scaling suggests that the system is well-balanced, with the CPU providing a stable frame rate floor and the GPU handling the increasing pixel count without any drastic performance cliffs.

The limiting component can be inferred from the absolute frame rates. At 1080p Low, the 655 FPS figure is extraordinarily high and is almost certainly CPU-limited, as the GPU is only rendering simple geometry and textures. As resolution increases, the GPU workload grows, and the frame rate drops, but it remains high enough that the CPU is still likely the primary limiter until 4K Ultra, where the GPU’s shading and ROP throughput start to become more significant. The 4K Ultra score of 267 FPS is still very high, indicating that even at the most demanding settings, the combo is not severely bottlenecked by either component.

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

Given the measured data, the choice of settings depends on the user’s display refresh rate and preference for visual fidelity versus raw frame rate. For a 240 Hz monitor, the High preset is the clear recommendation. At 1080p High, the combo averages 411 FPS, which is well above 240 FPS, and the visual quality is significantly better than Low. At 1440p High, the average is 351 FPS, which is still above 240 FPS, and at 4K High, the average is 280 FPS, which is also above 240 FPS. This means that High settings provide a smooth experience on the most common high-refresh-rate displays.

For users with a 360 Hz monitor, the Low or Medium presets are more appropriate. At 1080p Low, the 655 FPS average is far above 360 FPS, but the visual quality is compromised. Medium at 1080p averages 432 FPS, which is also above 360 FPS, and it offers better shadows and effects than Low. At 1440p Medium, the average is 368 FPS, which is just barely above 360 FPS, and the min FPS of 313 FPS might cause occasional dips below the refresh rate. For a 360 Hz display, 1080p Medium is the best balance of frame rate and visual fidelity.

The Ultra preset is not recommended for competitive play, as it offers diminishing visual returns while reducing the average FPS by 40% compared to Low. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 391 FPS, which is still high, but the frame rate is lower than High, and the visual differences between High and Ultra are often subtle in a fast-paced game like Valorant. The data shows that the Ultra preset is best reserved for users who prioritize image quality over maximum frame rate, but even then, the High preset provides nearly identical visual quality with a higher FPS.

The Medium preset’s min FPS values are worth noting. At 1080p, the min is 367 FPS, which is close to the average, indicating stable frame times. At 4K, the min is 250 FPS, which is also stable. This makes Medium a safe choice for users who want a balance between visual quality and frame rate consistency, as the min FPS is high enough to avoid noticeable stutters.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination ranks 1310 out of 2883 tested combos in Valorant. This rank places it in the top 45.4% of all tested systems. Given the extremely high frame rates measured, this rank might seem surprisingly low, but it reflects the fact that many other combos in the database also achieve very high frame rates in Valorant, as the game is not demanding on modern hardware.

The rank is more indicative of the CPU’s and GPU’s relative positions in their respective performance hierarchies. The CPU is in the 94th percentile, and the GPU is in the 59th percentile. The combo’s overall rank is likely pulled down by the GPU’s mid-range position, as other combos with a top-tier GPU might achieve slightly higher frame rates at 4K Ultra. However, the difference is likely minimal, as the data shows the combo is not severely bottlenecked by the GPU in most scenarios.

Compared to other combos, this system is well-suited for Valorant, as the CPU’s high single-threaded performance is the most important factor for achieving high frame rates. The GPU’s performance is sufficient to ensure that it does not become a bottleneck until 4K Ultra, and even then, the frame rate is high. The rank of 1310 indicates that while there are faster combos, this pairing is in the upper half of all tested systems and provides a competitive advantage in terms of raw frame rate.

The delta to the nearest CPU rivals shows that the 14700KF is closely matched with the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and others, but its high boost clock gives it a slight edge in single-threaded tasks. The GPU’s position relative to the RTX 3060 Ti suggests that this combo is comparable to a system with that GPU, but the CPU’s superior performance likely gives it an edge in CPU-bound scenarios. Overall, the rank of 1310 reflects a well-balanced combo that excels in Valorant, even if it is not at the absolute top of the database.