The Medium

The Medium is a demanding horror title that stresses both CPU and GPU, and the pairing of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 produces a highly variable experience depending on resolution and quality settings. The data shows a system where the graphics card becomes the primary bottleneck as resolution increases, while the eight-core processor provides enough headroom to keep frame pacing stable at lower settings. This combo ranks near the bottom of the tested field, placing 2948th out of 3724 total combinations, which signals that it is best suited for 1080p play rather than high-resolution or maxed-out visuals.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and reveals that the RTX 2060 is the limiting component in this configuration. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 83 at 1920x1080 to 70 at 2560x1440, a 15.7% reduction, and then plummets to 55 at 3840x2160, representing a 33.7% drop from the 1440p figure. This pattern indicates that the GPU’s 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus width are overwhelmed by the pixel count at 4K, even with the lowest quality preset.

Moving to Medium settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. The average FPS at 1080p is 52, which drops to 44 at 1440p (a 15.4% decline) and then to 34 at 4K (a 22.7% decline from 1440p). The minimum FPS at Medium also tells a story: at 1080p, the floor is 44 FPS, but at 1440p it falls to 37, and at 4K it reaches 29. These minimums suggest that the GPU is running out of memory bandwidth during complex scenes, causing stutter even when the average frame rate is nominally playable.

High settings show the most severe degradation. The RTX 2060 manages 37 FPS at 1080p, but that drops to 31 at 1440p (a 16.2% decrease) and then to 25 at 4K (a 19.4% decrease from 1440p). Ultra settings are effectively unplayable at higher resolutions, with the card producing 30 FPS at 1080p, 25 FPS at 1440p, and just 20 FPS at 4K. The data indicates that the CPU—with its 8 cores and 16 threads running at a boost clock of 5.40 GHz—is not the constraint; the frame rate scales consistently with resolution, which is a classic signature of a GPU-bound workload.

How This Combo Ranks

In the global database of tested CPU-GPU combinations for The Medium, this pairing sits at rank 2948 out of 3724, placing it in the bottom 20% of all systems. This low ranking is primarily attributable to the RTX 2060, which holds a percentile rank of 58 among all GPUs, meaning it outperforms just over half of the graphics cards tested. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 15290 places it in direct competition with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (score 15283, delta 0%), the AMD Radeon 680M (score 15270, delta 0.1%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (score 15199, delta 0.6%).

The CPU, by contrast, is a much stronger component. The Ryzen 7 7700X has a percentile rank of 85 among all CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 35909 puts it slightly ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 (score 35802, delta 0.3%) and the Intel Core 7 250H (score 35728, delta 0.5%). This disparity between a top-tier processor and a mid-range graphics card explains why the combo ranks so low: the system is heavily unbalanced, with the GPU unable to keep pace with the CPU’s capabilities in a graphically intensive title like The Medium.

The combo’s ranking also reflects the game’s specific requirements. The Medium is a horror title that likely relies on heavy post-processing and volumetric effects, which disproportionately impact the GPU. The data shows that even at 1080p Low, the RTX 2060 only achieves 83 FPS, which is far below what a high-end GPU would produce. This suggests that the game’s engine is not CPU-limited, and the 7700X’s strong multi-threaded performance (Cinebench R23 multicore score of 19088) cannot compensate for the GPU’s limitations.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and playability, the Medium settings on this system should be the clear choice. At 1920x1080, Medium produces an average of 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 and a maximum of 60, which is smooth enough for a horror game that prioritizes atmosphere over twitch reaction. The 1440p Medium preset is also viable, offering 44 FPS average with a 37 FPS minimum, though players who prefer a consistent 60 FPS target should stick to 1080p.

Low settings are the only option for 4K play, where the RTX 2060 manages 55 FPS average. However, the jump from Low to Medium at 4K is substantial—the average drops from 55 to 34 FPS—which suggests that the Medium preset introduces effects that the 6 GB VRAM cannot handle at that resolution. High settings are not recommended at any resolution, as even at 1080p the average of 37 FPS is below the 40 FPS threshold that many players consider the minimum for acceptable motion. Ultra settings are strictly for screenshots, with 20 FPS at 4K and 30 FPS at 1080p.

