Doom

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination delivers exceptional performance in Doom, ranking in the top percentile of all tested configurations. The data shows a system capable of pushing extreme frame rates across all resolutions, with the CPU providing a robust foundation for the GPU's immense rendering power. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, scaling characteristics, and component roles based solely on the benchmark data.

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 a 4 nm process at TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, with a TDP of 120 W. The processor features a substantial cache hierarchy: 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 64 MB of L3 cache. Memory support is DDR5 over a dual-channel bus, providing 89.6 GB/s of bandwidth.

For Doom, a game released in 2016, the CPU's high single-thread performance is particularly relevant. The 9900X achieves a single-thread score of 1286 in 3DMark and 2253 in Cinebench R23, placing it in the 92nd percentile of all CPUs. This strength in single-core throughput directly benefits the game's main thread, which is evident in the high frame rates observed even at lower resolutions where CPU overhead is more pronounced. The processor's multi-threaded capabilities, demonstrated by a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 32172, are less critical for this title but ensure no bottleneck in background tasks or future scaling.

The CPU's benchmark profile shows a clear scaling pattern from 2 threads (2519 in 3DMark) to 8 threads (9114) and max threads (13929). This indicates strong thread scaling, though Doom's engine does not typically leverage more than a handful of cores. The 9900X's performance relative to its nearest rivals is nearly identical: it scores 0.2% higher than the AMD EPYC 7313 and 0.1% lower than the AMD EPYC 9015, while trailing the Intel Core i9-14900 by 1.1% and the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M by 1.4% in average benchmark score. In practical terms for Doom, this means the 9900X is more than sufficient to feed the RTX 4090, with the data indicating the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 achieves a combo rank of 88 out of 3712 tested configurations in Doom. This places the pairing in the top 2.4% of all systems, indicating a very high-performing setup. The rank reflects the synergy between the CPU's strong single-thread performance and the GPU's massive rendering throughput.

This ranking is particularly notable given the game's age. Doom's id Tech 6 engine is well-optimized and scales effectively with both CPU and GPU resources, but the RTX 4090's raw power allows this combo to exceed the performance of most other pairings. The 88th rank out of 3712 combos suggests that only a handful of alternative configurations—likely those with marginally faster CPUs or identical GPUs paired with slightly different processors—can outperform this specific match. The data shows that the 9900X does not hold back the RTX 4090 in this title, as evidenced by the high FPS figures at 1080p, which are typically CPU-bound scenarios. The near-parity with rival CPUs in synthetic benchmarks (all within 1.4% of each other) reinforces that the CPU choice has minimal impact on the final frame rate in Doom, with the GPU's performance dominating the outcome.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data reveals a classic scaling pattern where frame rates decrease as resolution increases, but the magnitude of the drop provides insight into which component is the primary limiter. At 1080p, the system delivers extremely high frame rates, indicating that the CPU is the primary constraint at this resolution. As resolution increases to 1440p and then 4K, the frame rate drops proportionally, shifting the bottleneck to the GPU.

Looking at the High settings preset, the average FPS drops from 327 at 1080p to 211 at 1440p, a 35.5% decrease, and then to 115 at 4K, a 64.8% decrease from 1080p. This pattern is consistent with GPU-bound performance: the RTX 4090's rendering workload increases with pixel count, while the CPU's workload remains relatively constant. The 1440p to 4K drop (from 211 to 115 FPS, a 45.5% reduction) is more significant than the 1080p to 1440p drop (35.5%), suggesting that the GPU is becoming increasingly saturated as resolution rises.

The Low settings preset shows a similar trend: 444 FPS at 1080p, 287 FPS at 1440p (35.4% drop), and 156 FPS at 4K (64.9% drop from 1080p). The fact that the percentage drops are nearly identical between Low and High settings indicates that the scaling is resolution-driven rather than settings-driven. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is the limiting factor—evidenced by the fact that even at Low settings, frame rates are capped around 444 FPS. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as the workload becomes too heavy for the RTX 4090 to maintain the same relative performance. The data shows a balanced system where neither component is severely underutilized at any resolution, but the GPU becomes the dominant constraint at higher pixel counts.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1080p, the system achieves outstanding frame rates across all settings: 444 FPS at Low, 387 FPS at Medium, 327 FPS at High, and 267 FPS at Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum FPS of 329 and maximum of 445, indicating some frame time variance even at this high performance level. The spread from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 177 FPS, showing that settings have a significant impact on performance when the CPU is the primary limiter.

At 1440p, the frame rates remain very high: 287 FPS at Low, 250 FPS at Medium, 211 FPS at High, and 173 FPS at Ultra. The Medium preset records a minimum of 213 FPS and maximum of 288 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra narrows to 114 FPS compared to 1080p, indicating that the GPU is starting to take on more of the rendering burden. This resolution provides an excellent balance, with even Ultra settings maintaining over 170 FPS average.

