Doom

# Doom Performance Analysis: Intel Core i5-12400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER

The pairing of Intel's 6-core Core i5-12400F with NVIDIA's RTX 4080 SUPER produces remarkable results in Doom, a game from 2016 that remains extremely responsive on modern hardware. With measured frame rates ranging from 85.8 FPS at 4K Ultra to 366.4 FPS at 1080p Low, this combination demonstrates how a mid-range CPU can feed a high-end GPU when the workload is well-optimized. The data suggests this is a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, while at 1080p the CPU becomes a more significant factor, creating an interesting dynamic worth analyzing across all measured settings.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-12400F brings 6 cores and 12 threads to the table, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Alder Lake-S architecture chip, built on Intel's 10 nm process, features an 18 MB shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support for both DDR4 and DDR5. In synthetic benchmarks, the processor achieves a single-thread score of 909 in 3DMark and 2332 in Cinebench R23 single-core, while its multi-threaded performance reaches 5912 in 3DMark max-threads and 16518 in Cinebench R23 multicore. These numbers place the CPU at the 77th percentile among all tested processors.

Looking at how the CPU performs relative to its nearest rivals, the data shows a tightly clustered group. The i5-12400F's average benchmark score of 19221 sits just 0.1% above the Intel Core i7-8700K (19210) and 0.3% above the Intel Core i5-1335U (19167). It trails the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS by 0.7% (19364) and the AMD EPYC 7773X by 1.3% (18979). This narrow delta suggests that in Doom, where the game's engine scales well with per-core performance, the i5-12400F's 6 physical cores are sufficient to avoid bottlenecking the GPU at most settings.

The game's frame rates tell a revealing story about CPU involvement. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 366.4 FPS, while 1080p Ultra drops to 238.4 FPS — a difference that reflects increased GPU workload rather than CPU limitation. However, the fact that 1080p Low cannot exceed roughly 366 FPS indicates a ceiling imposed by the CPU's single-thread capabilities, as the GPU has far more headroom at such low graphical demands. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 1699 and single-thread score of 909 highlight that while the CPU is capable, it does have limits in extremely high-refresh scenarios.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is built on the AD103 chip using TSMC's 5 nm process, packing 45,900 million transistors across a 379 mm² die. With 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, the GPU delivers 736.3 GB/s of memory bandwidth. Its boost clock reaches 2550 MHz, with memory running at 1438 MHz (23 Gbps effective). The card's compute capabilities include 10240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 112 ROPs, producing 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. This hardware configuration places the GPU at the 88th percentile among all tested graphics cards.

In benchmark comparisons, the RTX 4080 SUPER's average score of 53610 edges out the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT by 0.2% (53489) and the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M by 0.4% (53414). It leads the AMD Radeon RX 7700S by 2.1% (52505) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti by 2.9% (52086). These margins indicate that the 4080 SUPER is not just a capable GPU but one that consistently outperforms its nearest competitors across the board.

The GPU's role in Doom becomes evident when examining frame rates across resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the combo produces 85.8 FPS, while 4K High reaches 101.6 FPS. The memory bandwidth of 736.3 GB/s proves sufficient for the game's textures even at 4K, as evidenced by the relatively smooth scaling between settings. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is more than adequate for Doom's requirements, meaning the GPU's raw compute power — not memory limitations — drives the performance differences between settings. The pixel rate of 285.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 816.0 GTexel/s help explain why the card excels at high resolutions where fill-rate demands increase substantially.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Examining the measured FPS data across all settings and resolutions, the High preset emerges as the optimal balance point for this combo. At 1080p, High delivers 292.3 FPS, which is only 74.1 FPS below Low's 366.4 but 53.9 FPS above Ultra's 238.4. The jump from High to Ultra costs 53.9 FPS at 1080p, a significant penalty for what is typically a modest visual improvement in a 2016 title. At 1440p, High produces 189.8 FPS, comfortably above the 144 Hz refresh rate that many gaming monitors offer, while Ultra drops to 154.7 FPS — still playable but with less headroom.

At 4K, the decision becomes more nuanced. High yields 101.6 FPS, which clears the 100 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay on high-refresh 4K displays. Medium delivers 120.3 FPS, offering a 18.7 FPS advantage over High while presumably sacrificing some visual fidelity. Low at 4K produces 139.1 FPS, but the visual compromise is likely too severe for a game that benefits from its atmospheric lighting effects. Ultra at 4K drops to 85.8 FPS, which remains playable but falls short of the 90+ FPS target that many gamers prefer. The data suggests High is the sweet spot at every resolution, with Medium as a viable alternative for those prioritizing frame rate over visual quality.

FAQ

Q: How does the RTX 4080 SUPER compare to its closest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT, in overall GPU benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4080 SUPER scores 53610 on average, which is 0.2% higher than the RX 6900 XT's 53489. This translates to a marginal but consistent performance advantage in synthetic testing.

Q: What is the maximum frame rate achievable with this combo at 1080p?

A: At 1080p with Low settings, the combo reaches 366.4 FPS, which is the highest measured result across all resolutions and settings in the dataset.

Q: Does the i5-12400F bottleneck the RTX 4080 SUPER in Doom?

