Doom

# How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F paired with the Intel Arc B370 lands at rank 2696 out of 2930 tested combos for Doom. That places this configuration in the bottom 8% of all tested systems, which is a striking result given the CPU's standing in general benchmarks. The Ryzen 7 9700F sits at the 94th percentile among all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 69,996, putting it within 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69,875) and 0.2% behind the Intel Core i7-14700KF (70,163). Yet the graphics side tells a different story entirely.

The Intel Arc B370 is a severe bottleneck here. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1,184 places it at just the 5th percentile among all GPUs, and its nearest rivals are legacy parts like the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1,186, only 0.2% ahead) and the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1,190, 0.5% ahead). The GPU's average benchmark score of 1,184 is dramatically lower than what the CPU is capable of feeding, and the combos ranking reflects that imbalance. When a top-tier CPU is paired with a GPU that ranks in the bottom 5%, the overall system performance collapses to near the bottom of the database — which is exactly what the data shows.

The delta between the CPU's 94th percentile standing and the GPU's 5th percentile standing creates a massive performance asymmetry. In Doom, a game known for being well-optimized and CPU-friendly, the combo still ranks near the bottom because frame delivery is ultimately gated by the graphics processor. Benchmark results indicate that this pairing is fundamentally lopsided, with the CPU leaving most of its potential untapped.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is built on Intel's 3 nm process with the Xe3-LPG architecture, using the Panther Lake chip. Its base clock is 300 MHz with a boost clock of 2,400 MHz. The GPU has 1,280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 render output units, along with 10 ray tracing cores. Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS and FP16 at 12.29 TFLOPS (2:1).

The memory configuration is the most unusual aspect: the Arc B370 uses System Shared memory, meaning there is no dedicated VRAM. Memory bus width, memory type, and memory size are all listed as System Shared, and bandwidth is System Dependent. This means the GPU relies entirely on system RAM through the IGP bus interface. In Doom, which benefits from dedicated graphics memory, this shared-memory approach likely contributes to the low frame rates observed across all settings.

The GPU's power envelope is remarkably low at 25 W TDP, with no power connectors required and a slot width listed as IGP. This is clearly an integrated-class solution, despite having the Arc branding. DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) support is present, along with OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4, so API compatibility is not the limiting factor. The hardware simply lacks the throughput needed for smooth gameplay at higher resolutions.

Looking at the measured FPS data, the GPU's role becomes clear. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 96 FPS average, but that falls to 58 FPS at Ultra. At 1440p, the range is 62 FPS (Low) down to 37 FPS (Ultra). At 4K, it drops to 34 FPS (Low) and 20 FPS (Ultra). These numbers show a GPU that is consistently the constraining component, with the CPU having ample headroom to push much higher frame rates if the graphics side could keep up.

FAQ

Q: Why does this combo rank so low in Doom despite having a strong CPU?

A: The combo ranks 2696 out of 2930 because the Intel Arc B370 GPU sits at the 5th percentile among all GPUs with a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1,184. The CPU is at the 94th percentile, but the GPU's limited throughput caps overall performance, dragging the system's game-specific ranking near the bottom.

Q: How does the Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370's average benchmark score of 1,184 is 0.2% behind the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1,186), 0.5% behind the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1,190), and 0.7% behind the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1,192). It is 1.4% ahead of the AMD FirePro M2000 (1,168). These are all legacy or low-end parts.

Q: What is the best frame rate this combo can achieve in Doom?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 96 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest average is 20 at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. The only row with min/max data is the Medium preset at each resolution: 1080p Medium ranges from 71 to 96 FPS, 1440p Medium from 46 to 62 FPS, and 4K Medium from 25 to 34 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU's performance vary with game settings?

A: Benchmark results indicate the CPU is not the limiting factor. The Ryzen 7 9700F scores 36,470 in PassMark multithread and 4,691 in single-thread, both strong numbers. Frame rates drop consistently as settings increase, which points to GPU-bound performance rather than CPU limitations.

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 9700F compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700F's average benchmark score of 69,996 is 0.2% above the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69,875), 0.7% above the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (69,515), 0.9% above the Intel Core i7-14700K (69,355), and 0.2% below the Intel Core i7-14700KF (70,163). These are all close scores, indicating the CPU is competitive with high-end desktop parts.

Q: What memory configuration does this system use?

A: The Arc B370 uses System Shared memory with System Dependent bandwidth, meaning it draws on system RAM rather than dedicated VRAM. The CPU supports DDR5 memory with dual-channel configuration and 89.6 GB/s memory bandwidth.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data covers three resolutions and four settings presets for Doom. At 1920x1080, the combo averages 96 FPS on Low, 84 FPS on Medium, 71 FPS on High, and 58 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a min of 71 FPS and max of 96 FPS, which interestingly matches both the High average and the Low average respectively, suggesting the Medium range spans the full spectrum of what the other presets achieve.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are 62 FPS on Low, 54 FPS on Medium, 46 FPS on High, and 37 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset at this resolution has a min of 46 FPS and max of 62 FPS, again mirroring the High and Low averages. This pattern repeats at 3840x2160, where Low averages 34 FPS, Medium 29 FPS, High 25 FPS, and Ultra 20 FPS. The 4K Medium row shows a min of 25 FPS and max of 34 FPS, exactly matching the High and Low averages.

