The Medium

The Medium, a horror title from 2021, presents a demanding technical showcase that stresses both the Intel Core i7-14700KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti. The measured frame rates across three resolutions and four quality presets reveal a clear performance hierarchy, with the data indicating a system that scales predictably from high-refresh 1080p gaming to the limits of 4K. This analysis examines the captured FPS data to understand where the bottleneck lies, how the CPU and GPU contribute, and what settings yield the best playable experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a dramatic and consistent drop as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160, which is a classic indicator of an increasingly GPU-bound workload. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 180 FPS at 1080p to 152 FPS at 1440p, and then sharply to 119 FPS at 4K. This represents a 33.9% reduction from 1080p to 4K, a substantial decline that points directly at the graphics card being the primary limiter at higher pixel counts. The RTX 5070 Ti's raw compute is being saturated by the sheer number of pixels, with its 43.94 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 896.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth being taxed more heavily as resolution climbs.

The scaling pattern is even more pronounced when examining the High preset. The transition from 1080p (81 FPS) to 1440p (68 FPS) is a 16% drop, but the jump from 1440p to 4K (53 FPS) is a 22% decline. This non-linear scaling suggests that at 4K High, the game is not only rendering more pixels but also invoking more complex shader and texture work that heavily utilizes the GPU's 16 GB of GDDR7 memory and 70 RT cores, even if ray tracing is not explicitly measured here. The frame rate at 4K High (53 FPS) falls below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating the GPU is struggling to maintain fluidity with these settings.

The data implies that at 1080p and 1440p with lower settings, the Intel Core i7-14700KF is more than capable of feeding the GPU. At 1080p Low, the 180 FPS average suggests the CPU, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is not the limiting factor, as the GPU is still able to produce very high frame rates. The bottleneck shifts definitively to the GPU as resolution increases, which is the expected behavior for a high-end CPU paired with a powerful graphics card. The 4K Ultra result of 42 FPS is the clearest evidence of this, as the GPU's performance ceiling is reached, and the frame rate drops to a level that is demanding on the visual system.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to use with this combo for a 60 FPS target?

A: Based on the measured data, 2560x1440 with High settings yields an average of 68 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS target. At 1920x1080, all settings except Ultra (64 FPS) produce results above 60 FPS, with Low hitting 180 FPS. At 3840x2160, the only preset to average above 60 FPS is Low, which achieves 119 FPS, while Medium falls just short of the target at 74 FPS.

Q: How much of a performance hit does the Ultra preset take compared to High?

A: At 1920x1080, the drop from High (81 FPS) to Ultra (64 FPS) is a 21% reduction. This gap widens at 2560x1440, where High averages 68 FPS and Ultra averages 54 FPS, a 20.6% decrease. At 3840x2160, the difference is most severe, with High at 53 FPS and Ultra at 42 FPS, representing a 20.8% performance loss for the visual upgrade.

Q: Is the 4K resolution playable with this setup?

A: The data shows it is playable, but only at certain settings. The Low preset at 3840x2160 provides a very playable 119 FPS average. The Medium preset is also viable, with an average of 74 FPS and a minimum of 63 FPS, which stays above the 60 FPS mark. High and Ultra presets at 4K average 53 FPS and 42 FPS respectively, which may be acceptable for a slower-paced horror game but are not ideal for smooth motion.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck at 1080p Low?

A: At 1920x1080 Low, the 180 FPS average indicates that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is likely the limiting factor, as the Intel Core i7-14700KF has sufficient headroom with its high single-thread performance. The CPU's Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6235 points suggests it is not struggling to process game logic at this resolution, leaving the GPU to be the primary constraint on frame rate.

Q: How does the RTX 5070 Ti's performance in this game compare to its overall standing?

A: The GPU's benchmark percentile of 86% (vs. all GPUs) indicates it is a high-performing part. In this specific game, the measured FPS at 4K High (53 FPS) and 1440p Ultra (54 FPS) suggests it is capable, but the significant frame drops at higher settings show that The Medium is a demanding title that can push even a top-tier card to its limits.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Medium presets at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 152 FPS, while the Medium preset averages 95 FPS. This is a substantial 37.5% performance difference, indicating that the Medium preset introduces significant visual enhancements that have a high cost on the GPU.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that the "sweet spot" for this combination of CPU and GPU is the Medium preset at 1440p, or the High preset at 1080p. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers an average of 95 FPS with a minimum of 81 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay well above the 60 FPS threshold while providing a visual upgrade over Low. This configuration balances the GPU's load, leveraging its 16 GB of VRAM for textures without overburdening the 8960 shading units, resulting in a responsive and visually rich experience.

For users prioritizing a high refresh rate experience, the Low preset at 1920x1080 is the clear choice, as it achieves an average of 180 FPS. This allows for maximum fluidity, which can be beneficial in a horror game for quick camera movements, although it sacrifices environmental detail. The High preset at 1080p is a strong alternative, offering 81 FPS which is still suitable for most displays and provides a more detailed image for a game that relies on atmosphere and environmental storytelling.

