Outriders

The Intel Core i9-14900K paired with the Intel Arc B570 presents a looter shooter configuration that is heavily influenced by graphics settings. The measured data for Outriders shows a wide performance spread depending on whether the user prioritizes visual fidelity or frame rate. This analysis examines the measured FPS rows to determine the optimal settings, the role of the GPU's specifications, and how the system scales across resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark results indicate that the Medium preset is the most balanced choice for this configuration, offering a playable experience across all tested resolutions. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers an average of 128 FPS, which is a substantial jump from the High preset's 96 FPS. This difference of 32 FPS represents a 33% increase in performance for what is typically a minor visual downgrade in shadow quality and post-processing effects. The measured minimum FPS of 109 at 1080p Medium confirms that the frame rate remains stable during intense combat sequences, avoiding the stutters that can plague lower-end settings.

While the Low preset at 1080p yields an impressive 176 FPS average, the visual compromise is often unnecessary given the headroom available. The data suggests that the Arc B570 has enough compute headroom to handle Medium settings without sacrificing the responsiveness required for a shooter. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset maintains an 81 FPS average, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay on standard 1440p monitors. The minimum FPS of 69 at this resolution indicates that even in scenes with multiple enemies and particle effects, the frame pacing remains consistent.

The situation changes at 4K. The Medium preset at 3840x2160 drops to a 42 FPS average, with a minimum of 36 FPS. This is borderline playable for a slower-paced game, but for a looter shooter where accurate aiming is critical, the frame rate may feel sluggish. The Low preset at 4K, averaging 58 FPS, is the better option for users with 4K displays who want to maintain a near-60 FPS experience. The High and Ultra presets at 4K are not recommended, as their averages of 32 and 23 FPS respectively fall below the threshold for enjoyable gameplay. The data shows a clear pattern: Medium is the sweet spot for 1080p and 1440p, while Low becomes the necessary choice at 4K to maintain acceptable fluidity.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B570 is the limiting factor in this configuration for Outriders, and its specifications explain why. The GPU features 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 380.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is adequate for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but the data shows a sharp performance cliff at 4K, suggesting that the memory bandwidth and capacity are being stressed at higher resolutions. The GPU's boost clock is a static 2500 MHz, which is relatively modest for a modern graphics card. This clock speed, combined with the 2304 shading units, allows for a peak FP32 performance of 11.52 TFLOPS. In practice, these specifications translate to the measured frame rates: the GPU can push 176 FPS at 1080p Low, but that number drops to 58 FPS at 4K Low, indicating a scaling efficiency of just 33% when pixel count quadruples.

The GPU's architecture, Xe2-HPG on a 5 nm process, supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, which is relevant for Outriders since the game utilizes DX12 features. The measured scores in synthetic benchmarks provide context for its gaming performance. The GPU achieves a Passmark G3D score of 14195, and its average benchmark score of 20556 places it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs. When compared to its nearest rivals, the Arc B570 is remarkably close to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile, which scores 20534 with a delta of 0.1%. It also trades blows with the Intel Arc A750, which scores 20582 with a delta of -0.1%. These results indicate that the B570 is a solid mid-range performer, but it lacks the raw horsepower to drive high refresh rate gaming at 4K in demanding titles like Outriders.

The GPU's power characteristics also play a role in sustained performance. With a TDP of 150 W and a single 8-pin power connector, the card is designed for efficient operation. The 19,600 million transistors on a 272 mm² die are packed densely, but the thermal solution appears sufficient for the clock speeds. The data does not show any signs of thermal throttling, as the frame rates remain consistent across repeated benchmarks. For Outriders specifically, the GPU's 18 ray tracing cores are underutilized, as the game does not heavily rely on ray tracing effects. Instead, the traditional rasterization performance, as measured by the Passmark DirectX 11 score of 118 and DirectX 12 score of 72, dictates the outcome. These scores are low compared to the GPU's G3D score, suggesting that driver overhead or architectural inefficiencies are limiting raw API performance, which may explain why the card performs better at lower resolutions where the CPU can compensate.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of diminishing returns as resolution increases. Starting from 1920x1080, the configuration achieves a 176 FPS average on Low settings. Moving to 2560x1440, the average drops to 111 FPS, a 37% reduction. At 3840x2160, the average falls to 58 FPS, a 67% reduction from the 1080p baseline. This scaling is steeper than what would be expected if the CPU were the primary bottleneck, indicating that the GPU is the limiting component at higher resolutions. The pixel count increases by 78% from 1080p to 1440p, but the FPS drops by 37%, which is a roughly linear relationship. However, from 1440p to 4K, the pixel count increases by 125%, and the FPS drops by 48%, showing that the GPU's memory bandwidth is becoming saturated.

The Medium settings row provides additional insight into the scaling behavior. At 1080p Medium, the average is 128 FPS, with a minimum of 109 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 81 FPS, with a minimum of 69 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average is 42 FPS, with a minimum of 36 FPS. The gap between the minimum and average FPS widens at higher resolutions, from 19 FPS at 1080p to 12 FPS at 1440p and 6 FPS at 4K. This narrowing gap suggests that the frame rate becomes more consistent as the GPU becomes fully saturated, but it also means that the experience is consistently closer to the lower bound. The data indicates that for a smooth 60 FPS experience, the user must either stay at 1080p with High settings or drop to Low settings at 1440p. The 4K resolution is only viable with Low settings, and even then, the 58 FPS average leaves little room for frame rate dips during heavy action.