The pattern across all resolutions is consistent: each step up in settings costs roughly 10-15 FPS at 1080p, 8-9 FPS at 1440p, and 4-5 FPS at 4K. The diminishing impact of settings at higher resolutions suggests the GPU becomes increasingly overwhelmed as pixel count rises, with the gap between Low and Ultra narrowing from 38 FPS at 1080p to just 14 FPS at 4K.

Only the Medium settings rows include min and max FPS data, and in each case the min matches the High average while the max matches the Low average for that resolution. This suggests that the Medium preset experiences frame pacing that spans the full performance envelope of the system, from the best-case Low scenario to the worst-case High scenario.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is a Zen 5 architecture processor codenamed Granite Ridge, built on TSMC's 4 nm process with 8,315 million transistors on a 70.6 mm² die. It has 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. The TDP is 65 W, and it supports DDR5 memory with dual-channel configuration and 89.6 GB/s bandwidth.

The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 80 KB L1 per core, 1 MB L2 per core, and 32 MB shared L3. It supports ECC memory and has PCIe Gen 5 with 24 lanes from the CPU. The launch MSRP is $289, and it was released in September 2025. The processor uses AMD Socket AM5 and has an unlocked multiplier.

In PassMark benchmarks, the Ryzen 7 9700F scores 36,470 in multithread, 4,691 in single-thread, 120,788 in integer math, 77,955 in floating point math, and 21,488 in data encryption. It also scores 421,988 in data compression, 33,688 in extended instructions, 183 in find prime numbers, 2,122 in physics, and 45,890 in random string sorting. The average benchmark score is 69,996.

The CPU's closest rivals are all high-end desktop and mobile parts. The AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX scores 69,875 (0.2% lower), the Intel Core i7-14700KF scores 70,163 (0.2% higher), the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X scores 69,515 (0.7% lower), and the Intel Core i7-14700K scores 69,355 (0.9% lower). These margins are negligible, meaning the 9700F performs essentially on par with these flagship processors.

Given that the CPU sits at the 94th percentile overall, it is clearly not the bottleneck in Doom. The frame rates at 1080p Low (96 FPS) show the CPU can drive high frame rates, but the GPU's limitations prevent higher performance. The fact that frame rates scale consistently with resolution and settings indicates the CPU has ample headroom, and the system is firmly GPU-limited across all tested configurations.

Settings Recommendations

For smooth gameplay, the data suggests that 1920x1080 with Low settings is the only configuration that delivers a comfortable frame rate, averaging 96 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p averages 84 FPS with a range of 71 to 96 FPS, which is also playable but with more variance. High at 1080p drops to 71 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 58 FPS.

At 2560x1440, only the Low preset exceeds 60 FPS with an average of 62 FPS. Medium drops to 54 FPS, High to 46 FPS, and Ultra to 37 FPS. At 3840x2160, all presets fail to reach even 35 FPS, with Low at 34 FPS, Medium at 29 FPS, High at 25 FPS, and Ultra at 20 FPS.

The best experience per the measured rows appears to be 1920x1080 with Medium settings. This provides an 84 FPS average, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, while offering better visual quality than Low. The min of 71 FPS at Medium is still above 60 FPS, meaning the system should maintain playable frame rates even during demanding scenes.

For players prioritizing visual fidelity, 1080p High at 71 FPS average is a reasonable compromise, though the lack of min/max data for this preset makes it less certain. The 1080p Ultra preset at 58 FPS is borderline, dipping just below the 60 FPS mark, which may result in noticeable stutter on some displays.

At 1440p, the Low preset at 62 FPS is the only viable option for smooth gameplay. The 4K resolution is not recommended for this combo, as even the lowest settings fail to reach 35 FPS, which would result in a poor experience in a fast-paced FPS like Doom.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and reveals the GPU as the limiting component. At Low settings, the average FPS goes from 96 at 1080p to 62 at 1440p to 34 at 4K. That is a 35% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 45% drop from 1440p to 4K. The total reduction from 1080p to 4K is about 65%.

At Medium settings, the progression is 84 FPS at 1080p, 54 FPS at 1440p, and 29 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 36%, and from 1440p to 4K is 46%. High settings show 71 FPS at 1080p, 46 FPS at 1440p, and 25 FPS at 4K, with drops of 35% and 46% respectively. Ultra settings go from 58 FPS at 1080p to 37 FPS at 1440p to 20 FPS at 4K, with drops of 36% and 46%.

The consistency of these percentage drops across all settings is telling. Regardless of the quality preset, moving from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 35% of performance, and moving from 1440p to 4K costs roughly 46%. This uniform scaling pattern indicates that the GPU is being pushed to its limits in every configuration, with the pixel count being the primary driver of performance degradation.

If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see larger frame rate differences between settings at lower resolutions, where the CPU has more influence. Instead, the consistent scaling across all settings and resolutions points to a GPU that is saturated even at 1080p Low. The Arc B370's System Shared memory configuration likely compounds this issue, as the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory bandwidth, which becomes more problematic at higher resolutions where more data needs to be moved.

The data suggests that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, with acceptable performance at Low to Medium settings. Pushing to 1440p requires dropping to Low settings for playable frame rates, and 4K is effectively out of reach regardless of settings. The CPU's strength is largely wasted in this pairing, as the GPU cannot translate that processing power into higher frame rates at any resolution.