Doom

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT delivers a performance profile in Doom that is heavily dictated by resolution, with the GPU acting as the primary scaling factor at higher settings. At 1080p, the combination produces exceptionally high frame rates that suggest a CPU-limited ceiling, while moving to 1440p and 4K introduces a predictable decline that aligns with the graphics card's memory bandwidth and compute capabilities.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings presets, indicating that the Radeon RX 6800 XT is the dominant component at higher resolutions. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 215 FPS at 1920x1080 to 139 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 76 FPS, and then further to 75 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 65% performance loss from 1080p to 4K, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario in a fast-paced FPS title.

The scaling pattern at Low settings is even more revealing. The average FPS goes from 292 at 1080p down to 189 at 1440p and 102 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 103 FPS, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 87 FPS. This nearly linear decline suggests that at Low settings, the CPU still has headroom at 1080p, but the GPU quickly becomes the limiting factor as pixel count increases.

At Medium settings, the measured rows show a similar trend, with 254 FPS at 1080p, 165 FPS at 1440p, and 89 FPS at 4K. The minimum FPS at Medium settings also scales with resolution, going from 216 at 1080p to 140 at 1440p and 76 at 4K. This indicates that the frame time consistency degrades as resolution rises, likely due to the increased memory pressure on the 16 GB GDDR6 buffer.

Ultra settings produce the lowest frame rates but follow the same pattern. The average FPS drops from 176 at 1080p to 114 at 1440p and 62 at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 62 FPS is notably close to the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting that this setting is borderline playable at the highest resolution, while 1440p Ultra remains comfortably smooth.

The data shows that the scaling factor between resolutions is not perfectly uniform, with the 1440p to 4K transition causing a slightly larger percentage drop than the 1080p to 1440p transition at most settings. This points to the GPU's 512.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 256-bit bus width being progressively saturated as resolution increases, making the RX 6800 XT the clear bottleneck at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Rocket Lake architecture, operating at a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. In Doom, which is known for its id Tech engine efficiency, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic updates. The benchmark results show that at 1080p Low settings, the average FPS of 292 is likely approaching the CPU's maximum throughput, as the GPU is not heavily taxed at that resolution.

The processor's 12 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient to avoid major stalls in this game. The 3DMark scores provide context: the single-thread score of 868 and the 2-thread score of 1691 indicate that the CPU's per-core performance is moderate, but Doom does not require extreme single-thread power to achieve high frame rates.

The multi-threaded results are more telling. The 3DMark 8-thread score of 4691 and max-thread score of 5652 suggest that the CPU can handle parallel workloads, but the game's engine likely utilizes fewer threads. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 14340 and single-core score of 2024 show that the processor has balanced performance, yet the data reveals that at 1440p and 4K, the CPU is not the limiting factor. The FPS differences between 1080p and higher resolutions are large enough to confirm that the i5-11400F provides adequate headroom for the RX 6800 XT at all tested settings.

The processor's 14 nm process node and 65 W TDP are modest by modern standards, but they do not impact gaming performance directly. The benchmark results indicate that the CPU's role in this specific game is secondary, as the frame rates at 4K Ultra (62 FPS) are far below what the CPU could theoretically support, reinforcing that the GPU is the primary constraint at high resolutions.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is the star of this combination, featuring 4608 shading units, 288 texture mapping units, and 128 render output units. Its 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 512.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is crucial for Doom's high-resolution textures and fast-paced rendering. The GPU's boost clock of 2250 MHz and game clock of 2015 MHz contribute to its raw compute power, with an FP32 performance of 20.74 TFLOPS.

The GPU's role in Doom is clearly dominant, as evidenced by the performance scaling across resolutions. At 1080p High, the 215 FPS average is likely limited by the CPU in certain scenes, but the GPU still has plenty of headroom. At 1440p, the GPU begins to show its capabilities, with High settings producing 139 FPS, which is a strong result for a demanding resolution. At 4K, the GPU's limitations become apparent, with High settings dropping to 75 FPS and Ultra to 62 FPS.

The VRAM capacity of 16 GB is more than sufficient for Doom at any resolution, as the game does not require excessive memory. The 512.0 GB/s bandwidth is the more critical factor, as higher resolutions demand more data throughput. The pixel rate of 288.0 GPixel/s and texture rate of 648.0 GTexel/s are high enough to handle the game's visual effects without causing stutters.

