Doom

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Doom with the Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB shows a clear and consistent scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 135.6 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 85.5 FPS, a reduction of roughly 37%. At 4K Low, the average falls further to 48.7 FPS, which is about 43% lower than the 1440p result and only 36% of the 1080p figure.

This scaling pattern is typical of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. The frame rate penalty from 1080p to 1440p is steeper proportionally than from 1440p to 4K, which suggests the rendering workload is increasing faster than the GPU's fill rate can accommodate. The RTX 3050 4 GB has a pixel rate of 55.68 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 111.4 GTexel/s, and those limits become the dominant constraint as pixel count rises.

For High settings, the trend continues: 101.5 FPS at 1080p, 67.1 FPS at 1440p, and 37.3 FPS at 4K. The gap between 1080p and 1440p High is a 34 FPS loss, while the 1440p-to-4K step costs another 30 FPS. The fact that the absolute FPS values remain above 30 at 4K across Low, Medium, and High indicates the game engine is scaling the workload smoothly, but the RTX 3050 4 GB's 192.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 128-bit bus are likely the limiting factors at 4K.

The data implies that at 1080p, the CPU can still feed the GPU adequately, but the GPU is already working hard. At 4K, the GPU is unequivocally the bottleneck. The 20-core, 28-thread i7-14700F with a boost clock of 5.40 GHz has ample headroom for this 2016 title, so the resolution scaling behavior points almost entirely to the graphics card's capabilities.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor from the Raptor Lake refresh generation, built on Intel's 10 nm process. Its base clock is 2.10 GHz and it boosts to 5.40 GHz. In synthetic benchmarks, the chip scores 35,443 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 5,003 in single-core, placing it at the 94th percentile among all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X, scores 54,450 on average, which is only 0.6% higher, so the i7-14700F is essentially on par with that high-end competitor.

For Doom, a fast-paced FPS from 2016, the CPU's role is less about raw multi-threaded throughput and more about maintaining frame pacing and feeding the GPU. The measured FPS at 1080p Low is 135.6, which is far below the CPU's theoretical ceiling. The 28 threads are more than sufficient for this game's engine, and the 5.40 GHz boost clock ensures strong single-thread performance for game logic and draw call submission.

The data shows that as resolution increases, the CPU's influence diminishes. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 26.5, which is clearly a GPU limit. The i7-14700F's Cinebench R15 single-core score of 504 and R20 single-core score of 2,101 indicate strong per-core performance, but the game's frame rate at 4K is determined by the RTX 3050 4 GB's fill rate and memory bandwidth, not by processor speed.

The interesting implication is that this CPU-GPU pairing is unbalanced in favor of the CPU at lower resolutions. The i7-14700F could likely push higher frame rates with a more powerful GPU, but with the RTX 3050 4 GB, the processor sits idle relative to its capability. The 33 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache help keep game data close, but the bottleneck is elsewhere.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB is built on the Ampere architecture with the GA107 chip, using Samsung's 8 nm process. It has 2,048 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, with 16 ray tracing cores and 64 tensor cores. The base clock is 1,545 MHz and the boost clock reaches 1,740 MHz. Memory is 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 192.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

The measured FPS data in Doom reveals a GPU that is capable at 1080p but struggles at 4K. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 135.6 FPS, which is smooth and playable. At 1080p Ultra, it drops to 81.5 FPS, still respectable. The pattern across all settings at 1080p — 135.6 Low, 116.6 Medium, 101.5 High, 81.5 Ultra — shows the GPU handling the load with reasonable scaling.

At 1440p, the RTX 3050 4 GB begins to show its limits. Ultra settings yield 55.1 FPS, and even Low settings only reach 85.5 FPS. The 4 GB VRAM capacity is likely a factor at higher resolutions and quality settings, as textures and geometry require more memory. The 192.0 GB/s bandwidth becomes a constraint when the pixel workload increases.

At 4K, the GPU is clearly overwhelmed. Ultra settings produce just 26.5 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay. Even Low settings only manage 48.7 FPS. The FP32 throughput of 7.127 TFLOPS and the 55.68 GPixel/s pixel rate are insufficient for 4K Ultra in this title. The data suggests that the RTX 3050 4 GB is best suited for 1080p gaming, with 1440p being a stretch at higher settings.

