Outriders

# Outriders with AMD Ryzen 7 9700X + Intel Arc B370

This combination pairs AMD's 8-core Zen 5 desktop processor with Intel's integrated-class Arc B370 graphics, producing results that are firmly constrained by the GPU across every resolution and settings level tested. The measured frame rates reveal a system that can handle Outriders at lower resolutions and settings, but falls off sharply as graphical demands increase, with the CPU's substantial headroom never becoming the limiting factor in any configuration tested.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all four settings presets, clearly identifying the Intel Arc B370 as the performance bottleneck. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 57 FPS at 1920x1080 to 36 FPS at 2560x1440, then to 19 FPS at 3840x2160 — a reduction of approximately 37% when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and another 47% from 1440p to 4K. This scaling pattern indicates that the GPU is being saturated well before the CPU's capabilities come into play.

The Low preset shows a similar trajectory but from a higher starting point. The system delivers 104 FPS at 1080p, which drops to 65 FPS at 1440p (a 37.5% reduction) and further to 34 FPS at 4K (a 47.7% reduction from 1440p). Medium settings follow the same proportional pattern: 75 FPS at 1080p, 48 FPS at 1440p, and 25 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, starts at just 41 FPS at 1080p, falls to 26 FPS at 1440p, and bottoms out at 13 FPS at 4K.

The consistent percentage drops across settings presets suggest that the scaling is resolution-driven rather than settings-driven — the GPU's rendering pipeline becomes the limiting factor at higher pixel counts regardless of the visual complexity. The fact that even the Low preset cannot maintain playable frame rates at 4K (34 FPS average) reinforces this interpretation. Interestingly, the gap between 1440p and 4K is proportionally larger than the gap between 1080p and 1440p for every preset, indicating that the Arc B370's memory bandwidth or fill rate constraints become increasingly severe as pixel count grows.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2400 MHz, featuring 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster operation units. The graphics core also includes 10 ray tracing cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The memory configuration is entirely system-shared, meaning the GPU draws from the same DDR5 pool as the CPU, with bandwidth described as system dependent.

The measured 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places this GPU in the 5th percentile of all tested graphics cards, with nearest rivals including the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186, 0.2% higher), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190, 0.5% higher), AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192, 0.7% higher), and AMD FirePro M2000 (1168, 1.4% lower). These comparisons place the Arc B370 in territory occupied by much older discrete parts, which aligns with its integrated nature and modest 25 W TDP.

The GPU's pixel rate is rated at 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate at 96.00 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS. In Outriders, these specifications translate to the measured frame rates observed. The system-shared memory architecture means that at higher resolutions, the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory bandwidth, which likely contributes to the steep scaling penalties seen at 4K. The boost clock of 2400 MHz helps at lower resolutions where the GPU can operate closer to its maximum potential, but the fundamental throughput limits become apparent as pixel counts rise.

Settings Recommendations

Given the measured data, the Low preset at 1920x1080 is the only configuration that delivers a consistently smooth experience, with an average of 104 FPS. This is the clear recommendation for any player prioritizing frame rate stability in Outriders with this hardware combination. The Medium preset at 1080p averages 75 FPS, which is also playable and offers improved visual fidelity, but it comes with a 28% performance penalty compared to Low.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 65 FPS, which is acceptable for casual play but below ideal for fast-paced looter shooter combat. The Medium preset at 1440p drops to 48 FPS, which falls into the range where responsiveness may be compromised during intense encounters. The High preset at 1080p averages 57 FPS, which is marginally playable but represents a significant drop from the Low preset's performance.

The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution based on the data. At 1080p it averages 41 FPS, at 1440p it falls to 26 FPS, and at 4K it reaches only 13 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K averages 25 FPS with minimums of 21 FPS and maximums of 29 FPS, indicating substantial frame time variance that would be noticeable during gameplay. The High preset at 4K averages 19 FPS, which is effectively unplayable for a game requiring quick reactions.

The data suggests that players should prioritize the Low preset at 1080p for the best experience, with Medium at 1080p as a viable alternative for those willing to trade some smoothness for visual improvements. Any setting above Medium at 1080p, or any resolution above 1080p with demanding presets, will result in frame rates that compromise the gameplay experience.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this hardware in Outriders?

A: The measured data shows that Low settings at 1920x1080 delivers the highest average frame rate at 104 FPS. Medium at 1080p averages 75 FPS, which is also playable, but any higher settings or resolution results in averages below 57 FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Outriders?

A: No. At 3840x2160, even the Low preset averages only 34 FPS, with Medium at 25 FPS, High at 19 FPS, and Ultra at 13 FPS. These frame rates are below acceptable thresholds for a looter shooter.

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

A: The Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, placing it within 1.4% of the AMD FirePro M2000 (1168), ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190), and AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192).

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X the bottleneck in this system?