At 4K, the data recommends the Medium preset as the playable option, with an average of 74 FPS and a minimum of 63 FPS. This is the only 4K preset besides Low that maintains an average above 60 FPS, making it the optimal choice for users with a 4K display who want to experience the game’s visuals without severe performance dips. The High and Ultra presets at this resolution produce frame rates below 60 FPS, which can feel less responsive, especially in a genre where timing and atmospheric tension are important. The Ultra preset is not recommended, as it yields the lowest average FPS across all resolutions (42 FPS at 4K, 54 FPS at 1440p, 64 FPS at 1080p) and does not provide a playable experience at the higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings is playable. The Low preset produces a very high average of 180 FPS. The Medium preset averages 113 FPS, with a minimum of 96 FPS and a maximum of 130 FPS, ensuring consistent performance. The High preset averages 81 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 64 FPS. This shows that at 1080p, the RTX 5070 Ti has enough headroom to handle all presets without dropping below a 60 FPS average.

At 2560x1440, performance becomes more stratified. The Low preset remains fast, averaging 152 FPS. The Medium preset provides a smooth experience with an average of 95 FPS and a minimum of 81 FPS. The High preset drops to an average of 68 FPS, which is still above 60 FPS. The Ultra preset is the only one that falls below the 60 FPS mark at this resolution, with an average of 54 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily taxed. The Low preset is the only configuration that provides a high frame rate, averaging 119 FPS. The Medium preset is the next best option, with an average of 74 FPS and a minimum of 63 FPS, making it the only other preset to maintain an average above 60 FPS. The High preset averages 53 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 42 FPS. The data shows a clear progression: as the pixel count and quality settings increase, the average frame rate falls consistently, highlighting the GPU as the definitive bottleneck at this resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti ranks at position 308 out of 3724 tested combinations for The Medium. This places it in the top 8.3% of all tested setups, indicating a very high-performing system. The rank of 308 suggests that while this is an excellent pairing for most games, there are a significant number of configurations that deliver higher frame rates in this specific title.

The ranking is likely influenced by the game's demanding nature, which pushes the GPU to its limits at higher resolutions. While the CPU's average benchmark score of 70163 is high, and its percentile vs. all CPUs is 94, the game's performance at the tested settings is more dependent on the GPU. The RTX 5070 Ti's percentile vs. all GPUs is 86, which is slightly lower than the CPU's standing, and its nearest rivals, such as the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT (which is 2% faster in average score) and the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT (which is 3.1% slower), show that the GPU's performance class is competitive but not at the absolute top. The combo's rank of 308 out of 3724 implies that a significant number of other GPU and CPU pairings can achieve higher frame rates in this game, likely those with more powerful graphics cards.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700KF, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is a highly capable processor that does not appear to bottleneck the RTX 5070 Ti in this game. Its benchmark scores, such as the Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167 and single-core score of 6235, demonstrate exceptional processing power. The data suggests that even at the lowest resolution and settings (1080p Low), where the CPU load is typically highest, the processor can maintain a high frame rate of 180 FPS, indicating it is not the limiting factor.

The CPU's role is to feed the GPU with data, and its 33 MB of shared L3 cache likely helps in keeping game assets readily available. The high boost clock of 5.60 GHz is beneficial for single-threaded game logic, which can be a bottleneck in some titles. However, the frame rates at higher resolutions show a clear GPU limitation, meaning the CPU has ample headroom. The nearest rivals to the i7-14700KF, such as the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.9% slower in average score) and the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K (1% faster), suggest that this CPU is in the top tier of performance. Its 94th percentile ranking vs. all CPUs reinforces that it is a top-tier part. The data indicates that in this game, the CPU is providing a stable platform for the GPU to perform, and its contribution to the overall frame rate is to ensure there are no CPU-side drops that would limit the GPU's output.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is the dominant component in determining this game's frame rates, especially at higher resolutions. The data shows a clear correlation between the GPU's workload and performance. The 16 GB of GDDR7 memory and 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth are crucial for handling the high-resolution textures in The Medium, which is a visually detailed game. The GPU's 8960 shading units are responsible for the massive amounts of parallel processing required for the game's rendering.

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K is a direct reflection of the GPU's capabilities. At 1080p Low, the 180 FPS average shows the GPU is not fully saturated, but as resolution increases, it becomes the definitive bottleneck. The drop from 95 FPS at 1440p Medium to 74 FPS at 4K Medium is a 22.1% decrease, which is consistent with the increased pixel count. The GPU's 86th percentile ranking versus all GPUs confirms that it is a high-end part, but its performance in this game is not at the very top, as indicated by its nearest rivals.

The RTX 5070 Ti's boost clock of 2452 MHz and 5 nm process node allow for high computational throughput, but the game's demands at 4K Ultra (42 FPS) show its limits. The card's performance is also reflected in its benchmark scores, such as the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6604. While the GPU is powerful, the data suggests that for a game like The Medium, which stresses the graphics card heavily, the RTX 5070 Ti is best paired with settings that are not at the absolute maximum for higher resolutions to achieve a smooth 60 FPS experience.