The Medium

The Medium, a fixed-camera horror title built on Unreal Engine 4, presents a demanding workload that scales heavily with both resolution and image quality settings. For the combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT, the data reveals a system that is firmly GPU-bound at higher resolutions, yet still struggles to maintain high refresh rates even at 1080p on the highest presets. The benchmark results indicate a configuration best suited for 1440p gaming at medium settings, where it achieves a balanced and playable experience, while 4K remains viable only at the lowest settings preset.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a steep performance penalty as resolution increases, which is the classic signature of a GPU-limited scenario. At 1080p with Medium settings, the combo produces an average of 59 FPS. Moving to 1440p at the same Medium preset drops the average to 50 FPS, a reduction of 9 FPS or roughly 15%. The jump to 4K is far more punishing, with the average falling to 39 FPS. This 11 FPS drop from 1440p to 4K is nearly as large as the entire 9 FPS drop from 1080p to 1440p, illustrating the exponential cost of pixel count on the Radeon RX 6650 XT.

The trend is consistent across all settings presets. At Ultra, the frame rate craters from 34 FPS at 1080p to 28 FPS at 1440p and finally to 22 FPS at 4K. The 12 FPS difference between 1080p and 4K on Ultra is a 35% reduction in performance. This pattern confirms that the rendering pipeline is almost entirely constrained by the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth. The CPU, with its 14 cores and 5.10 GHz boost clock, is not the limiting factor here; the data shows no scenario where the frame rate stays flat across resolutions, which would indicate a CPU bottleneck.

What is particularly telling is the performance gap between Low and Ultra settings. At 1080p, the difference between Low (95 FPS) and Ultra (34 FPS) is a massive 61 FPS. This 2.8x performance delta is a clear indicator that the game's visual effects, such as volumetric lighting and shadows, place an enormous load on the GPU. The scaling is not linear; the jump from Medium (59 FPS) to High (43 FPS) is a 16 FPS drop, while the jump from High to Ultra is only 9 FPS. This suggests that the Ultra preset includes specific effects that are disproportionately expensive on the RDNA 2 architecture, making High a more efficient stepping stone than Ultra.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain a 60 FPS average?

A: The only resolution where a 60 FPS average is achievable is 1920x1080 with the Low settings preset, which yields an average of 95 FPS. At 1440p, the highest playable setting for a near-60 FPS experience is Low, which produces 80 FPS. No other configuration reaches the 60 FPS threshold.

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

A: Yes, but only with significant visual compromises. The data shows a 4K average of 63 FPS on the Low preset, which is playable. However, at Medium settings, the average drops to 39 FPS, and at High and Ultra, it falls to 28 FPS and 22 FPS respectively, making those presets unplayable for a smooth experience.

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

A: The difference is substantial. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves 95 FPS while Ultra achieves 34 FPS, a performance gap of 61 FPS. This demonstrates that the GPU is heavily taxed by the high-end visual features enabled in the Ultra preset.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 a bottleneck for the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT in this game?

A: No. The benchmark results indicate that the system is GPU-bound. The frame rates drop consistently as resolution increases, which is the expected behavior when the graphics card is the limiting component. The CPU's high boost clock of 5.10 GHz and strong Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648 points suggest it has ample headroom to feed the GPU.

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

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 delivers an average of 50 FPS, while the High preset delivers 36 FPS. This 14 FPS drop is significant and makes High a less attractive option for those prioritizing smoothness over visual fidelity.

Q: Does the combo's ranking in this game reflect its overall hardware strength?

A: The combo ranks 1886 out of 2911 tested combinations for this specific game. This places it in the lower half of the database, confirming that while it is a capable mid-range system, it is not optimized for the extreme demands of The Medium at maximum settings.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal experience for this hardware is found by balancing visual quality with a stable frame rate. The data strongly suggests that the Medium preset is the sweet spot for most users. At 1440p, Medium delivers an average of 50 FPS with minimums recorded at 43 FPS, which provides a consistent and immersive experience for a slow-paced horror game. While not a locked 60 FPS, the 50 FPS average is far smoother than the 36 FPS offered by the High preset.

