Doom

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

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel’s 10 nm process node. Its base clock is 2.50 GHz, with a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. The chip carries 20 MB of shared L3 cache, with 1.25 MB of L2 per core and 80 KB of L1 per core. These specifications place the CPU in the 77th percentile when compared against all tested processors, indicating a solid mid-to-upper-tier position for gaming workloads. The processor’s synthetic benchmark results further contextualize its capabilities: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 22604 and a single-core score of 3191, alongside a Geekbench multi-core score of 11068 and single-core score of 1996. The 3DMark suite shows a max-thread score of 7307 and a single-thread score of 960.

In the context of Doom, the relationship between CPU performance and measured frame rates is telling. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 371 FPS average; at 1080p with Ultra settings, it drops to 223 FPS. This spread of 148 FPS across settings at the same resolution shows that the CPU is not the primary limiter at lower resolutions — the GPU and settings are driving the frame rate differences. The CPU’s 16 threads and high boost clock ensure that even at 371 FPS, the processor can feed frames without bottlenecking, as the data shows no frame pacing issues or min FPS anomalies in the measured rows. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 7314 and 8-thread score of 5591 suggest strong multi-threaded scaling, which Doom can leverage, though the game is more dependent on single-thread performance — the 3DMark single-thread score of 960 and Cinebench R20 single-core score of 1255 indicate adequate headroom for high-refresh gaming.

The nearest rivals to the i5-13400F in synthetic benchmarks are instructive. The AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS scores 25284, essentially tied (0% delta), while the Intel Core 5 120 scores 25362, a -0.3% delta. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D and Ryzen 7 6800H are similarly close, with deltas of -0.3% and +0.4% respectively. This clustering around the 25200-25365 range means the i5-13400F is in a tight competitive band; in Doom, the measured FPS reflects a CPU that is not the deciding factor, since the GPU is the more influential component at all tested resolutions. The CPU’s 65 W TDP and active production status further suggest it is a mainstream part designed for consistent sustained performance, which the benchmark results confirm.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo achieves in Doom, and at what settings?

A: The maximum average FPS is 371, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. The next highest is 323 FPS at 1080p with Medium settings, followed by 273 FPS at 1080p with High settings.

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

A: The Intel Core i5-13400F has an average benchmark score of 25292. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS, scores 25284 (0% delta). The Intel Core 5 120 scores 25362 (-0.3% delta), the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D scores 25365 (-0.3% delta), and the AMD Ryzen 7 6800H scores 25201 (+0.4% delta).

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

A: This combo ranks 409th out of 3712 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the top 11% of all configurations tested.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at any resolution?

A: The data does not indicate a CPU bottleneck. At 4K, average FPS ranges from 78 (Ultra) to 130 (Low), while at 1080p, FPS ranges from 223 (Ultra) to 371 (Low). The consistent scaling across settings suggests the GPU is the primary limiter, not the CPU.

Q: What is the CPU’s single-thread performance relative to its multi-thread performance?

A: The CPU scores 3191 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 22604 in multi-core, a ratio of roughly 1:7. In 3DMark, the single-thread score is 960 versus 7307 for max threads. This indicates strong multi-threaded capability, though Doom’s engine benefits more from the higher single-core clock.

Q: How does the GPU rank among all tested GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER has a percentile rank of 76 among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 31087. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA Quadro M5000, scores 31206 (-0.4% delta).

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of resolution scaling in Doom. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo delivers 371 FPS. Moving to 1440p at the same settings drops the average to 240 FPS, a reduction of 131 FPS or approximately 35%. At 4K Low, the average falls to 130 FPS, another 110 FPS drop from 1440p. This steep decline indicates that the GPU is heavily taxed as pixel count increases, while the CPU maintains sufficient headroom.

At High settings, the scaling is more moderate in absolute terms but still pronounced. 1080p High yields 273 FPS, 1440p High drops to 177 FPS (a 96 FPS decrease), and 4K High yields 96 FPS (an 81 FPS drop from 1440p). The percentage drops are consistent: from 1080p to 1440p is roughly a 35% reduction, and from 1440p to 4K is a further 46% reduction. This pattern suggests that Doom’s rendering load scales nearly linearly with resolution, putting increasing pressure on the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth.

