Dave The Diver

# Dave The Diver with Intel Core i7-12700K + Intel Arc B580

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the Intel Arc B580 delivers a remarkably consistent experience in Dave The Diver, a game that clearly favors high refresh rates over raw graphical stress. This combo ranks 2780th out of 3710 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle tier of all possible pairings, yet the measured frame rates tell a story of smooth, playable performance across every resolution tested. The data reveals a system that excels at 1080p and 1440p, while 4K remains viable with settings adjustments.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K brings 12 cores and 20 threads to this pairing, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This Alder Lake-S architecture processor, built on Intel's 10 nm process, shows its strengths in multi-threaded workloads with a 3dmark_max_threads score of 9979 and a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 19784. The single-thread performance is equally notable, with 3dmark_single_thread scoring 1043 and Cinebench R23 singlecore at 1850.5.

In Dave The Diver, an adventure title that typically relies more on sustained CPU throughput than burst performance, the data suggests the processor is rarely the limiting factor. The 125 W TDP and dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support provide ample headroom for the game's demands. The CPU's 25 MB shared L3 cache and per-core L1 (80 KB) and L2 (1.25 MB) caches contribute to responsive frame pacing, especially evident in the consistent FPS numbers across settings at each resolution.

The processor's 84th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35287, places it in a competitive position. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i5-13600T (deltaPct -0.1), Intel Core i7-12700KF (deltaPct -0.2), and Intel Core i7-13700T (deltaPct -0.3), all within a fraction of a percent in average score. This tight clustering indicates the i7-12700K is well-matched to its peers, and in Dave The Diver, the CPU's 20 threads ensure that even the busiest underwater scenes don't cause stutter.

The boost clock of 5.00 GHz is particularly relevant for this game. Dave The Diver's simulation elements benefit from high single-core performance, and the data reflects this with stable frame rates even at lower resolutions where CPU overhead becomes more apparent. The 1080p Low preset achieving 189 FPS average suggests the CPU can feed the GPU effectively without becoming a bottleneck.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data across all four presets at three resolutions provides a clear picture of optimal settings for this hardware combination. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers 124 FPS average, which is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay on standard 60 Hz or 144 Hz displays. The High preset at 141 FPS and Medium at 158 FPS offer incremental improvements, while Low reaches 189 FPS for competitive or high-refresh-rate scenarios.

Moving to 2560x1440, the story remains positive. Ultra achieves 94 FPS, High hits 106 FPS, and Medium reaches 119 FPS. For most players, the High preset at 1440p presents the best balance, offering a 12 FPS improvement over Ultra while maintaining visual fidelity. The Low preset at 142 FPS is available for those prioritizing maximum smoothness.

At 3840x2160, the settings matter significantly more. Ultra drops to 63 FPS, while High recovers to 71 FPS, Medium to 80 FPS, and Low to 95 FPS. The data indicates that Medium at 4K provides the best experience for most users, with 80 FPS average and a measured minimum of 68 FPS and maximum of 92 FPS. This preset avoids the sub-60 territory while maintaining acceptable visual quality.

The measured FPS data shows diminishing returns when moving from Medium to Ultra at all resolutions. At 1080p, the gap between Medium and Ultra is 34 FPS; at 1440p, it's 25 FPS; and at 4K, it's 17 FPS. This pattern suggests that Ultra settings introduce increasingly heavy effects that tax the GPU without proportional visual benefit in this particular game. The Medium preset consistently provides the best balance, with the largest FPS buffer and the only preset at 4K with a recorded minimum FPS above 60.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important insights about where the bottleneck lies in this system. At Ultra settings, the progression goes from 124 FPS at 1080p to 94 FPS at 1440p (a 24.2% drop) to 63 FPS at 4K (a 49.2% drop from 1440p). This steep decline at 4K indicates the Intel Arc B580's GPU resources are being heavily taxed at higher resolutions.

The Medium preset shows a similar pattern but with more headroom: 158 FPS at 1080p, 119 FPS at 1440p (24.7% drop), and 80 FPS at 4K (32.8% drop from 1440p). The smaller percentage drop from 1440p to 4K at Medium compared to Ultra suggests that at Ultra, the GPU is hitting performance cliffs related to memory bandwidth or shading complexity.

The Low preset offers the clearest view of CPU limitations. At 189 FPS at 1080p, the frame rate drops to 142 FPS at 1440p (24.9% drop) and 95 FPS at 4K (33.1% drop from 1440p). This consistent scaling pattern across resolutions at Low settings indicates the CPU can maintain high throughput, and the GPU becomes the limiting factor as resolution increases.

The 1080p to 4K scaling factor for this combo is approximately 1.99x (189 FPS to 95 FPS at Low), which is less than the 4x pixel count increase. This suggests the game is not purely GPU-bound at lower resolutions, with the CPU's 20 threads providing enough single-thread performance to partially compensate for the increased pixel workload. The data implies that for players targeting 4K, the Intel Arc B580 is the primary constraint, while at 1080p, the platform has untapped potential.

How This Combo Ranks

With a combo rank of 2780 out of 3710 tested combinations, this pairing sits in the 25th percentile of all tested hardware configurations in Dave The Diver. This ranking might seem low given the strong FPS numbers, but it reflects the competitive field of high-end CPUs and GPUs in the database. The Intel Core i7-12700K's 84th percentile CPU ranking and the Intel Arc B580's 68th percentile GPU ranking combine to produce a system that is solid but not exceptional among the full spectrum of tested hardware.

