Doom

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT delivers a robust Doom experience, with benchmark data indicating that the graphics card is the primary performance arbiter across the tested resolution spectrum. The measured frame rates demonstrate a predictable scaling pattern as pixel count increases, but the margins between settings at each resolution reveal where the bottleneck shifts between the CPU and GPU.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial across all settings presets, confirming that the Radeon RX 6650 XT becomes the limiting component as resolution climbs. At Low settings, the transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 sees the average frame rate fall from 200 FPS to 70 FPS — a 65% reduction. This steep decline indicates that at 1080p with Low settings, the CPU is likely holding the combo back, as the GPU has ample headroom to render frames quickly, whereas at 4K the GPU's shading and memory bandwidth constraints dominate.

The Medium preset shows a similar trajectory, dropping from 174 FPS at 1080p to 113 FPS at 1440p, then further down to 61 FPS at 4K. The scaling between 1440p and 4K for Medium settings is a 46% reduction, which closely mirrors the Low preset's 45.7% drop between those same resolutions. This consistency suggests that once the resolution demands exceed the GPU's fill rate capabilities, the performance loss is proportional regardless of the quality preset.

High settings present an interesting anomaly: the 1080p to 1440p drop is from 147 FPS to 95 FPS (35.4% reduction), but the 1440p to 4K drop is from 95 FPS to 51 FPS (46.3% reduction). The larger percentage loss at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU's 8 GB VRAM buffer and 128-bit memory interface become progressively more stressed, particularly as texture quality increases alongside resolution.

Ultra settings exhibit the most dramatic scaling, with 120 FPS at 1080p collapsing to 78 FPS at 1440p (35% reduction) and then to 42 FPS at 4K (46.2% reduction from 1440p). The absolute frame rate at 4K Ultra — 42 FPS — falls below the 60 FPS threshold that most displays target, making this preset combination impractical for smooth gameplay at that resolution.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT's specifications directly explain the measured performance envelope. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus delivering 280.3 GB/s of bandwidth, the card has sufficient memory throughput for 1080p and 1440p gaming but begins to strain at 4K with higher quality presets. The GPU's boost clock of 2635 MHz and game clock of 2410 MHz provide the raw compute headroom, but the 2048 shading units and 64 ROPs limit how many pixels can be processed per frame at high resolutions.

The card's FP32 performance of 10.79 TFLOPS is adequate for Doom's Vulkan-accelerated rendering, but the 4K Ultra result of 42 FPS suggests that the combination of pixel fill rate (168.6 GPixel/s) and texture rate (337.3 GTexel/s) is insufficient for the heaviest workload tested. The GPU's percentile ranking of 65 among all GPUs places it in the upper-middle tier, and its nearest rivals — including the NVIDIA Tesla K40m and AMD FirePro D300 — show that it performs within a narrow band of professional-grade cards from previous generations.

The VRAM capacity of 8 GB is sufficient for the measured presets, as evidenced by the fact that even at 4K Ultra the card does not exhibit catastrophic frame drops, merely a reduction to playable-but-not-smooth territory. However, the 128-bit memory bus means that bandwidth, rather than capacity, is the limiting factor at 4K. The memory clock of 2190 MHz (17.5 Gbps effective) is consistent with the card's mid-range positioning, and the 280.3 GB/s bandwidth is what allows the 4K Medium result of 61 FPS to remain above playable thresholds.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this pairing of Intel Core i5-12400F and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT achieves rank 2418 out of 3712 total combos for Doom. This places it in the 65th percentile of all tested systems, meaning roughly two-thirds of all CPU-GPU pairings deliver higher average frame rates in this title. The rank reflects a balanced mid-range configuration that excels at 1080p but cannot compete with higher-end GPUs at 4K.

The CPU's benchmark scores provide context for its role in this ranking. The Core i5-12400F achieves a 73rd percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19039. Its nearest CPU rivals include the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (deltaPct 0) and Intel Core 3 201E (deltaPct -0.1), showing that the i5-12400F sits at the boundary of a performance plateau where many processors offer nearly identical throughput. The single-thread score of 909 in 3DMark and 1680 in Cinebench R23 single-core indicate that the CPU does not bottleneck the GPU in most scenarios, but at 1080p Low settings, where the GPU produces 200 FPS, the CPU's multi-threaded limits may start to surface.

