Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2 with the Intel Core i5-14400F and Intel Arc B390 produces a combination that sits near the bottom of the tested hierarchy, ranking 2535th out of 2870 combos. The data shows a system defined by a stark contrast: a capable mid-range CPU paired with an integrated graphics solution that severely limits frame rates, particularly at higher resolutions and settings. The following analysis breaks down the measured performance data to explain where this combo excels, where it struggles, and what the numbers indicate about the system's balance.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall performance ranking of this CPU and GPU combination in Counter-Strike 2?

A: The combo ranks 2535th out of 2870 tested combinations. This places it in the 12th percentile of all tested combos, indicating that the vast majority of systems deliver higher average frame rates in this title.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Arc B390's average 3DMark Steel Nomad score is 1482. It is 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (score 1463), 1.5% ahead of the GeForce 800M (score 1460), 2.5% ahead of the GeForce GT 625 OEM (score 1446), and 2.7% ahead of the GeForce GT 710 (score 1443). These are extremely small margins, indicating all five GPUs perform at a similar, very low level.

Q: What is the maximum average frame rate achieved by this combo, and at what settings?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 179, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This is the only configuration that surpasses the 170 FPS mark, with the next highest being 149 FPS at 1080p Medium.

Q: What is the difference in performance between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the average frame rate drops from 179 FPS on Low to 86 FPS on Ultra. This represents a performance decrease of 93 FPS, or roughly 52%, when moving from the lowest to the highest preset.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU act as the primary bottleneck in this system?

A: The data strongly suggests the GPU is the limiting factor. The Intel Core i5-14400F has a high average benchmark score of 32279 and ranks in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs. In contrast, the Arc B390's average score is 1482, ranking in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. The massive disparity in relative performance indicates the integrated GPU cannot keep pace with the CPU.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded in the measured data?

A: The only minimum FPS values provided are for Medium settings. At 3840x2160, the minimum FPS is 47. At 2560x1440, it is 84. At 1920x1080, it is 126.

How This Combo Ranks

The comboRankInGame field provides a clear data point: this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-14400F and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2535 out of 2870 tested combinations in Counter-Strike 2. This is a poor ranking, placing the system in the bottom 12% of all tested hardware configurations. To contextualize this, the ranking implies that over 88% of other tested combos deliver a higher average frame rate in this specific game.

This low ranking is almost entirely attributable to the GPU. The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with a percentile rank of 9 among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 1482 places it in a performance tier with ancient and low-end discrete GPUs like the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 and GT 520MX, which it only beats by margins of 2.7% and 1.3% respectively. The CPU, on the other hand, is a comparatively powerful component. The Intel Core i5-14400F has a percentile rank of 83 among all CPUs and an average benchmark score of 32279. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U (0.1% ahead) and the Intel Core i9-11900 (0.2% ahead), showing it holds its own against much more expensive processors.

The data indicates a fundamental imbalance. The CPU is capable of high performance, but it is paired with a GPU whose performance level is comparable to hardware from over a decade ago. In a game like Counter-Strike 2, where frame rates are paramount, this combination is heavily constrained by the graphics processor, leading to its low position in the overall combo ranking.

Resolution Scaling

Analyzing the average FPS across the three tested resolutions reveals how the system scales under increasing pixel loads. Starting at 1920x1080 on Low settings, the combo delivers 179 FPS. At 2560x1440, this drops to 118 FPS, and at 4K (3840x2160), it falls to 66 FPS. This is a steep decline, with the 4K average being only 37% of the 1080p average.

This scaling pattern is a classic indicator of a GPU-bound system. The CPU has enough headroom to feed frames at 1080p, but as the resolution increases, the workload on the graphics processor grows exponentially. The Arc B390's performance collapses under this load. The difference between 1080p and 1440p is a 61 FPS drop, and moving from 1440p to 4K results in another 52 FPS loss. The data suggests that the integrated GPU's shading units (1536), texture mapping units (48), and render output units (24) are simply overwhelmed at higher resolutions.

