Doom

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-10400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 ranks 1144th out of 3712 tested combos for Doom, placing it in the upper third of all recorded configurations. This is a strong result for a game of Doom's era, indicating that this pairing delivers well above typical performance levels. The CPU itself sits at the 68th percentile among all processors in the database, with an average benchmark score of 14185. Its nearest rivals are extremely close in average score: the Intel Xeon 6756E trails by just 0.2%, the AMD EPYC 7552 is 0.5% ahead, while the Intel Core 7 160UL sits 0.3% ahead and the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C leads by 0.6%. This clustering shows the i5-10400F is competitive with a wide range of server and mobile parts in raw synthetic workloads, though game performance depends more on the GPU pairing.

The RTX 3080 also sits at the 68th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23172. Its nearest rivals are similarly tight: the NVIDIA P106-100 scores 0.3% higher, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 scores 0.3% higher, the AMD Radeon RX 6600M scores 0.4% higher, and the AMD Radeon R9 M290X scores 0.4% higher. Neither component is dramatically ahead of or behind its immediate peers, but the combination yields frame rates that comfortably exceed the 60 FPS threshold at every resolution tested. The rank of 1144 out of 3712 means roughly 69% of tested combos score lower, which places this build firmly in the upper performance tier for Doom specifically.

CPU and GPU Roles

For Doom, the recorded data shows that the GPU is the dominant factor at higher resolutions, while the CPU becomes increasingly relevant as resolution drops. At 4K (3840x2160), the difference between Low and Ultra settings is a drop from 105.6 FPS to 63.3 FPS, a reduction of 40%. At 1440p, the same settings swing from 196.8 FPS down to 118.1 FPS, a 40% reduction. At 1080p, Low produces 265.3 FPS while Ultra produces 183.3 FPS, a 31% reduction. The smaller percentage drop at 1080p suggests that at lower resolutions the CPU begins to limit how much the GPU can stretch, since the GPU has less pixel work to do and frame rates climb high enough that the i5-10400F's six cores and twelve threads become a factor.

Resolution scaling tells a similar story. Moving from 1080p Ultra to 1440p Ultra, average FPS falls from 183.3 to 118.1, a 36% drop. Moving from 1440p Ultra to 4K Ultra, average FPS falls from 118.1 to 63.3, a 46% drop. The larger percentage loss at the 4K step indicates that the RTX 3080's pixel throughput, including its 760.3 GB/s memory bandwidth and 164.2 GPixel/s pixel rate, is being taxed heavily at 4K. The GPU's 29.77 TFLOPS FP32 compute and 465.1 GTexel/s texture rate are sufficient to keep the i5-10400F from being the primary constraint at 4K, but at 1080p the CPU's single-thread performance, measured at 2541 in Passmark single-thread and 688 in 3DMark single-thread, becomes more relevant as frame rates approach and exceed 250 FPS.

The data suggests that for players targeting 60 FPS, the CPU is never the bottleneck in Doom with this GPU. Even at 4K Ultra, the combo delivers 63.3 FPS, so the i5-10400F has enough headroom to feed the RTX 3080 at every preset. The GPU is the component that determines whether the frame rate stays above 60 FPS, and it does so in all twelve measured configurations. The CPU's 12 MB of shared L3 cache and 42.7 GB/s memory bandwidth are adequate for Doom's engine, which does not appear to demand more than six cores based on the measured results.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 63.3 FPS. This is the maximum quality setting available, and it clears the 60 FPS threshold by a margin of 3.3 FPS. High averages 76.8 FPS, Medium averages 92.8 FPS, and Low averages 105.6 FPS, so every preset at 4K is playable, but Ultra is the recommended choice for maximum visual quality while remaining playable.

At 2560x1440, Ultra averages 118.1 FPS, which is far above the 60 FPS threshold. High averages 145.4 FPS, Medium averages 171.8 FPS, and Low averages 196.8 FPS. All presets are playable, and Ultra is the best setting because it delivers more than double the minimum playable frame rate.

At 1920x1080, Ultra averages 183.3 FPS. High averages 222 FPS, Medium averages 255.3 FPS, and Low averages 265.3 FPS. Every preset at 1080p is far beyond 60 FPS, and Ultra remains the best choice since it provides the highest quality without any risk of dropping below the playable threshold. The margin at 1080p Ultra is 123.3 FPS above the 60 FPS minimum, so there is substantial headroom for any additional background load or momentary scene complexity.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Doom at 4K with maximum settings?

