Inside

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F paired with the Intel Arc B580 delivers a fascinating performance profile in Inside, a game that clearly favors high frame rates across a range of resolutions. The measured data shows this combo is not just capable, but often overshoots the 60 FPS playability threshold by a wide margin, making it a strong candidate for high-refresh-rate displays. However, the margins between settings and resolutions reveal where this pairing is most comfortable, and where it begins to strain.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The benchmark results for this combination are extensive, covering three resolutions and four quality presets. At 1920x1080, the performance is exceptional across the board. The Low preset produces an average of 271 FPS, which is the highest measured frame rate for this entire combo. Moving to Medium, the average drops to 217 FPS, with a minimum of 185 FPS and a maximum of 250 FPS. The High preset averages 136 FPS, while the Ultra preset still manages a robust 129 FPS. None of these 1080p results dip anywhere near the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that the CPU and GPU are not challenged at this resolution, even with every setting maxed out.

Stepping up to 2560x1440, the performance remains highly playable, but the scaling starts to show. Low runs at an average of 195 FPS. Medium averages 156 FPS, with a minimum of 133 FPS and a maximum of 180 FPS. High comes in at 98 FPS average. Ultra, which is the most demanding preset, still holds an average of 93 FPS. The gap between Medium and High is 58 FPS, which is a significant jump, suggesting a heavier load from the High preset’s additional visual effects. However, even at the most demanding 1440p setting, the average is well above the 60 FPS floor.

At 3840x2160, the picture changes noticeably. Low is still very fast, producing an average of 123 FPS. Medium averages 98 FPS, with a minimum of 83 FPS and a maximum of 113 FPS. The High preset, however, drops to an average of 61 FPS, which is just barely above the playable threshold. Ultra is the only preset that fails to hit 60 FPS, with an average of 58 FPS. This is a critical finding: the difference between High and Ultra at 4K is only 3 FPS, yet both are close to the limit, indicating that the GPU is the primary constraint at this resolution. The data also shows that the min FPS of 83 FPS at 4K Medium is still above the average of 4K High, suggesting that Medium is a more consistent experience for those who want to avoid any potential drops.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data suggests a clear division of labor. At 1920x1080, the performance is likely bound by the CPU’s capabilities when the GPU is not saturated. The jump from 129 FPS at Ultra to 217 FPS at Medium – an increase of 88 FPS – is not purely a GPU effect, as the GPU load is lower at lower settings. This indicates that the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F, with its 8 cores and 16 threads and single-thread score of 4691, is well-equipped to feed the Intel Arc B580 at 1080p. The fact that the CPU’s passmark single-thread score is 4691 and its multithread score is 36470, both high numbers, supports that the CPU is not a bottleneck here.

As resolution increases to 2560x1440, the balance shifts. The average frame rate at High (98 FPS) is lower than at 1080p High (136 FPS), showing that the GPU’s pixel output rate is starting to become a limiting factor. The GPU’s pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s is a fixed hardware specification, and higher resolutions require more pixel fill, so the frame rate must fall. However, the fact that Ultra at 1440p still produces 93 FPS suggests the GPU has headroom to spare even at this higher resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is undeniably the dominant constraint. The 4K High average of 61 FPS and Ultra average of 58 FPS are nearly identical, which indicates that the Intel Arc B580 has hit a performance wall. The GPU’s 13.67 TFLOPS FP32 compute and 427.2 GTexel/s texture rate are being fully utilized. The CPU’s role is diminished at 4K; it is not the limiting factor, as the same CPU could produce higher frame rates at lower settings (123 FPS at 4K Low). The scaling from Low to Medium at 4K is a 25 FPS drop (from 123 to 98), and from Medium to High is a 37 FPS drop (98 to 61), which is a more accelerated scaling than what is seen at 1440p, confirming that the GPU is the bottleneck in this high-resolution regime.

Best Settings per Resolution

If the target is to maintain at least 60 FPS, all three resolutions have viable presets. At 1920x1080, you can run Ultra settings without any concerns. The average FPS at Ultra is 129, which provides a comfortable margin above the playable threshold. This is the best visual quality available, and the data shows it is fully playable.

