Microsoft Flight Simulator

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with the Intel Arc B580 presents a specific performance profile in Microsoft Flight Simulator. The data shows a combination that is positioned in the lower half of tested configurations, with a combo rank of 2241 out of 2996. This pairing produces playable frame rates at lower resolutions and settings, but it struggles to maintain high performance at 4K with the Ultra preset. The following analysis breaks down the CPU and GPU contributions, measured performance, and scaling behavior based solely on the provided benchmark data.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall performance ranking of this CPU and GPU combination in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: This combo ranks 2241 out of 2996 tested combinations. This places it in the lower 25th percentile of all tested systems for this specific game.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 compare to its closest rivals in general CPU benchmarks?

A: The CPU’s average benchmark score is 46062. It is virtually tied with the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, which scores 46030 (a 0.1% difference), and the Intel Core i9-13900HX, which scores 46098 (-0.1% difference). It is also 0.2% ahead of both the AMD EPYC 4364P and AMD EPYC 7303.

Q: What is the best average FPS this combination can achieve at 1080p?

A: The highest average frame rate is 97 FPS, which is achieved with the Low settings preset at 1920x1080 resolution.

Q: Is the Arc B580’s performance comparable to any older or higher-tier NVIDIA cards?

A: According to benchmark averages, the Arc B580’s score of 23021 is 0.6% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (22895) and 0.7% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (23172). Its performance is also within 1% of the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP and the NVIDIA P106-100.

Q: What is the only resolution and settings combination that provides a minimum FPS above 60?

A: The only row with a recorded minimum FPS above 60 is at 1920x1080 with Medium settings, which shows an average of 76 FPS, a minimum of 64 FPS, and a maximum of 87 FPS.

Q: How much does the average FPS drop when moving from the Low to Ultra preset at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the average FPS drops from 78 FPS on Low to 44 FPS on Ultra. This represents a significant 43.6% decrease in performance when enabling the highest settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process. Its base clock is 3.40 GHz with a boost clock of up to 5.00 GHz. The processor has a 24 MB shared L3 cache and supports DDR5 memory on a dual-channel bus. In the context of Microsoft Flight Simulator, a title known for heavy simulation logic, the CPU's single-thread performance is often a critical factor. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2085 and multicore score of 14769 provide a reference for its processing capability.

The CPU’s percentile rank of 89 versus all CPUs indicates it is a strong processor in general compute tasks. Its average benchmark score of 46062 places it in a performance tier that is statistically indistinguishable from several high-end mobile and desktop chips, including the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 and the Intel Core i9-13900HX. This suggests that, from a pure processing standpoint, this CPU should not be a primary bottleneck at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed. However, the measured FPS data suggests that at higher settings and resolutions, the system is likely GPU-limited, as the CPU’s relative strength is not enough to compensate for the GPU's workload.

The 14 threads are the total number of logical processors available. In a flight simulator, the main game thread and physics calculations will utilize these cores. While the CPU has a high benchmark percentile, the game's performance is ultimately dictated by the interaction of this processor with the GPU. The data shows that the system’s ranking is low, which implies that the GPU is the limiting factor in most scenarios, a common outcome when pairing a high-end CPU with a mid-range graphics card.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage generation) using a 5 nm process. It features 2560 shading units, 20 ray tracing cores, and a 12 GB GDDR6 memory interface on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s. The GPU operates at a base and boost clock of 2670 MHz. Its FP32 performance is rated at 13.67 TFLOPS. The card holds a percentile rank of 68 versus all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021.

The GPU’s benchmark performance places it in a tight cluster with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, RTX 3080, AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP, and NVIDIA P106-100, with score differences of less than 1%. This indicates that while it is a capable card, it is not in the top tier of graphics processors. In Microsoft Flight Simulator, the GPU is responsible for rendering terrain, aircraft models, and weather effects. The VRAM capacity of 12 GB is a significant asset for higher resolution textures, but the core compute performance appears to be the deciding factor in the measured results.

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution and settings increase. For instance, at 1080p Ultra, the card averages 54 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 32 FPS. This steep decline suggests the B580’s rendering throughput is the primary bottleneck in this configuration, especially when handling the demands of 4K rendering. The card’s performance relative to the RTX 2080 and RTX 3080, both older architectures, indicates it is positioned as a solid mid-range option that is not suited for maximum settings at 4K in this simulator.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the user's target resolution and desired frame rate. There is no single "best" setting across all resolutions.

