Doom

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and AMD Radeon RX 9070 combination delivers a fascinating dataset for Doom, one that clearly illustrates the shifting balance between CPU and GPU workload as resolution changes. The measured frames per second tell a story of a system that is overwhelmingly capable at 1080p, yet begins to show the strain of higher resolutions on the graphics card. This analysis breaks down the numbers to understand where the bottleneck lies and what the data implies for users of this specific pairing.

Resolution Scaling

The most striking observation from the measured FPS data is how dramatically performance scales with resolution. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system produces an average of 296 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 drops that average to 192 FPS, a significant 35% reduction. Pushing further to 3840x2160 yields 104 FPS, another 46% drop from the 1440p figure. This pattern is consistent across all settings presets, but the magnitude of the drop grows as settings increase.

For instance, at Ultra settings, the average FPS goes from 178 at 1080p, to 115 at 1440p, and finally to 62 at 4K. The percentage decline from 1080p to 4K is roughly 65% at Ultra, compared to a 65% decline at Low as well. This consistency suggests that the scaling is primarily driven by the GPU's rendering workload, which increases with pixel count.

The data indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is likely the limiting component in certain scenarios. The gap between Low (296 FPS) and Ultra (178 FPS) at 1080p is 118 FPS, showing that settings still have a major impact. However, the sheer headroom above 200 FPS suggests the Ryzen 7 7700 is keeping pace. At 4K, the situation inverts. The gap between Low (104 FPS) and Ultra (62 FPS) is 42 FPS, and the absolute numbers are much lower. This strongly implies that at 4K, the Radeon RX 9070 is the primary bottleneck, as the pixel fill rate and shading demands overwhelm the GPU's capabilities.

The implication is clear: for users with high-refresh-rate 1080p monitors, this combo is exceptionally well-suited, likely never hitting a CPU wall. For 1440p, it remains highly playable, but the GPU begins to assert its dominance. At 4K, the system is firmly GPU-limited, and users will need to make peace with either lower settings or a lower refresh rate target.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo can achieve in Doom?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 296, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra performance compare to 1080p Ultra?

A: At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average FPS is 62. At 1920x1080 Ultra, it is 178. This represents a 65% reduction in average FPS when moving from 1080p to 4K at the same settings.

Q: Is there a significant FPS drop between Medium and High settings at 1440p?

A: Yes. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 167 FPS, while High averages 141 FPS. This is a 26 FPS drop, or roughly 15%, for moving up one preset level.

Q: What is the lowest measured average FPS in the dataset?

A: The lowest average is 62 FPS, recorded at 3840x2160 resolution with the Ultra settings preset.

Q: At which resolution does the FPS first drop below the 100 FPS mark on average?

A: This occurs at 3840x2160. While Low settings average 104 FPS, the Medium preset averages 90 FPS, which is the first measured average below 100 FPS.

Q: Does the data show any frame time variance?

A: Yes, for the Medium preset, minimum and maximum FPS are provided. At 1080p Medium, the range is 219 to 296 FPS. At 1440p Medium, it is 142 to 192 FPS. At 4K Medium, it is 77 to 104 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution. For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the clear choice. With an average of 178 FPS, it provides a significantly better visual experience than High (218 FPS) or Medium (258 FPS) without dropping below the 144 Hz threshold that many high-refresh monitors demand. The data shows that even at Ultra, there is substantial headroom.

For 2560x1440, the High preset appears to be the sweet spot. It delivers 141 FPS, which is ideal for 144 Hz displays. While Ultra runs at 115 FPS, the jump to High provides a noticeable 26 FPS improvement, likely with minimal visual difference in a fast-paced game like Doom. The Medium preset at 167 FPS offers even more headroom, but High is the recommended balance.

