Fortnite

The Intel Core i5-11400F and Intel Arc B580 pairing produces a mid-table result in Fortnite, ranking 1207th out of 1564 tested combos. This places the system in the lower-mid tier of the database, indicating that while the hardware is capable of playable frame rates, it does not excel at the highest settings. The data shows a clear pattern: the Arc B580’s 12 GB of VRAM and the i5-11400F’s six cores provide a balanced foundation, but performance scales inversely with graphical load, revealing a GPU-bound system at higher presets.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Rocket Lake architecture, built on Intel’s 14 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, backed by 12 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU achieves a single-thread score of 868 in 3DMark and a multi-thread score of 5652 in the max-threads test, with a Cinebench R23 multicore result of 14372 points. These figures place the i5-11400F in the 75th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17181.

For Fortnite, the CPU’s role becomes evident when comparing frame rates across resolutions. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo reaches 198.1 FPS, which is the highest measured result in the entire dataset. This suggests that at lower resolutions and settings, the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough data to maintain high frame rates. However, the 6-core/12-thread configuration is not a bottleneck here, as the single-thread performance (3DMark single-thread score of 868, PassMark single-thread score of 2981) is sufficient for Fortnite’s engine. The nearest rivals in CPU benchmarks, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U and Intel Core i7-1260P, show nearly identical average scores (17189 and 17212, respectively), with delta percentages within 0.2%, meaning the i5-11400F is statistically on par with those chips in general compute tasks. In Fortnite specifically, the CPU’s 12 threads provide headroom, but the measured data indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting factor as resolution and settings increase.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580, based on the Xe2-HPG architecture and built on TSMC’s 5 nm process, is the dominant component in this pairing. It features 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 80 ROPs, with a boost clock of 2670 MHz. The GPU has 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 456.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its compute capabilities include 13.67 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 20 ray tracing cores. In synthetic tests, the Arc B580 scores 3068 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and 15748 in PassMark G3D, placing it in the 66th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 23021.

The GPU’s impact on Fortnite is stark. At 4K Ultra settings, the combo manages only 21.7 FPS, which is unplayable, while at 4K Low it jumps to 64 FPS. This 42.3 FPS difference highlights the GPU’s sensitivity to settings. The Arc B580’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060, which scores 23181 (0.7% higher), and the AMD Radeon 760M, which scores 22999 (0.1% lower). Despite being close in raw benchmark scores, the Arc B580’s performance in Fortnite at high settings is constrained, likely due to driver overhead or architectural inefficiencies. The GPU’s 12 GB VRAM is ample for Fortnite, but the data shows that the card’s raw throughput at 4K Ultra is insufficient for smooth gameplay, as evidenced by the 21.7 FPS result.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep drop as resolution increases, which is typical of a GPU-bound workload. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 198.1 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low, this drops to 125.5 FPS, a 36.6% reduction. At 4K Low, the frame rate falls to 64 FPS, which is 67.7% lower than the 1080p Low result. This scaling pattern indicates that the Arc B580 is the primary limiting component, as the CPU’s performance headroom at low settings cannot compensate for the GPU’s reduced throughput at higher pixel counts.

The scaling becomes more pronounced at higher settings. At 1080p Ultra, the system hits 70.3 FPS, but at 1440p Ultra it drops to 44 FPS (37.4% lower), and at 4K Ultra it plummets to 21.7 FPS (69.1% lower than 1080p Ultra). This confirms that the GPU is saturated by the combination of high resolution and high settings. Conversely, the CPU’s role is more apparent at low settings, where the 1080p Low result of 198.1 FPS is nearly three times the 4K Ultra result of 21.7 FPS. The data suggests that for players targeting high refresh rates, 1080p Low is the only viable option, while 4K is only playable at Low settings with 64 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this CPU-GPU pairing ranks 1207th out of 1564 combos for Fortnite, placing it in the bottom 23% of all systems. This ranking reflects the Arc B580’s mid-tier GPU status and the i5-11400F’s aging architecture. The combo’s percentile stands in contrast to the individual components: the CPU ranks in the 75th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU ranks in the 66th percentile of all GPUs. The lower combo rank suggests that Fortnite is particularly demanding on this hardware combination, or that the GPU’s performance in this specific title lags behind its synthetic benchmark scores.

