The Long Drive

The Long Drive, a driving simulation with a 2019 release date, presents a specific performance profile when paired with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600GT and Intel Arc B570. The measured data indicates a configuration that is capable at lower resolutions but becomes increasingly constrained as pixel count rises. The benchmark results reveal a clear hierarchy where the GPU’s workload dictates the frame rate, with the CPU providing a stable foundation that rarely becomes the primary bottleneck in this title.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K is stark, demonstrating a classic GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. At 1080p with High settings, the combo produces an average of 75 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 49 FPS, a significant reduction of 26 FPS. The leap to 4K High yields only 27 FPS, which is a 48 FPS decrease from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern indicates that the Intel Arc B570 is the limiting component as resolution increases, with its rendering workload expanding faster than its raw throughput can compensate.

The data reveals a non-linear scaling curve. From 1080p to 1440p at High settings, the performance drop is roughly 35%. However, the drop from 1440p to 4K is even more severe, at approximately 45%. This suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and pixel throughput are being saturated at 4K, leading to a disproportionate performance penalty. At Ultra settings, the situation is more extreme: 1080p yields 52 FPS, 1440p drops to 34 FPS, and 4K plummets to 19 FPS. The 19 FPS at 4K Ultra is functionally unplayable, confirming that this resolution and settings combination is beyond the card's comfortable operating range.

The scaling from Low to Ultra settings at each resolution further emphasizes the GPU's role. At 1080p, the spread between Low (146 FPS) and Ultra (52 FPS) is 94 FPS, showing that the GPU has headroom at the lowest settings. This headroom shrinks dramatically at 4K, where the spread is only 34 FPS (53 FPS Low vs. 19 FPS Ultra). When the GPU is already saturated at 4K Low, increasing settings has a relatively smaller absolute impact, but the frame rates remain low across the board. This pattern is a clear indicator that for 4K gameplay, the B570 is the definitive limiting factor.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B570 is a Battlemage-generation GPU built on a 5 nm process. Its specifications include 2,304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 80 render output units. It has a base and boost clock of 2500 MHz, which is consistent across both states. The memory subsystem is a 10 GB GDDR6 pool on a 160-bit bus, providing 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth. These figures directly correlate with the observed performance in The Long Drive.

The 10 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for this game at 1080p and 1440p, as evidenced by the playable frame rates at Medium and High settings. However, at 4K, the combination of higher resolution textures and increased draw distance likely pushes memory usage closer to the limit. While the data does not show explicit VRAM exhaustion (e.g., stuttering), the severe FPS drop at 4K suggests that the GPU is struggling with both memory bandwidth and capacity. The 160-bit bus width and 380.0 GB/s bandwidth are modest figures, and the data suggests they become a bottleneck when the pixel throughput demand quadruples from 1080p to 4K.

The GPU’s compute capabilities, rated at 11.52 TFLOPS FP32, are sufficient for the game’s rendering at lower resolutions. The pixel rate of 200.0 GPixel/s and texture rate of 360.0 GTexel/s provide a theoretical ceiling that aligns with the measured 1080p performance. At 1080p Medium, the card achieves 120 FPS, indicating that it is not fully saturated. At 1440p Medium, the 79 FPS average suggests near-saturation, and at 4K Medium, the 44 FPS average confirms that the GPU’s fillrate and shading capacity are overwhelmed. The GPU’s benchmark percentile of 65 versus all GPUs places it in the mid-range, which is consistent with its performance profile in this driving sim.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data points to Medium settings as the optimal balance for this combo, particularly at 1080p and 1440p. At 1080p Medium, the combo delivers 120 FPS with a minimum of 102 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay without significant dips. This is a strong result for a driving simulation where consistent frame pacing is important. The jump to High settings at 1080p yields 75 FPS, which is still playable but a substantial 45 FPS reduction from Medium. The difference between Medium and High is likely a noticeable visual upgrade, but the performance cost is steep.

At 1440p, the choice is more critical. Medium settings produce an average of 79 FPS with a 67 FPS minimum, which is the ideal target for a high-refresh-rate monitor. High settings at 1440p drop to 49 FPS, which is a borderline experience for a driving game that benefits from smooth motion. Low settings at 1440p provide 96 FPS, but this likely compromises visual fidelity too much for the minor gain over Medium. Therefore, 1440p Medium is the clear recommendation.

4K is not a viable option for this combination. The best 4K result is Low settings at 53 FPS, which is technically playable but visually unappealing. Medium settings at 4K fall to 44 FPS, and High and Ultra are below 30 FPS. For a driving simulation that relies on visibility of the road ahead, the visual degradation at 4K Low is not worth the marginal frame rate. The data suggests that users should stick to 1440p Medium for the best experience, or 1080p Medium for maximum smoothness.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The full dataset provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across all tested configurations.

