The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT combination delivers a playable but demanding experience in The Medium, with performance heavily dictated by the GPU at higher resolutions. The data indicates that the CPU's substantial 12-core, 24-thread configuration, based on the Zen 4 architecture, is not the primary bottleneck in this title, even at 1080p, where the frame rate ceiling is instead set by the graphics card. The system's ranking at 733 out of 1689 tested combos places it in the upper-middle tier, a position that reflects the balance between a high-end processor and a mid-range graphics solution. The measured results show clear scaling from 1080p to 4K, with the Low preset providing the only consistently high-refresh-rate experience across all tested resolutions, while the Ultra preset proves too demanding for smooth gameplay at 4K. The GPU's 12 GB of GDDR6 memory and RDNA 3.0 architecture are sufficient for the game's world-switching mechanics, but the raw compute demands are what ultimately limit performance at maximum settings.

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

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor built on the TSMC 5 nm process, with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its 64 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR5 memory provide a robust foundation for gaming workloads. In The Medium, this level of CPU performance is far beyond what the game requires, as evidenced by the benchmark results. The frame rates do not scale proportionally with the CPU's capabilities; instead, they are consistently limited by the GPU at every resolution. For instance, at 1080p with Low settings, the system reaches 125.8 FPS, and at 1440p Low, it achieves 105.8 FPS. This 20 FPS drop when increasing resolution by 33% indicates that the GPU is already the limiting factor, even at lower settings. The CPU's multi-threaded strength, seen in its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 43695, ensures that the game's background streaming and AI tasks are handled without introducing stutter, but it is not the component that defines the final frame rate output. The processor's single-thread performance, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6168, is more than adequate for the game's primary thread, leaving headroom that is simply unused in this title.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Ryzen 9 7900X and RX 7700 XT achieves a rank of 733 out of 1689 tested combos in The Medium. This places the system in the 43rd percentile of all tested configurations, meaning it outperforms a significant portion of the database but is not near the top. The ranking is a direct result of the GPU's position in the performance hierarchy, as the CPU is a top-tier part. The RX 7700 XT has an average benchmark score of 30097, which is nearly identical to its closest rivals, including the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 with a deltaPct of 0, and the AMD Radeon RX 570 with a deltaPct of -0.2. This indicates that the 7700 XT is a solid, mid-range performer, and the combo's rank reflects that. In contrast, the Ryzen 9 7900X has an average benchmark score of 50556, which is within 0.8% of its nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i9-13980HX. The disparity in relative performance between the CPU and GPU is the defining characteristic of this combo's ranking; the processor is overkill for the graphics card in this specific game, but the overall experience is still respectable.

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

The FPS scaling across resolutions clearly identifies the GPU as the bottleneck. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings reduces the average frame rate from 55.6 FPS to 49.6 FPS, a drop of 10.8%. The subsequent jump from 1440p to 4K at High settings is more severe, with the average FPS falling from 49.6 to 37.6, a 24.2% reduction. This pattern is consistent across all settings presets. At Low settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 20 FPS (125.8 to 105.8), and then another 24 FPS from 1440p to 4K (105.8 to 81.8). The percentage drops become larger as resolution increases, which is a hallmark of GPU-bound scenarios. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see a plateau in FPS at lower resolutions, where the graphics card has less work to do. That is not the case here. The FPS continues to climb from 4K to 1440p to 1080p, demonstrating that the GPU is the sole constraining component. The CPU's headroom remains untouched, as the game never fully utilises its 24 threads, and its high boost clock of 5.60 GHz is more than enough to feed the GPU with draw calls.

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

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive look at the system's performance envelope. At 1920x1080, the system is capable of very high frame rates on lower presets. The Low preset averages 125.8 FPS, Medium averages 78.6 FPS, High averages 55.6 FPS, and Ultra averages 42 FPS. This shows a steep performance cost for each step up in visual fidelity. At 2560x1440, the frame rates are expectedly lower. Low averages 105.8 FPS, Medium averages 65.3 FPS, High averages 49.6 FPS, and Ultra drops to 36.8 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 69 FPS, indicating that the Ultra preset is extremely demanding. The 3840x2160 results show the GPU struggling to maintain playable frame rates on higher presets. Low averages 81.8 FPS, which is still smooth, but Medium drops to 52.6 FPS, High falls to 37.6 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 30.3 FPS. The difference between 1080p Low and 4K Low is 44 FPS, which highlights the GPU's bandwidth and compute limitations at higher pixel counts. The 12 GB of VRAM is not the limiting factor here, as even at 4K Ultra, the card does not run out of memory, but the raw shader throughput of 35.17 TFLOPS is insufficient for the game's heavy post-processing effects at that resolution.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the best resolution for playing The Medium with this combo if I want to exceed 60 FPS?

