The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combination delivers a performance profile in The Medium that is defined by the GPU’s workload at higher resolutions and the CPU’s strong headroom at lower settings. With a combo rank of 833 out of 3724 tested configurations, this pairing sits comfortably in the upper quartile of systems, but the measured FPS data reveals a clear hierarchy where the RTX 4070’s capabilities are the primary constraint once visual fidelity is increased. This analysis breaks down the specific numbers to explain where the bottleneck lies and how each component contributes to the final frame rates.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor built on the Zen 4 architecture (Raphael) using a 5 nm process. It operates on the AMD Socket AM5 platform with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. The CPU’s cache configuration includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 32 MB L3 cache. For a game like The Medium, which is a horror title with a slower pace and fixed camera angles, the CPU’s role is less about raw multi-threaded throughput and more about maintaining consistent frame pacing. The 7500F’s single-thread performance, as measured by a 3dmark_single_thread score of 974 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2374, ensures that the game’s main simulation and rendering threads are not starved.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 7500F posts a cinebench_r23_multicore score of 22799 and a passmark_multithread score of 26825. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-13620H (deltaPct 0.2) and the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F (deltaPct -0.2), showing that this CPU sits in a narrow performance band. However, the data from The Medium suggests that the CPU is rarely the limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 150 FPS, which is the highest average in the measured set. This high frame rate at low resolution and settings indicates that the CPU can feed the GPU effectively, as the graphics workload is light enough to avoid a GPU bottleneck. The CPU’s 65 W TDP and DDR5 memory support with 83.2 GB/s bandwidth also contribute to its ability to handle the game’s data streaming without causing frame hitches, though the measured FPS numbers do not directly quantify this.

FAQ

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 7500F compare to its closest CPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The 7500F has an average benchmark score of 24964, with a percentile rank of 77 among all CPUs. Its nearest rival is the Intel Core i7-11850H with an average score of 24935, placing the 7500F just 0.1% ahead. Against the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F (25005), the 7500F is 0.2% behind, and it is 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core 5 210H (24872).

*Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in The Medium?*

A: The highest average FPS is 150, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 a bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, the data indicates a significant GPU bottleneck at 3840x2160. The average FPS drops to 44 at High settings and 35 at Ultra settings, which are below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the combo’s standing relative to all other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 833 out of 3724 total tested combos, placing it in the top 22.4% of all configurations.

Q: Does the CPU’s performance vary significantly between single-threaded and multi-threaded workloads?

A: Yes, the 7500F shows a notable difference. Its 3dmark_single_thread score is 974, while its 3dmark_max_threads score is 6379, and its 3dmark_16_threads score is 6376. This indicates strong scaling across cores, but the game’s performance at lower resolutions suggests that single-thread efficiency is sufficient.

Q: What are the min and max FPS values recorded for this combo?

A: The only settings with recorded min and max FPS are Medium presets. At 1080p Medium, the average is 93 FPS with a min of 79 and max of 108. At 1440p Medium, the average is 79 FPS with a min of 67 and max of 91. At 4K Medium, the average is 62 FPS with a min of 53 and max of 71.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 achieves a rank of 833 out of 3724 tested combos in The Medium. This places it in the 77.6th percentile of all configurations, meaning it outperforms roughly three-quarters of the systems tested. The rank reflects a balanced pairing where the CPU’s strong single-thread performance (3dmark_single_thread score of 974) and the GPU’s high compute capability (passmark_g3d score of 26927) work together to handle the game’s demands.

However, the ranking does not tell the full story of how the components interact. The RTX 4070 has an average benchmark score of 37648 and ranks in the 81st percentile among all GPUs, while the CPU ranks in the 77th percentile. This close percentile alignment suggests that neither component is drastically over- or under-powered relative to the other, which is why the combo performs consistently across different resolutions. The data shows that at 1080p, the system can exceed 150 FPS on Low settings, which is a strong result. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 35, which is a playable but not ideal experience. The rank of 833 is driven by the fact that many combos with higher-end GPUs (e.g., RTX 4080 Mobile, which is 1.3% ahead of the RTX 4070 in average score) can push higher frame rates at 4K, while this combo falls short in that specific scenario.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 4070 and Ryzen 5 7500F deliver the following averages: Low settings hit 150 FPS, Medium settings hit 93 FPS (with a min of 79 and max of 108), High settings hit 67 FPS, and Ultra settings hit 53 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a steady decline, with the largest drop occurring between Low and Medium (a 57 FPS reduction), suggesting that the Medium preset introduces significant graphical effects that stress the GPU.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low settings achieve 126 FPS, Medium settings achieve 79 FPS (min 67, max 91), High settings achieve 56 FPS, and Ultra settings achieve 45 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across settings, with the Low preset losing 24 FPS and the Ultra preset losing 8 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as pixel count increases, but the CPU still has enough headroom to maintain playable frame rates.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low settings achieve 99 FPS, Medium settings achieve 62 FPS (min 53, max 71), High settings achieve 44 FPS, and Ultra settings achieve 35 FPS. The 4K results show the most pronounced GPU bottleneck, as the frame rates at High and Ultra fall below 60 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 64 FPS, which is the largest gap across all resolutions, highlighting how the GPU’s fill rate and shading capabilities are taxed at this resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows a clear pattern of FPS degradation as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 150 at 1080p to 126 at 1440p (a 16% decrease), and then to 99 at 4K (a 21.4% decrease from 1440p). This scaling is relatively gentle, indicating that at Low settings, the game is less demanding on the GPU, allowing the CPU to keep the frame rate high.

