Microsoft Flight Simulator

The data for the Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the Intel Arc B570 in Microsoft Flight Simulator presents a clear picture of a system that is capable but requires careful settings management depending on the target resolution. The benchmark results show a consistent pattern where the simulation's heavy load on both processor and graphics card scales predictably with resolution and quality presets. At the 60 FPS threshold, this combination finds its sweet spot at 1080p and 1440p with specific settings, while 4K remains out of reach for smooth play. The measured frames per second across all tested configurations offer a detailed look at the performance envelope of this hardware pairing.

Best Settings per Resolution

The data indicates that the highest playable preset, defined as maintaining an average of at least 60 FPS, varies significantly by resolution. At 1920x1080, the system achieves its best playable experience with the Medium preset, where the average frame rate is 67 FPS. This is the most demanding setting that clears the 60 FPS bar at this resolution, as the High preset drops to an average of 50 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the performance ceiling is lower. The only setting that maintains an average above 60 FPS is Low, which produces an average of 69 FPS. The Medium preset at this resolution falls short with an average of 54 FPS, just under the playable threshold. For 3840x2160, no tested preset achieves an average of 60 FPS; the closest is Low at 51 FPS, which is still below the playable mark.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p that stays above 60 FPS?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 yields an average of 67 FPS, making it the highest quality setting that remains playable at this resolution.

Q: Can this system handle 1440p at Medium settings?

A: No, the data shows the Medium preset at 2560x1440 produces an average of 54 FPS, which falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: Is 4K gaming possible with this CPU and GPU combo?

A: Even at the Low preset in 3840x2160, the average frame rate is only 51 FPS, so no settings provide a playable experience at 4K.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from Low to Medium at 1080p?

A: The average frame rate drops from 86 FPS at Low to 67 FPS at Medium, a difference of 19 FPS.

Q: What is the frame rate range for the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: The average is 54 FPS, with a minimum of 46 FPS and a maximum of 62 FPS, indicating noticeable fluctuation around the playable threshold.

Q: Does the Ultra preset ever reach 60 FPS at any resolution?

A: No, the Ultra preset averages 48 FPS at 1080p, 39 FPS at 1440p, and 28 FPS at 4K, all well below the playable mark.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Based on the nearest rival data for the CPU and GPU, several other hardware combinations would exhibit similar behavior in Microsoft Flight Simulator. The Intel Core i5-14400F performs within 0.5% of several processors, including the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U (0.1% faster), the Intel Core i9-11900 (0.2% faster), and the AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS (0.2% slower). The Intel Core i7-12800H is 0.5% faster. These processors would likely produce nearly identical frame rates in CPU-bound scenarios.

For the graphics card, the Intel Arc B570 is closely matched by the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% faster) and the Intel Arc A750 (0.1% slower). The NVIDIA Quadro M4000M is 0.4% faster, while the AMD Radeon R9 M390X is 0.5% slower. Swapping the Arc B570 for any of these GPUs would result in a negligible change in overall performance, meaning the same settings and resolution recommendations would apply.

The Verdict

This PC configuration can run Microsoft Flight Simulator, but the playable envelope is clearly defined by the benchmark data. At 1920x1080, the system clears the 60 FPS threshold with both Low (86 FPS) and Medium (67 FPS) presets, making Medium the recommended choice for visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. At 2560x1440, only the Low preset achieves a playable average of 69 FPS; all higher settings fall below 60 FPS. At 3840x2160, no preset reaches the playable threshold, with the best result being 51 FPS at Low settings. The verdict is straightforward: this combo is viable for 1080p Medium and 1440p Low, but it is not suited for 4K play.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured frame rates reveals the performance scaling across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 86 FPS, which is the highest score recorded for this combo. The Medium preset averages 67 FPS, with a minimum of 57 FPS and a maximum of 77 FPS. High drops to 50 FPS, and Ultra falls to 48 FPS. At 2560x1440, Low averages 69 FPS, Medium averages 54 FPS with a range of 46 to 62 FPS, High averages 41 FPS, and Ultra averages 39 FPS. At 3840x2160, Low averages 51 FPS, Medium averages 40 FPS with a range of 34 to 46 FPS, High averages 30 FPS, and Ultra averages 28 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

In the overall database of tested combinations for Microsoft Flight Simulator, the Intel Core i5-14400F and Intel Arc B570 pair ranks 2988 out of 3714 tested combos. This places it in the lower portion of the ranking, indicating that while it is functional, many other hardware pairings achieve higher frame rates. The rank reflects the combined performance of the CPU and GPU, and the data suggests that this system is positioned below the median of tested configurations. This ranking is consistent with the measured FPS results, which show playable performance only at lower resolutions and settings.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data illustrates how the workload shifts between the CPU and GPU as resolution changes. At 1920x1080, the difference between Low (86 FPS) and Medium (67 FPS) presets is 19 FPS, while the jump from Medium to High is 17 FPS. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU has enough headroom to feed the GPU, and the frame rate is largely dependent on the graphics card's ability to handle increased visual complexity. The 1080p Ultra preset at 48 FPS shows that the GPU becomes the limiting factor at the highest settings.

At 2560x1440, the scaling is steeper: Low averages 69 FPS, Medium drops to 54 FPS, and High falls to 41 FPS. The larger gap between Low and Medium (15 FPS) compared to the 1080p equivalent (19 FPS) indicates that the GPU is starting to become more constrained as pixel count increases. The CPU, with its strong multi-core performance as evidenced by a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21645, is likely not the bottleneck at this resolution. At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the dominant factor, with Low averaging 51 FPS and Ultra dropping to 28 FPS. The CPU's role is diminished at 4K, as the graphics card struggles to process the higher resolution regardless of the processor's capabilities. The data shows that for this game, the GPU is the primary constraint at higher resolutions, while the CPU provides sufficient performance to avoid being a limiting factor at 1080p and 1440p.