The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X and Intel Arc B570 combination delivers a playable but demanding experience in The Medium, with performance heavily dictated by graphics settings. The data shows that this pairing sits in the 2321st position out of 2911 tested combos, placing it in the lower half of the performance spectrum. This is a system that can handle the game's fixed-camera horror at 1080p with adjustments, but struggles significantly at higher resolutions and maximum settings.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, running on the AM4 socket. It operates with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz, with a 105 W TDP. This CPU is a solid performer for gaming workloads, as evidenced by its benchmark scores: it achieves 15476 points in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1574.5 points in single-core tests. Its PassMark multithread score of 27732 and single-thread score of 3445 indicate strong all-around processing capability.

In the context of The Medium, the CPU's role is less about raw frame generation and more about maintaining consistent frame pacing and handling the game's logic. The game is not known for being heavily CPU-bound at high resolutions, and the data supports this: at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 78 FPS, while at 4K with the same settings, it drops to 52 FPS. This 26 FPS drop (33%) from 1080p to 4K at Low settings suggests that while the CPU can push frames at lower resolutions, the GPU becomes the primary limiter as resolution increases.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 81st among all processors places it well above the median, and its nearest rivals show a tightly clustered performance group. The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H is just 0.1% ahead, while the Intel Xeon Phi 7210 and Intel Core i5-13500HX are 0.4% and 0.5% behind, respectively. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600XT trails by 0.6%. This indicates that the 5800X is a capable mid-to-high-end CPU that should not bottleneck the Arc B570 in most gaming scenarios, including this title.

Given the game's horror genre and fixed-camera angles, the CPU's 32 MB of L3 cache and 8 cores are more than sufficient to handle the game's logic and asset streaming. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the system only manages 18 FPS, which is clearly GPU-limited. Even at 1080p Ultra, the 28 FPS result is well below playable thresholds, further indicating that the CPU is not the limiting factor here. The CPU's 3DMark 16-thread score of 7586 and max-thread score of 7578 demonstrate that it can handle multi-threaded workloads effectively, though The Medium likely does not fully utilize all 16 threads.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Arc B570 is the clear performance bottleneck in this system for The Medium. It features 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, providing 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU runs at a base and boost clock of 2500 MHz, with memory clocked at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). The card is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage generation) using a 5 nm process, and it offers 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, and 80 ROPs.

The Arc B570's benchmark results show a mixed picture. It scores 14195 in PassMark G3D, which places it in the 65th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% ahead), the Intel Arc A750 (0.1% behind), and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X (0.5% behind). The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2649 and PassMark DirectX 11 score of 118 indicate moderate DirectX performance, which is relevant since The Medium uses DirectX 12.

The 10 GB VRAM capacity is a key factor. At 4K with High settings, the system averages only 23 FPS, and at Ultra it drops to 18 FPS. These low scores suggest that the GPU is running out of memory bandwidth or capacity at these resolutions and settings. The game's texture-heavy horror environments likely demand more than 10 GB at 4K Ultra, causing severe performance degradation. At 1080p Low, the system hits 78 FPS, showing that the GPU can perform well when VRAM and bandwidth requirements are reduced.

The GPU's pixel rate of 200.0 GPixel/s and texture rate of 360.0 GTexel/s are modest figures, further explaining the low performance at high resolutions. The card's FP32 performance of 11.52 TFLOPS is adequate for 1080p gaming but insufficient for 4K at high settings. The data clearly shows that the Arc B570 is the limiting component in this pairing, with the CPU's performance headroom far exceeding what the GPU can deliver in this specific title.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play The Medium with this hardware?*

A: Based on the measured FPS, 1920x1080 is the only resolution where playable frame rates are consistently achievable. At 1080p with Low settings, the system averages 78 FPS, and with Medium settings, it averages 49 FPS. At 1440p, only Low settings (66 FPS) provide a smooth experience, while 4K is generally not recommended for anything above Low settings.

*Q: Can this system handle Ultra settings in The Medium?*

A: No, Ultra settings are not playable at any resolution. The best Ultra result is 28 FPS at 1080p, which is below the 30 FPS minimum for acceptable playability. At 1440p Ultra, the average drops to 23 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it falls to 18 FPS.

Q: How does the Arc B570's 10 GB VRAM affect 4K performance?

A: The 10 GB VRAM appears to be a significant limitation at 4K. At 4K High, the system averages only 23 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it drops to 18 FPS. This suggests that the GPU either runs out of memory or bandwidth at these settings, causing severe performance degradation compared to 1080p.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 5800X holding back the Arc B570 in this game?

A: The data indicates the CPU is not the bottleneck. The FPS drops from 78 at 1080p Low to 52 at 4K Low (a 33% decrease) while the resolution increases by 4x, which is a classic sign of GPU limitation. The CPU's benchmark scores, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 15476, suggest it has ample headroom for this title.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Medium and High settings at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, Medium settings average 49 FPS, while High settings average 35 FPS. This is a 14 FPS difference (29% reduction) when moving from Medium to High. The Medium preset also provides a minimum FPS of 41, which is closer to playable thresholds.

Q: How does this system compare to others in the benchmark database?

