Doom

# Doom: Intel Core i7-14700KF + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

This combination of Intel's 20-core Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5090 D produces exceptional frame rates across all tested resolutions in Doom, placing 14th out of 2,930 tested combos. The data shows a system that delivers triple-digit average FPS even at 4K Ultra settings, with the CPU proving more than capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions where the frame rates exceed 450 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals how this combo scales from 1080p to 4K, and the pattern clearly indicates where the bottleneck shifts. At 1080p High settings, the combo produces 357 FPS average. Moving to 1440p High drops that to 231 FPS, a reduction of 126 FPS or roughly 35%. Stepping up to 4K High further reduces performance to 125 FPS, which is 232 FPS below the 1080p result.

The scaling behavior differs across settings presets. At Low settings, the frame rate falls from 468 FPS at 1080p to 314 FPS at 1440p (a 154 FPS drop), then to 170 FPS at 4K (another 144 FPS drop). This relatively linear decline suggests that at Low settings, the GPU is still the primary limiting factor even at 1080p, since the RTX 5090 D's raw compute is being taxed by the increasing pixel count.

At Ultra settings, the pattern shifts. The combo delivers 292 FPS at 1080p, 189 FPS at 1440p, and 102 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops between resolutions are consistent, indicating that the GPU workload scales predictably with pixel count. The 4K Ultra result of 102 FPS average demonstrates that this game at maximum settings still demands significant GPU resources, even from a card with 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and a 512-bit memory bus.

The Medium settings results include the only measured minimum and maximum FPS values in the dataset. At 1080p Medium, the combo shows a 422 FPS average with a minimum of 359 FPS and maximum of 486 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average is 273 FPS with a range of 232 to 314 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average is 148 FPS with a range of 126 to 170 FPS. These ranges indicate that frame pacing remains consistent, with the minimum FPS staying within roughly 15-18% of the average across all three resolutions.

The overall scaling pattern suggests that this CPU-GPU pairing is well balanced for Doom. At 1080p, the high frame rates (exceeding 450 FPS at Low settings) suggest the CPU is keeping up with the GPU's output, though the 20-core processor with 28 threads and a 5.60 GHz boost clock is clearly capable of handling even the most demanding frame generation scenarios. At 4K Ultra, the 102 FPS result shows the GPU is doing the heavy lifting, but the system still maintains a smooth, playable experience above the 100 FPS threshold.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this pairing for Doom's rendering workload. With a boost clock of 2407 MHz and 21,760 shading units, this Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU delivers the raw compute needed for the high frame rates observed. The 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 1,636.8 GTexel/s texture rate provide substantial headroom for this 2016 title, which was designed for much older hardware.

The 32 GB of GDDR7 memory operating at 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective) across a 512-bit bus yields 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is far beyond what Doom requires, even at 4K Ultra settings where the game's texture streaming and geometry loads are at their maximum. The 102 FPS average at 4K Ultra is unlikely to be constrained by memory bandwidth; rather, it reflects the GPU's compute limits when rendering at 8.3 million pixels per frame.

The GPU's benchmark results place it at the 92nd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. Its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (1.6% lower score) and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (2.4% lower score). Interestingly, the RTX 5090 D's average score is only 1.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT, though the 5090 D's DirectX 11 score of 371 and DirectX 12 score of 219 in Passmark reflect its architecture's strengths in modern APIs.

The measured FPS in Doom shows the GPU's real-world performance. At 4K Ultra, the 102 FPS average is nearly triple the 60 FPS target that most games aim for, and the 125 FPS at 4K High indicates that even with reduced settings, the experience remains exceptionally smooth. The GPU's 176 ROPs and 680 TMUs provide ample pixel and texture throughput for the game's fast-paced rendering demands.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the Ultra preset at 1440p delivers the best balance of visual quality and performance for this combo. The 189 FPS average at 1440p Ultra is well above the refresh rate of most high-end monitors, and it maintains the game's maximum visual fidelity. Moving to 4K Ultra drops the average to 102 FPS, which is still playable but sacrifices the headroom needed for consistent frame pacing on 120 Hz or higher displays.

For 4K users, the High preset at 125 FPS average provides a superior experience to Ultra at 102 FPS, especially for a fast-paced FPS where higher frame rates directly impact responsiveness. The 23 FPS difference between High and Ultra at 4K represents a 22.5% performance gain for what is typically a modest visual improvement in this title. The Medium preset at 4K offers 148 FPS, which could be preferred by competitive players seeking maximum frame rates while retaining 4K resolution.

At 1080p, the Ultra preset's 292 FPS average is the recommended choice for users with high-refresh-rate displays, as it provides the best visual quality while still delivering frame rates that exceed any consumer monitor's refresh rate. The Low preset's 468 FPS at 1080p offers diminishing returns for competitive play, as the difference between 292 and 468 FPS is imperceptible on most displays. The Medium preset at 422 FPS falls between these extremes but does not justify the visual quality reduction from Ultra.

