The Medium

# FAQ

Q: What is the overall performance tier of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F + AMD Radeon RX 570 combo in The Medium?

A: This combination ranks 2793 out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the bottom 4% of all tested configurations. The data indicates that this is a low-performance pairing for this specific horror title, with average frame rates that fall well below smooth gameplay thresholds across most settings and resolutions.

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

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F scores 36,945 on the average benchmark score, which is essentially identical to the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 at 36,938 (0% delta). It sits slightly behind the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D at 37,018 (-0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 at 37,093 (-0.4%), while trailing the Intel Core i9-12900T at 37,112 (-0.5%). The 5600F's 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs shows it is a solid mid-range processor, but in this game, the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

Q: What is the best playable configuration for this combo?

A: Based on the measured rows, the only configuration that approaches playability is 1920x1080 with Low settings, which produces an average of 44 FPS. The next best option is 2560x1440 Low at 37 FPS average. All Medium settings yields 28 FPS at 1080p, 23 FPS at 1440p, and 18 FPS at 4K, which are below the thresholds for comfortable gameplay in a horror title that benefits from smooth motion.

Q: How does the RX 570 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 570 averages 28,766 in benchmark scores, which is 0.4% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6800M at 28,874. It is 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 M295X at 28,580, 0.8% behind the AMD Radeon RX 470 at 28,996, and 1.2% ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 at 28,421. The GPU sits in the 74th percentile of all GPUs, indicating it is a mid-tier graphics card that struggles with modern titles at higher settings.

Q: Does the 4 GB VRAM capacity significantly impact performance in The Medium?

A: The RX 570 has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory with a 256-bit bus and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth. The measured FPS drops are substantial when moving from Low to Medium settings at every resolution, suggesting that the game's memory requirements at higher presets exceed what this card can efficiently handle. For instance, at 1080p, the average FPS falls from 44 on Low to 28 on Medium, a 36% decline that likely reflects both compute and memory bandwidth limitations.

Q: What is the CPU's single-thread and multi-thread performance profile?

A: The Ryzen 5 5600F achieves a PassMark single-thread score of 2,872 and a multi-thread score of 19,236. Its integer math score is 59,339, floating-point math is 34,548, and extended instructions score is 16,266. With 6 cores and 12 threads based on Zen 3 architecture, the CPU provides adequate processing power, but the benchmark results in The Medium show that frame rates are constrained by the GPU rather than the processor.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is the primary bottleneck in this configuration for The Medium. The GPU operates with a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1244 MHz, paired with 4 GB of GDDR5 memory running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) across a 256-bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth. The card's 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 32 render output units provide a theoretical pixel rate of 39.81 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 159.2 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 5.095 TFLOPS.

These specifications place the RX 570 as a capable 1080p card from its era, but The Medium's demands at higher presets expose its limitations. The measured data shows that the GPU's performance degrades sharply as settings increase. At 1920x1080, average frame rates move from 44 FPS on Low to 28 FPS on Medium, then 20 FPS on High, and finally 16 FPS on Ultra. This pattern indicates that the card's compute throughput and memory subsystem cannot sustain the workload as graphical fidelity increases.

The 4 GB VRAM capacity is particularly relevant for The Medium, which is a horror game with detailed environments and lighting effects. At 4K resolution, even Low settings yield only 29 FPS average, while Medium drops to 18 FPS and Ultra falls to 10 FPS. The substantial gap between Low and Medium at every resolution suggests that the game's medium preset introduces memory or shading demands that the RX 570 cannot meet efficiently. The GPU's 74th percentile ranking among all GPUs confirms it is not a high-end part, and in this game, it consistently delivers sub-30 FPS except at the lowest settings and resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F + AMD Radeon RX 570 combination ranks 2793 out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the bottom 4% of all configurations. This ranking is notably poor and reflects that this pairing is not well-suited for the game's performance requirements. The data indicates that the GPU is the limiting component, as the CPU's 85th percentile standing among all processors suggests it has sufficient computational power, but the RX 570's mid-tier GPU performance drags the overall result down.

In practical terms, this combo rank means that the vast majority of tested systems deliver better frame rates in The Medium. The bottom 4% placement is consistent with the measured FPS data, which shows that the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates even at 1080p with Medium settings. The 2793rd rank out of 2911 combos indicates that only 118 tested configurations perform worse, making this a decidedly low-tier result for a game that was released in 2021 and has moderate hardware requirements.

