Evolve

Evolve, a 2015 FPS title, shows distinct performance characteristics when paired with the Intel Core i9-14900K and Intel Arc B580. The measured data reveals a system that is heavily influenced by resolution and graphical presets, with the GPU emerging as the primary bottleneck at higher settings. This analysis breaks down the measured frames per second (FPS) to provide a clear picture of what this combination delivers.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 demonstrates a classic GPU-bound scaling pattern, but with notable variations depending on the quality preset. At the Low setting, the average FPS drops from 155 at 1080p to 104 at 1440p, and finally to 59 at 4K. This represents a 62% reduction in frame rate from the lowest to the highest resolution tested. The scaling here is relatively smooth, suggesting that even at lower graphical loads, the Intel Arc B580 is the limiting factor rather than the Core i9-14900K's processing power.

Moving to the Medium preset reveals a steeper decline. The average FPS falls from 120 at 1080p to 80 at 1440p, and then to 46 at 4K. The percentage drop from 1440p to 4K is 42.5%, which is more pronounced than the 33.3% drop seen from 1080p to 1440p. This increasing rate of performance loss at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute resources are being saturated as pixel count rises.

The High preset shows a similar pattern but with lower absolute numbers. At 1080p, the system achieves 94 FPS, which drops to 63 at 1440p and 36 at 4K. The scaling from 1440p to 4K here is a 42.9% reduction, closely mirroring the Medium preset's behavior. This consistency suggests that the rendering workload scales predictably with resolution when the CPU is not a constraint.

The Ultra preset exhibits the most dramatic scaling. Starting at 65 FPS in 1080p, the frame rate falls to 44 at 1440p and plummets to 25 at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 43.2%, which aligns with the other presets. However, the absolute performance at 4K, just 25 FPS, indicates that the Ultra settings place an overwhelming load on the Arc B580, pushing it well below playable thresholds for smooth gameplay.

The data strongly indicates that the limiting component across all resolutions and settings is the graphics card. The Core i9-14900K, with its 24 cores and 32 threads, is not the bottleneck; if it were, we would expect to see more consistent FPS numbers at lower resolutions where the CPU has more headroom. Instead, the steady decline in performance as resolution increases points squarely at the GPU's rendering capabilities.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS values, the optimal settings for this combination depend heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers an average of 94 FPS, which is a solid experience for a fast-paced FPS. The Medium preset provides a higher 120 FPS average, with a minimum of 102 FPS, ensuring a very smooth experience without sacrificing too much visual fidelity. While the Low preset hits 155 FPS, the visual downgrade is likely not worth the extra frames for most users. The Ultra preset, at 65 FPS, is playable but does not offer the headroom needed for consistent high-refresh-rate monitors.

For 2560x1440, the High preset stands out as the best balance, producing an average of 63 FPS. This is perfectly playable for most titles. The Medium preset achieves 80 FPS on average, with a minimum of 68 FPS, making it the superior choice for those who prioritize frame rate over graphical details. The Low preset reaches 104 FPS, but again, the visual compromise is significant. The Ultra preset at 44 FPS is borderline, dipping below the 60 FPS target and potentially feeling less responsive in intense combat scenarios.

At 3840x2160, the choices become more constrained. The Low preset is the only option that provides a playable experience, with an average of 59 FPS. The Medium preset, at 46 FPS, may be acceptable for slower-paced games but is risky for a competitive FPS. The High and Ultra presets, at 36 and 25 FPS respectively, are not recommended for serious gameplay due to the significant frame pacing issues that can occur at such low rates.

In summary, the data suggests that for a balanced experience, the Medium preset is the sweet spot at 1080p and 1440p, offering frame rates well above 60 FPS. At 4K, dropping to Low settings is necessary to maintain a reasonable level of performance. The Ultra preset is only viable for those who prioritize visual quality over all else and are willing to accept sub-30 FPS at 4K or sub-45 FPS at 1440p.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is the decisive component in this configuration. Its specifications, 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 456.0 GB/s of bandwidth, are directly reflected in the performance scaling observed. The GPU's base and boost clocks are both 2670 MHz, and it has 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 80 raster output units. These figures translate to a pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 427.2 GTexel/s.

The 12 GB VRAM capacity is more than sufficient for Evolve, even at 4K resolution. The data does not show any signs of memory capacity being a limiting factor, as the performance drops are consistent with compute and bandwidth limitations rather than memory swapping. The 456.0 GB/s bandwidth is a key specification, and the frame rate declines from 1440p to 4K suggest that this bandwidth is being fully utilized at higher resolutions, particularly on the Ultra preset where the 4K average FPS falls to just 25.

The GPU's benchmark scores provide context for its performance in this game. It achieves a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3068 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 109672. Its Passmark G3D score is 15748, with a DirectX 11 score of 128. These synthetic benchmarks place the Arc B580 in the 68th percentile of all GPUs, indicating a mid-range to upper-mid-range performer. This aligns with the measured FPS in Evolve, where the GPU handles 1080p and 1440p well but struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K with demanding presets.

