SYSTEM ANALYZER

Rate My PC: Intel Core i5-12600 + AMD Radeon RX 9070

Get a comprehensive performance analysis of your gaming rig with detailed benchmarks, bottleneck detection, and upgrade recommendations

90 / 100
ULTIMATE READY

Apex Performer

Top 10% of systems. Capable of 4K Ultra gaming and advanced rendering.

4K 60+ FPSVR ReadyRay Tracing

System Balance Analysis

CPU vs GPU performance ratio
Well Balanced
CPU
88%
VS
GPU
92%
PROCESSOR

Intel Core i5-12600

28,646 Benchmark Score
Top 12% Market Ranking
View Full Specs →
GRAPHICS CARD

AMD Radeon RX 9070

23,877 Benchmark Score
Top 8% Market Ranking
View Full Specs →

Market Position

How your build compares to others
Budget
0-30
Mid-Range
30-60
High-End
60-85
Enthusiast
85-100
Your Build

Game Performance Benchmarks

Real-world 4K FPS in popular titles
View All Games →

Performance Insights

Tips to maximize your system

Optimal Performance

Your system is in the top tier. You can run any modern game at maximum settings.

4K Gaming Ready

Consider a 4K 144Hz monitor to fully utilize your hardware capabilities.

Compatible Games See what you can play Compare CPUs Find upgrades Compare GPUs Find upgrades

Performance Tiers Explained

90-100

Ultimate

4K Ultra gaming, VR ready, ray tracing enabled, professional workloads

4K 60+ FPS VR Ready
70-89

High-End

1440p Ultra or 4K High settings, excellent for modern AAA titles

1440p Ultra 4K High
50-69

Mid-Range

1080p Ultra or 1440p Medium, great value for most gamers

1080p Ultra 1440p Med
30-49

Entry Level

1080p Medium settings, suitable for eSports and older titles

1080p Med eSports
0-29

Legacy

Basic gaming, older titles, consider upgrading for modern games

720p-1080p Low Older Games

# CPU Analysis

The Intel Core i5-12600 is a 6-core, 12-thread desktop processor built on Intel's Alder Lake architecture and fabricated on a 10 nm process. It operates at a base clock of 3.30 GHz with a boost clock of 4.80 GHz, and the die size measures 163 mm². The cache hierarchy consists of 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. This is a locked processor, with the multiplier not unlocked, meaning overclocking headroom is limited to what the motherboard and memory allow rather than direct CPU multiplier adjustment.

Looking at the benchmark data, the i5-12600 achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 18105 and a single-core score of 2556. The multi-core result positions it in the 80th percentile among all CPUs, which indicates strong throughput for a mainstream desktop part. The Cinebench R20 scores of 7604 multi-core and 1073 single-core follow the same pattern, as do the R15 scores of 1824 multi-core and 257 single-core. PassMark results reinforce this profile: multi-thread performance scores 21399, single-thread scores 3823, integer math reaches 66123, and floating-point math hits 50838. These figures suggest the processor handles both integer-heavy and floating-point-heavy workloads with similar competence.

The nearest rivals in the database place the i5-12600 in tight competition. The Intel Core i5-13500T averages 28670, which is 0.1% higher than the i5-12600's average of 28646. The AMD EPYC 7203P scores 28583, putting the i5-12600 0.2% ahead. The Intel Core 5 220H averages 28574, with the i5-12600 leading by 0.3%, and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850HS scores 28549, again with the i5-12600 ahead by 0.3%. These deltas are small enough to be considered statistical noise in most workloads, meaning the i5-12600 effectively trades blows with these competing parts.

The PassMark data compression score of 252160 and data encryption score of 13084 indicate solid throughput for archiving and security-related tasks. The extended instructions score of 17027 and find prime numbers score of 83 show that the processor handles SIMD workloads and integer sieving operations reasonably well. For real workloads, the multi-core scores suggest the i5-12600 can sustain heavy multi-threaded loads like video encoding or 3D rendering, while the single-core scores indicate responsive day-to-day use and strong performance in lightly threaded applications.

