Microsoft Flight Simulator

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and Intel Arc B570 combination delivers a playable experience in Microsoft Flight Simulator only at 1080p and 1440p, with 4K requiring a significant compromise on visual fidelity. At 1080p, the combo achieves 67 FPS on Medium settings, while at 1440p, only the Low preset maintains an average above the 60 FPS threshold. The data indicates this pairing is best suited for gamers prioritizing smooth frame rates over maximum graphical detail, as the Ultra preset struggles to maintain playability at any resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates reveal a clear performance hierarchy across resolutions and presets. At 1920x1080, the combination produces an average of 86 FPS on Low settings, which is the highest frame rate recorded in the entire dataset. Moving to Medium settings at 1080p, the average drops to 67 FPS, with a minimum of 57 FPS and a maximum of 77 FPS, keeping the experience comfortably within playable territory. High settings at 1080p yield 50 FPS average, while Ultra falls to 48 FPS, both below the 60 FPS threshold.

At 2560x1440, performance degrades predictably. The Low preset delivers 69 FPS average, which is the only playable option at this resolution. Medium settings produce 54 FPS average, with a minimum of 46 FPS and maximum of 62 FPS, indicating noticeable frame dips during demanding scenes. High settings average 41 FPS, and Ultra drops to 39 FPS, rendering both presets unsuitable for smooth gameplay.

The 3840x2160 results show the most severe limitations. At 4K, even Low settings only reach 51 FPS average, while Medium achieves 40 FPS average with a minimum of 34 FPS and maximum of 46 FPS. High settings average 30 FPS, and Ultra falls to 28 FPS. None of the 4K presets reach the 60 FPS playable threshold, meaning users must either accept sub-60 frame rates or reduce resolution.

The scaling between resolutions demonstrates a consistent performance penalty. From 1080p to 1440p, the Low preset drops from 86 FPS to 69 FPS, a reduction of roughly 20%. From 1440p to 4K, the same preset falls to 51 FPS, another 26% decline. The Medium preset shows similar trends, with 67 FPS at 1080p, 54 FPS at 1440p, and 40 FPS at 4K. These figures suggest the GPU becomes the dominant bottleneck as resolution increases, particularly at 4K where the frame rate collapses across all presets.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU and GPU each have nearby rivals that would produce comparable results in this game. The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X, with an average benchmark score of 57498, sits in a tight cluster of processors. The AMD EPYC 9015 scores 57555, a marginal 0.1% difference, making it the closest performance match. The AMD EPYC 7313 scores 57399, 0.2% below the 9900X, while the Intel Core i9-14900 scores 58115, placing it 1.1% ahead. The Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M scores 58323, 1.4% ahead. These deltas are all within 1.4%, meaning any of these processors would deliver nearly identical CPU-bound performance in Microsoft Flight Simulator.

For the GPU, the Intel Arc B570 posts an average benchmark score of 20556. The nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile, which scores 20534, just 0.1% behind. The Intel Arc A750 scores 20582, 0.1% ahead of the B570, representing the closest desktop alternative. The NVIDIA Quadro M4000M scores 20480, 0.4% behind, and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X scores 20662, 0.5% ahead. All four rivals fall within a 0.5% band, so gamers considering this combo could expect virtually identical frame rates from any of these GPUs.

The practical implication is that swapping to any of these rival components would not meaningfully change the measured FPS. The CPU-side alternatives are all within 1.4% of each other, and the GPU-side alternatives are all within 0.5%, so the verdict for this game would remain unchanged: playable at 1080p and 1440p Low, with 4K falling short of the playability standard.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data shows a clear division of labor between the CPU and GPU across different resolutions. At 1080p, the CPU plays a more significant role, as the frame rates across presets show relatively modest scaling. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 38 FPS (86 to 48), which suggests the GPU is not fully saturated and CPU performance contributes meaningfully to the final frame rate.

As resolution increases to 1440p, the GPU becomes more influential. The spread between Low and Ultra narrows to 30 FPS (69 to 39), indicating that pixel throughput demands are starting to limit performance. At 4K, the GPU dominates entirely, with the spread between Low and Ultra shrinking to just 23 FPS (51 to 28). The fact that even Low settings at 4K cannot break 60 FPS confirms that the Arc B570's rasterization capabilities are the primary constraint at this resolution.

The scaling between presets at each resolution reinforces this analysis. At 1080p, Medium delivers 67 FPS and High drops to 50 FPS, a 25% penalty for the higher preset. At 1440p, the same preset transition costs 13 FPS (54 to 41), a 24% reduction. At 4K, Medium to High costs 10 FPS (40 to 30), a 25% drop. This consistency across resolutions suggests the CPU overhead for each preset tier is similar, but the absolute frame rates are dictated by GPU throughput at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 4K?

A: No. The data shows no 4K preset reaches the 60 FPS playable threshold. The best 4K result is 51 FPS on Low settings, with Medium at 40 FPS, High at 30 FPS, and Ultra at 28 FPS.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 1440p?

A: Only the Low preset achieves playable performance at 1440p, averaging 69 FPS. Medium falls to 54 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the Ultra preset perform at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, Ultra averages 48 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold. The most demanding playable preset at 1080p is Medium, averaging 67 FPS.

Q: Which component limits performance at 4K?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at 4K. The Intel Arc B570 cannot maintain 60 FPS even on Low settings at 3840x2160, indicating the pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth are insufficient for this resolution.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 2988 out of 3714 tested combinations in Microsoft Flight Simulator, placing it in the lower half of all tested systems.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the CPU plays a larger role, as evidenced by the 38 FPS spread between Low and Ultra presets. The frame rate scaling suggests the GPU is not fully saturated at this resolution, allowing CPU performance to influence results.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and Intel Arc B570 combination ranks 2988 out of 3714 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator, placing it in the bottom 20% of all tested systems. This ranking reflects the GPU's limitations, as the CPU itself performs in the 92nd percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU sits in the 65th percentile among all GPUs. The disparity between the component percentiles suggests the Arc B570 is the constraining factor in this pairing.

The rank position indicates that most tested combinations deliver better performance in this flight simulator. The 3714 total combos include systems with more powerful GPUs, which would be necessary for higher presets and resolutions. The 2988 rank means roughly 726 combinations perform worse, placing this build in the lower-middle tier of the benchmark database.

The CPU's strong benchmark scores — including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32172 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 22174 — do not translate into superior gaming performance at higher resolutions. The GPU's average benchmark score of 20556 and its Passmark G3D score of 14195 indicate mid-range rasterization capability, which aligns with the measured frame rates in this game.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Medium, with an average of 67 FPS. This preset provides the best visual quality while staying above the playability threshold. The Low preset offers higher headroom at 86 FPS, but Medium is the optimal balance of fidelity and performance.

At 2560x1440, only the Low preset achieves playable performance, averaging 69 FPS. The Medium preset falls to 54 FPS, missing the 60 FPS target. Users at this resolution must accept Low settings to maintain smooth gameplay, as no other preset reaches the playable threshold.

At 3840x2160, no preset achieves 60 FPS. The closest option is Low at 51 FPS, which still falls below the playability standard. The verdict data shows no playable settings at 4K, meaning users must lower the resolution to 1440p or below to achieve a playable experience with this combination.