The Long Drive

Intel Core i5-11400F and Intel Arc B580 pairing in The Long Drive presents a balanced 1080p and 1440p setup, but the data shows it struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K Ultra settings. The measured FPS across resolutions reveals a system where the graphics card is the primary bottleneck at high settings, while the CPU keeps up adequately at lower presets.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all quality presets, which points directly at the Intel Arc B580 as the limiting component as resolution increases. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 162.7 FPS at 1920x1080 to 111 FPS at 2560x1440 — a 31.8% reduction — and then drops further to 58 FPS at 3840x2160, which is a 47.7% decline from 1440p. This scaling pattern is typical of a GPU-bound scenario, where the Arc B580’s 13.67 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is simply overwhelmed by the pixel count at 4K.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens dramatically as resolution increases, which is another sign of GPU limitation. At 1080p, Low delivers 162.7 FPS while Ultra manages 57.5 FPS — a difference of 105.2 FPS. At 1440p, that gap shrinks to 73.1 FPS (111 Low vs 37.9 Ultra). By 4K, the difference compresses further to 36.8 FPS (58 Low vs 21.2 Ultra), because the GPU is already saturated even at Low settings. The Arc B580’s 192-bit memory bus and 456.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 1440p, but the 4K Ultra result of 21.2 FPS shows the card running out of raw shading power, not memory capacity.

Interestingly, the CPU’s role becomes more visible at lower resolutions. The Intel Core i5-11400F’s 6 cores and 12 threads with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz are enough to push the Arc B580 to 162.7 FPS at 1080p Low, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. However, the 3dmark_16_threads score of 5619 and the cinebench_r23_multicore score of 14372 suggest that the processor can feed the GPU reasonably well, but the frame rates at 1080p Low are likely hitting a ceiling imposed by the CPU’s single-thread performance, considering the passmark_single_thread score of 2981.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run The Long Drive at 60 FPS on a 4K monitor?

A: Only at Low settings, where the measured average is 58 FPS. Medium produces 49.7 FPS, High drops to 33.4 FPS, and Ultra falls to 21.2 FPS, so 60 FPS at 4K requires the lowest preset and even then it is marginal.

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU pair?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the sweet spot. At Medium settings, the combo delivers 136.3 FPS, and at High it maintains 83.4 FPS, both well above playable thresholds. 1440p is also viable, with Low hitting 111 FPS and Medium at 89 FPS, but 4K is only suitable for Low settings.

Q: Does the Intel Core i5-11400F bottleneck the Arc B580 in this game?

A: Benchmark results indicate the CPU is not a major bottleneck at 1080p or 1440p, as frames scale normally with resolution changes. At 1080p Low, the 162.7 FPS result suggests the processor can keep up, but the 3dmark_single_thread score of 868 implies that extremely high frame rates may be limited by CPU speed rather than GPU capacity.

Q: How does the Arc B580’s 12 GB VRAM affect performance in The Long Drive?

A: The 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus is not the limiting factor in the measured results. The frame rate drops from 1080p to 4K are consistent with compute limitations, not memory capacity, as even Low settings at 4K only achieve 58 FPS despite the VRAM being ample for this driving simulation.

Q: Is the Ultra preset playable at any resolution?

A: Yes, but only at 1080p, where the average is 57.5 FPS. At 1440p, Ultra drops to 37.9 FPS, and at 4K it falls to 21.2 FPS, making those configurations unsuitable for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does this combo rank against other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 1367 out of 1734 tested combinations in this game, placing it in the lower half of the database. This ranking reflects the Arc B580’s mid-range position, as its avgBenchmarkScore of 23021 sits just 0.7% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-11400F and Intel Arc B580 combination ranks 1367 out of 1734 tested combos in The Long Drive, which places it in the 21st percentile of all systems tested. This is a low ranking, but the data suggests it is driven more by the GPU’s absolute performance than by any pairing inefficiency. The Arc B580’s average benchmark score of 23021 puts it in the 66th percentile of all GPUs, while the CPU’s average score of 17181 places it in the 75th percentile of all CPUs. The gap between these percentiles indicates the GPU is the weaker link.

Compared to its nearest GPU rivals, the Arc B580 is competitive but not dominant. Its avgBenchmarkScore is only 0.7% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060, and it outperforms the AMD Radeon 760M by 0.1% and the NVIDIA P106-100 by 0.3%. This suggests that in most games, the B580 should perform similarly to these cards, but in The Long Drive specifically, the measured frame rates at 4K Ultra (21.2 FPS) are poor, which may indicate driver overhead or game-specific inefficiencies rather than raw hardware limits.

