Doom

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT delivers a compelling 1080p and 1440p experience in Doom, though the data reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution climbs. This analysis breaks down the measured performance across all twelve tested configurations, examining what the frame rates imply about the limiting component at each setting.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data shows a dramatic and consistent drop as resolution increases, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario at higher pixel counts. At Ultra settings, the average frame rate falls from 121.7 FPS at 1920x1080 to 79.6 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 42.1 FPS, and then plummets further to 44.1 FPS at 3840x2160. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is particularly steep, with the Ultra preset losing 35.5 FPS, indicating that the Radeon RX 6650 XT’s rendering pipeline is being saturated by the 4K pixel workload.

Interestingly, the scaling pattern is not uniform across all presets. At Low settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is from 202 FPS to 132.1 FPS, a 69.9 FPS reduction, while the move from 1440p to 4K costs another 60.7 FPS, landing at 71.4 FPS. This suggests that even at the lowest settings, the GPU remains the primary limiter; the CPU’s 8 cores and 16 threads are sufficient to feed the graphics card at these frame rates, but the GPU’s 8 GB of VRAM and 280.3 GB/s bandwidth are stretched thin at 4K.

The data implies that the system is well-balanced at 1080p, where the 144.9 FPS High preset result approaches the 202 FPS Low ceiling, showing headroom for visual quality without sacrificing fluidity. However, at 4K, even the Low preset’s 71.4 FPS is barely playable, and the Ultra preset’s 44.1 FPS falls below the 60 FPS threshold many gamers target. The scaling behavior strongly indicates that the RX 6650 XT is the limiting component at 4K, while the CPU’s performance headroom remains untapped at that resolution.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Examining the measured rows, the Medium preset emerges as the optimal balance for most users. At 1920x1080, Medium delivers 174.5 FPS, which is 29.6 FPS higher than High’s 144.9 FPS and only 27.5 FPS below Low’s 202 FPS ceiling. The jump from Medium to High costs 29.6 FPS at 1080p, a significant penalty for what is typically a marginal visual improvement in Doom’s fast-paced combat.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset’s 114.8 FPS remains comfortably above the 100 FPS mark, while High drops to 92.6 FPS and Ultra falls to 79.6 FPS. The difference between Medium and High at 1440p is 22.2 FPS, which is substantial for competitive play. For gamers prioritizing smoothness, Medium at 1440p offers nearly the same frame rate as High at 4K’s Low preset (71.4 FPS), making it the superior choice for visual fidelity per frame.

The 4K results are less forgiving. Even Medium at 3840x2160 only achieves 62.6 FPS, and High manages 53.7 FPS. The data suggests that 4K is only viable on the Low preset, which hits 71.4 FPS, but this sacrifices most of the game’s graphical features. For a balanced experience, Medium at 1440p provides the best combination of frame rate and visual quality, with 114.8 FPS that exceeds the refresh rate of most standard monitors while retaining sufficient detail.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Radeon RX 6650 XT’s specifications directly explain the performance patterns observed. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus delivering 280.3 GB/s bandwidth, the card has enough memory bandwidth for 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K results show the strain. The GPU’s boost clock of 2635 MHz and game clock of 2410 MHz are high for its class, yet the 4K Ultra result of 44.1 FPS indicates that the 2048 shading units and 64 ROPs are overwhelmed by the pixel fill rate required at 3840x2160.

The GPU’s FP32 performance of 10.79 TFLOPS is respectable, but Doom’s id Tech engine scales heavily with raw pixel throughput at higher resolutions. The pixel rate of 168.6 GPixel/s suggests the card should handle 4K at moderate settings, and the Medium preset’s 62.6 FPS confirms this, but the Ultra preset’s 44.1 FPS shows that the 8 GB VRAM may also be a limiting factor, as high-resolution textures consume memory capacity.

The GPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the AMD Radeon RX 6800M with a deltaPct of 0, and the Intel Arc A370M at -0.5% — these comparisons indicate the RX 6650 XT is a mid-range performer in absolute terms. The measured FPS data shows that its real-world performance in Doom is strong at 1080p, where the High preset’s 144.9 FPS exceeds 144 Hz displays, but the 4K Ultra result of 44.1 FPS is only 37% of the 1080p Ultra score, highlighting the card’s resolution scaling limitations.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Ryzen 7 3700X and RX 6650 XT achieves a combo rank of 1049 out of 1681 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the 62nd percentile of all tested systems. This ranking is notable because it suggests that while the individual components perform well in isolation — the CPU ranks in the 85th percentile of all CPUs and the GPU in the 72nd percentile — their combined performance in this game is slightly below what their individual scores might predict.

