The Medium

The combination of the Intel Core i7-12700K and the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT in The Medium presents a fascinating study in performance scaling. The data reveals a system that is clearly capable of delivering playable frame rates, but one where the graphical load dictates the experience far more than the processor. Across the three tested resolutions — 1080p, 1440p, and 4K — the average frame rates shift dramatically with both resolution and the four available settings presets, offering a clear picture of where this hardware duo excels and where it begins to struggle.

Resolution Scaling

The most striking observation from the data is how severely the frame rate is punished as resolution increases. At the "High" settings preset, moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 results in a drop from 52 FPS to 43 FPS, a reduction of roughly 17%. The subsequent jump to 3840x2160 is far more punishing, with the average frame rate collapsing to just 34 FPS. This pattern is not unique to the High preset; it is mirrored across all settings, indicating a strong dependence on pixel throughput.

This scaling behavior strongly suggests that the GPU is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. The Radeon RX 6750 XT, with its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus, is being tasked with an increasingly heavy workload as pixel count rises. The data shows a nearly linear progression of frame rate loss from 1440p to 4K, which is typical of a graphics-card-bound scenario. The CPU, which has ample headroom with its 12 cores and 20 threads, is not the bottleneck; if it were, we would expect to see a much flatter frame rate curve across resolutions, as the processor would be maxed out even at 1080p.

The measured results at 4K are particularly telling. The gap between the "Low" and "Ultra" presets at this resolution is enormous, with a 76 FPS average on Low versus a 27 FPS average on Ultra. This 49 FPS spread highlights the immense strain that the Ultra preset places on the GPU at 4K. The fact that the card can nearly triple its output by dropping to the Low preset suggests that its raw compute and memory bandwidth are sufficient for lower-fidelity rendering, but are simply overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and maxed-out graphical features. The data implies that for a smooth 4K experience, users would need to make significant compromises in visual quality.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT is the undisputed driver of performance in this configuration, and its specifications align perfectly with the observed frame rates. Its boost clock of 2600 MHz and game clock of 2495 MHz provide the raw compute power, which is further supported by 2560 shading units. The card also features 40 ray accelerators, though the impact of ray tracing on the measured FPS is not explicitly isolated in the data. The 12 GB of VRAM is a substantial allocation for a game from 2021, and it appears sufficient even at the highest settings, as there are no reported instances of min FPS dropping to zero due to memory swapping, which would indicate a VRAM capacity issue.

The memory configuration is another key factor. The 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth provided by the GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus is a critical resource at higher resolutions. The substantial frame rate drops at 4K Ultra suggest that this bandwidth, while respectable, is a limiting factor when the GPU is forced to handle the high-resolution textures and complex shaders of the Ultra preset. The card's 13.31 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is a solid figure, but the data shows it is not enough to maintain high frame rates at 4K with maximum settings. The performance at 1440p Medium (61 FPS) and High (43 FPS) indicates that this is the card's "sweet spot" for a balance of visual fidelity and smoothness, while 1080p offers a significant cushion for higher refresh rate displays.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play The Medium with this hardware for a smooth 60 FPS experience?*

A: The data shows that a 60 FPS average is achievable at 2560x1440 with the Medium settings preset, which produces 61 FPS. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset yields 72 FPS, providing a more comfortable margin above 60 FPS.

*Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in The Medium?*

A: Yes, but with significant caveats. The 3840x2160 resolution is only playable at the Low settings preset, which delivers an average of 76 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 48 FPS, and the High and Ultra presets fall to 34 FPS and 27 FPS, respectively, which are not ideal for smooth gameplay.

Q: How much of a performance difference is there between the Low and Ultra settings presets?

A: The difference is substantial at all resolutions. At 1920x1080, the average frame rate goes from 115 FPS on Low to 41 FPS on Ultra, a difference of 74 FPS. At 2560x1440, it's a 63 FPS difference (97 FPS vs. 34 FPS), and at 3840x2160, it's a 49 FPS difference (76 FPS vs. 27 FPS).

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-12700K a bottleneck for the Radeon RX 6750 XT in this game?

A: The data suggests not. The frame rate scales significantly with resolution and settings, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rates would be more consistent across different resolutions. The i7-12700K's high single-thread performance, indicated by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1850.5, is more than sufficient for this title.

Q: What is the performance difference between the RX 6750 XT and its nearest rival, the RTX 3080 Ti Mobile?