At Medium settings, the averages are 93 FPS at 1080p, 79 FPS at 1440p (a 15.1% drop), and 62 FPS at 4K (a 21.5% drop). The percentage drops are similar to Low, suggesting a consistent scaling factor.

At High settings, the averages are 67 FPS at 1080p, 56 FPS at 1440p (a 16.4% drop), and 44 FPS at 4K (a 21.4% drop). The drop from 1440p to 4K is the most severe, with a 12 FPS reduction, which is a 21.4% decrease.

At Ultra settings, the averages are 53 FPS at 1080p, 45 FPS at 1440p (a 15.1% drop), and 35 FPS at 4K (a 22.2% drop). The scaling from 1080p to 4K at Ultra is a 34% reduction in average FPS.

The fact that the percentage drop from 1440p to 4K is consistently higher than the drop from 1080p to 1440p across all settings (e.g., 21.4% vs 16% at Low) indicates that the GPU is the limiting component. The CPU’s performance does not change with resolution, so the additional pixel workload falls entirely on the RTX 4070. The RTX 4070’s 12 GB GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for the game’s data, but the 192-bit bus width and 29.15 TFLOPS FP32 compute are not enough to maintain high frame rates at 4K Ultra, where the average drops to 35 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo depends on the target resolution. At 1080p, the High preset (67 FPS average) offers a good balance between visual fidelity and smoothness, while the Ultra preset (53 FPS) is still playable but may feel less fluid. The Medium preset (93 FPS) provides a significant frame rate boost with only a modest reduction in visual quality compared to High.

At 1440p, the Medium preset (79 FPS average) is the recommended choice, as it maintains a frame rate above 60 FPS while offering a decent level of detail. The High preset (56 FPS) is borderline, and the Ultra preset (45 FPS) is not ideal for a smooth experience.

At 4K, the Low preset (99 FPS average) is the only setting that delivers a consistently high frame rate, but it sacrifices visual quality. The Medium preset (62 FPS) is the best balance, as it stays above 60 FPS on average, though the minimum FPS of 53 indicates occasional dips. The High (44 FPS) and Ultra (35 FPS) presets are not recommended for a responsive experience, as they fall below the 60 FPS threshold.

For users who prioritize smoothness over fidelity, the Medium preset at 4K or the High preset at 1440p are the optimal choices, given the measured averages. The data shows that the Ultra preset provides diminishing returns, with an 11 FPS drop from High at 1080p and a 9 FPS drop at 1440p, making it the least efficient setting for this hardware combination.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture (AD104 chip) using a 5 nm process. It features 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output units, along with 46 RT cores and 184 tensor cores. The GPU has a base clock of 1920 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz, with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The RTX 4070’s FP32 performance is 29.15 TFLOPS, and its pixel rate is 158.4 GPixel/s.

In The Medium, the GPU’s role is dominant, as evidenced by the FPS scaling across resolutions. The RTX 4070 ranks in the 81st percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 37648, and its nearest rival is the NVIDIA Tesla P4 (deltaPct 0.1). The GPU’s compute capabilities are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can maintain high frame rates even at Ultra settings (53 FPS at 1080p and 45 FPS at 1440p). However, at 4K, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, with the average FPS dropping to 35 at Ultra settings. This is due to the increased pixel load, which requires more shading and fill rate operations.

The RTX 4070’s 12 GB VRAM is not a limiting factor in this game, as the measured FPS does not show a sudden drop that would indicate memory spillover. The GPU’s 200 W TDP and dual-slot design are typical for its class, and its PCIe 4.0 x16 interface provides sufficient bandwidth for the game’s data transfer. The data shows that the RTX 4070 is a capable card for this horror title, but its performance ceiling is clearly defined at 4K, where users must lower settings to achieve playable frame rates.