Doom

Doom’s 2016 engine is famously scalable, and the measured results for the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 demonstrate a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution increases. At 1080p, the system is heavily CPU-limited, with frame rates scaling dramatically with settings. The jump from Ultra to Low at 1920x1080 yields a massive 91 FPS difference (137 to 228 FPS), indicating that the GPU is not the primary constraint at this resolution. The data shows a 30 FPS gain from High to Low, and a 31 FPS gain from Ultra to High, suggesting that the processor’s 24 cores and 5.80 GHz boost clock are more than capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions. This is a classic sign of a high-end CPU paired with a mid-range GPU, where the graphics card’s workload is not heavy enough to saturate its resources.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high, but the scaling pattern changes. The average FPS at High is 108, at Medium is 128, and at Ultra is 89. The delta between Low (147 FPS) and Ultra (89 FPS) is 58 FPS, which is smaller than the 91 FPS gap seen at 1080p. This indicates that the GPU is beginning to take on a more significant role, though the CPU is still providing ample headroom. The 1440p results show a 19 FPS drop from Low to High, and a 20 FPS drop from High to Medium, which is a more gradual curve than at 1080p. This suggests that while the RTX 4060 is being utilized more, it still has enough performance to maintain very high frame rates, and the system is not yet fully GPU-bound.

At 3840x2160, the bottleneck shifts decisively to the GPU. The average FPS at High is 59, at Medium is 70, and at Ultra is 48. The difference between Low (80 FPS) and Ultra (48 FPS) is 32 FPS, which is the smallest absolute gap across all resolutions. This is a clear indication that the RTX 4060’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 272.0 GB/s bandwidth are being pushed to their limits. The 4K resolution demands a significant amount of pixel throughput, and the data shows that the GPU’s 15.11 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is the limiting factor. The frame rates at 4K are still playable, but the scaling from Low to Ultra is less pronounced, confirming that the graphics card is the primary constraint in this scenario.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 holds a combo rank of 1540 out of 2930 tested combos in Doom. This places it in the 52nd percentile of all tested configurations, meaning it outperforms a slight majority of systems but is far from the top tier. The ranking is likely dragged down by the GPU, as the RTX 4060’s percentile against all GPUs is 61, while the CPU’s percentile against all CPUs is 96. This disparity highlights that the CPU is a top-tier component, while the GPU is more of a mainstream performer.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, which has an average score of 83807, and the AMD EPYC 4584PX, with a score of 83090. The Core Ultra 9 290K Plus scores 84003 on average, putting it 0.2% ahead of the 285K and 1.1% ahead of the EPYC 4584PX. This indicates that the processor is among the fastest available for gaming workloads, though the margins over its closest competitors are slim. However, this raw CPU power does not translate to a top-tier gaming rank because the RTX 4060 is the bottleneck in most scenarios.

The GPU’s nearest rivals reveal a more modest standing. The RTX 4060 has an average benchmark score of 17639, which is 0.2% behind the AMD Radeon HD 7790 and 0.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon 780M. These are not high-end competitors, which underscores that the GPU is a mid-range part. In Doom, the combo’s rank of 1540 out of 2930 suggests that while the CPU provides a strong foundation, the overall system performance is limited by the graphics card. For a game like Doom, which is well-optimized, the data shows that the CPU’s high core count and clock speeds are not fully utilized at higher resolutions, where the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture and features 3072 shading units, 96 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output units. Its base clock is 1830 MHz, with a boost clock of 2460 MHz, and it comes with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. The memory clock is rated at 2125 MHz, which translates to 17 Gbps effective. These specifications place the GPU in the mid-range segment, and the benchmark results confirm this positioning.

In Doom, the GPU’s role becomes increasingly critical as resolution increases. At 1080p, the GPU is not the bottleneck, as evidenced by the high frame rates across all settings. The average FPS at 1080p Ultra is 137, which is well above the 60 FPS target, and the GPU’s 15.11 TFLOPS of compute power is more than sufficient for the game’s workload at this resolution. However, the data shows that the GPU’s performance scales linearly with resolution, and at 4K, it struggles to maintain high frame rates. The 4K Ultra setting yields an average of 48 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

The RTX 4060’s 8 GB of VRAM is a potential limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings. While Doom is not a VRAM-heavy game, the combination of 4K resolution and Ultra settings could push memory usage close to the limit. The measured results show a 32 FPS drop from Low to Ultra at 4K, which is a significant penalty. This suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and capacity are not sufficient to maintain the same level of performance across all settings at high resolutions. The GPU’s pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 236.2 GTexel/s are also factors, but the data indicates that the overall compute and memory subsystem is the limiting factor at 4K.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve a consistent 60 FPS?

A: The data shows that at 2560x1440, the average FPS is 89 at Ultra settings, which is well above 60 FPS. At 3840x2160, the average FPS is 59 at High settings, barely hitting 60 FPS, but drops to 48 at Ultra. Therefore, 1440p is the sweet spot for consistent high frame rates.