A: According to the average benchmark scores, the RX 6750 XT is 1.1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Mobile. This is a negligible performance difference in synthetic benchmarks, but it provides context for where this GPU sits in the overall performance hierarchy.

Q: At which settings is the min FPS closest to the average FPS?

A: The data shows that at 2560x1440 on Medium, the min FPS is 52 and the average is 61, a difference of 9 FPS. At 1920x1080 on Medium, the min FPS is 61 and the average is 72, also a difference of 11 FPS. This indicates a relatively stable frame time experience at the Medium preset across these resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete matrix of performance across all combinations of resolution and settings.

At 1920x1080, the RX 6750 XT shows its strength. The Low preset delivers an average of 115 FPS, making it ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Medium preset is also very smooth, with an average of 72 FPS and a minimum of 61 FPS, ensuring a consistent experience. The High preset drops to 52 FPS, which is still playable but begins to sacrifice smoothness. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, yielding an average of just 41 FPS, which may feel stuttery for some players.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance takes a noticeable hit. The Low preset remains excellent at 97 FPS, but the Medium preset falls to 61 FPS, which is right at the edge of the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset averages 43 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 34 FPS, both of which are below the ideal range for a smooth experience. The min FPS of 52 at Medium suggests that there are moments of increased load, but they are not severe.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly overburdened at higher settings. The Low preset is surprisingly playable at 76 FPS, showing the card's potential when freed from heavy graphical effects. The Medium preset falls to 48 FPS, with a min of 40 and a max of 55, indicating some instability. The High preset averages 34 FPS, and the Ultra preset is nearly unplayable at 27 FPS. This resolution is only recommended for the Low or perhaps Medium settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the optimal experience depends heavily on the target resolution and desired smoothness. For a standard 60 FPS target, the Medium preset is the clear winner. At 1920x1080, it provides a 72 FPS average, which is well above the target and offers a good balance of visual quality and performance. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset hits 61 FPS, which is just barely on the right side of the 60 FPS line, making it the highest quality setting that can consistently hit this target.

For players with 1080p displays who prioritize high frame rates, the Low preset at 115 FPS is the best choice for competitive or fast-paced play, though it sacrifices visual fidelity. The High preset at 1080p (52 FPS) is a less compelling option, as it offers a modest visual improvement over Medium for a significant 20 FPS performance penalty. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as the frame rate drops below the playable threshold (41 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p, 27 FPS at 4K). The data clearly suggests that the Medium preset is the "best experience" for this combo, offering the highest visual settings that still maintain a 60 FPS average at both 1080p and 1440p.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K plays a supporting, but essential, role in this configuration. With 12 cores and 20 threads, it has a massive amount of parallelism available. Its benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19784 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2308, indicate a very powerful processor. However, the game's performance data shows that it is not the limiting factor.

The frame rate scales almost exclusively with GPU load, which is determined by resolution and settings. At 1080p Low, the CPU is likely feeding frames to the GPU as fast as it can, resulting in 115 FPS. If the CPU were weak, this number would be lower. The fact that the frame rate drops to 41 FPS at 1080p Ultra suggests the GPU is now the bottleneck, as the CPU has no trouble keeping up with the lower frame demand. The processor's high single-thread performance is crucial for game logic and draw calls, but in this title, it is never challenged. The i7-12700K's performance relative to its rivals is very tight, with a delta of only -0.1% to -0.4% compared to the nearest CPUs in its benchmark average, meaning it is essentially on par with its closest competitors.

How This Combo Ranks

In the vast database of tested hardware combinations for The Medium, this pairing of the Intel Core i7-12700K and AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT holds a specific position. The data indicates it ranks 1707th out of 3724 tested combos, placing it in the upper half of all configurations. This ranking is a holistic measure of its overall performance in the game, likely weighted towards its performance across all tested settings and resolutions.

This mid-pack ranking is somewhat surprising given the GPU's percentile of 71 against all other GPUs. It suggests that while the RX 6750 XT is a strong card on its own, the overall combo's ranking is pulled down by the demanding nature of the game at higher settings, where the card struggles to maintain high frame rates. The rank implies that there are many other combinations that can achieve better overall performance, likely those with more powerful GPUs. However, it also means this setup outperforms roughly 54% of all other tested combinations, making it a respectable, but not top-tier, performer for The Medium. The combo's rank confirms the balance of the system, but it also highlights that for 4K Ultra gaming, this specific hardware pairing is out of its depth.