Doom

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination delivers a distinctly GPU-bound experience in Doom, with performance scaling that clearly highlights the graphics card as the primary bottleneck. Across the three tested resolutions, the RTX 2060 struggles to maintain high refresh rates at 4K, yet the CPU demonstrates ample headroom to push frame rates much higher at lower resolutions. The data reveals a classic pairing where an 8-core, 16-thread processor with a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache is far ahead of the graphics card’s capabilities, making the RTX 2060 the definitive limiting factor in this configuration.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep and consistent decline in performance as resolution increases, a textbook indicator of GPU limitation. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 129 FPS at 1920x1080 to 83 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to 45 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 35.7% performance hit when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 45.8% reduction when stepping up to 4K. The halving of frame rates from 1080p to 4K strongly suggests that the RTX 2060’s 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and its 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are being saturated by the increasing pixel count.

Examining the Low preset reveals an even more pronounced scaling pattern. At 1920x1080, the combo achieves 175 FPS, which drops to 113 FPS at 2560x1440 and then to 61 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p transition yields a 35.4% reduction, while the 1440p to 4K step incurs a 46.0% loss. This near-identical percentage drop across presets indicates that the rendering load is scaling uniformly with pixel count, which is the signature behavior of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU’s 3.40 GHz base and 4.50 GHz boost clocks are not the constraining factor here.

The Medium preset’s data, which includes minimum and maximum FPS values, provides additional insight. At 3840x2160, the average is 53 FPS with a minimum of 45 and a maximum of 61. The tight range between min and max suggests that frame times are relatively stable, but the low absolute values confirm the GPU is working at its limit. At 2560x1440 Medium, the average improves to 99 FPS with a range of 84 to 113, while at 1920x1080 it reaches 152 FPS with a 130 to 175 range. The consistent pattern across all presets reinforces that the resolution scaling behavior is independent of quality settings, pointing squarely at the RTX 2060 as the limiting component.

Settings Recommendations

For players targeting high refresh rates at 1920x1080, the data shows that the Low preset delivers the best raw performance at 175 FPS average. This is significantly ahead of the Medium preset’s 152 FPS, which itself offers a 44.8% improvement over the High preset’s 129 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 105 FPS, which is still highly playable but represents a 40% drop from Low. Given that Doom is a fast-paced FPS, the Low preset’s substantial frame rate advantage makes it the optimal choice for competitive play at this resolution, provided visual fidelity is sacrificed.

At 2560x1440, the High preset’s 83 FPS average is the most balanced option for smooth gameplay, as it maintains a frame rate above 60 FPS while offering better visual quality than Low’s 113 FPS or Medium’s 99 FPS. The Ultra preset at this resolution drops to 68 FPS, which is still technically playable but approaches the lower bounds of comfort for a twitch shooter. The data indicates that High is the sweet spot here, delivering a 22.1% improvement over Ultra while only costing 26.5% of the performance gained by dropping to Medium.

For 4K gaming at 3840x2160, the situation is more constrained. The Low preset is the only option that achieves an average above 60 FPS, hitting 61 FPS. The Medium preset falls to 53 FPS, while High drops further to 45 FPS and Ultra to 37 FPS. Given the 6 GB memory limitation of the RTX 2060, the Low preset is strongly recommended for 4K, as it is the only setting that provides a playable frame rate. The gap between Low and Medium at 4K is 15.1%, whereas the jump from High to Ultra costs 17.8% of performance, highlighting how quickly the GPU’s resources are exhausted at this resolution.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D brings substantial processing power to this pairing, featuring 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture. Its 96 MB of shared L3 cache is a distinctive characteristic that benefits gaming workloads, and its benchmark scores reflect a strong multi-threaded and single-threaded performer. The 3DMark scores range from 884 in single-thread to 7,299 in 16-thread tests, while Cinebench R23 results show 1,452 in single-core and 14,317 in multi-core. These figures indicate a processor that is far from being a bottleneck in Doom at the tested settings.

The CPU’s role in this game’s results is primarily one of providing ample headroom. The fact that FPS scales so dramatically with resolution—175 FPS at 1080p Low versus 61 FPS at 4K Low—demonstrates that the RTX 2060 is the limiting factor, not the 5800X3D. The processor’s 16 threads and high boost clock of 4.50 GHz are more than sufficient to feed the GPU, and the benchmark results support this interpretation. The PassMark multi-thread score of 28,309 and Geekbench multi-core score of 11,765 show a CPU that can handle complex workloads without breaking a sweat.

