The Medium

The Medium, a fixed-camera horror title built around atmospheric storytelling, presents a unique load profile that favors raw GPU throughput. This analysis examines the performance of the Intel Core i7-12700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090, using measured data to detail how resolution and settings alter the experience. The data shows a system capable of high refresh rates at lower resolutions, but one where the demands of 4K Ultra quickly bring even this flagship GPU to its knees.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates across resolutions reveal a classic GPU-bound scaling pattern, with the CPU proving more than adequate to feed the RTX 5090. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at Medium settings, the average frame rate drops from 135 FPS to 114 FPS, a decline of approximately 15.6%. This is a modest reduction, indicating that the GPU is still operating well within its capacity and that the performance ceiling is being raised by the processor's ability to deliver frames quickly.

The scaling becomes more pronounced when stepping up to 3840x2160. At Medium settings, the average frame rate falls to 90 FPS from the 114 FPS seen at 2560x1440, a further 21% decrease. This steeper drop-off is the first clear sign that the GPU is beginning to hit its limits, as the pixel count increases by 2.25 times from 1440p to 4K, demanding significantly more from the render pipeline.

The most dramatic evidence of the GPU becoming the primary limiting factor is found at the High and Ultra presets. At 1920x1080, High settings yield 97 FPS, but this falls to 82 FPS at 2560x1440 and then to 64 FPS at 3840x2160. The Ultra preset shows an even steeper curve, starting at 77 FPS at 1080p, dropping to 65 FPS at 1440p, and collapsing to 51 FPS at 4K. The data indicates that the gap between 1080p and 4K at Ultra is a 33.8% reduction in average FPS, while the same comparison at Low settings shows a much smaller 14.4% drop (167 FPS to 143 FPS). This pattern is definitive: the higher the settings, the more the GPU is stressed, and the more pronounced the resolution penalty becomes. The limiting component at 4K Ultra is clearly the GPU, as the CPU's performance is far less likely to be the bottleneck in a scenario where the RTX 5090 is producing just 51 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the undisputed performance driver in this configuration. Its role is defined by its massive memory pool and high clock speeds. The GPU features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. This vast memory allocation is critical for The Medium, a game known for rendering two simultaneous worlds, which can place a heavy demand on video memory at high resolutions and detail levels. The data suggests that at 4K Ultra, the combination of high-resolution textures and the dual-world rendering is taxing the GPU's compute and memory subsystems, resulting in the observed 51 FPS average.

The GPU's clock speeds are equally important. Boosting up to 2407 MHz, the RTX 5090 maintains high throughput. This is reflected in its synthetic benchmark scores, where it achieves a Passmark G3D score of 39650 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 18355. These numbers place the GPU in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs, indicating top-tier performance. However, the measured frame rates in The Medium show that even this level of performance is not immune to the game's demanding nature. The transition from Medium to High settings at 4K results in a 28.9% drop in average FPS (from 90 to 64), showing how sensitive the game is to shader complexity and texture filtering. The GPU's role, therefore, is not just to provide high frame rates but to provide the headroom that allows for higher visual fidelity; the data shows that at 4K, the RTX 5090 can handle Medium with ease, but Ultra pushes it to its limits, producing a playable but not exceptionally smooth experience.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo achieves in The Medium?

A: The highest recorded average frame rate is 167 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 powerful enough for 4K gaming in this title?

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 4K with Medium settings, the combo averages 90 FPS, which is smooth. However, at 4K Ultra, the average drops to 51 FPS, indicating that the GPU is heavily loaded and the experience may not be ideal for high-refresh-rate displays.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i7-12700KF has an average benchmark score of 35365. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-13700T, scores 35403, which is a negligible 0.1% difference. This places the i7-12700KF in a performance tier nearly identical to its direct competitors.

Q: What is the benefit of the RTX 5090's 32 GB of VRAM in this game?

A: While the fact pack does not provide direct VRAM usage data, the 32 GB memory capacity on a 512-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. This substantial memory pool and bandwidth are designed to handle high-resolution textures and complex scenes, such as those rendered in The Medium, without becoming a limiting factor at lower settings.

Q: At 1440p, which settings preset provides the best balance of performance and quality?

A: The data shows that at 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 114 FPS. This is a significant 39% faster than the High preset's 82 FPS, suggesting that Medium offers a better balance for high refresh rate monitors, while High may be preferable for those prioritizing visual fidelity over frame rate.

