Doom

The Intel Core i5-10400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 delivers a remarkably smooth experience in Doom, with the data showing that the combination is well-balanced for high-refresh-rate gaming. The measured results indicate that the system handles the game’s fast-paced action with ease, though the choice of settings and resolution plays a significant role in the final frame rates.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Doom?*

A: The data shows the smoothest experience at 1920x1080, where the average FPS ranges from 191.1 on Ultra to 268.8 on Low. At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high, from 121.7 on Ultra to 205.3 on Low. At 3840x2160, the average FPS drops to between 64.3 on Ultra and 112.2 on Low.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at 2560x1440?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 achieves an average of 121.7 FPS, while the High preset reaches 151.3 FPS. This represents a performance gain of roughly 24% when switching from Ultra to High, making High a more attractive option for higher refresh rates.

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

A: The data suggests that the GPU is the primary determinant of performance. The CPU’s 3DMark scores (4748 for 16 threads and 4735 for max threads) are strong, but the frame rates scale significantly with resolution changes, which is characteristic of GPU-bound scenarios.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Medium settings at 1920x1080?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset produces an average of 268.8 FPS, while Medium yields 251.9 FPS. The difference is a modest 6.3% drop in average FPS, indicating that Medium offers a substantial visual upgrade with minimal performance cost.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations?

A: The combination ranks 498th out of 1681 tested combos in Doom. This places it in the top 30% of all systems tested, which is a strong showing for a mid-range CPU paired with a high-end GPU.

Q: Does the game favor the CPU’s single-thread or multi-thread performance?

A: The game’s performance is more dependent on the GPU, but the CPU’s single-thread score of 688 in 3DMark and 1453 in Cinebench R23 indicates it can keep up with the GPU’s output without causing bottlenecks in most scenarios.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Comet Lake architecture, built on a 14 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, providing the computational foundation for the system. The CPU’s 12 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth ensure that data flows efficiently to the GPU.

In Doom, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The benchmark results show that the i5-10400F is more than capable of handling this task. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 10297 and single-core score of 1453 demonstrate solid processing power. The 3DMark scores, particularly the 2-thread score of 1350 and 4-thread score of 2560, indicate that the CPU can handle the lighter thread loads typical of many game engines.

The data shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this pairing. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system achieves 268.8 FPS, which is a very high frame rate that demands strong CPU performance to maintain. The fact that the frame rates scale down as resolution increases—from 268.8 FPS at 1080p Low to 112.2 FPS at 4K Low—suggests that the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the CPU remains capable throughout.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimizing the Doom experience with this combo. For players with a 1920x1080 display, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. It delivers an average of 251.9 FPS, which is only 6.3% lower than the Low preset’s 268.8 FPS, while providing better textures and effects. The High preset at 232.2 FPS is also viable, but Medium offers a better frame rate per visual step.

At 2560x1440, the High preset is the recommended choice. It achieves an average of 151.3 FPS, which is comfortably above the 144 Hz refresh rate threshold for many monitors. The Ultra preset drops to 121.7 FPS, which is still playable but less ideal for competitive play. The Medium preset provides 177.1 FPS, but the visual differences between Medium and High are typically more noticeable at this resolution.

For 3840x2160, the data shows that the High preset is the best option for a smooth experience. It produces an average of 78.5 FPS, which is acceptable for slower-paced gameplay, while the Ultra preset drops to 64.3 FPS. The Medium preset at 97.1 FPS is also worth considering, as it offers a significant frame rate boost over High with only a modest visual compromise.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 498th out of 1681 tested combos in Doom. This places it in the top 29.6% of all systems benchmarked, which is a strong result given the CPU’s age and market position. The ranking reflects the efficient pairing of a capable mid-range CPU with a high-end GPU.

The CPU’s average benchmark score of 14168 places it in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs, with its nearest rivals including the AMD EPYC 7552 and AMD Ryzen 3 7320C. The i5-10400F performs within 1.2% of these rivals, showing that it remains competitive in synthetic benchmarks. The GPU, with an average score of 37283, sits in the 81st percentile of all GPUs, with the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 being its closest competitor at a 0.6% difference.

The high ranking in Doom is notable because the game is known for its scalability across hardware. The data shows that the combo can push frame rates well beyond 200 FPS at 1080p, which reflects the GPU’s raw power and the CPU’s ability to keep up. This rank of 498 suggests that there are many other combos with more expensive or newer components, but this pairing delivers a level of performance that is highly competitive for its class.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is the primary driver of Doom’s performance in this combo. Based on the Ada Lovelace architecture and built on a 5 nm process at TSMC, the GPU features 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units, and 64 raster operation units. It operates at a base clock of 1920 MHz with a boost clock of 2475 MHz, providing substantial computational throughput.

The GPU’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus delivers a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. This memory configuration is well-suited for Doom at high resolutions, as the game’s textures and geometry can be demanding. The GPU’s FP32 performance of 29.15 TFLOPS and texture rate of 455.4 GTexel/s ensure that it can handle the game’s rendering requirements without issue.

The measured FPS data clearly shows the GPU’s influence. At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 64.3 on Ultra to 112.2 on Low, demonstrating that the GPU is the limiting factor at this resolution. The frame rates scale predictably with settings, with the Low preset providing a 74.5% improvement over Ultra. This pattern indicates that the GPU is fully utilized, and the CPU is not holding it back.

At 1920x1080, the GPU is so powerful that it pushes frame rates to 268.8 FPS on Low settings. This suggests that the RTX 4070 is overkill for 1080p gaming in Doom, but it provides headroom for future titles or higher refresh rate displays. The GPU’s 81st percentile ranking among all GPUs and its performance relative to rivals like the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 (which it beats by 0.6%) confirm that it is a top-tier component for this game.