The Medium

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers a strong showing in The Medium, a horror title that scales predictably with resolution and settings. The measured data covers three resolutions and four quality presets, with average FPS ranging from a low of 50.2 at 4K Ultra to a high of 146.6 at 1080p Low. The results show a clear pattern: this combination clears the 60 FPS threshold at every resolution when using the right preset, but 4K Ultra is the only configuration that falls short. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS, explains the CPU and GPU roles, recommends settings per resolution, ranks the combo against other tested systems, and compares nearby alternatives.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for The Medium, using this specific Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 configuration, provides a complete picture across 1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160. At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the average FPS stays high across all presets. Low settings produce an average of 146.6 FPS, Medium hits 123.1, High reaches 94.9, and Ultra drops to 72.5. Every preset at 1080p comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold, with Ultra still holding a 20.8% margin above that mark. The spread from Low to Ultra is 74.1 FPS, indicating that the RTX 4090 has plenty of headroom at this resolution and that the CPU becomes a limiting factor in the lower presets.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS figures remain strong but show the expected decline as pixel count increases. Low settings average 138.8 FPS, Medium records 111.3, High delivers 78.7, and Ultra maintains 61.9. At 1440p, Ultra barely clears the 60 FPS threshold, landing just 1.9 FPS above the playable mark, while the other three presets have substantial margins. The difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 76.9 FPS, slightly larger than at 1080p, which suggests the GPU is becoming more influential but still not fully saturated at the lower presets.

At 3840x2160, the highest resolution tested, the data reveals the true GPU workload. Low settings average 126.8 FPS, Medium drops to 87.1, High settles at 65.2, and Ultra falls to 50.2 FPS. This is the only resolution where a preset — specifically Ultra — fails to reach the 60 FPS threshold, missing it by 9.8 FPS. High settings at 4K still clear 60 FPS with a 5.2 FPS margin, but the gap narrows considerably compared to lower resolutions. The Low-to-Ultra spread at 4K is 76.6 FPS, nearly identical to 1440p, which indicates that the GPU is now the dominant bottleneck across the entire preset range.

Comparing the same preset across resolutions shows consistent scaling. For example, High settings drop from 94.9 FPS at 1080p to 78.7 at 1440p (a 17.1% reduction), then to 65.2 at 4K (a further 17.2% reduction). Ultra settings follow a similar pattern: 72.5 at 1080p, 61.9 at 1440p, and 50.2 at 4K. The lowest preset, Low, scales from 146.6 at 1080p to 138.8 at 1440p (a 5.3% drop) and then to 126.8 at 4K (an 8.6% drop), showing that at low settings the CPU limits performance more than the GPU, which is why the resolution penalty is smaller. No min or max FPS values were recorded in the data, so the analysis relies entirely on average FPS, which still provides a reliable basis for judging playability.

CPU and GPU Roles

The Intel Core i5-12400F has 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 uses the AD102 chip with 16,384 shading units, 512 texture mapping units, and 176 raster output units. The game’s performance scaling across resolutions and presets shows how these two components share the workload. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 146.6, which is only 5.6% higher than the 138.8 FPS at 1440p Low. This small difference suggests that at low settings and lower resolutions, the CPU is the primary limiter, because the RTX 4090 can render frames faster than the i5-12400F can feed it draw calls and game logic. The 2.50 GHz base clock and 4.40 GHz boost clock on the CPU, combined with its 18 MB shared L3 cache, are sufficient for most gaming loads, but the data indicates a ceiling around 146-147 FPS at 1080p Low.

As resolution increases to 1440p and then 4K, the GPU workload grows significantly, shifting the bottleneck toward the RTX 4090. At High settings, moving from 1080p to 1440p reduces the average FPS from 94.9 to 78.7, a 17.1% drop, and then to 65.2 at 4K, another 17.2% drop. This consistent scaling pattern is typical of a GPU-bound scenario, where each pixel costs more processing time. At Ultra settings, the same trend appears: 72.5 at 1080p, 61.9 at 1440p, and 50.2 at 4K, with the 4K result falling below the 60 FPS playable threshold. The RTX 4090’s 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth are more than adequate for The Medium’s textures and geometry, but the sheer pixel count at 4K Ultra overwhelms the GPU’s shading and rasterization capabilities, which are rated at 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 and 443.5 GPixel/s pixel rate.

