Doom

# Doom (2016) — Intel Core i5-12400 + AMD Radeon RX 570

This pairing of a 6-core Alder Lake CPU with a Polaris-era GPU produces playable 1080p results in Doom, but the data shows a clear ceiling at higher resolutions. The RX 570’s 4 GB GDDR5 frame buffer and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth become the dominant constraint as pixel count rises, while the i5-12400’s strong single-thread performance (3dmark_single_thread score of 910) keeps the CPU from bottlenecking even at low settings. The measured FPS range from 19 at 4K Ultra to 92 at 1080p Low, with the sweet spot appearing at 1080p Medium where the average of 80 FPS aligns with the minimum of 68 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and consistent across every settings preset. At High settings, the average falls from 68 FPS at 1920x1080 to 44 FPS at 2560x1440, then to 24 FPS at 3840x2160. That’s a 35% reduction moving from 1080p to 1440p, and another 45% drop going to 4K. The scaling pattern strongly indicates a GPU-bound scenario — the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K, but the FPS doesn’t scale linearly, which is typical when the renderer hits memory bandwidth or fillrate limits.

At Low settings, the trend is similar but with higher absolute numbers: 92 FPS at 1080p, 60 FPS at 1440p, and 32 FPS at 4K. The 1080p-to-1440p drop here is 35%, matching the High preset’s relative decline. However, the 1440p-to-4K decline is 47%, slightly steeper than at High. This suggests that even at Low settings, the RX 570’s pixel throughput (39.81 GPixel/s) and texture rate (159.2 GTexel/s) are insufficient for 4K, regardless of how much CPU headroom is available.

The Medium preset offers the only complete min/max data across all three resolutions. At 1080p, the average is 80 FPS with a minimum of 68 FPS and maximum of 93 FPS. At 1440p, the average drops to 52 FPS, with min/max of 44 and 60. At 4K, the average falls to 28 FPS, with min/max of 24 and 32. The minimum-to-maximum spread narrows as resolution increases — a 25 FPS range at 1080p becomes a 16 FPS range at 1440p, then just 8 FPS at 4K. This compression of variance at higher resolutions further confirms that the GPU is the limiting component; when pixel count saturates the renderer, frame time consistency improves but overall throughput collapses.

The jump from 1080p Medium (80 FPS) to 4K Medium (28 FPS) represents a 65% loss in average frame rate. For a game like Doom, which relies on fast movement and quick target acquisition, the 4K results are effectively unplayable across all presets. The 1440p results are borderline — 44 FPS at High and 36 FPS at Ultra are below the 60 FPS threshold most players target, though Low and Medium hit 60 and 52 FPS respectively. The data suggests that 1080p is the only resolution where this combo delivers consistently smooth performance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 brings six physical cores and twelve threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its Alder Lake architecture, built on a 10 nm process at Intel, provides the kind of single-thread muscle that Doom’s id Tech 6 engine exploits. The 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 places this chip well above the median, and the 3dmark_2_threads score of 1692 shows strong dual-core scaling — relevant for a game that typically uses 4-8 threads.

Looking at the benchmark suite, the i5-12400 scores 5873 in 3dmark_16_threads and 5890 in 3dmark_max_threads, indicating that all 12 threads are utilized effectively. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15989 and single-core score of 2257 demonstrate a balanced profile: the chip can feed the GPU without becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios. The Passmark single-thread score of 3456 reinforces this, while the multithread score of 18747 shows headroom for background tasks.

In Doom specifically, the CPU’s role is to maintain frame pacing and handle game logic, physics, and AI. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (92 FPS) is likely near the CPU’s practical limit for this title, but the fact that the GPU still scales down to 32 FPS at 4K Low suggests the CPU is never the primary constraint. The 3dmark_4_threads score of 3012 and 3dmark_8_threads score of 4745 indicate that the chip has enough multi-threaded throughput to avoid stutter even when the GPU is fully saturated.

The nearest rival data places the i5-12400 at the 72nd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 18683. Its closest competitor, the AMD EPYC 7643, scores 18697 (0.1% higher), while the Intel Core i7-1355U trails by 0.3% at 18730. The AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 is 0.7% ahead at 18811, and the Intel Core i3-14100F is 0.9% behind at 18519. These margins are negligible in real-world gaming, meaning the i5-12400’s performance class is well established for this workload.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Doom at 60 FPS in 1080p?

A: Yes, at Low and Medium settings. The measured average FPS is 92 at Low and 80 at Medium, with the Medium minimum hitting 68 FPS. High settings average 68 FPS, which is above 60 but leaves less headroom for dips. Ultra averages 56 FPS, which falls short.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1440p?

A: The GPU. At 1440p Low, the average is 60 FPS, but High drops to 44 FPS and Ultra to 36 FPS. The CPU’s benchmark scores (e.g., 3dmark_single_thread of 910) are unchanged by resolution, so the FPS decline is purely attributable to the RX 570’s rendering limits.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 1440p monitor?

A: Low settings, which hit 60 FPS average. Medium is close at 52 FPS, but the minimum of 44 FPS may cause noticeable hitches during intense combat. High and Ultra (44 and 36 FPS respectively) are not recommended for smooth play.

