The Medium

The combination of the Intel Core i5-14600K and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti in The Medium demonstrates a system that is heavily influenced by resolution and graphics presets. The measured data reveals a clear performance hierarchy, with the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck as resolution increases. This analysis examines the specific frame rate figures, the relationship between the components, and the overall ranking of this combo against other tested configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K in The Medium is substantial, indicating a shift in the bottleneck from the CPU to the GPU as pixel count rises. At the "High" preset, the average frame rate falls from 79 FPS at 1920x1080 to 66 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 13 FPS. Moving to 3840x2160, the average drops further to 52 FPS, which is a 27 FPS decline from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern shows that the RTX 4070 Ti is being progressively more taxed by the increased rendering load, though it still maintains a playable frame rate at 4K.

The "Low" preset shows the most dramatic scaling, with averages of 175 FPS at 1080p, 148 FPS at 1440p, and 116 FPS at 4K. The 59 FPS difference between 1080p and 4K at this setting suggests that even at lower visual fidelity, the resolution demand significantly impacts the GPU. However, the fact that the 4K Low average of 116 FPS is still higher than the 1080p Ultra average of 62 FPS indicates that the settings preset has a more profound effect on performance than resolution alone.

At the "Medium" preset, the frame rate data includes minimum and maximum figures, providing a clearer picture of stability. The average FPS goes from 110 at 1080p, to 92 at 1440p, and finally to 73 at 4K. The minimum FPS at 4K Medium is 62, while the maximum is 83, showing a 21 FPS variance. This variance is more pronounced than at 1440p, where the min/max is 79/106, a 27 FPS spread. The data suggests that the "Medium" preset is where the GPU's memory bandwidth and processing power begin to struggle more noticeably at higher resolutions, leading to less consistent frame pacing.

The scaling from 1080p to 4K at the "Ultra" preset is the most severe, with averages of 62, 52, and 41 FPS respectively. The 21 FPS drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra highlights the extreme demand of the highest settings. The data indicates that the RTX 4070 Ti is the limiting factor at 4K Ultra, as the CPU's performance headroom is not the constraint at this level of graphical load. The overall trend across all presets confirms that while the i5-14600K provides a solid foundation, the RTX 4070 Ti's capabilities define the performance ceiling in this title.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the "Medium" preset offers the most balanced experience across all tested resolutions. At 1920x1080, it delivers an average of 110 FPS with a minimum of 93 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay well above the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, the average of 92 FPS with a minimum of 79 FPS remains highly playable, providing a significant visual upgrade over 1080p without a major performance penalty. Even at 3840x2160, the "Medium" preset maintains an average of 73 FPS, which is acceptable for a horror title where atmospheric pacing is more important than competitive frame rates.

For users prioritizing maximum visual fidelity, the "High" preset is a viable option at 1080p and 1440p, with averages of 79 FPS and 66 FPS respectively. However, at 4K, the "High" preset's average of 52 FPS approaches the lower boundary of playability. The "Ultra" preset is generally not recommended, as it yields averages of 62 FPS at 1080p and drops to 41 FPS at 4K, which can compromise the experience. The "Low" preset provides the highest frame rates—175 FPS at 1080p—but sacrifices the game's visual atmosphere, which is a core element of the horror genre.

The data suggests that "Medium" is the sweet spot for this combo. It provides a substantial frame rate buffer over "High" and "Ultra" while maintaining a level of visual quality that is likely sufficient for most players. The minimum FPS figures for "Medium" are also the only ones recorded across all resolutions, indicating that this preset is where the system's performance is most predictable. Choosing "Medium" at 1440p appears to be the optimal combination of visual quality and performance, as it delivers an average of 92 FPS, which is close to the 1080p "High" result but with a higher native resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti combination ranks 394th out of 3724 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the top 10.6% of all configurations. This rank indicates that the system delivers above-average performance for this specific game, though it is not at the very top tier. The high rank is likely driven by the strong performance of both the CPU and GPU, which have individual benchmark percentiles of 90 and 84 respectively.

The combo's rank of 394 suggests that while it is a powerful setup, there are many other combinations that achieve higher frame rates in this title. This could be due to the presence of more powerful GPUs or CPUs in the database, or configurations with higher memory bandwidth. The data shows that this combo is positioned well above the median, indicating that it will provide a smooth experience in most scenarios. However, the gap between this rank and the top combos implies that users seeking the absolute highest performance in The Medium would need to consider more premium hardware.

The individual component benchmarks support this ranking. The i5-14600K's nearest rivals, such as the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H, show a performance delta of -0.2%, indicating that the CPU is competitive with other high-end processors. Similarly, the RTX 4070 Ti's nearest rival, the RTX 5090 Mobile, has a delta of -0.8%, suggesting that the GPU is also well-positioned. The combination of a top-10% CPU and a top-16% GPU logically results in a combo ranking that is solidly within the upper echelon, confirming that this system is a capable choice for playing The Medium at high settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1440p with the "Ultra" preset?