At 3840x2160, the situation is more constrained. The Low preset averages 104 FPS, which is playable. However, the Medium preset drops to 90 FPS, and High to 76 FPS. For a smooth 60+ FPS experience, Medium is the highest playable preset, offering 90 FPS. The data suggests that for 4K, users should prioritize a stable 60 FPS by using Medium settings, as the jump to High incurs a 14 FPS penalty that may not justify the visual upgrade.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset reveals a clear hierarchy of performance across all tested configurations. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 296 (Low) to 178 (Ultra). The Medium preset falls in between at 258 FPS, with a measured minimum of 219 and maximum of 296. The High preset averages 218 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages shift down. Low settings yield 192 FPS, Medium 167 FPS, High 141 FPS, and Ultra 115 FPS. The Medium preset again has the only reported min/max data, showing a range of 142 to 192 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the averages compress into a tighter, lower band. Low settings produce 104 FPS, Medium 90 FPS, High 76 FPS, and Ultra 62 FPS. The min/max for Medium is 77 and 104 FPS respectively. This breakdown shows a consistent pattern: each increase in resolution reduces the performance gap between settings, confirming that the GPU becomes the sole limiting factor at higher pixel counts.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070, with its RDNA 4.0 architecture and 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, is the primary driver of the FPS differences seen across resolutions. The memory bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s is substantial, and the 128 ROPs handle pixel output. The GPU's boost clock of 2520 MHz and game clock of 2070 MHz are key figures.

The data shows that at 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck. The drop from 104 FPS at Low to 62 FPS at Ultra indicates that the shading units and texture mapping units are being saturated. The 56 RT cores and 3584 shading units are working hard, but the sheer volume of pixels at 3840x2160 overwhelms the card. The fact that even at Low settings, the average FPS is only 104, suggests that the GPU's raw compute power is the limiting factor, not the VRAM or bandwidth.

Interestingly, the GPU's benchmark scores show it ranks in the 69th percentile versus all GPUs, with an average score of 23877. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6800S, scores 24063, a delta of -0.8%. This indicates that the RX 9070 is a solid mid-to-high performer, but not a top-tier card. In the context of Doom, this means it can handle 1080p and 1440p with ease, but 4K requires compromises. The 16 GB VRAM is not the issue; the compute throughput is.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700, with its 8 cores and 16 threads based on Zen 4 architecture, provides the computational foundation for this combo. Its boost clock of 5.30 GHz and base clock of 3.80 GHz are high for a 65W TDP part. The 32 MB of shared L3 cache is a significant asset for gaming.

The CPU's role in Doom is evident at 1080p. The high average FPS figures (296 at Low, 218 at High) suggest that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough draw calls to avoid being a bottleneck. Its benchmark scores support this: a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 18760 and a single-core score of 1930 place it in the 87th percentile versus all CPUs.

However, the data implies that the CPU's influence wanes as resolution increases. At 4K, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is only 42 FPS, which is a GPU-driven gap. The CPU is likely not the limiting factor at 4K, as the GPU's rendering time dominates the frame time. The Ryzen 7 7700's nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365, has an average score of 40048, a delta of 0.1%, showing that the 7700 is competitively placed. In this game, the CPU is a capable partner that never seems to hold the GPU back, especially at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations, this pairing of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 holds a specific position. The combo ranks 1118 out of 3712 tested combinations in Doom. This places it in the top 30% of all tested combos (1118/3712 = 30.1%).

This ranking is somewhat surprising given the strong FPS numbers at 1080p and 1440p. The rank of 1118 suggests that while this combo is powerful, there are many other pairings that achieve higher average FPS. This is likely due to the RX 9070's 69th percentile GPU ranking, which indicates that faster GPUs exist that can push Doom to even higher frame rates, particularly at 4K.

The data shows that this combo is not an extreme outlier in performance. It sits in the upper-middle tier. The CPU's 87th percentile ranking is higher than the GPU's 69th percentile, suggesting that the GPU is the more limiting factor in this pairing. For a user with this combo, the experience is excellent for high-refresh 1080p and 1440p gaming, but the 4K performance is solid, not spectacular. The rank of 1118 out of 3712 reflects a balanced but not dominant system, one that is well-suited for competitive and fast-paced titles like Doom where high frame rates matter more than absolute visual fidelity.