Fivem

# Fivem Performance Analysis: Intel Core i5-14600K + Intel Arc B390

The combination of an Intel Core i5-14600K and an Intel Arc B390 presents a striking contrast: a high-end 14th Gen desktop processor paired with an integrated-class GPU. Benchmark results across Fivem's four settings presets and three resolutions reveal a system where the graphics component consistently limits performance, while the CPU's capabilities remain largely untapped. The data shows a total of 12 measured configurations, with average FPS ranging from 16 at 4K Ultra to 88 at 1080p Low, placing this combo at rank 2656 out of 3005 tested combinations.

Resolution Scaling

Fivem's performance scales in a predictable but steep manner as resolution increases, with the Arc B390's limitations becoming progressively more pronounced. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 88 FPS, but dropping to 1440p Low reduces that to 58 FPS — a 34% decrease. Moving from 1440p to 4K Low sees another drop to 32 FPS, a 45% reduction. This pattern indicates that the GPU is the dominant bottleneck at every resolution, as a CPU-limited scenario would show far less sensitivity to pixel count.

The High preset tells a similar story: 56 FPS at 1080p, 37 FPS at 1440p, and 20 FPS at 4K. The percentage losses are consistent — approximately 34% from 1080p to 1440p and 46% from 1440p to 4K. This uniformity across settings suggests that the rendering pipeline is hitting a hard geometric limit rather than a bandwidth or memory constraint. The Medium preset shows 70 FPS at 1080p, 46 FPS at 1440p (34% drop), and 25 FPS at 4K (46% drop). Ultra follows the same trajectory: 43, 29, and 16 FPS respectively.

The 4K Ultra result of 16 FPS is particularly telling. It represents a 82% reduction from the 1080p Low score, demonstrating that the Arc B390's 24 ROPs and 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 compute are insufficient for high-resolution rendering in this multiplayer title. The scaling curve suggests that even the 1080p Low result may be partially constrained by the integrated GPU's memory subsystem, as the system-shared memory configuration means bandwidth is dependent on the CPU's memory architecture rather than dedicated VRAM.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Panther Lake chip with Xe3-LPG architecture, built on a 3 nm process. Its specifications include 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 24 ROPs, with a boost clock of 2500 MHz. The GPU's memory is system-shared, meaning there is no dedicated VRAM; bandwidth is "System Dependent" and bus width is likewise system-shared. This architecture fundamentally shapes Fivem's performance, as the GPU must compete with CPU memory traffic.

In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the Arc B390 scores 1482, placing it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in that benchmark are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3% ahead), GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5% ahead), GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5% ahead), and GT 710 (1443, 2.7% ahead). These are all legacy entry-level discrete GPUs, which contextualizes the Arc B390's performance class. The fact that Fivem's 1080p Low average of 88 FPS exceeds what these rivals might achieve is attributable to the CPU's involvement, but the GPU remains the limiting factor.

The 12 RT cores are present but Fivem does not appear to leverage ray tracing, as the measured data shows no settings differentiation that would indicate RT overhead. The pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s are theoretical maxima that the system-shared memory configuration likely prevents from being realized in practice. The 80 W TDP for this IGP indicates a power-constrained design, though no external power connectors are needed since it is integrated.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo holds position 2656 out of 3005 tested combinations in Fivem, placing it in the lower 12% of all system pairings. This ranking reflects the Arc B390's 9th percentile GPU standing more than the CPU's 90th percentile performance. The i5-14600K's average benchmark score of 48618 places it above 90% of all CPUs, with nearest rivals including the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (48698, 0.2% ahead), AMD EPYC 4345P (48470, 0.3% behind), Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX (48287, 0.7% behind), and Intel Core Ultra 5 245 (48995, 0.8% ahead). These rival deltas are all within 1%, indicating the CPU is competitive with enterprise and newer mainstream parts.

Yet in Fivem, the combo rank of 2656 suggests that most other tested configurations deliver higher frame rates. The discrepancy between the CPU's strong synthetic standing and the combo's poor game rank underscores the GPU bottleneck. A system with a weaker CPU but a discrete GPU would likely rank higher in this title, as Fivem's measured FPS values show no evidence of CPU limitation — the 1080p Low result of 88 FPS is likely near the GPU's ceiling at that resolution, not the CPU's.

The Arc B390's 9th percentile GPU ranking and its rival list of decade-old NVIDIA parts indicate that this is not a gaming-oriented graphics solution. The combo's position near the bottom of Fivem's tested list is therefore expected, though the CPU's headroom suggests that upgrading only the GPU would dramatically improve the ranking.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured results are: Low 88 FPS, Medium 70 FPS with a range of 59 to 80 FPS, High 56 FPS, and Ultra 43 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 45 FPS, representing a 51% performance penalty for the highest preset. The Medium preset's minimum of 59 FPS and maximum of 80 FPS show a 21 FPS variance, indicating some scene-dependent fluctuation in this multiplayer environment.

At 2560x1440, the results are: Low 58 FPS, Medium 46 FPS with a range of 39 to 53 FPS, High 37 FPS, and Ultra 29 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread narrows to 29 FPS, but the percentage penalty grows to 50%. The Medium preset's variance is 14 FPS, similar in proportion to the 1080p result. Every setting tier at 1440p lands below 60 FPS, meaning smooth gameplay would require Low settings or a lower resolution.