A: This combo ranks 2321st out of 2911 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 20% of all tested systems. The GPU's 65th percentile ranking among all GPUs and the CPU's 81st percentile ranking show that while the CPU is above average, the GPU's performance in this specific game drags the overall ranking down.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of this system's performance across all resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the system achieves its best results. Low settings produce an average of 78 FPS, which is the highest score across all tests. Medium settings yield 49 FPS with a minimum of 41 and maximum of 56 FPS. High settings drop to 35 FPS, and Ultra falls to 28 FPS. These numbers show a clear progression: each step up in settings costs roughly 14-15 FPS, with the gap between Low and Ultra being 50 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance degrades noticeably. Low settings produce 66 FPS, which is a 15% drop from 1080p Low. Medium settings average 41 FPS with a range of 35 to 47 FPS. High settings drop to 29 FPS, and Ultra falls to 23 FPS. At this resolution, only Low settings provide a consistently smooth experience above 60 FPS. The Medium preset is borderline playable at 41 FPS average, but the minimum of 35 FPS may cause noticeable stutters.

At 3840x2160, performance becomes marginal. Low settings average 52 FPS, which is the only playable option at this resolution. Medium settings drop to 32 FPS with a minimum of 27 and maximum of 37 FPS. High settings fall to 23 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 18 FPS. The data shows a steep decline from 1080p to 4K: Low settings lose 26 FPS (33%), Medium loses 17 FPS (35%), High loses 12 FPS (34%), and Ultra loses 10 FPS (36%). This consistent percentage drop across settings indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor at all quality levels.

The min/max FPS data for Medium settings provides insight into frame pacing. At 1080p, the range is 41 to 56 FPS (a 15 FPS spread). At 1440p, the range is 35 to 47 FPS (a 12 FPS spread). At 4K, the range is 27 to 37 FPS (a 10 FPS spread). This tightening of the frame range at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is consistently saturated, which can lead to a more stable but lower overall frame rate.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling data reveals a clear pattern of GPU limitation. When moving from 1080p to 1440p, the FPS drops by approximately 15-17% across all settings. Specifically, Low settings drop from 78 to 66 FPS (15%), Medium from 49 to 41 FPS (16%), High from 35 to 29 FPS (17%), and Ultra from 28 to 23 FPS (18%). This consistent percentage decrease shows that the GPU is being pushed harder as resolution increases, but the relatively small drop suggests that the GPU is not completely overwhelmed at 1440p.

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is more dramatic. Low settings drop from 66 to 52 FPS (21%), Medium from 41 to 32 FPS (22%), High from 29 to 23 FPS (21%), and Ultra from 23 to 18 FPS (22%). This acceleration in FPS loss indicates that the GPU is hitting a harder wall at 4K. The 10 GB VRAM and 380.0 GB/s bandwidth are likely insufficient for the increased pixel count and texture demands at 4K.

The overall scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a 33% drop at Low (78 to 52 FPS), 35% at Medium (49 to 32 FPS), 34% at High (35 to 23 FPS), and 36% at Ultra (28 to 18 FPS). A perfectly GPU-bound scenario would show a more linear scaling with resolution, but the actual drop is less than the 4x resolution increase would suggest. This indicates that the GPU is not purely pixel-bound; other factors like memory bandwidth and fill rate are also limiting factors.

The data strongly suggests that the Arc B570 is the limiting component in this pairing. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar FPS across resolutions at the same settings, but that is not the case. The consistent FPS drops with increasing resolution point directly to GPU limitations, specifically its 10 GB VRAM and 160-bit memory bus, which constrain performance at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance for this system. At 1080p, Medium settings provide 49 FPS average with a minimum of 41 FPS, which is above the 30 FPS playability threshold and close to the 60 FPS ideal for smooth gameplay. The jump to High settings only costs 14 FPS (from 49 to 35 FPS), but the visual improvement may not justify the performance hit in a game that relies on atmosphere and tension.

For players targeting 60 FPS, Low settings at 1080p are the only option, delivering 78 FPS. However, this sacrifices significant visual quality. The Medium preset at 1080p is the recommended sweet spot for most players, as it provides a stable frame rate above 40 FPS without dropping to the low visual fidelity of Low settings.

At 1440p, the Medium preset averages 41 FPS with a minimum of 35 FPS. This is playable but may result in occasional stutters during intense scenes. Players with a 1440p monitor should consider Low settings (66 FPS) if they prioritize frame rate, or accept the Medium preset for better visuals. High and Ultra settings are not recommended at 1440p due to sub-30 FPS averages.

At 4K, only Low settings (52 FPS) are playable. The Medium preset at 32 FPS is borderline, but the minimum of 27 FPS risks noticeable frame drops. High (23 FPS) and Ultra (18 FPS) are not viable options. The 10 GB VRAM limitation becomes apparent at 4K, and players should stick to Low settings to maintain a playable experience.

The Ultra preset is uniformly poor across all resolutions, with the best result being 28 FPS at 1080p. This preset should be avoided entirely with this hardware. The High preset is only marginally better than Ultra, and its performance at 1080p (35 FPS) and 1440p (29 FPS) is insufficient for a smooth experience. The data clearly shows that the Medium preset is the optimal choice for this system, providing the best trade-off between visual fidelity and frame rate across all resolutions.