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

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus has an average benchmark score of 84003, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (83807) and 1.1% higher than the AMD EPYC 4584PX (83090). It is 1.3% behind the AMD EPYC 7F72 (85072).

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the frame rate scaling from Low (228 FPS) to Ultra (137 FPS) is 91 FPS, indicating that the CPU is providing more than enough performance. The GPU is not fully utilized, as the frame rates are extremely high across all settings, suggesting the CPU is the limiting factor.

Q: What is the GPU’s performance percentile compared to all GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 has a percentile of 61 against all GPUs, meaning it outperforms 61% of all graphics cards in the database. Its average benchmark score is 17639.

Q: How much of a performance drop is there from 1440p to 4K at High settings?

A: The average FPS at 2560x1440 High is 108, while at 3840x2160 High it is 59. This represents a 45.4% drop in frame rate, indicating a significant increase in GPU workload.

Q: Does the CPU’s high core count benefit Doom’s performance?

A: The CPU has 24 cores and 24 threads with a boost clock of 5.80 GHz. In Doom, the frame rates at 1080p are extremely high, but the scaling suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck at higher resolutions. The game likely uses a limited number of threads, so the high core count may not be fully utilized, but the high clock speed is beneficial.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, manufactured on a 3 nm process by TSMC. Its base clock is 3.70 GHz, with a boost clock of 5.80 GHz, and it has a TDP of 125 W. The CPU features a substantial cache hierarchy, including 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 cache per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus and a bandwidth of 115.2 GB/s. The processor’s synthetic benchmark scores are impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 51731 and a single-core score of 7303.

In Doom, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The measured data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary bottleneck, as frame rates are extremely high and scale significantly with settings. The jump from 137 FPS at Ultra to 228 FPS at Low represents a 66% increase, which is typically seen when the CPU is limiting performance. The high boost clock of 5.80 GHz is likely the key factor here, as Doom does not heavily utilize multi-threading. The 24 cores provide ample headroom for background tasks, but the game’s single-threaded performance is what matters most.

At higher resolutions, the CPU’s influence diminishes. The frame rate drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 35% on average across settings, and the drop from 1440p to 4K is another 45%. This indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting factor as resolution increases. The CPU’s 36 MB of L3 cache and 24 cores ensure that there is no stuttering or frame pacing issues, but the raw compute power of the GPU is what determines the final frame rate. The data shows that the CPU is more than capable of handling Doom’s requirements, as it never appears to be the limiting factor at 1440p or 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance on the optimal settings for this combo, depending on the target resolution and frame rate. At 1920x1080, all settings yield playable frame rates, with Ultra averaging 137 FPS, High at 167 FPS, Medium at 198 FPS, and Low at 228 FPS. For a 144 Hz monitor, High or Medium settings would provide the best balance of visual quality and performance, as they exceed 144 FPS. Ultra is also viable, but the 31 FPS drop from High to Ultra may not justify the visual improvement for some users.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are still high but more varied. Ultra averages 89 FPS, High averages 108 FPS, Medium averages 128 FPS, and Low averages 147 FPS. For a 144 Hz monitor, Low or Medium settings are necessary to achieve frame rates above 120 FPS. High is a good compromise for a 100 Hz monitor, as it averages 108 FPS. Ultra is suitable for a 60 Hz display, as it stays above 60 FPS. The data shows that Medium offers the best balance for high refresh rates, as it is a 20 FPS improvement over High.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are more constrained. Ultra averages 48 FPS, High averages 59 FPS, Medium averages 70 FPS, and Low averages 80 FPS. For a 60 Hz display, High is the closest to a consistent 60 FPS, though it may dip below in demanding scenes. Medium is a safer choice, as it averages 70 FPS with a minimum of 59 FPS, ensuring a more stable experience. Low is the only setting that consistently exceeds 60 FPS, but it sacrifices significant visual quality. The recommendation for 4K is to use Medium settings, as it provides a good balance of visual fidelity and performance, with a minimum FPS of 59 that is close to the 60 FPS target.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 in Doom is as follows:

At 3840x2160, the average FPS is 59 at High settings, 80 at Low, 70 at Medium, and 48 at Ultra. The Medium setting has a minimum FPS of 59 and a maximum of 80, indicating some variability. The High and Ultra settings do not have recorded minimum or maximum FPS values, but the averages suggest that Ultra is the most demanding, with a 22 FPS drop from Medium.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS is 108 at High, 147 at Low, 128 at Medium, and 89 at Ultra. The Medium setting shows a minimum of 109 and a maximum of 148, which is a wider range than at 4K. The frame rate scaling from Low to Ultra is 58 FPS, which is a significant difference.

At 1920x1080, the average FPS is 167 at High, 228 at Low, 198 at Medium, and 137 at Ultra. The Medium setting has a minimum of 168 and a maximum of 228. The scaling from Low to Ultra is 91 FPS, showing the largest impact of settings at this resolution. The data clearly shows that the system is CPU-bound at 1080p, as the GPU is not the limiting factor, and the CPU’s high clock speed allows for massive frame rate gains when settings are reduced.