Doom

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT paired with the Intel Core i7-12700K delivers a striking spread of results in Doom, ranging from a playable 37.8 FPS at 4K Ultra to a blistering 194.8 FPS at 1080p Low. This wide gulf between the most demanding and least demanding configurations reveals a system whose bottleneck shifts dramatically depending on the resolution and quality preset selected. The data indicates a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, but at 1080p Low, the frame rates climb so high that the CPU’s capability becomes the more relevant factor. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS rows to understand where this combination excels and where it struggles.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drops from 1080p to 4K are steep and consistent across all settings. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 144 at 1080p to 92.3 at 1440p, then plummets to 47.5 at 4K. That represents a 67% reduction from 1080p to 4K on High, a pattern that strongly suggests the GPU is the primary limiting component as pixel count rises. The Ultra preset shows an even more dramatic decline, dropping from 112.7 FPS at 1080p to 73.8 at 1440p and finally to 37.8 at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is the lowest measured value in the entire dataset, indicating that the RX 6600 XT’s compute resources are fully saturated when rendering Doom at maximum quality and 2160p resolution.

When looking at the Low preset, the scaling pattern shifts. At 1080p Low, the system produces 194.8 FPS, but at 1440p Low it drops to 125.9 FPS, and at 4K Low it settles at 65.8 FPS. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K on Low is roughly 66%, which is nearly identical to the High preset’s drop. This uniformity across presets implies that resolution scaling is a pure function of GPU fill rate and shading throughput, not a CPU limitation. The fact that Low settings at 4K (65.8 FPS) still outperform Ultra at 1440p (73.8 FPS) by only 12% shows that the resolution increase has a more profound impact on performance than the quality preset toggle.

The 1440p results sit comfortably between the extremes. Medium settings at 1440p yield 109.2 FPS, which is higher than High at 4K (47.5 FPS) by a factor of 2.3. This suggests that 1440p is the sweet spot for this combo if aiming for high refresh rates, as even Ultra at 1440p (73.8 FPS) remains above the 60 FPS threshold. The data implies that the RX 6600 XT’s 256.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 128-bit bus are sufficient for 1440p gaming but become a limiting factor at 4K, where the pixel throughput demands exceed what the GPU can deliver.

GPU Role

The RX 6600 XT’s specifications explain the observed scaling behavior. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, the GPU has a bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s. This is modest for 4K workloads, which typically require larger memory pools and wider buses to feed the shading units efficiently. The GPU’s boost clock of 2589 MHz and game clock of 2359 MHz provide substantial compute throughput, but the 10.60 TFLOPS FP32 performance is ultimately the ceiling for 4K rendering. The pixel rate of 165.7 GPixel/s and texture rate of 331.4 GTexel/s are respectable for 1440p but fall short when pushing 3840x2160 pixels.

The benchmark scores for this GPU place it in the 71st percentile versus all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27985. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti, scores 27956, a deltaPct of just 0.1%. This near-identical performance to a much older card highlights that the RX 6600 XT is not a high-end part; it is a mid-range solution that excels at 1080p and 1440p. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the GPU’s 2048 shading units and 64 ROPs are overwhelmed, producing only 37.8 FPS. Even at 4K Low, the 65.8 FPS result suggests the GPU is still the bottleneck, as the CPU would have no trouble feeding frames at that resolution.

The GPU’s memory configuration is another limiting factor. The 8 GB capacity is adequate for Doom at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K with High or Ultra settings, texture data likely approaches the memory limit. The 256.0 GB/s bandwidth becomes a constraint when the GPU must fetch large textures for every frame. The fact that the High preset at 4K (47.5 FPS) is only 21% faster than Ultra at 4K (37.8 FPS) indicates that the quality settings are not the primary issue; the resolution itself is the challenge.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K is a powerful 12-core, 20-thread processor with a boost clock of 5.00 GHz and a base clock of 3.60 GHz. Its benchmark scores are impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 29241 and a single-core score of 4128. The CPU ranks in the 89th percentile versus all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35684. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845, scores 35802, a deltaPct of -0.3%, meaning the i7-12700K is effectively tied with that part. This CPU is clearly not a bottleneck in Doom, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU is the limiting factor.

At 1080p Low, the system achieves 194.8 FPS, which is close to the CPU’s practical limit for frame delivery in this game. The 12 cores and 20 threads provide ample headroom for the game’s engine, and the 25 MB of shared L3 cache helps with data locality. The single-thread performance, as evidenced by the 3DMark single-thread score of 1043 and PassMark single-thread score of 4013, ensures that the game’s main thread is not starved. The boost clock of 5.00 GHz is crucial for maintaining high FPS in CPU-bound scenarios, and the data shows that at 1080p Low, the CPU is able to push the RX 6600 XT to its maximum output.

