Barony

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D paired with the Intel Arc B390 lands at rank 3300 out of 3717 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations. This is a clear signal that the combination is heavily constrained by its graphics component, as the CPU alone is a solid performer in the 77th percentile of all processors. The ranking suggests that while the processor has ample headroom, the integrated GPU creates a significant bottleneck that defines the entire gaming experience at every resolution and settings level.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's position at 3300 out of 3717 tested combinations reflects a fundamental imbalance between the two components. The Ryzen 7 5700X3D brings substantial processing power to the table, but the Arc B390's performance profile drags the overall ranking down. In the database's overall CPU rankings, the 5700X3D sits at the 77th percentile, meaning it outperforms over three-quarters of all processors tested. Its average benchmark score of 24709 places it within a tight cluster of rivals: the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X3D scores 24728 (0.1% higher), the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX scores 24822 (0.5% higher), the Intel Core i5-12450HX scores 24576 (0.5% lower), and the Intel Core i5-11600 scores 24563 (0.6% lower). These deltas are negligible in real-world terms, indicating the 5700X3D is firmly in the mid-to-upper tier of CPU performance.

The GPU tells a different story. The Arc B390 ranks in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, a stark contrast to its CPU counterpart. Its average benchmark score of 1482 puts it in direct competition with legacy mobile and entry-level desktop parts: the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX scores 1463 (1.3% lower), the NVIDIA GeForce 800M scores 1460 (1.5% lower), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM scores 1446 (2.5% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 scores 1443 (2.7% lower). This places the Arc B390 at the very bottom of the GPU performance spectrum, which explains why the combo ranks so poorly despite the capable processor.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Panther Lake chip with Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz, which is a wide frequency range that allows it to scale up under load. The GPU has 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster operation pipelines, along with 12 ray tracing cores. Its raw compute capabilities are rated at 7.680 TFLOPS for FP32 and 15.36 TFLOPS for FP16 (2:1 ratio), with a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s.

Memory configuration is entirely system-dependent. The B390 uses System Shared memory with System Shared bandwidth, meaning it draws from the main system's DDR4 RAM rather than having dedicated VRAM. This creates a significant performance limitation, as memory latency and bandwidth are shared with the CPU. The memory bus is also System Shared, which further constrains performance in memory-intensive scenarios. The GPU supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, so it has modern API support, but the hardware simply lacks the throughput needed for demanding games like Barony.

In Barony specifically, the GPU's limitations manifest clearly. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 159 FPS, which is playable, but the frame rate drops precipitously as settings increase. The data shows that the GPU is the primary constraint in this pairing, as the CPU's performance headroom far exceeds what the integrated graphics can utilize. The Arc B390's 80 W TDP and IGP slot width indicate it is designed for efficiency rather than raw gaming performance.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling across resolutions reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p, the combo delivers 159 FPS on Low settings, 118 FPS on Medium, 102 FPS on High, and 73 FPS on Ultra. Moving to 1440p, these numbers drop to 100 FPS on Low, 75 FPS on Medium, 64 FPS on High, and 46 FPS on Ultra. At 4K, the performance falls further to 53 FPS on Low, 39 FPS on Medium, 34 FPS on High, and 24 FPS on Ultra.

The percentage drops from 1080p to 4K are telling. On Low settings, the drop from 159 FPS to 53 FPS represents a 67% reduction. Medium settings decline from 118 FPS to 39 FPS, a 67% drop as well. High settings go from 102 FPS to 34 FPS, a 67% reduction. Ultra settings fall from 73 FPS to 24 FPS, which is a 67% drop. This consistent 67% reduction across all settings levels indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor at every configuration. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the scaling would show different percentages at different settings, as lower settings would shift more load onto the processor.

The data suggests that resolution scaling has a predictable impact: each step up from 1080p to 1440p to 4K reduces frame rates by roughly 35-40% at each step. The 1440p to 4K transition on High settings drops from 64 FPS to 34 FPS, a 47% reduction, while the 1080p to 1440p transition on the same settings drops from 102 FPS to 64 FPS, a 37% reduction. This increasing penalty at higher resolutions confirms that the Arc B390's limited fill rate and memory bandwidth cannot keep up with pixel count demands.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo playable at 1080p for Barony?

A: Yes, at 1080p the combo achieves 159 FPS on Low, 118 FPS on Medium, 102 FPS on High, and 73 FPS on Ultra. All settings levels produce playable frame rates at this resolution, with the minimum recorded FPS at Medium being 101 FPS and the maximum 136 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Ryzen 7 5700X3D has an average benchmark score of 24709, which is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X3D at 24728 (0.1% difference) and the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX at 24822 (0.5% difference). It slightly edges out the Intel Core i5-12450HX at 24576 (0.5% ahead) and the Intel Core i5-11600 at 24563 (0.6% ahead).

Q: What GPU performance tier does the Arc B390 belong to?