The limiting component shifts depending on resolution. At 1080p, the GPU is still the primary bottleneck, but the CPU’s role becomes more apparent at the highest frame rates — 371 FPS requires rapid draw call submission, which the i5-13400F handles without issue given its boost clock. At 4K, the GPU is unequivocally the constraint; the frame rate drops by more than half from 1080p at the same settings. The 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER, with a 256-bit bus and 672.3 GB/s bandwidth, provides ample memory for 4K textures, but the raw compute throughput of 44.10 TFLOPS is what limits the high-resolution output.

The frame ranges at Medium settings provide additional insight. At 1080p Medium, the average is 323 FPS with a minimum of 275 and maximum of 372. At 1440p Medium, the average is 209 FPS with a range of 178 to 240. At 4K Medium, the average is 113 FPS with a range of 96 to 130. These ranges show that the frame time variance increases at higher resolutions, consistent with GPU-bound scenarios where memory bandwidth and rasterization become critical.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo achieves its highest frame rates. Low settings produce an average of 371 FPS, Medium settings yield 323 FPS (with a min of 275 and max of 372), High settings deliver 273 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 223 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 148 FPS, representing a 40% reduction in performance when maximizing visual quality. This 1080p data shows that even at Ultra settings, the frame rate exceeds 200 FPS, making this combo suitable for high-refresh-rate 1080p monitors, though the data does not specify refresh rate capabilities.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a more pronounced settings impact. Low settings average 240 FPS, Medium settings average 209 FPS (with a min of 178 and max of 240), High settings average 177 FPS, and Ultra settings average 144 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 96 FPS, a 40% reduction identical to the 1080p pattern. This consistency suggests that the settings presets scale proportionally regardless of resolution, with the GPU architecture handling the load uniformly.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops significantly. Low settings average 130 FPS, Medium settings average 113 FPS (with a min of 96 and max of 130), High settings average 96 FPS, and Ultra settings average 78 FPS. The reduction from 1440p to 4K is substantial: at Low settings, the drop is 110 FPS (46%); at High settings, it is 81 FPS (46%); at Ultra settings, it is 66 FPS (46%). This consistent 46% reduction across settings indicates that resolution is the dominant factor, with the GPU’s pixel throughput being the limiting resource.

The data also reveals that the minimum FPS figures at Medium settings scale proportionally. At 1080p Medium, the min is 275 FPS; at 1440p Medium, it is 178 FPS; at 4K Medium, it is 96 FPS. These minimums are 85%, 85%, and 85% of the respective averages, suggesting stable frame pacing with no severe dips. The maximum FPS values at Medium settings (372, 240, and 130) track closely with the Low settings averages, indicating that the Medium preset does not introduce erratic frame spikes.

How This Combo Ranks

This combo ranks 409th out of 3712 tested configurations in Doom, placing it in the 89th percentile of all combos tested. This rank reflects the combination’s ability to deliver high frame rates across all settings and resolutions, particularly at 1080p and 1440p where it exceeds 144 FPS even at Ultra settings. The rank is driven primarily by the GPU’s strong performance — the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER sits in the 76th percentile among all GPUs — while the CPU’s 77th percentile rank provides sufficient support without becoming a limiting factor.

The ranking context is important for interpreting the FPS data. A rank of 409 out of 3712 means that roughly 89% of tested combos perform worse in Doom, which aligns with the measured frame rates exceeding 200 FPS at 1080p High settings. The combo’s position is not near the top, though; the top 10% of combos likely feature higher-end GPUs with more CUDA cores or higher clock speeds. The RTX 4070 Ti SUPER’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks — the NVIDIA Quadro M5000 (31206, -0.4% delta), GRID M60-1Q (31220, -0.4% delta), RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell (31532, -1.4% delta), and TITAN RTX (31676, -1.9% delta) — suggest that the GPU is slightly below the highest-performing cards, which explains the 409th rank rather than a top-100 position.

