The Medium

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT delivers a wide performance envelope in The Medium, but the shape of that envelope is heavily dictated by the graphics preset. At 1080p, the combo ranges from a highly playable 72.6 FPS on High to a brisk 147.8 FPS on Low, with Ultra dropping to 58.7 FPS. Moving to 1440p, the same pattern holds but with a noticeable tax: High produces 61.7 FPS, Medium hits 83.1 FPS, and Low reaches 139 FPS. At 4K, the scaling becomes steep—Ultra yields 35.8 FPS, High 49.5 FPS, and Medium 63.8 FPS—while Low remains fluid at 105.9 FPS. The data reveals a system where the GPU is the primary driver of performance, but the CPU’s six cores and twelve threads are sufficient to avoid becoming a bottleneck at lower resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent drop as resolution increases, which is typical for a GPU-bound title. From 1080p to 1440p on High settings, the average frame rate falls from 72.6 to 61.7 FPS, a reduction of roughly 15%. The same transition on Low settings sees a smaller relative decline, from 147.8 to 139 FPS, indicating that the lower preset reduces the GPU workload enough to let the CPU keep pace more effectively. The jump from 1440p to 4K is more punishing: High settings drop from 61.7 to 49.5 FPS, a 20% loss, while Medium falls from 83.1 to 63.8 FPS, a 23% reduction. Ultra settings show the steepest cliff, going from 51.1 FPS at 1440p to 35.8 FPS at 4K, a 30% decline that pushes the experience below comfortable playability.

This scaling pattern suggests that the RX 7900 XT, with its 20 GB of GDDR6 memory and 800.0 GB/s bandwidth, is the limiting factor at higher resolutions and presets. At 1080p and 1440p, the frame rates on Low and Medium are high enough that the CPU’s 2.50 GHz base and 4.40 GHz boost clocks are likely able to feed the GPU without stalling. However, at 4K Ultra, the sheer pixel count overwhelms the GPU’s 5376 shading units and 192 ROPs, causing the frame rate to crater. The data implies that for a 4K experience, the user must accept Low settings to stay above 100 FPS, or Medium for a playable 63.8 FPS, while High and Ultra are only viable at 1440p or below.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average frame rate achievable with this combo in The Medium?*

A: The highest recorded average is 147.8 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The next best is 139 FPS at 2560x1440 on Low, showing that the Low preset is the only one that consistently exceeds 100 FPS across all resolutions.

*Q: Can this system run The Medium at 4K with playable frame rates?*

A: Yes, but only on lower presets. At 4K Medium, the average is 63.8 FPS, and at 4K Low it reaches 105.9 FPS. High and Ultra at 4K produce 49.5 FPS and 35.8 FPS respectively, which may be too low for smooth gameplay.

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

A: The i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19221, which is 0.1% higher than the Intel Core i7-8700K’s 19210, and 0.3% higher than the Intel Core i5-1335U’s 19167. It trails the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS by 0.7% (19364) and leads the AMD EPYC 7773X by 1.3% (18979).

Q: What is the GPU’s standing relative to other cards in synthetic tests?

A: The RX 7900 XT posts an average benchmark score of 38358, placing it nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile (38349, 0% delta). It is 0.3% ahead of the NVIDIA CMP 70HX (38225) and 0.6% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile (38135), while trailing the NVIDIA GeForce MX570 by 0.4% (38494).

Q: Is there a significant frame rate gap between Medium and High settings?

A: Yes. At 1080p, Medium runs at 100.9 FPS while High runs at 72.6 FPS, a 28.3 FPS difference. At 1440p, the gap is 21.4 FPS (83.1 vs 61.7), and at 4K it narrows to 14.3 FPS (63.8 vs 49.5).

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 328 out of 1689 tested combinations, placing it in the top 19.4% of all systems evaluated for The Medium.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal preset depends on the target resolution and the user’s tolerance for frame rate drops. For 1080p, High settings at 72.6 FPS offer a solid balance between visual quality and smoothness, while Medium at 100.9 FPS is the better choice for those prioritizing fluidity. Ultra at 58.7 FPS is playable but not ideal for fast-paced scenes, and Low at 147.8 FPS is excessive for most displays. At 1440p, Medium stands out as the sweet spot, delivering 83.1 FPS without sacrificing too much detail; High at 61.7 FPS is acceptable, but Ultra at 51.1 FPS risks noticeable stutter in heavy scenes. Low at 139 FPS is overkill for 1440p.

