Doom

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination delivers exceptional performance in Doom, a 2016 first-person shooter, with benchmark results showing this pairing ranks 296th out of 3712 tested combos. The data set includes measured frame rates across three resolutions and four quality presets, providing a comprehensive view of how this hardware handles the game's demanding engine.

How This Combo Ranks

The comboRankInGame of 296 out of 3712 tested combinations places this pairing in the top 8 percent of all systems evaluated for Doom. This ranking reflects the synergy between the 16-core AMD processor and the RTX 4080 graphics card, both of which are high-end components in their respective categories. The CPU alone holds a percentile ranking of 91 against all processors, while the GPU sits at the 86th percentile against all graphics cards, indicating that both components are well above average in the broader hardware landscape.

Benchmark scores for the CPU show strong multi-threaded capabilities, with a 3DMark max threads score of 11597 and a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 26017. The single-thread performance is also respectable, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1614 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2083. When compared to its nearest rivals, the Ryzen 9 5950X trails the Intel Core Ultra 5 235HX by only 0.2 percent, sits 0.3 percent behind the AMD EPYC 8124P, and leads the Intel Core i9-13900F by 0.4 percent while remaining 0.7 percent behind the Intel Core i7-14700. These narrow margins demonstrate that the 5950X remains competitive with newer processor designs despite being from the 2020 generation.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 54247 places it nearly identical to the RTX 4080 SUPER, which shows a delta of just 0.1 percent. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X leads by 1.1 percent, while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB and AMD Radeon 8060S are 2.6 and 2.7 percent ahead respectively in aggregate GPU benchmarks. These comparisons suggest the RTX 4080 is a mature, well-optimized graphics solution that performs consistently across various workloads, including the demanding Vulkan-based rendering path used in Doom.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is built on the AD103 chip using the Ada Lovelace architecture, manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC. The GPU contains 45,900 million transistors on a 379 mm² die, giving it a transistor density of 121.1 million per square millimeter. The graphics card features 9728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output pipelines, along with 76 ray tracing cores and 304 tensor cores for accelerated compute workloads.

Memory configuration consists of 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. The memory clock runs at 1400 MHz with an effective data rate of 22.4 Gbps. The GPU's base clock is 2205 MHz with a boost clock of 2505 MHz. Pixel fill rate reaches 280.6 GPixel/s while texture fill rate hits 761.5 GTexel/s. Floating point performance is rated at 48.74 TFLOPS for both FP32 and FP16 operations, indicating a balanced compute architecture.

In Doom, the GPU's role dominates the frame rate output across all tested settings. The measured data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 364 FPS average, while Ultra settings at the same resolution produce 241 FPS. This spread of 123 FPS between minimum and maximum quality presets demonstrates how heavily the graphics workload scales with visual fidelity. The RTX 4080's substantial memory bandwidth and raw compute throughput allow it to maintain high frame rates even when the game's texture streaming and lighting effects are pushed to their maximum.

The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support and Vulkan 1.4 API compatibility are particularly relevant for Doom, as the game is known for its efficient multi-threaded rendering. Passmark DirectX 12 tests show a score of 132, while DirectX 11 scores reach 314. The Vulkan benchmark score of 263779 in Geekbench indicates strong low-level API performance, which aligns with Doom's use of Vulkan for maximum performance. The 16 GB frame buffer ensures that even at 4K resolution with High settings, the game has ample memory for textures and geometry, avoiding potential stutter from memory swapping.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X features 16 cores and 32 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Vermeer. The processor operates with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and can boost up to 4.90 GHz, drawing up to 105 watts TDP. Built on TSMC's 7 nm process, the CPU contains 8,300 million transistors across two 74 mm² chiplets. The cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 512 KB of L2 cache per core, and 64 MB of shared L3 cache, providing ample fast memory for game data.

Memory support includes DDR4 with dual-channel configuration and ECC capability, offering a memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. The processor connects via PCIe Gen 4 with 20 lanes from the CPU. The 5950X uses the AMD Socket AM4 platform and was released in November 2020 with a launch MSRP of $799. The processor has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking and is currently in active production.

