Doom

The Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 delivers a formidable 1080p and 1440p experience in Doom, with performance that scales predictably into 4K. The measured data shows this combination is well-suited for high-refresh-rate displays at lower resolutions, while remaining comfortably playable at 4K with adjusted settings. This analysis breaks down the optimal settings, the GPU's role, resolution scaling behavior, and the combo's standing among thousands of tested configurations.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows reveal a clear hierarchy across the four available presets: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset produces an average of 178 FPS, which is more than sufficient for any display, but the High preset jumps to 218 FPS, and Medium reaches 258 FPS. The Low preset at 1080p hits 296 FPS, but the visual trade-off is rarely justified when High and Medium still deliver far beyond typical monitor refresh rates.

For 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 141 FPS average, which is excellent for 144Hz monitors. The Ultra preset dips to 115 FPS, still playable but closer to the edge for competitive play. Medium at 1440p offers 167 FPS, and Low provides 192 FPS. The sweet spot for 1440p is the High preset: it provides a significant visual upgrade over Medium while maintaining a frame rate that exceeds most high-refresh panels.

At 3840x2160, the landscape changes. The Ultra preset averages only 62 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced FPS action. The High preset at 4K produces 76 FPS, which is a much better experience. Medium at 4K reaches 90 FPS, and Low hits 104 FPS. Given that the game runs at over 60 FPS even on Ultra at 4K, the recommended approach is to start with High and adjust upward if the display and system allow. The data suggests that High at 4K offers the best balance, as the jump from High to Ultra costs 14 FPS (from 76 to 62), a substantial drop for the incremental visual gain.

The benchmark data points to the High preset as the best overall recommendation. It provides a minimum of 141 FPS at 1440p and 76 FPS at 4K, making it versatile across resolutions. For users prioritizing maximum frame rates at 1080p, Medium at 258 FPS is a strong choice, but High at 218 FPS is still far above the threshold for smooth gameplay. The Low preset is only recommended for extreme competitive scenarios where every frame matters, as it sacrifices too much visual fidelity for the modest gains shown in the data.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with a Navi 48 chip manufactured on a 4 nm process. It features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1330 MHz, a game clock of 2070 MHz, and a boost clock of 2520 MHz. These specifications directly influence the measured performance in Doom.

The 16 GB VRAM capacity is more than ample for Doom, a game released in 2016, and the memory bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s ensures that texture streaming and high-resolution rendering do not become bottlenecks. The GPU's 3584 shading units and 128 ROPs contribute to its rasterization performance, which is the primary workload in this title. The measured FPS numbers show that the RX 9070 is capable of pushing well over 200 FPS at 1080p with High settings, indicating that the GPU is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 69th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23877. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z (0.6% higher score), the AMD Radeon RX 6800S (0.8% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile (1.1% higher). These comparisons show that the RX 9070 sits in a competitive mid-to-high tier, though its performance in Doom is clearly strong given the frame rates achieved.

The GPU's boost clock of 2520 MHz is the maximum frequency it can reach under load, and the data suggests that this clock speed is sufficient to sustain high frame rates in Doom. The FP32 performance of 36.13 TFLOPS indicates substantial compute capability, which translates directly to the fill-rate and shading performance needed for this game's fast-paced action. The power requirements are a 220 W TDP with a suggested PSU of 550 W, but these are specifications that do not directly affect the measured FPS numbers.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the average FPS is 218. Moving to 2560x1440 drops this to 141 FPS, a reduction of 35%. At 3840x2160, the average falls to 76 FPS, which is 46% lower than the 1440p figure and 65% lower than 1080p. This scaling indicates that the GPU is increasingly stressed as pixel count grows, which is expected for a rasterization-heavy title like Doom.

The same pattern holds across all settings. With Medium settings, 1080p produces 258 FPS, 1440p drops to 167 FPS, and 4K falls to 90 FPS. For Low settings, the numbers are 296 FPS, 192 FPS, and 104 FPS respectively. The Ultra preset shows 178 FPS at 1080p, 115 FPS at 1440p, and 62 FPS at 4K. These consistent drops across the board indicate that the GPU is the primary limiting component at higher resolutions, as the CPU's workload does not increase proportionally with pixel count.

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 1440p is steeper in percentage terms than the drop from 1440p to 4K for most settings. For example, High settings drop 35% from 1080p to 1440p, but only 46% from 1440p to 4K. This suggests that the GPU is still capable of handling the pixel throughput at 1440p, but the transition to 4K pushes it closer to its limits. The minimum FPS recorded at Medium settings shows a similar trend: 219 FPS at 1080p, 142 FPS at 1440p, and 77 FPS at 4K, confirming that the GPU maintains consistent frame pacing even under load.

