The Medium

The Intel Core i9-14900K and AMD Radeon RX 7600 combination presents a stark contrast in component hierarchy, pairing a top-tier CPU with a mid-range GPU. In The Medium, a horror title known for its dual-reality rendering, this pairing yields playable frame rates primarily at lower settings, with the GPU acting as the definitive bottleneck. The benchmark data shows a clear ceiling for graphical fidelity, while the CPU’s substantial headroom remains largely untapped.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The measured average frame rate is 57 FPS, with a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS recorded. This represents the most balanced preset for smooth gameplay at this resolution.

Q: How does the RX 7600 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GPU’s average benchmark score of 15171 is nearly identical to its closest competitor, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM, which scores 15199, a delta of -0.2%. It also sits within 0.7% of the AMD Radeon Pro 560X and 0.6% of the AMD Radeon 680M.

Q: Is the Core i9-14900K significantly faster than its closest rival?

A: Benchmark results indicate the i9-14900K’s average score of 79097 is slightly lower than the Intel Core i9-14900KF, which scores 79371, representing a 0.3% deficit. It also trails the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus by 0.6%.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: The data shows a substantial drop. At 1440p Low, the average FPS is 77, while at 1440p Ultra, it falls to 27 FPS. This represents a 65% reduction in average frame rate when moving to the highest preset.

Q: Does the CPU’s performance percentile suggest it is a limiting factor in this game?

A: No. The CPU ranks in the 95th percentile among all tested CPUs, indicating it is a high-end processor. Given that the GPU ranks in the 57th percentile, the graphics card is the primary constraint on performance in this configuration.

Q: What are the specifications of the GPU’s memory?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7600 features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 is the decisive factor in this system’s The Medium performance. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 128-bit bus, yielding 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth, are sufficient for the game’s assets at lower presets but become a constraint as texture detail and effects increase. The GPU is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a boost clock of 2655 MHz and a game clock of 2250 MHz, providing a foundation of 21.75 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power.

The benchmark data suggests that this compute power is not enough to handle the game’s demands at high resolutions and quality settings. At 4K Ultra, the average frame rate is 22 FPS, which is unplayable. Even at 1080p High, the average is 41 FPS, which is below the smooth 60 FPS target many users prefer. The GPU's percentile rank of 57 vs. all GPUs places it in the mid-range tier, and its performance in The Medium aligns with this positioning.

The RX 7600’s nearest rivals, such as the RTX 3050 OEM and the Radeon 680M, have nearly identical average benchmark scores, with deltas of -0.2% and -0.7% respectively. This indicates that the RX 7600’s performance is closely grouped with these other mid-range options. The game’s results reflect this: the GPU is the bottleneck in all tested configurations, preventing the powerful CPU from significantly influencing frame rates.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K is a high-end desktop processor with 24 cores and 32 threads, capable of reaching a boost clock of 6.00 GHz. Its 36 MB of shared L3 cache and support for both DDR4 and DDR5 memory make it a formidable component for any workload. Benchmark results show it scores 39399.5 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, and its percentile rank of 95 vs. all CPUs confirms its position in the top tier of processors.

However, in The Medium, the CPU’s role is largely supportive. The measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings are consistently low enough that the GPU is the primary limiting factor. For instance, at 1080p Low, the average FPS is 92. This is a high frame rate, but it is not limited by the CPU; it is the maximum the GPU can deliver. The CPU has ample headroom to process game logic and physics, but the rendering pipeline is starved by the GPU’s throughput.

The CPU’s nearest rival, the Core i9-14900KF, performs within 0.3% of it in average benchmark scores, and the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus is within 0.6%. The data shows that while the i9-14900K is a top performer, its capabilities are not fully utilized in this particular game and GPU pairing. The bottleneck is firmly on the graphics card, meaning the CPU’s core count and clock speed have little bearing on the final frame rate output.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the resolution most likely to yield playable results, the average frame rates are 92 FPS on Low, 57 FPS on Medium, 41 FPS on High, and 33 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS, indicating some frame time variance.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average frame rates drop to 77 FPS on Low, 48 FPS on Medium, 35 FPS on High, and 27 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset at this resolution records a minimum of 41 FPS and a maximum of 56 FPS. At 3840x2160, the averages are 61 FPS on Low, 38 FPS on Medium, 27 FPS on High, and 22 FPS on Ultra. The 4K Medium preset has a minimum of 32 FPS and a maximum of 44 FPS.

