Doom

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Doom across three resolutions reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 240 FPS, which represents the ceiling of the measurement. Moving to 2560x1440 Low drops this to 155.5 FPS, a reduction of approximately 35%. At 3840x2160 Low, the average falls to 83.9 FPS, which is roughly 46% lower than the 1440p result. This steep decline as resolution increases indicates that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 is the primary limiting factor at higher pixel counts.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens dramatically as resolution climbs. At 1080p, the spread between Low (240 FPS) and Ultra (146.2 FPS) is 93.8 FPS. At 1440p, the spread narrows to 59.2 FPS (155.5 Low versus 96.3 Ultra). At 4K, the spread compresses further to 34.4 FPS (83.9 Low versus 49.5 Ultra). This pattern is typical of a system where the GPU saturates at higher resolutions, reducing the relative impact of settings changes. The Intel Core i5-12600KF with its 10 cores and 16 threads appears to have ample headroom at 1080p, where the GPU is the bottleneck even at Low settings.

The 4K results are particularly telling. High settings produce 64.2 FPS, Medium 76.5 FPS, and Low 83.9 FPS. The delta between Medium and Low at 4K is only 7.4 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns from lowering settings further once the GPU is heavily loaded. Conversely, Ultra at 4K drops to 49.5 FPS, a 23% reduction from High — a significant penalty for the highest quality preset. The data indicates that this combo is comfortably playable at 4K with Medium or High settings, but Ultra requires a sacrifice in frame rate that may not be worthwhile.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 ranks 820 out of 1681 tested combos in Doom. This places the combo in the upper half of the database, at roughly the 51st percentile of all tested configurations. The CPU itself sits at the 84th percentile among all processors, while the GPU ranks at the 73rd percentile among all graphics cards. The combo ranking being lower than either component's individual percentile suggests that Doom's performance is not purely additive — the game's engine imposes its own constraints on how these components interact.

Looking at the CPU's nearest rivals provides context for its contribution. The Core i5-12600KF has an average benchmark score of 27827, essentially tied with the Intel Core i9-10900K (27829, deltaPct 0). The Core i5-12600K scores 27851, a negligible 0.1% difference. The Intel Core Ultra 5 125H trails by 0.2%, and the Intel Core i7-13700H leads by 0.4%. These razor-thin margins indicate that the 12600KF is positioned in a dense cluster of comparable CPUs, and its ranking in Doom will be influenced more by the GPU than by small CPU performance differences.

For the GPU, the RTX 5060's average benchmark score of 30109 is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT (30097, deltaPct 0). The AMD Radeon RX 570 scores 30158, a 0.2% advantage, while the NVIDIA Tesla M60 and RTX 5070 Mobile are within 0.5-0.6% in either direction. This tight grouping suggests that the RTX 5060 delivers performance in line with its immediate peers, and the combo's rank in Doom reflects this parity rather than any outlier behavior.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo in Doom?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 240 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This represents the maximum recorded value across all tested resolution and settings combinations.

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

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo delivers an average of 49.5 FPS. This is the lowest measured result and falls below the 60 FPS threshold typically considered smooth for FPS games.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at 1080p. The RTX 5060's performance ceiling is reached at 240 FPS on Low settings, and the frame rate drops to 146.2 FPS on Ultra, showing that GPU load scales with settings even at this resolution.

Q: What is the difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, High settings yield 115.2 FPS while Ultra yields 96.3 FPS. The difference of 18.9 FPS represents a 16.4% reduction in frame rate for the quality increase.

Q: How does the combo rank relative to all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 820 out of 1681 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the upper half of the database. The CPU ranks at the 84th percentile among all CPUs, and the GPU ranks at the 73rd percentile among all GPUs.

Q: What are the CPU's core and thread counts?

A: The Intel Core i5-12600KF has 10 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. It features 20 MB of shared L3 cache.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces its strongest results. Low settings deliver 240 FPS, Medium 211.7 FPS, High 175.1 FPS, and Ultra 146.2 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra represents a 39% reduction in frame rate, with the largest single-step drop occurring between Medium and High (36.6 FPS). The 1080p results show that even at the highest quality preset, the frame rate remains well above typical display refresh rates.

At 2560x1440, the performance profile shifts downward. Low settings produce 155.5 FPS, Medium 136.9 FPS, High 115.2 FPS, and Ultra 96.3 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 18.6 FPS, while the step from Medium to High costs 21.7 FPS. The Ultra preset breaks below the 100 FPS mark, indicating that 1440p Ultra is the first configuration where the GPU begins to show strain.

At 3840x2160, the results drop significantly. Low settings yield 83.9 FPS, Medium 76.5 FPS, High 64.2 FPS, and Ultra 49.5 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 7.4 FPS, between Medium and High is 12.3 FPS, and between High and Ultra is 14.7 FPS. This widening gap as settings increase suggests that the GPU's memory bandwidth and shader throughput become progressively more taxed at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data points to a clear recommendation for each resolution tier. At 1920x1080, Ultra settings at 146.2 FPS provide the best visual quality without sacrificing playability. The frame rate remains far above the 60 FPS baseline, and the 93.8 FPS difference between Low and Ultra is unlikely to be perceptible on most displays. Users with high-refresh monitors may prefer High settings at 175.1 FPS, which balances quality and speed.

At 2560x1440, High settings at 115.2 FPS offer the best overall experience. The Ultra preset at 96.3 FPS is acceptable, but the 18.9 FPS penalty over High is substantial for the incremental visual gain. Medium at 136.9 FPS is a viable alternative for competitive play, where higher frame rates take precedence over fidelity. Low at 155.5 FPS is best reserved for esports-style play where maximum responsiveness is required.

At 3840x2160, Medium settings at 76.5 FPS provide the most balanced experience. High at 64.2 FPS is also playable and offers better visuals, while Ultra at 49.5 FPS falls below the 60 FPS threshold and may feel sluggish in fast-paced combat. Low at 83.9 FPS is the smoothest 4K option but sacrifices significant visual quality. The data suggests that 4K players should avoid Ultra unless they prioritize image quality over frame rate.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory over a dual-channel bus and connects via PCIe Gen 4 with 20 lanes.

In Doom, the CPU's role is evident from the resolution scaling pattern. At 1080p, the frame rates range from 146.2 to 240 FPS, and the CPU must feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic at these high rates. The 16 threads provide ample parallelism for the game's engine, which is reflected in the CPU's benchmark scores: Cinebench R23 multicore reaches 23444, and Geekbench multicore hits 12373. The single-thread performance, measured at 3309 in Cinebench R23 and 1016 in 3DMark single-thread, ensures that the CPU does not bottleneck the GPU in lightly threaded game code.

The CPU's benchmark results place it at the 84th percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 27827. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i9-10900K, scores 27829 with a deltaPct of 0, confirming that the 12600KF is competitive with previous-generation flagship parts. The 3DMark results show scaling from 1995 at 2 threads to 7956 at 16 threads, indicating strong multi-threading efficiency. This headroom suggests that the CPU can sustain high frame rates in Doom without becoming the limiting component, particularly at lower resolutions where GPU load is lighter.