Red Dead Redemption 2

# Red Dead Redemption 2 — AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D + Intel Arc B390

The measured data for Red Dead Redemption 2 with this combination reveals a system heavily constrained by the graphics subsystem. Across all resolutions and settings, the Intel Arc B390 delivers frame rates that place this combo at rank 2568 out of 2902 tested combinations, putting it in the bottom percentile of all tested configurations. The AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D, by contrast, is a high-end desktop processor with strong multi-threaded and single-threaded scores, but its capabilities are largely unused in this pairing. The data shows a system where the GPU becomes the definitive bottleneck at every measured resolution, with CPU headroom that never translates into playable frame rates above 1080p Low.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and tells a clear story about which component is limiting performance. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 51 FPS at 1920x1080 to 38 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 13 FPS or roughly 25%. Moving further to 3840x2160, the average drops to 25 FPS, which is a 51% decrease from the 1080p figure. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the rendering load increases with pixel count and the graphics processor cannot keep pace.

At Medium settings, the resolution scaling shows a similar trajectory: 39 FPS at 1080p, 29 FPS at 1440p, and 19 FPS at 4K. The 1440p result is 74% of the 1080p value, while the 4K result is just 49% of the 1080p value. The measured minimum and maximum FPS at Medium settings further illustrate the instability: at 1080p, the range is 33 to 44 FPS, while at 1440p it narrows to 24 to 33 FPS, and at 4K it tightens further to 16 to 22 FPS. This compression of the frame time distribution at higher resolutions indicates the GPU is consistently saturated.

High settings produce a slightly different scaling curve. The average at 1080p is 32 FPS, dropping to 24 FPS at 1440p and 16 FPS at 4K. The 1440p value is exactly 75% of the 1080p result, and the 4K value is exactly half. This linear scaling with pixel count is a textbook sign of a pixel-bound workload, where the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors. The CPU, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is not the constraint; the data suggests that even a significantly weaker processor would produce nearly identical results at these resolutions.

Ultra settings show the most severe degradation: 23 FPS at 1080p, 17 FPS at 1440p, and 11 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result represents a 52% drop from the 1080p Ultra figure, and the absolute frame rate is below the threshold of smooth gameplay even by the most permissive standards. The scaling pattern across all settings indicates that the Intel Arc B390's performance ceiling is reached at 1080p Low, where it achieves its only measurable frame rate above 50 FPS.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D is a Zen 4 (Raphael) processor built on a 5 nm process at TSMC, with 8 cores and 16 threads. Its base clock is 4.20 GHz with a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, and it features a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache. The processor's benchmark scores are strong: it achieves 16817 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, 1713 in single-core, and 15610 in Geekbench multi-core. In 3DMark, the 16-thread test yields 7980, while the max-thread test produces 7967, indicating that scaling beyond 16 threads offers no additional benefit.

However, these CPU capabilities are largely irrelevant to the measured game performance. In Red Dead Redemption 2, the data shows that even at 1080p Low—the least GPU-intensive configuration measured—the average FPS is 51. The CPU is capable of far higher frame rates in synthetic benchmarks, but the game's performance is capped by the GPU. The percentile ranking of the CPU is 83rd among all tested processors, with an average benchmark score of 33079. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 8700G and Intel Core i7-13650HX, both with an average score of 33089 (a delta of 0%), and the AMD Ryzen 7 7745HX at 33091 (0% delta). The AMD Ryzen 9 PRO 6950H trails slightly at 33201, a -0.4% delta.

The processor's 3DMark scores show a pattern of diminishing returns with thread count: 1887 for 2 threads, 3684 for 4 threads, 6539 for 8 threads, and 7980 for 16 threads. This scaling is healthy and indicates the CPU can leverage multiple cores effectively. Yet in this game, the frame rates at 1080p High (32 FPS) and 1080p Medium (39 FPS) are so low that the CPU is never the limiting factor. The data indicates that the Ryzen 7 7800X3D would be capable of driving much higher frame rates in this title if paired with a more powerful GPU; the bottleneck is unequivocally on the graphics side.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy of settings for this combination. At 1920x1080, Low settings produce an average of 51 FPS, which is the only configuration measured that approaches a playable frame rate for smooth action. Medium settings drop to 39 FPS, High to 32 FPS, and Ultra to 23 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 12 FPS (a 24% reduction), while the step from Medium to High costs another 7 FPS (an 18% reduction). The step from High to Ultra costs 9 FPS (a 28% reduction).

At 2560x1440, the best option is Low with 38 FPS, followed by Medium at 29 FPS, High at 24 FPS, and Ultra at 17 FPS. At 3840x2160, Low produces 25 FPS, Medium 19 FPS, High 16 FPS, and Ultra 11 FPS. The data suggests that 1080p Low is the only setting where the average frame rate exceeds 50 FPS, and even this is marginal for a title like Red Dead Redemption 2, which benefits from higher frame rates for responsive aiming and camera movement.

