Evolve

The Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the Intel Arc B370 produces a severely GPU-limited experience in Evolve, with the benchmark results showing that the processor’s substantial 20-core, 28-thread configuration is largely idle while the integrated graphics struggle to maintain playable frame rates at any resolution above 1080p Low. This combo ranks 2639th out of 2872 tested combinations in this game, placing it in the bottom 8 percent of all systems, which directly reflects the Arc B370’s 5th percentile standing among all GPUs. The data indicates that this pairing is fundamentally mismatched for Evolve: the CPU is a top-tier desktop part with a 94th percentile rank, while the GPU is a low-power integrated solution that caps performance so severely that even the fastest measured preset fails to reach 60 frames per second at 1080p.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep and consistent performance drop as resolution increases, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound system. At 1080p Low, the combo averages 80 FPS, but moving to 1440p Low drops that to 54 FPS, and at 4K Low it falls to 31 FPS. This represents a 32.5 percent reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a further 42.6 percent reduction from 1440p to 4K, meaning the 4K result is only 38.8 percent of the 1080p figure. Such a dramatic scaling pattern indicates that the Intel Arc B370’s fillrate and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors, not the CPU, because a processor-limited scenario would show far smaller differences between resolutions.

Looking at High settings, the same pattern emerges but from a lower baseline. The 1080p High average is 49 FPS, which drops to 33 FPS at 1440p and 19 FPS at 4K. The percentage losses are 32.7 percent and 42.4 percent respectively, which are nearly identical to the Low settings scaling. This consistency across presets suggests that the GPU is saturated at every quality level, and the only way to gain meaningful performance is to reduce resolution rather than adjust graphical details. The Ultra preset tells the same story: 34 FPS at 1080p, 23 FPS at 1440p, and 13 FPS at 4K, with the 4K figure being just 38.2 percent of the 1080p number.

The data also shows that the gap between Low and High narrows as resolution increases, which further confirms the GPU bottleneck. At 1080p, Low beats High by 31 FPS (80 versus 49), but at 4K that gap shrinks to 12 FPS (31 versus 19). This happens because at higher resolutions the GPU spends proportionally more time on pixel shading and memory access, leaving less headroom for the extra work required by High settings. The Arc B370’s 20 ROPs and 40 TMUs, combined with its system-shared memory, simply cannot keep up with the pixel throughput demanded at 4K, regardless of the quality preset.

The Medium preset, which includes min and max FPS data, provides additional insight into frame time stability. At 1080p Medium, the average is 62 FPS with a range of 53 to 72 FPS, showing a 19 FPS spread. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 42 FPS with a range of 35 to 48 FPS, a 13 FPS spread. At 4K Medium, the average is 24 FPS with a range of 20 to 27 FPS, just a 7 FPS spread. The shrinking variance at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is running at its absolute limit, leaving no spare capacity to produce higher peak frames. This is the opposite of a CPU bottleneck, where you would typically see larger frame time spikes as threads queue up.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 2639 out of 2872 tested combinations places it near the bottom of the database for Evolve, and this is almost entirely attributable to the GPU. The Intel Arc B370 sits at the 5th percentile among all GPUs, with a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184. Its nearest rivals in the GPU benchmark are the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 with a score of 1186 (0.2 percent faster), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1190 (0.5 percent faster), and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M with 1192 (0.7 percent faster). The only GPU it beats is the AMD FirePro M2000, which scores 1168, putting the Arc B370 1.4 percent ahead of that older mobile workstation part. These are all legacy or low-end parts from over a decade ago, which gives you a clear picture of where the Arc B370 sits in the performance hierarchy.

In contrast, the Intel Core i7-14700K is a high-end desktop processor that ranks at the 94th percentile among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 69355 places it just above the AMD EPYC 9115 (69288, 0.1 percent faster) and just below the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (69515, 0.2 percent faster), the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69875, 0.7 percent faster), and the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F (69996, 0.9 percent faster). This means the CPU is competitive with top-tier server and desktop parts, yet the combo still ranks 2639th because the GPU is so weak. The data shows that the CPU’s performance is effectively wasted in this game, as the Arc B370 cannot translate the processor’s compute power into higher frame rates.