Q: How does the RX 570 compare to its closest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 570 sits at the 74th percentile among all GPUs with an average score of 28766. It trails the AMD Radeon RX 6800M by 0.4% (28874) and the AMD Radeon RX 470 by 0.8% (28996), while leading the AMD Radeon R9 M295X by 0.7% (28580) and the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 by 1.2% (28421).

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this hardware in Doom?

A: No. The best 4K result is 32 FPS at Low settings. Medium averages 28 FPS, High 24 FPS, and Ultra 19 FPS. All presets fall well below the 60 FPS target, and even the 30 FPS console-style threshold is only barely met at Low.

Q: Does the i5-12400’s cache configuration matter for Doom?

A: The 18 MB shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 per core provide sufficient data locality for the game’s streaming needs. The 3dmark_16_threads score of 5873 versus 3dmark_max_threads of 5890 shows that 16 threads capture nearly all available performance, meaning the cache hierarchy isn’t a bottleneck in this title.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings range is available for playable frame rates. Low settings deliver the highest average at 92 FPS, with Medium at 80 FPS (minimum 68, maximum 93). High settings average 68 FPS, which is playable but with less margin. Ultra drops to 56 FPS, indicating that the RX 570’s 2048 shading units and 32 ROPs are stretched by the highest quality assets.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance cliff becomes apparent. Low settings still manage a 60 FPS average, which is the minimum acceptable for fast-paced shooters. Medium averages 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS — the first preset where dips below 45 FPS occur. High falls to 44 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 36 FPS. The 1440p data shows that only Low settings maintain a consistent 60 FPS, and even that has no headroom.

At 3840x2160, all presets produce averages below 35 FPS. Low is the highest at 32 FPS, followed by Medium at 28 FPS (minimum 24, maximum 32), High at 24 FPS, and Ultra at 19 FPS. The 4K results are uniformly unplayable for a game that requires rapid camera movement. The 4 GB VRAM capacity, paired with a 256-bit memory bus and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, is simply insufficient for the texture and geometry loads at this resolution.

The measured data includes only average FPS for most presets, but the Medium preset provides min and max values at each resolution. At 1080p, the 68 FPS minimum ensures that even the most intense scenes stay above 60 FPS. At 1440p, the 44 FPS minimum means there will be visible stutter during combat. At 4K, the 24 FPS minimum makes the game feel like a slideshow.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is built on the Polaris 20 chip using a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, with 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die. Its GCN 4.0 architecture provides 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The base clock of 1168 MHz boosts to 1244 MHz, delivering 5.095 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The memory subsystem consists of 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) for 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

In Doom, the GPU’s role is dominant across all resolutions. The 3dmark_steel_nomad_dx12 score of 880 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 42752 indicate that the card has reasonable API-level performance for modern titles. The pixel rate of 39.81 GPixel/s and texture rate of 159.2 GTexel/s explain why 4K is out of reach: pushing 8.3 million pixels per frame at 4K requires fillrate that this card simply doesn’t possess.

The RX 570’s nearest rivals show how tightly clustered this performance class is. The AMD Radeon RX 6800M (average score 28874) is only 0.4% faster, which is surprising given the 6800M is a mobile part from a later generation. The Radeon RX 470 is 0.8% slower at 28996, and the R9 M295X trails by 0.7% at 28580. The NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000, a professional card, is 1.2% slower at 28421 — demonstrating that Doom’s workload is more dependent on raw throughput than on specialized features.

The GPU’s 74th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 28766, places it in the upper-midrange for its era. However, the 150 W TDP and single 6-pin power connector indicate that this is not a high-end part by modern standards. The 4 GB VRAM limitation becomes critical at 1440p and above, as the frame buffer fills with Doom’s detailed textures, causing the GPU to fall back on slower memory paging.

Settings Recommendations

For a 1080p display, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. The 80 FPS average with a 68 FPS minimum ensures smooth gameplay without sacrificing too much detail. High settings at 68 FPS are also viable if you prefer sharper textures, but the lower minimum FPS (not measured, but implied by the tighter margin) may cause occasional dips. Ultra at 56 FPS is borderline — playable but not ideal for competitive play.

At 1440p, the choice is stark: Low settings for 60 FPS average, or Medium for 52 FPS with a 44 FPS minimum. Given Doom’s fast pace, the 60 FPS target should be prioritized. Low settings will reduce texture quality and shadow detail, but the core gameplay remains intact. High and Ultra are not recommended at this resolution, as both fall below 45 FPS average.

For 4K displays, no preset provides an acceptable experience. The highest average is 32 FPS at Low, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and even dips below 30 FPS in busy scenes. The data suggests that this hardware combination is not suitable for 4K gaming in Doom, and users should either lower the resolution to 1440p or upgrade the GPU.

The combo’s overall rank of 3547 out of 3712 combinations in Doom indicates that this is a low-performing pairing for this specific title. However, the 1080p Medium result of 80 FPS shows that the hardware can deliver a solid experience when resolution is scaled appropriately. The i5-12400’s strong CPU performance (72nd percentile) ensures that any future GPU upgrade will not be bottlenecked by the processor. For now, the RX 570’s 74th percentile GPU ranking is the limiting factor, and settings should be chosen accordingly: 1080p Medium for the best visual-to-performance ratio, or 1080p Low for maximum frame rate.