The High and Ultra presets show even more severe scaling. At 1080p High, the average is 96 FPS, but at 4K High, it plummets to 32 FPS, a 67% drop. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 70 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it falls to 23 FPS, a 67% drop. This consistent 67% reduction across both presets suggests that the GPU's memory subsystem is the primary constraint, as the additional visual effects at High and Ultra settings increase memory pressure disproportionately. The CPU, an Intel Core i9-14900K with 24 cores and 32 threads, has more than enough processing power to handle the game's logic at any resolution, as evidenced by its high Passmark multithread score of 58674. However, at 1080p Low, the CPU may be limiting the frame rate, as the 176 FPS average is likely approaching the CPU's single-thread limit for this game engine.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured FPS data for Outriders with this configuration is as follows:

1920x1080:

• Low: Average 176 FPS. This is the highest frame rate achieved in any configuration, indicating that the GPU is not the sole bottleneck at this resolution.
• Medium: Average 128 FPS, with a minimum of 109 FPS and a maximum of 148 FPS. This preset offers a strong balance, with the minimum FPS staying well above the 60 FPS threshold.
• High: Average 96 FPS. This is a significant drop from Medium, showing that the High preset's additional effects are costly.
• Ultra: Average 70 FPS. This is the most demanding setting at 1080p, but it still provides a playable frame rate.

2560x1440:

• Low: Average 111 FPS. The 65 FPS drop from 1080p Low is substantial, but the frame rate remains high enough for fast-paced gameplay.
• Medium: Average 81 FPS, with a minimum of 69 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS. The minimum FPS is just above the 60 FPS target, making this a viable option for 1440p.
• High: Average 61 FPS. This is right at the edge of smooth gameplay, and any intensive scene may cause noticeable dips.
• Ultra: Average 44 FPS. This is below the 60 FPS threshold, making it unsuitable for competitive play.

3840x2160:

• Low: Average 58 FPS. This is the only 4K setting that approaches playable frame rates, but it requires significant visual compromises.
• Medium: Average 42 FPS, with a minimum of 36 FPS and a maximum of 49 FPS. The minimum FPS is below the 30 FPS playability floor, indicating potential stutters.
• High: Average 32 FPS. This is not recommended for active gameplay, as the frame rate is too low for responsive aiming.
• Ultra: Average 23 FPS. This setting is effectively a slideshow and should be avoided.

The data shows a clear hierarchy: the configuration excels at 1080p, is capable at 1440p with reduced settings, and struggles at 4K regardless of settings. The delta between Low and Ultra at each resolution is consistent, with Ultra being roughly 60% slower than Low at every resolution.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 1440p monitor?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 delivers an 81 FPS average with a 69 FPS minimum, providing a smooth experience. The High preset at 61 FPS average is also acceptable, but it leaves less headroom for frame rate drops during intense combat.

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

A: Only with the Low preset, which achieves a 58 FPS average. The Medium preset at 4K drops to 42 FPS, and the High and Ultra presets fall to 32 and 23 FPS respectively, which are not suitable for a shooter.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B570 compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Arc B570's average benchmark score of 20556 is within 0.1% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile and 0.1% of the Intel Arc A750. It is also 0.4% ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M and 0.5% behind the AMD Radeon R9 M390X.

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

A: At 1080p Low, the CPU may be the limiting factor, as the 176 FPS average is high. At higher resolutions and settings, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, as evidenced by the steep FPS drops when increasing resolution.

Q: What is the minimum FPS on Medium settings at 1080p?

A: The measured minimum FPS at 1920x1080 with Medium settings is 109 FPS, with an average of 128 FPS and a maximum of 148 FPS. This indicates consistent frame pacing.

Q: Does the GPU's 10 GB of VRAM cause issues in Outriders?

A: The data does not show specific VRAM usage, but the significant performance drop at 4K suggests that the 10 GB capacity and 380 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for the higher memory pressure of 4K textures and effects.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K is a high-end desktop processor that provides more than enough computational power for Outriders. With 24 cores and 32 threads, the CPU excels in multi-threaded workloads, as shown by its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 39399.5 and Geekbench multicore score of 21697. However, Outriders is not a heavily multi-threaded title; it relies more on single-core performance for game logic and draw calls. The CPU's single-thread performance is strong, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2262.5 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2655. These scores place the CPU in the 95th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 79097.

The CPU's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-14900KF, which scores 79371 with a delta of -0.3%, and the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, which scores 79574 with a delta of -0.6%. The AMD EPYC 7413 scores 80041 with a delta of -1.2%, while the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 scores 77740 with a delta of 1.7%. This means the Core i9-14900K is slightly slower than the 14900KF and Ultra 9 290HX Plus, but faster than the Ryzen AI Max+ 395. In gaming scenarios, these differences are negligible, as the CPU is rarely the limiting factor.

The CPU's boost clock of 6.00 GHz is critical for gaming performance, as higher clocks reduce latency in frame generation. The base clock of 3.20 GHz is less relevant, as the CPU will boost to higher frequencies under load. The 36 MB of shared L3 cache helps keep frequently accessed data close to the cores, reducing memory latency. The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory, but the data does not specify which was used in the benchmarks. With a TDP of 125 W, the CPU is power-hungry, but it has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking, allowing users to push performance further if their cooling solution permits.

In the context of Outriders, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and process game state. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the frame rate reaches 176 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's limit for this game engine. At higher resolutions, the frame rate drops proportionally with pixel count, confirming that the GPU is the bottleneck. The CPU's high single-thread score ensures that it will not cause stutters or frame pacing issues, even in scenes with many enemies and particle effects. For this configuration, the CPU is a solid foundation that will not hold back the GPU in most scenarios, but users should be aware that at 4K, the CPU is underutilized while the GPU struggles to maintain playable frame rates.