The measured minimum FPS values, available only for Medium settings, show that frame dips are manageable. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 359 FPS is 85% of the average, while at 1440p Medium the minimum of 232 FPS is 85% of the average, and at 4K Medium the minimum of 126 FPS is 85% of the average. This consistent ratio suggests stable performance without sudden stutters.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce a 468 FPS average, Medium produces 422 FPS (with a range of 359 to 486 FPS), High produces 357 FPS, and Ultra produces 292 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 176 FPS difference between the lowest and highest quality presets, representing a 37.6% performance cost for maximum visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high. Low settings yield 314 FPS, Medium yields 273 FPS (range of 232 to 314 FPS), High yields 231 FPS, and Ultra yields 189 FPS. The 125 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is proportionally similar to the 1080p gap, confirming that the GPU is scaling predictably with the 1.78x increase in pixel count.

At 3840x2160, performance settles into a still-impressive range. Low settings produce 170 FPS, Medium produces 148 FPS (range of 126 to 170 FPS), High produces 125 FPS, and Ultra produces 102 FPS. The 68 FPS spread between Low and Ultra at 4K is the smallest absolute difference across resolutions, indicating that the GPU's performance ceiling is being approached at this pixel count. The 102 FPS at 4K Ultra remains above the 100 FPS threshold, providing a smooth experience even at maximum settings.

The data shows a consistent pattern: each settings tier costs approximately 15-20% performance relative to the tier below it. From Low to Medium, the average FPS drops by 46 at 1080p (10.8%), 41 at 1440p (15.0%), and 22 at 4K (14.8%). From Medium to High, the drops are 65 at 1080p (18.2%), 42 at 1440p (18.2%), and 23 at 4K (18.4%). From High to Ultra, the drops are 65 at 1080p (22.3%), 42 at 1440p (22.2%), and 23 at 4K (22.4%). This consistent scaling indicates that Doom's settings presets affect GPU workload uniformly across resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

This Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D combination ranks 14th out of 2,930 tested combos for Doom, placing it in the top 0.5% of all configurations. This ranking reflects the exceptional performance of both components, with the GPU's 92nd percentile standing and the CPU's 94th percentile standing contributing to a system that excels in this title.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the database provide context for its contribution. The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is 0.2% behind in average benchmark score, the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX is 0.4% behind, and the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is 0.9% behind. The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is 1% ahead. These small deltas indicate that the i7-14700KF is competitive with the fastest processors available, and its 20 cores and 28 threads provide ample parallel processing capability for Doom's engine.

The GPU's nearest rivals show a slightly different picture. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT is 1.1% behind in average score, while the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT is 1.6% ahead, and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB and 16 GB are 2.1% and 2.4% ahead, respectively. These comparisons are based on synthetic benchmarks rather than Doom-specific performance, so the actual in-game results may differ. The RTX 5090 D's position in the top 14 of 2,930 combos for this specific game, however, demonstrates its real-world capability.

The ranking also reflects the balance between CPU and GPU. A system with a weaker CPU might bottleneck the 5090 D at 1080p where frame rates exceed 450 FPS, but the i7-14700KF's 5.60 GHz boost clock and strong single-thread performance (6,235 in Cinebench R23 single-core) ensure that the GPU receives data fast enough to maintain its output. Conversely, a weaker GPU would struggle at 4K Ultra, but the 5090 D's 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 compute handles the load with the 102 FPS result.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700KF plays a critical supporting role in this combo, particularly at lower resolutions where CPU-bound scenarios are more likely. With 20 cores (8 performance cores and 12 efficiency cores) and 28 threads, this Raptor Lake Refresh processor provides substantial multi-threaded capability. Its 33 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB L2 cache per core ensure that frequently accessed game data remains close to the execution units.

The CPU's boost clock of 5.60 GHz, combined with a base clock of 3.40 GHz, delivers the single-thread performance that Doom's engine benefits from. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6,235 and multi-core score of 44,167 indicate strong performance in both lightly-threaded and heavily-threaded workloads. The Geekbench single-core score of 2,578 and multi-core score of 21,462 further confirm this capability.

In Doom specifically, the CPU's role becomes more apparent at 1080p where frame rates are highest. The 468 FPS average at 1080p Low suggests that the CPU can sustain frame generation above 450 FPS, which requires extremely low frame times and efficient draw call processing. The i7-14700KF's 125 W TDP and unlocked multiplier allow it to maintain these high clock speeds under load, though the actual power consumption may be higher when boosting.

The CPU's benchmark data shows it at the 94th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 70,163. Its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F (0.2% behind), AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.4% behind), and AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.9% behind), with the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K 1% ahead. These tight margins indicate that the i7-14700KF is among the fastest processors available, and its performance in Doom reflects this.

The CPU's 33 MB of L3 cache is particularly relevant for Doom, as the game's level geometry and texture streaming benefit from large caches. The 80 KB L1 cache per core and 2 MB L2 cache per core provide fast access to frequently used data, reducing memory latency and improving frame consistency. The DDR4 and DDR5 memory support with dual-channel configuration allows for flexible system builds, though the measured FPS data does not specify which memory type was used.

At 4K Ultra, the CPU's role diminishes as the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck. The 102 FPS average at this setting is more dependent on the 5090 D's compute throughput than the CPU's processing power. However, the CPU still needs to maintain frame pacing and handle game logic, and the i7-14700KF's strong single-thread performance ensures that this does not become a limiting factor. The combination of the CPU's 94th percentile standing and the GPU's 92nd percentile standing results in a top-14 ranking for this game, demonstrating that both components work together effectively without either becoming a significant bottleneck.