Doom

# Doom with AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D + AMD Radeon RX 570

This combo ranks 2812 out of 2930 tested combinations in Doom, placing it in the bottom 4% of all tested pairings. That is a decidedly weak result for a system built around a flagship 12-core processor, and the bottleneck is immediately obvious from the GPU's age and memory configuration. The AMD Radeon RX 570, a 2017-era Polaris card with 4 GB of GDDR5, is the limiting factor in nearly every scenario. The Ryzen 9 9900X3D, meanwhile, is a 2025 flagship with 12 cores, 24 threads, and a 128 MB L3 cache — it is not the constraint here. The data shows a system where the CPU has enormous headroom, but the GPU cannot translate that into playable frame rates at higher resolutions or settings.

How This Combo Ranks

At rank 2812 out of 2930 combos, this pairing sits in the 4th percentile of all tested combinations for Doom. That places it far behind the vast majority of systems, which is expected given the RX 570's position in the GPU hierarchy. The GPU's percentile vs all GPUs is 74, meaning it outperforms only about a quarter of tested graphics cards — but that statistic is skewed by the fact that many tested GPUs are integrated or low-end parts. In practice, the RX 570 is an entry-level discrete card from 2017, and Doom's 2016 engine, while well-optimized, still demands more than this card can deliver at higher settings.

The CPU, by contrast, is a top-tier part. The Ryzen 9 9900X3D's percentile vs all CPUs is 91, meaning it outperforms 91% of tested processors. Its average benchmark score of 54762 places it in the same neighborhood as the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF (55093, -0.6% delta), the Intel Core Ultra 5 245K (54053, +1.3% delta), and the Intel Xeon 6505P (53701, +2.0% delta). The 9900X3D is essentially tied with these rivals in synthetic benchmarks, but that raw CPU power is wasted in this pairing because the RX 570 cannot feed frames fast enough to utilize it.

The rank of 2812 out of 2930 is not a reflection of CPU weakness — it is a GPU-bound result. In Doom, which is a fast-paced FPS that benefits from high frame rates, this combo delivers playable performance only at 1080p with lower settings. The gap between what the CPU can do (Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 47737, single-core of 6739) and what the GPU delivers (24 FPS at 4K High) is enormous. The data indicates that upgrading the GPU would transform this system's ranking far more than any CPU change.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is built on the Polaris 20 chip, using the GCN 4.0 architecture on a 14 nm process from GlobalFoundries. It has 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. Its base clock is 1168 MHz, with a boost clock of 1244 MHz. The memory configuration is 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective), yielding a bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s. Pixel rate is 39.81 GPixel/s, texture rate is 159.2 GTexel/s, and FP32 performance is 5.095 TFLOPS.

These specifications, while respectable for 2017, are severely outdated for 2026 gaming. The 4 GB VRAM is the most critical limitation. Doom, even as a 2016 title, can exceed 4 GB at higher settings and resolutions. The measured FPS data shows that at 4K Ultra, the card drops to 19 FPS average — unplayable by any standard. At 4K High, it manages only 24 FPS. Even at 4K Low, the card produces just 32 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target most players expect.

The GPU's benchmark scores reflect its age. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 880. Geekbench results show 39349 in Metal, 32084 in OpenCL, and 42752 in Vulkan. Its average benchmark score is 28766, placing it near the AMD Radeon RX 6800M (28874, -0.4% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 470 (28996, -0.8% delta). Interestingly, the RX 570 edges out the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 (28421, +1.2% delta) and the AMD Radeon R9 M295X (28580, +0.7% delta). But these rival comparisons are meaningless in gaming context — the RX 570's role in this combo is to be the bottleneck.

