Doom

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X and AMD Radeon RX 7700 pairing in Doom presents a compelling study in hardware balance. The Ryzen 7 3700X is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 2 architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It carries a 65W TDP and was released for the AMD Socket AM4 platform. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU achieves a PassMark multithread score of 22458 and a single-thread score of 2656, placing it in the 84th percentile of all CPUs tested. Its nearest rivals, based on average benchmark scores, include the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 (0.1% faster) and the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H (0.5% slower), indicating that the 3700X remains competitive in general compute tasks despite being from an older generation.

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

The Ryzen 7 3700X provides eight physical cores and sixteen threads, a configuration that is well-suited for modern game engines that can distribute workloads across multiple threads. The processor's boost clock of 4.40 GHz is the key figure for single-threaded performance, which often dictates the frame rate ceiling in games like Doom that are known for their efficient rendering. The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is not the limiting factor at lower settings; the system achieves 241 FPS on Low, which is a substantial leap from the 145 FPS seen on Ultra. This scaling suggests that the CPU can feed the GPU with data quickly enough, and the bottleneck shifts to the graphics card as settings increase.

At 4K resolution, the CPU's role becomes less prominent. The measured average FPS at 4K High is 62, while at 1080p High it is 178. This massive drop indicates that the GPU is the primary constraint at higher resolutions. However, the CPU's 16 threads ensure that background tasks and game logic do not cause stutters, even when the GPU is fully saturated. The benchmark results show a PassMark physics score of 1181, which measures computational physics workloads, a component of game simulation. This score, while not directly a game benchmark, suggests the processor can handle complex in-game calculations without bottlenecking the graphics pipeline.

The 32 MB of L3 cache is a notable feature for gaming. This cache size helps reduce memory latency by storing frequently accessed data closer to the cores. In a fast-paced game like Doom, where level geometry and enemy AI states change rapidly, this cache can improve frame pacing. The data does not show a direct correlation between cache size and FPS, but the processor's ability to maintain high average FPS numbers across all settings, from 241 FPS at 1080p Low to 51 FPS at 4K Ultra, indicates that its memory architecture is not a weak link. The CPU's 84th percentile ranking against all CPUs reinforces that it is a capable gaming processor, even when compared to newer models like the AMD EPYC 4244P, which scores nearly identically.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is a RDNA 3.0 architecture GPU with 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. This memory configuration is critical for high-resolution textures, and the data suggests it is more than sufficient for Doom. The GPU's boost clock is 2459 MHz, with a game clock of 2041 MHz. These clocks are the primary drivers of the raw shading throughput, which is rated at 25.18 TFLOPS for FP32 operations. The GPU's PassMark G3D score is 20974, which places it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, has an average benchmark score that is 1.7% higher, indicating that while the RX 7700 is strong, it is not at the top of the performance hierarchy.

The GPU's 16 GB of VRAM is a significant asset. In Doom, which is a 2016 title, even the Ultra settings at 4K do not likely exceed this capacity, meaning the GPU does not have to fall back on system memory. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra is 51, which is the lowest average in the dataset. This result is likely due to the GPU's compute units being fully utilized at that resolution and settings combination. The GPU's pixel rate is 236.1 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 393.4 GTexel/s; these figures determine how quickly the GPU can fill the screen with pixels and apply textures. At 1080p, the GPU is able to output 241 FPS on Low settings, but this drops to 145 FPS on Ultra, showing that the shading load increases significantly with quality presets.

The Radeon RX 7700's 40 ray tracing cores are present, but Doom is not a ray-traced title. The data does not show any ray tracing performance metrics for this game, so the impact of these cores is negligible here. The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) ensures compatibility with the game's rendering API. The benchmark scores from 3DMark Steel Nomad (2865) and PassMark DirectX 12 (96) indicate the GPU's capability in modern APIs, but the game's performance is more directly tied to its raw fill rate and shader throughput. The GPU's average benchmark score of 15852, compared to its nearest rival's 15862, shows a near-tie, but in this game, the RX 7700 delivers playable frame rates at all tested settings, which is the ultimate measure of its suitability.