For a smooth 60+ FPS experience, the Low preset is the only reliable option. It achieves 97 FPS at 1080p and 78 FPS at 1440p. However, it does not reach 60 FPS at 4K, where it averages 58 FPS. This preset sacrifices visual fidelity for performance and is recommended for high-refresh-rate monitors at 1080p or 1440p.

For a balance between visual quality and performance, the Medium preset is a strong candidate. At 1080p, it delivers 76 FPS with a minimum of 64 FPS, ensuring a stable experience. At 1440p, it produces 61 FPS with a minimum of 52 FPS, which is playable but may have occasional dips. The High preset is only viable at 1080p, where it averages 57 FPS. At 1440p, it drops to 46 FPS, and at 4K, it falls to 34 FPS.

The Ultra preset is not recommended for any resolution in this configuration. It only achieves 54 FPS at 1080p and drops to 44 FPS at 1440p and 32 FPS at 4K. The data suggests that the Medium preset at 1080p provides the most balanced experience, as it is the only combination that offers both a high average FPS (76) and a minimum FPS above 60. For users prioritizing visual quality over frame rate, High at 1080p is the highest preset that remains consistently playable.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and Intel Arc B580 ranks 2241 out of 2996 tested combinations in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places the system in the 25th percentile of performance, meaning that 75% of tested systems deliver higher average frame rates. This low ranking is notable given the individual strengths of the components.

The CPU itself is a high performer, ranking in the 89th percentile of all CPUs. This suggests the processor is not the primary reason for the low ranking. Instead, the data points to the GPU as the limiting factor. The Arc B580, ranking in the 68th percentile of all GPUs, is a mid-range card. When paired with a top-tier CPU in a demanding simulation, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, especially at higher resolutions.

This ranking suggests that the system is well-balanced for 1080p gaming but is outclassed by other tested combos at higher resolutions. The delta between the CPU's high percentile and the combo's low rank indicates that the GPU is holding back the system's overall performance in this specific title. In comparison to other combos, this system is not competitive for 4K Ultra settings, but it is adequate for more modest configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The benchmark data provides average FPS for three resolutions and four settings, with minimum and maximum FPS recorded only for the Medium preset.

1920x1080:

• Low: 97 FPS
• Medium: 76 FPS (min 64, max 87)
• High: 57 FPS
• Ultra: 54 FPS

2560x1440:

• Low: 78 FPS
• Medium: 61 FPS (min 52, max 70)
• High: 46 FPS
• Ultra: 44 FPS

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 58 FPS
• Medium: 45 FPS (min 38, max 52)
• High: 34 FPS
• Ultra: 32 FPS

The data shows a consistent pattern. At 1080p, the system can handle all presets, with even the Ultra preset averaging above 50 FPS. Moving to 1440p, the average FPS drops significantly for all presets, with only the Low preset remaining above 60 FPS. At 4K, the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates on anything above the Low preset. The Medium preset's min FPS of 38 at 4K indicates potential stuttering in demanding scenes.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K is steep, highlighting the GPU-bound nature of this configuration. At the Low preset, the average FPS drops from 97 at 1080p to 78 at 1440p (a 19.6% drop) and then to 58 at 4K (a 40.2% drop from 1080p). This indicates that even at the lowest visual settings, the GPU is struggling to keep up with the increased pixel count.

For the Medium preset, the scaling is slightly more pronounced. The average FPS drops from 76 at 1080p to 61 at 1440p (a 19.7% drop) and then to 45 at 4K (a 40.8% drop from 1080p). This consistent pattern across presets suggests that the performance is primarily limited by the GPU's fill rate and pixel processing capabilities.

The drop from 1440p to 4K is particularly severe, with average FPS decreasing by roughly 26% to 35% depending on the preset. This severe degradation at 4K strongly indicates that the Intel Arc B580 lacks the raw computational power to render this simulator at high resolutions. The data shows that the CPU is likely not the limiting factor, as the system’s performance scales with resolution in a manner typical of a GPU bottleneck. The system is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can achieve playable frame rates, rather than 4K.