The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D pairing in The Medium produces a dataset that clearly illustrates the division of labor between a high-core-count processor and a flagship GPU. This analysis breaks down the measured frames per second across resolutions and settings, focusing on what the numbers indicate about system bottlenecks and component scaling.

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 Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Raphael. It operates with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, which places it among the faster desktop CPUs for single-threaded workloads. The processor's layout includes a 64 MB shared L3 cache and 1 MB of L2 cache per core, with 64 KB of L1 per core, providing substantial on-die storage for game assets and instructions.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 7900X demonstrates a strong balance between single-thread and multi-thread performance. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score is 29300, while the single-core score is 2016.5. In Geekbench, it achieves 19267 multicore and 2617 single-core. The 3DMark suite shows scaling from 1093 in single-thread to 12536 in max-threads, with intermediate scores of 2137 for 2 threads, 4151 for 4 threads, 7798 for 8 threads, and 10972 for 16 threads. This scaling pattern indicates that the processor maintains efficiency as thread count increases, though the gains diminish beyond 16 threads.

The processor's percentile rank against all CPUs is 91, meaning it outperforms 91 percent of tested processors. Its average benchmark score is 53288, with nearest rivals including the AMD EPYC 7313P (avgScore 53206, deltaPct 0.2), Intel Xeon Phi 7290 (avgScore 53469, deltaPct -0.3), Intel Xeon 634 (avgScore 52974, deltaPct 0.6), and Intel Core i7-14700F (avgScore 53620, deltaPct -0.6). These deltas are all within one percent, indicating that the 7900X sits in a tightly contested performance band for general compute.

For The Medium, a horror title that relies on fixed camera angles and pre-rendered transitions, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and manage game logic. The high boost clock of 5.60 GHz ensures that single-threaded tasks, such as physics calculations or AI pathfinding, execute quickly. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo reaches 177 FPS average, which is the highest recorded value across all settings and resolutions. This suggests that at lower graphical loads, the CPU is capable of driving frame rates well above typical display refresh rates, even as the GPU handles the minimal rendering work.

At 1080p Medium, the average FPS is 144, with a minimum of 123 and a maximum of 166. The difference between Low and Medium at 1080p is 33 FPS, which is a significant drop but still leaves the system in high-refresh territory. The CPU's 12 cores and 24 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks and streaming, though the game itself may not utilize all threads. The 7900X's PassMark multithread score of 51406 and integer math score of 169273 indicate robust general-purpose performance, which helps maintain consistent frame pacing in scenes with multiple interactive elements.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with the GB202 chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, yielding a memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. The GPU's clock speeds are 2017 MHz base and 2407 MHz boost, with memory running at 1750 MHz, which translates to 28 Gbps effective. This configuration provides 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s, with texture rate at 1,636.8 GTexel/s.

The GPU's 32 GB of VRAM is far beyond what The Medium requires at any tested setting, meaning memory capacity is unlikely to be a limiting factor. The high bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s allows for rapid texture streaming, which is relevant for a game that frequently shifts between two parallel worlds with distinct environments. The RTX 5090 D's benchmark scores include a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14326, a Geekbench OpenCL score of 310674, and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 376915. Its PassMark G3D score is 44065, with a G2D score of 1487.

The GPU's percentile rank against all GPUs is 92, with an average benchmark score of 77712. Nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (avgScore 76904, deltaPct 1.1), AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (avgScore 78940, deltaPct -1.6), NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB (avgScore 79396, deltaPct -2.1), and NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (avgScore 79605, deltaPct -2.4). These deltas range from 1.1 percent above to 2.4 percent below, placing the 5090 D in a competitive position among high-end accelerators, though the rival list includes workstation and mobile parts rather than direct desktop gaming counterparts.

In The Medium, the GPU's role dominates at higher resolutions and settings. The measured data shows that at 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 54, which is the lowest recorded value. This is a 68 percent reduction from 4K Low's 153 FPS average, indicating that the Ultra preset imposes a heavy rendering load. The GPU's 176 ROPs and 680 TMUs handle pixel and texture processing, but the game's use of volumetric effects and dynamic lighting at Ultra settings pushes the frame rate down to near-60 FPS territory. The RTX 5090 D's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) aligns with The Medium's API requirements, and the 170 RT cores provide hardware acceleration for any ray-traced effects, though the measured data does not specify whether ray tracing is enabled in these runs.

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

The measured FPS across resolutions reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling. At Low settings, the average FPS goes from 177 at 1080p to 167 at 1440p to 153 at 4K. This represents a 13.6 percent drop from 1080p to 4K, which is relatively modest and indicates that even at 4K Low, the GPU is not fully saturated. The CPU's high single-thread performance likely keeps the frame rate from dropping further at lower resolutions, where the GPU has less work to do.

At Medium settings, the averages are 144 at 1080p, 122 at 1440p, and 95 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 22 FPS, and from 1440p to 4K is 27 FPS. This scaling is more pronounced than at Low, showing that the Medium preset adds enough GPU work to start limiting performance at higher resolutions. The minimum FPS at Medium is 123 at 1080p, 103 at 1440p, and 81 at 4K, with corresponding maximums of 166, 140, and 110. The spread between minimum and maximum at each resolution is consistent, suggesting stable frame delivery rather than occasional stutters.

