Doom

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 presents a compelling dataset for analyzing performance in the 2016 FPS title, Doom. The measured frames per second (FPS) across resolutions and settings reveal a configuration that scales predictably, offering a clear picture of where its strengths and limitations lie. The data indicates a system capable of high refresh rate gaming at 1080p, but one that requires careful settings management to maintain smooth performance at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy of performance across the four available presets: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. For the most fluid experience, the Low preset consistently delivers the highest average frame rates, reaching 211 FPS at 1920x1080. However, the incremental gains from Low to Medium are relatively modest, with the Medium preset only dropping to 184 FPS at 1080p, a 27 FPS difference. This suggests that the Medium preset offers a better balance, capturing most of the performance headroom while presumably providing a more visually rich experience.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset still maintains a highly playable average of 119 FPS, with a minimum recorded FPS of 101. This makes it the recommended choice for users with 1440p monitors seeking a high-refresh-rate experience without significant visual compromises. The High preset at this resolution drops to an average of 101 FPS, which is still smooth but begins to approach the threshold where frame time consistency becomes more critical for competitive play.

The Ultra preset, while offering the highest visual fidelity, incurs a significant performance penalty. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset averages just 45 FPS, which is below the threshold for a consistently smooth experience on many displays. The data suggests that the Ultra preset is best reserved for lower resolutions where the hardware can maintain playable frame rates, such as the 127 FPS average seen at 1080p. For the best overall experience, the Medium preset appears to be the sweet spot, delivering a substantial frame rate advantage over High and Ultra settings while maintaining a visual quality that likely remains acceptable for most players. The 4K Medium setting, with an average of 65 FPS and a recorded minimum of 55 FPS, is the only 4K preset that approaches playable territory, but it is not as robust as the 1440p Medium result.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X + AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination ranks 1686 out of 2930 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the 57th percentile of all systems. This mid-pack ranking is intriguing, as it suggests that while the individual components are capable, the pairing does not catapult to the top tier of performance in this specific title. The data implies that the configuration is far from the best, but it is also not a weak performer, sitting comfortably within the majority of systems.

This ranking is particularly interesting when considering the CPU's overall standing. The Ryzen 7 5800X has a percentile of 81 against all CPUs, indicating it is a strong processor. The GPU, however, has a percentile of 59 against all GPUs. The combo's rank of 1686 out of 2930 (roughly 57.5%) aligns more closely with the GPU's percentile than the CPU's, suggesting that the graphics card is the primary factor limiting the combo's overall position in this game. The data indicates that the system's performance is likely GPU-bound, and the CPU's considerable headroom is not being fully utilized to push the combo higher in the rankings.

The nearest rivals for the CPU in synthetic benchmarks, such as the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H and the AMD Ryzen 5 5600XT, have average scores within 0.6% of the 5800X. However, the measured FPS in Doom is a more direct indicator of real-world gaming performance. The ranking suggests that to significantly improve this combo's standing, a more powerful GPU would be necessary, as the current pairing is not unlocking the full potential of the 5800X in this title.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is the graphical powerhouse in this configuration, and its role is defined by its memory and clock specifications. The GPU features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is sufficient for Doom at the tested settings and resolutions, as the game's demands are not excessive by modern standards. The 8 GB capacity is likely not a limiting factor in this title, allowing the GPU to focus on rendering rather than memory management.

Clock speeds play a crucial role in the GPU's performance. The card has a base clock of 1700 MHz, a game clock of 2400 MHz, and a boost clock of 2990 MHz. The substantial difference between the base and boost clocks indicates that the GPU is designed to aggressively scale its frequency under load, which is essential for maintaining high frame rates. The measured FPS data shows a clear correlation between the GPU's workload and its performance, with higher settings and resolutions resulting in lower frame rates, as expected.

The GPU's performance is further contextualized by its benchmark scores and rivals. Its Passmark G3D score is 17631, and it has an average benchmark score of 16014. In terms of nearest rivals, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti has an average score that is 0.7% lower, while the AMD Radeon RX 7700 is 1% higher. This places the RX 9060 in a competitive mid-range segment. In Doom, this translates to the GPU being able to handle 1080p and 1440p with high settings effectively, but it begins to struggle at 4K, especially on the Ultra preset where the average FPS drops to 45. The data suggests that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, as the CPU's performance is less likely to be the limiting factor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a detailed look at the system's performance across all tested scenarios. At 1920x1080, the configuration excels, with the Low preset achieving an average of 211 FPS. The Medium preset delivers a strong 184 FPS average, with a minimum of 156 FPS and a maximum of 212 FPS, indicating consistent frame times. The High preset averages 155 FPS, while the Ultra preset, despite being the most demanding, still manages a respectable 127 FPS. This demonstrates that at 1080p, the combo can comfortably drive high refresh rate monitors, even with maximum settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down but remains impressive. The Low preset averages 137 FPS, and the Medium preset drops to 119 FPS, with a minimum of 101 FPS and a maximum of 137 FPS. The High preset averages 101 FPS, which is still above the 60 FPS standard. The Ultra preset falls to an average of 82 FPS, which is playable but indicates that the GPU is starting to feel the pressure of higher resolution rendering.