# Upgrade Path and Platform

The Intel Core i5-12600 uses the Intel Socket 1700 platform and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory through a dual-channel memory bus. It does not support ECC memory. PCIe connectivity includes Gen 5 with 16 lanes available from the CPU, which provides ample bandwidth for modern graphics cards and NVMe storage. The processor includes integrated UHD Graphics 770, which can serve as a fallback display output or assist in video encoding tasks when a discrete GPU is not present or is being used for compute workloads.

The thermal design power is 65 W, which is modest for a desktop processor. This low TDP means the CPU can be cooled by a capable air cooler without requiring elaborate liquid cooling solutions. The power delivery requirements are equally modest, so most Socket 1700 motherboards — including entry-level B660 or H610 boards — can run the i5-12600 at full sustained performance. The launch MSRP is $233, positioning it as a mid-range desktop part.

For a sensible next upgrade, the data suggests looking at processors with higher multi-core throughput if the workload demands it. The nearest rivals in the database — the Intel Core i5-13500T, AMD EPYC 7203P, Intel Core 5 220H, and AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850HS — all sit within 0.3% of the i5-12600's average score. Upgrading to any of these would yield negligible performance gains. A meaningful upgrade would require stepping up to a processor with a substantially higher average benchmark score, which the data does not directly specify. However, the platform itself supports memory upgrades from DDR4 to DDR5 if the motherboard has the appropriate slots, and the PCIe Gen 5 lanes provide headroom for future GPU and storage upgrades.

# GPU Analysis

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture using the Navi 48 chip, fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC. The chip contains 53,900 million transistors on a 357 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 151.0 million transistors per mm². The GPU has 3584 shading units, 224 texture mapping units, and 128 raster output pipelines. Ray tracing is handled by 56 dedicated RT cores, and the absence of tensor core data indicates this GPU does not have dedicated tensor hardware in the same way some competing architectures do.

Memory configuration consists of 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, with a memory clock of 2518 MHz running at 20.1 Gbps effective. The resulting memory bandwidth is 644.6 GB/s, which is substantial for a mainstream graphics card. The base clock is 1330 MHz, the boost clock reaches 2520 MHz, and the game clock is listed at 2070 MHz. Pixel fill rate is 322.6 GPixel/s, and texture fill rate is 564.5 GTexel/s. Floating-point performance is rated at 36.13 TFLOPS for both FP32 and FP16, indicating a 1:1 ratio between these precisions.

Benchmark results show the RX 9070 scoring 6290 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, 131539 in Geekbench OpenCL, and 58705 in Geekbench Vulkan. PassMark results include a G3D score of 25381, a GPU compute score of 14737, and DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 scores of 281 and 74 respectively. The GPU sits in the 69th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23877.

The nearest rivals in the database are closely matched. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z averages 23736, which is 0.6% below the RX 9070. The AMD Radeon RX 6800S scores 24063, putting it 0.8% ahead of the RX 9070. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile averages 23628, with the RX 9070 leading by 1.1%, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER scores 24170, giving it a 1.2% advantage. These marginals indicate the RX 9070 performs in the same tier as these established cards, with no single rival having a decisive lead.

For rendering workloads, the FP32 throughput of 36.13 TFLOPS provides substantial compute capability for 3D rendering and simulation tasks. The 16 GB VRAM capacity supports large scenes and high-resolution textures without spilling into system memory. The 644.6 GB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and memory-intensive operations do not become bottlenecks. The RT cores provide hardware acceleration for ray-traced effects, although the 56 RT core count is modest compared to higher-end implementations.

# Gaming Performance

No measured FPS data exists for this specific CPU-GPU combination. The FACT PACK contains an empty measured FPS table, so all frame rate discussions must be treated as estimates derived from the benchmark scores rather than direct measurements.

Given the CPU's 80th percentile position and the GPU's 69th percentile position, the pairing should deliver solid gaming performance at 1440p and 4K resolutions where the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck. The RX 9070's 16 GB VRAM and 644.6 GB/s bandwidth are well-suited to high-resolution textures and modern game assets. The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support includes features like ray tracing and variable rate shading, which modern titles can leverage.

