Doom

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER delivers a playable experience in Doom, but the data reveals a system that is heavily constrained by the graphics card as resolution increases. At 1080p, the combo excels, pushing frame rates well beyond the 144 Hz threshold for most presets. However, the transition to 1440p and 4K shows a steep performance cliff, indicating that the GTX 1660 SUPER is the primary bottleneck in this configuration. The benchmark results show a classic pattern: the CPU has ample headroom at lower resolutions, but the GPU’s rendering throughput becomes the limiting factor as pixel count grows.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern across the three tested resolutions. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 148 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same settings, the average drops to 96 FPS, a reduction of 52 FPS (or roughly 35%). At 4K (3840x2160) with Low settings, the average falls further to 52 FPS, representing a 64% drop from the 1080p result. This steep decline indicates that the GTX 1660 SUPER is being saturated by the increasing pixel workload, while the Ryzen 5 8400F is not the limiting factor at these settings.

The scaling pattern across presets further confirms the GPU-bound nature of the system. At 1080p, the difference between Low (148 FPS) and Ultra (89 FPS) is 59 FPS, a substantial gap that shows the GPU’s fill rate and shading capacity are stressed by higher quality settings. At 1440p, the gap between Low (96 FPS) and Ultra (58 FPS) is 38 FPS, and at 4K, the gap narrows to 21 FPS (52 FPS Low vs 31 FPS Ultra). The narrowing gap at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is so overwhelmed by pixel count that the additional cost of higher settings has a relatively smaller impact on the final frame rate, as the GPU is already near its computational ceiling.

This data suggests that the limiting component is unequivocally the GPU. The Ryzen 5 8400F, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, is more than capable of feeding the GTX 1660 SUPER at 1080p, where frame rates exceed 140 FPS. However, the GPU’s 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit memory bus, along with its 5.027 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, are simply not sufficient to maintain high frame rates at 1440p and 4K. The 4K results, where even Low settings only produce 52 FPS, are a clear indication that this combo is not designed for native 4K gaming in Doom.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU combo in Doom?*

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo consistently delivers high frame rates. At this resolution, all presets exceed 89 FPS, with Low settings reaching 148 FPS. At 1440p, only Low and Medium settings achieve frame rates above 60 FPS (96 and 83 FPS respectively), while 4K is only playable at Low settings with 52 FPS.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 12986. Its closest competitor, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, scores 12940, which is a 0.4% difference. The AMD Radeon RX 580 scores 12928, also a 0.4% difference, while the NVIDIA Tesla M2090 scores 13075, which is 0.7% higher. The AMD Radeon 740M scores 12870, a 0.9% difference.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 8400F a strong performer relative to other CPUs?

A: The Ryzen 5 8400F sits in the 77th percentile of all CPUs tested. Its average benchmark score is 25005. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F, scores 24964, a marginal 0.2% difference. The Intel Core i7-11850H scores 24935 (0.3% lower), and the Intel Core i7-13620H scores 24911 (0.4% lower). This indicates the CPU is a solid mid-range performer.

Q: What are the minimum FPS figures for the Medium preset?

A: The measured data includes specific minimum FPS values only for the Medium preset at each resolution. At 1920x1080, the minimum is 110 FPS. At 2560x1440, the minimum is 71 FPS. At 3840x2160, the minimum is 38 FPS. These figures show that even the lowest frame rates are respectable at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the minimum dips below the 40 FPS threshold.

*Q: Does the combo rank well among all tested configurations for Doom?*

A: The combo ranks 3168 out of 3712 tested combos for Doom. This places it in the lower half of all configurations, indicating that while it is capable of running the game, many other CPU-GPU pairings deliver higher performance.

Q: How much performance difference is there between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 59 FPS. The Low preset achieves an average of 148 FPS, while Ultra drops to 89 FPS. This represents a 40% reduction in frame rate when moving from the lowest to the highest quality preset.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, fabricated on a 4 nm process. It has a base clock of 4.20 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. Its synthetic benchmarks show strong single-thread and multi-thread performance. In Cinebench R23, it scores 2943 in single-core and 20851 in multi-core. The 3DMark tests show a scaling pattern from 951 in single-thread to 6165 in max-threads, indicating good scaling with increased thread usage.

