Doom

The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile delivers exceptional performance in Doom, a 2016 title that remains highly playable on this flagship mobile hardware. The data shows a combination that obliterates standard refresh-rate targets at every resolution, with the lowest average FPS recorded being 67 FPS at 4K Ultra settings. This pairing ranks in the top quartile of all tested configurations, placing 823rd out of 3712 combos, which indicates that only a small fraction of systems outperform it in this specific game. The measured results point to a system where the GPU is the primary driver of frame rates, but the CPU’s robust specifications ensure it never becomes a bottleneck, even at lower resolutions where the graphics card has more headroom to push frames.

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

The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX is a 24-core, 24-thread processor built on the Arrow Lake-HX architecture, using a 3 nm process from TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 2.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, which provides substantial single-thread performance for game logic and physics calculations. The CPU has a 36 MB shared L3 cache and 3 MB of L2 cache per core, along with 192 KB of L1 cache per core, which helps reduce memory latency in fast-paced scenarios. Its 102.4 GB/s dual-channel DDR5 memory bandwidth ensures that data flows efficiently to the GPU, though Doom’s engine is not particularly memory-hungry by modern standards.

In benchmark terms, this CPU scores 35589 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2204 in single-core, while Geekbench results show 20795 multi-core and 2458 single-core. These numbers place the chip at the 94th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 67469. The nearest rivals include the Intel Xeon w5-3525 (0.3% ahead), AMD EPYC 4484PX (0.5% ahead), and AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5955WX (0.6% ahead), showing that the Ultra 9 275HX is statistically tied with some of the most powerful workstation processors on the market. However, for Doom, what matters more is the boost clock and IPC, as the game’s engine benefits from high single-thread performance. The 24 threads ensure that background tasks or heavy system loads do not interfere with the game’s frame pacing.

The relationship between the CPU and the measured FPS becomes clear when examining resolution scaling. At 1080p, the system reaches 316 FPS on Low settings, which is a massive workload for the CPU to feed the GPU. The fact that it achieves these numbers without obvious frame drops suggests the 5.40 GHz boost clock is doing its job. The PassMark single-thread score of 4713 reinforces that this is a top-tier processor for gaming, as it outperforms nearly all desktop CPUs in raw single-core tasks. Since Doom is a game that scales well with strong single-thread performance, the Ultra 9 275HX provides no measurable limitation, as evidenced by the fact that FPS scales almost linearly with resolution and settings changes rather than hitting a CPU wall.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Doom, and at what settings?

A: The highest average FPS is 316, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This is the peak measured performance for this configuration across all tested scenarios.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX compare to its closest rival in CPU benchmarks?

A: The data shows the Ultra 9 275HX has an average benchmark score of 67469, which is 0.3% behind the Intel Xeon w5-3525 (67673) and 0.5% behind the AMD EPYC 4484PX (67822). It is 0.7% ahead of the Intel Xeon 6515P (67006), placing it in a statistical tie with these workstation-class processors.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for this combo, and under what conditions?

A: The lowest average FPS is 67, recorded at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings. This is the most demanding configuration tested, yet it still remains comfortably above 60 FPS for smooth gameplay.

Q: Does the GPU or CPU limit performance in Doom at 1080p?

A: Benchmark results indicate the GPU is the limiting factor even at 1080p. The jump from 316 FPS on Low to 190 FPS on Ultra at 1080p shows a 40% drop in performance due to graphics settings, while the CPU’s 24 threads and 5.40 GHz boost clock provide enough headroom to avoid becoming the bottleneck.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems for Doom?

A: The combo ranks 823rd out of 3712 tested configurations, placing it in the top 22% of all systems. This ranking is based on the measured FPS data across all resolutions and settings, indicating it outperforms the vast majority of other hardware pairings.

Q: What is the benefit of the 24-core configuration for a game like Doom?

A: While Doom primarily relies on a few threads, the 24 cores ensure that system overhead, streaming, and background processes do not compete with the game’s main threads. The PassMark multi-thread score of 55759 confirms the CPU can handle simultaneous workloads without impacting frame rates, as seen in the consistent FPS across different tests.

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

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of resolution scaling that points to the GPU as the dominant performance limiter. At 1080p with High settings, the system averages 232 FPS, which drops to 150 FPS at 1440p (a 35% decrease) and then to 81 FPS at 4K (a 65% decrease from 1080p). This steep decline as pixel count increases is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the RTX 4090 Mobile’s rendering capabilities are being stretched by the higher resolution. The CPU’s performance stays constant across these resolutions, so the drop is solely due to the graphics card’s pixel throughput.

On Low settings, the pattern is even more pronounced. At 1080p, the system hits 316 FPS, which falls to 204 FPS at 1440p (a 35% drop) and 111 FPS at 4K (a 65% drop). The consistent percentage decreases across settings suggest that the GPU’s rasterization and shader work scales predictably with resolution, while the CPU maintains a stable frame delivery rate. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the FPS to plateau at lower resolutions, but the data shows no such plateau—the FPS continues to rise as resolution decreases, indicating that the GPU is always the primary constraint.

