The Medium

The Medium is a demanding horror title that stresses both CPU and GPU, and this pairing of the Intel Core i7-14700KF with the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT produces a specific set of trade-offs. The data shows a system that can handle high refresh rates at 1080p on lower presets but struggles to maintain playable framerates at 4K on higher graphical settings. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, offering practical guidance on how to configure the game for the best experience with this exact hardware combination.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run The Medium at 4K Ultra settings?

A: No, not at a playable framerate. The measured average at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is only 26 FPS. This is below the threshold for a smooth experience, and the data suggests you should avoid this preset at this resolution.

Q: What is the best resolution for a 60+ FPS experience?

A: At 1920x1080 with Medium settings, the system achieves an average of 69 FPS. For a higher refresh rate, 1920x1080 with Low settings reaches 110 FPS. At 2560x1440, you would need to use Low settings to get above 60 FPS, which yields 92 FPS.

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

A: The difference is substantial. At 1920x1080, the average framerate drops from 110 FPS on Low to 39 FPS on Ultra, a decrease of 71 FPS. This shows that the Ultra preset is extremely taxing on the RX 6700 XT.

Q: Is the CPU or the GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck. When moving from 1080p to 4K, the performance drops significantly at the same settings (e.g., from 49 FPS to 32 FPS on High), which is typical behavior when the graphics card is under heavy load. The CPU has enough headroom to push higher frames when the GPU load is lowered.

Q: What kind of framerate stability can I expect at 1440p Medium?

A: The measured average is 58 FPS, with minimum and maximum framerates of 49 and 66 FPS respectively. This indicates a somewhat consistent experience, though there are dips below 60 FPS, so you may notice occasional stuttering.

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

A: The combo ranks 1941 out of 3724 tested combinations. This places it in the middle of the pack, indicating that while it is not a top-tier performer for this specific game, it is also not a low-end pairing.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy of presets for this hardware. The primary goal is to maintain a stable framerate above 60 FPS, and the best way to achieve that is by prioritizing resolution and settings together.

For a 1920x1080 display, the Medium preset is the optimal choice. It delivers an average of 69 FPS, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS target. The minimum framerate of 58 FPS is also acceptable, indicating that the experience will be mostly smooth. While the Low preset offers a much higher average of 110 FPS, the visual fidelity drop is often not worth it when Medium is already playable. The High preset at 49 FPS is too close to the 60 FPS line and will feel less responsive.

At 2560x1440, the situation is more constrained. The Low preset is the only measured option that provides a consistently smooth experience, with an average of 92 FPS. The Medium preset's average of 58 FPS and minimum of 49 FPS makes it a borderline choice; it is playable but will have noticeable dips. The High and Ultra presets, at 41 and 33 FPS respectively, are not recommended for a fluid experience.

For 4K (3840x2160), the data is clear: only the Low preset is viable for a playable framerate. It achieves an average of 73 FPS. The Medium preset at 45 FPS and the High preset at 32 FPS are too slow for a game that benefits from smooth motion. The Ultra preset at 26 FPS is effectively unplayable.

In summary, the best experience for most users will be to play at 1080p with Medium settings, as it offers a balance of visual quality and performance. If you have a 1440p monitor, you will need to compromise on visual quality by using the Low preset to maintain high framerates.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling across resolutions reveals the workload characteristics of this game on the RX 6700 XT. The framerate drops are substantial when moving from 1080p to 4K, which points to the GPU being the limiting component.

At High settings, the average framerate falls from 49 FPS at 1920x1080 to 41 FPS at 2560x1440, a 16% decrease. Moving to 3840x2160, the framerate drops further to 32 FPS, which is a 35% decrease from the 1080p result. This steep decline shows that the game's rendering load at 4K is significantly heavier, and the GPU cannot keep up.

The same trend is visible at Medium settings. The average framerate is 69 FPS at 1080p, 58 FPS at 1440p, and 45 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 13 FPS, which is a 22% reduction. This consistent scaling pattern confirms that the GPU is the primary performance limiter, as the framerate is heavily dependent on the resolution.

