The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT is an 8-core, 16-thread desktop processor built on the Zen 3 architecture, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz. For a game like The Medium, which relies heavily on the CPU for fixed-camera scene transitions and streaming, this processor provides ample headroom, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23794 and single-core score of 3359. The CPU's role in the measured results becomes clear when looking at the FPS deltas across settings; at 1080p Low, the system hits 75 FPS, but dropping to 1080p High only yields 34 FPS, a gap that suggests the GPU is the limiting factor even at lower resolutions, not the 5800XT's 8 cores. The processor's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s are more than sufficient for the game's data streaming, meaning the CPU never becomes a bottleneck in the 12 measured configurations.

The 5800XT's benchmark percentile of 81 places it above most CPUs, and its nearest rivals—the AMD Ryzen 7 7840H and Ryzen 5 9600X—show a deltaPct of 0 and 0.6, respectively, indicating performance parity with modern mobile and desktop parts. In practical terms, this means the processor is not the component holding back frame rates in The Medium; instead, the data points to the GPU as the primary constraint, especially when moving from Low to Ultra settings, where the CPU's thread utilization remains consistent while FPS scales inversely with graphical load. The 5800XT's 105 W TDP and 7 nm process node also ensure it runs within thermal limits during extended play sessions, though the measured FPS data does not include any thermal throttling metrics.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience with this AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 combination, the Medium settings provide the most balanced performance across all resolutions, offering a playable frame rate without the severe drops seen at Ultra. At 1080p, Medium delivers 47 FPS with a min of 40 FPS and max of 54 FPS, which is 73% higher than the 27 FPS at Ultra and 37% lower than the 75 FPS at Low, making it the sweet spot for smooth gameplay with acceptable visual fidelity. At 1440p, Medium drops to 40 FPS with a min of 34 FPS and max of 45 FPS, still maintaining playable performance, while High at the same resolution falls to 28 FPS, which is borderline for a fixed-camera horror game where timing is less critical than in action titles.

The data shows that Low settings are the only way to achieve near-60 FPS at 1440p (63 FPS) and 4K (50 FPS), but this sacrifices the game's atmospheric lighting and shadow quality. Medium at 4K yields 31 FPS with a min of 26 FPS, which is stutter-prone but technically playable for a slow-paced horror experience. Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution, as even at 1080p the average FPS of 27 is below the 30 FPS threshold for consistent motion, and at 4K it plummets to 18 FPS, making the game feel like a slideshow. The measured rows indicate that Medium is the highest preset that maintains an average above 40 FPS at 1080p and 1440p, making it the default recommendation for this hardware combo.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear GPU-bound scenario, with the GTX 1070 struggling as pixel count increases. At Medium settings, the average FPS falls from 47 at 1080p to 40 at 1440p (a 15% drop) and then to 31 at 4K (a 34% drop from 1440p), showing a non-linear degradation that points to the GPU's 8 GB of GDDR5 memory and 256-bit bus as the limiting factor. The same pattern holds at Low settings, where FPS drops from 75 at 1080p to 63 at 1440p (16% drop) and then to 50 at 4K (21% drop from 1440p), indicating that even at the lowest graphical load, the GTX 1070's 6.463 TFLOPS of FP32 compute cannot keep up with 4K pixel throughput.

The scaling from High to Ultra at each resolution further confirms the GPU bottleneck: at 1080p, High yields 34 FPS while Ultra yields 27 FPS (a 21% drop), and at 4K, High yields 22 FPS while Ultra yields 18 FPS (an 18% drop). This suggests that the game's Ultra preset introduces effects like higher-resolution shadows and reflections that disproportionately tax the GTX 1070, while the CPU's performance remains constant. The min FPS data at Medium settings—26 FPS at 4K, 34 FPS at 1440p, and 40 FPS at 1080p—shows that the GTX 1070's frame time consistency also degrades with resolution, with the gap between min and average widening from 7 FPS at 1080p to 5 FPS at 4K, indicating memory bandwidth pressure at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT sufficient for The Medium at 1080p?

A: Yes, the CPU is more than adequate. With a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23794 and 8 cores/16 threads, the 5800XT does not bottleneck the GTX 1070 at any resolution. The measured FPS at 1080p Medium (47 FPS) and Low (75 FPS) shows the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU's performance percentile of 81 indicates it can handle the game's streaming and AI workloads.

Q: What is the best resolution for this hardware combo?

A: Based on the measured data, 1080p is the only resolution where Medium settings maintain an average above 45 FPS. At 1440p, Medium drops to 40 FPS, which is playable but less fluid, while 4K at Medium yields only 31 FPS. The GTX 1070's 8 GB VRAM and 256.3 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 1080p but become stressed at higher resolutions.

Q: How does the GTX 1070 compare to its closest rivals in this game?

