Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator with the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and Intel Arc B390 presents a severely GPU-bound configuration, where the measured frame rates are consistently low across all tested resolutions and settings. The benchmark data shows this combo ranking in the bottom 11% of all tested combinations, indicating that the integrated graphics solution is the primary bottleneck, preventing the capable 8-core CPU from delivering playable performance in this title.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic, but the pattern reveals that the system is already struggling at the lowest tested resolution. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 56 FPS, which drops to 45 FPS at 1440p and further plummets to 33 FPS at 4K. This represents a 41% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K, indicating that resolution scaling has a significant impact on this configuration.

However, the more telling data comes from the Medium and High settings. At Medium settings, the average FPS falls from 43 at 1080p to 35 at 1440p and then to 26 at 4K. The High preset shows a similar pattern: 33 FPS at 1080p, 26 FPS at 1440p, and 19 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is essentially unplayable at every resolution, with 31 FPS at 1080p, 25 FPS at 1440p, and 19 FPS at 4K.

The scaling behavior suggests that the limiting component is the GPU rather than the CPU. When resolution increases, the frame rate drops consistently across all settings, which is characteristic of a graphics-bound scenario. The CPU, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is capable of handling the simulation's processing demands, but the Intel Arc B390's output is capped by its integrated nature. Notably, the gap between 1080p and 4K narrows as settings increase: at Low settings the spread is 23 FPS (56 vs 33), but at Ultra settings the spread is only 12 FPS (31 vs 19). This compression indicates that at higher quality presets, the GPU is so overwhelmed that even reducing resolution provides diminishing returns.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is the decisive factor in this combo's poor performance. This integrated graphics solution, built on the Xe3-LPG architecture with a 3 nm process, has a boost clock of 2500 MHz and a base clock of 300 MHz. Its memory configuration is entirely "System Shared," meaning it relies on the system's DDR5 memory rather than dedicated VRAM. The benchmark data shows a single 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, which places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs.

The GPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores are all NVIDIA entries from the early 2010s: the GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3% slower), GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5% slower), GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5% slower), and GeForce GT 710 (1443, 2.7% slower). This comparison underscores the Arc B390's position as an entry-level integrated solution, not a discrete gaming GPU. The 1536 shading units and 48 texture mapping units cannot compensate for the lack of dedicated memory bandwidth, which is listed as "System Dependent."

In Microsoft Flight Simulator, the GPU's limitations manifest clearly. Even at 1080p Low settings, the 56 FPS average is the only result that approaches playability, and it falls to 33 FPS at 4K. The 12 ray tracing cores and 24 ROPs provide some modern feature support, but the raw throughput of 7.680 TFLOPS FP32 is insufficient for this flight simulator's demanding rendering workload. The game's reliance on detailed terrain and aircraft models means the GPU must process vast amounts of geometry and textures, tasks for which this integrated solution is not designed.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 paired with the Intel Arc B390 ranks 2665th out of 2996 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations. This ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU's severe performance constraint, as the CPU itself is a high-end desktop processor. The combo's position is particularly striking given that the Ryzen 7 7700 sits in the 87th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 40081.

The CPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 (40048, 0.1% slower), Intel Core 5 221E (40144, 0.2% faster), AMD Ryzen 9 270 (40246, 0.4% faster), and Intel Core i9-13905H (40313, 0.6% faster). These deltas are negligible, showing that the Ryzen 7 7700 is a well-balanced processor. However, the GPU's nearest rivals, as noted earlier, are legacy NVIDIA parts with scores in the 1443-1463 range, creating a massive imbalance in this combo.

The data indicates that this pairing is fundamentally mismatched for gaming. The CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads, with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, would be well-suited for Microsoft Flight Simulator's physics and AI computations, but the GPU cannot feed frames fast enough to exercise the CPU's capabilities. The combo's 4K High average of 19 FPS and 4K Ultra average of 19 FPS are identical, suggesting that the GPU is the absolute wall, unable to differentiate between settings at that resolution.

FAQ

Q: What is the best average frame rate achievable with this combo in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 56, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is the only configuration where the frame rate approaches a playable level, as all other settings and resolutions produce averages of 45 FPS or lower.

