Doom

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the Intel Arc B570 delivers a playable and often smooth experience in Doom, but the data reveals a clear pattern: this combination is consistently limited by the graphics card at higher resolutions and settings. The measured FPS across all twelve tested configurations shows a system that excels at 1080p, remains highly capable at 1440p, and struggles to maintain fluid frame rates at 4K, especially when pushing the Ultra preset. This analysis will break down the measured rows, explore the roles of the GPU and CPU, and explain what the numbers imply for real-world play.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data for this Intel Core i3-12100F and Intel Arc B570 combination points to a clear hierarchy of playable settings based on resolution. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers an average of 121 FPS, which is the sweet spot for a smooth experience without sacrificing visual fidelity. The Low preset hits 164 FPS, offering a competitive edge for fast-paced play, but the difference between Low and High is only 43 FPS, while the jump from High to Medium reduces the average to 143 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p produces 99 FPS, which is still playable but represents a 22 FPS drop from High. Given that Doom is a fast FPS, the High preset at 1080p provides the best balance of image quality and frame rate, as the 121 FPS average is well above the threshold for smooth motion and the settings still allow for detailed environments.

Moving to 2560x1440, the High preset yields an average of 78 FPS, which remains fluid and is the recommended choice for this resolution. The Low preset reaches 106 FPS, but that level of performance comes at the cost of reduced visual detail. The Medium preset at 92 FPS is a strong middle ground, yet High offers a more polished look with only a 14 FPS penalty compared to Medium. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 64 FPS, which is borderline for a fast-paced shooter; the data shows this setting is best avoided if consistent frame pacing is a priority. For 1440p, High is the clear winner, as it maintains an average above 75 FPS while rendering the game with more detail than Medium.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. The High preset averages 42 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth play, while the Low preset reaches 57 FPS, still not quite there. The Medium preset comes closest to playability at 50 FPS, with a minimum of 43 FPS and a maximum of 58 FPS, but these numbers indicate a stutter-prone experience during intense scenes. The Ultra preset at 4K is the worst performer, averaging only 35 FPS, which is not suitable for a game that demands quick reactions. For 4K, the data suggests that even the Low preset cannot consistently reach 60 FPS, so users should either lower the resolution or accept a sub-optimal frame rate; the Medium preset is the most balanced option if 4K is a hard requirement, despite its 50 FPS average.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B570’s specifications, combined with the measured FPS, reveal that the graphics card is the primary bottleneck in this system for Doom. The GPU features 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, delivering 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth, and its base and boost clocks are both set to 2500 MHz. These specs are substantial for a mainstream card, and the benchmark results show a GPU that performs well at lower resolutions but runs out of headroom as the render load increases. The Arc B570’s 2304 shading units and 80 ROPs are responsible for the pixel throughput, and the measured data shows a clear scaling pattern: at 1080p High, the card pushes 121 FPS, but at 4K High, that number falls to 42 FPS, a drop of roughly 65%. This steep decline is consistent with a GPU that is maxing out its compute and memory resources at higher resolutions.

The GPU’s memory configuration is particularly relevant to Doom’s results. With 10 GB of VRAM, the card has enough capacity for 1080p and 1440p at any preset, as evidenced by the FPS figures not collapsing due to memory swapping. However, at 4K, the combination of higher resolution textures and larger frame buffers likely stresses the memory subsystem. The bandwidth of 380.0 GB/s, while respectable, is not enough to maintain frame rates above 60 FPS at 4K, as seen in the Low preset averaging 57 FPS. The GPU’s clock speed remains constant at 2500 MHz for both base and boost, which means there is no dynamic overclocking headroom to compensate for increased load; the card runs at a fixed frequency, and the FPS drops are purely a function of the workload exceeding the card’s fixed computational capacity.