At 3840x2160, the results are: Low 32 FPS, Medium 25 FPS with a range of 22 to 29 FPS, High 20 FPS, and Ultra 16 FPS. None of these are playable for a multiplayer title that requires responsiveness. The Medium preset's 7 FPS variance is the smallest measured, suggesting the GPU is so saturated that frame times are more consistent at lower performance levels. The Ultra preset's 16 FPS is below the minimum threshold for acceptable interactivity.

The progression across resolutions shows that at any given settings preset, the FPS roughly halves from 1080p to 4K: Low goes 88 to 32 (64% reduction), Medium 70 to 25 (64%), High 56 to 20 (64%), and Ultra 43 to 16 (63%). This consistent 64% reduction across all presets indicates a purely pixel-bound limitation with no memory or bandwidth cliff.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Fivem at 60 FPS?

A: Yes, but only at 1080p with Low settings, which achieves 88 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p averages 70 FPS, while High drops to 56 FPS, just below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in Fivem?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions and settings. The i5-14600K ranks in the 90th percentile of CPUs, while the Arc B390 ranks in the 9th percentile of GPUs. The consistent 64% FPS reduction from 1080p to 4K across all settings confirms pixel-bound rendering.

Q: How does the Arc B390 compare to its closest GPU rivals?

A: In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the Arc B390 scores 1482. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX is 1.3% higher, the GeForce 800M is 1.5% higher, the GT 625 OEM is 2.5% higher, and the GT 710 is 2.7% higher. All rivals are within 3% of the Arc B390's score.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Fivem?

A: 1080p is the only resolution where any settings preset exceeds 60 FPS. At 1440p, even Low settings only achieve 58 FPS, and at 4K, the maximum is 32 FPS on Low.

Q: Does the Ultra preset provide a playable experience?

A: At 1080p Ultra, the average is 43 FPS, which may be borderline for some players. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 29 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it falls to 16 FPS, which is not playable for a multiplayer title.

Q: How does the i5-14600K's CPU performance compare to its rivals?

A: The i5-14600K has an average benchmark score of 48618. The Intel Xeon Gold 5318H is 0.2% higher, the AMD EPYC 4345P is 0.3% lower, the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX is 0.7% lower, and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is 0.8% higher. All are within 1% of each other.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that 1080p Low is the only configuration that delivers a comfortable frame rate margin, with 88 FPS. This preset provides more than 46% headroom above the 60 FPS threshold, which is valuable in a multiplayer title where frame spikes and scene complexity can cause dips. The 1080p Medium preset at 70 FPS is also viable, offering a 10 FPS buffer above 60, and its minimum of 59 FPS indicates that most scenes will stay near or above the target.

For players prioritizing visual quality, 1080p High at 56 FPS is marginally below 60 but may be acceptable. The Ultra preset at 1080p, at 43 FPS, represents a 39% performance penalty over Medium for visual gains that may not be worth the frame rate loss in a competitive multiplayer setting. At 1440p, only Low settings (58 FPS) approach playability, but the sub-60 average makes it risky. The data shows no 4K configuration is viable, as the highest result is 32 FPS at Low.

The most balanced choice in the measured data is 1080p Medium. It provides a 70 FPS average with a documented range of 59 to 80 FPS, meaning the system will occasionally dip to just below 60 but usually stays above it. The Medium preset at 1440p (46 FPS) and High at 1080p (56 FPS) are intermediate options, but neither offers the consistent performance of 1080p Medium. Given the GPU's 9th percentile ranking, users should expect that any settings increase beyond Medium at 1080p will push the system into sub-60 territory.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K is a 14-core, 20-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, using a 10 nm process with a 125 W TDP. It has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, with 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB of L2 cache per core. In Fivem, this CPU is dramatically underutilized, as the game's measured FPS values are consistently GPU-limited. The CPU's 90th percentile ranking and average benchmark score of 48618 indicate ample headroom for even the most demanding multiplayer scenarios.

The CPU's synthetic benchmarks show strong multi-threaded performance: Cinebench R23 multi-core scores 24491 and single-core 2064, while Geekbench multi-core reaches 16673 and single-core 2491. PassMark multi-thread results are 38682, with single-thread at 4270. These numbers place the i5-14600K within 1% of rivals like the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H and AMD EPYC 4345P, which are server-class processors, and the Core Ultra 5 245 and 245HX, which are newer mainstream parts. The data indicates the CPU is not a bottleneck even at 1080p Low, where the 88 FPS result is likely near the Arc B390's maximum output.

The gaming-specific limitation is the GPU, not the CPU. The Arc B390's 9th percentile GPU ranking and 1482 Steel Nomad score suggest that even modest CPU-bound titles would struggle, but Fivem's measured results show that frame rates are determined by resolution and settings — classic GPU-limited behavior. The system-shared memory configuration means the CPU's dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 support and 24 MB L3 cache play a role in feeding the GPU, but this is secondary to the GPU's raw compute limits. The i5-14600K's launch MSRP of $319 reflects its desktop performance position, yet in this combo, that investment yields no gaming benefit beyond what a far weaker CPU would provide, since the GPU caps everything.