The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination ranks 1378th out of 1689 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the lower half of the database. This is a pairing where the GPU is clearly the limiting factor, as the data reveals a pattern of severe frame rate degradation at higher resolutions and settings. The combination is positioned for 1080p gaming, where it can achieve playable frame rates at lower presets, but it struggles to maintain smooth performance at 1440p and is largely unsuitable for 4K.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1378 out of 1689 tested combinations places it in the bottom 18% of all tested systems for The Medium. This is a low standing, indicating that the overall experience will be constrained by hardware that is not well-suited to this game’s demands. The ranking reflects the RTX 2060’s position in the GPU hierarchy, as it sits at the 58th percentile of all GPUs, which is a modest score. The CPU, by contrast, is a much stronger component, ranking in the 84th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27220.

The disparity between the CPU and GPU performance is stark. The Ryzen 7 5700’s average score is 0.7% higher than the Intel Core i9-9900K and 0.8% higher than the Intel Core i7-12700H, indicating that it is a very capable processor in synthetic tests. However, this raw CPU power does not translate into high frame rates in The Medium because the RTX 2060, with an average benchmark score of 16074, is only 0.5% faster than the AMD Radeon RX 7600S and 1.8% faster than the AMD Radeon Pro W5500. This suggests the GPU is the bottleneck, and the CPU’s potential is largely left untapped at higher resolutions where the GPU is overwhelmed.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1080p is the only resolution where the combo can consistently achieve playable frame rates. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS is 82, while at Medium it is 53.4. At 1440p, even Low settings drop to 71.4 FPS, and at 4K, the performance is mostly below 60 FPS.

Q: How much of a performance drop occurs when moving from 1080p to 4K?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 39.6 at 1080p to 24.9 at 4K, a reduction of 14.7 FPS. At Low settings, the drop is from 82 at 1080p to 53 at 4K, a difference of 29 FPS. This indicates the GPU is heavily taxed by the resolution increase.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 5700 CPU holding back the RTX 2060?

A: No, the benchmark data suggests the CPU is not the limiting factor. The CPU’s average benchmark score of 27220 places it in the 84th percentile, and it outperforms or matches rivals like the Intel Core i9-9900K. The frame rate patterns in the game, which show a large decline at higher resolutions, are characteristic of a GPU bottleneck.

Q: What is the most demanding preset for this combo?

A: The Ultra preset is the most demanding. At 1080p, it yields an average of 31.7 FPS, which drops to 27.6 FPS at 1440p and 20.5 FPS at 4K. These are the lowest frame rates recorded for each resolution.

Q: Can this combo run the game at 60 FPS?

A: Only at 1080p with Low settings, where the average FPS is 82. At 1080p Medium, the average drops to 53.4 FPS, which is below 60. At higher resolutions, the frame rates are much lower, making 60 FPS unattainable.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060’s average benchmark score of 16074 is 0.5% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7600S and 1.8% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro W5500. It is 1.7% slower than both the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and AMD Radeon Pro 5700, indicating a very narrow performance band among these GPUs.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 82 FPS, which is the highest recorded frame rate in the dataset. Moving to 1440p at the same Low settings, the average FPS drops to 71.4, a reduction of 12.9%. At 4K, the average FPS falls further to 53, which is a 35.4% drop from the 1080p Low result.

This scaling pattern is indicative of a GPU-bound scenario. When the resolution increases, the pixel count rises significantly, placing a greater load on the RTX 2060’s rendering pipeline. The CPU, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is not the limiting factor here, as its performance remains constant regardless of resolution. The data shows that the gap between 1080p and 4K widens at higher settings: at High, the difference is 14.7 FPS, while at Low, it is 29 FPS. This suggests that at higher presets, the GPU is already saturated at 1080p, and the additional pixel workload at 4K has a more pronounced effect.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal experience for this combo is at 1080p with Medium settings, yielding an average of 53.4 FPS. This provides a balance between visual fidelity and smoothness, as the frame rate is above the 30 FPS threshold but below 60. For a smoother experience, Low settings at 1080p deliver 82 FPS, which is ideal for players who prioritize frame rate over visual quality. High settings at 1080p produce 39.6 FPS, which is playable but may feel less fluid.

At 1440p, the best option is Low settings, which achieves 71.4 FPS, but this is a significant compromise in visual detail. Medium settings at 1440p drop to 42 FPS, which is borderline playable. For 4K, the data suggests that this combo is not suited for the resolution. Even Low settings only reach 53 FPS, and High settings fall to 24.9 FPS, which is below the standard for smooth gameplay. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it yields frame rates below 32 FPS in all cases.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers an average FPS of 82 on Low, 53.4 on Medium, 39.6 on High, and 31.7 on Ultra. The progression shows a steep decline from Low to Medium, and a further drop to High and Ultra. At 2560x1440, the average FPS is 71.4 on Low, 42 on Medium, 29.2 on High, and 27.6 on Ultra. The gap between Low and Medium is 29.4 FPS, which is the largest jump at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the performance is significantly lower, with an average of 53 FPS on Low, 34.3 on Medium, 24.9 on High, and 20.5 on Ultra. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 32.5 FPS, showing the heavy toll of the Ultra preset on the GPU. The data shows that the RTX 2060 is unable to maintain a stable 60 FPS at any setting above 1080p Low, and the frame rates at 4K are generally below 35 FPS for all presets.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700 is a Zen 3 architecture processor with 8 cores and 16 threads, based on the Cezanne codename. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, with a TDP of 65 W. The CPU’s benchmark scores reflect its strength: it achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 20655 and a single-core score of 2916. Its average benchmark score of 27220 places it in the 84th percentile of all CPUs.

In The Medium, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with data, but the frame rate data suggests that it is not a bottleneck. The CPU’s performance is consistent across resolutions, as the frame rate drops are entirely attributable to the GPU’s workload. The CPU’s 16 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support provide ample bandwidth for the game’s data streams. The Ryzen 7 5700’s performance is 0.7% higher than the Intel Core i9-9900K, which is a comparable high-end desktop processor, indicating that it is more than capable of handling the game’s CPU demands.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is a Turing architecture GPU with a TU106 chip, featuring 1920 shading units and 30 RT cores. It has a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost clock of 1680 MHz. The GPU is equipped with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s. Its FP32 performance is 6.451 TFLOPS, and it has a TDP of 160 W.

The GPU’s benchmark score of 16074 places it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, which is a modest ranking. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 7600S, is only 0.5% slower, showing that the RTX 2060 is at the lower end of the performance spectrum. In The Medium, the GPU is the primary constraint. The 6 GB VRAM capacity is a limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings, as the game’s textures and effects require more memory. The frame rate data shows that the GPU struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 1440p and 4K, particularly at High and Ultra presets. The RTX 2060’s performance is characterized by a steep drop from Low to Medium settings, indicating that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and processing power are insufficient for the game’s higher fidelity modes.