The preset level also determines which component matters more. At Low settings, the differences between resolutions are modest — 146.6 at 1080p versus 126.8 at 4K, a 13.5% gap — because the reduced graphics load allows the CPU to remain the limiting factor even at higher resolutions. At Medium settings, the gap widens: 123.1 at 1080p versus 87.1 at 4K, a 29.2% difference, indicating the GPU starts to take over. At High and Ultra, the GPU dominates completely, with resolution scaling nearly linear. The RTX 4090’s 128 RT cores and 512 tensor cores are relevant for The Medium’s horror visuals, but the benchmark data does not isolate ray tracing or DLSS effects, so the analysis stays with the measured averages. For this game, the i5-12400F is sufficient to avoid bottlenecking at 4K, but at 1080p Low it caps the maximum FPS, meaning users seeking the highest refresh rates should consider a stronger CPU. At 1440p and above, the RTX 4090 is the deciding factor, and its performance at Ultra settings is the only concern for playability.

Best Settings per Resolution

The verdict data for this combination specifies the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS at each resolution. At 1920x1080, the best setting is Ultra, with an average FPS of 72.5. This is 12.5 FPS above the 60 FPS playable threshold, providing a comfortable margin for dips during intense scenes. All four presets — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — are listed as playable at 1080p, so users can choose Ultra for maximum visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. The 72.5 FPS average at Ultra leaves some headroom, but not enough for high-refresh-rate monitors beyond 72 Hz, so those targeting 144 Hz would need to drop to High (94.9 FPS) or Medium (123.1 FPS).

At 2560x1440, the best setting is also Ultra, with an average FPS of 61.9. This is just 1.9 FPS above the 60 FPS threshold, making it a playable but tight configuration. The data lists all four presets as playable at 1440p, including Low (138.8 FPS), Medium (111.3 FPS), and High (78.7 FPS). For users who want a safety margin against frame drops, High at 78.7 FPS is a more robust choice, offering 18.7% more headroom than Ultra while still delivering high visual quality. However, the official best setting is Ultra, and the 61.9 FPS average indicates that the RTX 4090 can handle The Medium at 1440p with everything maxed out, though the margin is slim.

At 3840x2160, the best setting is High, with an average FPS of 65.2. Ultra is not playable at 4K, falling to 50.2 FPS, which is 9.8 FPS below the threshold. The playable settings at 4K are High (65.2 FPS), Medium (87.1 FPS), and Low (126.8 FPS). High provides the best visual quality that still clears 60 FPS, with a 5.2 FPS margin. This margin is tighter than at 1080p or 1440p, so users might prefer Medium at 87.1 FPS for a more stable experience, especially in scenes with heavy particle effects or dynamic lighting common in horror games. The data shows that 4K Ultra is the only configuration that fails the 60 FPS test, so users with 4K displays should stick to High or below.

Across all resolutions, the pattern is clear: the RTX 4090 can push Ultra settings at 1080p and 1440p, but 4K requires a step down to High. The 60 FPS playable threshold is met at every resolution with at least one preset, and the best settings per resolution are Ultra at 1080p, Ultra at 1440p, and High at 4K. The exact FPS at these settings — 72.5, 61.9, and 65.2, respectively — provide the reference points for users deciding between visual fidelity and frame rate stability.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database, this Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination ranks 203rd out of 3,724 tested combos for The Medium. This places it in the top 5.4% of all configurations, which is a strong result given that the RTX 4090 is an end-of-life GPU with a 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs, while the i5-12400F sits at the 73rd percentile among all CPUs. The combo rank of 203 of 3,724 indicates that most of the 3,724 combos tested are slower, and only 202 achieve higher average FPS in this game. The RTX 4090’s average benchmark score is 60,347, with a percentile of 88, meaning it outperforms 88% of GPUs in synthetic tests. The i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19,039, with a percentile of 73, showing it is a mid-to-upper-tier CPU but not a top-tier one.

The rank reflects the balance between the two components. The RTX 4090 is a flagship GPU, but the i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor with a 65 W TDP, which is not a bottleneck at 4K but does limit maximum FPS at 1080p Low. In The Medium, the combo reaches 146.6 FPS at 1080p Low, which is below what a stronger CPU like a Core i9 or Ryzen 9 might achieve with the same GPU. However, at 4K Ultra, the rank would be much higher because the GPU is the sole limiter. The 203rd rank out of 3,724 means that 3,521 combos are slower, and the overwhelming majority of those likely feature weaker GPUs, not weaker CPUs. The data does not include individual combo scores from other configurations, so the exact delta between this combo and the 202nd or 204th is not available, but the percentile placement confirms that this is a high-performing setup for The Medium.

