Doom

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D paired with the Intel Arc B370 presents a striking imbalance in Doom, a 2016 FPS title. The data shows a combination where the processor is vastly overqualified for the graphical workload, while the integrated graphics solution becomes the definitive bottleneck. This analysis examines the measured frame rates across resolutions and settings, interpreting what the numbers reveal about the limiting components within this specific system configuration.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable decline as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 71 FPS at 1080p to 46 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 25 FPS at 4K. This represents a 64.8% reduction in average FPS from 1080p to 4K. The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings, indicating that the rendering pipeline is heavily constrained by the GPU at every resolution tested.

The frame rate deltas between resolutions are substantial. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings reduces performance by 25 FPS, while the jump from 1440p to 4K costs another 21 FPS. This steep decline suggests that the Intel Arc B370's fill rate and shading capabilities are being saturated quickly as pixel count increases. The GPU's pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s are simply insufficient to maintain fluid performance at higher resolutions in this title.

The data indicates that the system is GPU-limited at all tested resolutions. Even at 1080p with Low settings, the average FPS of 96 does not approach the kind of triple-digit frame rates that would suggest CPU involvement in the bottleneck. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is capable of far higher frame throughput than what the Arc B370 can deliver. The resolution scaling curve here is characteristic of a system where the integrated GPU is the sole limiting factor.

Interestingly, the scaling from Medium to High settings shows a consistent 5 FPS penalty at 1440p and 4 FPS at 1080p, while the Ultra preset imposes a much larger penalty of 17 FPS at 1440p and 12 FPS at 4K compared to High. This suggests that the Ultra preset introduces effects that are particularly demanding on this GPU architecture, potentially related to its limited 20 ROPs.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, manufactured on Intel's 3 nm process. Its boost clock of 2400 MHz is respectable for an iGPU, but the hardware resources behind it are limited. With 1280 shading units, 40 TMUs, and only 20 ROPs, the GPU is fundamentally constrained in its ability to process Doom's rendering workload at high resolutions.

The memory configuration is "System Shared" with bandwidth described as "System Dependent." This means the GPU relies on the same DDR5 memory as the CPU, accessed via a dual-channel bus with a theoretical bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s. In practice, shared memory bandwidth is a common bottleneck for integrated graphics, and the measured FPS numbers reflect this constraint. The 25 W TDP for the GPU also indicates a power envelope that limits sustained clocks under load.

The GPU's benchmark results are telling. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals are legacy parts like the ATI Radeon HD 5770 and AMD Radeon HD 7650M. The deltaPct values against these rivals are minimal, ranging from -0.7% to +1.4%, indicating that the Arc B370 performs essentially at the level of a mid-range GPU from over a decade ago. This context explains why Doom's frame rates are modest despite the game's age.

The relationship between VRAM and results is indirect but important. With system-shared memory, the GPU has access to as much memory as the system allocates, but the bandwidth is shared with CPU operations. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra (20 FPS) versus 4K Low (34 FPS) shows a 41.2% performance swing, which is substantial for settings changes alone. This sensitivity to settings suggests that memory bandwidth and fill rate are the primary constraints rather than raw shader compute.

Settings Recommendations

For 1920x1080 resolution, the data supports the High preset as the optimal choice. It delivers 71 FPS average, which is above the 60 FPS threshold typically considered playable. The Medium preset at 84 FPS offers a more comfortable margin, but the visual upgrade to High costs only 13 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 58 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target and not worth the marginal visual improvement over High.

At 2560x1440, the situation becomes more challenging. The High preset averages 46 FPS, which is playable but not smooth. The Low preset at 62 FPS is the only configuration at this resolution that maintains a 60+ FPS average. The Medium preset at 54 FPS represents a compromise, offering better visuals than Low while staying above 50 FPS. For users prioritizing frame rate, Low is the recommended choice at 1440p.

The 3840x2160 resolution is not viable for this combination. Even the Low preset averages only 34 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 20 FPS. No settings configuration at 4K achieves a playable frame rate by modern standards. The data indicates that this resolution should be avoided entirely with the Arc B370.

The measured minimum FPS values, available only for the Medium preset, provide additional insight. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 71 FPS aligns exactly with the average of the High preset, suggesting that frame time consistency is reasonable. At 1440p Medium, the minimum of 46 FPS matches the High average, indicating that the GPU is operating near its limits. The 4K Medium minimum of 25 FPS confirms that this resolution is below acceptable performance thresholds.

FAQ

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D bottlenecked by the Intel Arc B370 in Doom?

A: Yes. The CPU's benchmark scores, including a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23230 and a Passmark multithread score of 40009, are far beyond what Doom requires. The measured FPS is consistently limited by the GPU, which has a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of just 1184, placing it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: What is the best resolution to play Doom with this hardware combination?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 with High settings provides 71 FPS average, which is the best balance of visual quality and performance. At 2560x1440, only the Low preset achieves a 60+ FPS average at 62 FPS. The 3840x2160 resolution is not playable at any settings, with the maximum average FPS being 34 at Low.

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

A: The Intel Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad, which is nearly identical to the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 at 1186 (0.2% slower), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 at 1190 (0.5% slower), and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M at 1192 (0.7% slower). The AMD FirePro M2000 at 1168 is 1.4% slower than the Arc B370.

Q: Does the CPU's 3D V-Cache technology provide any benefit in this game?

