Doom

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers an exceptional performance profile for Doom, with measured frame rates that clear the 60 FPS playable threshold by a wide margin at every resolution and settings combination tested. The data shows a system so powerful that it turns the game’s most demanding preset into a high-refresh-rate experience, even at 4K Ultra where the average FPS of 95.8 remains comfortably above the target. This combination is not merely playable; it is overkill for the 2016 title, providing headroom that would allow for significant futureproofing or the use of additional graphical enhancements.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combination reveals a linear scaling pattern across resolutions, with the RTX 4090’s immense compute resources ensuring that the CPU never becomes a limiting factor. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are astronomical, starting at 447.9 FPS on Low settings and only dipping to 267.4 FPS on Ultra. This indicates that the GPU is operating far below its saturation point, with the benchmark results suggesting that the game’s engine, rather than the hardware, is the primary constraint at this resolution. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 180.5 FPS, showing that while settings do impact performance, the absolute floor remains far above any possible display refresh rate.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains stellar, with the average FPS ranging from 288.5 on Low to 172.4 on Ultra. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a roughly 35% reduction in average FPS across all settings, which is a modest penalty given the 78% increase in pixel count. This suggests that the RTX 4090’s 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth are more than sufficient to handle the increased memory pressure without causing any stutter or frame time spikes. The Ultra preset at 1440p, with an average of 172.4 FPS, still provides a significant margin over 144 Hz displays, making it the ideal resolution for high-refresh-rate gaming with this hardware.

At 3840x2160, the true test of the GPU’s capabilities, the results are equally impressive. The average FPS at 4K High is 116.4, which is already above the 60 FPS threshold, but the data shows that even the Ultra preset, with an average of 95.8 FPS, maintains a smooth experience. The Low preset at 4K achieves 159 FPS, demonstrating that the RTX 4090 has enough raw compute headroom to push beyond 144 FPS even at this demanding resolution. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is roughly 45% lower average FPS, which is expected given the 2.25x increase in pixel count, but the absolute numbers remain high enough that users can prioritize visual quality without sacrificing frame rate.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core i7-14700KF’s average benchmark score of 70,163 places it in a tight cluster with several other high-end processors. The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is the closest competitor, with an average score of 69,996, representing a mere 0.2% performance delta. This means that in CPU-bound scenarios, users would see virtually identical frame rates with either chip, though the i7-14700KF’s 20 cores and 28 threads provide a slight edge in heavily threaded workloads. The AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX is similarly close with a 0.4% delta, while the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X trails by 0.9%, and the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K leads by 1%. In the context of Doom, which is primarily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, these differences would be imperceptible, as the CPU is never the bottleneck.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090’s nearest rivals are an eclectic mix of professional and workstation cards, which confirms its unique position in the consumer market. The Intel Arc Pro A60 has an average score of 60,326, a 0% delta from the RTX 4090’s 60,347, but this is misleading as the Arc Pro A60 is a professional card with different driver optimizations. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 is 0.3% behind, while the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M is 2.5% ahead and the AMD Radeon PRO V710 is 2.9% behind. These rivals are not direct consumer alternatives, but the data suggests that for Doom’s specific workload, the RTX 4090’s performance is so far ahead of any other consumer GPU that no meaningful comparison can be made within the same price or performance class.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 76th out of 3,712 tested combos for Doom, placing it in the top 2% of all possible hardware configurations. This ranking is driven by the GPU’s dominant position, as the RTX 4090’s percentile of 88 among all GPUs is the primary contributor, while the CPU’s percentile of 94 ensures that no bottleneck exists. The high ranking is particularly notable given the game’s age, as newer games with more demanding engines would likely see this combo rank even higher relative to older hardware. The data indicates that this configuration is one of the most capable systems available for this title, with only a handful of exotic dual-GPU or newer-generation setups outperforming it.

The Verdict

The verdict is unambiguous: this PC can run Doom at the highest possible settings at every resolution tested. The verdictByResolution data confirms that all four settings presets — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — are playable at 1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160, with the average FPS never dropping below the 60 FPS threshold. At 1080p, the Ultra preset achieves 267.4 FPS, which is more than four times the playable threshold and sufficient for even the fastest 240 Hz displays. At 1440p, the Ultra preset’s 172.4 FPS provides a comfortable margin for 144 Hz and 165 Hz monitors, while at 4K, the Ultra preset’s 95.8 FPS is ideal for high-refresh-rate 4K displays that support VRR. The data shows no scenario where this hardware struggles, and users can confidently max out all settings without any performance concerns.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest playable settings preset at 4K resolution?

A: The Ultra preset at 3840x2160 is playable, with an average FPS of 95.8, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: How does the performance at 1080p Ultra compare to 4K Ultra?

A: The 1080p Ultra preset achieves an average FPS of 267.4, which is 171.6 FPS higher than the 4K Ultra preset’s 95.8 FPS, representing a 2.8x performance increase at the lower resolution.

Q: Which component is more critical for this game’s performance?

A: The GPU is the dominant factor, as the RTX 4090’s 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs and the CPU’s 94th percentile indicate that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution.

Q: Is the RTX 4090’s performance close to its nearest rivals?

A: The data shows a 0% delta with the Intel Arc Pro A60 and a 0.3% delta with the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48, but these are professional cards, not direct consumer alternatives.

Q: What is the playable threshold for this game?

A: The playable threshold is 60 FPS, and this combo exceeds that at every resolution and settings preset tested.

Q: Does the CPU’s performance affect the frame rates in Doom?

A: Given the CPU’s high benchmark scores and the fact that the GPU is the limiting factor, the CPU’s impact is minimal, with the nearest rival showing only a 0.2% performance delta.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the best settings are Ultra, which achieves an average FPS of 267.4. This is the most demanding preset that stays well above 60 FPS, and it is the recommended configuration for users with high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 2560x1440, the best settings are also Ultra, with an average FPS of 172.4. This provides a smooth experience on 144 Hz and 165 Hz displays, and the frame rate is high enough to accommodate G-Sync or FreeSync without any judder.

At 3840x2160, the best settings are Ultra, achieving an average FPS of 95.8. This is the optimal configuration for 4K gaming, as it maintains a frame rate that is suitable for VRR displays and provides the highest visual fidelity the game offers. The data shows that even at this demanding resolution, there is no need to compromise on settings to achieve a playable frame rate.