Doom

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 delivers a robust 1080p and 1440p experience in Doom, but the data reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution climbs. At 1080p, the system is largely CPU-bound at lower settings, while at 4K, the GPU becomes the definitive limiting factor. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS rows to explore how the combo scales, where the CPU and GPU each flex their respective strengths, and which settings provide the most balanced experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured data shows a predictable yet stark decline in average FPS as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At Ultra settings, the average frame rate drops from 145 FPS at 1080p to 94 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 51 FPS at 4K. This represents a 34.5% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 45.7% drop from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is not linear; the jump to 4K imposes a disproportionately heavy load, suggesting that the GPU's rendering pipeline is saturated by the sheer pixel count.

At Low settings, the trend is similar but the absolute numbers are higher. The system averages 241 FPS at 1080p, 156 FPS at 1440p, and 85 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 35.3% and 45.5%, respectively, which is remarkably consistent with the Ultra settings scaling. This consistency indicates that the game's engine scales resolution demands uniformly across settings, but the absolute headroom at low settings reveals where the bottleneck shifts.

Analyzing the delta between 1080p and 4K at each preset tells a compelling story. At Low settings, the 1080p to 4K drop is 156 FPS (241 to 85). At High settings, the drop is 116 FPS (178 to 62). At Ultra, the drop is 94 FPS (145 to 51). The fact that the absolute FPS loss shrinks as settings increase suggests that at higher settings, the GPU is already working harder at 1080p, leaving less relative performance to lose at 4K. Conversely, at Low settings, the 1080p frame rate is so high that the 4K resolution creates a massive delta, exposing the GPU as the limiting component.

The data strongly implies that at 1080p and Low or Medium settings, the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU far more frames than it can render, resulting in extremely high FPS. However, as resolution climbs to 4K, the GPU’s pixel throughput becomes the primary constraint, and the CPU’s high frame generation potential is left untapped. For a player targeting 4K, the measured 51 FPS at Ultra and 85 FPS at Low indicate that the RX 7700 is the component that dictates performance, regardless of the CPU's capabilities.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. Its benchmark scores place it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14769 and a single-core score of 2085. These figures indicate a strong modern processor, but in Doom, the game’s engine and the resolution tested determine how much of this power is actually used.

At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 241 FPS. This high frame rate is a direct indicator that the CPU can process game logic and draw calls quickly enough to feed the GPU. The fact that the FPS drops to 210 at Medium and 178 at High at the same resolution suggests that the GPU is starting to become a factor, but the CPU is still not the primary bottleneck. The CPU's strong single-core performance, evidenced by its 2085 R23 single-core score, is crucial for maintaining high frame rates in a fast-paced FPS like Doom.

However, the CPU’s role diminishes as resolution increases. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 51, which is a far cry from the 145 FPS at 1080p Ultra. The data shows that the CPU’s core count and clock speed are more than sufficient for this game; the limiting factor is the GPU’s ability to render pixels at higher resolutions. The 14 cores and 14 threads are not a hindrance here, but they also don't provide a measurable benefit beyond what a lower-core-count CPU might offer at 4K, because the GPU is so heavily loaded.

The relationship between the CPU and the game's results is best illustrated by the scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p. The FPS drops from 241 to 145, a 39.8% reduction. This drop is attributable to the GPU's increased workload with higher settings. The CPU is consistently capable of delivering high frame rates, but the measured data shows that it is the GPU that governs the performance ceiling at higher settings. The CPU is a capable partner, but in this specific game, it rarely acts as the bottleneck, especially at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance on which settings preset offers the best experience, depending on the target resolution and refresh rate. For a 1080p display, the Low preset’s 241 FPS average is exceptionally high, but the Medium preset at 210 FPS still provides an extremely smooth experience while likely offering better visual fidelity. The High preset at 178 FPS remains well above the 144Hz threshold, making it a strong choice for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Ultra preset at 145 FPS is still playable but offers diminishing returns over High.

At 1440p, the data suggests that Medium is the sweet spot. The 136 FPS average at Medium is comfortably above the 120Hz mark, and the minimum FPS of 116 ensures that frame pacing remains consistent. High at 115 FPS is also viable, but it dips just below the 120Hz threshold. Ultra at 94 FPS is playable but may not be ideal for competitive play. Low at 156 FPS is the highest performer, but it may sacrifice too much visual quality for the moderate FPS gain over Medium.

For 4K, the situation is more constrained. The Ultra preset’s 51 FPS average is below the 60 FPS target, making it a less desirable choice for a smooth experience. High at 62 FPS is marginally better but still not ideal. Medium at 74 FPS is the best balance, offering an average that is above the 60 FPS target while maintaining a minimum FPS of 63. Low at 85 FPS is the highest performer and is the only preset that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS. The data indicates that for 4K, players should prioritize Medium or Low settings to maintain a fluid frame rate.

