The Medium

# The Medium with AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080

This combination places the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 in a horror title that rewards both high frame rates and consistent frame pacing. The measured data covers 1080p, 1440p, and 4K across four quality presets, giving a complete picture of how this CPU-GPU pairing handles The Medium’s fixed-camera scenes and heavy post-processing. The results show a system that can comfortably push past 60 FPS at 4K on Medium settings, but which also reveals a clear performance ceiling at lower resolutions where the CPU becomes the limiting factor. This is a pairing that offers flexibility across the entire resolution spectrum, though the sweet spot depends heavily on whether you prioritize visual fidelity or raw frame rate.

FAQ

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

A: The 1440p Medium preset delivers 104 FPS average with a minimum of 89 FPS and maximum of 120 FPS, making it the most balanced option. At 4K, the Medium preset still provides 82 FPS average, which is playable, but the 1440p Medium row offers a wider margin above the 60 FPS threshold.

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

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D has an average benchmark score of 58386, placing it in the 92nd percentile among all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M, scores 58323, which is 0.1% lower. The Intel Core i9-14900 sits 0.5% behind, while the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 is 0.7% ahead.

Q: Does the RTX 5080 have enough VRAM for The Medium at 4K?

A: The RTX 5080 comes with 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Medium’s 4K Ultra preset runs at 47 FPS average, indicating that VRAM capacity is not a bottleneck; the limiting factor is raw GPU compute under the highest preset.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the Low preset achieves 198 FPS average, while Ultra drops to 70 FPS average. That is a 128 FPS difference, representing a 183% increase in performance when dropping from Ultra to Low. The Medium preset sits at 124 FPS, which is nearly double the Ultra result.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations for The Medium?

A: The combination ranks 95th out of 2911 tested combos in this game, placing it in the top 3.3% of all systems tested. This rank reflects the strong performance across all resolutions, though the 4K Ultra preset falls below the 60 FPS ideal.

Q: Is the RTX 5080’s GPU benchmark score competitive with its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 5080 has an average benchmark score of 56083, placing it in the 87th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon 8060S, scores 55757, which is 0.6% lower. The AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE is 2.2% ahead, while the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X trails by 2.3%.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a GB203 chip fabricated on a 5 nm process. It packs 10752 shading units, 336 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output pipelines, along with 84 ray tracing cores and 336 tensor cores. The GPU runs at a base clock of 2295 MHz and boosts up to 2617 MHz, while the 16 GB of GDDR7 memory operates at an effective 30 Gbps, yielding a memory bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s across a 256-bit bus. These specifications position the RTX 5080 as a high-end card that can handle The Medium’s demanding fixed-camera scenes with heavy volumetric effects and dynamic lighting.

In The Medium specifically, the GPU’s raw compute throughput of 56.28 TFLOPS FP32 proves to be the decisive factor at higher resolutions. The measured FPS data shows that at 4K, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck: the Ultra preset drops to 47 FPS average, while Medium recovers to 82 FPS. This indicates that The Medium’s Ultra preset imposes a significant load on the GPU, likely through ray-traced reflections and enhanced shadow quality, which the RTX 5080’s 84 RT cores must process. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is never stressed, as even the highest preset at 4K does not exceed this allocation. The memory bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s provides ample headroom for texture streaming across the game’s dual-reality mechanic, where two worlds are rendered simultaneously.

The GPU’s benchmark scores corroborate its strong position. A 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8637 and a Passmark G3D score of 36565 both reflect a card that excels in direct compute and rasterization tasks. The Geekbench Vulkan score of 255450 and OpenCL score of 235901 further confirm that the card handles the low-level API calls efficiently, which is relevant for The Medium’s use of DirectX 12. The RTX 5080’s 87th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 56083, places it just above the AMD Radeon 8060S (55757, 0.6% lower) and AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55698, 0.7% lower), but slightly below the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE (57367, 2.2% higher). In practice, this means the RTX 5080 delivers performance that is competitive with the top tier of AMD’s lineup, though it does not outclass them by a wide margin.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals how The Medium’s performance scales as resolution increases, and where the bottleneck shifts between CPU and GPU. At 1080p, the system is heavily CPU-limited across all presets. The Low preset achieves 198 FPS, which is a strong result, but the scaling from Low to Medium (124 FPS) and High (89 FPS) shows that the GPU still has headroom even as settings increase. The Ultra preset at 1080p produces 70 FPS, which is a 65% drop from Low. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU’s 8 cores and 16 threads, running at a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, are sufficient to feed the GPU at lower settings, but the GPU becomes more dominant as the preset moves to Ultra.