The CPU’s role becomes more apparent when comparing the 1080p Low result (194.8 FPS) to the 1440p Low result (125.9 FPS). The 55% drop from 1080p to 1440p is almost entirely due to the GPU’s workload increasing, not the CPU. At 4K Low, the 65.8 FPS result is 66% lower than 1080p Low, again pointing to GPU saturation. The CPU’s 3DMark max threads score of 9979 and 16-thread score of 9276 indicate that multithreaded performance is more than sufficient for Doom, which is not a heavily threaded title. The CPU’s 12 cores are likely underutilized, but the high single-core boost clock ensures that the game runs smoothly. The PassMark physics score of 1790 suggests that the CPU’s physics processing capability is adequate, though not exceptional, but this does not appear to impact the measured FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the i7-12700K and RX 6600 XT ranks 1202 out of 1681 total combos tested in Doom. This places it in the 71st percentile of all tested configurations, which is a middling result for a CPU that ranks in the 89th percentile and a GPU that ranks in the 71st percentile. The ranking suggests that the GPU is the limiting factor in this pairing, pulling the combo down from what the CPU alone could achieve. The data shows that the CPU’s performance is wasted at higher resolutions, as the GPU cannot keep pace.

When comparing to other combos, the ranking implies that many configurations with slower CPUs but faster GPUs would outperform this setup in Doom. The CPU’s nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i7-13700T (avg score 35468, deltaPct 0.6%) and Intel Core i5-14500HX (avg score 35940, deltaPct -0.7%), would likely produce similar results when paired with a more powerful GPU. The combo’s rank is dictated by the GPU’s mid-range capabilities, not the CPU’s high-end performance. The 1681 total combos tested include many with RTX 3070-class GPUs or better, which would dominate in this game due to higher raw throughput.

The rank of 1202 indicates that this combo is below average for 4K gaming but above average for 1080p gaming. The measured FPS at 1080p High (144 FPS) is excellent, but the 4K Ultra result (37.8 FPS) is unplayable. The combo’s ranking reflects this duality: it is a capable 1080p machine but a poor 4K machine. The data suggests that users with this combo should target 1440p as the maximum resolution for a smooth experience, as the 1440p High result of 92.3 FPS is well above the 60 FPS threshold.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Doom?*

A: The 1440p resolution offers the best balance, with High settings achieving 92.3 FPS and Medium settings reaching 109.2 FPS. Both are well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

*Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Doom?*

A: At 4K Low, the combo achieves 65.8 FPS, which is playable. However, at 4K High and Ultra, the frame rates drop to 47.5 and 37.8 FPS respectively, which are below the ideal 60 FPS target.

Q: How does the RX 6600 XT compare to its nearest rival, the GTX 980 Ti?

A: The RX 6600 XT has an average benchmark score of 27985, while the GTX 980 Ti scores 27956, a deltaPct of 0.1%. This means they are effectively identical in overall performance.

Q: Is the i7-12700K a bottleneck in this game?

A: The data shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 194.8 FPS, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU’s 5.00 GHz boost clock ensures it can feed the GPU efficiently.

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

A: This combo ranks 1202 out of 1681 total combos tested in Doom, placing it in the lower-middle range of all configurations.

Q: Does the Ultra preset provide a better experience than High?

A: The Ultra preset at 1440p yields 73.8 FPS, while High at 1440p yields 92.3 FPS. The High preset provides a smoother experience with a 25% higher frame rate, making it the better choice.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience, the data points to 1440p High as the optimal configuration. This setting delivers 92.3 FPS, which is smooth and responsive, while maintaining high visual quality. The Medium preset at 1440p (109.2 FPS) is also excellent if higher frame rates are desired, but the visual fidelity drop is unnecessary given that High already exceeds 90 FPS. At 1080p, the High preset (144 FPS) is the best choice for competitive play, as it provides a significant frame rate advantage over Ultra (112.7 FPS) without a major visual compromise.

At 4K, the only viable option is the Low preset, which achieves 65.8 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K (60.2 FPS) is borderline playable, but the low preset offers a 9% frame rate improvement. The Ultra preset at 4K should be avoided entirely, as 37.8 FPS is below the playability threshold. For users with 1440p monitors, the High preset is the clear winner. For 1080p users, the High preset is also recommended, as it provides 144 FPS, which is ideal for high refresh rate displays. The Ultra preset at any resolution is not recommended, as it consistently produces the lowest frame rates without a commensurate visual improvement.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces its highest frame rates. The Low preset achieves 194.8 FPS, followed by Medium at 167.5 FPS, High at 144 FPS, and Ultra at 112.7 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 82.1 FPS, a 73% increase in performance from the highest to lowest quality setting. This shows that at 1080p, the GPU has enough headroom to handle any preset, but the lower presets unlock higher refresh rates.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates drop but remain playable. Low delivers 125.9 FPS, Medium 109.2 FPS, High 92.3 FPS, and Ultra 73.8 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 52.1 FPS, indicating that the GPU is becoming more constrained. The High preset at 1440p (92.3 FPS) is the best balance of quality and performance.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly overburdened. Low yields 65.8 FPS, Medium 60.2 FPS, High 47.5 FPS, and Ultra 37.8 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 28 FPS, and even the lowest preset barely reaches the 60 FPS threshold. The 4K results are the weakest in the dataset, confirming that this combo is not designed for 2160p gaming in Doom. The data shows a clear progression: 1080p is excellent, 1440p is good, and 4K is marginal.