Doom

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor built on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge) using TSMC's 4 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, backed by a 64 MB shared L3 cache and 1 MB L2 per core. For a 2016 title like Doom, which was designed before the era of high-core-count consumer CPUs, the 9900X's immense thread count is largely underutilized; the game's engine relies more on strong single-core performance and raw memory throughput than on multithreaded scaling.

Benchmark data underscores the processor's capability. In Cinebench R23, the 9900X scores 46,438 multi-core and 6,555 single-core. The Geekbench results show 19,827 multi-core and 3,341 single-core. These numbers place the CPU in the 94th percentile against all processors, indicating top-tier compute performance. The 3DMark 16-thread test yields a score of 12,552, while the max-thread score jumps to 13,929, confirming that extra threads beyond 16 still provide measurable gains in synthetic workloads. However, Doom's measured FPS at 1080p Low (368.5 average) versus 1080p Ultra (223.5 average) shows a 145 FPS spread, which is far more attributable to GPU rendering load than to CPU limits. At 1080p Low, the GPU is less stressed, allowing the CPU to push frames higher; the fact that even at Low settings the 9900X doesn't bottleneck below 368 FPS suggests the processor is comfortably ahead of the game's demands.

The CPU's memory bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s over dual-channel DDR5 further supports high frame delivery, as Doom's fast-paced action benefits from quick data access. The 9900X's nearest rivals in average benchmark score include the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D (deltaPct -0.4), Intel Core i7-14700F (deltaPct 0.7), Intel Core Ultra 5 245K (deltaPct -1.5), and Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF (deltaPct -1.8). The 9900X sits within roughly 2% of these competitors, confirming that its role in this game is not a differentiator—any of these CPUs would deliver similar frame rates in Doom. The processor's 120W TDP and unlocked multiplier make it an enthusiast part, but for this specific title, the CPU's contribution is to ensure no frame drops occur from processor stalls; the data shows it succeeds decisively.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti ranks 194th out of 1,681 tested combos in Doom. This places it in the top 11.5% of all tested configurations, a strong showing for a high-end pairing. The rank reflects the aggregate of measured FPS across resolutions and settings, and the data indicates that this combo excels at delivering high frame rates, particularly at 1440p and 1080p.

At 1080p High, the combo achieves 270.3 FPS, and at 1080p Ultra it reaches 223.5 FPS. These figures are well above the 144 Hz refresh rate common on gaming monitors, meaning the combo is capable of driving high-refresh displays without compromise. At 1440p, the results remain impressive: High settings produce 175 FPS, and Ultra drops to 145.7 FPS, still comfortably above 144 Hz. Even at 4K, the combo holds its own; High settings yield 96.2 FPS, which is above 60 FPS and suitable for smooth gameplay on 4K displays.

The rank of 194 out of 1,681 suggests that while many combos perform better, the vast majority perform worse. The RTX 4070 Ti's 85th percentile ranking among all GPUs, combined with the CPU's 94th percentile, explains why this combo lands where it does. The GPU is the more limiting factor in this pairing, as evidenced by the FPS scaling across resolutions. The combo's position relative to other tested systems indicates that it is a balanced high-end setup, but not an absolute top-tier one—those would require faster GPUs or more optimized CPU-GPU pairings. The data shows that in Doom, the combo's strengths lie in consistent high refresh rates at mainstream resolutions, with 4K performance being playable but not extreme.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals clear resolution scaling patterns. At 1080p, the average FPS ranges from 368.5 on Low to 223.5 on Ultra. At 1440p, the range drops to 236.6 on Low and 145.7 on Ultra. At 4K, the range further falls to 132.1 on Low and 76.1 on Ultra. This represents a 64% reduction in FPS from 1080p Low to 4K Low (368.5 to 132.1), and a 66% reduction from 1080p Ultra to 4K Ultra (223.5 to 76.1). The consistency of this drop indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck as resolution increases.

Specifically, moving from 1080p High to 1440p High, average FPS drops from 270.3 to 175, a 35% reduction. From 1440p High to 4K High, it drops from 175 to 96.2, another 45% reduction. The RTX 4070 Ti's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 4K, but the sheer pixel count at 3840x2160 (over 8.3 million pixels) stresses the GPU's 80 ROPs and 40.09 TFLOPS compute. At 1080p, the CPU can feed frames faster, but the GPU still limits Ultra settings to 223.5 FPS, suggesting that even at lower resolutions, the GPU's shading capacity is the ceiling.

The pattern also shows diminishing returns from Low to Ultra at each resolution. At 1080p, the gap between Low and Ultra is 145 FPS; at 1440p it's 90.9 FPS; at 4K it's 56 FPS. This narrowing gap with increasing resolution confirms that the GPU becomes relatively more dominant as pixel count grows. The CPU's role, by contrast, remains constant—it never appears to cap FPS at any resolution, as the 9900X's single-thread score of 6,555 in Cinebench R23 and 3,341 in Geekbench indicate ample headroom for Doom's engine. The limiting component is clearly the RTX 4070 Ti, and the data suggests that for 4K gaming, lowering settings from Ultra to High (76.1 to 96.2 FPS) yields a 26% performance gain, while dropping to Medium (113.3 FPS) provides a 49% gain over Ultra.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU combo in Doom?

