Lockdown Protocol

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the Intel Arc B390 presents a peculiar case in Lockdown Protocol, a title that stresses the graphics subsystem heavily at higher resolutions. The measured data shows a clear and consistent pattern: performance is heavily dictated by the GPU at 4K, while the CPU begins to assert its influence at 1080p. The Arc B390, despite its modern architecture, demonstrates limited raw throughput in this title, capping the experience well below smooth standards at higher settings.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 reveals a dramatic drop in frame rates, underscoring the GPU's role as the primary bottleneck in this configuration. At Medium settings, the average FPS falls from 63 at 1080p to 46 at 1440p, then down to 30 at 4K. This represents a 52% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, which is a steep curve typical of a GPU that is struggling to fill the additional pixels. The scaling is not linear; the gap between 1440p and 4K (a 35% drop) is slightly larger than the gap between 1080p and 1440p (a 27% drop), indicating that the graphics processor is being overwhelmed as resolution increases.

This pattern strongly suggests that the Intel Arc B390 is the limiting component at 4K. The GPU's modest 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 24 ROPs are simply insufficient for the pixel throughput demanded by 3840x2160. The data shows that even at Low settings, the 4K average of 42 FPS is barely playable, and it drops to an unplayable 19 FPS at Ultra. The CPU, with its six cores and six threads, is likely not the primary constraint at this resolution, as the workload is overwhelmingly on the graphics card.

At 1080p, the scaling story shifts. The drop from Low (88 FPS) to Ultra (41 FPS) at 1080p is a 53% reduction, which is significant but shows the GPU is still managing the workload. However, the relative performance gain from lowering resolution is more pronounced here than at 4K, suggesting that the system is becoming more balanced. The CPU's influence is more apparent at 1080p, where the frame rates are higher and the GPU has more headroom. The data indicates that for users targeting 1080p, the CPU can keep up, but the GPU still prevents the system from reaching high refresh rates on higher presets.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Lockdown Protocol?*

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo achieves consistently playable frame rates. At Low settings, it averages 88 FPS, and at High, it averages 55 FPS, making 1080p the practical target for this hardware.

Q: Is the Intel Arc B390 a strong performer in this game?

A: No. The GPU's benchmark results place it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 and GT 625 OEM. In Lockdown Protocol, its performance caps out at 88 FPS only at 1080p Low settings, which is far from a strong showing.

Q: How much of a performance drop does the game see at 4K?

A: The drop is severe. At Medium settings, the average FPS falls from 63 at 1080p to 30 at 4K, a 52% reduction. At Ultra settings, the 4K average is just 19 FPS, which is not suitable for gameplay.

Q: Does the CPU system memory bandwidth affect the GPU's performance?

A: The GPU uses "System Shared" memory with bandwidth that is "System Dependent." The Intel Core i5-9400 supports dual-channel DDR4 with a memory bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s, which is the shared pool available to the GPU. This is likely a limiting factor, especially at higher resolutions where texture and buffer demands increase.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 65 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 30 FPS. This 54% drop shows the significant cost of enabling higher visual fidelity on this GPU.

Q: Is the Core i5-9400 a bottleneck for the Arc B390?

A: At 1080p, the CPU's role becomes more relevant, but it is not a severe bottleneck. The CPU has 6 cores and 6 threads, which is adequate for modern games. The data shows that the GPU remains the primary limiter, as frame rates are still modest even at Low settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2512 out of 2828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places the system in the bottom 11% of all configurations tested, indicating that it is significantly outclassed by most other pairings. The ranking reflects the GPU's low performance percentile (9th) dragging down the overall score, despite the CPU being a more average performer (47th percentile).

This low ranking is consistent with the measured FPS data. The combo fails to reach 60 FPS at 1080p on any setting above Low, and it cannot achieve a stable 30 FPS at 4K on any setting. The data shows that most other combos, which likely feature more powerful GPUs, achieve better results. The delta between this combo's GPU and its nearest rivals (e.g., the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX at 1.3% higher score) is minimal, confirming that the Arc B390 is a very weak graphics solution for this title. The system is positioned for 1080p gaming at low-to-medium settings, but it will struggle even there in demanding scenes.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the system's capabilities across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers an average of 88 FPS at Low, 63 FPS at Medium, 55 FPS at High, and 41 FPS at Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 53 FPS and a maximum of 72 FPS, indicating some variance but generally staying within a playable range. The 1080p results are the only ones where the system approaches comfortable frame rates for typical monitors.