For Doom, the CPU's contribution is evident in the frame rate consistency across different resolutions. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 364 FPS average, which is 123 FPS higher than the 241 FPS seen at Ultra settings. This difference indicates that at lower graphical settings, the CPU must supply frames fast enough to keep the GPU fed, and the 5950X's high single-thread performance handles this task effectively. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1614 and Geekbench single-core score of 2083 reflect the strong per-core performance needed for game logic and physics calculations.

Multi-threaded workloads in Doom benefit from the 5950X's 16 cores, as the game engine can distribute tasks across multiple threads. The Passmark multithread score of 45424 and the 3DMark 16-thread score of 10810 demonstrate the processor's ability to handle parallel workloads. The average benchmark score of 51947 places the 5950X in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, confirming its position as a high-end processor even when compared to newer generations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a detailed view of performance across different configurations. At 1920x1080 resolution, the system achieves 364 FPS average on Low settings, 347 FPS on Medium, 295 FPS on High, and 241 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 295 FPS and maximum of 399 FPS, indicating consistent frame delivery with only occasional dips. The 364 FPS Low setting and 347 FPS Medium setting are close, suggesting that at these quality levels, the GPU is not the primary limiting factor.

At 2560x1440 resolution, frame rates decrease but remain highly playable. Low settings produce 260 FPS average, Medium achieves 226 FPS, High reaches 191 FPS, and Ultra drops to 156 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p shows a minimum of 192 FPS and maximum of 260 FPS, demonstrating good frame pacing even during intense combat sequences. The transition from 1080p to 1440p reduces performance by approximately 29 percent at Low settings, 35 percent at Medium, 35 percent at High, and 35 percent at Ultra, showing a consistent scaling pattern.

At 3840x2160 resolution, the impact of the GPU becomes more pronounced. Low settings yield 141 FPS average, Medium achieves 123 FPS, High produces 104 FPS, and Ultra drops to 85 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K shows a minimum of 104 FPS and maximum of 141 FPS, indicating that even at this demanding resolution, the system maintains smooth gameplay. The drop from 1440p to 4K is substantial: Low settings lose 119 FPS, Medium loses 103 FPS, High loses 87 FPS, and Ultra loses 71 FPS.

Comparing the settings across all resolutions, the Ultra preset consistently delivers the lowest frame rates, with 241 FPS at 1080p, 156 FPS at 1440p, and 85 FPS at 4K. The Low preset provides the highest performance at 364 FPS, 260 FPS, and 141 FPS respectively. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows as resolution increases, from 123 FPS at 1080p to 104 FPS at 1440p and 56 FPS at 4K, suggesting that at higher resolutions, the GPU's rendering workload becomes the dominant factor rather than the quality preset differences.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K reveals important characteristics about the system's bottleneck. At Low settings, performance drops from 364 FPS at 1080p to 260 FPS at 1440p, a 29 percent decrease, and then to 141 FPS at 4K, a 46 percent decrease from 1440p. This pattern indicates that the GPU is becoming increasingly limited at higher resolutions, as the CPU has ample headroom to feed frames at 1080p where the 364 FPS result approaches the practical limits of the game engine.

At Medium settings, the scaling shows 347 FPS at 1080p, 226 FPS at 1440p (a 35 percent drop), and 123 FPS at 4K (a 46 percent drop from 1440p). The High preset follows a similar trajectory with 295 FPS, 191 FPS, and 104 FPS respectively, representing drops of 35 percent and 46 percent. The Ultra preset shows 241 FPS, 156 FPS, and 85 FPS, with drops of 35 percent and 46 percent as well.

The consistent percentage drops across all settings suggest that the system scales predictably with resolution, and the limiting component shifts from the CPU at 1080p to the GPU at 4K. At 1080p, the 364 FPS Low result and 347 FPS Medium result are close to the 399 FPS maximum observed in the Medium preset, indicating that the CPU's capability to generate frames is nearing its ceiling. At 4K, the GPU's rendering workload becomes the primary constraint, as evidenced by the larger absolute frame rate differences between settings.

