Doom

# Doom with AMD Ryzen 7 3700X + Intel Arc B390

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X paired with the Intel Arc B390 produces a combination that ranks near the bottom of the database's tested configurations for Doom, sitting at position 2580 out of 2930 combos. This places the pairing in roughly the 12th percentile of all tested systems, a position driven almost entirely by the integrated GPU's limited throughput. The data shows a system that can run the game at playable frame rates only at 1080p with reduced settings, while higher resolutions push it below acceptable thresholds. The measured results reveal a clear pattern: resolution scaling has a profound impact on performance, and the GPU is the dominant limiting factor across every tested configuration.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K demonstrates steep performance degradation that points squarely at the GPU as the bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo averages 107 FPS, which drops to 69 FPS at 2560x1440 and further to 37 FPS at 3840x2160. That represents a 35% reduction moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a 46% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is nearly linear with pixel count, indicating that the Arc B390's shading units and memory system are saturated at every resolution step.

The Medium settings row tells a similar story: 93 FPS at 1080p, 60 FPS at 1440p, and 33 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are consistent—roughly 35% between each resolution tier. This uniformity suggests the GPU is rendering each frame with predictable workload scaling, and there is no evidence of a CPU-side ceiling being hit at lower resolutions. If the Ryzen 7 3700X were the limiting factor, we would expect the 1080p-to-1440p delta to be smaller than the 1440p-to-4K delta, as the CPU's workload remains relatively constant while GPU load increases. Instead, the deltas are nearly identical, confirming that the Arc B390's compute throughput governs performance at all tested settings.

At Ultra settings, the pattern continues but with lower absolute numbers: 64 FPS at 1080p, 41 FPS at 1440p, and 22 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 22 FPS is barely interactive, and even the 1440p Ultra figure of 41 FPS sits below the 60 FPS threshold that most players would consider smooth. The data indicates that this combination is only viable at 1080p, where even Ultra settings manage 64 FPS—playable but not high-refresh territory. The scaling behavior leaves no doubt: resolution is the primary variable controlling performance, and the GPU's fixed resources are the reason.

How This Combo Ranks

With a combined rank of 2580 out of 2930 tested configurations for Doom, this pairing sits in the bottom 12% of the database. The GPU's individual percentile ranking against all tested graphics cards is 9, meaning it outperforms only 9% of the GPUs in the database. This is consistent with the Arc B390's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, which places it in the company of legacy mobile parts. The nearest rivals in the GPU benchmark are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX with a score of 1463 (1.3% slower), the NVIDIA GeForce 800M at 1460 (1.5% slower), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM at 1446 (2.5% slower), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 at 1443 (2.7% slower). These are all parts from a bygone era, and the Arc B390's modest 2.7% advantage over the GT 710 illustrates its limited compute capacity.

The CPU, by contrast, is a much stronger component. The Ryzen 7 3700X holds the 84th percentile among all CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 34260. Its nearest rivals in the CPU benchmark include the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 at 34222 (0.1% slower), the AMD EPYC 4244P at 34220 (0.1% slower), the Intel Core i5-13450HX at 34333 (0.2% faster), and the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H at 34083 (0.5% slower). The CPU is clearly not the source of this combo's poor standing; the GPU's 9th percentile ranking drags the overall position down. In Doom specifically, the combination's rank of 2580 out of 2930 reflects a system where the processor has ample headroom but the graphics solution cannot translate it into frame rate.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Doom at 4K?

A: Technically yes, but not at playable frame rates. The best 4K result is 37 FPS at Low settings, while High averages 28 FPS, Medium averages 33 FPS, and Ultra drops to 22 FPS. None of these meet the 60 FPS threshold commonly expected for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the best resolution for this pairing?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo consistently exceeds 60 FPS. At 1080p, Low averages 107 FPS, Medium averages 93 FPS, High averages 78 FPS, and Ultra averages 64 FPS. All 1440p and 4K results fall below 70 FPS, with most below 60 FPS.

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

A: In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark, the Arc B390 scores 1482. This is 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463), 1.5% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce 800M (1460), 2.5% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446), and 2.7% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 (1443). The performance delta between all five parts is under 3%.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 3700X holding back the GPU?

A: No. The CPU ranks in the 84th percentile among all processors, while the GPU ranks in the 9th percentile. The resolution scaling data shows consistent frame rate drops proportional to pixel count, which indicates GPU saturation rather than CPU limitation. The CPU has 8 cores and 16 threads, which is more than sufficient for Doom's workload.

Q: What settings should be used for the smoothest experience?

A: At 1080p, Low settings provide the highest average frame rate at 107 FPS. Medium settings still deliver 93 FPS, and High settings maintain 78 FPS. Ultra settings at 1080p drop to 64 FPS, which remains playable but leaves less headroom for demanding scenes.

Q: Does the system's memory configuration affect performance?