The GPU's benchmark scores confirm its position in the hierarchy. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3689 and PassMark G3D score of 24980 place it in the upper tier of graphics cards, with a percentile rank of 85 against all GPUs. The nearest rival comparisons show that the RX 6800 XT is competitive with the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile (1.5% higher score) and the Intel Arc A550M (2.5% lower score), but those are mobile or lower-tier parts. The data shows that in Doom, the GPU's strengths are fully utilized at 1440p, where it delivers frame rates well above 100 FPS at most settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combination produces its highest frame rates. Low settings yield an average of 292 FPS, which is exceptionally high and likely limited by the CPU. Medium settings drop to 254 FPS with a minimum of 216 FPS and maximum of 292 FPS, showing a tight frame time distribution. High settings produce 215 FPS, while Ultra settings bring the average down to 176 FPS. These results indicate that at 1080p, the CPU is the limiting factor, as the GPU is not being pushed to its limits.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a clear GPU influence. Low settings average 189 FPS, Medium settings average 165 FPS with a minimum of 140 FPS and maximum of 189 FPS. High settings produce 139 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 114 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 75 FPS, which is larger than the 116 FPS gap at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more involved in the rendering process.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are the lowest but still playable. Low settings average 102 FPS, Medium settings average 89 FPS with a minimum of 76 FPS and maximum of 103 FPS. High settings produce 75 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 62 FPS. The 4K results show a clear GPU bottleneck, as the frame rates are directly tied to the graphics card's ability to process pixels. The minimum FPS at 4K Medium (76 FPS) is close to the average, suggesting good frame pacing, but the Ultra setting's 62 FPS average leaves little margin for demanding scenes.

The data shows a consistent pattern across all resolutions: Low settings provide the highest frame rates, followed by Medium, High, and Ultra. The differences between settings are more pronounced at lower resolutions, where the CPU can push more frames, while at 4K, the GPU's workload dominates and the settings have a smaller relative impact.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-11400F and AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT ranks at position 1158 out of 3712 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the top 31% of all configurations. This rank is respectable, considering the CPU is a mid-range part and the GPU is a high-end model. The ranking suggests that the combo outperforms the majority of tested systems, but it is not at the very top, where more powerful CPUs would be paired with the same or better GPUs.

The CPU's percentile rank of 71 against all CPUs indicates that it is above average, but not exceptional. The GPU's percentile rank of 85 against all GPUs is higher, showing that the graphics card is the stronger component in this pairing. The combo rank of 1158 reflects this balance, with the GPU carrying the load at higher resolutions while the CPU provides adequate support at lower resolutions.

The average benchmark scores of the components provide additional context. The CPU's average score of 17177 is close to its nearest rivals, with the AMD EPYC 7H12 at 17120 (0.3% higher) and the Intel Core i5-12450H at 17239 (0.4% lower). The GPU's average score of 48477 is within 3% of the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile (47743) and the Intel Arc A550M (49737), showing that it is a competitive part in its class.

This combo's rank is not surprising given the component choices. The i5-11400F is a capable processor for gaming, but it does not have the multi-threaded muscle of higher-end CPUs. The RX 6800 XT is a strong GPU, but it is not the fastest available. The combination works well in Doom, as the game is not overly CPU-intensive, but it does not reach the top tier of performance.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience measured in the data, the Medium preset at 2560x1440 offers an excellent balance of performance and visual quality. The average FPS of 165 with a minimum of 140 FPS provides smooth gameplay that is well above the 60 FPS threshold, and the frame times are consistent, as shown by the narrow gap between the minimum and maximum values. This setting allows the RX 6800 XT to showcase its capabilities without pushing the CPU too hard.

At 1920x1080, the High preset is the recommended choice, as it delivers 215 FPS on average, which is more than enough for any display. The Ultra preset at 1080p (176 FPS) is also viable, but the visual improvement over High is marginal in Doom, and the lower frame rate does not provide a tangible benefit. The Low preset at 1080p (292 FPS) is unnecessary for most users, as it sacrifices visual quality for frame rates that exceed the refresh rate of most monitors.

For 4K gaming, the Medium preset is the most balanced option. The 89 FPS average with a minimum of 76 FPS is well above the playable threshold, and the visual quality is still high. The High preset at 4K (75 FPS) is also acceptable, but the Ultra preset (62 FPS) is borderline, as it leaves little margin for frame drops in intense combat scenes. The Low preset at 4K (102 FPS) provides the smoothest experience but at a significant visual cost.

The data suggests that the Medium preset is the sweet spot across all resolutions. At 1080p, it offers 254 FPS, at 1440p it offers 165 FPS, and at 4K it offers 89 FPS. This consistency makes it the safest recommendation for users who want to play at any resolution without adjusting settings. For those with high refresh rate monitors at 1440p, the High preset (139 FPS) is also a strong choice, as it provides a better visual experience while still maintaining frame rates above 120 FPS.