Outriders

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 paired with the Intel Arc B370 presents a specific performance profile in Outriders, characterized by a significant reliance on resolution and settings adjustments to achieve playable frame rates. The data shows a clear hierarchy where the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s capability is only fully utilized at lower settings. This analysis breaks down the measured results to understand the balance between these two components.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a pronounced impact of resolution on performance, indicating that the Intel Arc B370 is the limiting factor as pixel count increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 104 FPS, but this drops to 65 FPS at 1440p and further to 34 FPS at 4K. This represents a 37.5% performance loss from 1080p to 1440p, and a 67.3% loss from 1080p to 4K, demonstrating that the GPU’s rendering capability is quickly saturated.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings presets. For High settings, the average frame rate falls from 57 FPS at 1080p to 36 FPS at 1440p (a 36.8% drop) and then to 19 FPS at 4K (a 66.7% drop from 1080p). This steep decline suggests that the Arc B370’s rendering pipeline, with its 20 ROPs and 6.144 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, is overwhelmed by the sheer number of pixels at 4K, regardless of the graphical complexity.

At Medium settings, the frame rates are 75 FPS at 1080p, 48 FPS at 1440p, and 25 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are similar to the other presets, reinforcing that resolution scaling is the dominant factor. The data indicates that the GPU’s memory subsystem, which is "System Shared" and dependent on the platform, also contributes to this scaling, as higher resolutions require more memory bandwidth, which is not a dedicated resource for the GPU.

The transition from 1080p to 1440p shows a less severe but still notable drop, while the jump to 4K is crippling. For instance, the Ultra preset yields 41 FPS at 1080p but only 26 FPS at 1440p and 13 FPS at 4K. This pattern suggests that while the CPU can keep up with the frame generation at lower resolutions, the GPU’s fill rate and pixel throughput become the hard ceiling, making 4K practically unplayable at any settings above Low.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370’s specifications directly explain its performance ceiling in Outriders. With a boost clock of 2400 MHz and a base clock of 300 MHz, the GPU’s dynamic range is wide, but its peak performance is limited by its modest specifications. The 1280 shading units and 40 TMUs provide a baseline for texture and shader work, but the 20 ROPs are a critical constraint for pixel output, particularly at high resolutions.

The GPU’s memory configuration is "System Shared" with a bus width and bandwidth that are "System Dependent". This means the Arc B370 relies on the system’s main memory (DDR4 in this case) rather than dedicated VRAM. This architecture can lead to contention with the CPU for memory bandwidth, especially at higher resolutions where the demand for texture data and frame buffers increases. The data supports this, as the frame rate drops disproportionately at 4K compared to 1080p.

In terms of raw compute, the GPU’s 6.144 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s place it in a low percentile (5th) among all GPUs. Benchmark results show a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184, which is nearly identical to the scores of its nearest rivals: the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186, -0.2% delta), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190, -0.5% delta), and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192, -0.7% delta). This places the Arc B370 in the same performance tier as decade-old discrete GPUs, indicating its limitations are structural rather than driver-related.

The GPU’s 25 W TDP and IGP slot width suggest it is designed for low-power integrated solutions, not high-end gaming. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the GPU can produce 104 FPS, but this is the only scenario where it approaches a high refresh rate. At 1440p and above, the GPU’s throughput is insufficient to maintain smooth gameplay, with averages falling below 65 FPS even at Low settings. The Ultra preset at 4K, which yields 13 FPS, highlights the GPU’s inability to handle the combined load of high pixel count and complex shading.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 provides a solid foundation for this combo, with its 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture. Its boost clock of 4.20 GHz and base clock of 3.60 GHz, combined with a 16 MB L3 cache, ensure that it is not the primary bottleneck in most scenarios. The CPU’s benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16429 and a single-core score of 2319, show a balanced performance profile that is adequate for gaming workloads.

The CPU’s percentile rank of 73 places it well above the GPU’s 5th percentile, indicating a significant mismatch in capability. This is evident in the frame rate data: at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 104 FPS, suggesting the CPU can feed frames to the GPU faster than the GPU can render them. However, at 4K Low, the frame rate drops to 34 FPS, a 67.3% reduction, which is far more than the CPU’s workload increase. This confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor, not the CPU.

The Ryzen 5 5500’s nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI 5 430 (avg score 19617, -0.1% delta), the Intel Core i5-12500 (avg score 19668, -0.4% delta), and the Intel Core i7-10700F (avg score 19499, 0.5% delta). These scores show that the Ryzen 5 5500 is competitive with mid-range CPUs from the same era, but its performance is not exceptional. In Outriders, the CPU’s role becomes more apparent at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed, but even then, the CPU’s performance is sufficient.

The CPU’s memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s and dual-channel DDR4 support are adequate for the GPU’s "System Shared" memory, but they do not provide a dedicated high-bandwidth path. This can cause performance degradation in scenarios where both the CPU and GPU are heavily accessing memory, such as at 1080p High where the frame rate is 57 FPS. The data suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck, as the frame rates scale almost entirely with the GPU’s resolution limits.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides a comprehensive view of the combo’s performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers the highest average at 104 FPS, followed by Medium at 75 FPS (with a min of 64 and max of 87), High at 57 FPS, and Ultra at 41 FPS. This shows a clear linear progression where each settings tier costs approximately 17-18 FPS, indicating that the GPU’s shader and texture units are the primary consumers of the performance budget.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates drop significantly. The Low preset averages 65 FPS, Medium averages 48 FPS (min 40, max 55), High averages 36 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 39 FPS, which is similar in proportion to the 1080p delta of 63 FPS, but the absolute values are lower. This suggests that the GPU’s pixel fill rate is becoming a limiting factor, as the resolution increase demands more from the ROPs.

