The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT combination delivers a playable experience in The Medium, but the data shows that preset selection is critical. Across all tested resolutions, the Ultra preset is consistently the most demanding, while the Low preset provides the highest frame rates. However, the most balanced experience is achieved with the Medium preset. At 1920x1080, Medium yields 59.5 FPS, which is comfortably above the 30 FPS threshold for playability. At 2560x1440, Medium drops to 53.2 FPS, still maintaining a smooth experience. The High preset is also viable, producing 41.5 FPS at 1080p and 37.5 FPS at 1440p. The data indicates that Medium is the optimal preset for this combo, as it offers a significant performance uplift over High while retaining visual quality, whereas Ultra severely compromises frame rates without proportionally improving the experience.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows demonstrate a clear hierarchy across presets. The Low preset at 1920x1080 achieves 95.2 FPS, the highest score recorded for this combination, but it sacrifices graphical fidelity. The Medium preset at 1080p delivers 59.5 FPS, which is 18 FPS higher than High (41.5 FPS) and 25.2 FPS higher than Ultra (34.3 FPS). This makes Medium the most efficient choice for 1080p gaming. At 2560x1440, the pattern repeats: Medium scores 53.2 FPS, while High scores 37.5 FPS and Ultra scores 26.8 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p is the best balance, providing a 15.7 FPS advantage over High and a 26.4 FPS advantage over Ultra. For 4K resolution, the data shows that Medium (42 FPS) is the only preset that remains playable, as High (29.7 FPS) and Ultra (22.6 FPS) fall below 30 FPS. The Low preset at 4K (66 FPS) is the only other viable option, but it negates the visual benefits of higher resolutions. Therefore, the Medium preset is recommended as the best overall experience, offering the highest playable frame rate across all three resolutions without resorting to Low settings.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT is the primary driver of performance in The Medium, as evidenced by the frame rate scaling with preset changes. The GPU features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 280.3 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is sufficient for the game’s requirements at 1080p and 1440p, as the Medium preset maintains frame rates above 50 FPS. However, at 4K resolution, the GPU’s limitations become apparent; the High preset only achieves 29.7 FPS, and Ultra drops to 22.6 FPS. The GPU’s boost clock of 2635 MHz and game clock of 2410 MHz contribute to its compute capability of 10.79 TFLOPS. In benchmark tests, the GPU scores 17166 in Passmark G3D and 7532 in Passmark GPU Compute, placing it in the 72nd percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, has a nearly identical average score (29011 vs. 29024), with a deltaPct of 0. This indicates that the RX 6650 XT is well-matched for 1080p and 1440p gaming but struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K. The data shows that the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM is adequate for Medium settings at all resolutions, but Ultra settings at 4K exceed its effective bandwidth limits.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.20 GHz. In The Medium, the CPU’s role is secondary to the GPU, as the game is graphically intensive. The CPU’s benchmark scores show strong multi-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 16429 and a single-core score of 2319. In Passmark, the CPU scores 19330 in multithread and 3058 in single-thread tests. These results place the CPU in the 79th percentile among all CPUs, with a nearest rival being the Intel Core i5-12500, which has an average score of 20897, a mere 0.1% difference. The CPU’s 16 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support (51.2 GB/s bandwidth) are sufficient to feed the GPU without bottlenecking at most settings. However, at low resolutions and low presets, the CPU’s influence becomes more pronounced. For instance, at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 95.2 FPS, which is the highest score, indicating that the CPU can keep up with the GPU’s output. At 4K Low, the score drops to 66 FPS, showing that the GPU becomes the limiting factor. The data suggests that the Ryzen 5 5500 provides ample processing power for this game, as frame rates scale predictably with GPU-bound settings rather than CPU-bound scenarios.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database, this specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT holds a combo rank of 1057 out of 1689 tested combos for The Medium. This places it in the bottom half of all combinations, which is reasonable given the mid-range nature of both components. The rank reflects the measured FPS data, which shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming at medium-to-high settings. At 1080p, the combo achieves 59.5 FPS on Medium, which is comparable to many higher-ranked systems. However, at 4K, the combo falls behind, with only the Low preset (66 FPS) and Medium preset (42 FPS) providing playable frame rates. The rank of 1057 out of 1689 indicates that there are 632 combos that perform better, likely featuring higher-end GPUs or CPUs. The combo’s performance is consistent with its individual component percentiles: the CPU is in the 79th percentile, and the GPU is in the 72nd percentile. The data shows that this combo is not a top-tier performer but is adequate for mainstream gaming at standard resolutions. Its nearest GPU rival, the RX 6800M, has a nearly identical average score, suggesting that the combo’s ranking is not GPU-limited but rather a result of the overall system configuration.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in The Medium?*

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 provides the highest frame rates, with the Medium preset achieving 59.5 FPS and the Low preset reaching 95.2 FPS. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset still delivers 53.2 FPS, making it a viable option. 4K is only playable at Low (66 FPS) or Medium (42 FPS) settings.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to Medium in terms of performance?

A: The Ultra preset is significantly more demanding. At 1080p, Ultra scores 34.3 FPS versus 59.5 FPS for Medium, a difference of 25.2 FPS. At 1440p, Ultra scores 26.8 FPS versus 53.2 FPS for Medium, and at 4K, Ultra scores 22.6 FPS versus 42 FPS for Medium.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting factor. The CPU’s nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12500, has a deltaPct of -0.1, meaning they perform nearly identically. The GPU’s frame rate scaling with presets shows that higher settings reduce FPS proportionally, indicating GPU-bound performance.

Q: What is the launch MSRP for the GPU?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT has a launch MSRP of 399 USD.

Q: How does this combo’s rank compare to other tested configurations?

A: This combo ranks 1057 out of 1689 tested combos for The Medium. This places it in the lower half of all combinations, with 632 combos performing better. The rank is consistent with the GPU’s 72nd percentile and CPU’s 79th percentile scores.

*Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in The Medium?*

A: Yes, but only at lower presets. The data shows that the Low preset achieves 66 FPS at 4K, and the Medium preset achieves 42 FPS. The High preset (29.7 FPS) and Ultra preset (22.6 FPS) are below the 30 FPS playability threshold.