A: The data indicates partial CPU limitation at 1080p Low, where the frame rate caps at 366.4 FPS despite the GPU having additional headroom. At higher resolutions and settings, the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from High to Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, High produces 189.8 FPS while Ultra drops to 154.7 FPS, representing a loss of 35.1 FPS (approximately 18.5%) for the higher preset.

Q: What is the combo's ranking among all tested CPU-GPU combinations in Doom?

A: This combo ranks 115th out of 1681 tested combinations, placing it in the top 6.8% of all configurations evaluated for this game.

Q: Is the 16 GB VRAM on the RTX 4080 SUPER sufficient for Doom at 4K?

A: The measured data shows strong 4K performance (85.8 FPS at Ultra, 101.6 FPS at High), indicating that the 16 GB memory capacity is more than adequate for Doom's requirements at any resolution.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling pattern reveals crucial information about where the bottleneck lies in this system. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings, frame rates drop from 292.3 to 189.8 FPS — a reduction of 102.5 FPS (35.1%). The further move from 1440p to 4K High brings the frame rate down to 101.6 FPS, another 88.2 FPS reduction (46.5%). This accelerating decline with resolution strongly suggests GPU-bound behavior, as the CPU's workload remains relatively constant while the GPU's pixel-pushing demands increase dramatically.

The Low settings data provides the clearest evidence of CPU limitations. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 366.4 FPS, but at 1440p Low it still manages 259.7 FPS — a 106.7 FPS drop. At 4K Low, the frame rate falls to 139.1 FPS. The fact that 1080p Low cannot exceed roughly 366 FPS indicates a hard ceiling imposed by the CPU's processing capability, not the GPU. This is corroborated by the CPU's 3DMark single-thread score of 909, which, while respectable, limits the absolute maximum frame rate in CPU-light scenarios.

Interestingly, the Ultra settings show a different scaling pattern. From 1080p Ultra (238.4 FPS) to 1440p Ultra (154.7 FPS), the drop is 83.7 FPS, and from 1440p to 4K Ultra (85.8 FPS), the drop is 68.9 FPS. The relatively smaller percentage drops at higher settings indicate that Ultra presets increase GPU load enough to keep the GPU busy even at lower resolutions. This suggests that for gamers seeking maximum frame rates, choosing High or Medium settings at 1080p or 1440p will keep the GPU as the primary performer, while Ultra presets better utilize the GPU's capabilities but sacrifice overall frame rate headroom.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce 366.4 FPS, while Medium reaches 350.6 FPS — a modest 15.8 FPS reduction. High settings drop further to 292.3 FPS, representing a 58.3 FPS loss compared to Medium. Ultra settings deliver 238.4 FPS, which is 53.9 FPS below High and 128.0 FPS below Low. This progression shows diminishing returns as settings increase, with the largest single-step drop occurring between Medium and High.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain highly playable across all presets. Low produces 259.7 FPS, Medium reaches 227.4 FPS (a 32.3 FPS drop), High delivers 189.8 FPS (a 37.6 FPS drop from Medium), and Ultra falls to 154.7 FPS (a 35.1 FPS drop from High). The consistent 30-38 FPS penalties between settings at 1440p indicate that each preset level adds a similar GPU workload increment.

At 3840x2160, the performance remains strong but shows more variation between presets. Low settings achieve 139.1 FPS, Medium drops to 120.3 FPS (an 18.8 FPS reduction), High reaches 101.6 FPS (an 18.7 FPS reduction), and Ultra falls to 85.8 FPS (a 15.8 FPS reduction). The smaller absolute differences at 4K reflect the GPU becoming the dominant bottleneck, as each setting change has less relative impact when the GPU is already working near its limits. The 4K Ultra result of 85.8 FPS remains above the 60 FPS standard, making this combo viable for 4K gaming even at maximum settings.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER achieves a rank of 115 out of 1681 tested combinations in Doom. This places the configuration in the top 6.8% of all CPU-GPU pairings evaluated for this game, a strong result that underscores the effectiveness of this mid-range CPU combined with a high-end GPU. The ranking reflects the game's ability to scale well with both CPU and GPU resources, allowing this combo to outperform many systems with more expensive processors.

The CPU's own percentile ranking of 77th among all processors might suggest it could hold back the GPU, but the game's measured performance indicates otherwise. The i5-12400F's nearest rivals — the i7-8700K (0.1% higher score), i5-1335U (0.3% higher), Ryzen 5 7533HS (0.7% lower), and EPYC 7773X (1.3% lower) — all fall within a tight 2% performance band. This clustering means that any of these CPUs would likely produce similar results in Doom when paired with the same GPU, making the 115th rank more attributable to the GPU's strength than any CPU advantage.

The GPU's 88th percentile ranking, combined with its 0.2% advantage over the RX 6900 XT and 2.9% lead over the RTX 5070 Ti, positions it as a top-tier performer in this game. The combo's overall rank of 115th suggests that 114 other configurations achieve higher frame rates in Doom, likely involving even more powerful CPUs or GPUs. However, given that this combo already exceeds 85 FPS at 4K Ultra and approaches 366 FPS at 1080p Low, the practical difference between this rank and the top 10 is unlikely to be noticeable in real-world gameplay, especially on standard 60 Hz, 144 Hz, or even 240 Hz displays.