Microsoft Flight Simulator

Similar Performance Alternatives

The Intel Core i9-14900K sits in a very tight cluster of high-end desktop and workstation processors. Its nearest rival is the Intel Core i9-14900KF, which scores 0.3% higher in average benchmark score. This effectively means the two chips are interchangeable in real-world performance, with the KF variant lacking integrated graphics but delivering nearly identical compute results. The Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus is 0.6% ahead, while the AMD EPYC 7413 leads by 1.2%, a margin that would be difficult to notice outside of heavily threaded server workloads. On the opposite side, the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 trails by 1.7%, placing the i9-14900K comfortably in the upper tier of processors, with a 95th percentile ranking among all CPUs.

The Intel Arc B370 presents a starkly different picture. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it at the 5th percentile among all GPUs, which is near the bottom of the database. The closest rivals are all legacy or entry-level parts: the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 is 0.2% ahead, the ATI Radeon HD 5770 leads by 0.5%, and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M is 0.7% faster. The AMD FirePro M2000 trails by 1.4%. This grouping indicates that the Arc B370, despite being a modern integrated solution with Xe3-LPG architecture, performs in the same bracket as graphics hardware from more than a decade ago. For users considering this combination, the CPU is not the limiting factor in any way; the GPU is the overwhelming bottleneck, and its nearest rivals show that performance will align with very old discrete graphics solutions rather than anything contemporary.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded data for Microsoft Flight Simulator shows that the GPU dominates performance across all resolutions and settings. This is evident from the FPS scaling pattern. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS is 50. Moving to 2560x1440 Low drops to 41 FPS, a reduction of 18%. At 3840x2160 Low, the average falls to 30 FPS, another 27% reduction. This steady decline with resolution scaling indicates that the render load is being handled by the GPU, and the CPU is not stepping in to compensate.

The same pattern holds for Medium settings. At 1920x1080 Medium, the average is 39 FPS. At 2560x1440 Medium, it drops to 32 FPS, an 18% decline. At 3840x2160 Medium, it falls to 23 FPS, a 28% drop from the 1440p figure. The consistency of these percentage declines across presets suggests that the Arc B370 is saturated at every resolution, and the i9-14900K has ample headroom that goes unused.

When comparing preset scaling at a fixed resolution, the GPU load also scales predictably. At 1920x1080, moving from Low to Medium reduces FPS from 50 to 39, a 22% penalty. From Medium to High, it drops from 39 to 30, a 23% penalty. From High to Ultra, it falls from 30 to 28, a smaller 7% penalty, which suggests that Ultra setting at this resolution is not as demanding relative to High as the lower tiers are relative to each other. At 2560x1440, the Low to Medium drop is 41 to 32, a 22% penalty, and Medium to High is 32 to 24, a 25% penalty. At 3840x2160, Low to Medium is 30 to 23, a 23% penalty, and Medium to High is 23 to 18, a 22% penalty.

The data indicates that the CPU plays a negligible role in determining frame rates for this game with this configuration. The i9-14900K, with its 24 cores and 32 threads, is far more capable than what Microsoft Flight Simulator requires at these settings. The bottleneck is entirely on the GPU side, and no amount of CPU headroom can mitigate the Arc B370's limited throughput. Users should not expect any settings combination to shift the balance toward CPU-bound behavior; the recorded FPS numbers are purely a function of GPU performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the lowest preset tested is Low, which produces an average FPS of 50. Medium settings reduce the average to 39 FPS, with a minimum of 33 and a maximum of 45. High settings yield an average of 30 FPS. Ultra settings produce an average of 28 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra is 22 FPS, which is a substantial range, but even the best case at Low falls short of the 60 FPS playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, Low settings produce an average of 41 FPS. Medium settings drop to 32 FPS on average, with a minimum of 27 and a maximum of 36. High settings average 24 FPS. Ultra settings average 23 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 18 FPS, slightly narrower than at 1080p, but the overall performance is lower across the board.

At 3840x2160, the highest resolution tested, Low settings average 30 FPS. Medium settings average 23 FPS, with a minimum of 20 and a maximum of 27. High settings average 18 FPS. Ultra settings average 17 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 13 FPS, which is the smallest absolute spread across resolutions, but the starting point is already very low.

Looking at the min and max values for Medium settings, the data shows tight ranges at each resolution. At 1920x1080, the range is 33 to 45 FPS, a 12 FPS swing. At 2560x1440, the range is 27 to 36 FPS, a 9 FPS swing. At 3840x2160, the range is 20 to 27 FPS, a 7 FPS swing. This tightening of the range at higher resolutions is consistent with the GPU being fully saturated, leaving less variance in frame delivery. The min values are within 85% of the averages in all three cases, indicating decent frame pacing rather than severe stuttering.