The GPU's rank of 65th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19765, places it slightly below its CPU counterpart in relative standing. The nearest GPU rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla K40m (deltaPct -0.6) and AMD FirePro D300 (deltaPct 0.7), all within 1% of each other. This suggests that the RX 6650 XT is neither a standout nor a laggard within its performance class, and the combo's overall rank of 2418 reflects that the GPU's mid-tier positioning limits the system's ability to achieve top-tier frame rates in Doom.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers high refresh rate performance across all presets. Low settings produce an average of 200 FPS, which is the maximum measured value across the entire dataset. Medium settings achieve 174 FPS with a minimum of 148 FPS and maximum of 200 FPS, indicating consistent frame delivery without significant dips. High settings yield 147 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 120 FPS. All four presets at 1080p exceed the 120 FPS threshold, making this resolution ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but begins to show the GPU's limitations. Low settings average 129 FPS, Medium settings average 113 FPS with a minimum of 96 and maximum of 129, and High settings average 95 FPS. Ultra settings drop to 78 FPS, which is still playable but below the 144 Hz refresh rate that many 1440p monitors support. The Medium preset's minimum of 96 FPS suggests that even in demanding scenes, the frame rate stays above 90 FPS, providing a smooth experience.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor. Low settings produce 70 FPS, which is playable but below the 75 Hz threshold some 4K monitors offer. Medium settings average 61 FPS with a minimum of 52 and maximum of 70, indicating noticeable frame dips during intense action sequences. High settings drop to 51 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 42 FPS. The 4K results show that this combo is only suitable for 4K gaming at Low or Medium settings, and even then, frame pacing may be inconsistent.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset at 120 FPS provides the best balance of visual quality and performance, as it remains well above the 60 FPS minimum for smooth gameplay while offering the highest fidelity. Players with 144 Hz displays should consider the High preset at 147 FPS, which provides a 22.5% frame rate increase over Ultra while still maintaining high visual quality. The Medium preset at 174 FPS is recommended for competitive play where maximum frame rates are prioritized, as it approaches the 200 FPS maximum measured for Low settings.

At 1440p, the Medium preset at 113 FPS is the optimal choice for most users, as it delivers a minimum of 96 FPS that ensures consistent smoothness even during heavy combat sequences. The High preset at 95 FPS is acceptable for those who prioritize visual fidelity, but the 18 FPS difference between Medium and High may be noticeable on high-refresh-rate panels. The Ultra preset at 78 FPS is playable but represents a significant compromise in frame rate for marginal visual gains, and the Low preset at 129 FPS is recommended for competitive play where response time is paramount.

For 4K gaming, the Low preset at 70 FPS is the only setting that consistently exceeds the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 61 FPS with a minimum of 52 FPS is borderline, as frame dips below 60 FPS during intense scenes may cause perceptible stuttering. The High and Ultra presets at 51 FPS and 42 FPS respectively are not recommended for 4K, as they fall below the playability threshold for most users. Players targeting 4K should either accept the Low preset or consider a more powerful GPU.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum frame rate this combo achieves in Doom?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 200 at 1920x1080 with Low settings, which represents the ceiling for this configuration.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Doom?

A: At 4K, only the Low preset (70 FPS) and Medium preset (61 FPS) exceed 60 FPS average, while High (51 FPS) and Ultra (42 FPS) fall below playable thresholds.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19039, which is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (19047, deltaPct 0) and the Intel Core 3 201E (19056, deltaPct -0.1).

Q: What is the GPU's memory configuration and how does it affect performance?

A: The RX 6650 XT features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus with 280.3 GB/s bandwidth, which is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p but limits 4K performance at higher settings.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested systems?

A: This pairing ranks 2418 out of 3712 total combinations for Doom, placing it in the 65th percentile of all tested CPU-GPU pairings.

Q: Which settings provide the best experience at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 113 FPS with a minimum of 96 FPS offers the best combination of smoothness and visual quality, as it maintains frame rates above 90 FPS even in demanding scenes.