The Ultra settings tell a similar story, with 190 FPS at 1080p dropping to 123 FPS at 1440p (35% decrease) and 67 FPS at 4K (65% decrease). The fact that the percentage drop is nearly identical across all settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) reinforces that resolution, not settings complexity, is the main factor. This behavior is typical for a high-end GPU in a well-optimized game like Doom, where the engine’s rendering pipeline scales linearly with pixel count. The RTX 4090 Mobile’s 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 576.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient to handle 4K textures without stutter, but the raw compute power (32.98 TFLOPS FP32) is what determines the frame rate ceiling.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The comboRankInGame places this configuration at 823rd out of 3712 total tested combos, which translates to roughly the 78th percentile of all systems. This ranking is based on the aggregate measured FPS across all resolutions and settings, meaning it outperforms 2889 other configurations in Doom. The data indicates that while this is a top-tier mobile setup, there are 822 combos that achieve higher average frame rates, likely consisting of desktop-grade hardware or more powerful workstation GPUs.

In the context of the CPU’s benchmark percentile (94th) and the GPU’s percentile (84th), the combo ranking is slightly lower than the CPU’s relative standing but higher than the GPU’s. This suggests that the RTX 4090 Mobile is the more limiting factor in this pairing, as the CPU has more headroom relative to its peers. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 43667 places it near the NVIDIA RTX A6000 (0.9% ahead) and slightly ahead of the Quadro M6000 (0.8% behind), indicating that it competes with professional workstation cards despite being a mobile part.

The ranking gap between the CPU and GPU percentiles (94 vs 84) implies that in Doom, the GPU is holding back the system’s overall performance more than the CPU. If the combo were paired with a faster GPU, the ranking would likely improve, but the current configuration still delivers playable frame rates at 4K Ultra (67 FPS) and exceptional performance at 1440p and 1080p. The data shows that for 4K gaming, this combo is on the edge of the playable threshold on Ultra settings, while dropping to High settings yields a significant boost to 81 FPS, making it a more comfortable experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system delivers 316 FPS on Low, 275 FPS on Medium (with a min of 234 and max of 316), 232 FPS on High, and 190 FPS on Ultra. The spread from Low to Ultra is 126 FPS, which represents a 40% reduction in frame rate when maxing out settings. The Medium preset’s minimum FPS of 234 shows that even in the most demanding scenes, the system stays well above 200 FPS, ensuring no perceptible stutter on high-refresh-rate displays.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high: 204 FPS on Low, 178 FPS on Medium (with a min of 151 and max of 205), 150 FPS on High, and 123 FPS on Ultra. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent at approximately 35% across all settings, which aligns with the increase in pixel count from 2.07 million to 3.69 million pixels. The Medium preset at 1440p has a minimum FPS of 151, which is still above 144 Hz, making this the sweet spot for high-refresh-rate 1440p gaming with headroom to spare.

At 3840x2160, the performance starts to show the GPU’s limits: 111 FPS on Low, 96 FPS on Medium (with a min of 82 and max of 111), 81 FPS on High, and 67 FPS on Ultra. The 4K Medium preset is the only configuration with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, showing a range of 82 to 111, which indicates some variability in demanding scenes. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 67 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS minimum for smooth gameplay, but it requires a VRR display to eliminate potential frame pacing issues. The data clearly shows that 4K Ultra is playable but not ideal for competitive play, while 4K High offers a better balance with 81 FPS.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p displays, the Ultra preset at 190 FPS is the best choice, as it provides a cinematic visual experience while still exceeding the refresh rate of most 144Hz monitors. The High preset at 232 FPS is better suited for 240Hz displays, but the visual difference between High and Ultra in Doom is minimal at this resolution. For 1440p, the High preset at 150 FPS is the recommended balance, as it delivers 150 FPS on average, which is perfect for 144Hz panels, while the Ultra preset at 123 FPS is also viable if visual fidelity is prioritized over frame rate.

For 4K gaming, the High preset at 81 FPS is the best experience per the data, as it provides a comfortable frame rate above 60 FPS with high visual quality. The Medium preset at 96 FPS is also a strong option for those who prefer smoother motion over shadows and texture details, especially on 4K 120Hz displays. The Ultra preset at 67 FPS is playable but should only be considered for slow-paced, cinematic playthroughs, as the frame rate drops to the edge of the playable threshold. The Low preset at 111 FPS is unnecessary at 4K, as the visual downgrade is significant, and the frame rate gain over Medium is only 15 FPS.

The data suggests that the Medium preset offers the most consistent performance, with recorded minimum FPS values of 234 at 1080p, 151 at 1440p, and 82 at 4K. These minimums are close to the average FPS, indicating stable frame delivery without major spikes. The Ultra preset has no recorded minimum FPS values, which suggests the frame pacing is less predictable, but the average FPS numbers still show it is viable for most gaming scenarios. Overall, the recommended settings are High at 1080p and 1440p for competitive play, and Medium at 4K for the best balance of visuals and smoothness, unless the game’s visual enhancements are the primary focus, in which case Ultra is acceptable at lower resolutions.