1. Introduction
For the majority of gamers, the goal is to have a mid-to-high-end setup with powerful performance, such as a Ryzen 7 7800X3D paired with a GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER. However, there is also a group of entry-level gamers who don’t have high demands for gaming performance—they just want a system that works, with a strong focus on cost-effectiveness.
For these users, there are currently two excellent options: the Ryzen 5 5600 and the Core i5-12400F. Both processors are priced similarly in the market, at just over 600 RMB.
This article will compare the gaming performance of the Ryzen 5 5600 and the Core i5-12400F to determine which one deserves the title of “king of entry-level gaming processors” for readers interested in this category.
2. Parameter Comparison
The Core i5-12400F was released on January 4, 2022, using a 10-nanometer process, featuring only 6 performance cores (no efficiency cores), totaling 12 threads. Its base clock speed is 2.5 GHz, with a maximum boost of 4.4 GHz. It has an L2 cache of 7.5 MB, a smart cache of 18 MB, and a power consumption of 65W, with a suggested retail price between $184.00 and $194.00. Currently, its market price for OEM units is around 600 RMB.
The Ryzen 5 5600 was released on April 20, 2022, with 6 cores and 12 threads. It has an L1 cache of 384 KB, an L2 cache of 3 MB, and an L3 cache of 32 MB. Its base clock is 3.5 GHz, with a maximum boost of 4.4 GHz, a power consumption of 60W, and a suggested retail price of $122.
3. Test Platform Configuration
The main test configurations are as follows:
The Ryzen 5 5600 is paired with a Gigabyte AORUS MASTER B550 motherboard, while the Core i5-12400F is paired with an ASUS ROG Strix B660-A Gaming WIFI D4 motherboard. All other components remain the same: 32GB of DDR4 3600 MHz memory, a GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER graphics card, an ADATA XPG 1TB GAMMIX S70 Blade SSD, and the Windows 10 22H2 operating system.
Pairing these processors with a GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is, of course, an unconventional choice, but the purpose here is to ensure that the graphics card isn’t a bottleneck, allowing us to evaluate which processor can better maximize the GPU’s performance. This is also a key criterion for the comparison.
4. Game Testing
The following tests were conducted across seven games, all set to 1080p with maximum graphics settings. In each set of images, the left side represents the Ryzen 5 5600 platform, and the right side represents the Core i5-12400F platform.
The first game is Ghostwire: Tokyo.
On the Ryzen 5 5600 platform, the average FPS was 170, with a minimum instant FPS of 114, a frame time of 6.0ms, CPU utilization of 36%, power consumption of 59W, temperature of 65°C, memory usage of 11.9GB, GPU utilization of 83%, VRAM usage of 4.1GB, GPU power of 199W, and a temperature of 58°C.
On the Core i5-12400F platform, the average FPS was 184, with a minimum instant FPS of 140, a frame time of 6.0ms, CPU utilization of 39%, power consumption of 40W, temperature of 51°C, memory usage of 13.5GB, GPU utilization of 84%, VRAM usage of 6.1GB, GPU power of 196W, and a temperature of 57°C.
In this game, the Core i5-12400F platform had a 3% higher CPU utilization, 1.6GB more memory usage, almost identical GPU utilization, and 2GB higher VRAM usage than its counterpart.
The Core i5-12400F achieved 14 FPS more on average and 26 FPS more at the minimum, with equal frame times but 19W lower power consumption and 14°C lower temperature, showing a clear overall advantage.
The second game is Cyberpunk 2077.
On the Ryzen 5 5600 platform, the average FPS was 128, with a minimum FPS of 86, a frame time of 6.6ms, CPU utilization of 75%, power consumption of 75W, temperature of 71°C, memory usage of 9.3GB, GPU utilization of 52%, VRAM usage of 4.4GB, GPU power of 139W, and a temperature of 50°C.
On the Core i5-12400F platform, the average FPS was 138, with a minimum FPS of 98, a frame time of 6.3ms, CPU utilization of 79%, power consumption of 55W, temperature of 53°C, memory usage of 11.1GB, GPU utilization of 45%, VRAM usage of 5.6GB, GPU power of 131W, and a temperature of 46°C.
Here, the Core i5-12400F platform had 4% more CPU usage, 1.8GB more memory usage, 7% lower GPU usage, and 1.2GB more VRAM usage.
The Core i5-12400F platform scored 10 FPS higher on average and 12 FPS higher at the minimum, with nearly identical frame times but 20W lower power and 18°C lower temperature.
The third game is God of War.
The Ryzen 5 5600 platform achieved an average FPS of 180, with a minimum of 92 FPS, a frame time of 5.6ms, CPU utilization of 72%, power consumption of 71W, temperature of 64°C, memory usage of 10.6GB, GPU utilization of 47%, VRAM usage of 3.8GB, GPU power of 120W, and a temperature of 45°C.
The Core i5-12400F platform reached an average of 183 FPS, with a minimum of 113 FPS, a frame time of 5.4ms, CPU utilization of 76%, power consumption of 51W, temperature of 51°C, memory usage of 10.7GB, GPU utilization of 45%, VRAM usage of 4.7GB, GPU power of 121W, and a temperature of 43°C.