Moving to 1440p, the same pattern emerges but with a clearer GPU influence. The Low preset achieves 167 FPS, which is 31 FPS lower than the 1080p Low result, indicating that the GPU is now beginning to feel the resolution increase. The Medium preset at 1440p delivers 104 FPS, a drop of 20 FPS from 1080p Medium. The High preset produces 75 FPS, and Ultra falls to 59 FPS, which is just under the 60 FPS ideal. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows an average drop of approximately 18-20% across presets, which is consistent with the increased pixel count of 77% more pixels. This indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor at 1440p, but the CPU still has enough headroom to keep frame rates high at Medium settings.

At 4K, the GPU bottleneck becomes fully apparent. The Low preset drops to 131 FPS, which is still very playable, but the Medium preset falls to 82 FPS, and High drops to 59 FPS. The Ultra preset produces 47 FPS, which is below the playable threshold for most users. The scaling from 1440p to 4K represents a 125% increase in pixel count, and the frame rate drops accordingly: Medium goes from 104 to 82 FPS (21% drop), High from 75 to 59 FPS (21% drop), and Low from 167 to 131 FPS (22% drop). This consistent scaling across presets confirms that the RTX 5080’s GPU compute is the primary constraint at 4K, and that the Ryzen 7 9850X3D’s performance is sufficient to avoid becoming a bottleneck even at this high resolution.

The data reveals an important insight: the gap between 1080p and 1440p is smaller than the gap between 1440p and 4K for the same preset. For example, Medium goes from 124 FPS at 1080p to 104 FPS at 1440p (16% drop), but then to 82 FPS at 4K (21% drop from 1440p). This suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and compute resources are more heavily taxed at 4K, and the dual-reality rendering mechanic in The Medium amplifies this effect. Players targeting 4K should expect to use Medium settings to maintain a stable 82 FPS, while those at 1440p can comfortably run High at 75 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system demonstrates strong performance across all presets. The Low preset delivers 198 FPS average, which is exceptionally high and suitable for high-refresh-rate displays. The Medium preset produces 124 FPS average, with a minimum of 105 FPS and maximum of 143 FPS, providing a smooth experience with consistent frame pacing. The High preset drops to 89 FPS average, which remains well above the 60 FPS threshold, while the Ultra preset falls to 70 FPS average. The 1080p results show that the CPU-GPU pairing can easily handle this resolution, with the Low and Medium presets offering the best experiences for competitive or high-refresh gaming.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but begins to show the GPU’s limits. The Low preset achieves 167 FPS average, which is still excellent for a 1440p display. The Medium preset delivers 104 FPS average, with a minimum of 89 FPS and maximum of 120 FPS, making it the most balanced option for this resolution. The High preset produces 75 FPS average, which is playable but close to the 60 FPS ideal, while the Ultra preset drops to 59 FPS average. This resolution is the sweet spot for this combo, as the Medium preset provides a high frame rate with good visual quality, and even the High preset remains playable.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. The Low preset achieves 131 FPS average, which is still highly playable and demonstrates the card’s raw compute capability. The Medium preset delivers 82 FPS average, with a minimum of 70 FPS and maximum of 94 FPS, providing a playable experience with good visual fidelity. The High preset drops to 59 FPS average, which is just under the 60 FPS ideal, while the Ultra preset falls to 47 FPS average, which is below the threshold for a smooth experience. The 4K results indicate that players should stick to Medium settings to maintain a consistent frame rate above 60 FPS, while Low settings offer a high-frame-rate alternative for those who prioritize performance.

