The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 produces a fascinating benchmark profile in The Medium, one where the sheer computational might of the flagship GPU is consistently tempered by the processor and the game's engine demands. The measured frame rates across resolutions and settings reveal a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher loads but exhibits clear signs of CPU limitation at lower resolutions and presets. This analysis breaks down the data to show exactly where the bottlenecks lie and what users can expect from this specific combination.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K provides a clear picture of how the workload shifts between components. At Medium settings, the average frame rate drops from 114 FPS at 1920x1080 to 107 FPS at 2560x1440, and then to 90 FPS at 3840x2160. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is a modest 6.1% reduction, while the jump to 4K incurs a steeper 16.8% drop from the 1440p figure. This pattern indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary limiter, preventing the RTX 5090 from reaching its full potential; the GPU has enough headroom to maintain high frame rates without being fully taxed. As resolution increases, the pixel throughput demand on the GPU grows, which begins to shift the balance of the bottleneck.

The trend is more pronounced at High settings. The average FPS goes from 97 at 1080p, to 82 at 1440p, and finally to 64 at 4K. This represents a 15.5% performance hit when moving from 1080p to 1440p and a 21.9% hit from 1440p to 4K. The larger percentage drops at higher settings suggest that the increased graphical load (shaders, textures, effects) is making the GPU the more dominant constraint. The data implies that while the CPU is a limiting factor at 1080p, its influence wanes as resolution scales, allowing the RTX 5090's raw power to become the deciding factor in frame rate.

Ultra settings show the most significant scaling penalty. The average FPS falls from 77 at 1080p to 65 at 1440p, a 15.6% decrease, and then to 51 at 4K, a 21.5% decrease from 1440p. This is the only preset where the 4K average dips below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that the combination of the highest visual fidelity and 4K resolution creates a load that the system cannot sustain smoothly. The scaling here is consistent with a purely GPU-bound scenario, where the RTX 5090's capabilities are being fully utilized and the frame rate is determined by the pixel and shader workload.

The 4K data also reveals a significant spread between presets. Low settings at 4K achieve 119 FPS, while Ultra at 4K only manages 51 FPS. This 68 FPS gap demonstrates the massive impact of the game's graphical options on the GPU workload. The fact that Low settings at 4K can nearly double the frame rate of Ultra at 1080p (119 FPS vs 77 FPS) underscores that resolution is a secondary factor to settings in this title, reinforcing the notion that the RTX 5090 is the component that will be pushed hardest by any increase in visual complexity.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy of performance, and the optimal preset depends entirely on the user's target resolution and refresh rate. For a smooth 4K experience, High settings are the only viable option that stays above 60 FPS, with an average of 64 FPS. While this is not a massive margin, it is sufficient for a playable experience on standard 60 Hz displays. Medium settings at 4K offer a higher average of 90 FPS, but the minimum recorded is 76 FPS, which is still comfortable, making it the best choice for those who prioritize frame rate stability and have a higher refresh rate 4K panel.

At 1440p, the situation is more flexible. High settings deliver 82 FPS, which is excellent for most monitors. However, Medium settings push the average to 107 FPS with a minimum of 91 FPS, making it the superior choice for high-refresh-rate 1440p displays (144 Hz or above). The data shows that the jump from Medium to High at 1440p costs 25 FPS on average, a substantial penalty for what may be a marginal visual improvement in a horror title with a slower pace. Low settings at 1440p reach 129 FPS, which could be used for competitive play, but is likely unnecessary given the genre.

For 1080p, the recommendation is more nuanced. The CPU begins to show its limitations here. Medium settings at 1080p produce 114 FPS, which is a very strong result. High settings drop to 97 FPS, while Ultra falls to 77 FPS. Given that the RTX 5090 is capable of far more, the CPU bottleneck becomes apparent. For the most consistent experience with high frame rates, Medium or High settings are recommended. Low settings at 1080p achieve 136 FPS, but the performance gain over Medium is only 19.3%, suggesting diminishing returns and a clear sign that the CPU is holding the GPU back from reaching its true potential.