The GPU's TDP is 150 W, it requires a single 6-pin power connector, and it uses a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface. It supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The display outputs include 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. The card is 241 mm (9.5 inches) long and is end-of-life, with a launch MSRP of 169 USD. None of these facts change the core issue: this GPU cannot drive Doom at high frame rates at resolutions above 1080p.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable pattern: performance drops significantly as resolution increases, and the drop is steepest at the highest settings. At 1080p Low, the combo averages 92 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 60 FPS — a 35% reduction. At 4K Low, it falls to 32 FPS — another 47% reduction from 1440p. These percentages reveal that the GPU is the primary limiter at every resolution, because the CPU has far more headroom than these frame rates suggest.

Looking at High settings: 1080p High yields 68 FPS, 1440p High drops to 44 FPS (a 35% reduction), and 4K High falls to 24 FPS (a 45% reduction from 1440p). The pattern is consistent — roughly a one-third drop from 1080p to 1440p, and another near-half drop from 1440p to 4K. This is typical of a GPU-bound scenario where the pixel count doubles at each step.

Medium settings show the same trend: 1080p Medium averages 80 FPS (with min 68 and max 93), 1440p Medium drops to 52 FPS (min 44, max 60), and 4K Medium falls to 28 FPS (min 24, max 32). The min/max ranges at Medium settings are narrow, indicating stable frame pacing, but the averages are still too low for competitive play at 4K.

Ultra settings are the most demanding: 1080p Ultra averages 56 FPS, 1440p Ultra drops to 36 FPS, and 4K Ultra manages just 19 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is unplayable, and even 1440p Ultra is borderline for a fast-paced FPS.

The resolution scaling data indicates that this combo is GPU-limited at all resolutions. The Ryzen 9 9900X3D, with its 5.50 GHz boost clock and 12 cores, could easily push 200+ FPS in Doom at 1080p if paired with a modern GPU. Instead, the RX 570 caps performance at 92 FPS even at Low settings. The CPU's role is essentially idle in this pairing — it provides no meaningful bottleneck at any resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 92 FPS, which is smooth and playable. Medium settings average 80 FPS, with a min of 68 and max of 93 — the tight range suggests consistent frame delivery. High settings average 68 FPS, which is still playable but starts to show the GPU's age. Ultra settings drop to 56 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS ideal for a fast-paced shooter. At 1080p, the RX 570 is adequate for Low through High settings, but Ultra requires compromises.

At 2560x1440, performance falls below playable thresholds for most settings. Low averages 60 FPS, which is exactly at the minimum target for smooth gameplay, but any dip below that would be noticeable. Medium averages 52 FPS (min 44, max 60), which is borderline — playable for casual play but not ideal for competitive Doom. High averages 44 FPS, which is noticeably choppy. Ultra averages 36 FPS, which is difficult to play comfortably. At 1440p, only Low settings approach the 60 FPS target.

At 3840x2160, the combo is effectively unplayable at all settings. Low averages 32 FPS, which is below the playability threshold. Medium averages 28 FPS (min 24, max 32). High averages 24 FPS. Ultra averages 19 FPS. None of these results are acceptable for a game like Doom, which demands quick reactions and smooth motion. The 4 GB VRAM is likely a contributing factor, as texture data spills into slower memory at 4K resolutions.

The data shows a clear hierarchy: 1080p is playable at Low through High, 1440p is only playable at Low, and 4K is not playable at any setting. The min/max values at Medium settings (1080p: 68-93, 1440p: 44-60, 4K: 24-32) show that frame pacing is consistent, but the averages are too low at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience with this combo, the data points to 1080p with Medium settings as the sweet spot. Medium at 1080p averages 80 FPS with a min of 68 and max of 93. That frame rate range is smooth enough for Doom's fast combat, and the visual quality at Medium is acceptable for a 2016 title. The 68 FPS minimum ensures that even the most intense scenes stay above the 60 FPS threshold.

If you prioritize frame rate over visuals, 1080p Low offers 92 FPS average, which is excellent for competitive play. The visual downgrade from Medium to Low is noticeable but not severe in Doom, and the 12 FPS average gain (from 80 to 92) is worthwhile for players who value responsiveness.

