Doom

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K is a 20-core, 28-thread processor built on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. In Doom, a 2016 FPS title, the CPU’s role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The benchmark results show that even at 1080p with Low settings, where the GPU load is lowest, the system achieves 182.3 FPS average. This suggests that the processor’s high single-thread performance, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6287, is more than sufficient for this title’s engine, which was designed for the hardware of its era.

The data indicates that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this combination, even at lower resolutions. The processor’s benchmark percentile of 96 versus all CPUs places it in the top tier of desktop processors. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-14700KF, has a nearly identical average benchmark score of 70104 with a deltaPct of 0, while the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X is slightly behind at 70420 with a deltaPct of -0.5. This clustering shows that the 14700K’s raw compute headroom is ample for Doom’s requirements, which are modest by modern standards. The L3 cache of 33 MB shared and the dual-channel memory support for DDR4 and DDR5 further contribute to its ability to handle the game’s data streaming without stutter.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is the graphics component, built on the Xe2-HPG architecture with a base and boost clock of 2670 MHz. It features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is a critical factor in Doom, as the game’s texture streaming can be demanding at higher resolutions. The GPU’s 2560 shading units and 80 ROPs handle the rasterization workload, with a pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 427.2 GTexel/s. The FP32 performance of 13.67 TFLOPS provides the raw compute for the game’s lighting and particle effects.

In the benchmark data, the Arc B580’s role is clearly the limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 39.7, which is a substantial decline from the 1080p High result of 132.9 FPS. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 23021 places it in the 66th percentile, with its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon 760M, scoring 22999 with a deltaPct of 0.1. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is slightly ahead with a score of 23181 and a deltaPct of -0.7. This indicates that the Arc B580 is competitive with mainstream GPUs, but its performance in Doom at 4K Ultra suggests that the game’s most demanding settings exceed its capabilities for smooth 60 FPS gameplay, despite its 12 GB VRAM buffer being sufficient for the title’s assets.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear scaling pattern from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p High, the system produces 132.9 FPS, which drops to 89.9 FPS at 1440p High, and further to 48.8 FPS at 4K High. This represents a 33% decrease from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 46% decrease from 1440p to 4K. The pattern is consistent across all settings, indicating that the GPU is the primary bottleneck as resolution increases. The CPU’s performance headroom, as discussed, does not constrain these results.

The scaling data reveals a significant shift in the limiting component. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 182.3 FPS, which is likely CPU-bound or engine-limited, as the GPU has ample capacity. However, at 4K Ultra, the FPS drops to 39.7, a 78% reduction from the 1080p Low figure, which is a classic sign of GPU-bound performance. The 4K Low result of 65.6 FPS, compared to the 4K High result of 48.8 FPS, shows that even at the same resolution, the settings have a substantial impact on the GPU workload. This suggests that for a consistent 60 FPS experience at 4K, the user must compromise on settings, while at 1440p, the system can maintain higher frame rates across all presets, with the Low setting hitting 116.4 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal balance between visual quality and performance is achieved at the High preset. At 1080p High, the system produces 132.9 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. At 1440p High, the average FPS is 89.9, still offering a comfortable margin. The Medium preset provides a slight performance boost, with 160.2 FPS at 1080p and 103.7 FPS at 1440p, but the visual fidelity reduction may not be worth the modest FPS gain, given that High already delivers excellent results.

The Ultra preset, while visually the most demanding, shows a significant performance penalty: 111.6 FPS at 1080p and 70.5 FPS at 1440p. At 4K, Ultra drops to 39.7 FPS, which is below the playable threshold for most users. The Low preset, while yielding the highest frame rates (182.3 FPS at 1080p), sacrifices too much visual quality for a game that is not graphically intensive by modern standards. The data suggests that the High preset is the sweet spot for this combination, as it provides a high frame rate at 1080p and 1440p while maintaining a reasonable visual experience. For users with 4K displays, the Medium preset at 58.5 FPS is marginally below 60, but the Low preset at 65.6 FPS is the only viable option for a smooth 4K experience.

How This Combo Ranks

In the overall benchmark database, this combination of the Intel Core i7-14700K and Intel Arc B580 ranks 1306 out of 1681 tested combos for Doom. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all tested systems, which is a surprising result given the individual component scores. The CPU’s high percentile (96) and the GPU’s mid-range percentile (66) suggest that the combo should perform better than its rank indicates. However, the rank reflects the actual measured FPS across all resolutions and settings, and the data shows that the GPU’s performance at 4K Ultra (39.7 FPS) pulls the aggregate score down.

The rank of 1306 out of 1681 indicates that there are many other combinations that achieve higher frame rates in Doom, likely due to more powerful GPUs. The data shows that the Arc B580’s performance is comparable to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060, which has a deltaPct of -0.7, meaning the RTX 4060 is slightly faster. This suggests that combos with a similar CPU but a faster GPU would rank higher. The CPU’s performance is not the issue; the bottleneck is clearly the GPU at higher settings and resolutions. The combo’s rank reflects a system that is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but struggles at 4K, which is a common trade-off for mainstream GPUs. The measured data confirms that this is a solid mid-range gaming setup, but it is not optimized for maximum performance in Doom at the highest settings.