A: The data shows 1440p High as the sweet spot, delivering 175 FPS average. This is above 144 Hz, providing smooth gameplay without the extreme FPS drops seen at 4K, where High settings only reach 96.2 FPS.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average FPS is 76.1, which is above 60 FPS but not high enough for high-refresh 4K monitors. Users with 60 Hz 4K displays will find this playable, but those with 120 Hz+ 4K panels will need to lower settings.

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

A: The GPU is the limiting factor. Evidence comes from resolution scaling: FPS drops by roughly two-thirds from 1080p Low to 4K Low (368.5 to 132.1), while the CPU remains constant. The 9900X's high single-thread scores and the game's 2016 engine design mean the processor never bottlenecks.

Q: How does the combo rank against all tested systems?

A: It ranks 194th out of 1,681 combos, placing it in the top 11.5% of all tested configurations. This is a strong position, though not elite, as the GPU's 85th percentile limits the combo's overall standing.

Q: What FPS can I expect at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1080p Ultra is 223.5. This is well above any standard monitor refresh rate, including 144 Hz and 165 Hz panels, ensuring the GPU is the only constraint.

Q: Does lowering settings from Ultra to Medium provide a significant boost?

A: Yes. At 1440p, Medium delivers 208.4 FPS versus 145.7 FPS on Ultra, a 43% improvement. At 4K, Medium hits 113.3 FPS versus 76.1 FPS on Ultra, a 49% gain. The trade-off in visual quality is modest relative to the FPS increase.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with the AD104 chip, manufactured on TSMC's 5 nm process. It features 7,680 shading units, 240 texture mapping units, and 80 ROPs, with 60 RT cores and 240 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2,310 MHz and a boost clock of 2,610 MHz, paired with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is sufficient for Doom's textures at 4K, but the 192-bit bus width is narrower than higher-tier cards, which becomes relevant at extreme resolutions.

The GPU's measured performance shows a clear pattern. At 1080p Low, it achieves 368.5 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 76.1 FPS. The 40.09 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 626.4 GTexel/s texture rate are adequate for Doom's Vulkan-based engine, but the game's high-detail environments at 4K stress the ROPs and memory bandwidth. The 208.8 GPixel/s pixel rate is a notable constraint; at 4K, the GPU must fill over 8.3 million pixels per frame, and the pixel rate limits how quickly this can occur.

The RTX 4070 Ti's 85th percentile ranking among all GPUs places it above average but below enthusiast-class cards. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile (deltaPct -0.6), Intel Arc A730M (deltaPct -1.5), AMD Radeon Pro 580 (deltaPct 1.6), and AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT (deltaPct -1.6). These rivals are a mix of mobile and workstation parts, indicating that the RTX 4070 Ti's desktop performance is competitive but not dominant. In Doom, the GPU's role is to render the fast-paced action at high frame rates; the data shows it excels at 1080p and 1440p, while 4K requires settings adjustments to maintain playability. The 12 GB VRAM is never a limiting factor in this game, as even at 4K Ultra, the memory footprint stays within capacity, and the bottleneck is compute and pixel fill rate rather than memory size.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide clear guidance for optimizing the gaming experience. At 1080p, all settings deliver playable frame rates: Low (368.5 FPS), Medium (320.1 FPS), High (270.3 FPS), and Ultra (223.5 FPS). For 1080p users, Ultra settings are recommended as the visual quality increase is substantial, and 223.5 FPS still exceeds any standard monitor refresh rate. There is little reason to sacrifice visual fidelity at this resolution.

At 1440p, the choice depends on refresh rate. For 144 Hz monitors, Ultra settings (145.7 FPS) are borderline—just above the refresh rate, but any frame drops could cause tearing. High settings (175 FPS) provide a safer margin and are recommended for 144 Hz panels. For 165 Hz or higher monitors, Medium (208.4 FPS) or High (175 FPS) are better choices to stay above the refresh ceiling. For 60 Hz monitors, Ultra at 145.7 FPS is overkill; High or Medium would save GPU power without visible differences.

At 4K, the data strongly suggests avoiding Ultra settings. The 76.1 FPS average on Ultra is playable on 60 Hz displays but leaves no headroom for demanding scenes. High settings (96.2 FPS) provide a comfortable margin above 60 FPS and are the recommended choice for 4K 60 Hz gaming. Medium (113.3 FPS) is even safer, with a 49% improvement over Ultra, and is recommended for users who prioritize smoothness over maximum detail. Low settings (132.1 FPS) are unnecessary unless targeting very high refresh rates on 4K panels, which is uncommon.

The overall recommendation is to use High settings at any resolution. At 1080p High (270.3 FPS), 1440p High (175 FPS), and 4K High (96.2 FPS), the experience is consistently smooth, with visual quality that is nearly indistinguishable from Ultra in most scenes. Ultra provides diminishing returns—at 4K, the 20 FPS gain from High to Ultra (96.2 to 76.1) comes with a 26% performance penalty, which is not worth the marginal visual improvement. Medium is a viable fallback for 4K users on high-refresh displays, but High offers the best balance of image quality and frame rate across the board.