This discrepancy implies that Doom’s engine does not fully utilize the CPU’s 8-core/16-thread configuration, or that the GPU becomes a bottleneck earlier than expected. The CPU’s nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12600, has a deltaPct of -0.1%, meaning the Ryzen 7 3700X is essentially tied in synthetic benchmarks. However, in Doom, the game’s Vulkan API likely benefits from the GPU’s RDNA 2 architecture, but the ranking shows that many other combos with similar or lower component scores achieve better frame rates.

The combo’s rank of 1049 out of 1681 means that 632 other tested combos perform better in Doom, while 1048 perform worse. This middle-of-the-pack placement is consistent with the measured FPS data showing strong 1080p performance but weaker 4K results, suggesting that the combo is optimized for mainstream resolutions rather than enthusiast-grade 4K gaming.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X brings 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 2 architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. In Doom, which is known for being GPU-intensive but also responsive to single-thread performance, the CPU’s capabilities are more than adequate. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (202 FPS) and Medium (174.5 FPS) demonstrates that the CPU can feed the GPU well beyond 144 FPS, indicating no CPU bottleneck at these settings.

The CPU’s 32 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth provide sufficient data throughput for game logic and asset streaming. The 7 nm process node and 65 W TDP make it an efficient choice, but the performance is where it matters: the Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19087 and single-core score of 2694 show balanced capabilities that align with the game’s demands.

However, the CPU’s nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the Intel Core i5-12600 with a deltaPct of -0.1%, meaning they are statistically tied. In Doom, the CPU’s performance ceiling is well above what the RX 6650 XT can utilize at 4K, as evidenced by the 4K results being nearly identical across all presets relative to the GPU’s limits. The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is not the limiting factor, but at 4K, the GPU’s rendering capacity is the sole bottleneck, leaving the CPU with significant headroom.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Doom?

A: The data shows 2560x1440 as the sweet spot, with the Medium preset achieving 114.8 FPS and High at 92.6 FPS. At 1080p, the combo exceeds 144 FPS on High (144.9 FPS), but 1440p offers the best balance of visual quality and frame rate.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Doom?

A: Yes, but only at lower settings. The Low preset at 3840x2160 achieves 71.4 FPS, while Medium drops to 62.6 FPS. Ultra falls to 44.1 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this system?

A: At 1080p and 1440p, the GPU is the primary limiter. At 4K, the GPU is overwhelmingly the bottleneck, as the CPU’s 8 cores and 16 threads have ample headroom, evidenced by the 202 FPS result at 1080p Low.

Q: How does this combo rank against other tested systems?

A: It ranks 1049 out of 1681 combos in Doom, placing it in the 62nd percentile. This is lower than the individual component percentiles (CPU: 85th, GPU: 72nd), suggesting the game does not fully leverage the CPU’s multi-threading.

Q: What is the difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The Low preset achieves 202 FPS, while Ultra drops to 121.7 FPS. This 80.3 FPS difference represents the cost of enabling all visual features, but even Ultra remains above 120 FPS.

Q: Does the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM limit performance?

A: At 4K Ultra, the 44.1 FPS result suggests VRAM capacity may be a factor, as high-resolution textures exceed the 8 GB capacity. At 1080p and 1440p, the VRAM is sufficient, with no clear VRAM-related performance cliffs.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are: Low 202, Medium 174.5, High 144.9, and Ultra 121.7. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a total drop of 80.3 FPS, with the largest single-step decrease occurring between Medium and High at 29.6 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the results are: Low 132.1, Medium 114.8, High 92.6, and Ultra 79.6. The drop from Low to Ultra is 52.5 FPS, with the Medium-to-High step again being the largest at 22.2 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the data shows: Low 71.4, Medium 62.6, High 53.7, and Ultra 44.1. The total range from Low to Ultra is 27.3 FPS, with a relatively even distribution of ~9 FPS per setting step. This compression of the frame rate range at 4K indicates that the GPU is reaching its absolute performance ceiling, regardless of the graphical settings applied.