Doom

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 delivers exceptionally high frame rates in Doom, with every tested resolution and settings combination clearing the 60 FPS playability threshold. Benchmark data shows this combo is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s strong single-thread performance keeps frame rates extremely high at 1080p, making this a potent pairing for the 2016 FPS title.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Ultra, which reports an average of 63.8 FPS. This leaves only 3.8 FPS of headroom above the 60 FPS threshold, so while Ultra is technically playable, it is the ceiling for this resolution. The High preset provides a more comfortable margin at 77.1 FPS average, and Medium reaches 92.7 FPS, while Low achieves 106.8 FPS.

For 2560x1440, the Ultra preset is again the best choice, delivering 112.6 FPS on average. This is well above the playability threshold, and the scaling from 4K shows a substantial jump: High rises to 140.8 FPS, Medium to 165.5 FPS, and Low to 192.5 FPS. The gap between Ultra and High at this resolution is 28.2 FPS, indicating that the GPU has ample headroom to push maximum settings.

At 1920x1080, Ultra remains the best preset, with an average of 181 FPS. This is more than triple the playability threshold. The lower presets reach extremely high frame rates: High at 217.7 FPS, Medium at 255.8 FPS, and Low at 294.4 FPS. Notably, the difference between Ultra and Low at 1080p is 113.4 FPS, which suggests that even the most demanding settings leave significant performance on the table for high-refresh-rate displays.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the CPU becomes a more significant factor, as evidenced by the comparatively modest frame rate gains from lowering settings. The jump from Ultra (181 FPS) to Low (294.4 FPS) represents a 62.7% increase, but the absolute numbers suggest the i3-12100F’s four cores and eight threads are keeping pace with the RX 9070’s output. The CPU’s single-thread benchmark score of 893 in 3dmark and 1674 in Cinebench R23 single-core indicates strong per-core performance, which suits Doom’s engine well.

Moving to 2560x1440, the GPU begins to assert dominance. The scaling from 1080p Ultra to 1440p Ultra shows a drop from 181 FPS to 112.6 FPS, a 37.8% reduction, which is roughly proportional to the pixel count increase from 2.07 million to 3.69 million pixels (a 78% increase). However, the frame rate does not drop proportionally because the CPU is still providing sufficient throughput. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 79.9 FPS, which is larger than the 113.4 FPS gap at 1080p, suggesting the GPU is becoming the limiting factor.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is unequivocally the primary constraint. The pixel count doubles from 1440p to 2160p (3.69 million to 8.29 million), and the frame rates reflect this: Ultra drops from 112.6 FPS to 63.8 FPS, a 43.3% reduction. The spread between Low (106.8 FPS) and Ultra (63.8 FPS) at 4K is 43 FPS, which is much narrower than at lower resolutions, confirming that the RX 9070’s rendering throughput is the ceiling. The CPU’s role diminishes as resolution increases, with the i3-12100F’s 3dmark max-threads score of 4023 being more than sufficient to feed the GPU at 4K.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the Intel Core 3 N355 is essentially a match with an average benchmark score of 13492 versus the i3-12100F’s 13494, a delta of 0%. This means the N355 would deliver nearly identical frame rates in Doom when paired with the same GPU. The Intel Core i5-9500 is 0.3% slower, with a score of 13452, while the Intel Core 5 120UL is 0.7% faster at 13594, and the Intel Core i7-1250U is 1.1% faster at 13351. These deltas are all under 1.2%, so any of these CPUs would produce visually indistinguishable results in this game, with the i5-9500 being the most notable alternative due to its six cores versus the i3’s four.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z is the closest rival, scoring 23736 versus the RX 9070’s 23877, a delta of 0.6% (the RX 9070 is faster). The AMD Radeon RX 6800S is 0.8% faster at 24063, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile is 1.1% slower at 23628, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER is 1.2% faster at 24170. These small deltas mean that swapping the RX 9070 for any of these GPUs would change frame rates by roughly 1-2 FPS in the most demanding 4K Ultra scenario, and even less at 1080p where the CPU is more relevant. The RTX 2080 SUPER, being a desktop card, is the most practical alternative for a similar build.