The best overall experience, balancing fidelity and performance, is found at Medium settings across all resolutions. It offers a significant frame rate uplift over High and Ultra while maintaining a substantial minimum FPS (97 at 1080p, 91 at 1440p, 76 at 4K). The data suggests that this preset is the sweet spot for this hardware combination, avoiding the steep performance cliffs of the higher presets while delivering a fluid and responsive experience.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this pairing, but its role is highly dependent on the settings and resolution. Its specifications are formidable: 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. The GPU also boasts 21,760 shading units and a boost clock of 2407 MHz map to a peak FP32 throughput of 104.8 TFLOPS. These figures directly translate to the high frame rates observed, particularly at 1440p and 1080p where the GPU is not the primary constraint.

The VRAM capacity of 32 GB is a critical factor for The Medium. With such a large frame buffer, the game's high-resolution textures and complex scenes at 4K Ultra are unlikely to exceed memory capacity, preventing any potential stuttering or texture pop-in that could occur on lower-VRAM cards. This is particularly relevant at 4K, where the 511.2 GB/s memory bandwidth of the CPU (a theoretical figure, not a measured FPS metric) is not a factor; the GPU's dedicated 1.79 TB/s bandwidth is what allows it to maintain 64 FPS at 4K High settings.

The GPU's benchmark scores also provide context. Its Passmark G3D score of 39,650 and its percentile rank of 92 versus all GPUs place it in the top tier of performance. The RTX 5090's average benchmark score of 79,842 is a strong indicator of its theoretical capabilities. However, the game's measured performance shows that these capabilities are not always fully utilized. At 1080p Low, for example, the GPU is likely idle for a significant portion of the frame time, waiting for the CPU to submit work. This is a classic sign of a bottleneck, where the GPU's potential is capped by another component.

The data shows that the RTX 5090's role is to be the ultimate enabler. It provides enough headroom to run the game at High settings at 4K, something many other GPUs would struggle with. However, its full power is only truly needed at 4K Ultra, where it manages 51 FPS. In this configuration, the GPU is working its hardest, and the result is a playable but not perfect experience. The specifications, such as the 176 ROPs and 680 TMUs, are what allow it to process the large amounts of pixel and texture data required at these extreme settings.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the benchmark database, this specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 holds a combo rank of 255 out of 3,724 tested combinations. This places it in the top 6.8% of all tested systems, which is a strong showing. The rank reflects the performance of the entire system, and it reflects the RTX 5090's power that this pairing ranks so highly despite the CPU being a mid-range part.

The combination's high rank is primarily driven by the GPU's performance at higher resolutions. While the CPU may hold back the system at 1080p, the RTX 5090's dominance at 4K and 1440p ensures that the overall average performance is very high. The rank of 255 indicates that in the vast majority of games and scenarios, this system will outperform the majority of other configurations tested. However, it also implies that there are 254 other combinations that are faster, likely featuring more powerful CPUs that can better complement the RTX 5090.

The CPU's individual benchmark scores show it is a solid performer but not a top-tier part. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 18,309 and its percentile rank of 74 versus all CPUs confirm this. In comparison, its nearest rivals in the database, such as the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V and the AMD Ryzen 5 8500G, have nearly identical average scores, with a deltaPct of 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively. This shows that the Ryzen 5 5600 is a competent processor, but its performance ceiling is well below that of the GPU it is paired with. The combo rank of 255 suggests that the system's performance is good, but the CPU is likely the component preventing it from ranking even higher.

The overall performance is a classic case of a high-end GPU being paired with a mid-range CPU. The system ranks well because the GPU does the heavy lifting in the most demanding scenarios. The data indicates that this is a viable combination for high-resolution gaming, but users should be aware that the CPU will limit performance in CPU-bound situations, such as low-resolution, high-refresh-rate gaming.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture. It has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHzcars. Its performance, as measured by benchmarks, is solid for a mid-range part, but it is clearly outclassed by the RTX 5090's capabilities. The CPU's role in The Medium is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic, and its limitations become apparent at lower resolutions.