A: The Ryzen 7 9800X3D features 96 MB of shared L3 cache, which is substantial. However, the measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions and settings. The CPU's cache advantage cannot be utilized because the Arc B370 cannot render frames fast enough to stress the processor.

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

A: At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset averages 58 FPS while the Low preset averages 96 FPS. This represents a 38 FPS difference, or a 65.5% improvement from Ultra to Low. The High preset at 71 FPS sits between these extremes.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations for Doom?

A: This combination ranks 2696 out of 2930 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 8% of all configurations. This low ranking is primarily due to the GPU's limited performance, as the CPU ranks in the 87th percentile among all processors.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2696 out of 2930 tested combinations places this system in the 8th percentile for Doom performance. This is a very low ranking that reflects the severe imbalance between the CPU and GPU. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D is a top-tier processor, ranking in the 87th percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 39768. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840HS at 39603 (0.4% faster), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 at 40048 (0.7% slower), the AMD Ryzen AI 7 450 at 39485 (0.7% faster), and the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 at 40081 (0.8% slower).

In contrast, the Intel Arc B370 ranks in the 5th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 1184. This puts it in the company of legacy integrated and entry-level discrete GPUs from the early 2010s. The deltaPct values against its nearest rivals are all within 1.4%, indicating that the GPU's performance is essentially comparable to parts that are over a decade old.

The combination of a top-tier CPU with a bottom-tier GPU results in a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-limited in Doom. The measured FPS values are entirely consistent with what the GPU alone would be expected to produce. The CPU's substantial computational resources, including 8 cores, 16 threads, and boost clocks up to 5.20 GHz, remain largely idle while the GPU struggles to maintain 25 FPS at 4K High settings.

This ranking highlights the importance of balanced system configuration. The data shows that a high-end processor cannot compensate for an underpowered GPU in a graphically demanding game like Doom. The combo rank of 2696 out of 2930 places this system below the vast majority of tested configurations, even those with much weaker processors paired with more capable graphics solutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is a desktop processor from the 9000 series, built on the Zen 5 architecture with the Granite Ridge codename. It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.20 GHz. The processor is manufactured on TSMC's 4 nm process node with 8,315 million transistors on a 70.6 mm² die. Its 96 MB of shared L3 cache is a defining feature, enabled by the 3D V-Cache technology.

The CPU's benchmark results demonstrate exceptional performance. Its 3DMark scores scale well with thread count: 1212 for single-thread, 2394 for 2-threads, 4669 for 4-threads, 8252 for 8-threads, 10067 for 16-threads, and 10081 for max threads. The Cinebench R23 scores of 2080 single-core and 23230 multi-core are strong indicators of both single-threaded and multi-threaded capability. The Geekbench scores of 2964 single-core and 18696 multi-core further confirm the processor's high performance.

In the context of Doom, the CPU's role is entirely supportive. The game's measured FPS is determined by the GPU, and the processor never becomes a limiting factor. The CPU's single-thread performance, as evidenced by the Passmark single-thread score of 4430, is more than sufficient to handle the game's game logic and physics. The multi-thread capabilities would only be relevant if the GPU could produce frame rates high enough to require significant CPU work per frame.

The processor's memory support for DDR5 with dual-channel configuration provides 89.6 GB/s of bandwidth. This is shared with the integrated GPU, and the "System Dependent" bandwidth specification for the GPU's memory means that CPU memory operations could potentially compete with GPU memory access. However, given that the GPU is the bottleneck, this contention does not manifest in the measured FPS data.

The CPU's TDP of 120 W and its active production status indicate a modern, power-efficient design. Its launch MSRP is $479, and it supports PCIe Gen 5 with 24 lanes. These specifications, while impressive, do not contribute to Doom's frame rates because the GPU cannot take advantage of them.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS across settings shows a clear progression: Low at 96 FPS, Medium at 84 FPS, High at 71 FPS, and Ultra at 58 FPS. The Medium preset has recorded minimum and maximum values of 71 and 96 FPS, respectively, which coincide exactly with the averages of the High and Low presets. This suggests that the Medium preset's frame time distribution spans the full range of the other settings.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low at 62 FPS, Medium at 54 FPS, High at 46 FPS, and Ultra at 37 FPS. The Medium preset's minimum of 46 FPS matches the High average, and its maximum of 62 FPS matches the Low average. This pattern repeats the 1080p behavior, indicating consistent frame pacing characteristics across resolutions.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low at 34 FPS, Medium at 29 FPS, High at 25 FPS, and Ultra at 20 FPS. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 25 FPS and a maximum of 34 FPS, again aligning with the High and Low averages. The 4K results are uniformly below playable thresholds, with even the Low preset failing to reach 35 FPS.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at each settings level shows reductions of 34 FPS for Low (96 to 62), 30 FPS for Medium (84 to 54), 25 FPS for High (71 to 46), and 21 FPS for Ultra (58 to 37). The scaling from 1440p to 4K shows reductions of 28 FPS for Low (62 to 34), 25 FPS for Medium (54 to 29), 21 FPS for High (46 to 25), and 17 FPS for Ultra (37 to 20).

The settings scaling at each resolution shows consistent patterns. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 38 FPS. At 1440p, the difference is 25 FPS. At 4K, the difference is 14 FPS. This diminishing absolute difference at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU becomes progressively more saturated as pixel count increases, reducing the relative impact of settings changes.