Doom

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT delivers a highly capable 1080p and 1440p experience in Doom, with the data showing frame rates that comfortably exceed 60 FPS at High settings across both resolutions. The combo’s performance profile is defined by a strong CPU foundation and a GPU with ample memory bandwidth, though 4K Ultra settings push the graphics card to its limits. The measured results indicate that this pairing is best suited for high-refresh-rate gaming at 1440p, where it maintains an average of 98 FPS on High, while 4K requires a reduction in quality to remain fluid.

FAQ

Q: What is the combo’s overall rank among tested configurations in Doom?

A: The Intel Core i5-12600KF and AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT combination ranks 1067 out of 1681 tested combos, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database for this specific title.

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

A: The i5-12600KF scores an average of 27827, which is statistically identical to the Intel Core i9-10900K (27829, 0% delta) and the Intel Core i5-12600K (27851, -0.1% delta). It is 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i7-13700H (27716) and 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H (27872).

Q: What is the GPU’s percentile ranking relative to all other graphics cards?

A: The Radeon RX 7600 XT sits in the 63rd percentile among all GPUs, indicating it outperforms a majority of the database’s graphics cards. Its average benchmark score is 20146.

Q: Which GPU rival is closest in performance to the RX 7600 XT?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 460 is the closest rival, with an average score of 20088 and a delta of 0.3% from the RX 7600 XT. The RX 7600 (20258) is 0.6% faster, while the RTX 2060 SUPER (19774) is 1.9% slower.

Q: What is the best measured frame rate for this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 202.2 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This drops to 149 FPS at High settings and 117.8 FPS at Ultra settings.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K with the lowest settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Low settings, the average frame rate is 68.5 FPS, which is playable. However, moving to High settings drops the average to 53.8 FPS, and Ultra falls to 42.7 FPS.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 33 chip, fabricated on a 6 nm process by TSMC. It features 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units, with a boost clock of 2755 MHz and a game clock of 2470 MHz. The GPU’s 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s, which is a substantial asset for texture-heavy scenes at higher resolutions.

In Doom, the GPU’s role scales directly with resolution. At 1080p, the frame rates are exceptionally high, peaking at 202.2 FPS on Low and 149 FPS on High, suggesting that the graphics card is not the primary bottleneck in this range. The data implies that the CPU’s 10 cores and 16 threads, boosted up to 4.90 GHz, are sufficient to feed the GPU at these levels. However, as resolution increases to 4K, the GPU’s compute and memory bandwidth become the limiting factor. The difference between 1080p High (149 FPS) and 4K High (53.8 FPS) is a 63.9% drop, clearly illustrating the GPU’s workload scaling.

The GPU’s benchmark scores corroborate its mid-range positioning. Its Passmark G3D score is 17132, and its Geekbench Vulkan score is 88301, both indicating solid DirectX 12 and Vulkan performance. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2348 further confirms its capability for modern APIs. The RX 7600 XT’s 32 ray accelerators support hardware ray tracing, though Doom (2016) does not utilize this feature, so the focus remains on raw rasterization and fill rate. The pixel rate of 176.3 GPixel/s and texture rate of 352.6 GTexel/s are the key metrics driving the observed frame rates, particularly at 1440p and 4K where fill rate demands increase sharply.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal settings for this combo depend heavily on the target resolution and refresh rate. At 1920x1080, the data shows that the Ultra preset still delivers an average of 117.8 FPS, which is above the 100 FPS threshold for high-refresh monitors. The High preset yields 149 FPS, providing a 26.5% improvement over Ultra while likely offering minimal visual difference in a fast-paced FPS. For competitive play, the Low preset at 202.2 FPS is ideal, but for a balanced visual experience, High is the recommended choice at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 98 FPS, which is excellent for most gaming displays. The Medium preset offers 111.9 FPS, and Low reaches 126.8 FPS, but these come with reduced visual fidelity. The Ultra preset drops to 77.2 FPS, which is still playable but not optimal for high-refresh panels. The data suggests that High is the sweet spot at 1440p, providing a near-100 FPS experience without sacrificing significant graphical quality.

For 3840x2160, the situation changes drastically. The Ultra preset averages 42.7 FPS, which is below the standard 60 FPS playability threshold. The High preset improves to 53.8 FPS, still sub-60. The Medium preset reaches 63.1 FPS, which is playable, and the Low preset achieves 68.5 FPS. Given these numbers, the Medium preset is the recommended starting point for 4K, as it is the only quality tier that breaks the 60 FPS barrier. Users with 4K displays should accept a visual downgrade to Medium or Low to maintain fluid gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1067 out of 1681 tested configurations places it in the 36th percentile of all pairings for Doom. This indicates that while the system is capable of running the game well, a majority of tested combos outperform it. The ranking reflects a balance between the CPU and GPU, where the i5-12600KF is a high-tier processor (84th percentile of all CPUs) but the RX 7600 XT is a mid-range graphics solution (63rd percentile of all GPUs).

The CPU’s performance is nearly identical to its closest rivals, with the i5-12600K being only 0.1% faster and the i9-10900K matching it exactly at 0% delta. This means the processor is not a differentiator in this combo’s ranking; rather, the GPU holds it back. The RX 7600 XT’s closest rival, the RX 460, is 0.3% slower, while the RTX 2060 SUPER is 1.9% slower, indicating the GPU is firmly in its performance tier. The combo’s rank would likely improve with a faster GPU, but the current pairing still delivers above-average frame rates in Doom, particularly at 1080p and 1440p.

The measured frame rates suggest that the combo’s rank is dragged down by its 4K performance. At 1080p High (149 FPS) and 1440p High (98 FPS), the system demonstrates strong capability, but the 4K Ultra result of 42.7 FPS is below the 60 FPS baseline that many users consider essential. This dual-nature performance profile is typical for a mid-range GPU paired with a high-end CPU, and the ranking reflects that compromise.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling data reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound performance as pixel count increases. From 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at High settings, the average frame rate drops from 149 FPS to 98 FPS, a 34.2% decrease. This is a substantial drop, but the resulting 98 FPS remains highly playable. Moving from 1440p to 4K at High settings, the frame rate falls from 98 FPS to 53.8 FPS, a further 45.1% decrease. The cumulative drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings is 63.9%, which aligns with the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth constraints.

The scaling behavior differs across settings. At Ultra, the drop from 1080p (117.8 FPS) to 1440p (77.2 FPS) is 34.5%, and from 1440p to 4K (42.7 FPS) is 44.7%. At Low settings, the drop from 1080p (202.2 FPS) to 1440p (126.8 FPS) is 37.3%, and from 1440p to 4K (68.5 FPS) is 46.0%. This consistent pattern across all settings indicates that the limiting component is the GPU’s processing power, not the CPU’s ability to feed it.

The CPU’s synthetic benchmarks support this interpretation. The i5-12600KF’s Passmark multithread score of 27575 and Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23444 indicate ample headroom for game logic and draw calls. At 1080p, where CPU overhead is more prominent, the frame rates are exceptionally high, suggesting the CPU is not a bottleneck even at Low settings with 202.2 FPS. As resolution increases, the GPU’s workload expands exponentially, and the RX 7600 XT’s 288.0 GB/s bandwidth and 22.57 TFLOPS compute become the definitive performance ceiling. The data unequivocally shows that for this combo, resolution scaling is directly tied to the GPU’s rasterization capabilities.