At 3840x2160, the performance takes a significant hit. The Low preset is the only one that remains above 60 FPS, averaging 74 FPS. The Medium preset averages 65 FPS, with a minimum of 55 FPS, suggesting occasional dips below the smooth threshold. The High preset averages 54 FPS, and the Ultra preset struggles with an average of just 45 FPS. This data clearly shows that 4K gaming is only viable with the Low or Medium presets, and even then, it is not a guaranteed high-refresh-rate experience. The scaling from 1080p to 4K demonstrates a predictable and significant drop in performance, highlighting the GPU's limitations at higher pixel counts.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 1440p monitor based on the data?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 provides the best balance, with an average FPS of 119 and a minimum of 101 FPS, which is ideal for smooth gameplay on a high-refresh-rate monitor.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, but only with lower settings. At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 74 FPS, and the Medium preset averages 65 FPS. The High and Ultra presets drop to 54 and 45 FPS respectively, which may not be ideal for all players.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti?

A: In benchmark scores, the AMD Radeon RX 9060 has an average score that is 0.7% higher than the RTX 3060 Ti, placing them in a very similar performance tier.

Q: Is the CPU a bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The data suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck. The combo's rank in-game (1686 out of 2930) is more closely aligned with the GPU's percentile (59) than the CPU's (81), indicating the GPU is the limiting factor.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded in the dataset?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 211, achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low settings preset.

Q: What is the combo's overall rank in this game?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X + AMD Radeon RX 9060 combo ranks 1686 out of 2930 tested combos in Doom.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X is a formidable processor, and its specifications suggest it should provide ample headroom for gaming. With 8 cores and 16 threads, it is well-equipped for modern workloads. Its base clock is 3.80 GHz, and it can boost up to 4.70 GHz, providing strong single-threaded performance that is often critical for game engines. The CPU's architecture is Zen 3, built on a 7 nm process, and it has a substantial 32 MB of L3 cache, which helps with data access speeds.

In Doom, the CPU's role appears to be supportive rather than dominant. The measured FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a clear GPU-bound scenario. For instance, at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 211 FPS, but this drops to 74 FPS at 4K with the same settings. This significant drop is characteristic of a GPU limitation, as the CPU is likely capable of providing more frames if the GPU could render them. The CPU's high benchmark scores, such as its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15476 and a single-core score of 1574.5, reinforce that it is not the weak link in this pairing.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 81 against all CPUs indicates it is a high-performance part. Its nearest rivals in synthetic tests, such as the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H, have average scores that are nearly identical (within 0.1%). This suggests that the 5800X is at the top of its class for gaming performance. In the context of this combo, the CPU is providing a stable platform that allows the GPU to perform to its full potential, but it is not being pushed to its limits by Doom's engine. The data implies that the CPU has more performance to give, but it is waiting on the GPU to deliver frames.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. This scaling is a key indicator of where the bottleneck lies in the system. At 1080p, the system is likely CPU-bound at lower settings, as the GPU can render frames faster than the CPU can process them. This is evidenced by the high FPS at Low settings (211 FPS) and the relatively smaller gap between Low and Medium presets (a 27 FPS difference) compared to higher resolutions.

When moving to 2560x1440, the FPS drops are more pronounced. For example, the High preset falls from 155 FPS at 1080p to 101 FPS at 1440p, a 54 FPS decrease. This indicates that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as the pixel count increases. The trend continues at 3840x2160, where the High preset averages just 54 FPS, a further 47 FPS drop from 1440p. This scaling is steep and points directly at the GPU as the primary bottleneck at 4K.

The data implies that the system is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can deliver high frame rates. However, at 4K, the GPU's 8 GB of memory and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient to maintain high performance across all settings. The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is roughly 65% for the High preset (155 to 54 FPS), which is a significant penalty. This suggests that users targeting 4K should stick to lower presets or consider a more powerful GPU, as the current configuration is clearly GPU-limited at that resolution. The scaling pattern confirms that the CPU is not the limiting component in this scenario, as its performance is more than adequate to feed the GPU at lower resolutions.