A: The GTX 1070's average benchmark score of 9780 puts it at the 47th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals—the AMD FirePro W5000 and NVIDIA Quadro M2000M—have deltaPct values of -0.2 and -0.5, meaning they perform within 1% of the GTX 1070, but these are professional workstation cards, not gaming GPUs, so real-world game performance may differ from synthetic scores.

Q: Should I use Ultra settings if I have a 1080p monitor?

A: No. The measured data shows Ultra at 1080p yields only 27 FPS, which is below the 30 FPS minimum for smooth motion. Medium at 1080p provides 47 FPS with a 40 FPS minimum, offering a 74% performance improvement over Ultra while still delivering the game's core visual effects. High settings at 34 FPS are also below the 40 FPS threshold for comfortable play.

Q: What causes the FPS drop from Low to Ultra settings?

A: The GTX 1070's 1920 shading units and 64 ROPs are the primary constraint. At 1080p, going from Low (75 FPS) to Ultra (27 FPS) reduces performance by 64%, which is consistent with the GPU's pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s being overwhelmed by Ultra's higher-resolution textures and shadow maps. The CPU's performance remains unchanged, confirming a GPU-bound scenario.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this combo?

A: Only at Low settings, which yields 50 FPS. At Medium, the average drops to 31 FPS with a 26 FPS minimum, which will cause noticeable stuttering. High and Ultra at 4K produce 22 FPS and 18 FPS respectively, making the game unplayable. The GTX 1070's 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for 4K textures, but its 256-bit memory bus and 6.463 TFLOPS compute are insufficient for high-quality 4K rendering.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070, based on the Pascal architecture with a GP104 chip, plays the dominant role in The Medium's performance, as evidenced by the measured FPS scaling across resolutions. With 1920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, the GPU's compute capabilities are moderate by modern standards, but its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth, which is the key factor for the game's high-resolution textures. The GPU's base clock of 1506 MHz and boost clock of 1683 MHz are modest, yet the measured performance at 1080p Low (75 FPS) shows the card can handle the game's core rendering when not burdened by advanced effects.

The GTX 1070's 47th percentile ranking among all GPUs places it in the middle of the pack, with its nearest rivals—the AMD FirePro W5000 and NVIDIA Quadro M2000M—showing deltaPct values of -0.2 and -0.5, meaning they are statistically equivalent in synthetic benchmarks. However, in The Medium, the GPU's limitations become apparent at higher settings: Ultra at 1080p yields 27 FPS, and 4K Ultra yields 18 FPS, indicating that the card's 6.463 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is insufficient for the game's Ultra preset. The GPU's 150 W TDP and dual-slot design require a 450 W PSU, but the measured data shows no signs of thermal throttling affecting frame rates, as the FPS drops are consistent with resolution scaling rather than clock degradation.

The GPU's memory configuration is particularly relevant for The Medium, as the game's fixed-camera angles require large texture streaming buffers. The 8 GB VRAM is adequate for 1080p and 1440p at Medium settings, but the 256-bit bus becomes a bottleneck at 4K, where the 31 FPS average at Medium shows a 34% drop from 1440p's 40 FPS. The GPU's pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s are the limiting factors at Ultra settings, where the game's high-resolution shadow maps and post-processing effects demand more fill rate than the card can deliver.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the GTX 1070 and Ryzen 7 5800XT combination delivers its best performance, with Low settings achieving 75 FPS average, Medium at 47 FPS (min 40, max 54), High at 34 FPS, and Ultra at 27 FPS. The 28 FPS difference between Low and Medium represents a 37% performance loss for moderate visual improvements, while the jump from Medium to High costs 13 FPS (28% drop), and High to Ultra costs 7 FPS (21% drop). This progression shows diminishing returns, with Medium offering the best balance at 47 FPS for a smooth experience on a 60 Hz display.

Moving to 2560x1440, the FPS averages drop across all settings: Low yields 63 FPS, Medium 40 FPS (min 34, max 45), High 28 FPS, and Ultra 22 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at Medium is 7 FPS (15% reduction), which is less severe than the 9 FPS drop from High at 1080p to 1440p (26% reduction), indicating that the GPU's memory bandwidth is more stressed at higher settings. At 1440p, only Low and Medium maintain averages above 40 FPS, making Medium the highest playable preset for this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the results become marginal: Low achieves 50 FPS, Medium 31 FPS (min 26, max 36), High 22 FPS, and Ultra 18 FPS. The 4K Medium result is 22% lower than 1440p Medium, and the 4K Low result is 21% lower than 1440p Low, showing a consistent ~20% penalty from 1440p to 4K at the same settings. The Ultra preset at 4K produces 18 FPS, which is 33% lower than 1080p Ultra, confirming that the GTX 1070 cannot handle the game's highest quality settings at any resolution above 1080p. The min FPS data at Medium settings—40 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p, and 26 FPS at 4K—shows that frame time consistency degrades with resolution, making 4K Medium the least stable playable configuration.