Doom

# Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Doom with the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D shows a clear pattern of resolution-dependent performance scaling. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo delivers 473 FPS average. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 314 FPS, a reduction of 159 FPS. At 4K Low, the average falls to 170 FPS, representing a 303 FPS decline from the 1080p baseline. This scaling behavior indicates that at lower resolutions, the frame rate is heavily influenced by the CPU's ability to feed the GPU, while at higher resolutions the GPU becomes the primary constraint.

The gap between settings narrows as resolution increases, which is a classic sign of GPU-bound operation at 4K. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 181 FPS (473 versus 292). At 1440p, that spread compresses to 125 FPS (314 versus 189). At 4K, the spread between Low and Ultra shrinks further to 68 FPS (170 versus 102). This progressive compression of the settings delta as resolution climbs demonstrates that the RTX 5090 D's raw compute headroom is increasingly saturated at higher pixel counts, leaving less room for settings-related performance variation.

The medium preset data provides the most complete picture, as it includes minimum and maximum FPS values. At 4K Medium, the average is 148 FPS with a minimum of 126 FPS and maximum of 170 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average rises to 273 FPS with a range from 232 to 314 FPS. At 1080p Medium, the average reaches 422 FPS with minimum 359 and maximum 486. The minimum-to-average ratio stays relatively consistent around 85% across all three resolutions, suggesting stable frame pacing without sudden CPU-related hitches.

The 4K results tell the most interesting story for this combo. With the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, memory capacity and bandwidth are not limiting factors at any resolution. The 4K Ultra average of 102 FPS indicates that even this flagship GPU cannot fully brute-force Doom's maximum settings at 4K, though 102 FPS remains highly playable. The 4K High average of 125 FPS and 4K Medium average of 148 FPS suggest that users targeting 4K will find a comfortable performance envelope across most quality presets.

For competitive play, the 1080p numbers are extraordinary. The 473 FPS Low average and 422 FPS Medium average far exceed typical high-refresh-rate display capabilities. Even at 1440p Low, the 314 FPS average keeps this combo well above 240 Hz display thresholds. The data indicates that at 1080p and 1440p, the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 with its 14 cores and 14 threads becomes a meaningful contributor to overall frame rate, particularly at Low settings where the GPU has less work to do per frame.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo achieves in Doom?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 473, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. The 1080p Medium setting reaches 422 FPS average, while 1080p High hits 357 FPS and 1080p Ultra delivers 292 FPS.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for Doom?

A: This Intel Core Ultra 5 235 with RTX 5090 D combination ranks 13th out of 2930 tested combos for Doom. This places it in the top 0.4% of all configurations tested, indicating exceptional performance relative to the broader database.

Q: What is the difference between Low and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, Low settings produce 170 FPS average while Ultra settings produce 102 FPS average, a difference of 68 FPS. Medium sits at 148 FPS and High at 125 FPS, showing a consistent performance gradient across quality presets at 4K.

Q: Does the 1440p Medium preset maintain stable frame times?

A: Yes, the 2560x1440 Medium preset shows an average of 273 FPS with a minimum of 232 FPS and maximum of 314 FPS. The minimum represents 85% of the average, indicating stable performance without significant frame drops.

Q: How much faster is 1080p compared to 4K at the same settings?

A: At Low settings, 1080p delivers 473 FPS versus 170 FPS at 4K, making 1080p approximately 2.8 times faster. At Medium settings, 1080p's 422 FPS compared to 4K's 148 FPS represents a similar 2.9x advantage. At High, 357 FPS versus 125 FPS is 2.9x, and at Ultra, 292 FPS versus 102 FPS is 2.9x.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest average FPS is 102, recorded at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings. This remains well above playable thresholds, and the minimum FPS data for this configuration was not captured in the measured results.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 brings 14 cores and 14 threads to this combination, running at a base clock of 3.40 GHz and boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This Arrow Lake-S architecture processor, built on TSMC's 3 nm process, provides the computational foundation for Doom's game logic and physics. The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth ensure that scene data flows efficiently to the GPU.

In CPU-bound scenarios, particularly at 1080p Low settings where the GPU has minimal work, the 473 FPS result demonstrates that this processor can sustain extremely high frame rates. The CPU's single-thread performance, reflected in its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2085, is adequate to avoid becoming a bottleneck at lower resolutions. The multi-core score of 14769 in Cinebench R23 indicates solid all-core throughput, though Doom is not heavily threaded.

The ratio between settings at 1080p provides insight into CPU headroom. The jump from Low at 473 FPS to Medium at 422 FPS is a modest 51 FPS drop, while High at 357 FPS and Ultra at 292 FPS show progressively larger penalties. If the CPU were severely limiting, the Low to Medium delta would be smaller and the absolute frame rates would plateau. Instead, the spread indicates that the CPU has sufficient headroom to support even the highest settings at 1080p without becoming the primary constraint.

At 1440p, the CPU's role diminishes as the GPU takes on more work. The 1440p Low average of 314 FPS versus 1080p Low's 473 FPS shows a 159 FPS reduction, confirming that the GPU is now the limiting factor. The 4K results further emphasize this shift, with all settings showing less than 170 FPS. The CPU's 14 threads are sufficient for Doom's engine, and the processor's 89th percentile ranking versus all CPUs places it in the upper tier of processors tested.