The measured minimum and maximum FPS values at Medium settings provide additional context. At 1080p, the range is 33 to 44 FPS, meaning the minimum can dip below the average of other settings. At 1440p, the range is 24 to 33 FPS, and at 4K, 16 to 22 FPS. These ranges indicate that even the "best" setting (1080p Low) is likely to experience frame time spikes, though no min/max data is available for Low to confirm this. The recommendation from the data is unambiguous: for the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, 1080p Low is the only viable option, and users seeking higher visual fidelity would need to accept frame rates below 40 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2568 out of 2902 tested combinations in Red Dead Redemption 2. This places the combo in the 88th percentile from the bottom, meaning only 334 tested configurations perform worse. The ranking is heavily influenced by the GPU's low benchmark standing: the Intel Arc B390 sits at the 9th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12.

The GPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores are older, low-end parts: the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX scores 1463 (a 1.3% delta), the GeForce 800M scores 1460 (1.5% delta), the GeForce GT 625 OEM scores 1446 (2.5% delta), and the GeForce GT 710 scores 1443 (2.7% delta). These deltas are small, indicating that the Arc B390 is clustered with GPUs that are not designed for modern gaming at high settings. The CPU, by contrast, sits at the 83rd percentile, showing that the processor is not the cause of this low ranking.

The combo's rank is primarily a function of the GPU's performance ceiling. The data shows that the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is capable of much higher frame rates in synthetic tests, but the Arc B390's 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 60.00 GPixel/s pixel rate are insufficient for Red Dead Redemption 2's demands at higher resolutions and settings. The combo rank of 2568 out of 2902 indicates that a user would need to significantly upgrade the GPU to move this ranking substantially, while the CPU could remain unchanged without affecting game performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this system?

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 with Low settings produces an average of 51 FPS, the highest frame rate of any configuration tested. All other settings at 1080p (Medium 39 FPS, High 32 FPS, Ultra 23 FPS) and all settings at 1440p and 4K produce lower averages.

Q: How does the GPU's benchmark score compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel 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).

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the definitive bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 51 FPS, but the CPU has a 3DMark max-thread score of 7967 and an 83rd percentile ranking among all CPUs. The frame rate scaling with resolution and settings follows a pattern consistent with GPU-bound performance.

Q: What is the frame rate at 1440p Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings is 29 FPS, with a minimum of 24 FPS and a maximum of 33 FPS.

Q: How many tested combinations does this system rank above?

A: This combo ranks 2568 out of 2902 tested combinations, meaning it performs better than 334 other combinations and worse than 2567 in Red Dead Redemption 2.

Q: What are the GPU's clock speeds and memory configuration?

A: The Intel Arc B390 has a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz. Its memory size, type, and bus width are all listed as "System Shared," with bandwidth dependent on the system.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are as follows: Low settings produce 51 FPS, Medium produces 39 FPS with a range of 33 to 44 FPS, High produces 32 FPS, and Ultra produces 23 FPS. The step from Low to Medium represents a 12 FPS drop, and the step from Medium to High represents a 7 FPS drop, while High to Ultra costs 9 FPS.

At 2560x1440, Low settings yield 38 FPS average, Medium yields 29 FPS with a range of 24 to 33 FPS, High yields 24 FPS, and Ultra yields 17 FPS. The 1440p Low result is 74.5% of the 1080p Low result, and the 1440p Medium result is 74.4% of the 1080p Medium result, showing consistent scaling.

At 3840x2160, Low settings produce 25 FPS average, Medium produces 19 FPS with a range of 16 to 22 FPS, High produces 16 FPS, and Ultra produces 11 FPS. The 4K Low result is 49% of the 1080p Low result, and the 4K Medium result is 48.7% of the 1080p Medium result.

The Medium settings data is the only row with full min/max values at all resolutions. At 1080p, the spread from min to max is 11 FPS; at 1440p, the spread is 9 FPS; at 4K, the spread is 6 FPS. This narrowing spread at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is consistently operating at its limits, with less variation in frame times as the resolution increases. The data shows a consistent pattern of approximately 25% performance reduction from 1080p to 1440p and an additional 35% reduction from 1440p to 4K across all settings.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics processor based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It has 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster operation units, along with 12 ray tracing cores. The GPU's boost clock is 2500 MHz, and it achieves a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s. Its FP32 performance is 7.680 TFLOPS, with FP16 performance at 15.36 TFLOPS (2:1).

The GPU's memory is entirely system shared, with no dedicated VRAM. This means the memory bandwidth is system dependent, which is a significant limitation for a game like Red Dead Redemption 2 that requires substantial texture and geometry data. The GPU's benchmark score in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 is 1482, placing it at the 9th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are all NVIDIA parts from the GT 500M, 800M, and GT 600 series, which are entry-level GPUs from past generations.

The measured game performance aligns with the GPU's low benchmark standing. At 1080p Low, the average frame rate is 51 FPS, but this drops to 39 FPS at Medium, 32 FPS at High, and 23 FPS at Ultra. The GPU's 80 W TDP and IGP slot width indicate it is designed for low-power, integrated use cases rather than high-end gaming. The data shows that the GPU's capabilities are exhausted at 1080p Low, and any increase in resolution or settings results in frame rates below 40 FPS. The GPU's 9th percentile ranking and its proximity to GT 520MX and GT 710 in benchmark scores confirm that it is not suited for demanding titles at high settings, regardless of the CPU's performance headroom.