Doom

The Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers exceptional frame rates in Doom, but the scaling pattern reveals a system that is heavily GPU-bound at 4K and progressively more CPU-limited as resolution drops. This configuration ranks in the top 2.2% of all tested combos, making it a formidable choice for high-refresh-rate gaming.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic but expected for this hardware pairing. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 390.3 FPS at 1920x1080 to 156.3 FPS at 3840x2160, a 60% reduction. This massive decline indicates that the GPU is the dominant limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the RTX 4090’s rendering workload scales directly with pixel count.

The scaling pattern becomes more revealing when examining the Ultra preset. The 4K Ultra result of 93.8 FPS represents a 65% drop from the 270.2 FPS achieved at 1080p Ultra. This steeper percentage decline at Ultra settings confirms that the GPU’s compute resources are being saturated by the combination of high resolution and maximum graphical fidelity. The data shows that this combo loses roughly two-thirds of its performance when moving from Full HD to 4K at the highest preset.

At 1440p, the system maintains excellent headroom above 144Hz refresh rates across all settings. The Low preset delivers 289.2 FPS, while Ultra still achieves 172.7 FPS. The 1440p results sit in a sweet spot where the CPU’s 10 cores and 16 threads provide enough instruction throughput to feed the GPU, while the GPU still has enough pixel-pushing capability to deliver triple-digit frame rates.

The transition from 1080p to 1440p shows a more moderate performance loss than the 1440p to 4K jump. For example, High settings drop from 329.6 FPS at 1080p to 213.5 FPS at 1440p, a 35% reduction. This smaller percentage loss at lower resolutions suggests that the CPU begins to constrain performance at 1080p, particularly at Low and Medium settings where the GPU has less work to do.

GPU Role

The RTX 4090’s 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus provides 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth, which is more than sufficient for Doom’s texture-heavy environments at any resolution. The benchmark results show no evidence of memory capacity or bandwidth bottlenecks, as even the 4K Ultra preset maintains nearly 94 FPS despite the game’s demanding texture loads.

The GPU’s clock behavior is notable: the 2235 MHz base clock boosts to 2520 MHz under load. The measured frame rates suggest that the boost clock is sustained consistently across all settings and resolutions, as the scaling between presets follows a smooth curve. The Ada Lovelace architecture’s 16,384 shading units provide massive parallel throughput, which explains why the card can push 390.3 FPS at 1080p Low without breaking a sweat.

At 4K, the GPU’s 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 compute becomes the primary performance driver. The difference between 4K Low (156.3 FPS) and 4K Ultra (93.8 FPS) shows a 40% performance penalty for enabling maximum graphical features. This gap is typical for a GPU-bound scenario where the additional shading work for Ultra effects directly translates to lower frame rates.

The 450 W TDP and triple-slot cooler design indicate that the RTX 4090 is built for sustained high-performance operation, which aligns with the stable frame rates observed across all test scenarios. The GPU’s 91st percentile ranking among all GPUs further confirms its position as one of the most capable graphics processors available.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data clearly shows that Medium settings provide the best balance of visual fidelity and performance across all resolutions. At 4K, Medium delivers 137.2 FPS, which is 46% faster than Ultra and only 14% slower than Low. This makes Medium the optimal choice for 4K gaming, as it maintains well above 120 FPS while retaining meaningful visual enhancements over Low.

For 1440p users, High settings are the recommended starting point. The 213.5 FPS average at High is more than sufficient for any high-refresh-rate monitor, and the jump from Medium (252.2 FPS) to High only costs 15% performance while providing superior visual quality. Ultra at 1440p still achieves 172.7 FPS, making it a viable option for those who prioritize image quality above all else.

At 1080p, the situation changes because the CPU becomes a more significant factor. Low settings produce 390.3 FPS, but High still delivers 329.6 FPS, a difference of only 18%. Given that both results far exceed any display’s refresh rate capabilities, High settings are the sensible default for 1080p. Ultra at 270.2 FPS remains playable but offers diminishing returns compared to High.