For users with 1080p displays, the Medium preset also stands out. It achieves an average of 59 FPS, with minimums at 51 FPS, making it nearly perfect for a standard 60Hz monitor. The jump to High yields 43 FPS, a 16 FPS loss that is not justified by the marginal visual improvements in a game with fixed camera angles and dark environments. The data indicates that High is a poor trade-off, as it sacrifices significant performance for minimal graphical gains.

For those seeking the highest possible fidelity, the Ultra preset is not recommended. Even at 1080p, it only achieves 34 FPS, which is below the threshold for comfortable play. The performance cost is simply too high for the visual benefit. Conversely, the Low preset, while offering high frame rates (95 FPS at 1080p, 80 FPS at 1440p), likely strips away the atmospheric lighting and shadow effects that are central to the game's horror aesthetic. Therefore, the Medium preset is the clear recommendation, providing the best balance of frame rate and visual quality across both 1080p and 1440p resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT combination is placed at rank 1886 out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium. This position, which is in the 35th percentile of all tested systems, indicates that this pairing is below average for handling this specific title's demanding load. When considering the individual components, the CPU's performance is strong. The Core Ultra 5 245 sits in the 90th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 48995. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G, scores 49196, a negligible -0.4% difference. This shows the CPU is a high-performing part.

However, the GPU is the anchor on this combo's ranking. The Radeon RX 6650 XT only manages to place in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19765. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA Tesla K40m, scores 19885, which is a -0.6% difference. The GPU's relative weakness compared to the CPU explains why the combo ranks so low. The CPU is capable of feeding much faster graphics cards, but the RX 6650 XT cannot keep up with the demands of The Medium at high settings. The data suggests that this ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU's performance ceiling, not a deficiency in the processor.

The deltaPct values for the CPU's rivals are all within a tight band of -0.5% to +0.8%, showing that the Core Ultra 5 245 is competitively positioned within its peer group. Yet, the system's rank in this game shows that the GPU's 65th percentile standing is insufficient to boost the overall experience. The benchmark results indicate that any improvement in this combo's ranking would require a more powerful GPU, as the current configuration is consistently held back by the graphics card's rendering capabilities.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture. It features a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz, which is a substantial single-thread capability that is often critical for game logic and draw calls. Its performance metrics are solid, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 and a single-core score of 4648. These numbers place it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs, indicating it has significant processing power that far exceeds the requirements of most modern games.

In the context of The Medium, the CPU's role appears to be secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS data shows a consistent decline with increasing resolution, a pattern that occurs when the graphics card is the bottleneck. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions, as the CPU's workload does not change significantly with pixel count. The data shows no such plateau, confirming that the Core Ultra 5 245 has ample headroom.

The processor's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support (with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth) provide a robust platform for the game's data streaming. While the game is GPU-bound, the CPU's high boost clock and strong single-core performance ensure that it will not introduce stuttering or frame pacing issues. The benchmark results suggest that the CPU is not a liability in this configuration; it is a high-performance component that is currently underutilized due to the GPU's constraints. For a game like The Medium, which relies on detailed environments, the CPU's ability to manage the game's logic is more than sufficient.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The full set of measured frame rates provides a complete picture of the system's capabilities. At 1920x1080, the performance ranges from a high of 95 FPS on Low to a low of 34 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset achieves 59 FPS with a minimum of 51 and a maximum of 68, while the High preset averages 43 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates scale down accordingly. The Low preset delivers 80 FPS, Medium averages 50 FPS (with minimums of 43 and maximums of 58), High averages 36 FPS, and Ultra drops to 28 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates on higher presets. The Low preset is the only one to break 60 FPS, achieving an average of 63 FPS. The Medium preset falls to 39 FPS (with a minimum of 33 and a maximum of 45), High averages 28 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 22 FPS.

These numbers illustrate a clear hierarchy of performance. The combination of the Core Ultra 5 245 and RX 6650 XT is most effective at 1080p and 1440p with Medium settings. The data shows that the GPU's 8 GB of VRAM and 128-bit memory bus are sufficient for these resolutions, but the 4K data suggests the card is overburdened, leading to sub-30 FPS averages on High and Ultra presets. The minimum FPS values for the Medium presets (51 at 1080p, 43 at 1440p, 33 at 4K) also show that the frame pacing remains consistent, without severe drops that would indicate a CPU-related stutter. The performance is predictable and scales directly with the GPU load, reinforcing the conclusion that this is a balanced, albeit GPU-limited, mid-range system.