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

A: In the database of tested combos, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i7-12700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 95th out of 3724 total combinations, placing it in the top 2.5% of all tested systems.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends heavily on the target resolution and refresh rate. For 1920x1080, the Medium preset provides an excellent experience, with an average of 135 FPS and a minimum of 115 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay on most high-refresh-rate monitors. The High preset is also viable at 97 FPS, but the jump to Ultra yields a significant performance cost, dropping to 77 FPS, which may not justify the visual gains for all users. For competitive play or maximum smoothness, Low settings at 167 FPS are an option, but the visual sacrifice is substantial.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset again stands out as the best choice for a high-refresh experience, averaging 114 FPS with a minimum of 97 FPS. This provides a fluid experience that is well-suited for the resolution. The High preset at 82 FPS is still playable, but the 28% performance hit compared to Medium makes it a less attractive option for those who prioritize frame rate. Ultra at 65 FPS is at the edge of playability for some, but the drop from Medium is steep. For 4K, the Medium preset is the only one that delivers a consistently smooth experience, with an average of 90 FPS. High settings at 64 FPS are borderline, and Ultra at 51 FPS is best reserved for slower-paced, visually-driven exploration, as the frame rate drops below the 60 FPS threshold that many consider the baseline for smooth motion. The data strongly suggests that Medium is the "sweet spot" preset for this combination, offering a significant performance advantage over High while maintaining a much higher level of visual quality than Low.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of 3724 tested combinations, this pairing of the Intel Core i7-12700KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 holds a rank of 95. This places the system in the 97.5th percentile, meaning it outperforms the vast majority of other hardware configurations tested in The Medium. This high ranking is a direct result of the RTX 5090's exceptional performance, which is complemented by the i7-12700KF's ability to avoid bottlenecking it. The GPU's 92nd percentile ranking versus all GPUs, combined with the CPU's 85th percentile ranking versus all CPUs, creates a balanced, high-end system that excels in this title. The data indicates that users with this combo will experience performance that is near the top of the scale, with only a small fraction of systems delivering higher frame rates. The rank confirms that this is a top-tier gaming setup, particularly for a game as demanding as The Medium.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data is derived directly from the measured FPS table. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are 167 FPS for Low, 135 FPS for Medium, 97 FPS for High, and 77 FPS for Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 115 FPS and a maximum of 156 FPS. No min/max data is provided for the other presets at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the average frame rates are 157 FPS for Low, 114 FPS for Medium, 82 FPS for High, and 65 FPS for Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 97 FPS and a maximum of 131 FPS. Again, no min/max data is provided for the other presets.

At 3840x2160, the average frame rates are 143 FPS for Low, 90 FPS for Medium, 64 FPS for High, and 51 FPS for Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 76 FPS and a maximum of 103 FPS. This is the only resolution where the Ultra preset falls below 60 FPS, and it also shows the largest relative drop from the Medium preset. The data shows a clear and consistent progression: lower resolutions and settings yield higher frame rates, with the gap between presets widening as resolution increases.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF serves as the processing foundation for this system. With 12 cores and 20 threads, it offers substantial multi-threaded capability. Its boost clock of 5.00 GHz ensures strong single-threaded performance, which is often critical for game logic and physics. The CPU's synthetic benchmarks confirm its strength, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 28838 and a single-core score of 4071. In this game, the CPU's role is to feed the RTX 5090 without becoming a bottleneck. The FPS scaling data shows this is the case.

The performance difference between the i7-12700KF and its nearest rivals is negligible. Its average benchmark score of 35365 is within 0.2% of the Intel Core i5-13600T and Intel Core i7-12700K, and only 0.1% behind the Intel Core i7-13700T. This means that in terms of raw processing power, the CPU is not a differentiating factor in this game's performance. The bottleneck analysis is clear: the frame rates are dictated by the GPU, especially at higher resolutions and settings. The CPU's 85th percentile ranking versus all CPUs indicates it is a high-end processor, but its impact on the measured FPS is secondary to the GPU. The data suggests that this processor provides more than enough headroom to keep the RTX 5090 fully utilized, as evidenced by the high frame rates at 1080p and the significant performance drops when the GPU's workload increases at 4K.