At 3840x2160, the performance is marginal. Low settings yield an average of 34 FPS, Medium drops to 25 FPS (min 21, max 29), High manages only 19 FPS, and Ultra falls to 13 FPS. These numbers are below the threshold for smooth gameplay, and even the Low preset is borderline. The data indicates that 4K is not a viable option for this combo in Outriders, regardless of settings.

The Medium preset data is the only one with min and max FPS values, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p, the Medium preset ranges from 64 to 87 FPS, a 23 FPS spread. At 1440p, the range is 40 to 55 FPS, a 15 FPS spread. At 4K, the range is 21 to 29 FPS, an 8 FPS spread. This tightening of the frame rate range at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is consistently saturated, reducing the variance but also reducing the average performance.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where playable frame rates are consistently achieved. At 1080p, the Low preset averages 104 FPS and the Medium preset averages 75 FPS, while at 1440p, the Low preset drops to 65 FPS and at 4K, the Low preset averages only 34 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The GPU’s 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 is nearly identical to the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186, -0.2% delta), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190, -0.5% delta), and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192, -0.7% delta). This places it in a low performance tier, with a 5th percentile rank among all GPUs.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this system?

A: The CPU’s 73rd percentile rank and the GPU’s 5th percentile rank indicate a significant mismatch. The frame rate data confirms the GPU is the bottleneck, as performance scales almost entirely with resolution, dropping from 104 FPS at 1080p Low to 34 FPS at 4K Low, while the CPU’s workload remains relatively constant.

Q: What settings preset provides the highest frame rate?

A: At every resolution, the Low preset provides the highest average frame rate. At 1080p, this is 104 FPS, at 1440p it is 65 FPS, and at 4K it is 34 FPS. The Ultra preset provides the lowest, with 41 FPS at 1080p, 26 FPS at 1440p, and 13 FPS at 4K.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 5500 perform relative to similar CPUs?

A: The Ryzen 5 5500’s average benchmark score of 19593 is within 0.7% of its nearest rivals: the AMD Ryzen AI 5 430 (19617, -0.1% delta), the Intel Core i5-12500 (19668, -0.4% delta), and the Intel Core i7-10700F (19499, 0.5% delta). This shows it is a competitive mid-range CPU.

Q: What is the frame rate variance at Medium settings?

A: The Medium preset is the only one with min and max FPS data. At 1080p, it ranges from 64 to 87 FPS (a 23 FPS spread). At 1440p, it ranges from 40 to 55 FPS (a 15 FPS spread). At 4K, it ranges from 21 to 29 FPS (an 8 FPS spread), showing reduced variance as resolution increases.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the target resolution and the desired frame rate. For a smooth 60 FPS experience, the only viable option is 1080p with Low settings, which achieves 104 FPS, or Medium settings, which achieves 75 FPS. At 1440p, even the Low preset only reaches 65 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors, while Medium drops to 48 FPS.

For 4K gaming, the data indicates that no settings preset provides a playable experience. The Low preset averages 34 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold, and the higher presets are progressively worse, with Ultra at 13 FPS. The recommendation is to avoid 4K entirely with this combo, as the GPU’s performance is insufficient.

The Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance at 1080p, with a 75 FPS average and a frame rate range of 64 to 87 FPS. This provides a consistent experience without the visual degradation of Low settings. At 1440p, the Low preset is the only option that maintains an average above 60 FPS, but the High and Medium presets are usable if the user prioritizes visual fidelity over smoothness.

The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution. At 1080p, it averages 41 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold, and at higher resolutions, it drops to 26 FPS (1440p) and 13 FPS (4K). The performance cost of Ultra settings is not justified by the modest visual improvement, especially given the GPU’s limitations. The data suggests that Low or Medium settings at 1080p provide the best overall experience, with the option to drop to Low at 1440p if needed.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 + Intel Arc B370 combo ranks 2679 out of 2913 tested combinations in Outriders, placing it in the bottom 8% of all systems. This low ranking is consistent with the GPU’s 5th percentile performance, which drags down the overall score despite the CPU’s 73rd percentile rank. The data indicates that this combo is severely GPU-limited, and its performance in this game is far below the median.

The ranking reflects the measured FPS data, which shows that the combo struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 1440p and above. At 1080p, the combo performs adequately, but its ability to handle higher resolutions is poor. The combo’s rank of 2679 out of 2913 suggests that most other tested configurations outperform it, likely due to having more powerful GPUs.

The GPU’s nearest rivals, such as the ATI Radeon HD 5770, are from a much older generation, indicating that the Arc B370 is not competitive with modern discrete GPUs. This is further emphasized by the GPU’s low 3DMark score of 1184, which is a fraction of what contemporary GPUs achieve. The CPU’s performance is more respectable, but it cannot compensate for the GPU’s shortcomings.

Overall, this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming at low to medium settings, where it can achieve acceptable frame rates. Its rank in the bottom 8% of tested combos in Outriders confirms that it is not a high-performance solution, and users seeking higher resolutions or settings would need a more capable GPU. The data is clear: the Intel Arc B370 is the limiting factor, and the Ryzen 5 5500’s potential is largely untapped in this configuration.