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

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of scaling across resolutions. At 1080p High, the average FPS is 178. When the resolution is increased to 1440p High, the average drops to 115, a reduction of approximately 35%. Moving to 4K High, the average FPS falls to 62, which is a 65% drop from the 1080p figure. This steep decline is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU's performance ceiling is not being reached at lower resolutions, as evidenced by the high FPS at 1080p Low (241 FPS). Instead, the GPU's rendering workload is what scales with resolution.

This behavior is further illustrated by the Low settings data. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 241 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 156 FPS, and at 4K Low, it reaches 85 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is a 35% drop, and from 1440p to 4K is a 45% drop. These percentages are smaller than those seen at High settings, which suggests that at Low settings, the GPU's fill rate is less stressed, but it is still the primary limiting factor. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS would remain relatively constant across resolutions for a given settings preset, as the CPU's workload does not change with resolution. The data shows a consistent decline with each resolution increase, confirming the GPU is the bottleneck.

The implications for the limiting component are clear. The Ryzen 7 3700X is powerful enough to drive the RX 7700 to its limits at 1080p and 1440p, but the GPU runs out of headroom at 4K. The 4K Ultra setting yields 51 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target often considered ideal for smooth gameplay. This indicates that while the GPU has the VRAM capacity for 4K textures, its compute power is insufficient to maintain high frame rates at the highest quality settings. The user must make a trade-off: sacrifice resolution or settings to achieve higher FPS. The data suggests that for 4K gaming, lowering settings to High or Medium is necessary, while for 1080p or 1440p gaming, the Ultra preset is viable.

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

The complete dataset provides exact average FPS for each combination of resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 241 FPS on Low, 210 FPS on Medium (with min/max of 179 and 242), 178 FPS on High, and 145 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset at 1080p has a maximum FPS of 242, which nearly matches the Low preset's average, indicating that the Medium setting is not overly taxing on the GPU. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 96 FPS, which is a significant range and shows how much performance headroom is available when lowering quality.

At 2560x1440, the performance decreases accordingly. The Low preset averages 156 FPS, Medium averages 136 FPS (with min/max of 116 and 156), High averages 115 FPS, and Ultra averages 94 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 62 FPS. This narrower spread compared to 1080p suggests that the GPU is becoming more stressed, but it still delivers high frame rates. The 1440p Medium preset's maximum of 156 FPS matches the Low preset's average, showing that even at Medium settings, the GPU can reach high output levels.

At 3840x2160, the numbers reflect a heavier GPU load. Low settings average 85 FPS, Medium averages 74 FPS (with min/max of 63 and 85), High averages 62 FPS, and Ultra averages 51 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 34 FPS, a smaller absolute gap than at lower resolutions, but the percentage difference is similar. The 4K Medium preset's minimum FPS of 63 is notable, as it stays above the 60 FPS threshold. The 4K Ultra preset's 51 FPS is the only measured result below 60 FPS, making it the only configuration in the dataset that might feel less smooth. The data shows that the system is capable of 4K gaming, but the settings must be chosen carefully to maintain high refresh rates.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Ryzen 7 3700X and Radeon RX 7700 holds a rank of 1314 out of 2930 tested combos for Doom. This places the pairing in the 55th percentile of all combinations, which is a solid mid-range position. The rank suggests that while this setup is not a top-tier performer, it significantly outperforms more than half of the other CPU-GPU pairings tested. This is a positive sign for users with this hardware, as it indicates the components work well together for this specific title.