At 4K, the performance drops to more moderate levels: 156 FPS at Low, 136 FPS at Medium, 115 FPS at High, and 94 FPS at Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 115 FPS and maximum of 156 FPS. The Low to Ultra spread is now just 62 FPS, demonstrating that the GPU is heavily loaded at this resolution and settings have less relative impact. The 4K results still show this combo is highly capable of playing Doom at high refresh rates, with even Ultra settings maintaining nearly 94 FPS average. The data indicates that the RTX 4090's 24 GB of VRAM and 1.01 TB/s memory bandwidth are sufficient to handle 4K textures without issue, as the frame rate drops are consistent with computational load rather than memory limitations.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is the dominant component in this pairing, built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with the AD102 chip at TSMC's 5 nm process. It features 16,384 shading units, 512 TMUs, and 176 ROPs, along with 128 RT cores and 512 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2235 MHz and a boost clock of 2520 MHz, with memory running at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). The 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus provides 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth, which is critical for high-resolution textures.

The GPU's compute capabilities are substantial: 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a texture rate of 1,290.2 GTexel/s. These figures translate directly to Doom's rendering workload, allowing the RTX 4090 to maintain high frame rates even at 4K Ultra settings. The GPU's 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs is reflected in its Passmark G3D score of 38194, though its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks are far less capable cards (Intel Arc Pro A60, AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48), highlighting that the RTX 4090's gaming performance is exceptional.

In Doom, the GPU's role becomes increasingly important as resolution rises. At 1080p, the RTX 4090 is underutilized, with the CPU limiting performance to a maximum of 444 FPS at Low settings. At 4K, the GPU is fully utilized, as evidenced by the frame rate drops across settings. The 24 GB VRAM capacity is more than sufficient for Doom, which was released in 2016 and does not require excessive memory, but the bandwidth and processing power ensure no stutter or frame drops due to texture streaming. The GPU's performance in the measured data shows a consistent scaling pattern: increasing resolution by 2.25x (1080p to 4K) reduces frame rates by roughly 65% across all settings, indicating the GPU's rendering throughput is the primary constraint at 4K.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, all settings presets deliver frame rates well above 240 FPS, making any choice viable. However, the Ultra preset at 267 FPS average provides the best visual quality while still maintaining extremely high performance. The High preset at 327 FPS offers a middle ground for those prioritizing maximum refresh rates, but the jump from High to Ultra only costs 60 FPS, which is negligible for most displays. The data suggests that 1080p Ultra is the recommended choice, as the GPU has ample headroom.

At 1440p, the Ultra preset delivers 173 FPS average, which is still well above 144 Hz refresh rate monitors. The High preset at 211 FPS offers additional headroom for 240 Hz displays. For users with a 144 Hz monitor, the Ultra preset is recommended as it provides the best visual experience without sacrificing the ability to hit the refresh rate cap. The Medium preset at 250 FPS is an option for those with 240 Hz displays, but the visual quality trade-off from Ultra to Medium is significant. The data indicates that 1440p High is the sweet spot for most users, balancing visual fidelity with performance headroom.

At 4K, the Ultra preset delivers 94 FPS average, which is suitable for 60 Hz displays but may not fully utilize 120 Hz or higher refresh rate monitors. The High preset at 115 FPS provides a better match for 120 Hz displays, while the Medium preset at 136 FPS offers even more headroom. For 4K gaming, the High preset is recommended as it provides a noticeable visual improvement over Medium while maintaining frame rates above 100 FPS. The Low preset at 156 FPS is only recommended for competitive play where frame rate is paramount, but the visual degradation is substantial. Overall, the data shows that this combo can handle 4K High settings comfortably, and 4K Ultra remains playable at 94 FPS average.

FAQ

Q: What is the combo rank of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 in Doom?

A: This combo ranks 88th out of 3712 tested configurations, placing it in the top 2.4% of all systems tested.

Q: What is the maximum average FPS achieved at 1080p with this combo?

A: The highest average FPS at 1080p is 444, achieved with the Low settings preset. The Ultra preset still delivers 267 FPS average.

Q: How does the frame rate drop when moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 327 at 1080p to 211 at 1440p and then to 115 at 4K, representing a 64.8% decrease from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 4K resolution?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary limiting factor at 4K, as frame rates drop consistently across settings presets, with the Ultra preset at 94 FPS average showing the GPU is heavily loaded.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the 1440p Medium preset?

A: The 1440p Medium preset records a minimum FPS of 213 and a maximum of 288, with an average of 250 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's average benchmark score compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Ryzen 9 9900X has an average benchmark score of 57498, which is 0.1% lower than the AMD EPYC 9015 (57555) and 0.2% higher than the AMD EPYC 7313 (57399). It trails the Intel Core i9-14900 by 1.1%.