Archeage

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the Intel Arc B580 presents a curious case in Archeage, a 2014 MMORPG whose performance characteristics are heavily dictated by settings and resolution. The measured data reveals a configuration that can deliver smooth frame rates at mainstream resolutions but quickly buckles under the weight of 4K and maximum graphical presets.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, but the severity depends entirely on the preset. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 124.6 at 1920x1080 to 84.1 at 2560x1440, a 32.5% reduction, and then to 47 at 3840x2160, a 62.3% drop from the 1080p baseline. This scaling suggests that even at Low settings, the GPU is becoming a significant limiting factor as pixel count increases, though the CPU is still feeding frames adequately at the lower resolutions.

The Medium preset tells a similar story: 112.7 FPS at 1080p, 73.9 FPS at 1440p, and 41.7 FPS at 4K. The progression from 1080p to 1440p is a 34.4% decrease, while the 4K result is 63.0% below the 1080p figure. The High preset shows 74.1 FPS at 1080p, 47.4 FPS at 1440p, and 26.7 FPS at 4K, with the 4K result being 64.0% lower than the 1080p score.

The Ultra preset is where the combination collapses. At 1080p, it manages 49.8 FPS, but this drops to 36.3 FPS at 1440p and a nearly unplayable 23 FPS at 4K. The scaling from 1080p to 4K represents a 53.8% reduction. Notably, the gap between High and Ultra at 1080p is 24.3 FPS, while at 4K it is only 3.7 FPS, indicating that the GPU is saturated at higher resolutions regardless of the preset.

The data indicates that at 1080p, the CPU maintains enough headroom to push the Arc B580 to respectable levels, but as resolution climbs, the GPU's workload expands dramatically. The 4K results are consistently poor across all presets, with the best being 47 FPS at Low, suggesting that 4K is not a viable target for this combo in Archeage. The limiting component at 1440p and above is clearly the GPU, while 1080p appears to be a balance point where both components contribute to the final frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations for Archeage, this pairing sits at rank 1351 out of 1727 combos. That places it in the lower 21.8% of all tested configurations, which is a sobering statistic for a CPU and GPU that individually hold respectable benchmark positions.

The Intel Core i5-9400 sits at the 50th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 2305. Its nearest rivals are remarkably close: the Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2300 (a delta of 0.2%), the Intel Core i3-1125G4 scores 2299 (0.2%), and the Intel Xeon E-2134 scores 2295 (0.4%). Even the Intel Core i7-8809G, which scores higher at 2319, is only 0.6% above the i5-9400. This indicates the CPU is a solid mid-range performer, but not a standout.

The Intel Arc B580 performs better in its own percentile ranking, sitting at the 66th percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 23021. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon 760M, scores 22999 (a 0.1% delta), while the NVIDIA P106-100 scores 22950 (0.3%). The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 scores 23181, which is 0.7% higher, and the RTX 4060 Mobile is 1.3% lower at 22729. The B580 is a competent mid-range GPU, yet the Archeage ranking shows that game-specific performance can diverge significantly from synthetic averages.

The rank of 1351 out of 1727 combos suggests that Archeage is not kind to this particular pairing. The game appears to favor other hardware configurations, and the measured frame rates at 4K and Ultra settings drag the overall ranking down. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 124.6 FPS, which is competitive, but the inability to maintain playable frame rates at higher settings and resolutions hurts its standing. The data implies that while each component is individually capable, their combined performance in this MMORPG is below average.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear picture of which presets offer the best experience. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 124.6 FPS, Medium 112.7 FPS, and High 74.1 FPS. For competitive play or smooth exploration, Low or Medium at 1080p are the only options that provide triple-digit frame rates. The jump from Low to Medium costs 11.9 FPS, but the visual improvement is likely worth it for most players.

