Lockdown Protocol

# Lockdown Protocol with Intel Core i5-12400F + Intel Arc B390

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the Intel Arc B390 produces a combination that ranks near the bottom of the measured field for Lockdown Protocol, sitting at rank 2512 out of 2828 tested combos. The data shows a system that can deliver playable frame rates at 1080p with reduced settings, but struggles significantly as resolution and quality demands increase. The Arc B390, an integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, posts a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, placing it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs and within 1.3% of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, which scores 1463. This context frames the entire performance profile: the GPU is the dominant constraint, and the CPU's capabilities are largely held in reserve.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data reveals a clear hierarchy across settings presets at each resolution, and the optimal choice depends heavily on the target display. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 88 FPS, which is the highest measured frame rate for this combination in any configuration. Medium at the same resolution drops to 63 FPS average, with a minimum of 53 FPS and maximum of 72 FPS. High yields 55 FPS average, while Ultra falls to 41 FPS. For competitive play at 1080p, Low is the only preset that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS, and it does so by a wide margin — 25 FPS ahead of Medium, which is the next closest option.

At 2560x1440, the picture shifts. Low produces 65 FPS average, which remains above the 60 FPS threshold, but Medium drops to 46 FPS, High to 40 FPS, and Ultra to 30 FPS. The 1440p Low preset is the only viable option for smooth gameplay at this resolution, though it sacrifices visual fidelity for responsiveness. The step from Low to Medium at 1440p costs 19 FPS, a 29% reduction, which is substantial and suggests that the GPU's limited resources are quickly overwhelmed by even modest quality increases.

At 3840x2160, no preset achieves playable frame rates. Low averages 42 FPS, Medium 30 FPS, High 26 FPS, and Ultra 19 FPS. The 4K Low result is the best case, but it still falls below the 60 FPS target and even below the 30 FPS minimum for smooth gameplay in fast-paced FPS titles. The Medium preset at 4K shows a minimum of 25 FPS and maximum of 34 FPS, indicating notable frame time variance that would be noticeable in gameplay. For this combination, the recommended preset is Low at 1080p, as it is the only configuration that provides both a high average frame rate and headroom above the 60 FPS threshold. Users with 1440p displays should also select Low, accepting the 65 FPS average as the practical ceiling. Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution, as even at 1080p the 41 FPS average is below the threshold for smooth competitive play.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated GPU with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz, built on the 3 nm process node with the Xe3-LPG architecture. It features 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster operations pipelines, along with 12 ray tracing cores. The memory configuration is system shared, with the bus width and bandwidth also listed as system shared and system dependent, respectively. This means the GPU relies entirely on the host system's memory, which introduces latency and bandwidth constraints that are reflected in the benchmark results.

The GPU's raw compute capabilities include a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s, a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s, and FP32 throughput of 7.680 TFLOPS, with FP16 at 15.36 TFLOPS (2:1). The TDP is 80 W, and it is classified as an IGP with no power connectors, indicating it draws power through the motherboard. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482 places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals are all older NVIDIA parts: the GeForce GT 520MX at 1463 (1.3% behind), the GeForce 800M at 1460 (1.5% behind), the GeForce GT 625 OEM at 1446 (2.5% behind), and the GeForce GT 710 at 1443 (2.7% behind). This positioning shows the Arc B390 performing at the level of entry-level discrete GPUs from over a decade ago, which explains the frame rate limitations in Lockdown Protocol.

The GPU's role in this game is decisive. The measured FPS values at 1080p Low show 88 FPS, which is respectable, but the rapid decline as settings increase indicates that the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth are saturated quickly. The 1536 shading units and 48 TMUs are modest by modern standards, and the system shared memory adds further constraints. The data suggests that the GPU is the primary bottleneck in nearly all configurations, as the frame rate drops are consistent with GPU-bound scaling rather than CPU limitations.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400F and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2512 out of 2828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations. This rank reflects the GPU's limited performance, as the CPU is a mid-range part that benchmarks well in isolation. The i5-12400F has 6 cores and 12 threads with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and boost clock of 4.40 GHz, and it scores 12380 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1680 in single-core. Its percentile versus all CPUs is 73, meaning it outperforms nearly three-quarters of all CPUs in general benchmarks, yet the combo rank is dragged down by the GPU.

The GPU's percentile versus all GPUs is 9, which is dramatically lower than the CPU's 73. This mismatch is the defining characteristic of this combo: a capable CPU paired with a very weak GPU. In Lockdown Protocol, the frame rates are consistently GPU-bound, as evidenced by the scaling patterns across resolutions and settings. The combo rank of 2512 out of 2828 indicates that the majority of other tested configurations, even those with weaker CPUs, outperform this pairing because they have more capable graphics solutions.

The nearest CPU rivals in the benchmark database, based on average benchmark scores, are the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS at 19047 (0 delta), the Intel Core 3 201E at 19056 (-0.1% delta), the Intel Core i5-1335U at 18982 (0.3% delta), and the AMD EPYC 7773X at 18979 (0.3% delta). These comparisons show that the i5-12400F is competitive with other mid-range and mobile parts, but this does not translate to gaming performance when paired with the Arc B390. The combo rank is the definitive metric for this game, and it shows a configuration that is not well-suited for Lockdown Protocol beyond low settings at 1080p.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 with Low settings provides the highest average FPS at 88, which is the only configuration that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS. At 2560x1440, Low averages 65 FPS, which is also above 60 but with less headroom. At 3840x2160, even Low only reaches 42 FPS, which is below playable thresholds.