The Arc B570’s overall benchmark score of 20556 places it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% faster) and the Intel Arc A750 (0.1% slower). In Doom, this translates to a card that is competitive with mid-range offerings, but the measured FPS shows it cannot handle 4K Ultra (35 FPS) or even 4K High (42 FPS) with any fluidity. The GPU’s role in this system is to provide excellent 1080p and good 1440p performance, but it is the limiting factor at 4K, where the CPU has more than enough headroom to feed frames, yet the GPU cannot render them fast enough.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for the Intel Core i3-12100F and Intel Arc B570 combination shows a predictable but steep decline as resolution increases, which indicates a GPU-bound scenario at higher settings. Starting at 1920x1080 High, the average FPS is 121. Moving to 2560x1440 High, the FPS drops to 78, a reduction of 43 FPS or roughly 35%. This is a significant decrease, but it is expected because the pixel count increases by about 78% from 1080p to 1440p. The GPU must render more pixels, and the Arc B570’s performance scales accordingly. At 3840x2160 High, the average FPS falls to 42, another 36 FPS drop from 1440p, or 46% lower. The pixel count from 1440p to 4K increases by about 125%, so the FPS drop is proportionally smaller, suggesting that other factors like memory bandwidth are also limiting.

The Low preset shows a similar pattern. At 1080p Low, the average is 164 FPS, at 1440p Low it is 106 FPS (a 35% drop), and at 4K Low it is 57 FPS (a 46% drop from 1440p). This scaling is consistent, with each resolution step reducing FPS by roughly a third to a half. The Medium preset follows the same trend: 143 FPS at 1080p, 92 FPS at 1440p, and 50 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with 99 FPS at 1080p, 64 FPS at 1440p, and 35 FPS at 4K. The data shows that the FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is consistent across all settings, averaging around 65-70% reduction. This is a classic sign of a GPU bottleneck, because the CPU’s performance is resolution-independent; if the CPU were the limit, the FPS would stay similar across resolutions.

The fact that the FPS drops so sharply at 4K, even on Low settings (57 FPS), tells us that the limiting component is the GPU. At 1080p Low, the CPU can push 164 FPS, which is near the top end for many systems, but the GPU cannot maintain that throughput at higher resolutions. The data implies that the Arc B570’s compute units and memory bandwidth are saturated at 4K, and reducing settings from Ultra to Low only recovers 22 FPS at 4K (from 35 to 57), which is not enough to reach a smooth 60 FPS. This resolution scaling analysis indicates that for this combo, 1080p and 1440p are the sweet spots, while 4K is only viable for less demanding settings, and even then, not without compromises.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Doom?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 164, which occurs at 1920x1080 with the Low preset. This is the maximum frame rate across all twelve tested configurations.

Q: Can this system run Doom at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: The data shows that at 3840x2160, the best average FPS is 57 on the Low preset, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth play. The Medium preset averages 50 FPS, and High averages 42 FPS, so 4K is not consistently playable unless the user accepts frame rates in the 40-50 range.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 78 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 64 FPS. This is a 14 FPS difference, or about 18% lower performance, which could be noticeable in fast-paced action, but both are above 60 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the GPU is still the main limiter, as evidenced by the FPS varying with settings (164 FPS on Low vs 99 FPS on Ultra). The CPU’s performance is sufficient to push over 160 FPS in this game, so the GPU’s render speed dictates the frame rate.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The only recorded minimum FPS is for the Medium preset at each resolution: 121 FPS at 1080p, 79 FPS at 1440p, and 43 FPS at 4K. Other presets do not have min FPS data in the measured rows.

Q: How does the Arc B570 compare to its nearest GPU rival in this game?

A: The Arc B570’s average benchmark score is 20556, which is 0.1% slower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile and 0.1% faster than the Intel Arc A750. In Doom, this translates to similar performance, though no direct FPS comparisons are available for these rivals.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F provides the computational foundation for this system, and its specifications are more than adequate for Doom’s demands. The CPU has 4 cores and 8 threads, with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. It is built on Intel’s Alder Lake architecture using a 10 nm process, and it features 12 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU’s benchmark scores show a solid mid-range performer: its Cinebench R23 multicore score is 11860, and its single-core score is 1674. In Doom, which is a game that typically relies on single-thread performance for game logic and physics, the CPU’s boost clock of 4.30 GHz ensures that it can keep up with the GPU’s frame output at lower resolutions.