The ranking also reflects the game’s optimization. The Medium is a horror title released in 2021, and it does not appear to be heavily CPU-bound beyond 1080p. The RTX 4090’s 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 384-bit bus width are overkill for this game’s requirements, so the GPU’s raw compute power — 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 — drives the high scores. The combo rank of 203 is likely limited by the CPU’s single-thread performance in certain scenes, but for the vast majority of gameplay at 1440p and 4K, the GPU dominates. Users comparing this combo to others in the database should expect it to outperform any setup with a weaker GPU, regardless of CPU, and to be competitive with setups using the same RTX 4090 but stronger CPUs, particularly at 1080p.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the Intel Core i5-12400F, based on average benchmark scores, include the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS, which has an average score of 19,047 and a deltaPct of 0, meaning it is effectively identical in performance. The Intel Core 3 201E scores 19,056 with a deltaPct of -0.1, indicating it is 0.1% slower. The Intel Core i5-1335U scores 18,982 with a deltaPct of 0.3, meaning it is 0.3% faster. The AMD EPYC 7773X scores 18,979 with a deltaPct of 0.3, also 0.3% faster. For gaming, these deltas are negligible, so swapping the i5-12400F for any of these CPUs would produce nearly identical FPS in The Medium, provided the GPU stays the same. The Ryzen 5 7535HS is a mobile processor, so it may not be a practical direct swap for a desktop socket, but the data shows that the CPU performance tier is similar.

For the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090, the nearest rivals are less intuitive. The Intel Arc Pro A60 has an average score of 60,326 with a deltaPct of 0, meaning it matches the RTX 4090’s synthetic average. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 scores 60,140 with a deltaPct of 0.3, or 0.3% faster. The AMD Radeon Pro W6600M scores 61,896 with a deltaPct of -2.5, meaning it is 2.5% slower. The AMD Radeon PRO V710 scores 58,657 with a deltaPct of 2.9, or 2.9% faster. However, these are professional or workstation GPUs, and their gaming performance in The Medium is not directly measured in the data. The deltaPct values come from synthetic benchmark averages, not game-specific FPS. In practice, the RTX 4090’s nearest gaming rivals would include other high-end consumer cards, but the FACT PACK only lists these four, and they all fall within a 2.9% range of the RTX 4090’s average benchmark score.

For the combo as a whole, the nearest rival CPUs would produce nearly identical results, since the GPU is the dominant factor at 1440p and 4K. At 1080p Low, the CPU differences might become measurable, but the deltas of 0.3% or less would translate to less than 1 FPS difference, which is imperceptible. Users looking for similar performance to this combo should consider any system with an RTX 4090-class GPU and a mid-range 6-core CPU, as the benchmark data shows that the GPU choice matters far more than the CPU for this game. The AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS and Intel Core 3 201E are the closest CPU alternatives, while the Intel Arc Pro A60 and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 are the closest GPU alternatives in the synthetic database, though their real-world gaming performance may differ from the RTX 4090 due to driver and game optimizations.

The Verdict

Can this PC run The Medium? The data says yes, with qualifications. At 1920x1080, all four presets — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — are playable, meaning they achieve at least 60 FPS. The best setting is Ultra, with an average FPS of 72.5, which clears the threshold by 12.5 FPS. At 2560x1440, all four presets are also playable, with Ultra being the best setting at 61.9 FPS, just 1.9 FPS above the 60 FPS line. This is a passing result but with minimal headroom, so users might prefer High at 78.7 FPS for stability. At 3840x2160, three presets are playable — Low (126.8 FPS), Medium (87.1 FPS), and High (65.2 FPS) — while Ultra falls to 50.2 FPS, which is below the threshold. The best setting at 4K is High, with an average FPS of 65.2, providing a 5.2 FPS margin.

The verdict by resolution is clear: the combination runs The Medium at 60 FPS or above on Ultra at 1080p and 1440p, and on High at 4K. The only configuration that fails is 4K Ultra, which is not playable by the 60 FPS standard. This means users with a 1080p or 1440p monitor can max out the game’s settings without concerns, while 4K users must compromise by dropping from Ultra to High. The RTX 4090 is a top-tier GPU, ranked in the 88th percentile, and its 24 GB memory and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth handle The Medium’s demands easily. The i5-12400F, ranked in the 73rd percentile, is sufficient for this game, though it does cap FPS at 1080p Low around 146.6, which is still far above the playable threshold. Overall, this combo is a strong choice for The Medium, with the only caveat being the 4K Ultra preset, which requires a reduction in settings to achieve smooth gameplay.