A: Based on the data, 2560x1440 with the Low preset is the highest resolution that consistently averages above 60 FPS, achieving 105.8 FPS. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset also exceeds 60 FPS with an average of 78.6 FPS.

Q: How does the RX 7700 XT compare to its nearest competitor in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 7700 XT has an average benchmark score of 30097, which is essentially identical to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, which has a deltaPct of 0. It is also within 0.2% of the AMD Radeon RX 570's score, showing a tight cluster of performance among these cards.

Q: Is the Ryzen 9 7900X a bottleneck for the RX 7700 XT in this game?

A: No. The benchmark results show that FPS scales continuously with resolution, which is a clear indication of a GPU bottleneck. The CPU's performance, including a multi-core score of 43695 in Cinebench R23, is far beyond the requirements of The Medium.

Q: What is the average frame rate at 4K with the Ultra preset?

A: The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with the Ultra preset is 30.3 FPS. This is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay and is only marginally above the 30 FPS console-like standard.

Q: Does the CPU's high single-thread performance help in this game?

A: While the CPU's single-thread score of 6168 in Cinebench R23 is very high, it does not translate to higher frame rates because the game is not CPU-limited. The FPS is consistently constrained by the GPU, as shown by the resolution scaling analysis.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: The difference is substantial. The Low preset averages 105.8 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 36.8 FPS. This represents a 69 FPS drop, or a 65% reduction in performance, for the maximum visual quality.

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

The data suggests that the Low preset is the only viable option for high-refresh-rate monitors at 1440p and 4K, but it comes with a significant visual compromise. For a balanced experience, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 provides an average of 78.6 FPS, which is smooth and retains some visual fidelity. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset’s 65.3 FPS average is playable, but it is close to the 60 FPS threshold, and any demanding scene could cause dips. The High preset is not recommended for any resolution except possibly 1080p, where it averages 55.6 FPS, but this is still below the 60 FPS target. The Ultra preset is only suitable for 1080p, where it achieves 42 FPS, but this is below the ideal smoothness threshold. The most sensible recommendation is to use the Low preset at 2560x1440, as it delivers 105.8 FPS and a much sharper image than 1080p, providing a better overall experience than using Medium or High at a lower resolution. For those who prioritise visual quality over frame rate, the Medium preset at 1080p with 78.6 FPS is the best compromise, as it offers a solid frame rate while enabling more of the game's atmospheric effects. Pushing to High or Ultra at any resolution is not advised based on the measured data, as the frame rate drops below 60 FPS in most cases.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT is the primary determinant of performance in The Medium. Its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient for the game's textures and world data at 4K, as evidenced by the fact that performance scales consistently with resolution rather than hitting a memory capacity wall. The GPU's boost clock of 2544 MHz and game clock of 2171 MHz, based on the RDNA 3.0 architecture, dictate the raw compute throughput. The card's FP32 performance of 35.17 TFLOPS is the key metric, as The Medium relies heavily on shader and post-processing work, particularly for its dual-reality rendering. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra (30.3 FPS) versus 4K Low (81.8 FPS) shows a 2.7x difference, which is consistent with the GPU being the limiting factor. The card's 3456 shading units and 96 ROPs are fully utilised at higher settings, causing the frame rate to plummet. The GPU's 73rd percentile ranking among all GPUs and its average benchmark score of 30097, which is within 0.6% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile, place it as a capable mid-range part. However, for a game as demanding as The Medium, it is clear that the Ultra preset is beyond its capabilities for smooth play, and even the High preset struggles at 4K. The 245 W TDP and dual-slot design are not relevant to the in-game results, but the raw performance data confirms that this GPU is the bottleneck.