Doom

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D presents a striking contrast in hardware tiers for running Doom (2016). The data shows a combination where the GPU is overwhelmingly dominant, yet the CPU’s 4-core/8-thread configuration still manages to deliver exceptionally high frame rates across all tested resolutions and settings. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, contextualizes the components’ roles, and explains how this pairing ranks against other tested combinations.

FAQ

Q: What is the combo's overall ranking among all tested combinations for Doom?

A: The Intel Core i3-12100F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D combination ranks 64th out of 2930 tested combos for this game, placing it in the top 2.2% of all configurations.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo, and at what settings?

A: The highest average frame rate is 360 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. The next highest is 343 FPS at the same resolution with Medium settings, and 323 FPS with High settings.

Q: How does the CPU's benchmark score compare to its closest rivals?

A: The i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13494. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core 3 N355, scores 13492, showing a 0% delta. The Intel Core i5-9500 scores 13452, which is 0.3% lower, while the Intel Core 5 120UL scores 13594, which is 0.7% higher.

Q: How does the GPU's benchmark score compare to its nearest competitors?

A: The RTX 5090 D has an average benchmark score of 77712. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT scores 76904, which is 1.1% lower. Conversely, the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78940, which is 1.6% higher, and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB scores 79396, which is 2.1% higher.

Q: What is the performance drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings?

A: At Ultra settings, the average FPS drops from 292 at 1920x1080 to 102 at 3840x2160. This represents a 65.1% decrease in average frame rate when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Does the data include minimum or maximum FPS for all settings?

A: No, minimum and maximum FPS values are only provided for Medium settings at each resolution. At 1920x1080 Medium, the range is 292 to 395 FPS; at 2560x1440 Medium, it is 232 to 314 FPS; and at 3840x2160 Medium, it is 126 to 170 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture. It operates with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. This is a desktop part with a 58 W TDP and a launch MSRP of $97. In the context of Doom, a game from 2016, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic data.

The benchmark data for this CPU shows it is positioned at the 68th percentile among all CPUs. Its multi-threaded performance is reflected in a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 11860, while its single-core score is 1674. In 3DMark tests, the CPU scores 4051 in the 16-thread test and 893 in the single-thread test. The data shows a significant scaling from 2 threads (1659) to 4 threads (2859) and 8 threads (4026), but minimal gains from 8 threads to max threads (4023), indicating that the 4-core/8-thread configuration is fully utilized by the 8-thread workload.

The CPU's performance relative to its rivals is remarkably tight. Its average benchmark score of 13494 is nearly identical to the Intel Core 3 N355 (13492) and just 0.3% higher than the Intel Core i5-9500 (13452). It is 0.7% slower than the Intel Core 5 120UL (13594). This suggests that in terms of raw processing power, the i3-12100F is a solid mid-range performer.

In Doom, the game's engine is known for being well-optimized and capable of running on a wide range of hardware. The data indicates that even at 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 360 FPS. This suggests that the CPU is not a bottleneck at these settings, as the frame rate is likely limited by the GPU's rendering speed or the game's engine tick rate. The fact that the i3-12100F can support frame rates above 300 FPS in this title demonstrates that its 4 cores and 8 threads are sufficient for this specific game's single-threaded and lightly-threaded workload.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this pairing. It features a massive 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth. The GPU has 21760 shading units and is based on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process node. Its base clock is 2017 MHz, which boosts to 2407 MHz. This GPU is in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77712.

The GPU's performance in synthetic benchmarks is substantial. It scores 14326 in 3DMark Steel Nomad (DX12) and 376915 in Geekbench Vulkan. Its Passmark G3D score is 44065. Interestingly, its nearest rivals are all mobile or data-center parts, not desktop gaming GPUs. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (76904) is 1.1% slower, while the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB (79396) is 2.1% faster. This indicates that the RTX 5090 D is at the absolute top tier of consumer graphics hardware.

In Doom, the GPU's role is to render the game's graphics at high resolutions and frame rates. The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern: as resolution increases, frame rates decrease. At 1080p, the GPU is capable of pushing frame rates between 292 (Ultra) and 360 (Low). At 1440p, the range is 189 (Ultra) to 311 (Low). At 4K, the range drops to 102 (Ultra) to 170 (Low). The 32 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, even at 4K with Ultra settings, as the game's texture requirements are well below this capacity. The GPU’s 1.79 TB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming is not a limiting factor.

The GPU's performance relative to the CPU is the key story. The RTX 5090 D is capable of producing thousands of FPS in older titles, but the data shows a maximum of 360 FPS in this configuration. This suggests that while the GPU is the primary engine for rendering, the CPU or game engine imposes a ceiling on the maximum achievable frame rate, particularly at lower resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how different settings affect performance. At each resolution, the progression from Low to Ultra shows a consistent decrease in average FPS. The data includes min/max FPS only for Medium settings, which provides a useful frame time consistency indicator.

At 1920x1080, the differences between settings are relatively small in absolute terms. Low yields 360 FPS, Medium yields 343 FPS (with a range of 292-395), High yields 323 FPS, and Ultra yields 292 FPS. For competitive play on a high-refresh-rate monitor, Low settings offer the highest frame rate, but Medium provides a better balance with only a 4.7% drop in average FPS while likely improving visual quality. The Medium setting's min FPS of 292 is still extremely high.