At High settings, the averages are 103 at 1080p, 87 at 1440p, and 68 at 4K. The percentage drops are 15.5 percent from 1080p to 1440p and 21.8 percent from 1440p to 4K. This increasing rate of decline indicates that the High preset is pushing the GPU harder, and the resolution scaling is becoming more GPU-limited. At Ultra settings, the averages are 82 at 1080p, 69 at 1440p, and 54 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 13 FPS, and from 1440p to 4K is 15 FPS, with the 4K result falling below 60 FPS.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the system is partially CPU-bound at Low and Medium settings, as evidenced by the relatively high frame rates that would require significant GPU throughput. However, as resolution increases and settings move to High or Ultra, the GPU becomes the clear limiting component. The 4K Ultra result of 54 FPS is the only measured average below 60, indicating that the RTX 5090 D, despite its 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, cannot maintain high refresh rates at maximum settings in this game. The 32 GB VRAM is never a constraint, as even the highest settings do not appear to exceed the available memory, but the GPU's compute and memory bandwidth are taxed by the game's rendering requirements.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achieved by this combo in The Medium?

A: The highest average FPS is 177, recorded at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Does the combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K across all settings?

A: No. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 54, which is below 60. At 4K High, it is 68 FPS, and at 4K Medium, it is 95 FPS, so only the Ultra preset falls short.

Q: How much does the average FPS drop from 1080p to 4K at Medium settings?

A: The average FPS at 1080p Medium is 144, and at 4K Medium it is 95, representing a drop of 49 FPS or 34 percent.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 1440p Medium?

A: The minimum FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings is 103, with a maximum of 140.

Q: How does the CPU's benchmark score compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Ryzen 9 7900X has an average benchmark score of 53288, which is 0.2 percent higher than the AMD EPYC 7313P (53206) and 0.6 percent higher than the Intel Xeon 634 (52974). It is 0.3 percent lower than the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 (53469) and 0.6 percent lower than the Intel Core i7-14700F (53620).

Q: Is the GPU's VRAM capacity a limiting factor in this game?

A: No. The RTX 5090 D has 32 GB of GDDR7 memory, and the measured FPS data does not show any signs of memory-related stuttering or frame drops, as the minimum FPS values at 4K Medium (81) and 1440p Medium (103) are relatively stable.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is ranked 20th out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium. This top-20 placement, representing the top 0.7 percent of all tested configurations, is consistent with the high individual percentile rankings of both components. The CPU's 91st percentile and the GPU's 92nd percentile suggest that this pairing is near the upper echelon of available hardware, and the game's performance data generally reflects that status.

However, the rank of 20 indicates that there are 19 combos that achieve higher performance in this specific game. These likely include configurations with even newer or more specialized hardware, though the fact pack does not specify which combos rank above. The 4K Ultra result of 54 FPS shows that even a top-20 combo cannot max out this game at 4K with full settings, which speaks to the demanding nature of The Medium's rendering pipeline. The combo's performance at lower settings is more impressive, with 4K Low achieving 153 FPS, which is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate of many gaming monitors.

The data indicates that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this combo's rank, as the 12-core processor provides ample headroom. The GPU's performance at 4K Ultra is the primary constraint, and the 54 FPS average suggests that the game's Ultra preset includes effects that are particularly heavy on the GPU. The rank of 20 out of 2911 is a strong showing, but it does not represent the absolute best possible performance in The Medium, as some other combos have achieved higher frame rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, 3840x2160) and four settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra), for a total of 12 data points. At 1080p, the average FPS ranges from 177 at Low to 82 at Ultra. The Medium setting at 1080p has an average of 144, with a minimum of 123 and maximum of 166. At High, the average is 103, with no minimum or maximum provided.

At 1440p, the averages are 167 at Low, 122 at Medium, 87 at High, and 69 at Ultra. The Medium setting at 1440p has a minimum of 103 and maximum of 140. At 4K, the averages are 153 at Low, 95 at Medium, 68 at High, and 54 at Ultra. The Medium setting at 4K has a minimum of 81 and maximum of 110. Only the Medium settings across all three resolutions include minimum and maximum FPS values; the Low, High, and Ultra settings do not have these data points.

The progression from Low to Ultra at each resolution shows a consistent pattern of decreasing frame rates. At 1080p, the drop from Low to Ultra is 95 FPS (177 to 82), at 1440p it is 98 FPS (167 to 69), and at 4K it is 99 FPS (153 to 54). The relative consistency of this drop across resolutions suggests that the Ultra preset adds a similar amount of GPU work regardless of resolution, though the absolute frame rates decrease as resolution increases.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target frame rate and resolution. For 4K displays, the Medium preset provides an average of 95 FPS with a minimum of 81, which is suitable for smooth gameplay on standard 60 Hz monitors and even some 90 Hz or 100 Hz panels. The High preset at 4K drops to 68 FPS average, which is still above 60 but with less headroom for demanding scenes. The Ultra preset at 4K averages 54 FPS, which may result in noticeable frame pacing issues on high refresh displays, making it less desirable for a consistent experience.

At 1440p, the Medium preset achieves 122 FPS average with a minimum of 103, making it the best choice for high-refresh gaming at this resolution. The High preset at 1440p averages 87 FPS, which is adequate for 90 Hz displays, while the Ultra preset at 69 FPS is borderline for 75 Hz screens. The Low preset at 1440p reaches 167 FPS, which exceeds the refresh rate of most 144 Hz monitors, but the visual quality reduction may not be worth the extra frames for a horror game that relies on atmosphere.

For 1080p, the Medium preset at 144 FPS average is the most balanced option, providing high frame rates with a minimum of 123 FPS. The High preset at 103 FPS is also viable for 100 Hz displays, and the Ultra preset at 82 FPS offers near-maximum visual quality. The data suggests that the Medium preset strikes the best balance between visual fidelity and performance across all resolutions, as it consistently maintains frame rates above 60 FPS even at 4K, while the High and Ultra presets require resolution compromises to achieve similar smoothness.