The GPU's nearest rivals in average benchmark score include the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (deltaPct -0.2), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (deltaPct 0.6), and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (deltaPct -0.7). This clustering around the 23000 score mark indicates the Arc B580 competes with a wide range of previous-generation cards, despite its newer architecture. The RTX 3080 comparison is particularly notable, as that card is typically associated with much higher performance tiers, yet the deltaPct of -0.7% suggests they perform similarly in synthetic benchmarks.

The combination's rank in this specific game is influenced by both components. Dave The Diver is not a demanding title by modern standards, and the data shows that even mid-range hardware can achieve playable frame rates. The i7-12700K's strong multi-threading (Cinebench R20 multicore score of 12229) and the Arc B580's 13.67 TFLOPS FP32 performance create a balanced system that handles this adventure game with ease.

The 3710 total combos in the database represent a wide range of hardware generations and tiers, so being ranked 2780 places this combo in the mid-to-upper range of what's commonly used. The percentileVsAllCpus of 84 for the CPU and 68 for the GPU suggest that both components are above average, but the game's optimization means that even these above-average parts don't push the combo into the top tiers.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580, built on the Xe2-HPG architecture with a 5 nm process from TSMC, brings 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus with 456.0 GB/s bandwidth. This memory configuration is well-suited for Dave The Diver's visuals, which include underwater environments with dynamic lighting and particle effects. The GPU's 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 80 ROPs deliver a pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 427.2 GTexel/s.

The 2670 MHz base and boost clock provide consistent performance across all tested scenarios. The GPU's 20 RT cores, while not heavily utilized in this game, add future-proofing. The 13.67 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 27.34 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1 ratio) indicate strong compute capabilities that benefit the game's physics and AI calculations.

The Arc B580's 68th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021, places it in a competitive position. Its Passmark G3D score of 15748 and Geekbench OpenCL score of 92821 reflect solid DirectX 11 and 12 performance, which are relevant for Dave The Diver's rendering pipeline. The Passmark DirectX 12 score of 76 and DirectX 11 score of 128 suggest the GPU handles modern APIs efficiently.

The 190 W TDP and 450 W suggested PSU requirement indicate this card is power-efficient for its performance class. The PCIe 4.0 x8 interface provides sufficient bandwidth for the game's data streaming. The 12 GB VRAM capacity ensures that even at 4K Ultra settings, the game's textures fit comfortably without memory swapping, which the FPS data confirms by maintaining playable frame rates at all settings.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-12700K + Intel Arc B580 combo capable of 4K gaming in Dave The Diver?

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 4K Ultra, the combo achieves 63 FPS average, while High reaches 71 FPS and Medium hits 80 FPS. The Low preset reaches 95 FPS. Players should use Medium or High settings for consistent 60+ FPS at 4K.

Q: What is the best preset for a 144 Hz monitor at 1440p?

A: The High preset at 2560x1440 delivers 106 FPS average, which is below 144 Hz. The Low preset reaches 142 FPS, nearly matching 144 Hz. For 144 Hz displays, Low is the only preset that approaches the refresh rate ceiling.

Q: How does the i7-12700K's CPU performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The i7-12700K has an average benchmark score of 35287, with its nearest rival being the Intel Core i5-13600T at 35305 (deltaPct -0.1). The Intel Core i7-12700KF scores 35365 (deltaPct -0.2), and the Intel Core i7-13700T scores 35403 (deltaPct -0.3). All are within 0.4% of each other.

Q: Does this combo bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The data suggests minimal CPU bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 189 FPS, and scaling to 1440p Low drops to 142 FPS (24.9% decrease), which is consistent with GPU-bound behavior. The i7-12700K's strong single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 singlecore of 1850.5) keeps the system balanced.

Q: What is the GPU's performance ranking relative to other cards?

A: The Intel Arc B580 ranks in the 68th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 23021. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (score 23061, deltaPct -0.2), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (score 22895, deltaPct 0.6), and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (score 23172, deltaPct -0.7).

Q: How much FPS difference is there between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 189 FPS while Ultra reaches 124 FPS, a difference of 65 FPS (34.4% reduction). This gap narrows to 31 FPS at 1440p (142 vs 94) and 32 FPS at 4K (95 vs 63).

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for this combo in Dave The Diver is as follows:

3840x2160 (4K):

• High: 71 FPS average
• Low: 95 FPS average
• Medium: 80 FPS average (min 68, max 92)
• Ultra: 63 FPS average

2560x1440 (1440p):

• High: 106 FPS average
• Low: 142 FPS average
• Medium: 119 FPS average (min 101, max 137)
• Ultra: 94 FPS average

1920x1080 (1080p):

• High: 141 FPS average
• Low: 189 FPS average
• Medium: 158 FPS average (min 134, max 182)
• Ultra: 124 FPS average

The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, providing the most granular data. At 4K Medium, the 68 FPS minimum and 92 FPS maximum show a 24 FPS variance, indicating some scene complexity fluctuations. At 1440p Medium, the range is 101 to 137 FPS (36 FPS variance), and at 1080p Medium, it's 134 to 182 FPS (48 FPS variance). This increasing variance at lower resolutions suggests that CPU-driven scene changes have a larger impact on frame pacing when the GPU is less stressed.

The data shows a consistent pattern: each resolution step down from 4K to 1440p yields approximately 33-50% more FPS across all settings, while stepping from 1440p to 1080p yields 25-33% more FPS. This scaling behavior confirms that the Intel Arc B580 is the primary performance limiter at 4K, while at 1080p, the i7-12700K's 20 threads keep the system responsive even at high frame rates. The 12 GB VRAM and 456.0 GB/s bandwidth of the Arc B580 prove sufficient for all tested configurations, with no evidence of memory-related stutters in the measured data.