No settings combination at any resolution reaches 60 FPS. The closest is 1920x1080 Low at 50 FPS, which is 17% below the threshold. The recorded data does not include min or max values for Low, High, or Ultra presets, only for Medium, so the analysis of frame consistency is limited to that one preset per resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i9-14900K and Intel Arc B370 ranks 3428 out of 3714 tested combos for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the bottom 8% of all configurations in the database. The ranking is driven almost entirely by the GPU, as the CPU alone sits at the 95th percentile among all processors. The wide disparity between the CPU's high percentile and the combo's low rank underscores how severely the Arc B370 limits the overall experience.

For context, a combo ranked 3428 means there are 286 tested combinations that perform worse. However, the overwhelming majority of systems in the database outperform this pairing. Given that the Arc B370 is an integrated graphics solution with a 25 W TDP, this result is not surprising. The i9-14900K is a top-tier desktop processor, but in this pairing, its capabilities are effectively wasted because the GPU cannot translate CPU performance into higher frame rates.

The combo rank also reflects the game's demands. Microsoft Flight Simulator is known for heavy rendering loads, particularly at higher resolutions and presets. The measured FPS data confirms that this game stresses the GPU far more than the CPU, and the Arc B370 simply does not have the throughput to maintain playable frame rates. Users considering this combination should expect a rank that places them near the bottom of the database, with little room for improvement through settings adjustments.

The Verdict

This PC cannot run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 60 FPS or above at any resolution or settings preset. The verdict by resolution is clear: at 3840x2160, no settings combination is playable, with the best case being Low at 30 FPS. At 2560x1440, no settings combination is playable, with Low at 41 FPS as the best case. At 1920x1080, no settings combination is playable, with Low at 50 FPS as the best case.

The playable threshold is defined as 60 FPS, and the recorded data shows that every preset at every resolution falls short. The closest approach to playability is 1920x1080 Low at 50 FPS, which is 10 FPS below the threshold. At higher resolutions, the shortfall grows significantly: 2560x1440 Low is 19 FPS below, and 3840x2160 Low is 30 FPS below. Even the most demanding preset, Ultra at 3840x2160, produces 17 FPS, which is 43 FPS below the threshold.

The verdict is unambiguous: this configuration is not suitable for playing Microsoft Flight Simulator at a target of 60 FPS. Users who require smooth performance would need to consider a different GPU, as the CPU is not the limiting factor. The i9-14900K has more than enough processing power for this game, but the Arc B370 cannot deliver the necessary frame rates.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, there are no settings that achieve 60 FPS. The best recorded result is Low at 30 FPS, which is half the target. No recommendation can be made for this resolution, as even the lowest preset fails to reach playable performance.

At 2560x1440, there are no settings that achieve 60 FPS. The best recorded result is Low at 41 FPS, which is 19 FPS short. As with 4K, no settings recommendation is possible because the threshold is not met.

At 1920x1080, there are no settings that achieve 60 FPS. The best recorded result is Low at 50 FPS, which is 10 FPS short. This is the closest any preset comes to the playable threshold, but it still falls below.

Since no settings combination at any resolution reaches 60 FPS, the database records no best settings for any resolution. The verdict by resolution lists all playable settings as empty, and the best settings as null. Users who must play this game with this hardware would need to accept frame rates well below 60 FPS, or reduce the resolution below 1920x1080, which is not covered in the measured data.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combination can achieve?

A: The highest recorded average FPS is 50, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Does the Intel Core i9-14900K help improve FPS in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: No, the data indicates the GPU is the bottleneck. The CPU performs at the 95th percentile among all processors, yet the combo ranks 3428 out of 3714, showing that CPU headroom does not translate to higher frame rates.

Q: Is this PC playable at 2560x1440?

A: No, the best result at 2560x1440 is 41 FPS on Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, which is 0.2% below the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 and 0.7% below the AMD Radeon HD 7650M. It ranks at the 5th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: What is the frame range for Medium settings at 1920x1080?

A: The recorded minimum is 33 FPS and the maximum is 45 FPS, with an average of 39 FPS.

Q: Can this PC run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 3840x2160?

A: No, the best result at 3840x2160 is 30 FPS on Low settings, which is 30 FPS below the playable threshold. Ultra settings produce only 17 FPS.