The 4K results remain highly playable across all presets, with the lowest observed average of 85 FPS on Ultra still exceeding the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The 141 FPS at Low settings and 123 FPS at Medium settings at 4K indicate that even the most demanding resolution does not stress this combination to the point of discomfort. The data suggests that for players prioritizing maximum visual quality at 4K, the Ultra preset's 85 FPS average is acceptable, while those seeking higher refresh rates can drop to High or Medium settings for substantial gains.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium achieves 347 FPS average with a minimum of 295 FPS, which is only 17 FPS below Low settings while providing noticeably better visuals. The 1440p Medium result of 226 FPS with a 192 FPS minimum ensures smooth gameplay even during demanding scenes, and the 4K Medium result of 123 FPS with a 104 FPS minimum keeps frame rates well above the 60 FPS threshold.

The High preset also performs admirably, delivering 295 FPS at 1080p, 191 FPS at 1440p, and 104 FPS at 4K. This preset sacrifices some performance compared to Medium but offers improved graphical fidelity. Players with high refresh rate monitors at 1080p or 1440p will find High settings suitable, as the frame rates exceed 144 Hz in both cases. At 4K, High settings still provide a comfortable 104 FPS average, making it a viable option for those prioritizing visual quality.

The Ultra preset delivers the best visual experience with 241 FPS at 1080p, 156 FPS at 1440p, and 85 FPS at 4K. While these numbers are lower than other presets, they remain playable, particularly at 1080p where 241 FPS exceeds the refresh rate of most gaming monitors. At 4K, the 85 FPS average is adequate for immersive gameplay, though players sensitive to frame rate drops may prefer High or Medium settings. The Low preset offers the highest performance at 364 FPS, 260 FPS, and 141 FPS respectively, but the visual compromise is significant for a game with Doom's detailed environments.

The optimal choice depends on the display's refresh rate and resolution. For 4K displays, Medium settings provide the best combination of visual quality and performance, with 123 FPS exceeding the 120 Hz refresh rate common on premium monitors. For 1440p displays, High settings at 191 FPS are recommended, as they exceed the 165 Hz refresh rate found on many gaming monitors while maintaining good visual fidelity. For 1080p displays, Ultra settings at 241 FPS are suitable for 240 Hz monitors, though players with 144 Hz displays can choose any preset above that threshold.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this system in Doom?

A: The measured data shows that 1440p with High settings delivers 191 FPS average, which is ideal for high refresh rate monitors. For 4K displays, Medium settings at 123 FPS provide the best balance, while 1080p Ultra at 241 FPS suits 240 Hz monitors.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 compare to its nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER?

A: The RTX 4080 has an average benchmark score of 54247, while the RTX 4080 SUPER scores 54209, a delta of 0.1 percent. This indicates the two cards perform nearly identically in aggregate benchmarks.

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

A: Yes, all four quality presets at 3840x2160 produce playable frame rates. Low settings achieve 141 FPS, Medium reaches 123 FPS, High produces 104 FPS, and Ultra delivers 85 FPS, all exceeding the 60 FPS standard for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the CPU's single-thread performance relative to its multi-thread performance?

A: The Ryzen 9 5950X scores 1614 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 26017 in multi-core, while Geekbench shows 2083 single-core and 15233 multi-core. The 3DMark single-thread score is 944 compared to 11597 for max threads.

Q: How much frame rate is lost when moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings?

A: The frame rate drops from 295 FPS at 1080p High to 191 FPS at 1440p High, a decrease of 104 FPS or approximately 35 percent. This consistent scaling applies across all quality presets.

Q: Does the system have enough memory bandwidth for Doom's texture streaming?

A: The RTX 4080 provides 716.8 GB/s of memory bandwidth with 16 GB of GDDR6X memory, while the CPU offers 51.2 GB/s of DDR4 bandwidth. The measured frame rates show no evidence of memory-related stuttering, with the lowest minimum FPS recorded at 104 FPS across all tested configurations.