For 4K, the recommendation is clear: Medium at 63.8 FPS is the highest preset that maintains a playable frame rate, while Low at 105.9 FPS provides headroom for smoother motion. High at 49.5 FPS and Ultra at 35.8 FPS are both below the 60 FPS threshold and should be avoided unless the user is willing to tolerate significant drops. The data suggests that the GPU’s 20 GB memory buffer is not the constraint; rather, the 5376 shading units are taxed heavily by the 3840x2160 resolution. Users with 4K displays should stick to Medium or Low, while 1440p owners can comfortably use Medium or High.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 328 out of 1689 tested configurations places it in the 81st percentile of all systems measured for The Medium. This is a strong showing, given that the CPU ranks in the 77th percentile against all CPUs (with an average benchmark score of 19221) and the GPU ranks in the 82nd percentile against all GPUs (with an average score of 38358). The gap between the CPU and GPU percentiles suggests that the RX 7900 XT is the more capable component, and the in-game results reflect this by showing GPU-bound behavior at higher resolutions. In synthetic tests, the CPU is nearly tied with the Intel Core i7-8700K (0.1% faster) and the Intel Core i5-1335U (0.3% faster), while the GPU is essentially matched with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile (0% delta) and RTX 4080 Mobile (0.6% ahead).

The rank of 328 indicates that there are 327 tested combos with higher performance in The Medium, but also that 1361 combos rank lower. Given the data, the limiting factor at 4K is clearly the GPU, as the CPU’s single-thread score of 909 in 3DMark and 2332 in Cinebench R23 are strong enough to avoid bottlenecking at lower resolutions. The combo’s position is respectable, though not top-tier, and it aligns with the GPU’s 82nd percentile standing.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Alder Lake-S generation, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its L3 cache is 18 MB shared, and it supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory over a dual-channel bus. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 16518 and a single-core score of 2332, while Geekbench reports 9138 multicore and 2221 single-core. These numbers indicate a balanced performer that can handle multi-threaded workloads without sacrificing single-thread responsiveness. In The Medium, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic; the measured FPS at 1080p Low (147.8 FPS) suggests that the CPU is not the primary constraint at that setting, as the frame rate is high enough to indicate GPU headroom.

The data shows that the CPU’s performance relative to its nearest rivals is marginal: it is 0.1% faster than the i7-8700K and 0.3% faster than the i5-1335U, but 0.7% slower than the Ryzen 5 7533HS. None of these deltas exceed 1.3%, meaning the CPU is essentially at parity with its peers. This is relevant because the game’s frame rates at 1080p and 1440p are likely limited by the GPU rather than the CPU, as evidenced by the large drops when going from Low to Ultra settings. The CPU’s 12 threads are adequate for a horror title like The Medium, which does not appear to be heavily multi-threaded based on the frame rate scaling.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the combo’s performance across three resolutions and four settings. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 147.8 (Low) to 58.7 (Ultra), with Medium at 100.9 and High at 72.6. This represents a 2.5x difference between the lowest and highest presets, showing that the GPU’s workload scales dramatically with visual fidelity. At 2560x1440, the numbers are 139 (Low), 83.1 (Medium), 61.7 (High), and 51.1 (Ultra), a 2.7x range. At 3840x2160, the spread narrows in absolute terms but widens relatively: 105.9 (Low), 63.8 (Medium), 49.5 (High), and 35.8 (Ultra), a 2.9x range.

The data reveals that the Low preset is consistently above 100 FPS at all resolutions, making it the only setting that guarantees smooth gameplay on a 4K display. Medium settings are playable at 1080p (100.9 FPS) and 1440p (83.1 FPS), but dip to 63.8 FPS at 4K, which is borderline. High settings are only comfortable at 1080p (72.6 FPS), while at 1440p (61.7 FPS) and 4K (49.5 FPS) they may cause noticeable judder. Ultra settings are only viable at 1080p (58.7 FPS), with 1440p (51.1 FPS) and 4K (35.8 FPS) falling below acceptable thresholds. The step from Medium to High costs roughly 28 FPS at 1080p, 21 FPS at 1440p, and 14 FPS at 4K, indicating diminishing returns as resolution increases.