Doom

# Doom: Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus + AMD Radeon RX 7600 — Benchmark Analysis

This combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and AMD Radeon RX 7600 delivers a playable Doom experience across most settings, though the data positions it firmly in the mid-range of tested configurations. With a combo rank of 1991 out of 2930 tested combos, this pairing sits in the 32nd percentile of all tested systems, meaning roughly two-thirds of tested configurations deliver higher average frame rates. The RX 7600's 57th percentile standing among all GPUs and the CPU's 96th percentile among all processors reveal a significant imbalance — the processor is far more capable than the graphics card, and in Doom's fast-paced rendering, the GPU becomes the primary constraint in nearly every scenario.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's overall rank of 1991 out of 2930 tested combinations places it in the lower-middle tier of the benchmark database. This ranking reflects the GPU's modest performance ceiling rather than any CPU limitation. The RX 7600's average benchmark score of 15171 puts it at the 57th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals bracket it tightly: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM scores 15199 (only 0.2% higher), while the AMD Radeon Pro 560X scores 15082 (0.6% lower) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti scores 15063 (0.7% lower). This clustering indicates the RX 7600 is squarely in a performance tier where small percentage differences define competitive positioning.

In contrast, the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is a dominant component. Its average benchmark score of 93785 places it at the 96th percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rivals are server-class processors: the Intel Xeon 6520P scores 93786 (essentially identical at 0% delta), the AMD EPYC 4564P scores 95183 (1.5% higher), the AMD EPYC 9175F scores 95615 (1.9% higher), and the AMD EPYC 4565P scores 95764 (2.1% higher). This CPU is over six times more powerful than the GPU in raw benchmark terms, yet in Doom, the GPU dictates the frame rates. The result is a combo that ranks far lower than the CPU's capability would suggest, confirming that this is a GPU-bound pairing for this title.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data shows a clear progression of frame rates as settings increase, and the optimal choice depends on the target display refresh rate. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 193 FPS average, which comfortably exceeds even 144 Hz displays. Medium drops to 168 FPS, still excellent for high-refresh gaming. High yields 142 FPS, which remains above most standard 120 Hz monitors. Ultra falls to 116 FPS, still playable but below the 120 FPS threshold.

At 2560x1440, the picture shifts. Low produces 125 FPS, Medium 109 FPS, High 92 FPS, and Ultra 75 FPS. For 1440p gamers with 60 Hz displays, all presets are viable, but the High preset at 92 FPS provides a strong balance between visual quality and headroom. Ultra at 75 FPS is acceptable for 60 Hz panels but leaves little margin for demanding scenes.

At 3840x2160, the RX 7600's 8 GB frame buffer and 128-bit memory bus become evident constraints. Low yields 68 FPS, Medium 59 FPS, High 50 FPS, and Ultra 41 FPS. The Low preset is the only one that maintains a consistent 60+ FPS average, while Medium dips to 59 FPS with a minimum of 50 FPS. For 4K gaming, the Low preset provides the most consistent experience, though players willing to accept occasional drops can use Medium. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 27 FPS, representing a 39.7% performance penalty for the highest visual fidelity.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the GPU-bound nature of this configuration. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 142 at 1920x1080 to 92 at 2560x1440 (a 35.2% reduction) and then to 50 at 3840x2160 (a 64.8% reduction from 1080p). This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU that is saturated by pixel throughput demands.

At Low settings, the transition is similar: 193 FPS at 1080p falls to 125 FPS at 1440p (35.2% drop) and 68 FPS at 4K (64.8% drop). The consistent percentage drops across settings indicate that resolution scaling is uniform regardless of preset, which points to the GPU's rasterization and memory bandwidth as the limiting factors rather than any CPU-side bottleneck.

The Ultra preset shows the steepest absolute decline: 116 FPS at 1080p, 75 FPS at 1440p, and 41 FPS at 4K. The 4K result is 64.7% lower than 1080p, matching the pattern seen in other presets. This uniformity suggests the RX 7600's 288.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 128-bit bus width are the fundamental constraints, as higher resolutions increase memory pressure proportionally.

The CPU's role in this scaling is negligible. With 24 cores and 24 threads across an Arrow Lake Refresh design on TSMC's 3 nm process, the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus has ample headroom. Its 44253 Cinebench R23 multi-core score and 2439 single-core score position it far above what Doom requires. The 36 MB shared L3 cache and 115.2 GB/s DDR5 memory bandwidth further ensure the processor is never the limiting factor in this title.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings range is well covered. The Low preset produces 193 FPS average with a maximum of 193 FPS and a minimum of 143 FPS at Medium (the only preset with min/max data). Medium delivers 168 FPS, High 142 FPS, and Ultra 116 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 77 FPS, representing a 39.9% performance cost for maximum quality. The minimum FPS of 143 FPS at Medium indicates that even at this resolution, the GPU can occasionally dip, though the average remains high.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 125 FPS (Low), 109 FPS (Medium), 92 FPS (High), and 75 FPS (Ultra). The Medium preset shows a minimum of 92 FPS and maximum of 125 FPS, meaning the frame rate fluctuates within a 33 FPS range. The Ultra preset's 75 FPS average is 40% lower than Low's 125 FPS, demonstrating the significant cost of higher settings at 1440p.