The data indicates that the Intel Core i7-14700K is not the bottleneck in this configuration. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo reaches 296 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's limit for this game, but at higher settings and resolutions, the GPU takes over as the limiting factor. The CPU's strong multi-core performance, evidenced by a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 33440.5 and a 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs, ensures that it can feed the GPU adequately even at high frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700K and AMD Radeon RX 9070 ranks 1118 out of 3712 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the top 30% of all configurations. This ranking reflects a strong pairing that outperforms the majority of systems, though it is not at the very top tier where the fastest CPUs and GPUs are combined.

The CPU's individual performance is exceptional, with an average benchmark score of 69355 and a 94th percentile ranking. Its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 9115 (0.1% higher score), the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.2% lower), and the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.7% lower). These delta percentages show that the i7-14700K is within 1% of top-tier competitor CPUs, making it a high-end choice for gaming.

The GPU's individual ranking is more modest, sitting at the 69th percentile with an average benchmark score of 23877. Its nearest rivals, as listed above, are within 1.2% of its score. This places the RX 9070 in a competitive tier, but not at the absolute top of GPU performance. The combo's rank of 1118 out of 3712 suggests that while the CPU is a top performer, the GPU holds the combo back from reaching the highest echelons of the ranking.

The ranking indicates that this combo is well-balanced for Doom, with the CPU providing ample headroom and the GPU delivering solid frame rates. Systems ranked higher likely pair the i7-14700K with faster GPUs, or use even more powerful CPUs. The data suggests that this combo is a reliable choice for high-refresh 1440p gaming and acceptable 4K performance, which aligns with the measured FPS numbers.

FAQ

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

A: Based on the measured data, 2560x1440 with High settings provides an excellent balance, delivering 141 FPS average. This resolution offers a significant visual upgrade over 1080p while maintaining frame rates that exceed most high-refresh monitors. At 4K, performance drops to 76 FPS on High, which is still playable but not as fluid.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at 1440p?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 averages 115 FPS, which is 26 FPS lower than the High preset's 141 FPS. The visual difference between High and Ultra is typically subtle in Doom, so the performance cost may not be justified unless the display supports a lower refresh rate and the user prioritizes maximum image quality.

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

A: At 1080p with Low settings, the combo reaches 296 FPS, which suggests the CPU is nearing its limit for this game. However, at higher settings like High (218 FPS) and Medium (258 FPS), the GPU becomes the primary driver of performance. The CPU's 94th percentile ranking and strong multi-core scores indicate it is not a bottleneck at typical settings.

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

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 62, which is playable but not ideal for competitive play. Dropping to High increases this to 76 FPS, and Medium reaches 90 FPS. The data shows that 4K is viable with settings adjustments, making this combo suitable for 4K displays at High or Medium presets.

Q: How does the RX 9070 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RX 9070 has an average benchmark score of 23877, which is 0.6% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z, 0.8% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6800S, and 1.1% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile. These differences are minimal, indicating that the RX 9070 performs within a narrow band of similar-tier GPUs.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The measured data includes minimum FPS only for the Medium preset at each resolution. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 219 FPS; at 1440p Medium, it is 142 FPS; and at 4K Medium, it is 77 FPS. These minimums are close to the average values, indicating consistent frame pacing without significant drops.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080:

• Low: 296 FPS average
• Medium: 258 FPS average, 219 FPS minimum, 296 FPS maximum
• High: 218 FPS average
• Ultra: 178 FPS average

2560x1440:

• Low: 192 FPS average
• Medium: 167 FPS average, 142 FPS minimum, 192 FPS maximum
• High: 141 FPS average
• Ultra: 115 FPS average

3840x2160:

• Low: 104 FPS average
• Medium: 90 FPS average, 77 FPS minimum, 104 FPS maximum
• High: 76 FPS average
• Ultra: 62 FPS average

The data shows a consistent performance hierarchy across all resolutions, with Low being the fastest and Ultra the slowest. The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, providing insight into frame variability. At 1080p Medium, the difference between minimum and maximum is 77 FPS (219 to 296), while at 4K Medium, the spread narrows to 27 FPS (77 to 104). This indicates that frame pacing becomes more consistent at higher resolutions, likely due to the GPU being the dominant bottleneck. The overall pattern confirms that this combo excels at 1080p and 1440p, with playable performance at 4K when settings are adjusted appropriately.