A: The average frame rate at 2560x1440 with the "Ultra" preset is 52 FPS, which matches the average seen at 4K with the "High" preset.

Q: How does the "Medium" preset's minimum FPS at 1080p compare to its maximum?

A: At 1920x1080 with the "Medium" preset, the minimum FPS is 93 and the maximum is 126, showing a variance of 33 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 Ti's performance in this game above or below its nearest rival?

A: The RTX 4070 Ti has an average benchmark score of 44795, which is 1.6% higher than the RTX A6000's score of 44075, but 0.8% lower than the RTX 5090 Mobile's score of 45152.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest average FPS recorded is 41, which occurs at 3840x2160 with the "Ultra" settings.

Q: How does the CPU's single-core performance compare to its multi-core performance?

A: The CPU's multi-core score in Cinebench R23 is 24491, while its single-core score is 2064, indicating a ratio of roughly 11.9:1 in favor of multi-core performance.

Q: At which resolution and preset does the combo achieve its highest average FPS?

A: The highest average FPS of 175 is achieved at 1920x1080 with the "Low" preset.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is the dominant component in determining frame rates at higher resolutions and settings in The Medium. The GPU's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 192-bit memory bus provide a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s, which is essential for handling the high-resolution textures and effects present in the game. The data shows that as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, the average FPS decreases significantly across all presets, confirming that the GPU's rendering throughput is the primary constraint.

The GPU's clock speeds, with a base of 2310 MHz and a boost of 2610 MHz, allow it to maintain high performance, but the load from The Medium at 4K Ultra is substantial. The GPU's 7680 shading units and 60 RT cores are tasked with rendering the game's fixed-camera angles and lighting effects. The performance drop from 62 FPS at 1080p Ultra to 41 FPS at 4K Ultra demonstrates that the RTX 4070 Ti is being pushed to its limits by the game's highest preset, indicating that its 40.09 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is not sufficient to maintain high frame rates at 4K with maxed-out settings.

The GPU's nearest rival, the RTX 5090 Mobile, has a slightly higher average benchmark score, but the RTX 4070 Ti's performance in The Medium is still strong, as evidenced by its ability to exceed 60 FPS at 1440p "High" and 4K "Low". The VRAM capacity of 12 GB appears adequate for the game, as the "Medium" preset at 4K maintains an average of 73 FPS, suggesting that memory is not a limiting factor at these settings. However, the significant frame rate drop at "Ultra" suggests that the game's highest settings require more computational power than the GPU can provide, making the RTX 4070 Ti the clear bottleneck in this configuration.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K provides a strong foundation for the RTX 4070 Ti, ensuring that the CPU does not become a limiting factor at lower resolutions and settings. With 14 cores and 20 threads, the processor offers ample multi-threaded performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 24491. The CPU's boost clock of 5.30 GHz is high, which is beneficial for games that rely on single-thread performance, though The Medium appears to be more GPU-intensive.

The CPU's impact on the measured FPS is most apparent at 1080p with the "Low" preset, where the average of 175 FPS is likely approaching the CPU's maximum frame generation capability. This is supported by the fact that the CPU's single-core performance, while strong, is not unlimited. At higher resolutions, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the CPU's role is reduced to feeding the GPU with data. The 20 threads and 24 MB of shared L3 cache are sufficient for this task, as the frame rates at 1440p and 4K are primarily determined by the GPU's performance.

The i5-14600K's performance relative to its rivals is noteworthy. It scores 0.2% higher than the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H and 0.7% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX in average benchmarks. This indicates that the CPU is well-matched with the RTX 4070 Ti, providing enough processing power to avoid creating a bottleneck in most scenarios. However, the data suggests that even a more powerful CPU would not yield significantly higher frame rates in The Medium at 4K, as the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's 125W TDP and support for DDR5 memory are additional factors that contribute to its ability to keep up with the GPU's demands.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data was measured for the combination of the Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti in The Medium.

1920x1080:

• Low: Average FPS of 175.
• Medium: Average FPS of 110, with a minimum of 93 and a maximum of 126.
• High: Average FPS of 79.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 62.

2560x1440:

• Low: Average FPS of 148.
• Medium: Average FPS of 92, with a minimum of 79 and a maximum of 106.
• High: Average FPS of 66.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 52.

3840x2160:

• Low: Average FPS of 116.
• Medium: Average FPS of 73, with a minimum of 62 and a maximum of 83.
• High: Average FPS of 52.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 41.

The data shows a consistent pattern: increasing the resolution or the settings preset reduces the average FPS. The "Medium" preset is the only one where minimum and maximum FPS figures are recorded for all resolutions, indicating that it is the most stable setting. The 4K "Ultra" result of 41 FPS is the lowest recorded, while the 1080p "Low" result of 175 FPS is the highest. The spread between the "Low" and "Ultra" presets at each resolution widens as resolution increases, from 113 FPS at 1080p to 75 FPS at 4K, demonstrating that the GPU's performance scaling is more constrained at higher pixel counts.