Comparatively, the 5800X3D’s nearest rivals in the CPU benchmark database include the AMD Ryzen 7 6800U, Intel Core i9-10900K, and Intel Core i5-12600KF, with delta percentages of 0%, 0.1%, and 0.3% respectively. This places the 5800X3D in a competitive position, and its average benchmark score of 27,896 is nearly identical to these alternatives. However, in Doom, the specific architecture with the large L3 cache likely contributes to consistent frame delivery, even if the measured FPS is capped by the GPU. The CPU’s 7 nm process node and 8,850 million transistors suggest efficient operation, though the 105 W TDP indicates it demands adequate cooling.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Doom, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks at position 2,934 out of 3,712 total combos. This places it in the lower 21st percentile of all tested configurations, which is a direct consequence of the RTX 2060’s mid-range standing. The GPU itself holds a percentile rank of 58 against all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 15,290, while the CPU’s percentile rank is 80 with an average score of 27,896. The stark difference in these percentiles—80 for CPU versus 58 for GPU—underscores the imbalance in this pairing.

The combo’s rank of 2,934 suggests that most other CPU-GPU combinations tested in Doom outperform it, largely due to the GPU’s limitations. The RTX 2060’s nearest rivals in the GPU benchmark database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580, AMD Radeon 680M, and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM, with delta percentages of 0%, 0.1%, and 0.6% respectively. This shows that the RTX 2060 is closely matched with these older or lower-tier cards, and its 6 GB memory capacity is a significant constraint for modern games at high resolutions.

Given that the CPU is in the 80th percentile while the GPU is in the 58th, the data suggests that this combination is heavily GPU-limited. To improve the combo rank in Doom, upgrading the graphics card would yield far greater benefits than swapping the processor. The 5800X3D is capable of driving much higher frame rates, as evidenced by the 1080p results where the GPU holds performance back. This ranking analysis confirms that the RTX 2060 is the weak link, and the measured FPS data aligns perfectly with this assessment.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve 60+ FPS?

A: At 1920x1080, all presets from Low to Ultra achieve above 60 FPS, with averages ranging from 105 to 175 FPS. At 2560x1440, the Low, Medium, and High presets all exceed 60 FPS, with averages of 113, 99, and 83 respectively. At 3840x2160, only the Low preset reaches 61 FPS average, making 1080p the most reliable resolution for high refresh rates.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High in terms of FPS at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 83 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 68 FPS. This represents an 18.1% performance reduction when moving from High to Ultra, making High the preferred choice for maintaining smoother gameplay without a major visual sacrifice.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The benchmark data indicates the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the limiting factor. The CPU’s performance is sufficient to deliver much higher frame rates, as shown by the 175 FPS average at 1080p Low, but the GPU cannot sustain those rates at higher resolutions, dropping to 45 FPS at 4K High.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Medium settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 175 FPS, while the Medium preset averages 152 FPS. This is a 13.1% reduction in performance when increasing from Low to Medium, which may be a worthwhile trade-off for better visual quality on a high refresh rate monitor.

*Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in Doom?*

A: The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks 2,934 out of 3,712 tested combos, placing it in the lower percentile. This low rank is primarily attributed to the GPU’s mid-range performance, not the CPU.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS values recorded at 4K Medium?

A: At 3840x2160 with the Medium preset, the measured data shows a minimum FPS of 45 and a maximum FPS of 61, with an average of 53 FPS. This narrow range indicates relatively stable frame times, but the average is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth play.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance across settings is as follows: the Low preset delivers the highest average at 175 FPS, followed by Medium at 152 FPS, High at 129 FPS, and Ultra at 105 FPS. The Medium preset’s measured range spans from a minimum of 130 FPS to a maximum of 175 FPS, showing consistent frame delivery. The Low preset’s 175 FPS average represents a 66.7% improvement over Ultra, highlighting the significant impact of quality settings on frame rate at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages decrease across all presets: Low achieves 113 FPS, Medium reaches 99 FPS, High settles at 83 FPS, and Ultra drops to 68 FPS. The Medium preset at this resolution has a measured range of 84 to 113 FPS, which indicates a wider variance in frame times compared to 1080p, likely due to increased GPU load. The transition from Low to Ultra at 1440p costs 39.8% of the frame rate, making Low the clear choice for competitive play.

At 3840x2160, the performance is significantly constrained: Low averages 61 FPS, Medium averages 53 FPS, High averages 45 FPS, and Ultra averages 37 FPS. The Medium preset’s range at 4K is 45 to 61 FPS, matching the same minimum and maximum as the average FPS values for High and Low respectively. This data confirms that 4K gaming is only viable on the Low preset, and even then, the 61 FPS average barely meets the 60 FPS threshold, making this resolution unsuitable for high-refresh-rate displays with this GPU.