The story is similar on High settings. The system averages 111 FPS at 1080p, 73 FPS at 1440p, and 41 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K is a 70 FPS reduction. While the CPU is likely still the primary driver of the 1080p score, the rapid falloff at 1440p and 4K confirms that the GPU is the component determining the performance ceiling in most scenarios. The system's frame rates are highly sensitive to resolution, which is the opposite of what would be observed in a CPU-bound scenario.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides a complete grid of average frame rates for three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 179 FPS on Low, 149 FPS on Medium, 111 FPS on High, and 86 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset has a minimum FPS of 126 and a maximum of 171, showing some frame time variance but generally smooth performance.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS figures are 118 on Low, 98 on Medium, 73 on High, and 57 on Ultra. The Medium preset again has the only reported min/max values, with a minimum of 84 FPS and a maximum of 113 FPS. This resolution still provides playable frame rates on Low and Medium, but the drop to 73 FPS on High and 57 FPS on Ultra indicates a significant performance penalty.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles. The average FPS is 66 on Low, 55 on Medium, 41 on High, and 32 on Ultra. The Medium preset has a minimum of 47 FPS and a maximum of 63 FPS. None of the 4K configurations achieve an average of 60 FPS, meaning the experience will not be smooth at this resolution. The data shows a clear progression: performance scales linearly with the settings preset, with a consistent gap between each tier (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) at every resolution. The gap between Low and Ultra is 93 FPS at 1080p, 61 FPS at 1440p, and 34 FPS at 4K.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is the decisive factor in this combo's performance. Its specifications reveal an integrated part with a 3 nm process node and a boost clock of 2500 MHz. It has 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 24 ROPs, along with 12 ray tracing cores. Its peak FP32 performance is listed as 7.680 TFLOPS. However, its memory configuration is "System Shared," meaning it uses a portion of the system's main memory rather than dedicated VRAM.

This shared memory architecture is a critical limitation. The bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent," which means performance is contingent on the speed of the system's DDR4 or DDR5 memory and the memory bus. This is in stark contrast to a discrete GPU with its own high-bandwidth memory. The data shows that this configuration leads to a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of just 1482, placing it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs.

The benchmark results indicate that the Arc B390 performs at a level similar to the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710, a very old entry-level card. Its 2.7% lead over the GT 710 in the synthetic test does not translate into a compelling gaming experience at higher settings. In Counter-Strike 2, the GPU's limitations are the primary cause of the low average FPS at 4K and at Ultra settings across all resolutions. The data suggests the GPU is the bottleneck, and its performance is insufficient for high-refresh-rate competitive play except at the lowest settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend entirely on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For competitive play where high frame rates are essential, 1920x1080 with Low settings is the only configuration that provides a significant margin. The 179 FPS average is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate commonly used by competitive players.

If a player prefers 1080p Medium settings, the 149 FPS average is still very good and provides a better visual experience. The min FPS of 126 indicates that frame drops will be noticeable but not catastrophic. Moving to High settings at 1080p yields 111 FPS, which is playable but may not be sufficient for the highest refresh rate monitors. Ultra settings at 1080p should be avoided, as the 86 FPS average is a substantial drop from the Medium preset.

At 2560x1440, Low settings (118 FPS) and Medium settings (98 FPS) are the only viable options for a smooth experience. High (73 FPS) and Ultra (57 FPS) fall below the 144 FPS threshold and are not recommended for fast-paced gameplay. At 3840x2160, no setting provides a consistently smooth experience. The highest average is 66 FPS on Low, which is below the standard 60 FPS target for most users and far below what is needed for competitive play. The data suggests that 4K is not a practical resolution for this combo in Counter-Strike 2.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F is a powerful processor that is largely underutilized by this combo's GPU. It features 10 cores and 16 threads, a base clock of 2.50 GHz, and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. It has 20 MB of shared L3 cache and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory. Its benchmark scores are robust, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21645 and a single-core score of 3055. Its Geekbench multi-core score is 11268, and its single-core score is 2058.

These scores show a processor that ranks in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs, comfortably outperforming its nearest rivals like the Intel Core i9-11900 and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U by small margins. The CPU's high single-thread performance is particularly relevant for Counter-Strike 2, a game that is often sensitive to single-core speed. The data suggests that the i5-14400F is more than capable of handling the game's physics and game logic calculations.

However, the measured FPS data shows that this CPU power is not being fully realized. At 4K resolution, the average FPS on Low settings is 66, which is a low score for a CPU of this caliber. The bottleneck is clearly the Intel Arc B390. The CPU is likely waiting for the GPU to finish rendering each frame. If this CPU were paired with a more powerful discrete GPU, the frame rates would likely be significantly higher, especially at lower resolutions. The data indicates the CPU has the potential to drive frame rates in the hundreds, but the graphics solution prevents it from doing so in this configuration.