The Medium

# The Medium with AMD Ryzen 7 7700 + AMD Radeon RX 7700

The Medium, a 2021 horror title, presents a demanding workload for this AMD pairing. Benchmark data shows the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and Radeon RX 7700 combination delivers playable frame rates at 1080p and 1440p across most settings, but struggles to maintain smooth performance at 4K with higher presets. The measured results reveal a system that is clearly GPU-limited at higher resolutions, while the CPU's 8-core, 16-thread configuration provides ample headroom for the game's processing demands. The combination ranks 1307 out of 2911 tested combos, placing it in the 55th percentile of all tested configurations, which suggests a balanced mid-range pairing rather than a high-end enthusiast setup.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data from 1080p to 4K tells a clear story about where the bottleneck lies in this system. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 115 FPS at 1080p to 97 FPS at 1440p, then falls sharply to 76 FPS at 4K. This represents a 16% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, but a 34% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The scaling pattern indicates that the GPU becomes increasingly stressed as pixel count rises, with the 4K resolution demanding roughly 2.25 times the pixel throughput of 1440p.

Looking at Medium settings, the frame rate progression shows a similar trend: 72 FPS at 1080p, 61 FPS at 1440p, and 48 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 15%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 21%. This steeper decline at higher resolutions suggests the Radeon RX 7700's 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 624.1 GB/s bandwidth begins to feel the pressure of 4K rendering, though the memory capacity itself isn't the limiting factor in this case.

High settings reveal the most dramatic scaling penalty. The average FPS moves from 51 at 1080p to 43 at 1440p (a 16% drop), then to 34 at 4K (a 21% drop from 1440p). Ultra settings follow the expected pattern with 41 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p, and 27 FPS at 4K. The consistency of these percentage drops across settings suggests that resolution scaling is the dominant factor, not individual graphics options.

The data implies that at 1080p, the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU adequately, as evidenced by the 115 FPS Low setting result. However, as resolution increases, the GPU's compute capabilities become the primary constraint. The RX 7700's FP32 performance of 25.18 TFLOPS and pixel rate of 236.1 GPixel/s appear sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but the 4K results show the card operating near its limits, especially with High and Ultra presets where frame rates fall below the 40 FPS threshold.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 7 7700 and Radeon RX 7700 achieved a rank of 1307 out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium. This places the pairing in the upper-middle range of all tested configurations, indicating that while it performs respectably, there are many faster combinations available. The rank suggests this system is positioned well for 1080p and 1440p gaming but is not optimized for 4K enthusiast-level performance.

Breaking down the components individually provides context for this ranking. The Ryzen 7 7700 sits at the 87th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 40081. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 with a score of 40048 (0.1% faster), the Intel Core 5 221E at 40144 (0.2% faster), the AMD Ryzen 9 270 at 40246 (0.4% faster), and the Intel Core i9-13905H at 40313 (0.6% faster). These deltas are remarkably small, indicating that the 7700's processing performance is tightly clustered with its competitors. The 0.1% to 0.6% differences are within run-to-run variance for most benchmarks, suggesting the CPU is not a significant differentiator in this game's performance.

The Radeon RX 7700, however, tells a different story. It sits at the 58th percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 15852. Its nearest rivals show larger performance gaps: the AMD Radeon R9 370X scores 15862 (0.1% faster), the AMD Radeon RX 9060 scores 16014 (1% faster), the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 scores 15679 (1.1% slower), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti scores 16129 (1.7% faster). The 1.7% gap to the RTX 3060 Ti is notable, as it suggests the RX 7700 trails a previous-generation NVIDIA card in raw compute performance.

The combination's overall rank of 1307 out of 2911 places it in the 55th percentile. This aligns with the GPU's lower percentile ranking compared to the CPU, confirming that the graphics card is the limiting factor in this pairing. The CPU's high percentile (87th) cannot compensate for the GPU's mid-range positioning, resulting in a combo that performs well at mainstream resolutions but falls short at 4K with demanding settings.