The nearest rival data places the Core Ultra 5 235 in close competition with the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, which scores 0.1% higher, and the Intel Core i9-13900HX, which scores 0.1% lower. This tight grouping suggests that the CPU's performance characteristics are well balanced for gaming workloads like Doom, where neither single-thread nor multi-thread performance dominates.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimal settings at each resolution. At 1080p, even Ultra settings deliver 292 FPS average, which exceeds the refresh rate of virtually all gaming monitors. For users with 240 Hz or 360 Hz displays, Medium settings at 422 FPS or Low at 473 FPS provide the headroom to fully utilize high refresh rates. The Medium preset's minimum FPS of 359 ensures that even demanding scenes stay above 300 FPS.

At 1440p, the Medium preset delivers 273 FPS average with a 232 FPS minimum, making it the recommended choice for high-refresh-rate 1440p displays. High settings at 231 FPS also remain viable for 240 Hz monitors, while Ultra at 189 FPS suits 165 Hz displays. Users prioritizing visual quality over raw frame rate can select Ultra and still maintain smooth gameplay well above 144 Hz.

For 4K, the Medium preset at 148 FPS average with a 126 FPS minimum provides the best balance of visual fidelity and performance. High at 125 FPS is suitable for 120 Hz displays, while Ultra at 102 FPS remains playable but approaches the threshold where frame pacing becomes noticeable on high-refresh panels. Low at 170 FPS offers the highest frame rates at 4K but sacrifices significant visual quality.

The measured data suggests that Medium settings offer the most consistent experience across all resolutions. The minimum FPS values recorded for Medium at each resolution—359 at 1080p, 232 at 1440p, and 126 at 4K—all represent high levels of performance. The maximum FPS values for Medium (486, 314, and 170 respectively) show that the preset scales predictably with resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

This combo ranks 13th out of 2930 tested combinations for Doom, placing it in the 99.6th percentile of all configurations. This top-tier ranking is expected given the RTX 5090 D's position as NVIDIA's flagship Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU with a 92nd percentile ranking versus all GPUs. The CPU's 89th percentile ranking complements the GPU, creating a balanced high-end pairing.

The ranking reflects not just peak performance but consistency across settings and resolutions. The combo's ability to maintain 102 FPS at 4K Ultra, 189 FPS at 1440p Ultra, and 292 FPS at 1080p Ultra demonstrates that it handles the most demanding configurations without dropping below playable thresholds. The 13th position out of 2930 combos indicates that only a handful of configurations with even more powerful CPUs or specialized hardware configurations outperform this pairing.

The GPU's nearest rival data shows the RTX 5090 D scoring 1.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT and 1.6% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT in average benchmark scores. While these deltas are small, the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth provide substantial advantages in memory-intensive scenarios. The CPU's nearest rivals, including the Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 and Core i9-13900HX, show deltas within 0.2%, indicating that processor choice has minimal impact on the overall combo ranking.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers 473 FPS average on Low settings, 422 FPS on Medium with a minimum of 359 FPS and maximum of 486 FPS, 357 FPS on High, and 292 FPS on Ultra. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 181 FPS spread, with each settings tier imposing a significant but manageable performance cost.

Moving to 2560x1440, Low settings produce 314 FPS average, Medium delivers 273 FPS with 232 FPS minimum and 314 FPS maximum, High reaches 231 FPS, and Ultra drops to 189 FPS. The settings spread at 1440p is 125 FPS, narrower than at 1080p but still substantial.

At 3840x2160, the performance envelope tightens considerably. Low settings yield 170 FPS average, Medium produces 148 FPS with a minimum of 126 FPS and maximum of 170 FPS, High achieves 125 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 102 FPS. The 4K settings spread of 68 FPS reflects the GPU's increasing workload at higher pixel counts.

The Medium preset provides the most complete dataset with minimum and maximum values at all three resolutions. The minimum FPS values—359 at 1080p, 232 at 1440p, and 126 at 4K—represent 85%, 85%, and 85% of their respective averages. This consistent ratio indicates that the combo maintains stable performance characteristics regardless of resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant performance driver in this configuration. With 21,760 shading units, 680 TMUs, and 176 ROPs, the GPU provides massive parallel processing capability for Doom's rendering workload. The Blackwell 2.0 architecture's 170 RT cores and 680 tensor cores support advanced rendering features, though Doom's 2016 release does not heavily utilize ray tracing or AI-accelerated features.

The GPU's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus delivers 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, providing ample headroom for 4K textures and high-resolution rendering. The 5 nm process node and 92,200 million transistors packed into a 750 mm² die enable the 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 compute throughput that drives the exceptional frame rates observed. The boost clock of 2407 MHz and base clock of 2017 MHz represent the operating frequencies that sustain this performance.

The GPU's role becomes increasingly pronounced as resolution increases. At 1080p, the CPU's 473 FPS Low result suggests the GPU has excess capacity, but the 4K Ultra result of 102 FPS demonstrates the GPU's limits when fully loaded. The 2.9x performance difference between 1080p and 4K across all settings indicates that the GPU's fill rate and pixel throughput are the primary constraints at higher resolutions.

The RTX 5090 D's percentile ranking of 92nd versus all GPUs places it in the upper echelon of graphics cards. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, which scores 1.6% lower, and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB, which scores 2.1% lower. This competitive positioning confirms that the GPU provides flagship-level performance that justifies its dominant role in the combo's overall results. The 575 W TDP and PCIe 5.0 x16 interface ensure that the GPU receives adequate power and bandwidth to maintain consistent performance across all tested scenarios.