Doom

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 delivers a highly capable 1440p experience in Doom, with performance scaling that clearly identifies the GPU as the primary constraint as resolution climbs. The data shows a smooth transition from exceptional 1080p frame rates to playable 4K, though the margin between settings narrows significantly at higher resolutions, indicating that the 20-core processor has ample headroom to feed the graphics card.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and predictable scaling pattern across the three tested resolutions. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 241 FPS, which drops to 156 FPS at 1440p and further to 85 FPS at 4K. This represents a 35% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a 45% reduction from 1440p to 4K, demonstrating that the rendering load on the GPU grows substantially with each resolution step.

The scaling behavior becomes more telling when examining the High preset. At 1080p High, the system produces 178 FPS, which falls to 115 FPS at 1440p (a 35% drop) and then to 62 FPS at 4K (a 46% drop from 1440p). The consistency of these percentage drops across different settings strongly suggests that the AMD Radeon RX 7700 is the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the CPU's performance headroom remains constant regardless of pixel count.

Interestingly, the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens as resolution decreases. At 4K, the difference between Low (85 FPS) and Ultra (51 FPS) is 34 FPS, while at 1440p, the gap grows to 62 FPS (156 vs 94), and at 1080p, it expands to 96 FPS (241 vs 145). This pattern indicates that at lower resolutions, the GPU has spare capacity to handle increased graphical complexity, but at 4K, the rendering pipeline becomes saturated, and even the jump from Low to Medium only yields an 11 FPS difference (85 to 74 FPS).

The Medium preset provides the most complete data with min and max FPS values, offering insight into frame time consistency. At 4K Medium, the system averages 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS and maximum of 85 FPS, representing a relatively tight 22 FPS range. At 1440p Medium, the average is 136 FPS with a range from 116 to 156 FPS, while at 1080p Medium, the average reaches 210 FPS with a spread from 179 to 242 FPS. This data suggests that frame pacing remains stable even at higher resolutions, with no catastrophic drops that would indicate CPU bottlenecking.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Radeon RX 7700 combination ranks 1314 out of 2930 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the 55th percentile of all systems evaluated. This mid-pack ranking is notable given the hardware's specifications, as the CPU alone sits in the 94th percentile against all processors, while the GPU ranks in the 58th percentile against all graphics cards. The disparity between the component percentiles and the combo's overall ranking suggests that the GPU is holding back the system's potential in this title.

The CPU's benchmark performance reinforces this interpretation. The i7-14700KF achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167 and a single-core score of 6235, with a PassMark multi-thread score of 52425 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 21462. These results place it just ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X by 0.9% in average benchmark score, while trailing the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K by 1%. The processor's 20 cores and 28 threads provide substantial computational resources that Doom's engine can leverage for physics and game logic, but the frame rate ceiling in this test is clearly dictated by the graphics subsystem.

The GPU's benchmark profile shows a PassMark G3D score of 20974 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2865, placing it in the 58th percentile overall. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon R9 370X, scores nearly identically at 15862 versus the RX 7700's 15852 average, a difference of just 0.1%. The RX 7700 also trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti by 1.7% and the AMD Radeon RX 9060 by 1% in aggregate benchmarks, though these synthetic comparisons do not directly translate to Doom's specific rendering demands.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 brings 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is substantial for a game released in 2016, as Doom's texture streaming and level geometry can readily fit within the available VRAM at all tested settings. The 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 96 ROPs work together to deliver the measured pixel rate of 236.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 393.4 GTexel/s.

Clock speeds play a measurable role in the observed performance. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1900 MHz with a boost clock of 2459 MHz and a game clock of 2041 MHz. The gap between base and boost clocks indicates that the card can dynamically adjust its frequency based on thermal and power headroom, which is particularly relevant in a fast-paced FPS where frame-to-frame workload varies. The memory clock of 2438 MHz (19.5 Gbps effective) ensures that the 16 GB frame buffer is not a bottleneck, even at 4K resolutions where bandwidth demands increase.

