The Medium

The Medium, a fixed-camera horror title from 2021, presents a unique load profile that blends demanding pre-rendered backdrops with real-time 3D layers. This analysis examines the measured performance of the Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, using the provided benchmark data to understand how this combination handles the game's distinct visual style across resolutions and presets.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play The Medium with this combo for a high refresh rate experience?

A: The data shows that only the 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings reaches above 144 FPS, hitting an average of 155 FPS. For a more standard 144Hz experience, 2560x1440 with Low settings achieves 147 FPS, while 1920x1080 with Medium settings sits at 113 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 5070 Ti's synthetic benchmark performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score is 49957, placing it in the 86th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64, scores 50001, which is a negligible 0.1% difference. The gap widens against the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT, where the RTX 5070 Ti is 3.1% ahead.

Q: Is the CPU a bottleneck at 4K resolution in The Medium?

A: Based on the measured FPS, the CPU does not appear to be a limiting factor at 3840x2160. The GPU's rendering load is the primary constraint, evidenced by the average FPS dropping from 119 at Low settings to 42 at Ultra settings, which is a GPU-centric workload rather than a CPU-bound one.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Medium and High settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers an average of 95 FPS, while the High preset yields 68 FPS. The 27 FPS difference indicates that High settings impose a significantly heavier load on the GPU, likely due to increased texture detail and shading effects.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its nearest competitors?

A: The Core i5-14400F has an average benchmark score of 32279. It is effectively tied with the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U (0.1% faster) and the Intel Core i9-11900 (0.2% faster). It is 0.2% faster than the AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS and 0.5% faster than the Intel Core i7-12800H.

Q: Does the game have a stable frame rate at the Medium preset?

A: The data provides min and max FPS only for the Medium preset. At 1920x1080, it ranges from 96 to 130 FPS (average 113). At 2560x1440, the range is 81 to 109 FPS (average 95), and at 3840x2160 it is 63 to 86 FPS (average 74). This suggests a variance of roughly 30% from the average, indicating some scenes are more demanding than others.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is the primary driver for The Medium's visual output. Its 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a substantial 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is crucial for a game that often renders two simultaneous perspectives. The data supports this: at 4K Ultra, the combo averages only 42 FPS, indicating the GPU is heavily taxed by the highest fidelity settings. The card's 8960 shading units and 280 TMUs are responsible for processing the game's complex lighting and texture work, and the benchmark results show a clear scaling of performance as these workloads change with settings.

The GPU's raw compute power is reflected in its synthetic scores, such as 43.94 TFLOPS FP32 performance. However, the game's performance is not solely about raw throughput. The measured FPS at Low settings shows the GPU can deliver 155 FPS at 1080p, but this drops to 119 FPS at 4K. This 36 FPS drop is primarily due to the increased pixel fill rate required at higher resolutions. The RTX 5070 Ti's pixel rate of 235.4 GPixel/s becomes a limiting factor as resolution scales, even though the core clock speeds (2295 MHz base, 2452 MHz boost) remain constant. This suggests that for The Medium, the GPU's memory bandwidth and pixel throughput are more significant determinants of high-resolution performance than its core clock speed alone.

Comparing the RTX 5070 Ti to its synthetic rivals provides context for its in-game performance. Its average benchmark score of 49957 places it just 0.1% behind the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64, a much older card. This is a surprising result, but the in-game data shows the RTX 5070 Ti is capable of handling modern resolutions and settings. Its 3.1% lead over the RX 6800 XT is more indicative of its generational advantage. The card's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs confirms it is a high-end part, but the measured FPS in The Medium shows that even this level of hardware must make compromises at 4K Ultra, where the average of 42 FPS falls below the 60 FPS target.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F serves as the supporting component, providing the processing power to feed the GPU. With 10 cores and 16 threads, it has sufficient multi-threading capability for modern game engines. The CPU's performance in synthetic benchmarks, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21645, demonstrates strong computational throughput. However, in The Medium, the CPU's role is less about raw compute and more about maintaining a consistent frame delivery to the GPU. The data suggests this is not a bottleneck; at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 155 FPS, a frame rate that requires a CPU capable of issuing draw calls quickly.

The CPU's core architecture, Raptor Lake-R, includes a mix of performance and efficiency cores, which is managed by the operating system. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache helps reduce memory latency for frequently accessed game data. The base clock of 2.50 GHz and boost clock of 4.70 GHz show a significant dynamic range, allowing the CPU to ramp up speed for demanding scenes. In the context of The Medium, which is not known for complex physics simulations, the CPU is likely to be underutilized. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra (42 FPS) is far more likely to be limited by the GPU's pixel throughput than by the CPU's processing speed.

The CPU's benchmark scores position it competitively. Its average score of 32279 is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, with a 0.1% difference from the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U and a 0.2% difference from the Intel Core i9-11900. This indicates that in a CPU-bound scenario, performance would be very similar. However, the data from The Medium shows a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU's 83rd percentile ranking among all CPUs is respectable, but its performance here is secondary to the GPU. The 65W TDP also suggests efficient power delivery, allowing the system to maintain boost clocks without excessive thermal throttling, which could impact sustained frame rates in long gaming sessions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across all combinations of resolution and the four settings presets.