The rank of 2639 out of 2872 means that only 233 combos perform worse than this one in Evolve. Given that the CPU is in the top 6 percent of all processors, the only explanation for such a low rank is the GPU’s 5th percentile standing. This is a textbook example of a severely mismatched pairing, where the CPU’s capabilities are irrelevant because the GPU is the sole bottleneck. The benchmark results confirm that even the weakest modern CPUs would produce similar frame rates with this GPU, as the measured numbers are entirely consistent with the Arc B370’s performance ceiling.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K brings 20 cores and 28 threads to this pairing, along with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU scores 33440.5 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2160 in single-core, which are strong numbers that place it well above most desktop processors. However, in Evolve, these specifications contribute almost nothing to the measured frame rates because the GPU is the limiting factor.

The game’s minimum FPS data, where available, shows that the CPU is not causing stutters or frame drops. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 53 FPS, which is 85.5 percent of the average 62 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the minimum is 35 FPS, which is 83.3 percent of the average 42 FPS. At 4K Medium, the minimum is 20 FPS, which is 83.3 percent of the average 24 FPS. These ratios are relatively consistent across resolutions, indicating that the frame delivery is stable and not subject to CPU-side hitches. If the CPU were struggling, you would expect the minimum FPS to drop much lower relative to the average, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU has more headroom.

The CPU’s 125 W TDP and 10 nm process node are irrelevant to the game’s performance, but they do indicate that this is a high-power desktop part designed for heavy workloads. Its passmark multi-thread score of 52392 and single-thread score of 4472 show that it excels at both parallel and single-threaded tasks. Yet, in this game, the GPU’s 6.144 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 48.00 GPixel/s pixel rate are simply too low to make use of the CPU’s capabilities. The Arc B370’s 25 W TDP and system-shared memory setup are clearly not designed for gaming at high resolutions, and the data reflects that.

The memory configuration also plays a role. The CPU supports DDR4 and DDR5 with a dual-channel bus, but the GPU uses system-shared memory with bandwidth that is system dependent. This means the GPU is competing with the CPU for memory bandwidth, which further limits performance. In a game like Evolve, which requires frequent texture and geometry accesses, this shared memory arrangement is a major disadvantage compared to a discrete GPU with dedicated VRAM. The benchmark results show that the combo barely reaches 80 FPS at 1080p Low, which is below what many integrated graphics solutions from the same era could achieve with a similarly powerful CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces its best results. The Low preset averages 80 FPS, which is the only measured setting that comes close to a smooth 60+ FPS experience. Medium averages 62 FPS with a range of 53 to 72 FPS, which is playable but not consistently smooth. High drops to 49 FPS, and Ultra falls to 34 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p is a 57.5 percent reduction in performance, showing that the GPU cannot handle high-quality settings even at the lowest resolution. The 80 FPS Low result is the only figure that exceeds the 60 FPS threshold, and it does so by a comfortable margin, but the 62 FPS Medium average is borderline and will dip below 60 FPS on occasion.

At 2560x1440, performance drops noticeably across all settings. Low averages 54 FPS, which is 32.5 percent lower than the 1080p Low result. Medium averages 42 FPS with a range of 35 to 48 FPS, making it playable but with visible dips. High averages 33 FPS, and Ultra falls to 23 FPS. The 1440p results show that the combo is only suitable for Low settings if you want to stay above 50 FPS, and even then, the 54 FPS average leaves little headroom. The Ultra preset at 1440p is particularly weak, with 23 FPS being well below the threshold for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the combo is effectively unplayable for any setting. Low averages 31 FPS, Medium averages 24 FPS with a range of 20 to 27 FPS, High averages 19 FPS, and Ultra averages just 13 FPS. The 4K results are all below 35 FPS, which means the game will feel sluggish and unresponsive. The scaling from 1080p to 4K is severe: Low drops by 61.3 percent, Medium by 61.3 percent, High by 61.2 percent, and Ultra by 61.8 percent. These nearly identical percentage drops across presets confirm that the GPU is the sole bottleneck, as the resolution increase impacts all settings equally.