The measured data also shows a clear progression across resolutions for each preset. For Low settings, the frame rates are 198, 167, and 131 FPS at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K respectively, representing a 34% drop from 1080p to 4K. For Medium, the frame rates are 124, 104, and 82 FPS, a 34% drop as well. For High, the frame rates are 89, 75, and 59 FPS, a 34% drop. For Ultra, the frame rates are 70, 59, and 47 FPS, a 33% drop. This consistent scaling across all presets confirms that the GPU is the bottleneck at every resolution, and that the CPU’s performance is not a limiting factor in any configuration.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 ranks 95th out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the top 3.3% of all systems tested. This rank is a strong indicator of overall performance, especially considering the wide range of hardware configurations that are included in the database. The high rank is driven by the combination of a CPU that ranks in the 92nd percentile among all CPUs and a GPU that ranks in the 87th percentile among all GPUs. Together, they create a system that excels in this game, particularly at 1080p and 1440p, where the CPU’s strong single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2228) and the GPU’s high compute throughput work in tandem.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in the synthetic benchmark rankings include the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M (0.1% lower score), Intel Xeon w5-2545 (0.2% higher), Intel Core i9-14900 (0.5% lower), and AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 (0.7% higher). These small deltas indicate that the Ryzen 7 9850X3D is firmly in the top tier of desktop processors, with its 96 MB of shared L3 cache and 5.60 GHz boost clock providing significant advantages in gaming workloads. The GPU’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon 8060S (0.6% lower), AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (0.7% lower), AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (2.3% lower), and AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE (2.2% higher). The RTX 5080’s position among these rivals shows that it is competitive with the best AMD options, though it does not hold a commanding lead.

The combo’s rank of 95 out of 2911 combos means that it outperforms more than 96% of all tested systems in this game. This is a significant achievement, particularly for a game like The Medium that uses fixed-camera angles and dual-world rendering, which can be demanding on both CPU and GPU. The measured FPS data supports this rank: the system achieves playable frame rates at 4K Medium (82 FPS) and excellent frame rates at 1440p Medium (104 FPS), which are strong results for a game that is known to be visually intensive. The rank also reflects the system’s consistency, as the minimum FPS values at Medium settings (70 FPS at 4K, 89 FPS at 1440p, 105 FPS at 1080p) remain well above the 60 FPS threshold, ensuring a smooth experience without stuttering.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal settings for this combo depend on your target resolution and your tolerance for visual compromises versus frame rate. At 1080p, the Medium preset is the best choice, delivering 124 FPS average with a minimum of 105 FPS. This provides a high frame rate that is well above the 60 FPS ideal, and the visual quality is sufficient for most players. The Low preset at 198 FPS is only recommended for competitive play or extremely high refresh rate displays, as the visual downgrade is noticeable in a game like The Medium that relies heavily on atmosphere and lighting. The High preset at 89 FPS is a viable alternative, but the Medium preset offers a better balance of frame rate and visual quality.

At 1440p, the Medium preset is the clear winner, achieving 104 FPS average with a minimum of 89 FPS and maximum of 120 FPS. This provides a smooth and consistent experience that is ideal for a 1440p display. The High preset at 75 FPS is also playable, but it drops closer to the 60 FPS threshold, and the visual improvement over Medium may not justify the 28% frame rate reduction. The Ultra preset at 59 FPS is borderline, and we recommend avoiding it unless you are willing to accept occasional drops below 60 FPS. The Low preset at 167 FPS is overkill for most 1440p displays, which typically have a refresh rate of 144 Hz or 165 Hz, so the Medium preset is the better choice.

At 4K, the Medium preset is the only recommended option, delivering 82 FPS average with a minimum of 70 FPS and maximum of 94 FPS. This provides a playable experience that stays above 60 FPS in most scenes, which is impressive for a game as visually demanding as The Medium. The High preset at 59 FPS is borderline, and the Ultra preset at 47 FPS is not recommended for a smooth experience. The Low preset at 131 FPS is a viable alternative for players who prioritize frame rate over visual quality, but the Medium preset offers a much better visual experience while still maintaining a high frame rate.

In summary, the Medium preset is the best overall choice for this combo across all resolutions. It provides frame rates of 124 FPS at 1080p, 104 FPS at 1440p, and 82 FPS at 4K, all of which are well above the 60 FPS threshold. The minimum FPS values of 105, 89, and 70 FPS respectively ensure that frame pacing remains consistent, which is crucial for a horror game where stuttering can break immersion. Players with high-refresh-rate displays at 1080p or 1440p should also consider the Low preset for maximum frame rates, but the Medium preset offers the best balance of performance and visual quality for the majority of users.