At 2560x1440, the situation changes. Low yields 84.1 FPS, Medium 73.9 FPS, and High 47.4 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p is the sweet spot for this resolution, offering nearly 74 FPS while maintaining a balance between visual quality and responsiveness. High at 1440p is playable but dips below 50 FPS, which may be noticeable in crowded areas. The Ultra preset at 1440p, at 36.3 FPS, is not recommended.

For 4K, no preset is genuinely playable. Low achieves 47 FPS, Medium 41.7 FPS, and High 26.7 FPS. The Ultra preset at 23 FPS is a slideshow. The data suggests that 4K should be avoided entirely, and users should either drop to 1440p or accept a Low preset at 4K if they insist on the resolution.

The best experience per the measured rows is the Medium preset at 1920x1080, which offers 112.7 FPS and a noticeable visual upgrade over Low. For those with 1440p monitors, Medium at 73.9 FPS is the recommended configuration. The Ultra preset is not viable at any resolution, with its best result being 49.8 FPS at 1080p, which is inferior to High at 1440p.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and preset combination for this hardware?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 delivers 112.7 FPS average, which is the highest frame rate with a substantial visual quality improvement over Low. At 1440p, Medium is also the best choice at 73.9 FPS.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Archeage?

A: The data shows the best 4K result is 47 FPS at Low settings. Medium drops to 41.7 FPS, High to 26.7 FPS, and Ultra to 23 FPS. None of these are ideal for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the Intel Core i5-9400 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305. The Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2300 (0.2% lower), the Intel Core i3-1125G4 scores 2299 (0.2% lower), and the Intel Xeon E-2134 scores 2295 (0.4% lower). The Intel Core i7-8809G is 0.6% higher at 2319.

Q: What is the GPU's benchmark percentile and how does it rank against the RTX 4060?

A: The Intel Arc B580 is at the 66th percentile among all GPUs with an average score of 23021. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 scores 23181, which is 0.7% higher, making the B580 marginally slower in synthetic benchmarks.

Q: Why is the Ultra preset so much slower than High?

A: At 1080p, Ultra yields 49.8 FPS versus 74.1 FPS for High, a 24.3 FPS difference. At 1440p, Ultra is 36.3 FPS versus 47.4 FPS for High. The gap narrows at 4K (23 FPS vs 26.7 FPS), indicating the GPU is already maxed out at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the overall rank of this combo among tested configurations?

A: This pairing ranks 1351 out of 1727 tested combos in Archeage, placing it in the lower 21.8% of all configurations.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is the dominant component in this pairing, and its characteristics directly explain the measured frame rates. The GPU features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is generous for a game from 2014, and VRAM capacity is unlikely to be a bottleneck in Archeage.

The clock speeds are fixed at 2670 MHz for both base and boost, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). The GPU's 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 80 ROPs give it a pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 427.2 GTexel/s. The FP32 performance is 13.67 TFLOPS, which is adequate for an older MMORPG.

The B580's benchmark results show a Passmark G3D score of 15748 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 109672. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 3068. These numbers place it above the AMD Radeon 760M (0.1% higher average score) and the NVIDIA P106-100 (0.3% higher), but slightly below the RTX 4060 (0.7% lower).

In Archeage specifically, the GPU's role becomes evident when examining the scaling. At 1080p Low, the B580 achieves 124.6 FPS, but this drops to 47 FPS at 4K Low. The pixel throughput requirement at 4K is over four times that of 1080p, and despite the 456.0 GB/s bandwidth, the GPU cannot maintain high frame rates at that resolution. The TDP of 190 W and the PCIe 4.0 x8 interface are adequate for this workload, but the data shows the B580 is the limiting factor at resolutions above 1080p.

The GPU's 12 GB VRAM is ample for Archeage's textures, even at Ultra settings, so memory capacity is not the issue. Instead, the raw compute and fill rate are insufficient for 4K Ultra, evidenced by the 23 FPS result. The B580 is a capable mid-range card, but Archeage's engine appears to be sensitive to the GPU's architecture, resulting in the poor combo ranking.