The ranking also highlights the mismatch between the CPU and GPU. The Ryzen 5 5600F, with its Zen 3 architecture and 6 cores / 12 threads, is a modern processor that performs well in synthetic benchmarks, but the RX 570, released in 2017 and now end-of-life, cannot translate that CPU capability into playable frame rates in this title. The combo rank of 2793 reflects this imbalance, showing that users would need a significantly more powerful GPU to achieve a competitive standing among tested configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for The Medium reveals a consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution and settings increase. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 44 FPS average on Low settings, 28 FPS on Medium (with a minimum of 23 and maximum of 32), 20 FPS on High, and 16 FPS on Ultra. The 1080p Low result is the only configuration that approaches a playable frame rate, while all other 1080p settings fall below the 30 FPS threshold that is generally considered the minimum for smooth gameplay.

At 2560x1440, the performance drops further. Low settings yield 37 FPS average, Medium produces 23 FPS (minimum 20, maximum 27), High delivers 17 FPS, and Ultra falls to 13 FPS. The 1440p Low result is marginally playable for less demanding gameplay, but the Medium and higher presets are not suitable for a horror game that requires responsive controls and smooth camera movement.

At 3840x2160, the system is essentially unplayable across all settings. Low produces 29 FPS average, Medium drops to 18 FPS (minimum 15, maximum 21), High yields 13 FPS, and Ultra falls to 10 FPS. The 4K results confirm that the RX 570's 4 GB VRAM and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for this game at such high resolutions, even with the lowest settings.

The data shows a clear scaling pattern: moving from Low to Medium at any resolution incurs a significant FPS penalty, while the jump from Medium to High and High to Ultra results in smaller but still noticeable declines. The minimum FPS values for Medium settings at each resolution (23 at 1080p, 20 at 1440p, 15 at 4K) indicate that the system experiences frame drops that would be noticeable during gameplay, particularly in scenes with complex lighting or multiple on-screen elements.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F serves as a capable foundation for this system, though the game's performance is ultimately constrained by the GPU. The CPU features 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, with a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz. This 5000-series processor uses the AMD Socket AM4, supports DDR4 memory in dual-channel configuration with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth, and has a 32 MB shared L3 cache alongside 64 KB L1 and 512 KB L2 per core.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 5600F demonstrates strong performance across various workloads. Its PassMark multi-thread score of 19,236 and single-thread score of 2,872 indicate balanced processing capabilities. The integer math score of 59,339 and floating-point math score of 34,548 show that the CPU handles both general and scientific workloads effectively. The data compression score of 232,836 and encryption score of 13,839 further illustrate the processor's versatility.

However, in The Medium, the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS data shows that the system's performance is limited by the RX 570, as even at low settings and resolutions, the frame rates are modest. The CPU's 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs suggests it can handle the game's processing demands without bottlenecking, but the GPU cannot deliver the frame rates that the CPU would otherwise allow. The 65 W TDP and 7 nm process node make the 5600F an efficient processor, but this efficiency does not translate to higher frame rates when paired with an underpowered GPU.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal configuration for this combo is 1920x1080 with Low settings, which produces an average of 44 FPS. This is the only setting that consistently exceeds the 30 FPS threshold for acceptable gameplay, though users should expect some frame variability. The 1080p Low preset provides the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, allowing the game to run at a playable frame rate while still rendering the horror atmosphere that defines The Medium.

For users willing to accept lower frame rates for improved visuals, 2560x1440 with Low settings offers 37 FPS average, which may be tolerable for slower-paced sections of the game. However, the 1080p Medium preset at 28 FPS average is not recommended, as the visual improvement over Low is outweighed by the significant performance drop. Similarly, all High and Ultra presets at any resolution should be avoided, as they produce frame rates below 20 FPS, which is not suitable for a game that relies on atmosphere and precise camera control.

At 4K resolution, even Low settings at 29 FPS average is borderline, and the Medium preset at 18 FPS is unplayable. Users with 4K displays should consider lowering the resolution to 1080p or 1440p to achieve playable frame rates, as the RX 570's 4 GB VRAM and memory bandwidth are insufficient for this game at such high pixel counts. The data clearly indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming with conservative settings, and users seeking higher visual quality would need a more powerful GPU to achieve smooth performance in The Medium.