Doom

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT delivers a strong performance profile in Doom, with measured results showing a clear progression from fluid 1080p gameplay to playable 4K. Analysis of the frame rate data reveals how the workload shifts between the CPU and GPU as resolution increases, with the system ultimately proving more than capable for this 2016 title across all tested settings.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a predictable decline as resolution increases, but the rate of that decline reveals important information about the system's balance. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 191.8 FPS at 1920x1080 to 127.6 FPS at 2560x1440, representing a 33.5% reduction. Moving to 3840x2160, the frame rate falls to 67 FPS, which is a 47.5% drop from the 1440p result. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, where the rendering workload grows faster than the CPU's ability to feed frames.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens substantially as resolution increases, which further confirms the GPU's growing dominance in the performance equation. At 1080p, the spread between Low (263.8 FPS) and Ultra (159.9 FPS) is 103.9 FPS. At 4K, that spread narrows to 37.6 FPS (93 FPS Low versus 55.4 FPS Ultra). The compression of the settings gap at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor, as the additional pixel workload from 4K overwhelms the differences between individual quality presets.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU still has headroom to spare, as evidenced by the massive frame rates achieved. At 4K, however, the RX 7700 XT's rendering capabilities are the primary constraint, with the i5-12400's six cores proving sufficient to keep up with the GPU's output. The transition point appears to be around 1440p, where the system achieves a balanced state that leverages both components effectively.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT brings substantial rendering resources to bear on Doom, with 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus providing 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's architecture, built on RDNA 3.0 with a 5 nm process, includes 3456 shading units and 96 ROPs, which directly contribute to the high fill rates observed in the benchmark results. The boost clock of 2544 MHz and game clock of 2171 MHz provide the raw processing speed needed for the frame rates seen in the measured data.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 73rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 30097. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, scores 30109, a delta of 0%, indicating near-identical synthetic performance. The RX 7700 XT also compares closely to the AMD Radeon RX 570, which scores 30158, showing a -0.2% delta. These synthetic results align with the measured gaming performance, where the GPU consistently delivers high frame rates across all resolution and settings combinations.

The VRAM capacity of 12 GB proves more than adequate for Doom, even at 4K Ultra settings where the game's textures and effects demand significant memory resources. The 432.0 GB/s memory bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and shader operations do not become bottlenecks, allowing the GPU's compute units to operate at full efficiency. The pixel rate of 244.2 GPixel/s and texture rate of 549.5 GTexel/s provide the throughput necessary for the frame rates observed, particularly at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the primary constraint.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 provides the computational foundation for this system, featuring six cores and twelve threads with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Alder Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process, delivers strong single-threaded performance that is crucial for Doom's game logic and physics calculations. The 18 MB of shared L3 cache helps reduce memory latency, while the dual-channel memory support ensures adequate bandwidth for feeding both the CPU and GPU.

The CPU's benchmark results show it performs in the 77th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19850. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-9700, scores 19831, a delta of 0.1%, indicating essentially identical synthetic performance. The i5-12400 also matches the Intel Core i7-8700 at 19894 (-0.2% delta) and the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX at 19928 (-0.4% delta), demonstrating that this mid-range processor punches well above its weight class in compute-intensive workloads.

In the context of Doom, the CPU's six cores and twelve threads provide ample processing power for the game's AI, physics, and rendering pipeline. The measured frame rates at 1080p, where the CPU has the most influence, show the i5-12400 capable of pushing over 260 FPS at Low settings, indicating that it is not a limiting factor even at extremely high frame rates. The single-threaded performance, evidenced by a 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and a cinebench_r23_singlecore score of 2249, ensures that the game's main thread never becomes a bottleneck.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT ranks 747th out of 1681 tested combos for Doom, placing it in the 55.6th percentile of all system configurations. This mid-pack ranking reflects the balance between the CPU's strong single-threaded performance and the GPU's capable rendering power, though neither component is at the absolute top of its respective class.

The ranking demonstrates that this combo is well-suited for Doom's requirements, as the game benefits from both high single-threaded CPU performance and substantial GPU throughput. The i5-12400's 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and the RX 7700 XT's passmark_g3d score of 22547 combine to produce frame rates that exceed the requirements of most displays, particularly at 1080p and 1440p resolutions.

The data shows that this combo is more than sufficient for a smooth gaming experience in Doom, with even the most demanding settings at 4K producing an average of 55.4 FPS, which remains playable. The ranking of 747th out of 1681 suggests that there are many faster configurations, but the measured performance indicates that this system delivers a well-rounded experience without any obvious weak points.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, all settings produce playable frame rates, with Low achieving 263.8 FPS, Medium at 226.3 FPS, High at 191.8 FPS, and Ultra at 159.9 FPS. For players with high refresh rate monitors, even Ultra settings exceed 144 FPS, making this resolution the best choice for competitive or fast-paced play.

At 2560x1440, the High preset at 127.6 FPS provides an excellent balance between visual quality and performance, though players seeking maximum smoothness may prefer Medium at 145.3 FPS. The Ultra preset at 102.5 FPS remains playable but does not offer a significant visual improvement over High for the 25.1 FPS cost. The Low preset at 168.6 FPS is suitable for players who prioritize frame rate above all else.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset at 93 FPS delivers the most responsive experience, while Medium at 82.7 FPS offers a reasonable compromise between visuals and performance. The High preset at 67 FPS is playable for most users, but the Ultra preset at 55.4 FPS may feel less smooth during intense action sequences. For 4K gaming, the Medium or High presets represent the best balance, as the visual differences between Medium and Ultra are less apparent at this resolution while the frame rate impact is substantial.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers exceptional performance across all settings. The Low preset achieves 263.8 FPS, which drops to 226.3 FPS at Medium, 191.8 FPS at High, and 159.9 FPS at Ultra. These results indicate that the CPU and GPU combination is well-matched for 1080p gaming, with even the most demanding settings producing frame rates well above the refresh rate of most monitors.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but begins to show the GPU's limitations. The Low preset delivers 168.6 FPS, Medium achieves 145.3 FPS, High reaches 127.6 FPS, and Ultra drops to 102.5 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a 39.2% reduction in frame rate, reflecting the increased pixel workload at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the primary constraint. The Low preset produces 93 FPS, Medium achieves 82.7 FPS, High delivers 67 FPS, and Ultra drops to 55.4 FPS. The frame rate reduction from Low to Ultra at 4K is 40.4%, which is similar to the reduction at 1440p, but the absolute values are much lower. The system remains playable at all settings, though Ultra may not provide a consistently smooth experience during fast-paced gameplay.