At 2560x1440, the performance drops significantly. The Low preset averages 65 FPS, which is still playable, but the Medium preset drops to 46 FPS (min 39, max 53), High falls to 40 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 30 FPS. These numbers show that 1440p is only viable on Low settings if the user demands smooth gameplay. The 4K resolution (3840x2160) is largely impractical for this combo. The Low preset averages 42 FPS, which is borderline, but Medium drops to 30 FPS (min 25, max 34), High falls to 26 FPS, and Ultra is unplayable at 19 FPS.

The data shows a clear hierarchy: 1080p is the target resolution, 1440p is a compromise, and 4K is only for static or less demanding scenarios. The gap between Low and Ultra settings at each resolution is substantial, with the Ultra preset roughly halving the frame rate compared to Low in most cases. This indicates that the GPU's limited shading units (1536) and texture mapping units (48) are quickly saturated by the higher-quality effects.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390's performance in Lockdown Protocol is defined by its modest specifications. The GPU features 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 24 ROPs, with a boost clock of 2500 MHz. These specifications translate to a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s. In practice, these numbers are insufficient for the demands of this FPS title at higher resolutions. The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482 places it in the 9th percentile, and its nearest rivals are all older, low-end NVIDIA parts, which underscores its weak position.

The GPU uses "System Shared" memory, which means it relies on the CPU's DDR4 memory. The Core i5-9400 provides dual-channel DDR4 with a maximum bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. This shared memory architecture is a significant handicap, as the GPU must contend for bandwidth with the CPU, and the bandwidth itself is far lower than what a dedicated graphics card with its own VRAM would offer. This is likely a contributing factor to the steep performance drop at higher resolutions, where memory bandwidth demands increase exponentially.

The data shows that lowering settings from Ultra to Low yields a significant performance boost at every resolution. At 4K, the jump from Ultra (19 FPS) to Low (42 FPS) is a 121% increase. At 1080p, the same change goes from 41 FPS to 88 FPS, a 115% increase. This suggests that the GPU's shading and texture units are the primary bottleneck, as reducing the quality of these effects directly alleviates the workload. The GPU is simply not built for high-end gaming, and its performance in Lockdown Protocol reflects this, with the system failing to hit 60 FPS at 1080p on Medium or higher settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a six-core, six-thread processor from the Coffee Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. Its benchmark results, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 6629 and a single-core score of 935, place it in the 47th percentile of all CPUs. This is a mid-range performance level, indicating the CPU is capable of handling modern gaming workloads without being a major bottleneck, especially at lower resolutions.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's role is most evident at 1080p, where the GPU is less stressed. The system achieves 88 FPS at Low settings, which is a respectably high frame rate. This indicates that the CPU can feed the GPU with enough data at this resolution. However, the CPU's six threads are a limitation in a modern gaming environment, as many titles now utilize more than six threads effectively. The data does not show a CPU bottleneck at 1080p High (55 FPS) or Medium (63 FPS), as these frame rates are more likely limited by the GPU's capabilities.

The CPU's memory support is dual-channel DDR4 with a bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. This is shared with the GPU, and it is a potential point of contention, but the CPU itself has enough cache (9 MB shared L3) to mitigate some latency issues. The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 (0.2% slower) and the Intel Core i3-10305 (0.4% faster), show that the 9400 is a competent mid-tier processor. Its performance is not the primary reason for the low combo ranking; the GPU is the clear limiting factor. The CPU is sufficient for this game at 1080p, but it would likely struggle in CPU-intensive scenarios if paired with a more powerful GPU.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo in Lockdown Protocol depend on the user's resolution and performance goals. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and playability, with an average of 63 FPS and a minimum of 53 FPS. This ensures a smooth experience on a standard 60 Hz monitor. For users with a high refresh rate display, the Low preset at 1080p, which averages 88 FPS, is the only way to approach 144Hz, but it requires accepting significantly reduced visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset is the only viable option for smooth gameplay, averaging 65 FPS. The Medium preset dips to 46 FPS, which may be acceptable for some, but the minimum of 39 FPS suggests potential stuttering in action-heavy scenes. For 4K resolution, the data indicates that no setting provides a consistently good experience. The Low preset averages 42 FPS, which is borderline playable, but the minimum FPS is not recorded, and the overall experience will be sub-par. The Ultra preset at 4K (19 FPS) is not recommended for any scenario.

The data clearly shows that the user should prioritize resolution over settings. Playing at 1080p with Medium settings provides a far better experience than playing at 1440p with High settings, as the frame rate is higher and more stable. The GPU's limited resources mean that high and ultra presets are luxury options that should only be used at 1080p, and even then, the frame rate will drop below 60 FPS. For the best overall experience, the recommendation is to use 1080p with Medium settings, as this delivers the most consistent frame rate with acceptable visual quality. If the user can tolerate lower visuals, 1080p Low provides the highest frame rates, but the visual compromise is significant.