The CPU's single-thread performance, evidenced by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2556 and a PassMark single-thread score of 3823, should prevent significant frame pacing issues in most games. The 6-core, 12-thread configuration handles modern game engines that use multiple threads for physics, AI, and streaming. The integrated UHD Graphics 770 is not relevant for gaming when the discrete GPU is present, but it does provide a fallback for troubleshooting.

At 1080p with ultra settings, the GPU's raw compute and fill rates should produce high frame rates in most titles, though CPU limitations may emerge in esports titles that favor high single-thread performance. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU's memory bandwidth and 16 GB capacity become the dominant factors, and the estimates suggest the RX 9070 can maintain playable frame rates in demanding titles. These are estimates based on the benchmark scores and percentile positions, not measured results.

# Usage Scenarios

High-refresh gaming: The RX 9070's benchmark scores suggest strong 1440p performance, with the 36.13 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and 322.6 GPixel/s pixel rate supporting high frame rates. The CPU's single-core score of 2556 in Cinebench R23 should keep frame times consistent in CPU-bound scenarios. At 1080p, the GPU may not be fully utilized in lighter titles, but the pairing should still deliver triple-digit frame rates in most games.

Streaming: The 6-core, 12-thread CPU provides headroom for encoding while gaming, though the lack of dedicated tensor cores on the GPU means hardware encoding falls to the CPU or the integrated UHD Graphics 770. The PassMark multi-thread score of 21399 indicates the CPU can handle simultaneous gaming and encoding loads, but the 65 W TDP may limit sustained multi-threaded performance during extended streaming sessions.

Video editing: The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 18105 and PassMark integer math score of 66123 indicate solid performance for video encoding and editing tasks. The GPU's 16 GB VRAM accelerates effects processing and timeline rendering in GPU-accelerated editors. The combination should handle 1080p and 1440p video projects comfortably, with 4K editing possible but potentially slower in effects-heavy timelines.

3D rendering: The GPU's 36.13 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and the CPU's multi-core performance create a balanced rendering system. The CPU handles scene preparation and geometry processing, while the GPU accelerates final frame rendering. The 16 GB VRAM supports detailed scenes, and the 644.6 GB/s bandwidth prevents memory bottlenecks during rendering passes.

Software development: The CPU's single-thread performance and 12 threads handle compilation tasks well. The PassMark data encryption score of 13084 indicates adequate performance for cryptographic operations. The 80th percentile CPU ranking means the i5-12600 outperforms roughly 80% of CPUs in the database, which translates to responsive build times for most codebases.

Student and office work: The i5-12600's single-core performance handles productivity applications smoothly, and the integrated UHD Graphics 770 provides display output without requiring a discrete GPU. The 65 W TDP keeps power consumption low for all-day operation. The GPU is overkill for this use case, but the combination would handle spreadsheets, documents, and web browsing without any performance concerns.

# Who Should Build It

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12600 and AMD Radeon RX 9070 targets users who want a desktop system capable of high-resolution gaming and content creation without stepping into enthusiast-tier pricing. The 80th percentile CPU and 69th percentile GPU place this build in the upper-midrange tier, suitable for gamers playing at 1440p or 4K with high settings. The 16 GB VRAM makes the GPU particularly well-suited to modern game releases that exceed 8 GB VRAM usage at high resolutions.

Content creators working with video editing, 3D rendering, and graphics-intensive applications will find the combination capable. The CPU's multi-core scores support rendering and encoding workloads, while the GPU's compute throughput accelerates GPU-accelerated effects and rendering. The 16 GB VRAM accommodates large textures and complex scenes without out-of-memory errors.

Software developers benefit from the CPU's strong single-thread performance and 12 threads for parallel builds. Students and small business users building a workstation for general productivity would find this pairing more powerful than needed, but the headroom ensures long-term usability. The 65 W CPU TDP keeps cooling simple, and the 550 W suggested PSU requirement for the GPU is manageable for most mid-range power supplies.

# Balance and Bottleneck

The CPU's 80th percentile ranking exceeds the GPU's 69th percentile, suggesting the GPU is the more likely bottleneck in most workloads. This is typical for gaming scenarios where the GPU handles the bulk of rendering work. The CPU's single-core performance is sufficient to feed the GPU in most titles, but the gap in percentile positions indicates that GPU-bound scenarios are the norm at resolutions above 1080p.