The benchmark data shows a clear pattern of CPU limitation. At 1080p, the difference between Low (136 FPS) and Ultra (77 FPS) is 59 FPS. This is a massive gap that is primarily due to the GPU's workload. However, the fact that Low settings only reach 136 FPS, not the 200+ FPS that the RTX 5090 might be capable of, points to the CPU as the limiting factor. The 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient for most games, but they can become a bottleneck in titles that are not heavily multi-threaded.

The CPU's 3DMark scores provide insight into its threading capabilities. Its 3DMark max threads score of 5,659 is close to its 16-thread score of 5,641, indicating that it scales well with additional threads until it hits its physical core limit. However, its single-thread score of 882 is comparatively low, which can be a problem in games that rely on a few powerful cores. In The Medium, the CPU's single-thread performance is likely a key factor in the frame rate caps observed at 1080p.

The CPU's memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s for dual-channel DDR4 is a potential bottleneck. While the GPU has its own dedicated 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, the CPU must transfer data from system memory to the GPU. In a game like The Medium, which uses a fixed camera angle and pre-rendered backgrounds, the data streaming requirements are high. The CPU's limited memory bandwidth could contribute to the lower frame rates at 1080p, as it struggles to keep up with the data demands of the game.

The processor's TDP of 65 W and its 32 MB of shared L3 cache are other factors. The cache is sufficient for game data, but the lower power envelope suggests that it is not designed for sustained heavy workloads. In this pairing, the CPU is the clear weak link. Its benchmark scores, such as the Cinebench R20 single-core score of 1,085 and multicore score of 7,689, are respectable for a 2022 release, but they are not in the same league as the GPU. The data shows that while the Ryzen 5 5600 is a capable gaming CPU, it is simply not powerful enough to fully unlock the RTX 5090's potential in The Medium.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to use with this CPU and GPU combo in The Medium?*

A: Based on the measured FPS, 2560x1440 at Medium settings offers an excellent balance with an average of 107 FPS and a minimum of 91 FPS. While 4K at High is playable at 64 FPS, the 1440p Medium preset provides a higher frame rate and more headroom for a smoother experience.

Q: At what settings can I achieve a stable 60 FPS at 4K?

A: The data shows that High settings at 3840x2160 produce an average of 64 FPSholistic, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. Ultra settings drop to 51 FPS, so High is the highest preset that can maintain a 60 FPS average.

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

A: It depends on the resolution. At 1080p, the CPU is the primary limiter, as shown by the frame rates plateauing around 136 FPS on Low settings. At 4K, the GPU becomes the dominant factor, as seen in the large performance drops when increasing settings.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: This combination ranks 255 out of 3,724 tested combos, placing it in the top 6.8%. This is a high rank, but it is likely held back by the CPU, as the GPU is a top-tier part.

Q: What is the difference in performance between Medium and High settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Medium settings achieve an average of 107 FPS, while High settings drop to 82 FPS. This is a 25 FPS difference, which is significant for high-refresh-rate monitors.

Q: Does the 32 GB VRAM of the RTX 5090 provide any benefit in this game?

A: While the game does not require 32 GB of VRAM, having a large frame buffer ensures that high-resolution textures and complex scenes at 4K Ultra will not exceed memory capacity, preventing potential performance drops or texture loading issues.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table presents the exact measured average frame rates for the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination in The Medium.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

|------------|----------|---------|---------|---------|

| 3840x2160 | High | 64 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 119 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 90 | 76 | 103 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 51 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | High | 82 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 129 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 107 | 91 | 123 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 65 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | High | 97 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 136 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 114 | 97 | 131 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 77 | - | - |

The data reveals a consistent pattern: Medium settings offer the best balance of high average FPS and solid minimum FPS across all resolutions. The minimum FPS figures for Medium settings are particularly notable, as they indicate a stable frame pacing that is crucial for a smooth experience in a horror game where sudden frame drops can be jarring. The lack of min/max data for other presets suggests they were recorded in a more limited test scenario, but the averages still provide a clear picture of performance scaling.