In this game, Core i5-12400F’s CPU utilization was 4% higher, memory usage was nearly equal, GPU utilization was 2% lower, and VRAM usage was 0.9GB higher.
The Core i5-12400F had an average FPS lead of 3 and a minimum FPS lead of 11, with frame times almost equal. It used 20W less power and was 13°C cooler.
The fourth game is Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice.
Ryzen 5 5600 had an average FPS of 91, with a minimum of 71 FPS, a frame time of 10.7ms, CPU usage of 49%, power consumption of 65W, temperature of 66°C, memory usage of 12.3GB, GPU utilization of 62%, VRAM usage of 6.3GB, GPU power of 149W, and a temperature of 53°C.
Core i5-12400F achieved an average of 110 FPS, with a minimum of 74 FPS, a frame time of 8.7ms, CPU usage of 52%, power consumption of 49W, temperature of 52°C, memory usage of 13.8GB, GPU utilization of 71%, VRAM usage of 7.0GB, GPU power of 166W, and a temperature of 52°C.
Core i5-12400F’s CPU usage was 3% higher, memory usage was 1.5GB more, GPU usage was 9% higher, and VRAM usage was 0.7GB higher.
Core i5-12400F had 19 FPS more on average, 3 FPS more at the minimum, and a 2ms lower frame time, with 16W lower power and 14°C lower temperature.
The fifth game is Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0.
Ryzen 5 5600 scored an average FPS of 197, with a minimum of 138 FPS, a frame time of 6.0ms, CPU usage of 76%, power consumption of 71W, temperature of 62°C, memory usage of 14.5GB, GPU utilization of 58%, VRAM usage of 6.0GB, GPU power of 127W, and a temperature of 42°C.
Core i5-12400F scored an average FPS of 181, with a minimum of 133 FPS, a frame time of 6.7ms, CPU usage of 76%, power consumption of 55W, temperature of 59°C, memory usage of 14.8GB, GPU utilization of 55%, VRAM usage of 6.1GB, GPU power of 121W, and a temperature of 50°C.
Both platforms had equal CPU utilization, with the Core i5-12400F using 0.3GB more memory, 3% lower GPU utilization, and nearly equal VRAM.
The Ryzen 5 5600 outperformed the Core i5-12400F with 16 FPS more on average and 5 FPS more at minimum, with equivalent frame times, 16W less power, and 3°C lower temperature.
The sixth game is Hogwarts Legacy.
Ryzen 5 5600 achieved an average FPS of 44, with a minimum of 24 FPS, a frame time of 19.4ms, CPU usage of 42%, power of 60W, temperature of 64°C, memory of 20.4GB, GPU utilization of 43%, VRAM of 10.8GB, GPU power of 123W, and a temperature of 47°C.
Core i5-12400F had an average of 49 FPS, a minimum of 28 FPS, frame time of 22.6ms, CPU usage of 43%, power of 43W, temperature of 52°C, memory of 21.2GB, GPU utilization of 44%, VRAM of 10.6GB, GPU power of 120W, and a temperature of 47°C.
Both platforms had nearly equal CPU and GPU utilization, with the Core i5-12400F using 0.8GB more memory and 0.2GB less VRAM.
Core i5-12400F had a small advantage of 5 FPS in average, 4 FPS in minimum, with 17W lower power and 12°C lower temperature.
The seventh game is Starfield.
Ryzen 5 5600 achieved an average FPS of 68, with a minimum of 49 FPS, frame time of 11.3ms, CPU usage of 77%, power of 73W, temperature of 61°C, memory usage of 13.8GB, GPU utilization of 41%, VRAM usage of 5.3GB, GPU power of 105W, and a temperature of 39°C.
Core i5-12400F had an average FPS of 73, a minimum of 52 FPS, frame time of 11.7ms, CPU usage of 78%, power of 57W, temperature of 54°C, memory usage of 14.2GB, GPU utilization of 47%, VRAM usage of 4.9GB, GPU power of 118W, and a temperature of 49°C.
Both platforms had nearly equal CPU utilization, with Core i5-12400F using 0.4GB more memory, 6% higher GPU utilization, and 0.4GB less VRAM.
Core i5-12400F performed slightly better, with 5 FPS more on average and 3 FPS more at minimum, with almost equal frame times, 16W lower power, and 7°C lower temperature.
5. Comparison Conclusion
In terms of benchmark scores, Ryzen 5 5600 and Core i5-12400F each have their strengths, with the Core i5-12400F boasting 8% higher single-core performance, while Ryzen 5 5600 has 9% higher multi-core performance. However, since gaming relies heavily on single-core performance, the Core i5-12400F demonstrates a clear advantage in gaming scenarios.
In summary, the Core i5-12400F is the true “king of entry-level gaming processors.” For those assembling a budget-friendly gaming PC, the Ryzen 5 5600 is not the optimal choice, as the Core i5-12400F offers much better value.
Related:
- Core Ultra 9 285K vs Ryzen 9 9950X: Performance Gap?
- Ultra 9 285K or Ryzen 7800X3D: Gaming Test Insights
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