At 2560x1440, the same pattern holds. Low provides 311 FPS, Medium provides 273 FPS (range 232-314), High provides 231 FPS, and Ultra provides 189 FPS. The drop from Medium to High is 15.4%, which is more significant. For a 1440p monitor with a 240Hz refresh rate, Medium settings are the best choice, as the average FPS of 273 exceeds the refresh rate, and the minimum FPS of 232 is close to it. High settings also remain viable, as the 231 average is just above 240Hz.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates become more moderate. Low provides 170 FPS, Medium provides 148 FPS (range 126-170), High provides 125 FPS, and Ultra provides 102 FPS. For 4K gaming, the best experience would be High settings, which still deliver an average of 125 FPS, well above the 60 FPS standard for smooth gameplay. Ultra settings are playable at 102 FPS, but the drop from High is 18.4%, making High the better balance of visual quality and performance.

Overall, the data suggests that Medium settings offer the best "experience" across all resolutions, as they provide a significant visual upgrade over Low while maintaining frame rates that are close to the maximum. For 4K, High settings are the recommended starting point.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i3-12100F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D combination ranks 64th out of 2930 tested combos in Doom. This is an exceptionally high ranking, placing it in the top 2.2% of all configurations. This is a remarkable result given the CPU's relatively modest specifications.

The ranking indicates that the combination's performance is not purely a function of the GPU's power, but also of the game's engine and the CPU's ability to keep up. If the CPU were a severe bottleneck, the combo would likely rank lower, as the GPU's potential would be wasted. The fact that it ranks 64th suggests that the i3-12100F is sufficient to extract a high level of performance from the RTX 5090 D in this specific title.

It is important to contextualize this ranking. The combo is outperformed by 63 other combinations, which likely include higher-end CPUs paired with similar or identical GPUs. This implies that while the i3-12100F is adequate, it is not optimal. A more powerful CPU with higher single-thread performance or more cores could potentially push the frame rates even higher, especially at 1080p where the CPU has a greater influence.

The data shows that the combo's performance is more competitive at higher resolutions. At 4K, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, and the CPU's limitations are less apparent. At 1080p, the gap between this combo and those with faster CPUs is likely to be larger. The ranking of 64th reflects this balance, demonstrating that the combo is a high-performing but not top-tier configuration.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data is organized by resolution and settings. The following is a detailed breakdown of the average, minimum, and maximum frame rates.

At 1920x1080, the performance is consistently high across all settings. With Low settings, the average FPS is 360. With Medium settings, the average FPS is 343, with a minimum of 292 and a maximum of 395. With High settings, the average FPS is 323. With Ultra settings, the average FPS is 292. The data shows a clear trend: dropping from Low to Ultra reduces the average FPS by 68 frames, or 18.9%.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very high. With Low settings, the average FPS is 311. With Medium settings, the average FPS is 273, with a minimum of 232 and a maximum of 314. With High settings, the average FPS is 231. With Ultra settings, the average FPS is 189. The drop from Low to Ultra is 122 FPS, or 39.2%. This is a larger percentage drop than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor.

At 3840x2160, the performance is still strong but significantly lower. With Low settings, the average FPS is 170. With Medium settings, the average FPS is 148, with a minimum of 126 and a maximum of 170. With High settings, the average FPS is 125. With Ultra settings, the average FPS is 102. The drop from Low to Ultra is 68 FPS, or 40.0%. This shows that at 4K, the GPU's rendering load is the primary factor determining performance.

The data for Medium settings at each resolution provides insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p, the difference between the average (343) and the minimum (292) is 51 FPS. At 1440p, the difference is 41 FPS (273 vs 232). At 4K, the difference is 22 FPS (148 vs 126). This suggests that as resolution increases, the frame rate becomes more stable, likely because the GPU work is more consistent and less dependent on CPU-bound spikes.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling analysis examines how the average FPS changes from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 to 3840x2160. This data reveals which component is the primary bottleneck at each resolution.

At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 360 at 1080p to 311 at 1440p, a decrease of 13.6%. From 1440p to 4K, it drops from 311 to 170, a decrease of 45.3%. The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 52.8%. This pattern suggests that at 1080p, the frame rate is likely limited by the CPU or game engine, as the GPU is not fully stressed. The relatively small drop from 1080p to 1440p supports this, as the GPU can handle the increased resolution without a proportional decrease in FPS. The large drop from 1440p to 4K indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting factor at this higher resolution.

At Medium settings, the average FPS drops from 343 at 1080p to 273 at 1440p, a decrease of 20.4%. From 1440p to 4K, it drops from 273 to 148, a decrease of 45.8%. The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 56.9%. The scaling is more linear here, but the larger drop from 1440p to 4K still points to the GPU being the primary constraint at 4K.

At High settings, the average FPS drops from 323 at 1080p to 231 at 1440p, a decrease of 28.5%. From 1440p to 4K, it drops from 231 to 125, a decrease of 45.9%. The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 61.3%.

At Ultra settings, the average FPS drops from 292 at 1080p to 189 at 1440p, a decrease of 35.3%. From 1440p to 4K, it drops from 189 to 102, a decrease of 46.0%. The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 65.1%.

The data shows a consistent pattern: the percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p increases with higher settings, while the drop from 1440p to 4K remains consistently around 45-46%. This indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is a significant limiting factor, especially at lower settings. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the dominant bottleneck. The fact that the drop from 1440p to 4K is roughly constant across all settings confirms that the GPU is fully saturated at 4K, and the CPU's influence on the final frame rate diminishes. The i3-12100F is capable of delivering high frame rates, but it does cap the maximum performance at lower resolutions, where the RTX 5090 D could otherwise produce even higher numbers.