Doom

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 delivers a robust experience in Doom, with the data showing a system that scales predictably across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the combination is heavily CPU-limited at lower settings, while at 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the primary constraint. The measured frames per second (FPS) across all settings and resolutions indicate a well-balanced pairing for this title, though the gap between Low and Ultra presets widens significantly as resolution increases.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system achieves 258 FPS, but this drops to 190 FPS at High settings and 155 FPS at Ultra. The delta between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 103 FPS, which is substantial. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU's single-thread performance and the GPU's raw compute are both being taxed, but the CPU is likely the limiting factor for the highest frame rates, as the RTX 3070 has headroom to push beyond 258 FPS if the processor could feed it faster.

Moving to 2560x1440, the scaling becomes more uniform. Low settings yield 167 FPS, Medium drops to 145 FPS, High to 123 FPS, and Ultra to 100 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra here is 67 FPS, which is narrower than at 1080p. This indicates that the GPU is beginning to take on a larger share of the workload, as the pixel count increases by 78% compared to 1080p, yet the frame rate only drops by approximately 35% on the Low preset. The RTX 3070's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient to handle the increased memory pressure at this resolution without causing a steep performance cliff.

At 3840x2160, the trend continues, but the absolute FPS values become more moderate. Low settings produce 90 FPS, Medium 79 FPS, High 67 FPS, and Ultra 54 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra is now only 36 FPS, which is less than half of the 1080p spread. This compression indicates that the GPU is now the definitive limiting component. The RTX 3070's 20.31 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 165.6 GPixel/s pixel rate are being fully utilized, and the frame rate differences between presets are driven by the GPU's ability to handle the additional shading and texture work rather than any CPU constraint.

The data also shows that the step from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 35% of the frame rate on Low settings (258 to 167 FPS), while the step from 1440p to 4K costs roughly 46% on the same preset (167 to 90 FPS). This non-linear scaling is typical of a system where the GPU becomes progressively more saturated. The 4K Ultra result of 54 FPS is the only measured point below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that for smooth 4K gameplay, users should consider Medium or High presets, which deliver 79 and 67 FPS respectively.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this CPU-GPU combo in Doom?*

A: The highest measured average FPS is 258, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest measured average is 54 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: How does the RTX 3070 compare to its nearest rival, the RX 7600 XT, in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 3070 has an average benchmark score of 17208, which is 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT's score of 17083. This places the RTX 3070 slightly ahead in the aggregate benchmark data.

Q: Is the Core i5-12400 a limiting factor at 1080p in this game?

A: Yes, the data suggests CPU limitation at 1080p. At Low settings, the system reaches 258 FPS, but the CPU's single-thread score of 910 in 3dmark and 2257 in Cinebench R23 single-core suggests it is near its limit. The GPU, which has a Passmark G3D score of 22214, could potentially push higher frame rates if the CPU were faster.

*Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations for Doom?*

A: The Intel Core i5-12400 and RTX 3070 combo ranks 1596 out of 3712 tested combinations, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all tested systems for this game.

Q: Does the RTX 3070's memory bandwidth affect performance at 4K?

A: The 8 GB GDDR6 memory with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth appears sufficient, as the 4K Medium preset still delivers 79 FPS with a minimum of 67 FPS. The bandwidth is not a bottleneck at 4K, as the frame rate drop from 1440p to 4K is consistent with GPU compute limitations rather than memory stalls.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its rivals?

A: The i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 18683, which is 0.1% lower than the AMD EPYC 7643's score of 18697 and 0.3% lower than the Intel Core i7-1355U's score of 18730. It is 0.9% higher than the Core i3-14100F's score of 18519.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Alder Lake-S architecture, built on a 10 nm process. Its base clock is 2.50 GHz, boosting to 4.40 GHz, with an 18 MB shared L3 cache. This configuration provides solid single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3dmark single-thread score of 910 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2257. In Doom, which is a title that scales well with single-thread performance, this allows the CPU to keep up with the GPU at lower resolutions.

At 1920x1080, the CPU's role is most evident. The jump from Low to Ultra settings only reduces the frame rate from 258 to 155 FPS, a 40% drop. This is less than the proportional increase in GPU workload, which suggests the CPU is capping the maximum frame rate. The i5-12400's Passmark single-thread score of 3456 and 3dmark 2-thread score of 1692 indicate that its per-core speed is adequate for high-refresh gaming, but the 4.40 GHz boost clock is not enough to push beyond 258 FPS in this scenario.

The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are less critical for Doom, but the 12 threads provide headroom for background tasks. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 15989 and 3dmark max-thread score of 5890 show that the processor can handle heavier workloads, but in this game, those resources are largely idle. The 65W TDP and dual-channel memory support (DDR4 and DDR5) ensure that the CPU does not become a thermal or bandwidth constraint in most scenarios.

The nearest rival data shows the i5-12400 is competitive with the Core i7-1355U (deltaPct -0.3) and AMD EPYC 7643 (deltaPct -0.1) in average benchmark scores. This means the CPU's overall performance is well within the expected range for its class, and it should not be the primary bottleneck in Doom at resolutions above 1080p. At 2560x1440 and 3840x2160, the frame rate differences between presets correlate more strongly with GPU load, confirming that the CPU is sufficient for this title.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 ranks 1596 out of 3712 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the 57th percentile of all tested systems. This ranking is based on the measured FPS data across all resolutions and settings, and it indicates that this pairing delivers above-average performance for this game, but it is not at the top of the charts.