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

A: The Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, placing it 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX at 1463, 1.5% ahead of the GeForce 800M at 1460, 2.5% ahead of the GeForce GT 625 OEM at 1446, and 2.7% ahead of the GeForce GT 710 at 1443. It ranks in the 9th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The GPU is the limiting component in nearly all configurations. The i5-12400F scores in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs, while the Arc B390 is in the 9th percentile. Frame rates drop consistently as resolution increases, which indicates GPU-bound scaling, and the CPU's performance headroom is not fully utilized.

Q: Is the Medium preset viable at any resolution?

A: At 1920x1080, Medium averages 63 FPS with a minimum of 53 FPS and maximum of 72 FPS, which is playable but with occasional dips below 60. At 2560x1440, Medium averages 46 FPS with a minimum of 39 FPS, which is below smooth gameplay thresholds. At 3840x2160, Medium averages 30 FPS with a minimum of 25 FPS, which is not recommended.

Q: What is the impact of switching from Low to Ultra at 1080p?

A: The average FPS drops from 88 at Low to 41 at Ultra, a reduction of 47 FPS or 53%. This is a dramatic decline that highlights the GPU's inability to handle higher quality settings, even at the lowest resolution tested.

Q: How does this combo rank relative to all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 2512 out of 2828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations. This low rank is primarily due to the GPU's limited performance, despite the CPU's above-average benchmark scores.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 88 at 1080p to 65 at 1440p, a 26% reduction, and then to 42 at 4K, a further 35% reduction from 1440p. The total drop from 1080p to 4K at Low is 46 FPS, or 52%. At Medium settings, the averages are 63, 46, and 30 FPS for 1080p, 1440p, and 4K respectively, representing a 52% drop from 1080p to 4K. High settings show 55, 40, and 26 FPS, a 53% drop. Ultra settings show 41, 30, and 19 FPS, a 54% drop.

The consistency of the percentage drop across settings presets, ranging from 52% to 54%, indicates that the scaling is primarily resolution-driven rather than settings-driven. This is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the number of pixels rendered directly impacts the frame rate proportionally. The fact that the drop is nearly uniform across settings suggests that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors, and that increasing resolution places proportionally higher demands on these resources.

The 4K results are particularly telling. Even at Low settings, the 42 FPS average is below the 60 FPS target, and the Medium preset shows a minimum of 25 FPS, indicating significant frame time spikes. The 4K Ultra result of 19 FPS is barely playable in any context. The data suggests that this combination is not suitable for 4K gaming in Lockdown Protocol, and that even 1440p requires Low settings to maintain acceptable performance. The resolution scaling confirms that the Arc B390's system shared memory and limited shading units cannot keep up with the pixel throughput demands of higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Core 12th Gen series, based on the Alder Lake architecture and manufactured on a 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a TDP of 65 W. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory across a dual-channel bus, and its PCIe interface is Gen 5 with 20 lanes. The processor's release date is January 2022, and its launch MSRP is $174.

In synthetic benchmarks, the i5-12400F demonstrates solid mid-range performance. It scores 12380 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1680 in single-core, 6980 in Cinebench R20 multi-core and 985 in single-core, and 9472 in Geekbench multi-core with 1964 in single-core. The 3DMark multi-threaded tests show 5895 at 16 threads, 4779 at 8 threads, 3067 at 4 threads, and 1699 at 2 threads, with a single-thread score of 909. The PassMark scores include 19433 for multithread, 3481 for single-thread, 59995 for integer math, and 46759 for floating point math. The average benchmark score is 19039, placing it in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU. The frame rates across all resolutions and settings are consistent with GPU-bound behavior, and the CPU's performance headroom is not the limiting factor. The 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient for modern FPS games, and the boost clock of 4.40 GHz provides strong single-thread performance. However, the data shows that even with this capable CPU, the Arc B390 holds the system back. The CPU's nearest rivals, including the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS at 19047 average score, perform similarly in general benchmarks, but this does not manifest in higher frame rates here because the GPU is the bottleneck. The CPU's 73rd percentile ranking versus the GPU's 9th percentile illustrates the imbalance clearly.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are 88 at Low, 63 at Medium, 55 at High, and 41 at Ultra. The Medium preset includes a minimum of 53 FPS and maximum of 72 FPS, while the other presets do not report min/max values. The step from Low to Medium is a 25 FPS drop, from Medium to High is an 8 FPS drop, and from High to Ultra is a 14 FPS drop. The largest relative decrease occurs between Low and Medium, which is a 28% reduction, while the High to Ultra drop is 25%.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS values are 65 at Low, 46 at Medium, 40 at High, and 30 at Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 39 FPS and maximum of 53 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 19 FPS (29%), from Medium to High is 6 FPS (13%), and from High to Ultra is 10 FPS (25%). At this resolution, the Low preset is the only one above 60 FPS, and the Ultra preset at 30 FPS is exactly at the threshold for minimal playability.

At 3840x2160, the average FPS values are 42 at Low, 30 at Medium, 26 at High, and 19 at Ultra. The Medium preset includes a minimum of 25 FPS and maximum of 34 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 12 FPS (29%), from Medium to High is 4 FPS (13%), and from High to Ultra is 7 FPS (27%). None of the 4K presets achieve 60 FPS, and even the Low preset at 42 FPS is below the standard for smooth FPS gameplay.

Across all resolutions, the Low preset provides the highest frame rates, and the relative scaling between settings is consistent, with Medium typically being 28-29% lower than Low, High being 13% lower than Medium, and Ultra being 25-27% lower than High. The Medium preset is the only one with reported min/max values, showing a range of 53-72 FPS at 1080p, 39-53 FPS at 1440p, and 25-34 FPS at 4K. The data confirms that this combination is best suited for 1080p Low settings, with diminishing returns at higher resolutions and quality levels.