1080p:

• Low: 146 FPS average
• Medium: 120 FPS average, 102 FPS minimum, 138 FPS maximum
• High: 75 FPS average
• Ultra: 52 FPS average

1440p:

• Low: 96 FPS average
• Medium: 79 FPS average, 67 FPS minimum, 91 FPS maximum
• High: 49 FPS average
• Ultra: 34 FPS average

2160p (4K):

• Low: 53 FPS average
• Medium: 44 FPS average, 37 FPS minimum, 50 FPS maximum
• High: 27 FPS average
• Ultra: 19 FPS average

The 1080p Medium result is the standout, with a minimum FPS of 102 that ensures no drops below the 100 FPS threshold. The 1440p Medium result is also strong, with a 67 FPS minimum that keeps gameplay fluid. The 4K results are all below 60 FPS, with Ultra being the only configuration that dips below 20 FPS. The data shows a clear step-down in performance at each resolution increase, with the most dramatic drop occurring between 1440p and 4K.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU/GPU combo in The Long Drive?

A: The data indicates 1440p is the sweet spot. At Medium settings, it achieves 79 FPS average with a 67 FPS minimum, providing a smooth experience without the 1080p visual compromise or the 4K performance penalty.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in The Long Drive?

A: Technically, yes, but not comfortably. The best 4K result is Low settings at 53 FPS. Medium settings drop to 44 FPS, and High/Ultra fall to 27/19 FPS respectively. The 4K experience is suboptimal compared to 1440p.

Q: How does the minimum FPS compare between 1080p and 1440p at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the minimum FPS is 102. At 1440p Medium, the minimum FPS drops to 67. This indicates a 35 FPS difference in the worst-case frame dips, showing that 1440p puts significantly more stress on the GPU.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p Low?

A: At 1080p Low, the combo produces 146 FPS. This high frame rate, coupled with the fact that increasing settings to Medium only drops the FPS to 120, suggests the GPU is still the primary limiter, though the CPU is likely not far from becoming the bottleneck at these very high frame rates.

Q: What is the performance difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: High settings at 1440p yield 49 FPS, while Ultra settings yield 34 FPS. This is a 15 FPS drop for the move to Ultra, which is a substantial cost for the incremental visual gains.

Q: How does the combo's 4K Ultra performance compare to its 1080p Ultra performance?

A: The combo achieves 52 FPS at 1080p Ultra and only 19 FPS at 4K Ultra. This is a 33 FPS reduction, or a 63% performance loss, when moving from 1080p to 4K at the highest settings.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600GT is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Cezanne. It has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. The 16 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth are typical for this class of processor. In the context of The Long Drive, the CPU’s role appears to be secondary to the GPU, but it provides a solid foundation.

The CPU’s benchmark scores suggest it is more than capable of feeding the GPU in this game. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 17,272, and its single-core score is 2,438. The 3DMark 8-thread score is 4,968, and the max-thread score is 5,554. These results indicate strong multi-threaded performance, which is relevant for a driving simulation that may simulate physics and AI. The CPU’s percentile rank of 74 versus all CPUs places it above the median, indicating it is a mid-to-high-tier performer.

Given that the frame rates at 1080p Low reach 146 FPS, the CPU is clearly capable of high throughput. However, the data does not show a scenario where the CPU becomes the primary bottleneck. Even at 1080p Low, the GPU is still rendering at 146 FPS, which suggests the CPU can handle the game’s logic without limiting the frame rate. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see a plateau in FPS regardless of resolution or settings, but the data shows a consistent decline in FPS as resolution increases, which is the signature of a GPU-bound workload. The CPU’s 12 threads and high boost clock are sufficient for this title’s demands.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600GT and Intel Arc B570 ranks 2,342 out of 2,934 tested combos for The Long Drive. This places it in the lower 20th percentile of all measured systems, indicating that while it is functional, most other tested configurations deliver higher frame rates. This ranking is consistent with the mid-range nature of both components, as neither is a top-tier part in their respective categories.

The CPU’s average benchmark score is 20,733, which is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12490F, with a delta of -0.3%. This indicates that the Ryzen 5 5600GT’s performance is on par with other mainstream processors. The GPU’s average benchmark score is 20,556, which is close to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% delta) and the Intel Arc A750 (-0.1% delta). This places the B570 in a competitive mid-range segment.

The low combo ranking is likely due to a combination of factors. While the CPU is competent, the GPU, despite being a current-generation part, is positioned at the entry-level of Intel’s Arc 5 series. The B570’s percentile of 65 versus all GPUs is decent, but in a game like The Long Drive, which appears to demand high pixel throughput at higher resolutions, the card’s modest memory bus width and bandwidth become a liability. The data suggests that users pairing this CPU with a more powerful GPU would see significantly better results, as the CPU has headroom to support higher frame rates. The combo’s rank, however, reflects its actual measured performance, which is playable at 1080p and 1440p with the right settings, but not competitive with higher-end configurations.