The data indicates that the 1080p Medium preset is the only configuration that consistently delivers an average frame rate above 60 FPS. All other presets, including 1080p High, fall below this threshold, suggesting that users must compromise on visual quality to achieve smooth gameplay. The gap between Low and Ultra presets is significant at every resolution, highlighting the GPU’s inability to handle the increased shader and texture workloads.

Resolution Scaling

The impact of resolution on frame rate is substantial, clearly demonstrating the GPU bottleneck. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 92 at 1080p to 77 at 1440p, a 16% decrease. From 1440p to 4K, the average FPS drops from 77 to 61, a further 21% decrease. This scaling pattern shows that even at the lowest settings, the GPU is struggling to maintain performance as pixel count increases.

The scaling becomes more severe at higher presets. At Ultra settings, the average FPS falls from 33 at 1080p to 27 at 1440p (an 18% drop) and then to 22 at 4K (a 19% drop). The absolute frame rate numbers are low in all Ultra configurations, indicating that the GPU is completely overwhelmed. The data shows that the i9-14900K is not the limiting factor in this scaling; if it were, frame rates would remain relatively consistent across resolutions.

The consistent and significant FPS drops with each resolution increase point to the GPU’s memory bandwidth and processing power as the primary constraints. The 8 GB VRAM capacity may also be a factor at higher resolutions with larger texture pools. The CPU’s performance is static across these tests, so the frame rate changes are directly attributable to the GPU’s workload.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings for this combination are 1080p with the Medium preset. This configuration yields an average of 57 FPS, with a minimum of 49 FPS, which is the closest to a consistent 60 FPS experience. The 1080p Low preset achieves an average of 92 FPS, but this comes at a significant visual quality cost, suggesting that Medium is the better balance of fidelity and performance.

For users who prioritize a higher frame rate over visual detail, 1080p Low is the only preset that provides a substantial margin above 60 FPS. However, the jump from Low to Medium results in a 38% decrease in average FPS (from 92 to 57), which is a steep price for the visual upgrade. The High and Ultra presets at 1080p, with averages of 41 and 33 FPS, are not recommended for a smooth experience.

At higher resolutions, the options are limited. At 1440p, only the Low preset (77 FPS) provides playable frame rates. The Medium preset at 1440p averages 48 FPS, which may be acceptable for some, but it is a compromise. At 4K, no preset provides a smooth experience; even the Low preset averages just 61 FPS, and the Medium preset drops to 38 FPS. The data suggests that for this game and this GPU, playing at 1080p is the only way to achieve a consistently smooth frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, the Intel Core i9-14900K and AMD Radeon RX 7600 pairing ranks 2571 out of 3724 combos for The Medium. This places it in the lower half of all tested configurations, reflecting the GPU’s mid-range status. The rank is a direct consequence of the GPU’s performance, as the CPU is a top-tier part that would rank much higher if paired with a more powerful graphics card.

The GPU’s average benchmark score of 15171 and its percentile rank of 57 place it solidly in the middle of the pack. Its nearest rivals, such as the RTX 3050 OEM and Radeon 680M, have nearly identical scores, confirming that this GPU’s performance is typical for its class. The combo’s rank of 2571 is therefore a function of the GPU’s limitations, not the CPU’s. The data indicates that this pairing is not well-suited for high-fidelity gaming in The Medium, and the performance is consistent with the GPU’s position in the broader benchmark hierarchy. The high-rank CPU is effectively held back by the mid-range GPU, resulting in a combo that is outclassed by many others that feature more balanced or higher-end graphics solutions.