At 2560x1440, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is also Ultra. The average frame rate at this setting is 93 FPS, which is 33 FPS above the threshold. This is a strong result, as it allows for full visual fidelity at a high resolution while maintaining smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the options are narrower. The most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, with an average of 61 FPS. This is nearly too close for comfort, as it is only 1 FPS above the threshold. It is a playable setting, but the margin is thin. The Medium preset at this resolution offers a more comfortable 98 FPS average with a minimum of 83 FPS, which provides a much larger safety buffer against frame drops. So, while High is technically the best playable setting at 4K, the data indicates that Medium is the more prudent choice for a smooth experience.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database for Inside, this specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and the Intel Arc B580 ranks 2764 out of 3716 total tested combos. This places it in the lower half of all system combinations tested for this game. It is important to note that this rank is against all combos, not just other CPUs or GPUs alone. The rank is likely dragged down by the high-performance CPUs paired with top-end GPUs that can achieve much higher 4K frame rates. For instance, it is not surprising that this combo ranks behind a system with a more powerful GPU. Given that the GPU’s average benchmark score is 23021 and its percentile is 68, it is a mid-to-high tier GPU, but it is not a top-tier card. The CPU’s percentile is 94, which is much higher, indicating that it is a top-tier CPU. The bottleneck at 4K is the GPU, which explains why the combo cannot rank higher in a game like Inside where 4K performance is a key differentiator. The data shows that the combo is better suited for 1440p and 1080p gaming, but the rank is against all resolutions, so it pulls the overall rank down.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the CPU and GPU provide insight into what other hardware would offer similar performance. For the CPU, the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX is a rival with an average benchmark score of 69875, which is 0.2% lower than the 9700F’s 69996 score. This means the Ryzen 9 7940HX would behave similarly in terms of CPU-bound tasks. The Intel Core i7-14700KF is another close rival, with an avg score of 70163, which is 0.2% higher than the 9700F. The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is also close, with a score of 69515, a delta of 0.7% lower. The Intel Core i7-14700K is 0.9% faster, with a score of 69355. In all cases, these CPUs are within 1% of the 9700F, meaning any of them would produce nearly identical frame rates in scenarios where the CPU is the limiting factor.

For the GPU, the Intel Arc B580 has an average score of 23021. The nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP, which scores 23061, a delta of -0.2%, meaning it is essentially equivalent. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 scores 22895, which is 0.6% lower, so it would also perform nearly identically. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 scores 23172, which is 0.7% higher, and the NVIDIA P106-100 scores 23249, which is 1.0% higher. In the context of Inside, any of these GPUs would produce the same frame rates at the same settings, as they are all within a 1% margin of the Arc B580. This means that if a user were to swap in a RTX 2080 or a RX 580 2048SP, they would not see a meaningful difference in FPS in this game. The RTX 3080 would be slightly faster, but the difference would be minimal, likely around 1-2 FPS in most situations.

FAQ

*Q: Can this PC run Inside at 4K with Ultra settings?*

A: No. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 58, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What is the highest quality preset that maintains 60 FPS at 2560x1440?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 averages 93 FPS, making it the best-looking playable option at that resolution.

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

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 271 FPS, while the High preset averages 136 FPS. This means Low is about 135 FPS higher, or roughly double the frame rate.

Q: What is the minimum frame rate recorded for this combo in the entire benchmark set?

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 83 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 with Medium settings. This is still above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck at 3840x2160?

A: The Intel Arc B580 GPU is the limiting factor at 4K. The frame rates at High and Ultra are almost identical (61 and 58), while the CPU is powerful enough to produce 123 FPS at Low at the same resolution, indicating the GPU cannot keep up.

Q: If I have a CPU from the nearest rival list, will the FPS change significantly?

A: No. The nearest CPU rivals (AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX, Intel Core i7-14700KF, AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, Intel Core i7-14700K) all have average benchmark scores within 0.7% of the Ryzen 7 9700F, so the frame rates would be virtually identical.

The Verdict

Yes, the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F + Intel Arc B580 can run Inside at a playable frame rate in most scenarios. The verdict is nuanced by resolution. At 1920x1080, the system is fully capable of running the game at Ultra settings with an average of 129 FPS, well above the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, the story is the same: Ultra settings produce an average of 93 FPS, ensuring a smooth experience. At 3840x2160, the system can still run the game, but with caveats. The High preset is the most demanding that clears 60 FPS, with a 61 FPS average. However, this is a razor-thin margin, and the Medium preset is a safer choice, offering a 98 FPS average and a minimum of 83 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is not playable, as it falls to 58 FPS. The data shows this combo is a solid choice for high-refresh-rate 1080p and 1440p gaming, but for 4K, it is best to stick with Medium to maintain a stable frame rate.