Relative to the GPU’s nearest rivals, the Arc B580’s Fortnite performance is not competitive at high settings. For instance, the RTX 4060, which scores only 0.7% higher in average GPU benchmarks, would likely deliver significantly better frame rates in Fortnite based on the Arc B580’s measured results. The combo’s rank of 1207 indicates that there are 357 tested combinations that perform worse, but the vast majority of systems outperform this pairing. This is a crucial consideration for users expecting smooth 1440p or 4K gameplay, as the measured data shows that this system is only comfortable at 1080p with modest settings.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 1080p is the most playable resolution, with Low settings yielding 198.1 FPS and Medium settings yielding 142.3 FPS, while 4K Ultra drops to 21.7 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i5-11400F has an average benchmark score of 17181, which is within 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U (17189) and Intel Core i7-1260P (17212), indicating near-identical general compute performance.

Q: Is 12 GB of VRAM sufficient for Fortnite?

A: Yes, the Arc B580’s 12 GB VRAM is more than enough for Fortnite, as the game’s maximum measured memory usage is not a limiting factor; the GPU’s raw throughput is the constraint at high settings.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, Low settings achieve 125.5 FPS, while Ultra settings drop to 44 FPS, a difference of 81.5 FPS, showing the dramatic impact of settings on this hardware.

Q: Does the combo perform better at 1080p Medium or 1440p Low?

A: 1080p Medium achieves 142.3 FPS, which is higher than 1440p Low’s 125.5 FPS, suggesting that lowering resolution is less effective than lowering settings for this pairing.

Q: How does the GPU’s benchmark score relate to its Fortnite performance?

A: The Arc B580 scores 15748 in PassMark G3D and ranks in the 66th percentile, but its Fortnite performance at 4K Ultra (21.7 FPS) indicates that synthetic scores do not translate to high-end gaming performance in this title.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1080p with Medium settings, which delivers 142.3 FPS. This provides a smooth, high-refresh-rate experience without the visual degradation of Low settings. At 1080p Low, the system hits 198.1 FPS, which is ideal for competitive play where frame rate is paramount, but the visual quality is reduced. For players prioritizing visual fidelity, 1080p High at 110.4 FPS is a balanced choice, offering both good graphics and playable frame rates.

At 1440p, the data suggests that Medium settings (89.7 FPS) are the highest playable option, as High drops to 71.4 FPS and Ultra falls to 44 FPS. At 4K, only Low settings (64 FPS) are viable, with Medium (49.2 FPS) being borderline and High (36 FPS) and Ultra (21.7 FPS) being unplayable. The recommendation is to avoid 4K entirely unless using Low settings, and to prioritize 1080p for the best balance of performance and quality. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it yields the lowest frame rates across all measurements.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset for this combo in Fortnite is as follows:

At 1920x1080, the system achieves 198.1 FPS on Low, 142.3 FPS on Medium, 110.4 FPS on High, and 70.3 FPS on Ultra. This shows a clear degradation from Low to Ultra, with a 127.8 FPS spread between the lowest and highest settings.

At 2560x1440, the results are 125.5 FPS on Low, 89.7 FPS on Medium, 71.4 FPS on High, and 44 FPS on Ultra. The drop from 1080p Low to 1440p Low is 72.6 FPS, while the drop from 1080p Ultra to 1440p Ultra is 26.3 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the system manages 64 FPS on Low, 49.2 FPS on Medium, 36 FPS on High, and 21.7 FPS on Ultra. The 4K results are consistently below 60 FPS, except for Low settings, and the Ultra preset at 21.7 FPS is the worst measured result in the entire dataset.

Overall, the data shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, with the GPU acting as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. The CPU’s performance is adequate, but the Arc B580’s throughput limits the system to low-to-medium settings at 1440p and above.