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

A: The Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, which is 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463), 1.5% higher than the GeForce 800M (1460), 2.5% higher than the GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446), and 2.7% higher than the GeForce GT 710 (1443). These are all sub-1500 scores, indicating extremely low-end performance.

Q: Does the Ryzen 7 7700 CPU limit performance in this game?

A: No. The CPU's benchmark scores are strong, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 18760 and a single-core score of 1930. The measured FPS data shows consistent drops with resolution increases, which is a GPU-bound pattern, not a CPU-bound one.

Q: What is the difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings yield an average of 56 FPS, while Ultra settings yield 31 FPS. This 25 FPS difference (44% reduction) shows that the GPU has some headroom at low settings, but the Ultra preset overwhelms it, bringing performance down to 31 FPS.

Q: Why are the 4K High and 4K Ultra average FPS both exactly 19?

A: Both settings produce identical average FPS of 19 at 3840x2160. This suggests that at 4K resolution, the GPU is completely saturated regardless of quality preset, and the rendering workload is so high that the graphics processor cannot complete more than 19 frames per second.

Q: What memory configuration does the Intel Arc B390 use?

A: The GPU uses "System Shared" memory, meaning it has no dedicated VRAM. Its memory type, bus width, and bandwidth are all listed as "System Shared" or "System Dependent," relying entirely on the system's DDR5 memory through the dual-channel bus.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the only viable setting for any kind of playable experience is Low at 1080p, which produces an average of 56 FPS. All other tested configurations fall below 45 FPS, with most sitting in the 19-35 FPS range, which is generally considered unplayable for a flight simulator that requires smooth control input. The Medium preset at 1080p yields 43 FPS, with a minimum of 37 FPS and maximum of 50 FPS, which could be borderline acceptable for less demanding flight scenarios, but the Low preset is the only one that provides consistent performance above 50 FPS.

For users who prioritize visual quality over frame rate, the Medium preset at 1440p offers an average of 35 FPS with a minimum of 30 FPS and maximum of 40 FPS. However, this is a marginal experience. The High preset at any resolution produces averages between 19 and 33 FPS, and the Ultra preset is effectively a slideshow at 19-31 FPS. The data strongly suggests that this combo should be run at 1080p with Low settings, as the drop to Medium at 1080p costs 13 FPS (from 56 to 43), which is a 23% performance penalty for what is likely a modest visual improvement.

The 4K resolutions are not recommended under any settings, as the maximum average FPS at 3840x2160 is 33 (Low), which is below the minimum threshold for smooth gameplay. The identical 19 FPS results at High and Ultra for 4K indicate that the GPU cannot scale beyond this point, regardless of graphical fidelity. The most efficient configuration is 1080p Low, as it provides the highest frame rate and leaves the least room for performance degradation in complex flight scenarios.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 is a high-performance desktop processor that is not the limiting factor in this combo's Microsoft Flight Simulator results. This 8-core, 16-thread CPU based on the Zen 4 architecture (Raphael codename) features a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. Its cache configuration includes 64 KB L1 per core, 1 MB L2 per core, and 32 MB shared L3, providing ample on-chip storage for the simulation's data-heavy workloads.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Ryzen 7 7700 demonstrates strong multi-threaded capabilities: a 3DMark 16-thread score of 8484, Cinebench R23 multi-core of 18760, and Geekbench multi-core of 15371. Single-thread performance is also robust, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 1049 and Cinebench R23 single-core of 1930. These numbers place the CPU in the 87th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 40081, just 0.1% above the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 and within 0.6% of the Intel Core i9-13905H.

The CPU's role in Microsoft Flight Simulator is to handle the complex flight dynamics, weather simulation, and AI traffic calculations. With 8 cores and 16 threads, it has sufficient parallel processing power for these tasks. The 5 nm process node and 6,570 million transistors suggest efficient execution, and the 83.2 GB/s memory bandwidth from dual-channel DDR5 support ensures data can flow to the GPU quickly. However, the benchmark FPS data shows that the CPU's capabilities are wasted, as the GPU cannot deliver frames at a rate that would stress the processor. The identical 19 FPS at 4K High and Ultra settings is definitive proof that the CPU is waiting on the GPU, not the other way around.