The Medium

# The Medium with Intel Core i5-14400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

The Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D delivers a predominantly GPU-limited experience in The Medium, with frame rates scaling predictably across resolutions. The combo lands at rank 67 out of 2,911 tested configurations, placing it in the top 2.3% of systems for this title, though the data reveals that the RTX 5090 D's immense compute headroom is frequently constrained by the 10-core i5-14400F at lower resolutions. The measured results show strong playability at 1440p and 4K, while 1080p performance suggests the CPU becomes the primary bottleneck at lower graphical loads.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression across resolutions tells a clear story about where the bottleneck shifts in this system. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 155 FPS, which drops to 147 FPS at 1440p and further to 135 FPS at 4K. This represents only a 12.9% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Low settings, indicating that even at 4K, the game remains heavily CPU-bound at these minimal graphical loads.

The scaling pattern changes dramatically as settings increase. At Medium settings, the system delivers 129 FPS at 1080p, 122 FPS at 1440p, and 95 FPS at 4K — a 26.4% drop from 1080p to 4K. This steeper decline suggests the GPU begins to assert more influence on performance. The High preset shows even more pronounced scaling: 103 FPS at 1080p, 87 FPS at 1440p, and 68 FPS at 4K, a 34% reduction across the resolution range. At Ultra settings, the frame rates fall from 82 FPS at 1080p to 69 FPS at 1440p and 54 FPS at 4K, a 34.1% decrease.

The gap between Low and Ultra at each resolution reveals the GPU's capacity. At 1080p, the difference between Low (155 FPS) and Ultra (82 FPS) is 73 FPS, while at 4K the same setting swing produces only 81 FPS of difference (135 to 54 FPS). This compression at higher resolutions confirms that the RTX 5090 D is being fully utilized at 4K, where its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth are essential for maintaining playable frame rates.

Interestingly, the 1440p Medium result of 122 FPS with a minimum of 103 FPS and maximum of 140 FPS shows tighter frame pacing than the 1080p Medium result (129 FPS average, 110 minimum, 149 maximum). The 4K Medium measurement provides the smallest frame time variance relative to its average: 81 to 110 FPS around a 95 FPS mean, suggesting the GPU is delivering consistent performance when adequately loaded.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D achieves rank 67 out of 2,911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the 97.7th percentile of all configurations. This is a strong result, though not the absolute top tier; the ranking indicates that approximately 66 other system combinations deliver higher average frame rates in this title.

The CPU's standalone benchmarks put it at the 83rd percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 32,279. Its nearest rivals in terms of average score are tightly clustered: the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U scores 32,233 (0.1% higher), the Intel Core i9-11900 scores 32,226 (0.2% higher), the AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS scores 32,354 (0.2% lower), and the Intel Core i7-12800H scores 32,121 (0.5% lower). This tight grouping suggests that the i5-14400F is well-positioned within its performance tier, with no single rival offering a decisive advantage.

The GPU's percentile ranking is even more impressive at 92nd among all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. Its nearest rivals show small deltas: the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT scores 76,904 (1.1% higher), the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940 (1.6% lower), the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB scores 79,396 (2.1% lower), and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB scores 79,605 (2.4% lower).

The in-game rank of 67 out of 2,911 is notably better than what the individual component percentiles alone might suggest. This indicates that The Medium's specific rendering workload benefits disproportionately from the RTX 5090 D's architecture — the 170 RT cores and 680 tensor cores are likely well-suited to the game's fixed-camera horror presentation and its dual-reality rendering mechanic.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications explain the measured performance. Built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process at TSMC, the GPU packs 92,200 million transistors onto a 750 mm² die. Its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus delivers 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, which proves critical at 4K resolutions where the game's detailed environments and split-scene presentation demand substantial memory throughput.

The GPU's clock behavior shows a base of 2,017 MHz and boost of 2,407 MHz, with memory running at 1,750 MHz (28 Gbps effective). The 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 1,636.8 GTexel/s texture rate provide ample headroom for the game's effects. The 176 ROPs handle pixel output at 423.6 GPixel/s, which aligns with the measured 4K performance where the system averages 95 FPS at Medium settings.

The GPU's benchmark results reinforce its positioning. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326, Geekbench OpenCL score of 310,674, and Vulkan score of 376,915 all indicate strong compute capability. The Passmark G3D score of 44,065 places it well above average, and the GPU compute score of 28,396 suggests the card handles non-graphics workloads efficiently.