The data suggests avoiding Ultra at 4K unless a 90 FPS target is acceptable. The 93.8 FPS average at 4K Ultra is still smooth, but the 46% performance improvement from dropping to Medium makes that preset the clear winner for 4K gameplay.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance envelope spans from 270.2 FPS at Ultra to 390.3 FPS at Low. The Medium preset delivers 369.6 FPS, while High achieves 329.6 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra is 120.1 FPS, representing a 44% performance difference.

The 2560x1440 results show a tighter spread: Low delivers 289.2 FPS, Medium 252.2 FPS, High 213.5 FPS, and Ultra 172.7 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 116.5 FPS, a 67% gap that grows as the GPU becomes more stressed.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates compress further: Low averages 156.3 FPS, Medium 137.2 FPS, High 115 FPS, and Ultra 93.8 FPS. The total spread here is 62.5 FPS, which represents a 67% difference between the lowest and highest quality presets. The 4K results demonstrate that each step up in settings costs roughly 15-20% performance, with the Ultra to High transition being the smallest single-step drop at 18.4%.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific configuration ranks 37th out of 1,681 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the top 2.2% of all systems evaluated. This ranking reflects the exceptional synergy between the i5-14400F and RTX 4090 for this particular game title.

The CPU’s average benchmark score of 32,508 places it in the 88th percentile of all processors, with nearest rivals including the Intel Core i7-12800H (32,513, 0% delta) and AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 (32,446, 0.2% delta). This tight clustering indicates that the i5-14400F delivers performance nearly identical to several higher-tier mobile and desktop parts, making it a strong pairing partner for the flagship GPU.

The GPU’s average benchmark score of 66,473 ranks in the 91st percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals show minimal performance deltas: the NVIDIA Tesla T4 (66,733, -0.4%), NVIDIA Tesla P40 (66,127, 0.5%), and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56 (67,097, -0.9%). The RTX 4090’s position among these professional-grade compute cards highlights its raw power, though the gaming-specific results in Doom demonstrate that it excels in real-world FPS scenarios.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo maintain 4K 120 FPS in Doom?

A: Only at Medium settings. The 4K Medium preset averages 137.2 FPS, while High drops to 115 FPS and Ultra falls to 93.8 FPS.

Q: What is the biggest performance difference between settings at 1080p?

A: The gap between Low (390.3 FPS) and Ultra (270.2 FPS) is 120.1 FPS, a 44% performance penalty for maximum quality.

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

A: The i5-14400F scores 32,508 on average, matching the Intel Core i7-12800H (32,513) and trailing the AMD Ryzen 7 250 (32,584) by just 0.2%.

Q: Does this combo rank among the top performers in Doom?

A: Yes, it ranks 37th out of 1,681 tested combos, placing it in the top 2.2% of all configurations.

Q: What is the best resolution for maximizing frame rates?

A: 1080p provides the highest frame rates, with Low settings hitting 390.3 FPS, but 1440p High still delivers 213.5 FPS for a better visual experience.

Q: What GPU does this system use?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090, which features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and a boost clock of 2520 MHz.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F provides 10 cores and 16 threads based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support for DDR4 and DDR5 provide adequate bandwidth for feeding the RTX 4090 in Doom’s fast-paced environments.

The CPU’s benchmark results show strong multi-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21,914 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 11,209. Single-thread performance is equally solid, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3,093. These metrics indicate that the CPU can keep up with the GPU’s demands even at high frame rates.

The 88th percentile ranking among all CPUs places the i5-14400F in the upper echelon of processors, though its nearest rivals show nearly identical average scores. The PassMark multi-thread score of 25,783 and single-thread score of 3,723 confirm that this CPU handles both sustained multi-core workloads and latency-sensitive single-thread tasks effectively.

In Doom specifically, the CPU’s influence becomes most apparent at 1080p Low settings, where the 390.3 FPS result approaches the practical limit of what the game engine can produce. The 65 W TDP and Intel Socket 1700 compatibility make this a mainstream processor, yet its performance profile allows the RTX 4090 to operate without meaningful bottlenecks in this title. The data suggests that upgrading the CPU would yield minimal gains in Doom, as the GPU becomes the limiting factor at all but the lowest resolutions and settings.