At 1920x1080, the performance is as follows:

• Low: 155 FPS average, which is the highest score recorded across all configurations.
• Medium: 113 FPS average, with a range of 96 to 130 FPS.
• High: 81 FPS average.
• Ultra: 64 FPS average.

The step from Low to Medium is a 42 FPS drop, while the step from High to Ultra is a 17 FPS drop. This indicates that the Low preset is exceptionally light on the GPU, and the Medium preset offers a significant visual upgrade at a still-playable frame rate.

At 2560x1440, the data shows a similar pattern with lower overall scores:

• Low: 147 FPS average.
• Medium: 95 FPS average, with a range of 81 to 109 FPS.
• High: 68 FPS average.
• Ultra: 54 FPS average.

The 1440p Medium setting is notable, as it provides a 95 FPS average, which is 18 FPS lower than the 1080p Medium. The jump from Medium to High at this resolution is a 27 FPS drop, showing that High settings are a significant step up in demand. The Ultra preset falls below the 60 FPS threshold, averaging 54 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor:

• Low: 119 FPS average.
• Medium: 74 FPS average, with a range of 63 to 86 FPS.
• High: 53 FPS average.
• Ultra: 42 FPS average.

The 4K Low setting is surprisingly capable, at 119 FPS. However, the 4K Medium setting drops to 74 FPS, and the High and Ultra presets fall to 53 and 42 FPS, respectively. This data clearly shows that 4K gaming with this combo requires a compromise on settings to maintain a smooth 60 FPS experience, with Medium being the highest playable preset.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti ranks 407th out of 3724 tested combinations for The Medium. This places it in the top 10.9% of all tested systems, indicating it is a high-performance pairing. The rank suggests that while it is not the absolute fastest, it outperforms the vast majority of other configurations tested by the database.

This ranking is a result of the GPU's strong performance. The RTX 5070 Ti's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs is a significant contributor. The CPU's 83rd percentile ranking is also above average, but its impact on the overall combo rank is likely diluted by the fact that The Medium is a GPU-intensive title. The rank of 407 out of 3724 implies that there are 406 other combos that perform better, likely featuring higher-tier GPUs like the RTX 5090 or RX 7900 XTX, or perhaps CPUs with higher single-thread performance for other game scenarios.

The data suggests that this combo is well-balanced for this game, as the CPU is not holding back the GPU. If the CPU were a bottleneck, the combo rank would be lower relative to the GPU's percentile. The fact that the combo can achieve 155 FPS at 1080p Low indicates there is headroom in the CPU, and the primary performance ceiling is the GPU's ability to render frames at higher resolutions and settings. This ranking confirms that users with this hardware can expect a very good experience in The Medium, provided they adjust settings appropriately for their target resolution.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the user's target resolution and refresh rate. The goal is to maintain a frame rate of at least 60 FPS for a smooth experience, with higher frame rates being preferable.

For 1920x1080, users have flexibility. The High preset, at 81 FPS, is a great choice for a 60Hz or 75Hz monitor. For users with a 144Hz display, the Medium preset at 113 FPS is the best option, as it provides a high frame rate while still offering improved visuals over Low. The Ultra preset at 64 FPS is also viable, but the 17 FPS drop from High suggests the visual gain may not be worth the performance cost.

For 2560x1440, the Medium preset is the clear recommendation. Its 95 FPS average is well above the 60 FPS target and provides a smooth experience on most 1440p monitors. The High preset at 68 FPS is also playable, but the 27 FPS drop from Medium makes it a less desirable option for those who prioritize frame rate consistency. The Ultra preset at 54 FPS is not recommended, as it falls below the 60 FPS threshold.

For 3840x2160, the choices are more constrained. The Medium preset, at 74 FPS, is the only setting that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS. The Low preset at 119 FPS is an option for those who want the highest possible frame rate, but it sacrifices significant visual quality. The High preset at 53 FPS and Ultra at 42 FPS are not recommended for a 60Hz display, as they will result in noticeable stutter. For 4K, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance.

Resolution Scaling

The data reveals a clear trend in how performance scales with resolution. From 1920x1080 to 2560x1440, the average FPS across all settings drops by roughly 20-25%. For example, the High preset drops from 81 FPS to 68 FPS (a 16% drop), while the Medium preset drops from 113 to 95 FPS (a 16% drop). This is consistent with the increase in pixel count from 2.07 million to 3.69 million, which is a 78% increase in pixels.

The scaling from 2560x1440 to 3840x2160 is more severe. The pixel count jumps from 3.69 million to 8.29 million, a 125% increase. The measured FPS reflects this, with the High preset dropping from 68 to 53 FPS (a 22% drop), and the Medium preset dropping from 95 to 74 FPS (a 22% drop). This non-linear scaling suggests that the GPU is hitting a bandwidth or fill-rate limit at 4K.

This pattern indicates that the limiting component at 4K is the GPU. The CPU's performance is constant across resolutions, so the FPS drop must be attributed to the GPU's inability to process the increased pixel workload. The fact that the Low preset at 4K still achieves 119 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 42 FPS, further confirms this. The GPU has the raw power to render at 4K, but the highest settings require more texture bandwidth and shading compute than it can provide to maintain high frame rates. The data implies that for 4K gaming, the RTX 5070 Ti is best paired with Medium settings to balance the workload, as the step from Medium to High creates a disproportionate performance penalty.