A: The Arc B390 sits in the 9th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 1482. It is closely matched with the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3% lower), GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5% lower), GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5% lower), and GeForce GT 710 (1443, 2.7% lower).

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

A: At 4K, the combo delivers 53 FPS on Low, 39 FPS on Medium, 34 FPS on High, and 24 FPS on Ultra. Only the Low settings level exceeds 30 FPS, making 4K playable only at the lowest settings. Medium and High are marginal, while Ultra falls below the playable threshold.

Q: What is the best settings level for 1440p gaming?

A: At 1440p, the combo achieves 100 FPS on Low, 75 FPS on Medium, 64 FPS on High, and 46 FPS on Ultra. Medium settings provide a good balance with 75 FPS average and a minimum of 64 FPS, while High is still playable at 64 FPS. Ultra dips to 46 FPS, which may be acceptable for slower-paced play.

Q: How does the GPU compare to entry-level discrete options?

A: The Arc B390 is an integrated GPU with performance in the bottom 10% of all graphics cards. Its benchmark score of 1482 places it alongside the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 (1443), which is a decade-old entry-level discrete card. The B390 outperforms these older parts by 1.3% to 2.7%, but the difference is minimal.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best performance. Low settings produce an average of 159 FPS, Medium reaches 118 FPS with a minimum of 101 FPS and a maximum of 136 FPS, High achieves 102 FPS, and Ultra drops to 73 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 86 FPS, representing a 54% performance loss from the lowest to highest settings.

At 2560x1440, performance scales down predictably. Low settings average 100 FPS, Medium averages 75 FPS with a minimum of 64 FPS and a maximum of 86 FPS, High averages 64 FPS, and Ultra averages 46 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 54 FPS, a 54% reduction. The Medium settings minimum of 64 FPS ensures smooth gameplay in most scenarios.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limitations become severe. Low settings average 53 FPS, Medium averages 39 FPS with a minimum of 33 FPS and a maximum of 45 FPS, High averages 34 FPS, and Ultra averages 24 FPS. The drop from 1080p Low to 4K Low is 106 FPS, a 67% reduction. Ultra at 4K falls below 30 FPS, which is generally considered the minimum for playable performance.

The Medium settings data provides the most complete picture, with minimum and maximum FPS recorded at all three resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the 101-136 FPS range shows consistent performance. At 1440p Medium, the 64-86 FPS range indicates some frame time variance but remains smooth. At 4K Medium, the 33-45 FPS range shows significant dips that could cause stuttering.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D is a desktop processor from the 5000 series, built on Zen 3 architecture with the Vermeer codename. It features 8 cores and 16 threads with a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. The processor has a 105 W TDP and uses the AMD Socket AM4 interface. Its cache configuration is substantial: 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 512 KB of L2 cache per core, and 96 MB of shared L3 cache. This large L3 cache is particularly beneficial for gaming workloads that exhibit high cache locality.

The CPU's benchmark results demonstrate strong multi-threaded performance. In Cinebench R23, it scores 22366 in multi-core and 3157 in single-core. Cinebench R20 shows 9393 multi-core and 1325 single-core. Cinebench R15 produces 2254 multi-core and 318 single-core. Geekbench reports 11086 multi-core and 1849 single-core. PassMark results show 26318 multi-thread and 2970 single-thread. These scores place the 5700X3D firmly in the upper mid-range for CPU performance.

The processor's memory support includes DDR4 with dual-channel configuration and 51.2 GB/s bandwidth, along with ECC memory support. It provides PCIe Gen 4 with 20 lanes from the CPU. The 7 nm process node from TSMC includes 8,850 million transistors on a 74 mm² die. The CPU was released in January 2024 with a launch MSRP of $249.

In the context of Barony, the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU bottleneck. The 5700X3D has more than enough processing power to handle the game's logic and physics, as evidenced by its 77th percentile ranking. The 3D V-Cache technology is particularly well-suited for gaming, and the 96 MB L3 cache helps reduce memory latency in cache-sensitive workloads. However, the Arc B390's integrated nature means the CPU must also handle memory bandwidth allocation for the GPU, which creates additional contention.

The CPU's nearest rivals in overall benchmark performance include the Ryzen 5 7600X3D (24728), Ryzen 9 5900HX (24822), Core i5-12450HX (24576), and Core i5-11600 (24563). All of these processors are within 0.6% of the 5700X3D's score, making them functionally equivalent in most gaming scenarios. The 5700X3D's advantage lies in its 3D V-Cache, which provides a measurable benefit in games that rely on large data sets being accessed frequently.

The data indicates that upgrading the GPU would yield dramatic improvements in Barony performance. The current combination is limited by the Arc B390's 9th percentile ranking, and the CPU has substantial headroom for more capable graphics hardware. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 159 FPS, but this is likely constrained by the GPU even at low settings. A discrete GPU with even mid-range performance would unlock significantly higher frame rates, given the CPU's demonstrated capability in multi-threaded workloads.