To contextualize this rank, consider that the RTX 3070's average benchmark score of 17208 places it in the 61st percentile among all GPUs, while the i5-12400's average score of 18683 places it in the 72nd percentile among all CPUs. The combo rank of 1596 is lower than both individual percentiles would suggest, which implies that the GPU is the limiting factor in this pairing for Doom. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 22214 and 3dmark Steel Nomad score of 3162 are solid, but they are not exceptional enough to push the combo into the top quartile.

The rank of 1596 means there are 2116 combos that perform worse and 1595 that perform better. This is a reasonable position for a mid-range CPU and upper-mid-range GPU pairing. The RTX 3070's nearest rival, the RX 7600 XT, has a lower average score (17083), but the margin is only 0.7%, so the combo rank could shift slightly with different driver versions or game patches. The data shows that this combo is well-suited for 1440p gaming at high settings, where it achieves 123 FPS, and can handle 4K at medium settings with 79 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is built on the Ampere architecture, using the GA104 chip on an 8 nm process from Samsung. It features 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units, and 96 raster output units, with a base clock of 1500 MHz and a boost clock of 1725 MHz. The memory configuration is 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. These specifications translate to 20.31 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and a texture rate of 317.4 GTexel/s, which are the key metrics for rasterized gaming performance.

In Doom, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the RTX 3070's compute power is more than sufficient, and the frame rates are likely capped by the CPU. However, at 2560x1440, the GPU starts to show its strength, with the Medium preset delivering 145 FPS and a minimum of 124 FPS. The 8 GB VRAM is not a constraint at this resolution, as the game's texture requirements are within the memory capacity.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the dominant factor. The Ultra preset drops to 54 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target, indicating that the RTX 3070 is at its limits for this title. The Medium preset at 79 FPS with a minimum of 67 FPS is the sweet spot for 4K, as it balances visual quality with playable frame rates. The High preset at 67 FPS is also viable, but the minimum FPS is not recorded for that setting, so the Medium preset's 67 FPS minimum provides more confidence in consistency.

The GPU's benchmark data supports its gaming performance. The Passmark G3D score of 22214 is strong, and the Geekbench Vulkan score of 21022 indicates solid API-level performance. The RTX 3070's nearest rival, the GTX 690, has a higher average score (17037) by 1%, but the GTX 690 is a much older dual-GPU card, so its real-world gaming performance is not comparable to the RTX 3070's modern feature set. The 61st percentile ranking among all GPUs means the RTX 3070 is above average, but it is not a top-tier card for 4K gaming at maximum settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the combo's performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the results are as follows: Low settings produce an average of 258 FPS, Medium settings produce 225 FPS with a minimum of 191 FPS and a maximum of 258 FPS, High settings produce 190 FPS, and Ultra settings produce 155 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is consistent, with each step costing roughly 25-35 FPS, indicating a well-balanced GPU workload.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low 167 FPS, Medium 145 FPS (with a minimum of 124 FPS and a maximum of 167 FPS), High 123 FPS, and Ultra 100 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is approximately 35% across all settings, which is slightly more than the pixel count increase of 78%, suggesting that the GPU is becoming more of a factor. The Medium preset's minimum of 124 FPS is still well above the 60 FPS threshold, making it a safe choice for 1440p gaming.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low 90 FPS, Medium 79 FPS (with a minimum of 67 FPS and a maximum of 91 FPS), High 67 FPS, and Ultra 54 FPS. The 4K results show that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the frame rates scale directly with the GPU's compute load. The Medium preset is the only one at 4K that provides both a high average (79 FPS) and a reasonable minimum (67 FPS), making it the recommended preset for 4K.

The data also reveals that the jump from High to Ultra at 4K is particularly costly, with a 13 FPS drop (67 to 54 FPS), which represents a 19% performance loss. This suggests that the Ultra preset includes effects that are disproportionately expensive on the RTX 3070's 20.31 TFLOPS of compute. Conversely, the jump from Low to Medium at 4K is only 11 FPS (90 to 79 FPS), indicating that Medium offers a good balance of visual quality and performance.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1920x1080, all settings are playable, with even Ultra achieving 155 FPS, which is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate of most monitors. For maximum smoothness, Low settings at 258 FPS will minimize input latency, but High settings at 190 FPS provide a better visual experience without sacrificing responsiveness. Medium settings at 225 FPS are a strong middle ground, offering a 191 FPS minimum that ensures no drops below the refresh rate of standard 144 Hz displays.

For 2560x1440, the data recommends Medium or High settings. Medium achieves 145 FPS with a minimum of 124 FPS, which is ideal for 144 Hz monitors. High settings at 123 FPS are also viable, but the minimum FPS is not recorded, so there is some uncertainty about consistency. Ultra at 100 FPS is acceptable for 60 Hz displays, but it does not take full advantage of higher refresh rate monitors. Low settings at 167 FPS are an option for competitive play, but the visual quality loss is significant.

For 3840x2160, the clear recommendation is Medium settings. The 79 FPS average and 67 FPS minimum provide a smooth experience that stays above the 60 FPS threshold, which is the standard for 4K gaming. High settings at 67 FPS are close to the limit, but without a recorded minimum, there is a risk of drops below 60 FPS. Ultra at 54 FPS is not recommended for 4K, as it falls below the playable threshold. Low settings at 90 FPS are an option for users who prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity, but the Medium preset offers a significantly better visual experience for only a 12% frame rate cost.

In summary, the ideal presets are: 1080p High (190 FPS), 1440p Medium (145 FPS), and 4K Medium (79 FPS). These settings balance visual quality with high and consistent frame rates, leveraging the RTX 3070's strengths while avoiding the performance cliff at Ultra settings on higher resolutions.