For players with 1440p monitors, the only viable option is Low settings, which averages 60 FPS. That is exactly at the playability threshold, but any complex scene could drop below 60 FPS. The data does not provide min/max values for 1440p Low, so the frame consistency is unknown. Given that 1440p Medium has a min of 44 FPS, it is reasonable to assume that Low would have higher minimums, but the margin is thin.

1080p High (68 FPS) is a middle-ground option, but it offers only 12 FPS less than Medium while providing better visuals. However, the data shows that High settings at 1080p still produce an average above 60 FPS, making it a viable choice for players who want better image quality without sacrificing too much smoothness.

Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution. Even at 1080p, Ultra averages only 56 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target. At 1440p, Ultra drops to 36 FPS, and at 4K, it is 19 FPS. The visual improvements from High to Ultra in Doom are marginal, and the frame rate cost is substantial.

The best experience per the measured rows is 1080p Medium: it balances visual quality and performance, with an average of 80 FPS and a minimum that stays above 68 FPS. For players who cannot tolerate any frame drops below 60 FPS, 1080p Low is the safer choice.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor from the 9000 series, built on the Zen 5 architecture with the Granite Ridge codename. It uses a 4 nm TSMC process with 16,630 million transistors across a die size of 2x 70.6 mm². The base clock is 4.40 GHz, and the boost clock reaches 5.50 GHz. Its TDP is 120 W, and it supports DDR5 memory on a dual-channel bus with 89.6 GB/s bandwidth. The L3 cache is 128 MB, L2 is 1 MB per core, and L1 is 80 KB per core. It fits the AMD Socket AM5 and has 24 PCIe Gen 5 lanes (CPU only). It includes integrated Radeon Graphics, supports ECC memory, and has an unlocked multiplier. Its launch MSRP is $599.

The CPU benchmark results are exceptional. Cinebench R23 multi-core scores 47737, while single-core scores 6739. Cinebench R20 multi-core is 20049, and single-core is 2830. Cinebench R15 multi-core is 4811, single-core is 679. Geekbench multi-core is 22884, single-core is 3041. 3DMark results include 13795 for max threads, 12490 for 16 threads, 9002 for 8 threads, 4885 for 4 threads, 2512 for 2 threads, and 1269 for single thread. PassMark scores include 56154 for multithread, 4646 for single thread, 179727 for integer math, 119622 for floating point math, 685074 for data compression, and 33282 for data encryption.

These numbers place the 9900X3D in the top 9% of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals in average benchmark score are the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF (55093, -0.6% delta), the Intel Core Ultra 5 245K (54053, +1.3% delta), the Intel Xeon 6505P (53701, +2.0% delta), and the Intel Core i7-14700F (53620, +2.1% delta). The 9900X3D is statistically tied with these parts, all within a 2% range.

In Doom, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics updates. The 12 cores and 24 threads are overkill for a 2016 title, which typically uses 4-8 threads. The 5.50 GHz boost clock ensures that even single-threaded performance is excellent, and the 128 MB L3 cache helps with game data locality. However, the measured FPS data shows that the CPU is never the limiting factor in this combo. Even at 1080p Low, where the GPU produces 92 FPS, the CPU could handle far more — likely 200+ FPS given its single-core performance.

The data suggests that the 9900X3D is completely wasted in this pairing. Its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6739 is nearly twice what Doom needs to maintain 60 FPS. The CPU's 91st percentile ranking versus all CPUs contrasts sharply with the combo's 2812 out of 2930 ranking. This is a textbook case of a CPU-GPU mismatch: the processor has massive headroom, but the graphics card cannot exploit it.

In practical terms, a player with this combo should expect CPU utilization to be low while GPU utilization is pinned at 100% in most scenes. Upgrading the GPU to a modern mid-range or high-end card would unlock the CPU's potential, likely doubling or tripling frame rates in Doom. The RX 570 is the clear bottleneck in every measured scenario, and the Ryzen 9 9900X3D is ready to support a much more powerful GPU without any compromise.