At Low settings, the pattern continues but with higher absolute numbers. The average framerate is 110 FPS at 1080p, 92 FPS at 1440p, and 73 FPS at 4K. While the percentages are similar, the fact that 4K Low still achieves a playable 73 FPS suggests that the RX 6700 XT has enough raw power to handle the game at this resolution if the graphical load is reduced.

The data suggests that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this configuration. If it were, the framerate would not scale so dramatically with resolution changes. The Intel Core i7-14700KF has enough headroom to feed the GPU, but the GPU's rendering capacity is exhausted at higher resolutions, causing the observed framerate drops.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT combination is ranked 1941 out of 3724 tested combos for The Medium. This puts it in the 52nd percentile, meaning it performs better than just over half of all tested systems. This is a mid-pack result, reflecting the fact that the RX 6700 XT is a capable but not top-tier graphics card for this demanding title.

This ranking is influenced by the GPU's performance. The CPU, which has a high average benchmark score and a 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs, is more than capable for this game. However, the overall combo rank is dragged down by the GPU, which sits in the 72nd percentile among all GPUs. The data shows that the GPU's performance in this game is the limiting factor for the overall combo ranking.

Compared to other pairings, this system is not a top performer, but it is also not a low-end one. It sits in a comfortable middle ground where it can handle the game at 1080p and 1440p with adjusted settings, but it will not excel at 4K max settings. The rank suggests that this is a practical, balanced build for 1080p gaming and acceptable for 1440p with compromises.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT is the central component determining this game's performance. Its specifications, including VRAM, clock speeds, and memory bandwidth, provide context for the measured framerates.

The GPU features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s. In The Medium, this memory configuration is sufficient for the game's assets at 1080p and 1440p, as evidenced by the playable framerates at those resolutions. The lack of severe stuttering at these settings suggests the VRAM is not being exhausted. At 4K with higher settings, the combination of increased memory pressure and rendering load likely contributes to the low framerates.

The clock speeds are also a factor. The GPU has a base clock of 2321 MHz and a boost clock of 2581 MHz, with a game clock of 2424 MHz. These are relatively high clocks for the RDNA 2 architecture, which helps the GPU maintain good performance in less demanding scenes. However, the raw compute power of 13.21 TFLOPS is what ultimately limits the system at higher resolutions.

The data shows that the GPU is the performance bottleneck. The framerate scales inversely with resolution, which is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU is powerful enough to keep up, but the GPU cannot render the frames fast enough at 4K Ultra. This is reflected in the benchmark scores, where the GPU has an average benchmark score of 27425 and a 72nd percentile ranking. In practical terms, this means the RX 6700 XT is a solid 1080p card and a decent 1440p card, but it is not built for 4K gaming at high settings in a demanding title like The Medium.

Measured FPS Breakdown

This section provides the exact measured average framerates for each resolution and settings preset.

1920x1080 (1080p)

• Low: 110 FPS
• Medium: 69 FPS (min 58, max 79)
• High: 49 FPS
• Ultra: 39 FPS

2560x1440 (1440p)

• Low: 92 FPS
• Medium: 58 FPS (min 49, max 66)
• High: 41 FPS
• Ultra: 33 FPS

3840x2160 (4K)

• Low: 73 FPS
• Medium: 45 FPS (min 39, max 52)
• High: 32 FPS
• Ultra: 26 FPS

The data shows a clear pattern. At 1080p, the system can achieve high framerates on Low and Medium settings, making it suitable for high-refresh-rate monitors. The jump to 1440p reduces the framerate across all presets, but Low and Medium remain playable. At 4K, only the Low preset provides a smooth experience, and the Ultra preset is completely unplayable. The minimum framerates recorded for the Medium preset at each resolution (58 at 1080p, 49 at 1440p, and 39 at 4K) indicate that there are occasional dips during intense scenes, which is common for a GPU-bound game.