SYSTEM ANALYZER

Rate My PC: Intel Core i9-12900E + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D

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

88 / 100
HIGH-END

Power Build

Top 12% of systems. Excellent for 1440p Ultra or 4K High gaming.

1440p Ultra4K High

System Balance Analysis

CPU vs GPU performance ratio
CPU Bottleneck
CPU
78%
VS
GPU
99%

Your CPU is limiting system performance. Consider upgrading to a faster processor to better utilize your GPU.

PROCESSOR

Intel Core i9-12900E

6,611 Benchmark Score
Top 22% Market Ranking
View Full Specs →
GRAPHICS CARD

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D

178,050 Benchmark Score
Top 1% 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

Strong Performance

Excellent for 1440p gaming. Most games will run at high/ultra settings smoothly.

Bottleneck Detected

CPU Bottleneck - Upgrading the weaker component will improve overall performance.

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

The Intel Core i9-12900E and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D form a desktop pairing that sits at the 80th percentile among all CPU-GPU combinations, yet the benchmark data reveals a striking imbalance. The GPU is a top-tier performer, ranking in the 98th percentile against all GPUs, while the CPU lands in the 62nd percentile against all CPUs. This 36-percentage-point gap defines the system’s character: a graphics-first build where the GPU dominates every workload it touches, and the CPU, while competent, is clearly not the star of the show. The data indicates a machine built for those who prioritize rendering, AI, and high-resolution gaming over raw CPU compute, but the absence of measured frame rates means all gaming performance here is estimated from synthetic scores.

CPU Analysis

The Intel Core i9-12900E is a 16-core, 24-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, fabricated on Intel’s 10 nm process with a die size of 215 mm². It operates with a base clock of 2.30 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, and its unlocked multiplier allows for overclocking headroom. The cache hierarchy consists of 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 30 MB L3 cache. The chip supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, though ECC memory is not supported. The integrated UHD Graphics 770 provides a basic display output, but the presence of a discrete GPU makes it largely irrelevant.

Benchmark results paint a picture of a mid-pack performer. In Cinebench R23, the CPU scores 23,529 in multi-core and 3,321 in single-core. The Geekbench scores are 10,280 multi-core and 1,775 single-core. These numbers place the i9-12900E in the 62nd percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 6,611. The nearest rivals are telling: it sits just 0.1% ahead of the Intel Pentium Gold G6405 and the Intel Core i9-10940X, and 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i5-13500E. It trails the Intel Core i5-13400E by 0.4%. The fact that a 16-core i9 is trading blows with a Pentium Gold and mid-range i5 parts in average score indicates that the aggregate benchmark metric masks significant workload-specific differences. The i9-12900E’s multi-core scores are respectable, but its single-core performance, while solid, does not boost it above far cheaper competitors in the average.

For real workloads, the multi-core Cinebench R23 score of 23,529 suggests the CPU can handle heavily threaded tasks like video encoding, 3D rendering, and software compilation without issue. The single-core score of 3,321 is adequate for everyday responsiveness and lightly threaded applications, but it does not lead the field. The 65 W TDP is notably low for a 16-core part, which implies thermal efficiency rather than raw power draw, but the boost clock of 5.00 GHz ensures it can punch above its weight when needed. The data shows a processor that is balanced but not exceptional; it is a workhorse with enough cores for productivity, yet it does not dominate any specific benchmark category.

Gaming Performance

No measured FPS rows exist for this exact CPU-GPU combination. The FACT PACK contains no measuredFps data, so all gaming performance figures here are estimates derived from the benchmark scores. The RTX 4090 D’s 98th percentile ranking and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8,587 indicate that this GPU is capable of extreme frame rates, but the CPU’s 62nd percentile position means it may hold the GPU back in CPU-bound scenarios.

At 1080p resolution, the CPU’s single-core performance becomes the limiting factor. The i9-12900E’s Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3,321 is not weak, but it is not in the top tier. Modern game engines often rely heavily on single-threaded performance, and in esports titles or fast-paced shooters where frame rates can exceed 200 FPS, the CPU may cap the GPU’s output. The GPU is so powerful that at lower resolutions, it will be waiting on the CPU to feed it draw calls. Expect high frame rates, but not the absolute maximum the RTX 4090 D could deliver in a system with a stronger CPU.

At 1440p and 4K resolutions, the workload shifts to the GPU, and the RTX 4090 D takes over. With 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth, the GPU has ample resources for high-resolution textures and heavy post-processing. The 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 8,587, which outperforms the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell by 2.2% and the NVIDIA A100 SXM4 80 GB by 3.1%, suggests that at 4K, this pairing will deliver playable frame rates in nearly all titles, even with ultra settings enabled. The estimated frame rates at 4K are likely to be well above 60 FPS in most games, with the GPU being the dominant factor. At 1440p, the system should easily exceed 100 FPS in most titles, but the exact numbers depend on the specific game’s CPU demands.