At 3840x2160, the results are 68 FPS (Low), 59 FPS (Medium), 50 FPS (High), and 41 FPS (Ultra). The Medium preset's minimum of 50 FPS and maximum of 68 FPS show a 18 FPS range, which is proportionally larger relative to the average compared to lower resolutions. The Ultra preset's 41 FPS average is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, making it unsuitable for competitive play at 4K.

The data reveals that the step from High to Ultra consistently costs approximately 18% performance at each resolution: 18.3% at 1080p (142 to 116), 18.5% at 1440p (92 to 75), and 18% at 4K (50 to 41). This consistency suggests the Ultra preset adds a uniform rendering load that scales evenly with resolution.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 is built on the Navi 33 chip using RDNA 3.0 architecture on TSMC's 6 nm process. With 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output units, the GPU has a modest compute configuration. Its 32 ray tracing cores are present but not heavily utilized in Doom, which is a 2016 title predating widespread RT adoption. The GPU's pixel rate of 169.9 GPixel/s and texture rate of 339.8 GTexel/s provide the raw throughput for the measured frame rates.

The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus delivers 288.0 GB/s bandwidth. This memory configuration is likely the primary constraint at 4K resolution, where the 50 FPS average at High settings reflects the bandwidth limitations. The memory clock of 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) is standard for the class, but the narrow bus width means the RX 7600 cannot feed data to the GPU cores as quickly as wider-bus competitors.

The GPU's boost clock of 2655 MHz and game clock of 2250 MHz with a base of 1720 MHz show a wide dynamic range. The 165 W TDP and dual-slot cooler with a single 8-pin power connector suggest the card operates within typical power limits for its class. The PCIe 4.0 x8 interface provides sufficient bandwidth for this GPU's needs, though it is half the lanes of the x16 standard.

In benchmark terms, the RX 7600's PassMark G3D score of 16634 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2310 place it in the mid-range. Its nearest rival, the RTX 3050 OEM, scores nearly identically (15199 vs 15171, a 0.2% difference), confirming the RX 7600 is positioned at the entry point of modern gaming GPUs. The 57th percentile ranking among all GPUs means 43% of tested GPUs perform worse, but a majority perform better.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is a formidable processor that far exceeds Doom's requirements. Its 24 cores and 24 threads on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, manufactured on TSMC's 3 nm process, provide massive multi-threaded capability. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44253 and single-core score of 2439 demonstrate excellence in both parallel and single-threaded workloads. The PassMark single-thread score of 5068 and multi-thread score of 68574 further confirm this.

The CPU's cache hierarchy — 192 KB L1 per core, 3 MB L2 per core, and 36 MB shared L3 — ensures that game data stays close to the cores. The boost clock of 5.50 GHz with a base of 3.70 GHz provides high frequency headroom for latency-sensitive tasks, while the 125 W TDP is modest for a 24-core processor. The DDR5 dual-channel memory with 115.2 GB/s bandwidth and ECC support adds reliability for sustained workloads.

In Doom, the CPU's role is minimal because the game engine is GPU-bound at all tested resolutions. The 96th percentile ranking among all CPUs means this processor outperforms 96% of alternatives, yet the combo rank of 1991 out of 2930 shows that CPU strength does not translate to high frame rates in this title. The nearest CPU rivals are all server-class EPYC and Xeon processors, which are designed for multi-threaded server workloads rather than gaming. This further highlights that the GPU is the performance bottleneck.

The 17,800 million transistors on a 243 mm² die with 3 nm process technology indicate a dense, power-efficient design. The integrated Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 64EU is irrelevant for gaming with a discrete GPU, but it provides display output capability if needed. The CPU's release date of 2026-03-10 and active production status mean it is a current-generation product. Its launch MSRP is $299.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p gaming with this combo?

A: At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 142 FPS average, which exceeds 120 Hz displays. The Ultra preset drops to 116 FPS, still playable but 18.3% slower than High. For maximum smoothness, the Medium preset at 168 FPS or Low at 193 FPS provides substantial headroom.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Doom?

A: At 3840x2160, only the Low preset achieves 68 FPS average, which is above 60 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 59 FPS with a minimum of 50 FPS, while High and Ultra fall to 50 FPS and 41 FPS respectively. For consistent 4K play, Low is recommended.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in Doom?

A: The GPU is clearly the limiting factor. The RX 7600 ranks at the 57th percentile of GPUs, while the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus ranks at the 96th percentile of CPUs. The frame rate scaling across resolutions shows consistent GPU-bound behavior, with the CPU having ample headroom.

Q: How does the RX 7600 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RX 7600's average benchmark score of 15171 is nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM at 15199 (0.2% difference). It is 0.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro 560X and 0.7% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti, while being 0.7% behind the AMD Radeon 680M integrated solution.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 1440p with different settings?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 125 FPS, Medium 109 FPS, High 92 FPS, and Ultra 75 FPS. The Medium preset has a measured range of 92 FPS minimum to 125 FPS maximum, showing variability of 33 FPS during gameplay.

Q: How much performance is lost going from Low to Ultra settings?

A: At 1080p, the drop from Low to Ultra is 77 FPS (193 to 116), a 39.9% penalty. At 1440p, the drop is 50 FPS (125 to 75), a 40% penalty. At 4K, the drop is 27 FPS (68 to 41), a 39.7% penalty. The percentage cost is consistent across resolutions.