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo averages 63.3 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. All four presets at 4K are playable, with Low averaging 105.6 FPS, Medium averaging 92.8 FPS, and High averaging 76.8 FPS.

Q: How does performance scale from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings?

A: At 1080p Ultra, the average is 183.3 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 118.1 FPS, a 36% reduction. At 4K Ultra, it drops to 63.3 FPS, a 46% reduction from 1440p. The larger drop at the 4K step indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

Q: Which component matters more for Doom with this setup?

A: The GPU matters more at 4K, where the RTX 3080's pixel rate and memory bandwidth are heavily taxed. At 1080p, the CPU becomes more relevant as frame rates reach 265.3 FPS on Low settings, but the i5-10400F still keeps all presets well above 60 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 3080 a strong performer relative to its peers?

A: The RTX 3080 sits at the 68th percentile among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 23172 is within 0.4% of its nearest rivals, including the NVIDIA P106-100, AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16, AMD Radeon RX 6600M, and AMD Radeon R9 M290X.

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

A: Ultra at 2560x1440 averages 118.1 FPS, which is the highest quality setting and remains well above 60 FPS. Low averages 196.8 FPS, Medium averages 171.8 FPS, and High averages 145.4 FPS, so all presets are viable, but Ultra offers the best visual experience.

Q: Does the i5-10400F hold back the RTX 3080 in Doom?

A: The data shows no evidence of CPU limitation at any resolution or preset. Even at 1080p Low, which produces 265.3 FPS, the combo stays above 60 FPS. The CPU's 68th percentile ranking and close proximity to rivals like the Intel Xeon 6756E and AMD EPYC 7552 indicate it provides sufficient throughput for this GPU in Doom.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the recorded average frame rates are as follows. Low settings produce 265.3 FPS, Medium produces 255.3 FPS, High produces 222 FPS, and Ultra produces 183.3 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs only 10 FPS, while the step from Medium to High costs 33.3 FPS, and the step from High to Ultra costs 38.7 FPS. This indicates that the Ultra preset adds a significant load relative to High, but the absolute frame rates remain very high.

At 2560x1440, Low averages 196.8 FPS, Medium averages 171.8 FPS, High averages 145.4 FPS, and Ultra averages 118.1 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 78.7 FPS, which is a 40% reduction. The scaling is roughly linear, with each preset step costing between 25 and 27.3 FPS, except for the Medium to High step which costs 26.4 FPS.

At 3840x2160, Low averages 105.6 FPS, Medium averages 92.8 FPS, High averages 76.8 FPS, and Ultra averages 63.3 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 12.8 FPS, Medium to High costs 16 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 13.5 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K sits just 3.3 FPS above the 60 FPS playable threshold, making it the tightest margin in the entire dataset.

Comparing across resolutions, the 1080p Low result of 265.3 FPS is the highest recorded value, while the 4K Ultra result of 63.3 FPS is the lowest. The median across all twelve configurations is approximately 160 FPS, which shows that this combo spends most of its time far above the playable threshold. The data does not include minimum or maximum FPS values, so all analysis is based on average frame rates.

The Verdict

This PC can run Doom at every resolution and preset combination tested. The verdictByResolution data confirms that all four settings at each of the three resolutions are playable, meaning they all average at least 60 FPS. At 1920x1080, the best setting is Ultra with 183.3 FPS average. At 2560x1440, the best setting is Ultra with 118.1 FPS average. At 3840x2160, the best setting is Ultra with 63.3 FPS average.

The tightest margin is at 4K Ultra, where the combo averages 63.3 FPS, just 3.3 FPS above the 60 FPS threshold. This is still a clear pass, but it leaves less headroom for demanding scenes or background tasks. At 1440p and 1080p, the margins are massive, with 58.1 FPS and 123.3 FPS of headroom respectively at Ultra settings. Players who prefer maximum visual fidelity can confidently select Ultra at any resolution. Players who prioritize frame rate can drop to Low at 4K for 105.6 FPS, or to Low at 1440p for 196.8 FPS, or to Low at 1080p for 265.3 FPS. The i5-10400F and RTX 3080 combination is a thoroughly capable pairing for Doom, with no configuration in the recorded data falling below the playable threshold.