Benchmark Performance

The CPU’s benchmark suite shows a processor that performs consistently across Cinebench versions. In Cinebench R15, it scores 2,371 multi-core and 334 single-core. In R20, the scores are 9,882 multi-core and 1,394 single-core. The R23 scores of 23,529 multi-core and 3,321 single-core follow the expected scaling. Geekbench results are 10,280 multi-core and 1,775 single-core. The average benchmark score of 6,611 places the CPU in the 62nd percentile, with rivals clustered tightly around it. The Intel Core i9-10940X and Intel Pentium Gold G6405 both score 6,605, a 0.1% difference, while the Intel Core i5-13500E scores 6,586, 0.4% behind. The Intel Core i5-13400E scores 6,638, 0.4% ahead. This tight clustering suggests that the i9-12900E’s average performance is nearly indistinguishable from these competitors, despite differences in core counts and clocks.

The GPU’s benchmark results are far more impressive. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 8,587, the Geekbench OpenCL score is 278,621, and the Geekbench Vulkan score is 246,941. The average benchmark score is 178,050, placing the GPU in the 98th percentile. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell, which scores 182,109 and is 2.2% ahead, and the NVIDIA A100 SXM4 80 GB, which scores 183,725 and is 3.1% ahead. The RTX 4090 D trails the NVIDIA RTX 5000 Ada Generation by 3.6% and the NVIDIA A100 SXM4 40 GB by 4.9%. These deltas show that the RTX 4090 D is slightly behind the very top workstation cards in raw compute, but it is still far ahead of the vast majority of GPUs on the market.

The combined picture is one of extreme asymmetry. The GPU’s 98th percentile ranking is offset by the CPU’s 62nd percentile, resulting in a combined percentile of 80. This means that in any GPU-bound workload, the system performs like a top-tier machine, but in CPU-bound tasks, it falls to the middle of the pack. The data suggests that the RTX 4090 D is the primary driver of the system’s overall performance, and the i9-12900E is a supporting actor that does not bottleneck the GPU in most scenarios but also does not lift it.

Who Should Build It

This pairing targets users who need extreme GPU compute and are willing to accept a mid-tier CPU. The RTX 4090 D’s 24 GB of VRAM and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth make it ideal for 4K gaming, where the GPU is the primary bottleneck. Gamers at 4K resolution will see the most benefit, as the GPU’s massive memory pool and high bandwidth handle ultra textures and ray tracing without issue. At 1440p, the system is also strong, but the CPU may become a factor in competitive titles where high frame rates are essential.

Content creators working with GPU-accelerated rendering, such as video editors using CUDA-accelerated effects or 3D artists using ray-traced renderers, will find the RTX 4090 D’s 73.54 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 114 RT cores invaluable. The 456 tensor cores also make this a capable machine for AI inference and machine learning workloads, though the CPU’s 62nd percentile may slow data preprocessing tasks. For developers working on GPU compute, the system is a powerhouse, but for CPU-bound compilation or simulation tasks, the i9-12900E is adequate rather than exceptional.

Small business workstations that rely on GPU acceleration for tasks like CAD, video transcoding, or scientific visualization will benefit from this pairing. The CPU’s 16 cores and 24 threads handle multi-threaded office workloads well, and the GPU accelerates any graphics-intensive task. Students in fields like computer graphics or data science will find the system capable, but the high cost of the GPU makes it a niche choice. The data shows a system for users who know their workloads are GPU-bound and who do not need top-tier CPU performance.

Balance and Bottleneck

The bottleneck analysis is clear from the percentile data. The GPU is in the 98th percentile, while the CPU is in the 62nd percentile. In GPU-bound workloads, such as 4K gaming or ray-traced rendering, the RTX 4090 D operates at near its full potential, and the CPU is not a limiting factor. The 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 8,587, which is only 2.2% behind the RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell, indicates that the GPU is performing close to its peak in synthetic tests, suggesting the CPU is not holding it back in these scenarios.

In CPU-bound workloads, such as 1080p gaming with high frame rates or single-threaded applications, the CPU becomes the limiting factor. The i9-12900E’s single-core score of 3,321 in Cinebench R23 is not in the top tier, and the GPU’s raw power cannot compensate for a CPU that cannot keep up with game logic or physics calculations. The FPS scaling in gaming is likely to show diminishing returns as resolution decreases; at 4K, the GPU is the bottleneck, but at 1080p, the CPU will cap frame rates well below what the GPU could theoretically deliver.

The TDP figures also inform the balance. The CPU has a 65 W TDP, while the GPU has a 425 W TDP. The GPU is clearly the more power-hungry component, and the suggested PSU of 800 W reflects its demands. This power asymmetry further emphasizes that the GPU is the dominant component. In a system where the GPU uses over six times the power of the CPU, the balance is heavily skewed toward graphics performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the CPU’s core and thread count?