FAQ

Q: Does the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 bottleneck the Radeon RX 7700 in The Medium at 1080p?

A: The data suggests no significant bottleneck at 1080p. With Low settings, the system achieves 115 FPS, and the CPU's 87th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it has substantial headroom. The 8-core, 16-thread configuration with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz provides more than enough processing power for this game's demands.

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

A: The 1440p Medium setting appears to be the sweet spot, delivering 61 FPS average with a minimum of 51 FPS and maximum of 70 FPS. This provides a smooth experience while maintaining visual quality. At 4K, only Low settings achieve a playable 76 FPS average, while Medium drops to 48 FPS.

Q: How does the RX 7700 compare to its nearest GPU rival in terms of performance?

A: The RX 7700's average benchmark score of 15852 is 1.7% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti's score of 16129, and 1% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 9060's score of 16014. It performs 1.1% better than the AMD Radeon Pro W5500's score of 15679.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 7700's 65W TDP sufficient for gaming workloads in The Medium?

A: The TDP figure of 65W is remarkably low for an 8-core processor, yet the benchmark results show strong performance. The CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 18760 and a single-core score of 1930, indicating that the power efficiency doesn't compromise gaming performance.

Q: What frame rate can players expect at 4K with Ultra settings?

A: The measured data shows an average of 27 FPS at 4K Ultra settings. This is below the generally accepted threshold for smooth gameplay, indicating that Ultra settings at 4K are not viable with this hardware combination.

Q: Does the system's 16 GB of VRAM help at higher resolutions?

A: The Radeon RX 7700 features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory with 624.1 GB/s bandwidth. While this capacity is generous, the frame rate data suggests that raw compute power, not memory capacity, is the limiting factor at 4K. The consistent performance drops across resolution scaling point to GPU compute limitations rather than memory constraints.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution. At 1080p, Medium settings provide an excellent balance with 72 FPS average, 61 FPS minimum, and 83 FPS maximum. This represents a 29% performance improvement over High settings (51 FPS) while still maintaining respectable visual fidelity. For players seeking maximum frame rates at 1080p, Low settings deliver 115 FPS, but the visual compromise may not be worth the additional 43 FPS for most users.

At 1440p, Medium settings again emerge as the best choice with 61 FPS average, 51 FPS minimum, and 70 FPS maximum. This configuration keeps frame rates above the 50 FPS threshold for most of the experience. High settings at 1440p drop to 43 FPS average, which may cause noticeable stuttering in a horror game where smooth movement is crucial. The 51 FPS minimum at Medium settings provides a safety buffer against frame drops during intense scenes.

For 4K gaming, the options are more limited. Low settings deliver 76 FPS, which is playable but visually basic. Medium settings at 4K produce 48 FPS average with a 40 FPS minimum, which is borderline acceptable for a slower-paced horror title. The 27 FPS at Ultra settings is not recommended, as it falls below the threshold for comfortable gameplay. Players prioritizing visual quality at 4K would need to accept the Medium preset's 48 FPS, while those prioritizing smoothness should choose Low settings.

The measured data shows a consistent pattern where Medium settings provide the best balance across all resolutions. The 1080p Medium (72 FPS), 1440p Medium (61 FPS), and 4K Medium (48 FPS) results each offer playable frame rates with reasonable visual quality. The game's horror genre benefits from stable performance, making Medium settings the recommended choice for most players.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its strongest performance. Low settings achieve 115 FPS average, providing an exceptionally smooth experience. Medium settings follow with 72 FPS average, a 61 FPS minimum, and 83 FPS maximum. High settings reduce the average to 51 FPS, while Ultra settings drop further to 41 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 64% reduction in frame rate, indicating that the higher presets impose significant rendering costs.