The GPU's nearest rivals in terms of average benchmark score include the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP, which is 0.2% slower, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, which is 0.6% faster. This places the Arc B580 in a competitive position against older high-end cards, but its performance in Evolve is what matters most. The data shows that the GPU is the primary constraint, and its architectural efficiency in this specific title determines the final frame rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset for this combination in Evolve is as follows:

At 1920x1080, the Low preset yields an average of 155 FPS. The Medium preset produces an average of 120 FPS, with a minimum of 102 FPS and a maximum of 138 FPS. The High preset averages 94 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 65 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a consistent reduction in performance, with the Ultra preset delivering only 41.9% of the frame rate of the Low preset.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 104 FPS. The Medium preset sees a significant drop to 80 FPS on average, with a minimum of 68 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS. The High preset averages 63 FPS, while the Ultra preset falls to 44 FPS. The relative performance between presets remains similar to 1080p, but the absolute numbers are lower across the board.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 59 FPS. The Medium preset averages 46 FPS, with a minimum of 39 FPS and a maximum of 53 FPS. The High preset averages 36 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 25 FPS. At this resolution, the gap between the Low and Ultra presets is a 57.6% reduction in frame rate, highlighting the extreme load that Ultra settings place on the GPU.

The minimum FPS data points, available only for the Medium preset, provide additional insight. At 1080p, the minimum of 102 FPS indicates stable frame pacing with no severe dips. At 1440p, the minimum of 68 FPS is still above the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting a smooth experience. At 4K, the minimum of 39 FPS shows more variance, which could lead to noticeable stuttering in fast-paced scenes.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Evolve, the Intel Core i9-14900K and Intel Arc B580 combination ranks 2787th out of 3700 tested combos. This places it in the 25th percentile of all tested systems, meaning that 75% of the tested configurations perform better in this specific game. This rank is notably lower than what the individual component benchmarks might suggest, given that the CPU is in the 95th percentile of all CPUs and the GPU is in the 68th percentile of all GPUs.

The discrepancy between component-level rankings and the in-game combo rank highlights the importance of game-specific optimization. While the Core i9-14900K is a top-tier processor, its power is not fully utilized in Evolve because the GPU becomes the bottleneck. The Arc B580, while a capable mid-range card, does not provide enough performance to push this combination higher in the rankings for this title.

The combo rank of 2787 out of 3700 means that 913 other tested combinations perform worse, but a substantial majority of systems achieve better results. This is likely due to other combinations pairing the same or similar CPUs with higher-end GPUs, or pairing the Arc B580 with a less powerful CPU that still allows the GPU to be the limiting factor. The data indicates that for Evolve, the GPU choice is far more consequential than the CPU, and the Arc B580's mid-range positioning holds this combination back in the rankings.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with the High preset?

A: The average FPS at 1920x1080 with the High preset is 94.

Q: Is the Ultra preset playable at 1440p?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 produces an average of 44 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay but may be tolerable in less demanding scenes.

Q: Which resolution and preset combo yields the highest frame rate?

A: The highest measured frame rate is 155 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low preset.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160 with the Medium preset, the minimum FPS is 39.

Q: How does this combination rank against all other tested combos in Evolve?

A: This combination ranks 2787th out of 3700 tested combinations.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance in this game?

A: The data shows the GPU is the limiting component, as FPS drops consistently with resolution increases, indicating a GPU bottleneck.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K is a high-end processor with 24 cores and 32 threads, based on the Raptor Lake architecture. Its base clock is 3.20 GHz, and it can boost up to 6.00 GHz. It has 36 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB of L2 cache per core. These specifications make it an exceptionally powerful CPU, as evidenced by its benchmark scores: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 39399.5 and a single-core score of 2262.5, alongside a Geekbench multi-core score of 21697.

In the context of Evolve, however, the CPU's role is diminished. The game's engine does not appear to be heavily multi-threaded, or the GPU is simply the bottleneck at the tested settings. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see lower FPS at 1080p Low, where the GPU load is minimal. Instead, the system achieves 155 FPS at that setting, which is a high frame rate that suggests the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough data.

The CPU's performance relative to its nearest rivals further underscores its capability. It is only 0.3% slower than the Intel Core i9-14900KF and 0.6% slower than the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, while being 1.7% faster than the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395. These small deltas confirm that the i9-14900K is at the top of the performance stack for CPUs.

Given this, the measured FPS in Evolve is entirely attributable to the GPU's performance ceiling. The CPU has ample headroom, and its 125 W TDP and 10 nm process node are irrelevant to the frame rate in this scenario. The data indicates that upgrading the GPU would yield significant FPS gains, while the CPU would not be a limiting factor. This is a clear case where the CPU provides a stable foundation, but the GPU determines the gaming experience.