Doom

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 delivers a compelling 1080p and 1440p experience in Doom, with the data showing a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution climbs. At 1080p, the combination produces frame rates well above the 144 Hz refresh-rate threshold, but the drop-off to 4K reveals the GPU’s limitations, making it the primary constraint in this classic FPS title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep, predictable decline as resolution increases, but the magnitude of the drop tells a story about which component is doing the heavy lifting. At 1080p with High settings, the combo averages 178 FPS, which falls to 115 FPS at 1440p, and then to 62 FPS at 4K. That represents a 35% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 46% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is not linear, which is typical for a game that becomes increasingly pixel-bound at higher resolutions.

The pattern is even more pronounced when examining the Low preset. At 1080p Low, the system hits 241 FPS, which is near the ceiling of what many 1080p displays can show. At 1440p Low, it drops to 156 FPS, and at 4K Low, it settles at 85 FPS. The gap between 1080p and 4K at Low settings is 156 FPS, while at High settings the same resolution gap is only 116 FPS. This suggests that at lower settings, the CPU has more headroom to push frames, but the GPU still becomes the limiting factor at 4K regardless of the preset.

The 4K Medium row provides the only min/max data in the entire set: 63 FPS minimum and 85 FPS maximum, with an average of 74 FPS. This narrow band indicates that the frame pacing is relatively stable, but the overall performance is barely above the 60 FPS target. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 51 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold, making it the only measured configuration that fails to maintain playable smoothness. The data implies that 4K gaming with this combo requires careful settings management, as the GPU’s rasterization throughput is the clear limiting factor at this resolution.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its benchmark scores indicate strong multi-threaded performance: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 29300 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 19267. Single-thread performance is also respectable, with a Geekbench single-core score of 2617 and a Passmark single-thread score of 4238. The processor sits in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53288, placing it just 0.2% above the AMD EPYC 7313P and 0.6% above the Intel Xeon 634.

In Doom, the CPU’s role is evident in the 1080p results, where the frame rates are high enough to suggest the processor is not the bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the 241 FPS average is likely near the game’s engine limit or the CPU’s ability to feed the GPU. The 12 cores and 24 threads provide ample headroom for Doom’s single-threaded rendering pipeline, but the high boost clock of 5.60 GHz is what matters most for this game. The 3DMark single-thread score of 1093 and Cinebench R15 single-core score of 323 confirm that the 7900X has the per-core strength needed to avoid holding back the GPU at lower resolutions.

The CPU’s 64 MB of shared L3 cache is another relevant factor. Doom’s level streaming and entity management can benefit from a large cache, and the 7900X’s cache hierarchy likely contributes to the consistent frame rates seen at 1080p and 1440p. The data shows that at 1440p High, the FPS drops to 115, which is still very playable, but the reduction from 1080p suggests the GPU is starting to take over as the primary constraint. The CPU’s benchmark percentile of 91 versus the GPU’s 58 indicates a significant mismatch in raw compute capability, reinforcing the idea that the 7900X is more than sufficient for this title.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is based on the RDNA 3.0 architecture, featuring 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 624.1 GB/s of memory bandwidth. The GPU has 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 96 ROPs, with a boost clock of 2459 MHz and a game clock of 2041 MHz. Its benchmark scores are modest: a Passmark G3D score of 20974 and a Geekbench OpenCL score of 106028. The GPU sits in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15852, placing it 1.7% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti and 1% below the AMD Radeon RX 9060.

The GPU’s role in Doom becomes increasingly dominant as resolution rises. The 4K results clearly show the GPU struggling to maintain high frame rates, with the Ultra preset averaging just 51 FPS. The 16 GB of VRAM is more than adequate for Doom, which is a 2016 title with modest texture requirements, so memory capacity is not the limiting factor. Instead, the GPU’s raw pixel throughput and fill rate are the constraints at 4K. The pixel rate of 236.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 393.4 GTexel/s are respectable for a mid-range card, but they are not sufficient to drive 4K at ultra settings in this game.

The 4K Medium results, with an average of 74 FPS and a minimum of 63 FPS, show that the GPU can handle 4K if settings are dialed back. The gap between the Low and High presets at 4K (85 FPS vs 62 FPS) is 23 FPS, which is a significant performance cost for the visual uplift that High provides. The GPU’s 58th percentile ranking relative to all GPUs suggests it is a mid-pack performer, and the 4K data confirms that this is a 1440p-class card that can occasionally dip into 4K territory with settings adjustments.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and AMD Radeon RX 7700 ranks 1314 out of 2930 tested combos for Doom, placing it in the 55th percentile of all combinations. This ranking is notably lower than the CPU’s individual 91st percentile ranking, which indicates that the GPU is dragging down the overall performance of the combo. The CPU’s nearest rivals in benchmark scores include the Intel Core i7-14700F (0.6% higher) and the AMD EPYC 7313P (0.2% lower), but these comparisons are based on general compute benchmarks, not Doom-specific performance.