The rank of 1314 is more reflective of the GPU's performance than the CPU's, given that the game is GPU-bound at higher resolutions. The GPU's 58th percentile ranking against all GPUs aligns closely with the combo's 55th percentile ranking, suggesting that the CPU is not dragging down the overall performance. If the CPU were a bottleneck, the combo rank would be lower than the GPU's individual rank. The data shows a near-match, implying the Ryzen 7 3700X is providing enough throughput for the RX 7700 to perform near its potential.

In the context of the 2930 combos, a rank of 1314 means there are 1616 combos that perform worse. This is a reassuring statistic for users who want to play Doom at high settings. The combo's performance is likely influenced by the GPU's 16 GB of VRAM, which is above average for the time, and the CPU's 16 threads, which help maintain frame pacing. The position is not at the top, where high-end GPUs like the RTX 3060 Ti (which has a 1.7% higher benchmark score) might reside, but it is far from the bottom. The ranking indicates a balanced system that can handle the game's demands without any glaring weaknesses.

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

Based on the measured FPS, the ideal settings preset depends on the user's resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset provides an average of 145 FPS, which is sufficient for high-refresh-rate monitors (144Hz). This is the best experience, as it offers the highest visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. The High preset at 178 FPS is also excellent, but Ultra adds more visual fidelity for a 33 FPS cost. For users with 240Hz monitors, the Low preset at 241 FPS would be the target, but the visual quality is significantly reduced.

At 1440p, the Ultra preset averages 94 FPS, which is playable but may not be ideal for competitive play. The High preset at 115 FPS is a better balance, providing a 21 FPS increase over Ultra with a minimal visual impact in most scenes. The Medium preset at 136 FPS is the best option for high-refresh-rate 1440p monitors (144Hz), as it delivers a smooth experience while retaining decent visual quality. The Low preset at 156 FPS is available for esports-style play, but the graphics will look dated.

For 4K, the choice is more constrained. The Ultra preset at 51 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold, making it less desirable. The High preset at 62 FPS is the minimum recommended for a playable experience, but it hovers near the 60 FPS line. The Medium preset at 74 FPS is the best choice for 4K, as it provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS and still looks good. The Low preset at 85 FPS is viable, but it sacrifices too much visual detail for a 4K display. The data suggests that Medium is the sweet spot for 4K, offering a balance between frame rate and image quality.

FAQ

*Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X a bottleneck for the Radeon RX 7700 in Doom?*

A: The data indicates no. The CPU ranks in the 84th percentile of all CPUs, and the combo's rank of 1314 out of 2930 is close to the GPU's individual 58th percentile rank. The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a classic GPU-bound pattern, meaning the CPU provides sufficient headroom.

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combo for 60+ FPS?

A: At 4K, the Medium preset yields 74 FPS, and High yields 62 FPS, both above 60 FPS. At 1440p, all presets (Low 156, Medium 136, High 115, Ultra 94) exceed 60 FPS. At 1080p, all presets exceed 145 FPS, so any setting works for 60 FPS.

Q: How does the GPU's VRAM affect performance at 4K?

A: The RX 7700 has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory with 624.1 GB/s bandwidth. This is sufficient for Doom at 4K Ultra, as the measured 51 FPS is due to compute limits, not VRAM capacity, since no memory-related stutters or crashes are present in the data.

Q: Is the Ultra preset at 4K playable?

A: The measured average FPS is 51, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. It is technically playable, but the Medium preset (74 FPS) or High preset (62 FPS) offers a better experience with a higher frame rate.

Q: How does this combo compare to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti?

A: The RTX 3060 Ti has an average benchmark score of 16129, which is 1.7% higher than the RX 7700's score of 15852. In Doom, the RX 7700's performance is strong enough to hold a mid-range combo rank, but the exact FPS comparison is not provided.

Q: What is the role of the CPU's 16 threads in this game?

A: The 16 threads help with background tasks and game logic, preventing stutters. The CPU's PassMark multithread score of 22458 indicates solid multi-core performance, which supports the GPU at lower resolutions where the CPU has more work relative to the GPU.