The data indicates that Medium at 1080p is the sweet spot, delivering a 52 FPS average that stays within the 44-60 FPS range. This preset likely enables the game’s core visual features without demanding the full memory bandwidth that cripples higher settings. For players with a 1440p monitor, Medium is still playable, but they should expect occasional dips into the 30s during intense scenes, as evidenced by the 37 FPS minimum.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The full frame rate data shows a consistent pattern across all resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, Low settings yield 83 FPS average, Medium yields 52 FPS (min 44, max 60), High yields 37 FPS, and Ultra yields 30 FPS. This represents a 64% reduction from Low to Ultra, indicating that each quality tier adds significant GPU load.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 70 FPS for Low, 44 FPS for Medium (min 37, max 50), 31 FPS for High, and 25 FPS for Ultra. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 15-20% across all settings, which is less than the pixel count increase (2.25x), suggesting that the RTX 2060 has some memory bandwidth headroom at this resolution but is still constrained by its 336.0 GB/s bandwidth.

At 3840x2160, the averages fall to 55 FPS for Low, 34 FPS for Medium (min 29, max 40), 25 FPS for High, and 20 FPS for Ultra. The jump from 1440p to 4K represents a 21-23% reduction in frame rate, which is consistent with a GPU that is hitting its memory bandwidth limits. The 4K Medium minimum of 29 FPS is particularly telling, as it shows the card struggling to maintain playable frame times.

The maximum FPS values at Medium settings also highlight the GPU’s limitations: 60 FPS at 1080p, 50 FPS at 1440p, and 40 FPS at 4K. These caps suggest that the RTX 2060’s 1920 shading units and 48 ROPs are simply not sufficient to push beyond these thresholds, regardless of the CPU’s capability.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X is a high-end desktop processor built on the Zen 4 architecture (codename Raphael) using a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 4.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. The CPU’s cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache, which provides ample data locality for game engines.

In The Medium, the CPU’s role appears to be secondary to the GPU. The benchmark results show that the 7700X has strong single-threaded performance, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 1090 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2289. Multi-threaded performance is equally impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 19088 and a Passmark multithread score of 35686. These scores indicate that the CPU can handle the game’s AI, physics, and streaming workloads without becoming a bottleneck.

However, the measured FPS data shows no evidence of CPU limitation. If the CPU were the constraint, we would expect to see similar frame rates across different resolutions, but instead, the FPS scales consistently with resolution, confirming that the RTX 2060 is the limiting factor. The CPU’s 16 threads are likely underutilized in this title, but its high boost clock ensures that even single-threaded tasks are handled efficiently. For players considering upgrading this system, the CPU would not need to be replaced—it is the GPU that holds the combo back.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the optimal resolution, as it is the only setting where Medium presets achieve a 52 FPS average with a minimum of 44 FPS. At 1440p, Medium drops to 44 FPS average, and at 4K, only Low settings are playable at 55 FPS.

Q: Can this system run The Medium at Ultra settings?

A: Ultra settings are not recommended. At 1080p, the average FPS is 30, which is below the 40 FPS threshold for acceptable motion. At 4K, Ultra drops to 20 FPS, making it unplayable.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 7700X or the RTX 2060 the bottleneck?

A: The RTX 2060 is the clear bottleneck. The GPU has a percentile rank of 58, while the CPU has a percentile rank of 85. The frame rate scales consistently with resolution, which is a sign of GPU limitation, not CPU.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: This combo ranks 2948th out of 3724 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 20%. The CPU outperforms its nearest rivals by 0.3-0.7%, but the GPU is nearly identical to the GTX 580 and Radeon 680M in average score.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Medium settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings produce 70 FPS average, while Medium produces 44 FPS average (min 37, max 50). This represents a 37% reduction in frame rate when switching from Low to Medium.

Q: Does the CPU’s 8-core/16-thread configuration help in this game?

A: The CPU’s multi-threading does not appear to be a limiting factor. The 7700X achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 19088, but the game’s performance is dictated by the GPU, as evidenced by the resolution scaling patterns in the measured FPS data.