The best experience per the measured rows is highly dependent on the display. For 1080p and 1440p, High or Medium settings are recommended to balance visual quality and frame rate. For 4K, Medium is the recommended preset, as it is the highest setting that consistently achieves an average FPS above 60. The data shows that the system is capable of high frame rates at lower resolutions, but at 4K, the GPU’s limits necessitate a reduction in settings to hit playable frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and the AMD Radeon RX 7700 ranks 1314 out of 2930 tested combos in Doom. This places it in the middle of the pack, indicating that while it is a capable pairing, it is not at the top tier of performance. The percentile ranking of the CPU is 89, and the GPU is 58, which suggests that the GPU is the weaker link in this pairing, dragging the overall combo rank down from what the CPU alone might achieve.

Looking at the CPU's nearest rivals, the Intel Core i9-13900HX has an average score that is 0.1% higher than the Ultra 5 235, while the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 is 0.1% lower. This indicates that the CPU is performing on par with those high-end mobile and desktop parts in synthetic benchmarks. However, in Doom, the GPU's performance is the primary driver of the combo's rank. The GPU's nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, has an average benchmark score that is 1.7% higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 9060 is 1% lower. These small deltas suggest that the RX 7700 is in a competitive tier, but not a class leader.

The combo rank of 1314 out of 2930 means that roughly 55% of tested combinations perform better, and 45% perform worse. This is a solid, mid-range result. The data implies that a user seeking higher performance in Doom would benefit more from upgrading the GPU than the CPU, given the CPU's high percentile ranking and the GPU's modest one. The CPU is unlikely to be a limiting factor in this game, so the combo's rank is largely determined by the GPU's ability to render frames at the target resolution.

The fact that the CPU is in the 89th percentile while the GPU is in the 58th percentile creates an imbalance. This suggests that the system is well-suited for CPU-intensive tasks, but for gaming, the GPU is the component that holds back the overall experience. The combo's rank is a reflection of this imbalance, placing it in a position where it is better than average but not competitive with top-tier GPU pairings.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a Navi 32 chip, featuring 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. Its boost clock is 2459 MHz, and it has 2560 shading units. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 20974 in Passmark G3D, placing it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs. These specifications indicate a solid mid-range card, but the measured FPS in Doom reveals its limitations at higher resolutions.

The GPU's role is clearly defined by the resolution scaling. At 1080p, the GPU is capable of producing high frame rates, but it is not the primary bottleneck at Low settings. However, as resolution increases, the GPU’s workload grows exponentially. At 4K Ultra, the 51 FPS average shows that the GPU is heavily taxed, and its 16 GB of VRAM and 624.1 GB/s bandwidth are not enough to maintain high frame rates under the most demanding settings.

The relationship between the GPU's clocks and the game's results is evident in the FPS scaling. At 4K, the GPU’s pixel rate of 236.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 393.4 GTexel/s become the limiting factors. The data shows that dropping from Ultra to Medium at 4K yields a 45.1% increase in FPS (51 to 74), which is a significant gain. This indicates that the GPU is struggling with the memory bandwidth and compute demands of the Ultra preset, and Medium offers a more balanced load.

The GPU's VRAM capacity of 16 GB is ample for Doom, even at 4K, but the card's raw compute power is the constraining factor. The FP32 performance of 25.18 TFLOPS is moderate, and the data suggests that the GPU is simply not fast enough to render 4K at maximum settings. The measured FPS at 4K High (62) and Medium (74) are close, indicating that the GPU's performance curve flattens as settings increase, which is a hallmark of a GPU that is hitting its compute limits. The GPU is the decisive component in this pairing, and its performance dictates the playable settings at each resolution.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable at 1080p with this combo?

A: The highest measured average FPS at 1920x1080 is 241, achieved with the Low settings preset.

Q: At 4K resolution, which settings preset provides an average FPS above 60?

A: The Medium preset at 3840x2160 yields an average of 74 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS target. The Low preset also achieves 85 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 has an average benchmark score that is 0.1% higher than the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 and 0.1% lower than the Intel Core i9-13900HX.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this combo at 1440p Medium?

A: The measured minimum FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings is 116.

Q: Is the CPU or the GPU the primary bottleneck at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The data indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 51, which is significantly lower than the 145 FPS at 1080p Ultra, showing the GPU's rendering capacity is the constraint.

Q: What is the combo's overall rank among tested systems in Doom?

A: The combo ranks 1314 out of 2930 tested combinations, placing it in the middle of the performance distribution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

3840x2160 (4K)

• Ultra: Average 51 FPS.
• High: Average 62 FPS.
• Medium: Average 74 FPS, with a minimum of 63 FPS and a maximum of 85 FPS.
• Low: Average 85 FPS.

2560x1440 (1440p)

• Ultra: Average 94 FPS.
• High: Average 115 FPS.
• Medium: Average 136 FPS, with a minimum of 116 FPS and a maximum of 156 FPS.
• Low: Average 156 FPS.

1920x1080 (1080p)

• Ultra: Average 145 FPS.
• High: Average 178 FPS.
• Medium: Average 210 FPS, with a minimum of 179 FPS and a maximum of 242 FPS.
• Low: Average 241 FPS.