At 4K Ultra settings, the system produces 54 FPS — a playable but not ideal result for a horror title where smooth camera movement matters. The drop from 95 FPS at Medium to 54 FPS at Ultra at 4K represents a 43.2% performance penalty, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional effects and shadow quality impose a heavy load even on this flagship GPU. The 68 FPS at High and 135 FPS at Low at 4K bracket the GPU's capabilities well.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 1440p provides the best balance, with 122 FPS at Medium settings and 87 FPS at High. At 4K, Medium settings deliver 95 FPS, which is also smooth, but the 1440p results offer more headroom above 60 FPS even at Ultra (69 FPS).

Q: Does the RTX 5090 D bottleneck at 1080p?

A: Yes. At 1080p Low, the system hits 155 FPS, which is only 14.8% higher than the 135 FPS at 4K Low. This small gap at minimal settings indicates the CPU limits performance at 1080p, preventing the GPU from fully stretching its legs.

Q: How does the i5-14400F compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The i5-14400F's average benchmark score of 32,279 places it within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U (32,233), Intel Core i9-11900 (32,226), AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS (32,354), and Intel Core i7-12800H (32,121). Performance is effectively tied with all four rivals.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 4K with this hardware?

A: At 4K, the system averages 135 FPS on Low, 95 FPS on Medium, 68 FPS on High, and 54 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset's minimum of 81 FPS and maximum of 110 FPS provide the most stable experience at this resolution.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB VRAM necessary for this game?

A: The measured results show the GPU's 1.79 TB/s bandwidth and 32 GB GDDR7 memory enable 4K Medium to hold a 95 FPS average with a tight 81-110 FPS range. The game's dual-reality rendering likely benefits from the large memory pool, though the data does not isolate VRAM usage directly.

Q: How does this combo's rank translate to real-world performance?

A: Rank 67 out of 2,911 combos means this system outperforms roughly 97.7% of tested configurations in The Medium. The 4K High result of 68 FPS and 1440p Ultra of 69 FPS demonstrate that the system handles demanding settings comfortably.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F provides the compute foundation for this build, and its specifications shape the system's performance profile in The Medium. With 10 cores and 16 threads, the processor runs at a 2.50 GHz base clock and boosts up to 4.70 GHz. This configuration delivers strong multi-threaded performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21,645 and single-core score of 3,055.

The CPU's 20 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB per-core L2 cache help feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The Passmark multi-thread score of 25,470 and single-thread score of 3,701 indicate balanced performance across both lightly and heavily threaded workloads. The data compression score of 315,521 and integer math score of 81,524 show the processor handles background tasks efficiently without stealing resources from the game.

However, the CPU's influence on The Medium's frame rates becomes apparent when comparing resolution scaling. At Low settings, the system only gains 14.8% going from 4K to 1080p (135 to 155 FPS), suggesting the CPU reaches its ceiling around 155 FPS in this title. This bottleneck is less evident at Medium and High settings, where the GPU's greater workload allows the CPU to keep pace more effectively.

The i5-14400F's 65 W TDP and 10 nm process from Intel mean it runs within a modest power envelope, which benefits sustained performance in longer gaming sessions. Its DDR4 and DDR5 memory support, along with PCIe Gen 5 connectivity, ensure the platform does not starve the RTX 5090 D of data. The CPU's 83rd percentile ranking among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 32,279, places it comfortably above the median system.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data supports a clear hierarchy of settings for this combo, with the Medium preset emerging as the optimal choice for most users. At 4K, Medium delivers 95 FPS with a minimum of 81 FPS and maximum of 110 FPS, providing smooth gameplay with headroom above the 60 FPS threshold. The 1440p Medium result of 122 FPS (103 minimum, 140 maximum) offers even more margin, making it the best overall experience for frame rate enthusiasts.

For users prioritizing visual fidelity over raw speed, the High preset remains viable: 68 FPS at 4K and 87 FPS at 1440p. These numbers indicate that High settings are playable, though the 4K result dips within 8 FPS of the 60 FPS floor. The Ultra preset, while visually impressive, drops to 54 FPS at 4K and 69 FPS at 1440p — the 4K figure falls below the 60 FPS standard many players consider minimum for smooth horror gameplay.

The Low preset's performance (155 FPS at 1080p, 147 FPS at 1440p, 135 FPS at 4K) confirms that this setting removes GPU load so thoroughly that the CPU becomes the limiting factor. Users who prefer maximum frame rates for competitive play or who own high-refresh-rate monitors might consider Low at 1440p, where the system pushes 147 FPS.

For a balanced experience, the Medium preset at 1440p offers the best combination of visual quality and performance, with the 4K Medium option providing a strong alternative for those with 4K displays. The High preset at 1440p (87 FPS) represents the sweet spot for users who want enhanced visuals without sacrificing smoothness. Based on the measured frame times, the Medium preset shows the most consistent delivery, particularly at 4K, making it the recommended default for this hardware combination.