In the context of Doom, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and handle game logic. The data from the measured FPS suggests that the Ryzen 5 8400F is not the bottleneck at 1080p. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 148 FPS, which is a high frame rate that requires a capable CPU to maintain. The fact that frame rates drop significantly at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s workload remains relatively constant, confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor.

The CPU’s 16 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 83.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for this game. The processor’s 77th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average score of 25005, places it in the upper tier of mainstream processors. The nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F, scores virtually identically (24964, a 0.2% difference), which further solidifies the 8400F’s position as a capable gaming CPU. However, the 8400F’s performance is not the limiting factor in this combo; the GPU is clearly the component that determines the final frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 3168 out of 3712 tested combos in Doom. This places the combo in the 15th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning that 85% of other CPU-GPU pairings deliver higher average frame rates in this game. This ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU’s modest performance relative to the broader market.

The GTX 1660 SUPER sits in the 53rd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 12986. Its nearest rivals, such as the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (12940) and RX 580 (12928), have nearly identical scores. This indicates that the GPU is a mid-range part that is capable of 1080p gaming but struggles at higher resolutions. The CPU, on the other hand, is in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, showing that the processor is comparatively stronger than the GPU. This imbalance explains the combo’s overall low ranking in Doom: the system is held back by the GPU, which cannot fully utilize the CPU’s potential.

The ranking data suggests that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it can achieve high frame rates. At 1440p, it is only borderline playable with lower settings, and at 4K, it is not a viable option for smooth gameplay. The low overall rank of 3168 reflects these limitations, as many other combos with more powerful GPUs will outperform this pairing in Doom.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo’s performance across three resolutions and four quality presets.

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers excellent performance. The Low preset achieves an average of 148 FPS, with the Medium preset at 129 FPS (minimum 110 FPS) and the High preset at 109 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 89 FPS. This shows that the system can handle the game at high refresh rates on a 1080p monitor, even with Ultra settings providing a smooth 89 FPS.

At 2560x1440, performance drops significantly. The Low preset averages 96 FPS, while Medium averages 83 FPS (minimum 71 FPS). The High preset drops to 70 FPS, and Ultra falls to 58 FPS. This indicates that 1440p is playable, but only with Low or Medium settings for a consistently smooth experience above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles. The Low preset averages 52 FPS, Medium averages 45 FPS (minimum 38 FPS), High averages 38 FPS, and Ultra drops to 31 FPS. None of these results are ideal for a smooth gaming experience, with even the lowest settings failing to maintain a consistent 60 FPS. The 4K results clearly show that this combo is not designed for native 4K gaming in Doom.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1920x1080 with the High preset. This preset delivers an average of 109 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a significant visual upgrade over Medium settings. The Ultra preset at 1080p offers 89 FPS, which is still smooth, but the 20 FPS penalty compared to High may not justify the marginal visual gains for most users.

For users with a 1440p monitor, the Medium preset is the best choice, averaging 83 FPS with a minimum of 71 FPS. This provides a playable experience with good visual fidelity. The High preset at 1440p (70 FPS) is also acceptable, but the Medium preset offers a more comfortable margin above 60 FPS. The Low preset (96 FPS) is recommended for competitive play where frame rate is prioritized over visuals.

At 4K, the data suggests that no preset provides a consistently smooth experience. The Low preset averages 52 FPS, which may be acceptable for slower-paced sections, but the minimum FPS data is not available for this setting. The Medium preset has a minimum of 38 FPS, which will result in noticeable stuttering. Therefore, for 4K, users should either lower the resolution or accept a sub-60 FPS experience with Low settings.

The best overall experience for this combo is 1080p High, which balances visual quality and performance. The Ultra preset at 1080p is also a strong option for users who prioritize image quality over the extra 20 FPS. For 1440p, Medium is the recommended preset to maintain a stable frame rate above 60 FPS. The data clearly shows that the GTX 1660 SUPER is the limiting factor, and users should adjust their resolution and settings expectations accordingly.