Doom

The AMD Ryzen 5 4600G paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX presents a striking study in bottleneck dynamics within Doom. The data reveals a system where a last-generation entry-level CPU is mated to a flagship GPU, producing frame rates that are simultaneously impressive and revealing about the underlying hardware limits. This combination ranks 344th out of 1681 tested combos in this title, placing it in the top 21% of all configurations, a strong showing that underscores the GPU's raw power.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combination produces an average of 79.8 FPS. This is the most demanding preset tested and yields the lowest average frame rate across all configurations.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its rivals?

A: The Ryzen 5 4600G scores 13,593 points in Cinebench R23 multi-core. This places it essentially level with the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 5355GE, which scores 17,482, showing a negligible 0% delta, and slightly behind the Intel Core i3-13100F, which scores 17,665 and is 1% faster.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average frame rate is 274.9 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This suggests the game is heavily GPU-bound at lower resolutions, allowing the RX 7900 XTX to stretch its legs.

Q: How much VRAM does the RX 7900 XTX have, and what is its memory bus width?

A: The GPU features 24 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s. This substantial memory allocation likely prevents VRAM from being a limiting factor in Doom.

Q: What is the difference in performance between 1080p Low and 4K Ultra?

A: The difference is substantial. The average frame rate drops from 274.9 FPS at 1080p Low to 79.8 FPS at 4K Ultra, a reduction of 195.1 FPS. This demonstrates a heavy reliance on GPU throughput as resolution increases.

Q: Is this CPU or GPU combo more likely to be the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the CPU becomes the primary constraint at 1080p. The frame rate difference between Low (274.9 FPS) and High (249.4 FPS) at 1080p is only 25.5 FPS, indicating that the CPU's processing power, not the graphics settings, is capping performance.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX is the dominant force in this pairing, and its specifications paint a clear picture of its capability. Built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a 5 nm process, it houses 6144 shading units and 96 ray accelerators. Its boost clock reaches 2498 MHz, with a game clock of 2365 MHz. These specifications translate into a pixel rate of 479.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 959.2 GTexel/s, figures that allow it to process the fast-paced environments of Doom with ease.

The GPU's memory subsystem is equally formidable. With 24 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus, it achieves a bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s. In the context of Doom, a game with relatively modest texture requirements, this memory configuration is far beyond what is necessary. It eliminates any possibility of memory bandwidth becoming a bottleneck, even at 4K resolution. The data supports this, as the GPU holds a benchmark percentile of 85, with an average score of 44,019. It sits close to rivals like the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti, which has an average score of 44,900, a 2% difference. The GPU's performance is so high that at lower resolutions, the frame rates are likely capped not by the graphics card, but by the processor.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 4600G, a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 2 architecture, is the potential weak link in this system. With a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.20 GHz, it provides adequate, but not exceptional, processing power. Its 8 MB of shared L3 cache is a modest amount by modern standards, which can impact performance in cache-sensitive titles. In the 3DMark 16-thread test, it scores 4,863, and its single-thread score is 726, indicating it is a mid-range part.

The data shows that this CPU is sufficient to drive high frame rates, but it struggles to keep pace with the GPU's potential at lower resolutions. The benchmark results show that the CPU's average benchmark score is 17,489, placing it in the 75th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12450H, is only 0.1% faster with a score of 17,475. This suggests that while the CPU is not a top-tier performer, it is not a weak link either, and its 12 threads help maintain playable performance. The core count and clock speed are enough to avoid severe stuttering, but the data implies that a stronger CPU would unlock even higher frame rates at 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a clear hierarchy of performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the combo is incredibly fast, starting at 216.6 FPS on Ultra and rising to 274.9 FPS on Low. The Medium preset yields 264.1 FPS, and High produces 249.4 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra here is 58.3 FPS, which is relatively small compared to other resolutions, hinting at a CPU limitation.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but begin to show more separation between settings. The Low preset achieves 235.4 FPS, Medium drops to 205.7 FPS, and High yields 173.8 FPS. Ultra settings produce 144.7 FPS. The performance gap between Low and Ultra is now 90.7 FPS, indicating the GPU is becoming a more significant factor.

The 3840x2160 results show the most dramatic scaling. Low settings average 126.4 FPS, Medium 108.9 FPS, and High 94.5 FPS. Ultra settings bring the average down to 79.8 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 46.6 FPS, showing that the GPU is now the primary bottleneck, as the resolution demands more from the graphics card.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K tells a compelling story about system balance. At 1080p High, the system achieves 249.4 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the frame rate drops by 75.6 FPS to 173.8 FPS. This is a 30.3% reduction. When moving from 1440p High to 4K High, the frame rate further drops by 79.3 FPS to 94.5 FPS, a 45.6% reduction.

This pattern shows that the frame rate penalty for increasing resolution is not linear. The steep drop from 1440p to 4K suggests that the GPU is being pushed much harder at 4K, as the number of pixels to render quadruples. Conversely, the relatively smaller drop from 1080p to 1440p suggests that the CPU is limiting performance at the lower resolution. The data implies that the system is well-balanced at 1440p, where neither component is overwhelmingly the bottleneck. At 1080p, the CPU is the primary constraint, capping the GPU's potential, while at 4K, the GPU becomes the definitive limiting factor.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal settings depend on the user's target resolution and preference for frame rate versus visual fidelity. For users with a 1080p display, the High preset at 249.4 FPS offers an excellent balance, delivering a fluid experience that far exceeds the 144 Hz refresh rate of most monitors. The Ultra preset at 216.6 FPS is also viable, but the 32.8 FPS gain from High to Ultra may not be worth the visual difference for some.

At 1440p, the Medium preset at 205.7 FPS is a strong choice, providing a high frame rate that maximizes smoothness. However, the High preset at 173.8 FPS is still remarkably fast and offers better visual quality. Ultra at 144.7 FPS remains above the 144 Hz threshold for many monitors, making it the best-looking playable option.

For 4K gaming, the choices are more constrained. The Low preset at 126.4 FPS is the only setting that guarantees triple-digit frame rates. The Medium preset at 108.9 FPS is a good compromise, and High at 94.5 FPS is still very playable. The Ultra preset at 79.8 FPS is the most visually impressive but may not be suitable for competitive play. The data suggests that High at 4K is the sweet spot for a balanced experience.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of AMD Ryzen 5 4600G and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX ranks 344th out of 1,681 tested combos in Doom. This places it in the top 20.5% of all configurations, which is a strong result given the CPU's age and market position. The high ranking is almost entirely attributable to the GPU's immense processing power, which dominates the game's rendering workload.

The ranking also highlights the CPU's role as a limiting factor. While the combo performs well, it is likely that many of the 343 combos ranked above it feature more powerful processors, such as those with higher single-thread performance or more cache. The data implies that this pairing reflects the GPU's strength, but it also reveals a potential upgrade path. Swapping the 4600G for a more powerful CPU would likely yield a significant jump in performance at 1080p and 1440p, potentially pushing this combo much higher in the rankings. The 344th rank is a snapshot of a system that is powerful, yet held back by its processor.