The Medium preset’s min and max FPS data across resolutions provides the most detailed picture. At 1080p, the 53 to 72 FPS range means the game fluctuates between borderline playable and smooth. At 1440p, the 35 to 48 FPS range is consistently below 60 FPS, so you will notice stuttering. At 4K, the 20 to 27 FPS range is well below any playability threshold. This data shows that the combo is only viable at 1080p with Medium settings or lower, and even then, you cannot guarantee a locked 60 FPS.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combo for this system?

A: The data shows that 1080p Low produces an average of 80 FPS, which is the only measured configuration that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS. 1080p Medium averages 62 FPS but dips to 53 FPS, so it is playable but not consistently smooth. All 1440p and 4K settings fall below 55 FPS.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700K the reason for the low frame rates?

A: No. The CPU ranks at the 94th percentile among all processors, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 33440.5. The GPU, Intel Arc B370, ranks at the 5th percentile with a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184. The frame rates are entirely consistent with the GPU’s performance ceiling.

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

A: The Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. It is 0.2 percent slower than the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186), 0.5 percent slower than the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190), and 0.7 percent slower than the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192). It is 1.4 percent faster than the AMD FirePro M2000 (1168).

Q: Why does performance drop so much from 1080p to 4K?

A: The average FPS at Low settings drops from 80 at 1080p to 54 at 1440p and 31 at 4K. This represents a 61.3 percent reduction from 1080p to 4K. Since the CPU is not the bottleneck, this drop is caused by the GPU’s limited pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s.

Q: Can this combo run Evolve at 60 FPS at any setting?

A: Yes, at 1080p Low, the average is 80 FPS. At 1080p Medium, the average is 62 FPS, but the minimum is 53 FPS, so it does not maintain a locked 60 FPS. No other resolution and settings combination reaches 60 FPS.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to all other tested systems?

A: It ranks 2639th out of 2872 combos in Evolve. This places it in the bottom 8 percent of all systems. The CPU is top-tier, but the GPU’s low performance drags the overall ranking down.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal configuration for this combo is 1080p with the Low preset, which delivers an average of 80 FPS. This is the only setting that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay without frequent dips. The Low preset at 1080p is 29 percent faster than Medium (80 versus 62 FPS) and 63 percent faster than High (80 versus 49 FPS). Given that the GPU is the bottleneck, reducing resolution is far more effective than lowering quality settings, and 1080p Low is the sweet spot.

If you prefer slightly better visuals, 1080p Medium averages 62 FPS, but the minimum of 53 FPS means you will experience occasional stutters during intense scenes. The data shows that the frame rate range for Medium is 53 to 72 FPS, which is a 19 FPS spread, indicating that the GPU cannot maintain a stable frame rate at this setting. For a competitive FPS game like Evolve, the consistency of Low settings is preferable to the occasional drops of Medium.

The 1440p Low preset, with an average of 54 FPS, is not recommended because it falls below the 60 FPS threshold and provides no visual advantage over 1080p Medium given the GPU’s limitations. The 4K presets, ranging from 13 to 31 FPS, are entirely unplayable and should be avoided. The Ultra preset at any resolution is the worst choice, as it provides the lowest frame rates with no benefit in this context. The data clearly shows that the combo is designed for 1080p gaming at low to medium quality, and anything beyond that will result in a poor experience.

For the best balance of playability and visual quality, the data suggests that 1080p Low is the only setting that guarantees a smooth experience, while 1080p Medium is a borderline option for users who can tolerate occasional frame dips. The 62 FPS average at Medium is technically above 60, but the 53 FPS minimum indicates that the game will not feel consistently fluid. Given these measurements, the recommendation is to use 1080p Low for competitive play and 1080p Medium only if you prioritize visuals over frame time consistency. The Arc B370’s 25 W TDP and system-shared memory make it unsuitable for higher resolutions, and the benchmark results confirm that no amount of CPU power can compensate for the GPU’s limitations in this title.