In the context of Doom, the combo’s rank of 1314 out of 2930 suggests that there are many combinations that perform better, likely those with higher-end GPUs paired with similar or weaker CPUs. The data implies that the 7900X is capable of driving much higher frame rates if paired with a more powerful GPU, as the 1080p results show the CPU is not the limiting factor. The 4K results, where the combo falls below 60 FPS on Ultra, highlight the GPU’s inadequacy for high-resolution gaming.

The gap between the CPU’s 91st percentile and the combo’s 55th percentile is a clear indicator of imbalance. A more balanced pairing would see the combo rank closer to the CPU’s percentile, assuming the game is not GPU-limited at the tested resolutions. The fact that the combo ranks lower than the GPU’s 58th percentile (1314/2930 is roughly 45th percentile of the top) suggests that the specific combination of this CPU and GPU is not optimal for Doom, despite the CPU’s strength. The data indicates that users with this CPU should consider a more powerful GPU to fully utilize the 7900X’s potential in Doom.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with High settings?

A: The average frame rate is 178 FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings, with no minimum or maximum values provided in the measured data.

Q: Does the combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K with any preset?

A: Yes, the 4K Low preset averages 85 FPS, the 4K Medium preset averages 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS, and the 4K High preset averages 62 FPS. Only the 4K Ultra preset falls below 60 FPS, averaging 51 FPS.

Q: How does the combo’s overall rank compare to the CPU’s individual percentile?

A: The combo ranks 1314 out of 2930 tested combinations, which is approximately the 55th percentile. The CPU alone is in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 1440p on High settings?

A: The average frame rate drops from 178 FPS at 1080p to 115 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 63 FPS or approximately 35%.

Q: Is the GPU’s 16 GB of VRAM sufficient for Doom at 4K?

A: The data does not indicate any VRAM-related issues. The 16 GB of VRAM is more than enough for Doom, as the frame rate drops are consistent with GPU compute limitations rather than memory capacity constraints.

Q: What are the nearest rivals to the GPU in general benchmark scores?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7700’s nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon R9 370X (0.1% higher), the AMD Radeon RX 9060 (1% higher), the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (1.1% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (1.7% higher).

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers four resolutions and four settings presets, providing a comprehensive view of performance. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 241 FPS, which is the highest measured result across all configurations. The Medium preset averages 210 FPS with a minimum of 179 FPS and a maximum of 242 FPS. High averages 178 FPS, and Ultra averages 145 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 96 FPS, indicating that the settings scaling is significant but the game remains highly playable at all presets.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 156 FPS, Medium averages 136 FPS (minimum 116, maximum 156), High averages 115 FPS, and Ultra averages 94 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 62 FPS, which is smaller than at 1080p, suggesting the GPU is beginning to limit performance. The 1440p Medium min/max range of 116-156 FPS shows a 40 FPS variance, which could indicate some frame pacing inconsistencies, but the average remains well above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 85 FPS, Medium averages 74 FPS (minimum 63, maximum 85), High averages 62 FPS, and Ultra averages 51 FPS. The 4K Medium min/max range of 63-85 FPS shows a 22 FPS variance, which is tighter than at 1440p, indicating more consistent GPU-bound performance. The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that averages below 60 FPS, making it the least suitable for smooth gameplay. The data shows a clear trend: the combo is excellent at 1080p, very good at 1440p, and playable at 4K only with lower presets.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, the Ultra preset averaging 145 FPS is the best choice for maximum visual quality, as it still provides frame rates far above the 144 Hz refresh-rate threshold. The High preset at 178 FPS offers a 33 FPS advantage over Ultra, which may be preferable for competitive play, but the visual trade-off is substantial. The Medium preset at 210 FPS is the best for high-refresh-rate displays (240 Hz), as it provides the highest frame rate while maintaining decent visual fidelity.

At 1440p, the Ultra preset averaging 94 FPS is a solid choice for gamers with 100 Hz displays, as it stays just above the 90 FPS threshold. The High preset at 115 FPS is recommended for 120 Hz displays, providing a 21 FPS advantage over Ultra. The Medium preset at 136 FPS is the best for 144 Hz displays, offering a smooth experience with only a minor visual reduction compared to High. The Low preset at 156 FPS is rarely necessary at this resolution, as the GPU can handle higher settings without dropping below 60 FPS.

At 4K, the High preset averaging 62 FPS is the highest visual quality that maintains playable frame rates, but it is borderline. The Medium preset at 74 FPS is the recommended choice for 4K, as it provides a 12 FPS buffer over High and keeps the minimum above 60 FPS (63 FPS). The Low preset at 85 FPS is the best for consistent performance but sacrifices significant visual detail. The Ultra preset at 51 FPS should be avoided, as it falls below the 60 FPS target. For the best overall experience, the data suggests prioritizing Medium or High presets at 1440p, where the combo achieves the best balance of visual quality and frame rate.