A: The Intel Core i9-12900E has 16 cores and 24 threads.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The CPU’s average benchmark score of 6,611 is 0.1% ahead of the Intel Pentium Gold G6405 and Intel Core i9-10940X, 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i5-13500E, and 0.4% behind the Intel Core i5-13400E.

Q: What is the GPU’s memory configuration?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D has 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus with 1.01 TB/s bandwidth.

Q: What is the GPU’s percentile ranking?

A: The GPU is in the 98th percentile against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 178,050.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in gaming?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck at higher resolutions like 4K, while the CPU becomes the bottleneck at lower resolutions like 1080p due to its 62nd percentile ranking.

Q: What is the combined percentile of this pairing?

A: The combined percentile is 80, indicating a system that is better than most but not top-tier overall.

Q: What is the GPU’s launch MSRP?

A: The launch MSRP is 1,599 USD.

GPU Analysis

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D is based on the Ada Lovelace architecture and uses the AD102 chip, fabricated on TSMC’s 5 nm process. The die contains 76,300 million transistors on a 609 mm² die, with a transistor density of 125.3M per mm². The GPU has 14,592 shading units, 456 texture mapping units, and 176 raster output units. It features 114 RT cores and 456 tensor cores, making it a formidable compute device. The base clock is 2280 MHz, with a boost clock of 2520 MHz. The memory clock is 1313 MHz, translating to 21 Gbps effective and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth across a 384-bit bus.

The GPU’s compute capabilities are substantial. It delivers 73.54 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and the same 73.54 TFLOPS of FP16 performance in a 1:1 ratio. The pixel rate is 443.5 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 1,149.1 GTexel/s. These specifications are reflected in the benchmark scores: 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8,587, Geekbench OpenCL score of 278,621, and Geekbench Vulkan score of 246,941. The average benchmark score of 178,050 places it in the 98th percentile, with rivals like the RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell (2.2% ahead) and the A100 SXM4 80 GB (3.1% ahead) slightly outperforming it.

For rendering workloads, the RTX 4090 D is a top-tier choice. The 114 RT cores accelerate ray-traced rendering in applications like Blender or V-Ray, and the 456 tensor cores provide AI-accelerated denoising and upscaling. The 24 GB of VRAM is sufficient for large scenes and high-resolution textures, and the 1.01 TB/s bandwidth ensures fast data transfer. The GPU’s 98th percentile ranking means it outperforms 98% of all GPUs, making it one of the fastest consumer cards available. The end-of-life production status and the launch MSRP of 1,599 USD indicate it is a premium product, but the data shows it is worth the premium for GPU-bound workloads.

Upgrade Path and Platform

The CPU uses the Intel Socket 1700 platform, which supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration. The memory bus is dual-channel, and the CPU does not support ECC memory. The PCIe interface is Gen 5 with 20 lanes from the CPU, while the GPU uses PCIe 4.0 x16. This means the GPU is not limited by the PCIe interface, as PCIe 4.0 x16 provides ample bandwidth for the RTX 4090 D.

The CPU’s TDP is 65 W, and the GPU’s TDP is 425 W, with a suggested PSU of 800 W. This suggests that the system requires a robust power supply, and the GPU uses a single 16-pin power connector. The CPU’s low TDP means it does not require an elaborate cooling solution, but the GPU’s triple-slot design and 304 mm length require a spacious case with good airflow.

A sensible next upgrade would be to replace the CPU with a higher-performing Socket 1700 part if CPU-bound workloads become a bottleneck. However, the data shows that the GPU is the dominant component, so upgrading the CPU would only yield meaningful gains in CPU-bound scenarios like 1080p gaming or single-threaded applications. Alternatively, adding more memory or faster DDR5 could help in memory-intensive tasks, but the dual-channel configuration is not a limitation for most workloads. The platform is mature, and the socket is not the latest, but it supports the current GPU without issue.

Build Overview

This is a desktop build that pairs the Intel Core i9-12900E with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D. The combined percentile is 80, placing it in the upper tier of all CPU-GPU combinations. The GPU is the standout component, ranking in the 98th percentile and providing exceptional compute and graphics performance. The CPU, ranking in the 62nd percentile, is a competent mid-tier performer that does not bottleneck the GPU in most workloads.

The overall tier of this build is high-end, driven almost entirely by the GPU. It is a system for users who need maximum graphics performance for 4K gaming, GPU-accelerated rendering, or AI compute. The CPU is adequate for these tasks but is not the reason to buy this system. The build is balanced in the sense that the CPU provides enough multi-core performance for general productivity, but it is clearly a GPU-first machine. The data shows a pairing where the GPU’s 98th percentile is the defining feature, and the CPU’s 62nd percentile is a secondary consideration. For anyone whose workload is heavily GPU-bound, this is a powerful combination; for CPU-bound tasks, it is merely average.