The Verdict

This PC can run Doom with exceptional performance at every resolution and settings combination tested. The verdictByResolution data confirms that all four settings presets — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — are playable at all three resolutions, with the best settings being Ultra in every case. At 3840x2160, Ultra averages 63.8 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS threshold but with limited margin; players who prefer consistent frame times might opt for High at 77.1 FPS. At 2560x1440, Ultra delivers 112.6 FPS, providing ample headroom for smooth gameplay, and at 1920x1080, Ultra reaches 181 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors.

The data indicates that the RX 9070 is the star of this pairing, with its 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 644.6 GB/s bandwidth ensuring no VRAM bottlenecks even at 4K. The i3-12100F, despite being a budget-oriented quad-core, holds its own thanks to its Alder Lake architecture and 4.30 GHz boost clock. The only caveat is at 4K Ultra, where the 63.8 FPS average is close to the threshold; if frame drops occur, stepping down to High is a safe fallback.

FAQ

*Q: Can this combo run Doom at 4K Ultra settings?*

A: Yes, the measured data shows an average of 63.8 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p?

A: Ultra is the best preset at 2560x1440, delivering 112.6 FPS on average, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How much faster is the RX 9070 compared to its nearest GPU rival?

A: The RX 9070 scores 23877 in average benchmarks, while the nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z, scores 23736 — a 0.6% difference in favor of the RX 9070.

Q: Is the CPU a bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the CPU has a larger role at 1920x1080, but the i3-12100F still delivers 181 FPS on Ultra, indicating it is not a significant bottleneck for this game.

Q: Which resolution shows the largest performance gap between Low and Ultra?

A: At 1920x1080, the gap between Low (294.4 FPS) and Ultra (181 FPS) is 113.4 FPS, which is the largest absolute difference across all resolutions.

Q: What is the playable frame rate at 4K High settings?

A: The measured average at 3840x2160 with High settings is 77.1 FPS, providing a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold.

How This Combo Ranks

Among the 3712 tested combinations in the database, this pairing of the Intel Core i3-12100F and AMD Radeon RX 9070 ranks 1110th in Doom. This places it in the top 30% of all tested combos, which is a strong showing given the CPU’s relatively modest specifications. The rank reflects the GPU’s high performance ceiling, as the RX 9070 sits in the 69th percentile of all GPUs, while the i3-12100F is in the 68th percentile of all CPUs. The combination leverages the GPU’s strengths effectively, particularly at 1440p and 4K where the frame rates are comparable to systems with much more expensive processors. The rank of 1110 indicates that while there are faster combos, this pairing offers a balanced profile that excels in GPU-bound scenarios, which is exactly what Doom presents at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the frame rates are exceptionally high across all settings. The Low preset averages 294.4 FPS, Medium reaches 255.8 FPS, High delivers 217.7 FPS, and Ultra still manages 181 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra represents a 38.5% reduction, which is relatively small compared to the resolution scaling, indicating the CPU is providing consistent throughput.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 192.5 FPS for Low, 165.5 FPS for Medium, 140.8 FPS for High, and 112.6 FPS for Ultra. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is more pronounced, with Ultra falling by 68.4 FPS (37.8%). The spread between Low and Ultra is 79.9 FPS, showing that the GPU is becoming more influential.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 106.8 FPS for Low, 92.7 FPS for Medium, 77.1 FPS for High, and 63.8 FPS for Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 43 FPS, confirming the GPU is the dominant constraint. The 4K Ultra result is the only one that approaches the 60 FPS threshold, with a 3.8 FPS margin. All measurements are averages with no min or max FPS data provided, so the variance within each setting is not available, but the averages alone show a smooth progression across resolutions and presets.