The data confirms that the CPU is not the bottleneck in this system. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 164 FPS, which is a high frame rate that requires the CPU to process game state updates and issue draw calls quickly. The i3-12100F’s single-core performance, as measured by its Geekbench single-core score of 1932, is sufficient for this task. Its 3dmark single-thread score of 893 further supports this, indicating that the CPU can handle the game’s main thread without holding back the GPU. The CPU’s 8 threads also help with background tasks and any multi-threaded game systems, but Doom’s engine is known for being well-optimized, so the 4-core/8-thread configuration is enough.

The CPU’s percentile rank of 68 among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13494, places it in the upper half of processors, and its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i5-9500 (0.3% faster) and the Intel Core 3 N355 (0% difference). In the context of Doom, these differences are negligible. The fact that the FPS drops so significantly from 1080p to 4K (from 121 to 42 on High) is not due to the CPU, because the CPU’s workload does not change with resolution; it only changes with the number of objects and draw calls. The GPU is the limiting factor, and the CPU has headroom to spare. The i3-12100F’s low TDP of 58 W and dual-channel memory support (DDR4 or DDR5) make it an efficient partner, and its boost clock ensures it can deliver high FPS in CPU-light scenarios like this.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this Intel Core i3-12100F and Intel Arc B570 combination provides a comprehensive view of its performance in Doom across three resolutions and four settings. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 164 on Low to 99 on Ultra. Specifically, the Low preset averages 164 FPS, which is the highest of any configuration. The Medium preset averages 143 FPS, with a minimum of 121 FPS and a maximum of 164 FPS, indicating consistent performance. The High preset averages 121 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 99 FPS. These numbers show that at 1080p, the system is capable of delivering smooth, high-refresh-rate gameplay on all but the highest settings, and even Ultra remains above 90 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the FPS figures drop but remain playable. The Low preset averages 106 FPS, the Medium preset averages 92 FPS (with a minimum of 79 FPS and maximum of 106 FPS), the High preset averages 78 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 64 FPS. This resolution is a good fit for this combo, as even the Ultra preset stays above 60 FPS, though the High preset at 78 FPS offers a better balance of visuals and speed. The minimum FPS on Medium (79 FPS) is still above the 60 FPS threshold, so frame drops are unlikely to cause noticeable stutter.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes marginal. The Low preset averages 57 FPS, which is the best result at this resolution, but it falls short of 60 FPS. The Medium preset averages 50 FPS, with a minimum of 43 FPS and a maximum of 58 FPS, showing that frame times can vary significantly. The High preset averages 42 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 35 FPS. These numbers indicate that 4K is not recommended for this system unless the user is willing to accept frame rates in the 35-57 range, which is below the smoothness expected for an FPS. The data shows a clear pattern: the combo is excellent at 1080p, good at 1440p, and weak at 4K, with the GPU being the limiting factor at the highest resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i3-12100F and Intel Arc B570 combination ranks 2332 out of 2930 tested combos in Doom, placing it in the 21st percentile of all configurations. This rank is somewhat surprising given the FPS numbers, but it reflects the fact that many other systems use more powerful CPUs and GPUs. The combo’s rank is not a measure of absolute performance; rather, it shows that 79% of tested systems perform better in this game. However, the data also shows that this combo is capable of delivering high FPS at 1080p and 1440p, so the rank is more indicative of the ceiling of this specific hardware pairing rather than its practical usability.

The rank of 2332 out of 2930 means that this combo is in the lower third of all systems tested. This is likely due to the CPU’s 4-core/8-thread configuration, which, while sufficient for Doom, is not as powerful as higher-end CPUs with more cores. The GPU’s rank of 65th percentile among all GPUs is decent, but the combo’s overall rank is dragged down by the CPU’s 68th percentile rank. In Doom, the CPU’s role is less critical than the GPU, but the overall score still reflects the system’s combined capabilities. The nearest rival CPUs, such as the Intel Core i5-9500 (0.3% faster) and the Intel Core 3 N355 (0% difference), have similar performance, so the CPU is not a weak link compared to its direct peers.

The combo’s rank also suggests that while it can exceed 100 FPS at 1080p, many other systems do so with higher average FPS, pushing this combo down in the rankings. The data shows that the system is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but for users seeking top-tier performance in Doom, there are many better options. The rank is a useful reference point, but the measured FPS breakdown provides the more actionable information: this combo is a solid choice for mainstream gaming, with the caveat that 4K performance is not its strength.