A: No. The CPU's benchmark scores, including a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 20485 and single-core score of 2211, far exceed what this game requires at the frame rates measured. The GPU is the limiting component in all tested configurations.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: The Low preset averages 65 FPS at 2560x1440, while Ultra averages 26 FPS. This represents a 60% reduction in average frame rate when moving from Low to Ultra at this resolution.

Q: Does the Medium preset show consistent frame times?

A: The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum values. At 1080p, it ranges from 64 to 87 FPS (average 75), at 1440p from 40 to 55 FPS (average 48), and at 4K from 21 to 29 FPS (average 25), showing wider variance at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is a desktop processor built on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge codename) using TSMC's 4 nm process, featuring 8 cores and 16 threads. It operates with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, with a 65 W TDP and support for DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration providing 89.6 GB/s of bandwidth. The CPU includes 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache, and it supports PCIe Gen 5 with 24 lanes from the CPU.

Benchmark data shows this processor performing well above average, with a percentile ranking of 86 against all CPUs. Its Cinebench R23 scores are 20485 multicore and 2211 single-core, while Geekbench results are 17906 multicore and 3023 single-core. The 3DMark thread scaling tests show 2525 for 2 threads, 4869 for 4 threads, 8184 for 8 threads, and 9824 for 16 threads, indicating strong scaling across all core counts. The PassMark multithread score is 37161 with a single-thread score of 4654.

The nearest rivals in CPU benchmarks include the Intel Core i9-14901E (37911 average, 0.1% difference), AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 (37904, 0.1%), Intel Core 5 211E (37829, 0.3%), and AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P132 (37804, 0.4%). These comparisons show the 9700X sitting in a tight cluster of high-performing processors. In Outriders, however, the CPU's capabilities are never fully exercised. The highest average frame rate measured is 104 FPS at 1080p Low, which is well within the range where even a much weaker CPU could keep up. The GPU's 5th percentile ranking compared to the CPU's 86th percentile makes it clear which component determines performance in this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best results. The Low preset averages 104 FPS, providing the only triple-digit frame rate in the entire dataset. Medium settings average 75 FPS with a minimum of 64 FPS and maximum of 87 FPS. High settings drop to 57 FPS average, while Ultra falls to 41 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra at this resolution shows a 60.6% reduction in average frame rate.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 65 FPS, Medium averages 48 FPS (ranging from 40 to 55), High averages 36 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings is 39 FPS, representing a 37.5% decrease. At Medium settings, the drop is 27 FPS (36%), at High it is 21 FPS (36.8%), and at Ultra it is 15 FPS (36.6%). These consistent percentage reductions across presets indicate resolution is the dominant factor in performance scaling.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 34 FPS, Medium averages 25 FPS (ranging from 21 to 29), High averages 19 FPS, and Ultra averages 13 FPS. The transition from 1440p to 4K at Low settings shows a 31 FPS drop (47.7%), at Medium a 23 FPS drop (47.9%), at High a 17 FPS drop (47.2%), and at Ultra a 13 FPS drop (50%). The slightly larger proportional drops at 4K suggest the system-shared memory configuration becomes increasingly strained at higher pixel counts.

The Medium preset is the only one with complete min/max data at all resolutions, showing that frame time consistency degrades as resolution increases. At 1080p, the spread between minimum and maximum is 23 FPS; at 1440p, it narrows to 15 FPS; at 4K, it narrows further to 8 FPS. This tightening range at lower average FPS indicates the GPU is operating near its limit, with less headroom for variation.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X combined with the Intel Arc B370 ranks 3424 out of 3710 tested combinations for Outriders, placing it in the bottom 8% of all tested systems. This low ranking is directly attributable to the GPU's performance ceiling, as the CPU is a high-performing part that would rank much higher in CPU-centric workloads. The GPU's 5th percentile ranking among all graphics cards, combined with its nearest rivals being older ATI and AMD parts, confirms that this integrated solution is not designed for demanding gaming workloads.

The ranking position becomes clearer when considering that the GPU's average benchmark score of 1184 is only slightly above the AMD FirePro M2000's 1168, while the CPU's average benchmark score of 37943 places it just above the Intel Core i9-14901E's 37911. This extreme disparity between component capabilities results in a system that is fundamentally unbalanced for gaming, with the GPU leaving most of the CPU's potential untapped.

In the context of Outriders specifically, the combination's rank of 3424 out of 3710 means that only 286 tested combinations perform worse. The measured frame rates confirm this positioning — even at the lowest settings and resolution, the system barely achieves 104 FPS, while at higher settings and resolutions it falls below playable thresholds. For players considering this combination, the data indicates that the Arc B370's integrated nature and system-shared memory architecture severely limit the excellent Ryzen 7 9700X's ability to deliver a satisfying gaming experience in Outriders.