The CPU’s ranking is more favorable. The Intel Core i5-11400F sits within 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U and the Intel Core i7-1260P in average benchmark score, showing it is a solid mid-range processor. Its 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient for this driving simulation, as evidenced by the 1080p Low result of 162.7 FPS, but the overall combo rank of 1367 suggests that many other systems with faster GPUs will deliver better frame rates at higher settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 162.7 FPS, which is smooth on any display. Medium settings drop to 136.3 FPS, still excellent for competitive play. High settings yield 83.4 FPS, which is comfortable for most users, while Ultra falls to 57.5 FPS, just under the 60 FPS mark. These figures show that 1080p is fully playable across all presets, with only Ultra requiring a slight compromise on frame rate.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down predictably. Low settings average 111 FPS, which remains very fluid. Medium settings produce 89 FPS, still above the 60 FPS threshold. High settings drop to 53.4 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced sequences. Ultra falls to 37.9 FPS, which is noticeably stuttery and not recommended for extended sessions.

At 3840x2160, the Arc B580’s limits become apparent. Low settings achieve 58 FPS, which is borderline acceptable. Medium settings drop to 49.7 FPS, High to 33.4 FPS, and Ultra to 21.2 FPS. The 4K results indicate that this combo is not suited for high-fidelity 4K gaming in The Long Drive, with only the Low preset offering a playable experience. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at High settings (53.4 to 33.4 FPS) represents a 37.5% drop, which is substantial and confirms the GPU is the bottleneck at this resolution.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580’s specifications directly explain its behavior in The Long Drive. The GPU has a base clock of 2670 MHz and a boost clock of 2670 MHz, which are identical, indicating that the card runs at a fixed frequency under load. With 2560 shading units and 160 texture mapping units, the card delivers 13.67 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and a texture rate of 427.2 GTexel/s. These numbers are moderate for a modern GPU, and the measured frame rates reflect this mid-range positioning.

The 12 GB of GDDR6 memory with a 192-bit bus provides 456.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is ample for this game’s textures at 1080p and 1440p. However, the 4K Ultra result of 21.2 FPS suggests the card is limited by its pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s and the 80 ROPs, which are responsible for final pixel output. The memory clock of 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective) is not the constraint, as even at 4K Low the card manages 58 FPS, showing that bandwidth is sufficient when shader load is reduced.

The Arc B580’s architecture, Xe2-HPG on a 5 nm process from TSMC, supports DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4, which are relevant for modern game APIs. The measured results in The Long Drive show that the card is well-suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but its 190 W TDP and 450 W suggested PSU indicate it is a mainstream part, not a high-end solution. The GPU’s percentileVsAllGpus of 66 confirms it sits above average but below enthusiast-tier hardware, and the nearest rival comparison shows it is nearly identical to the RTX 4060 in synthetic benchmarks, yet the 4K Ultra performance in this game leaves room for improvement.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, Medium settings at 1920x1080 are the clear choice. The measured 136.3 FPS at this preset provides a smooth experience with better visuals than Low, and the 162.7 FPS at Low offers no practical benefit unless chasing maximum refresh rates. At 1080p, High settings at 83.4 FPS are also viable if you prefer better shadows and textures, but Ultra at 57.5 FPS dips below the 60 FPS threshold and should be avoided for consistent smoothness.

At 2560x1440, Medium settings at 89 FPS are the recommended preset. This provides a fluid experience while maintaining decent detail. Low settings at 111 FPS are acceptable for competitive play, but High at 53.4 FPS is marginal and Ultra at 37.9 FPS is not recommended. For 4K, the only playable option is Low at 58 FPS, but this sacrifices significant visual quality. If 4K is required, Medium at 49.7 FPS is borderline acceptable for slower driving segments, but High and Ultra are effectively unplayable.

Users with high-refresh 1080p monitors should target Medium or High settings to stay above 100 FPS. Those with 1440p displays should stick to Medium. The data shows no scenario where Ultra settings provide a good experience, as even at 1080p the 57.5 FPS result is below the 60 FPS target. Given the combo’s rank of 1367 out of 1734, it is best to prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity with this hardware.