The Medium

The Medium, a fixed-camera horror title built around atmospheric storytelling, presents a unique stress profile for the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT combination. The measured data reveals a system that is decisively GPU-bound at higher resolutions, yet shows surprising headroom at 1080p, suggesting the CPU’s 14 cores and 5.10 GHz boost clock are more than adequate for the game’s demands. This analysis dissects the performance metrics, focusing on how the scaling patterns, settings, and component roles define the experience.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K in The Medium tells a clear story about which component is the limiting factor. At the High preset, the average FPS drops from 56 at 1920x1080 to 47 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 9 frames. Moving to 3840x2160, the average falls further to 37 FPS, meaning the transition from 1080p to 4K costs 19 frames per second, or roughly a 34% performance hit. This steep decline is a classic symptom of GPU saturation; the Radeon RX 7700 XT is working progressively harder to fill the increasing pixel count.

The scaling pattern becomes even more telling when examining the Low preset. Here, the system achieves 126 FPS at 1080p, which drops to 106 FPS at 1440p and then to 83 FPS at 4K. While the absolute numbers are higher, the relative drop from 1080p to 4K is still substantial at 43 FPS. However, the fact that the Low preset at 4K (83 FPS) is significantly faster than the High preset at 1080p (56 FPS) indicates that the GPU’s workload, not the CPU’s processing power, is the primary bottleneck. If the CPU were the constraint, the resolution changes would have a minimal impact on the frame rate.

Data from the Medium preset, which is the only one with full min/max FPS readings, further supports this. At 1080p Medium, the average is 79 FPS with a minimum of 67 and a maximum of 91. At 1440p Medium, the average is 66 FPS (min 56, max 76), and at 4K Medium, the average is 52 FPS (min 44, max 60). The consistent reduction in both average and minimum FPS as resolution increases confirms that the rendering pipeline is the limiting factor. The Intel Core Ultra 5 245, with its robust multi-core performance (Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924), is not holding the system back; it is the RX 7700 XT’s pixel-pushing capabilities that define the scaling curve.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear hierarchy for optimizing the experience. The Ultra preset is punishing, delivering only 45 FPS at 1080p, 38 FPS at 1440p, and a nearly unplayable 30 FPS at 4K. These low averages suggest that the Ultra settings apply effects that the RX 7700 XT cannot handle at playable speeds, even at the lowest resolution tested. The High preset is more viable, offering 56 FPS at 1080p and 47 FPS at 1440p, but it still struggles at 4K with a 37 FPS average.

The most compelling choice is the Medium preset. At 1080p, it delivers a smooth 79 FPS average with a minimum of 67 FPS, ensuring consistent gameplay without significant stutters. Stepping up to 1440p, the Medium preset still provides a respectable 66 FPS average (min 56), which is a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold for many displays. The data suggests that Medium is the optimal balance point for this hardware, as the jump from Low to Medium yields a significant visual quality improvement without the severe performance penalty seen when moving to High or Ultra.

For users prioritizing frame rate over visual fidelity, the Low preset is the fallback option. It produces 126 FPS at 1080p and 106 FPS at 1440p, which would be ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. However, the performance gap between Low and Medium is relatively modest (47 FPS at 1080p), making Medium the recommended starting point for most players. The 4K resolution should be avoided at any setting above Low, as even the Low preset’s 83 FPS average is the only playable result at that resolution, and it comes with significant visual compromises. The data implies that this combo is best suited for 1080p Medium/High or 1440p Medium gameplay.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT is the workhorse of this configuration, and its specifications directly correlate with the observed performance. The GPU features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 432.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is sufficient for The Medium’s assets, but the frame rate drops at 4K suggest that the GPU’s compute capabilities, not just its memory bandwidth, are being pushed to their limits. The 3456 shading units and 96 ROPs are responsible for the rasterization workload, and the data shows they are saturated at higher resolutions.

The GPU’s clock speeds play a role in the scaling behavior. The base clock is 1435 MHz, but the boost clock reaches 2544 MHz, with a game clock of 2171 MHz. This dynamic clocking means the GPU can ramp up its speed when thermal and power headroom allows, which helps explain the relatively strong performance at 1080p. However, as resolution increases, the sustained load likely prevents the GPU from maintaining its maximum boost clock, leading to the observed frame rate declines. The 35.17 TFLOPS FP32 performance is a theoretical peak, and the real-world results indicate that this compute throughput is not enough to maintain high frame rates at 4K Ultra.

Comparing the GPU’s benchmarks to its rivals, the RX 7700 XT’s average benchmark score of 22549 places it just 0.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile and 1.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5700. The nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile, scores 22729, which is 0.8% higher. This tight grouping of scores suggests that the RX 7700 XT is a mid-pack performer in its class, and The Medium’s results reflect this positioning—it is capable but not exceptional. The 12 GB VRAM is a notable asset, as it provides ample headroom for the game’s textures, but the raw processing power is the limiting factor at 4K.