The CPU’s rank among all processors (77th percentile) does not directly translate to the combo rank, since the game is GPU-bound at most settings. However, the CPU’s 16 threads and 4.60 GHz boost clock ensure that at 1080p Low settings, where the GPU is less stressed, the processor can still deliver 371 FPS without bottlenecking. The data shows that the combo’s rank is consistent across resolutions, with the 4K Ultra setting (78 FPS) still outperforming many combos at lower resolutions, as indicated by the overall 409th rank.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 273 FPS average, which is more than sufficient for any high-refresh-rate display, while the Ultra preset at 223 FPS still offers excellent performance. For players prioritizing visual quality at 1080p, the Ultra preset is recommended, as the 50 FPS difference between Ultra and High is unlikely to be noticeable on most monitors, but the visual fidelity improvements from Ultra settings are significant.

At 2560x1440, the High preset at 177 FPS provides a balanced experience, offering high visual quality without compromising frame rate. The Ultra preset at 144 FPS is also viable for 144 Hz displays, but the 33 FPS difference between High and Ultra may be noticeable in fast-paced action. The Medium preset at 209 FPS offers the highest frame rate at 1440p with moderate visual reductions, making it suitable for competitive play where frame rate is paramount. The data shows that the Medium preset maintains a minimum of 178 FPS, ensuring no drops below 144 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the High preset at 96 FPS is the recommended choice, as it delivers smooth gameplay while maintaining visual quality. The Ultra preset at 78 FPS is playable but may feel less responsive, particularly in a fast-paced FPS like Doom. The Medium preset at 113 FPS offers a better balance for 4K, with a minimum of 96 FPS ensuring consistent frame delivery. For players with 60 Hz 4K displays, the Ultra preset at 78 FPS is acceptable, but the High preset provides more headroom for frame time spikes.

The overall recommendation is to use the High preset for resolutions above 1080p, as it provides the best combination of visual fidelity and frame rate across all three tested resolutions. At 1080p, the Ultra preset is recommended due to the high frame rates available. The Low preset is only advisable for competitive play at 1080p where the 371 FPS average offers a definitive advantage, though the visual trade-offs are substantial.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is based on the AD103 chip, built on TSMC’s 5 nm process node with 45,900 million transistors on a 379 mm² die. It features 8448 shading units, 264 texture mapping units, and 96 raster output units, along with 66 RT cores and 264 tensor cores. The GPU’s base clock is 2340 MHz, with a boost clock of 2610 MHz, delivering a peak FP32 throughput of 44.10 TFLOPS. The memory subsystem consists of 16 GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus, running at 1313 MHz with 21 Gbps effective speed, for a total bandwidth of 672.3 GB/s. The GPU’s pixel rate is 250.6 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 689.0 GTexel/s.

In Doom, the GPU’s role is dominant across all tested resolutions. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the primary limiter, with frame rates scaling inversely with resolution at every settings preset. The GPU’s 76th percentile rank among all GPUs reflects its strong performance, and its synthetic benchmarks confirm this: a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 5569, a Geekbench Vulkan score of 53683, and a Passmark G3D score of 31811. The Passmark DirectX 11 score of 278 and DirectX 12 score of 119 indicate that the GPU excels in newer API workloads, which Doom leverages through its Vulkan support.

The GPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks are all NVIDIA workstation or prosumer cards, with deltas ranging from -0.4% (Quadro M5000) to -1.9% (TITAN RTX). This clustering suggests that the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is positioned near the top of NVIDIA’s consumer lineup, though not at the absolute pinnacle. In Doom, this translates to 4K Ultra performance of 78 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for high-refresh 4K displays. The GPU’s 16 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for Doom’s textures at any resolution, and the 672.3 GB/s bandwidth ensures no memory bottlenecks at 4K, as evidenced by the consistent frame rate scaling.

The GPU’s power characteristics — a 285 W TDP with a suggested 600 W PSU — are not directly reflected in the FPS data, but the thermal and power headroom allow the boost clock of 2610 MHz to be sustained under load. The triple-slot cooler and 1x 16-pin power connector indicate a high-end design that can maintain performance over extended gaming sessions. The GPU’s production status is end-of-life, suggesting that this configuration represents a mature product with well-optimized drivers, which likely contributes to the stable frame times observed in the measured data.