In compute-heavy workloads like 3D rendering or GPU-accelerated video encoding, the GPU's 36.13 TFLOPS FP32 throughput becomes the limiting factor. The CPU's 18105 Cinebench R23 multi-core score ensures it can keep up with GPU compute tasks without stalling. However, in CPU-bound workloads like software compilation or physics simulation, the i5-12600's 6 cores may limit performance more than the GPU would.

The FPS scaling between resolutions would likely show the GPU becoming progressively more dominant as resolution increases. At 1080p, the CPU's single-thread performance may limit frame rates in esports titles. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become the primary constraints. The 644.6 GB/s bandwidth and 16 GB VRAM provide adequate headroom for high-resolution textures, but the GPU's 69th percentile position suggests it will not deliver top-tier frame rates in the most demanding titles.

# FAQ

Q: What is the average benchmark score of the Intel Core i5-12600?

A: The i5-12600 has an average benchmark score of 28646, placing it in the 80th percentile among all CPUs.

Q: How does the AMD Radeon RX 9070 compare to its nearest rival?

A: The RX 9070's nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z, which scores 23736 on average — 0.6% below the RX 9070's average of 23877.

Q: What memory types does the Intel Core i5-12600 support?

A: The i5-12600 supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory through a dual-channel memory bus, but does not support ECC memory.

Q: How much VRAM does the AMD Radeon RX 9070 have?

A: The RX 9070 has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 644.6 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

Q: What is the TDP of the Intel Core i5-12600?

A: The i5-12600 has a TDP of 65 W, while the RX 9070 has a TDP of 220 W and a suggested PSU of 550 W.

Q: Does the RX 9070 support ray tracing?

A: Yes, the RX 9070 has 56 dedicated RT cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, which includes ray tracing features.

Q: What is the process node for the RX 9070?

A: The RX 9070 is fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC, while the i5-12600 uses Intel's 10 nm process.

# Benchmark Performance

The Intel Core i5-12600 achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 18105 and a single-core score of 2556, with Cinebench R20 scores of 7604 and 1073 respectively, and Cinebench R15 scores of 1824 and 257. PassMark results include a multi-thread score of 21399, single-thread score of 3823, integer math at 66123, floating-point math at 50838, data compression at 252160, data encryption at 13084, extended instructions at 17027, and find prime numbers at 83. These scores place the CPU in the 80th percentile with an average benchmark score of 28646.

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 delivers a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6290, Geekbench OpenCL score of 131539, and Geekbench Vulkan score of 58705. PassMark results include a G3D score of 25381, GPU compute score of 14737, DirectX 10 score of 141, DirectX 11 score of 281, DirectX 12 score of 74, DirectX 9 score of 343, and G2D score of 1280. The GPU sits in the 69th percentile with an average benchmark score of 23877.

The combined picture shows a CPU that outperforms roughly 80% of all CPUs and a GPU that outperforms roughly 69% of all GPUs. The CPU's nearest rivals all score within 0.3% of its average, indicating a tightly competitive field at this performance level. The GPU's nearest rivals range from 1.2% ahead to 1.1% behind, showing similar tight competition. The combined percentile for this build is 75, reflecting the overall position of the CPU-GPU pairing in the database.

# Build Overview

This build pairs the Intel Core i5-12600 desktop processor with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 graphics card in a desktop-class configuration. The CPU is a 6-core, 12-thread Alder Lake-S part with a 65 W TDP and Intel Socket 1700 compatibility, supporting DDR4 and DDR5 memory. The GPU is a Radeon RX 9000 series card based on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and a 220 W TDP.

The overall tier of this build is established by the combined percentile of 75, which reflects the 80th percentile CPU and 69th percentile GPU. This places the build in the upper-midrange tier, capable of handling demanding gaming and content creation workloads. The CPU's average benchmark score of 28646 and the GPU's average benchmark score of 23877 indicate balanced performance, with the CPU having slightly more relative headroom than the GPU. The launch MSRP values are $233 for the CPU and 549 USD for the GPU, though the build's actual value depends on the user's specific workload requirements.