The GPU's RDNA 3.0 architecture with 40 ray tracing cores and support for DirectX 12 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6 means that Doom's Vulkan renderer can be fully utilized. The measured FPS values likely reflect this API efficiency, as Vulkan's low overhead benefits both the CPU and GPU by reducing driver-level bottlenecks. The card's 25.18 TFLOPS of FP32 compute provides ample raw processing power for the game's lighting and particle effects, though the 4K Ultra result of 51 FPS indicates that even this level of compute is strained by maximum settings at high pixel counts.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers frame rates that exceed most display refresh rates. The Low preset produces 241 FPS, which drops to 210 FPS at Medium and 178 FPS at High. The Ultra preset still manages 145 FPS, meaning that even the most demanding settings at 1080p remain comfortably above 144 Hz for high-refresh monitors. The Medium preset's minimum of 179 FPS and maximum of 242 FPS show that frame times are consistent, with no noticeable stutter that would detract from the gameplay experience.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but begins to show the GPU's limitations. The Low preset achieves 156 FPS, which is still suitable for 144 Hz displays, while Medium delivers 136 FPS and High reaches 115 FPS. The Ultra preset falls to 94 FPS, which remains playable but drops below the 100 FPS threshold that many competitive players prefer. The Medium preset at 1440p shows a minimum of 116 FPS and maximum of 156 FPS, indicating a wider variance than at 1080p but still within acceptable bounds for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the system's performance becomes more modest. The Low preset produces 85 FPS, Medium delivers 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS, High reaches 62 FPS, and Ultra drops to 51 FPS. These results indicate that 4K gaming is viable but requires setting expectations appropriately. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is only 34 FPS, suggesting that the GPU is the limiting factor rather than any CPU-side constraint. The Medium preset's 63 FPS minimum ensures that even during intense combat sequences with multiple demons and particle effects, the frame rate should not drop below playable levels.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset at 145 FPS offers the best visual fidelity without sacrificing responsiveness, as the frame rate remains well above the 60 FPS threshold and even exceeds 120 FPS for high-refresh displays. Players with 144 Hz monitors who prioritize maximum frame rates could opt for the High preset at 178 FPS, which provides a substantial boost over Ultra while still maintaining high graphical quality.

At 1440p, the High preset at 115 FPS represents the sweet spot for most users, balancing visual quality with smooth performance. The Ultra preset at 94 FPS is viable for those who prioritize image quality over raw frame rate, but the 21 FPS difference between High and Ultra may not justify the visual gains. The Medium preset at 136 FPS offers an alternative for competitive players who want higher refresh rates, though the visual downgrade from High is noticeable.

For 4K gaming, the Medium preset at 74 FPS provides the best experience, as it maintains a minimum frame rate of 63 FPS and delivers a smooth average that exceeds the 60 FPS target. The Low preset at 85 FPS offers higher performance but with significant visual compromises, while the High preset at 62 FPS sits right at the edge of playability. The Ultra preset at 51 FPS is not recommended for 4K, as the frame rate drops below 60 FPS and may result in noticeable judder during fast-paced movement.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Doom at 4K 60 FPS?

A: Yes, but only with the Medium preset, which averages 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS. The High preset averages 62 FPS, while Ultra drops to 51 FPS.

Q: What is the best resolution for this system?

A: 1440p with High settings provides the best balance at 115 FPS, though 1080p Ultra delivers 145 FPS for those who prefer maximum visual detail.

Q: How much performance is gained by dropping from Ultra to Low settings?

A: At 1080p, the gain is 96 FPS (145 to 241). At 1440p, the gain is 62 FPS (94 to 156). At 4K, the gain is 34 FPS (51 to 85).

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor based on the scaling data. The CPU ranks in the 94th percentile overall, while the GPU ranks in the 58th percentile, and frame rates scale consistently with resolution changes.

Q: How does the RX 7700 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 7700 scores 15852 on average, which is 0.1% above the AMD Radeon R9 370X, 1.1% above the AMD Radeon Pro W5500, and 1.7% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The Medium preset at 1080p averages 210 FPS, with a minimum of 179 FPS and maximum of 242 FPS, providing excellent consistency for competitive play.