Doom

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB delivers a playable but constrained experience in Doom, ranking in the bottom 10% of tested combinations. The data shows a system where the GPU’s 4 GB memory capacity and limited bandwidth are the primary bottlenecks, particularly at higher resolutions and settings, while the CPU provides ample headroom.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall ranking of this combo in Doom?

A: This combination ranks 1510 out of 1681 tested combos, placing it in the 10th percentile of all systems tested for this game. This is a low ranking, indicating a significant performance deficit compared to the majority of other hardware pairings.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19221. It is virtually tied with the Intel Core i7-8700K, which scores 19210, and the Intel Core i5-1335U, which scores 19167. It is slightly ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS, which scores 19364, by 0.3%, and behind it by 0.7%.

Q: What is the best 1080p performance this combo can achieve?

A: At 1920x1080, the highest average FPS is achieved on Low settings, reaching 137.1 FPS. The High preset delivers 103.2 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 80.5 FPS.

Q: Is this system capable of 4K gaming in Doom?

A: No. At 3840x2160, even on the lowest settings, the average FPS is only 49. On High settings, it drops to 32.4 FPS, and on Ultra it falls to 26.6 FPS, which is not smooth for an FPS title.

Q: What are the core and clock specifications of the CPU?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400F has 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It features 18 MB of shared L3 cache.

Q: What are the memory specifications of the GPU?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB has 4 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s. Its boost clock is 1740 MHz.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 1510 out of 1681 is a stark indicator of this system's position in the performance hierarchy for Doom. This places the pairing in the bottom 10% of all combos tested, signaling that it is far less capable than the average system used for this game. This low ranking is not a reflection of a single weak component but rather a combination of factors that become apparent when analyzing the scaling of performance across different settings and resolutions.

The CPU itself is not a weak link in the traditional sense. Its average benchmark score of 19221 places it in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, and it is essentially on par with the Intel Core i7-8700K, a former flagship. This suggests the processor has sufficient computational power for gaming. The bottleneck lies elsewhere. The GPU, in contrast, sits in the 50th percentile of all GPUs, with its modest 4 GB memory buffer and 192.0 GB/s bandwidth. The data indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor, dragging the overall system ranking down. The result is that while the CPU could likely push higher frame rates, the GPU is unable to keep up, capping the system's potential and resulting in its low position in the rankings.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K clearly illustrates where the system's limitations lie. At 1920x1080 on High settings, the system produces an average of 103.2 FPS, which is a solidly playable frame rate. Moving to 2560x1440 on the same High preset, the average FPS drops to 65.2, a decrease of about 37%. This is a significant drop, but the game remains playable. However, the jump to 3840x2160 on High settings is catastrophic, with the average FPS plummeting to 32.4, a further 50% reduction from the 1440p figure.

This pattern is consistent across all settings presets. For example, on Low settings, the FPS goes from 137.1 at 1080p to 90.6 at 1440p, and then to 49 at 4K. The extreme drop at 4K, where the frame rate is less than half of the 1440p result, points directly to the GPU's memory bandwidth and capacity being overwhelmed. The 4 GB VRAM is likely being saturated at this resolution, forcing the system to rely on slower memory paging. This behavior confirms that the GPU is the primary limiting component; the CPU's performance is not the reason for the severe frame rate collapse at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the system's capabilities. At 1920x1080, the system handles all presets well. The Low preset yields an average of 137.1 FPS, Medium produces 118.8 FPS, High reaches 103.2 FPS, and even the demanding Ultra preset maintains an average of 80.5 FPS. This makes 1080p the resolution where the combo is most comfortable, offering high refresh rate potential on lower settings and still maintaining a smooth experience on higher ones.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance is still respectable but begins to show strain. The Low preset averages 90.6 FPS, Medium 75 FPS, and High 65.2 FPS. The Ultra preset, however, drops to an average of 56.1 FPS, which is on the edge of what is ideal for a fast-paced FPS. At 3840x2160, the system struggles across the board. The Low preset is the only one that approaches playability with an average of 49 FPS. Medium drops to 41.1 FPS, High to 32.4 FPS, and Ultra to a very choppy 26.6 FPS. The data shows a clear hierarchy: 1080p is the target resolution for this combo, 1440p is playable with adjusted settings, and 4K is not a viable option for a good experience.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB is the decisive component in this system's performance profile. Its specifications—4 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus with 192.0 GB/s bandwidth—are modest. The measured FPS data directly reflects these limitations. At 1080p, the 4 GB VRAM is sufficient for the textures and buffers required, allowing the GPU to operate at its full potential and deliver frame rates from 80.5 to 137.1 FPS.

However, as the resolution increases, the GPU's memory subsystem becomes a critical bottleneck. At 4K, the demand for video memory and bandwidth far exceeds what the card can provide, causing the severe performance degradation observed in the FPS data. The drop from 49 FPS on Low to 26.6 FPS on Ultra at 4K shows that the shading units are not the only constraint; the lack of memory bandwidth and capacity is the limiting factor. The GPU's 1740 MHz boost clock cannot compensate for this fundamental hardware limitation. In essence, the RTX 3050 4 GB has enough power for 1080p gaming but is insufficient for the demands of higher resolutions in this title.

Settings Recommendations

Given the measured data, the optimal settings for this combo depend heavily on the target resolution. For 1920x1080, the High preset, with an average of 103.2 FPS, offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance. This provides a significant improvement over the Medium preset's 118.8 FPS in visual quality while still delivering a frame rate well above the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset is also viable at 80.5 FPS for those who prioritize visual quality over maximum refresh rate.

For 2560x1440, the Medium preset at 75 FPS is the recommended starting point. The High preset at 65.2 FPS is also acceptable, but the Ultra preset should be avoided, as its 56.1 FPS average is too close to the lower bound of smooth gameplay for a fast-paced FPS. At 3840x2160, there are no good options. The Low preset's 49 FPS is the only one that approaches playability, but it still falls short of a solid 60 FPS experience. Users with a 4K display should consider lowering the resolution to 1440p for a consistently smooth experience, as the data shows the system is not capable of maintaining playable frame rates at the native 4K resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F provides a robust foundation for this system. With 6 cores and 12 threads, and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, its performance is more than adequate for this game. Its average benchmark score of 19221 places it in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, and its parity with the Intel Core i7-8700K (deltaPct of 0.1%) confirms it is a strong performer. In the context of Doom, a title from 2016, the CPU's capabilities far exceed the demands of the game engine.

The measured FPS data supports this assessment. The severe frame rate drops at higher resolutions are directly correlated with the GPU's limitations, not with CPU performance. The i5-12400F's 18 MB of shared L3 cache and high single-thread performance ensure that it is not holding the system back. Even at 1080p, where the GPU is less stressed, the CPU is able to feed the graphics card efficiently, allowing it to reach its maximum frame rates. This CPU is a capable partner that is effectively sidelined by the GPU's performance ceiling, ensuring that the bottleneck in this configuration is unambiguously the graphics card.