How This Combo Ranks

In the broader context of all tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT holds a rank of 1045 out of 2911 combos for The Medium. This places it in the 64th percentile (calculated by dividing 1045 by 2911), meaning it outperforms roughly two-thirds of all tested systems. This is a solid mid-to-upper tier ranking, indicating that the combination is well-balanced for this game, even if it doesn’t reach the top echelons dominated by flagship GPUs.

The rank suggests that while the RX 7700 XT is the bottleneck, the CPU is providing a strong supporting role. If the CPU were severely underpowered, the combo would rank much lower, as the GPU would be starved of data. Instead, the CPU’s strong benchmark scores (90th percentile vs all CPUs) ensure that it never becomes the limiting factor. The ranking implies that this system is a dependable choice for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but it will not compete with high-end builds at 4K, aligning perfectly with the measured FPS data showing playable frame rates only at lower resolutions or settings.

The deltaPct values for the CPU’s nearest rivals are all within 1% of its average score, showing that the Core Ultra 5 245 is in a fiercely competitive performance band. Similarly, the GPU’s rivals are all within 1.7% of its score. This means the combo’s rank is not an outlier; it represents a typical performance level for hardware in this price and performance tier. The data indicates that users can expect consistent, predictable performance from this pairing, without any surprising bottlenecks or exceptional gains.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process. Its base clock is 3.50 GHz, and it can boost up to 5.10 GHz. For a game like The Medium, which is not known for heavily multi-threaded workloads, the CPU’s high boost clock is more critical than its core count. The single-core performance, evidenced by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648, is excellent and ensures that the game’s main thread has ample processing power.

The benchmark data suggests the CPU is never the bottleneck in this configuration. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 126 FPS, which is a high frame rate that would expose CPU limitations if they existed. The fact that the frame rate scales down consistently with resolution increases proves that the CPU is delivering frames faster than the GPU can render them. The CPU’s 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 102.4 GB/s memory bandwidth provide a solid foundation for feeding the GPU with data.

Comparing the CPU to its rivals, the Core Ultra 5 245’s average benchmark score of 48995 is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (49196, -0.4% delta) and the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (49228, -0.5% delta). It is also just 0.8% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14600K. This indicates that the CPU’s raw processing power is on par with its direct competitors, and in The Medium, this translates to a consistent, non-limiting performance. The CPU’s role is to maintain a high minimum frame rate, and the data shows it succeeds, with the 1080p Medium preset showing a minimum FPS of 67, which is a stable experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset offers a comprehensive view of the system’s performance across all tested configurations. At 1920x1080, the Low preset leads with an average of 126 FPS. The Medium preset follows at 79 FPS, with a minimum of 67 and maximum of 91. High drops to 56 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 45 FPS. This shows a clear 81 FPS difference between the lowest and highest quality settings at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the pattern repeats but with lower absolute values. Low averages 106 FPS, Medium averages 66 FPS (min 56, max 76), High averages 47 FPS, and Ultra averages 38 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 68 FPS. The Medium preset’s minimum of 56 FPS is still above the 30 FPS threshold for playability, but it is approaching the point where frame pacing could become noticeable.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes more strained. Low averages 83 FPS, Medium averages 52 FPS (min 44, max 60), High averages 37 FPS, and Ultra averages 30 FPS. The minimum FPS of 44 at Medium is the only sub-60 FPS minimum recorded in the entire dataset that remains playable, but it highlights the GPU’s struggle at 4K. The Ultra preset’s 30 FPS average is right at the edge of playability, and the High preset’s 37 FPS is similarly marginal. The data clearly shows that 4K is only viable with the Low preset, while 1080p and 1440p offer more flexibility across the settings range.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in The Medium?*

A: The data indicates 1920x1080 is the optimal resolution, delivering 126 FPS on Low and 79 FPS on Medium. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset still achieves a solid 66 FPS average, but 3840x2160 only provides playable frame rates on the Low preset (83 FPS).

Q: How much faster is the Low preset compared to Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 126 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 45 FPS. This represents an 81 FPS difference, meaning Low is roughly 2.8 times faster than Ultra at this resolution.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in this game?

A: No. The frame rate scales down consistently as resolution increases (e.g., 126 FPS at 1080p Low to 83 FPS at 4K Low), which indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU’s high single-core score (4648 in Cinebench R23) ensures it is not a constraint.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the minimum FPS is 56, with an average of 66 FPS and a maximum of 76 FPS. This shows a stable frame rate experience without major drops.

Q: How does this combo rank against all other tested systems?

A: This specific CPU and GPU combination ranks 1045 out of 2911 tested combos for The Medium, placing it in the upper-middle tier of performance.

Q: Is the 12 GB VRAM of the RX 7700 XT sufficient for 4K gameplay?

A: The 12 GB of GDDR6 memory is not the primary limitation at 4K. The GPU’s compute performance is the bottleneck, as evidenced by the 30 FPS average at 4K Ultra. The VRAM capacity is adequate, but the rendering power is insufficient for high settings at that resolution.