A: The GPU uses System Shared memory, meaning its bandwidth is System Dependent. The CPU supports DDR4 with dual-channel memory and a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. The shared memory architecture means the GPU's effective bandwidth is tied to the system's DDR4 configuration, which is a limiting factor given the GPU's already modest compute resources.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the measured results show the combo struggling across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 37 FPS, Medium averages 33 FPS with a minimum of 28 and a maximum of 37, High averages 28 FPS, and Ultra averages 22 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra is 15 FPS, which is a 41% reduction. None of these results approach the 60 FPS target, and even the highest 4K figure of 37 FPS is only achievable at the lowest quality preset.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance improves substantially but remains below ideal thresholds. Low settings average 69 FPS, Medium averages 60 FPS with a minimum of 51 and a maximum of 69, High averages 51 FPS, and Ultra averages 41 FPS. The Medium setting's frame time variance—from 51 to 69 FPS—indicates noticeable inconsistency during gameplay. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 28 FPS, a 41% reduction that mirrors the 4K scaling.

At 1920x1080, the combo finally reaches playable territory. Low settings average 107 FPS, Medium averages 93 FPS with a minimum of 79 and a maximum of 107, High averages 78 FPS, and Ultra averages 64 FPS. The Medium setting shows an 28 FPS range between minimum and maximum, suggesting frame pacing issues during intense sequences. Even at Ultra, the 64 FPS average exceeds the 60 FPS baseline, making 1080p the only resolution where all settings are playable. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p costs 43 FPS, a 40% reduction that is consistent with the other resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X is a Zen 2 architecture processor built on TSMC's 7 nm process, featuring 8 cores and 16 threads. Its base clock is 3.60 GHz with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, and it carries a 65 W TDP. The cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 512 KB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 2092 in Cinebench R15 multi-core, 204 in Cinebench R15 single-core, 8899 in Geekbench multi-core, and 1593 in Geekbench single-core. PassMark results show a multithread score of 22458 and a single-thread score of 2656, with physics performance at 1181.

For Doom, the CPU's role is clearly secondary given the GPU bottleneck. The 8-core, 16-thread configuration provides ample parallel processing capability, and the 84th percentile ranking across all CPUs confirms its strength relative to the broader market. The nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-13450HX, scores 0.2% higher in average benchmark score, while the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 and AMD EPYC 4244P are 0.1% lower. The CPU's boost clock of 4.40 GHz ensures solid single-thread performance, which matters for game logic and draw call processing, but the measured frame rates show no evidence of CPU limitation. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 107 FPS, and if the CPU were the constraint, we would expect diminishing returns as resolution decreases. Instead, the consistent resolution scaling points to the GPU as the sole bottleneck.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy for settings selection. At 1080p, which is the only resolution with playable frame rates across all presets, the choice depends on whether the priority is maximum smoothness or visual fidelity. Low settings deliver the highest average at 107 FPS, offering headroom above 100 FPS that would benefit high-refresh displays. Medium settings still maintain 93 FPS, a 13% reduction that may be acceptable for improved visuals. High settings drop to 78 FPS, which remains above the 60 FPS threshold but narrows the margin. Ultra settings at 64 FPS are the most demanding option, still playable but with the least headroom for frame time spikes.

For 1440p, only Low and Medium settings exceed 60 FPS on average, with 69 FPS and 60 FPS respectively. High settings at 51 FPS and Ultra at 41 FPS fall below the smoothness threshold, making them poor choices for this resolution. At 4K, no setting achieves 60 FPS, and even Low at 37 FPS is marginal. The recommendation based on the data is to run Doom at 1080p with Medium settings, which balances the 93 FPS average against improved visual quality over Low. Players prioritizing frame rate above all else can use Low for 107 FPS, while those willing to accept 64 FPS can enable Ultra. For 1440p, Low is the only setting that provides comfortable headroom above 60 FPS.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It features 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, 24 raster output units, and 12 ray tracing cores. The base clock is 300 MHz with a boost clock of 2500 MHz, yielding a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s. The FP32 compute throughput is 7.680 TFLOPS, with FP16 at 15.36 TFLOPS. The GPU uses System Shared memory, meaning its memory size, type, bus width, and bandwidth are all system-dependent, drawing on the CPU's DDR4 resources.

In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark, the Arc B390 scores 1482, placing it in the 9th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are all legacy NVIDIA parts, with the GT 520MX just 1.3% behind and the GT 710 2.7% behind. This positioning explains the Doom results: the GPU's 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is simply insufficient for demanding resolutions. The shared memory architecture compounds the limitation, as the GPU competes with the CPU for DDR4 bandwidth. The measured frame rates in Doom reflect this constraint, with the GPU consistently being the limiting factor at every resolution and settings combination. The 22 FPS at 4K Ultra and 37 FPS at 4K Low both indicate that the Arc B390's resources are exhausted well before the CPU's capabilities are fully utilized.