FAQ

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

A: The highest measured average is 135.6 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Can this setup run Doom at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: At 4K Low, the average FPS is 48.7, which is playable. At 4K Ultra, it drops to 26.5, which is not smooth for a fast-paced FPS.

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

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F has an average benchmark score of 54,097, which is 0.6% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X at 54,450.

Q: What is the difference between 1080p and 1440p at High settings?

A: At 1080p High, the average FPS is 101.5, while at 1440p High it drops to 67.1, a reduction of about 34%.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the main bottleneck at 4K?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the bottleneck at 4K, as frame rates drop significantly regardless of CPU capability.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations?

A: This combo ranks 1,514 out of 1,681 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the lower portion of the field.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combos for Doom, the Intel Core i7-14700F with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB ranks 1,514 out of 1,681 combinations. This places the setup in the bottom 10% of all tested configurations, which is a notable finding given the CPU's high percentile ranking of 94 among all processors.

The discrepancy between the CPU's strong synthetic performance and the combo's low game rank highlights the GPU's limiting role. The i7-14700F's average benchmark score of 54,097 is competitive with top-tier rivals like the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X (54,450, delta -0.6%) and the Ryzen 9 9900X3D (54,681, delta -1.1%). Yet in Doom, the RTX 3050 4 GB's 4 GB VRAM and 192.0 GB/s bandwidth hold the entire system back.

This ranking suggests that pairing a high-end 20-core CPU with an entry-level 4 GB GPU results in a severely unbalanced system for this game. The CPU is overqualified for the task, while the GPU is underpowered for higher resolutions and settings. The rank of 1,514 out of 1,681 indicates that most other tested combos, likely with more balanced GPU choices, achieve better performance in Doom.

The data implies that if a user already owns the i7-14700F, upgrading the GPU would yield substantial gains, as the CPU has plenty of headroom to support a more powerful graphics card.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data spans three resolutions and four settings levels for each. At 1920x1080, the results are: Low 135.6 FPS, Medium 116.6 FPS, High 101.5 FPS, and Ultra 81.5 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 54.1 FPS, showing a 60% drop in performance when maxing out settings.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low 85.5 FPS, Medium 76.7 FPS, High 67.1 FPS, and Ultra 55.1 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 30.4 FPS, a 36% reduction, indicating that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor and settings have less relative impact.

At 3840x2160, the figures are: Low 48.7 FPS, Medium 42.2 FPS, High 37.3 FPS, and Ultra 26.5 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra gap is 22.2 FPS, a 46% drop, but the absolute values are low across the board. The 4K Ultra result of 26.5 FPS is the worst measured, falling well below the 30 FPS threshold often considered the minimum for playability.

Comparing settings across resolutions, the Low setting at 4K (48.7 FPS) is faster than the Ultra setting at 1440p (55.1 FPS) is slower than the High at 1080p (101.5 FPS). This demonstrates that resolution has a larger impact on performance than settings quality in this configuration. The data also shows that at 1080p, all settings produce playable frame rates, while at 4K, only Low and Medium approach playability.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo in Doom depends on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, all settings are playable, with Ultra yielding 81.5 FPS and Low reaching 135.6 FPS. For a smooth 60 FPS experience, High settings at 101.5 FPS provide a good balance of quality and speed, while Medium at 116.6 FPS offers even more headroom.

At 2560x1440, the recommendation shifts. Ultra at 55.1 FPS is borderline, and High at 67.1 FPS is more comfortable. Medium at 76.7 FPS gives the best combination of visual quality and performance, staying well above 60 FPS. Low at 85.5 FPS is the safest choice for competitive play.

At 3840x2160, the options are limited. Ultra at 26.5 FPS is not recommended for a fast-paced FPS. High at 37.3 FPS is still below the 40 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Medium at 42.2 FPS is marginally playable, while Low at 48.7 FPS is the only setting that approaches a decent frame rate. For 4K, Low settings are the practical choice, though the experience will still be less smooth than at lower resolutions.

The data suggests that the best overall experience is at 1080p with High or Medium settings, where the frame rate is well above 100 FPS and visual quality remains high. For users prioritizing frame rate over fidelity, 1080p Low at 135.6 FPS is the fastest option measured. The RTX 3050 4 GB is clearly not suited for 4K Ultra in this title, so users should target 1080p or 1440p for the best balance.