Doom

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 delivers a striking performance profile in Doom, a 2016 FPS that remains a demanding benchmark for modern hardware. The data shows a system capable of extraordinary frame rates, yet the relationship between its components reveals a clear division of labor depending on resolution and settings. This analysis breaks down the measured results, focusing on how the CPU’s 20 cores and the GPU’s architecture shape the experience.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. With a 125 W TDP and a 33 MB shared L3 cache, this chip is designed for high-throughput workloads. In Doom, a game that is heavily optimized for multi-threading, the CPU’s core count and high boost clocks ensure that the game engine’s physics, AI, and rendering tasks never become a bottleneck at lower resolutions.

At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 313.8 FPS, a figure that is almost entirely CPU-bound. The 14700KF’s single-core performance, reflected in a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6290, allows the game’s main thread to execute rapidly, while the additional cores handle background tasks and draw calls. This is a scenario where the processor’s 5.60 GHz boost clock is critical; the data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary driver of performance, as the GPU is not yet saturated.

However, the CPU’s role diminishes as resolution increases. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 63.7, a figure that is far below the 1080p Low result. This indicates that the processor has ample headroom; the limiting factor shifts entirely to the graphics card. The 14700KF’s percentile ranking of 96 among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 70104, places it in the top tier of processors. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-14700K, scores nearly identically at 70074, with a deltaPct of 0, confirming that the KF variant’s lack of integrated graphics does not impact gaming performance. The data shows that in Doom, the CPU is rarely the constraint, except in extreme low-resolution, high-frame-rate scenarios where its clock speed and cache hierarchy shine.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy of presets, and the optimal choice depends on the target display’s refresh rate. At 1080p, even the most demanding Ultra preset yields 190.4 FPS, which is sufficient for high-refresh-rate monitors. However, the jump from High to Ultra at 1080p costs 41.4 FPS (from 231.8 to 190.4), a reduction of roughly 18%. Conversely, the jump from Medium to High costs 43.9 FPS (from 275.7 to 231.8). The data suggests that High is the sweet spot at 1080p, as it offers a substantial visual upgrade over Medium while maintaining a frame rate above 230 FPS, which is ideal for competitive play.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more nuanced. High settings deliver 150.4 FPS, which is excellent for most 144 Hz displays. Medium settings push that to 179 FPS, but the visual fidelity loss is significant. Ultra drops to 124.5 FPS, which is still playable but may not fully utilize a 144 Hz panel. For 1440p, High is the recommended preset, as it balances the 150.4 FPS result with the best image quality. The delta between High and Ultra at this resolution is 25.9 FPS, showing that the GPU is starting to feel the pressure from the higher settings.

At 4K, the choices are more constrained. High yields 80.9 FPS, which is smooth for a 60 Hz display. Medium provides 93.3 FPS, but the visual difference is noticeable. Ultra falls to 63.7 FPS, which is borderline for smooth gameplay. The data indicates that High is the best experience at 4K, as it stays above 80 FPS without the steep performance penalty of Ultra. Low settings at 4K hit 108.4 FPS, but the graphical compromises are severe. The recommendation is to prioritize High at all resolutions, as it offers the most consistent balance of quality and performance, with the 1440p High result of 150.4 FPS being particularly strong.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the classic transition from CPU-bound to GPU-bound performance. At High settings, the combo achieves 231.8 FPS at 1080p, drops to 150.4 FPS at 1440p, and further to 80.9 FPS at 4K. This represents a 65% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K (from 231.8 to 80.9). The data shows that the scaling is not linear; the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 81.4 FPS, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 69.5 FPS. This is expected, as pixel count increases by 2.25x from 1080p to 1440p, but only by 2.25x from 1440p to 4K as well, yet the GPU’s fill rate limits become more pronounced.

The Low preset tells a similar story, with 313.8 FPS at 1080p, 204.2 FPS at 1440p, and 108.4 FPS at 4K. The 4K result is now 34.5% of the 1080p result, indicating that the GPU is the primary limiting component at higher resolutions. The RTX 4070, with its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth, is a capable card, but Doom’s 4K Ultra settings push it to its limits. The fact that the 1080p Low result is over 300 FPS suggests that the CPU is not a factor at that resolution; instead, the GPU’s pixel throughput, rated at 158.4 GPixel/s, dictates the upper bound.

This scaling analysis confirms that the i7-14700KF is overkill for this game at 4K, where the GPU is the bottleneck. The 1080p results show that the CPU can drive frame rates well beyond 300 FPS, but the RTX 4070 cannot maintain that pace as resolution climbs. The 4K Ultra result of 63.7 FPS is a clear indicator that the GPU’s 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is the limiting factor, not the processor’s 44557 Cinebench R23 multi-core score.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 428 out of 1681 tested combos in Doom. This places it in the top 25% of all systems, a strong showing that reflects its high frame rates across all resolutions. The rank is a composite measure, and the data suggests that this pairing is well-balanced for the game, even though the CPU is more powerful than necessary for most scenarios.

The GPU’s percentile ranking of 81 among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 37283, is moderate, but its nearest rivals provide context. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 37507, a deltaPct of -0.6, meaning the RTX 4070 is slightly slower on average in synthetic benchmarks. However, in Doom, the measured FPS shows the RTX 4070 performing admirably, indicating that the game’s engine favors the Ada Lovelace architecture’s features, such as its 46 RT cores and 184 tensor cores, even if they are not directly used in this title. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135, a deltaPct of -2.2, which is surprising given that a mobile chip outperforms the desktop RTX 4070 in synthetic tests, but Doom’s specific workload may favor the desktop card’s higher boost clock of 2475 MHz.

The combo’s rank of 428 suggests that there are 427 combinations that perform better, likely featuring higher-end GPUs like the RTX 4080 Super or RTX 4090. However, the i7-14700KF’s CPU percentile of 96 ensures that no processor-based bottleneck holds back the system. The data shows that this combo is not at the absolute top, but it is far from entry-level, and its rank is respectable given the RTX 4070’s position in the GPU hierarchy.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, using a 5 nm process at TSMC, with 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die. Its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory operates at 21 Gbps effective, providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth across a 192-bit bus. The GPU’s boost clock is 2475 MHz, and it has 5888 shading units, 184 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. These specs dictate its performance in Doom, a game that relies heavily on raw fill rate and memory bandwidth.

In Doom, the RTX 4070’s role becomes evident at 4K, where its 64 ROPs and 158.4 GPixel/s pixel rate are pushed to the limit. The 4K Ultra result of 63.7 FPS is directly tied to the GPU’s ability to process pixels, and the 12 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for the game’s textures, preventing any memory-related stutters. The memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s is also crucial, as Doom’s high-resolution textures require rapid data transfer, and the GDDR6X memory delivers this without becoming a bottleneck.

The GPU’s 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is moderate, and the data shows that it scales well with settings. At 1440p Ultra, the combo achieves 124.5 FPS, which is 65.4% of the 1080p Ultra result of 190.4 FPS. This is a typical scaling pattern for a mid-range GPU. The RTX 4070’s end-of-life production status and launch MSRP of 599 USD are noted, but the benchmark results speak louder: it is a solid performer for 1440p gaming and can handle 4K at reduced settings. The GPU’s passmark G3D score of 26927 and its percentile of 81 confirm that it sits in the upper mid-range tier, and in Doom, it delivers frame rates that are more than playable, provided the settings are adjusted appropriately for the resolution.