At 2560x1440, performance remains respectable but shows the GPU's growing strain. Low settings produce 97 FPS average, a 16% reduction from 1080p. Medium settings deliver 61 FPS average with a minimum of 51 FPS and maximum of 70 FPS. High settings drop to 43 FPS average, while Ultra settings fall to 34 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 65%, similar to the 1080p scaling.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limitations become apparent. Low settings achieve 76 FPS average, which is still playable. Medium settings produce 48 FPS average with a 40 FPS minimum and 55 FPS maximum. High settings drop to 34 FPS average, while Ultra settings bottom out at 27 FPS. The 4K results show a 72% reduction from Low to Ultra, demonstrating that the higher presets have a more pronounced impact at this resolution.

The Medium setting across all resolutions shows the most consistent performance envelope. The 1080p Medium result (72 FPS) is 50% faster than 1440p Medium (61 FPS), which is 27% faster than 4K Medium (48 FPS). This scaling pattern indicates that the GPU's compute capabilities are the primary constraint as resolution increases, with the 4K Medium result barely maintaining playable frame rates.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 brings substantial processing power to this combination. With 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 4 architecture (codenamed Raphael), the CPU operates on a 5 nm process from TSMC with 6,570 million transistors on a 71 mm² die. The base clock of 3.80 GHz can boost to 5.30 GHz, providing strong single-threaded performance that is crucial for game logic and physics calculations.

The CPU's benchmark results demonstrate its capabilities. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 18760 and single-core score of 1930 indicate strong performance across both multithreaded and single-threaded workloads. The Geekbench scores of 15371 (multicore) and 2525 (single-core) reinforce this picture. The 3DMark results show scaling from 2043 (2 threads) to 8484 (16 threads), with the 16-thread score of 8484 nearly identical to the max-thread score of 8479, suggesting the CPU efficiently utilizes all available threads.

The 65W TDP is notable for an 8-core processor, yet the performance data suggests this power envelope doesn't impede gaming performance. The PassMark multithread score of 34470 and single-thread score of 4063 place the CPU in the 87th percentile among all CPUs. The nearest rivals show extremely tight clustering, with the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 just 0.1% faster and the Intel Core i9-13905H 0.6% faster.

In The Medium specifically, the CPU's role appears to be providing consistent frame delivery without becoming a bottleneck. The 115 FPS result at 1080p Low settings demonstrates that the CPU can feed the GPU adequately at high frame rates. The game's horror genre likely involves complex scene transitions and lighting calculations, which benefit from the CPU's strong multi-threaded performance. The 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 1 MB L2 cache per core help maintain data locality for game assets.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is the determining factor for this system's gaming performance. Built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 32 chip (codenamed Wheat Nas), the GPU features 2,560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. It operates with a base clock of 1900 MHz, a game clock of 2041 MHz, and a boost clock of 2459 MHz. The 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth, which is substantial for a mid-range card.

The GPU's compute capabilities include 25.18 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 236.1 GPixel/s. The 40 ray tracing cores support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The card's 200W TDP is managed through dual 8-pin power connectors, with a suggested PSU of 550W.

The benchmark results reveal the GPU's market positioning. The PassMark G3D score of 20974 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2865 place it at the 58th percentile among all GPUs. The nearest rivals show notable competition: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is 1.7% faster, the AMD Radeon RX 9060 is 1% faster, while the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 is 1.1% slower. The RX 7700's average benchmark score of 15852 sits close to these competitors, indicating it competes in a crowded mid-range segment.

In The Medium, the GPU's performance characteristics directly explain the measured FPS results. At 4K Ultra settings, the 27 FPS result suggests the card's compute units are overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and demanding effects. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for the game's textures, but the rendering pipeline becomes the bottleneck. The 40 RT cores may be underutilized if The Medium doesn't heavily rely on ray tracing, but the traditional rasterization workload still taxes the 2,560 shading units at higher resolutions.

The GPU's memory bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s appears adequate for 1440p gaming, as evidenced by the 61 FPS Medium result. However, the 4K results show that memory bandwidth and compute power are both limiting factors. The card's dual-slot design and 267 mm length make it suitable for most cases, and the PCIe 4.0 x16 interface provides sufficient bandwidth for data transfer from the CPU.