The Long Drive

The Long Drive pairs the Intel Core i5-12400F with the Intel Arc B580, a combination that places 1351st out of 1734 tested combos in this driving simulation. The data reveals a system that is heavily influenced by graphics settings, with a performance curve that suggests the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher presets, while the CPU provides a solid foundation at lower ones. The benchmark results show a clear narrative about how this hardware handles the game's demands across different resolutions and quality levels.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a pronounced drop as resolution increases, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 166.4 FPS, but this falls to 107.3 FPS at 1440p and further down to 58.8 FPS at 4K. This represents a 35.5% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a 64.7% reduction from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the Intel Arc B580 is working progressively harder at higher pixel counts. The pattern is consistent across all settings presets, with the Ultra preset showing the steepest relative decline from 61.8 FPS at 1080p to 22.1 FPS at 4K, a 64.2% drop.

The scaling behavior suggests that at 1080p, the system has enough headroom to push high frame rates, but the GPU’s rendering capabilities start to limit performance as resolution climbs. The fact that even the Low preset at 4K only reaches 58.8 FPS, while the same preset at 1080p hits 166.4 FPS, points to the GPU being the limiting component at higher resolutions. The data implies that the i5-12400F is not the primary constraint here; instead, the Arc B580’s pixel throughput is what determines the frame rate ceiling. This is particularly evident when comparing the 4K Ultra result of 22.1 FPS against the 1080p Ultra result of 61.8 FPS, which shows a 64.2% drop that aligns closely with the increase in pixel count.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture with a 5 nm process and features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s. Its boost clock is listed at 2670 MHz, and it has 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 80 ROPs. The GPU’s raw compute is rated at 13.67 TFLOPS for FP32 operations, which is a modest figure that aligns with its mid-range positioning. In the context of The Long Drive, the GPU’s role is clearly dominant, as evidenced by the significant FPS drops when moving from Low to Ultra settings at any given resolution.

The VRAM capacity of 12 GB is ample for this game, as the measured results do not indicate any memory-related stuttering or performance cliffs. The memory clock of 2375 MHz, translating to 19 Gbps effective, provides sufficient bandwidth for the game’s textures and geometry. The GPU’s benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 15748 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 109672, place it in the 66th percentile of all GPUs. When compared to its nearest rivals, the Arc B580 is 0.7% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 in average benchmark score, which is a negligible difference that does not manifest in the game’s measured FPS. The data shows that the GPU’s performance is the key variable in this combo, with its capabilities directly dictating the frame rates across all tested configurations.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the i5-12400F and Arc B580 ranks 1351st out of 1734 tested combos in The Long Drive, placing it in the lower 22% of all configurations. This ranking is somewhat surprising given the individual component specs, but it reflects the game’s specific demands and the GPU’s performance characteristics. The CPU itself is in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19221, which is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-8700K, at 19210 (a 0.1% difference). However, the combo’s low ranking suggests that the GPU is holding back the overall experience, as the Arc B580’s 66th percentile standing among GPUs is not sufficient to boost the system in this particular title.

The ranking implies that many other combos, likely those with more powerful GPUs, achieve higher frame rates in The Long Drive. The data shows that the i5-12400F is not the bottleneck, as its performance is competitive with other CPUs in its class. For instance, the CPU is 1.3% ahead of the AMD EPYC 7773X and 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core i5-1335U in average benchmark score, yet the combo’s overall rank remains low. This indicates that the game is heavily GPU-dependent, and the Arc B580’s mid-range performance is the limiting factor. The combo’s rank is a reflection of the GPU’s inability to maintain high frame rates at higher settings, particularly at 4K, where even the Low preset only manages 58.8 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1080p, the measured FPS ranges from a low of 61.8 FPS on Ultra to a high of 166.4 FPS on Low. The Medium preset achieves 136.7 FPS, while High reaches 84.7 FPS. These numbers show a clear progression, with each step up in quality reducing the frame rate by a significant margin. The jump from Low to Medium costs 29.7 FPS (a 17.9% reduction), while moving from Medium to High costs 52.0 FPS (a 38.0% reduction), and from High to Ultra costs 22.9 FPS (a 27.0% reduction). This suggests that the High preset is where the GPU starts to struggle, as the frame rate drops below the 100 FPS threshold that Low and Medium maintain.

At 1440p, the FPS values are 107.3 for Low, 87.4 for Medium, 54.5 for High, and 40.9 for Ultra. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a consistent reduction, with Low dropping by 59.1 FPS (35.5%), Medium by 49.3 FPS (36.1%), High by 30.2 FPS (35.6%), and Ultra by 20.9 FPS (33.8%). This uniformity indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the percentage drops are nearly identical across settings. At 4K, the FPS falls to 58.8 for Low, 47.1 for Medium, 33.3 for High, and 22.1 for Ultra. The 4K Low result is barely playable, while Ultra is not a viable option for smooth gameplay. The data clearly shows that 1080p is the only resolution where this combo can consistently deliver high frame rates, with 1440p being marginal at best.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F has 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It is built on the Alder Lake architecture using a 10 nm process and has 18 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU’s benchmark scores are respectable, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16518 and a single-core score of 2332, the latter being a strong indicator of gaming performance. The Passmark multi-thread score of 19433 and single-thread score of 3481 further confirm its capabilities. The CPU is positioned in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-8700K, is only 0.1% behind in average benchmark score.

In The Long Drive, the CPU’s role appears to be secondary to the GPU, as the frame rates are primarily dictated by the graphics settings. The fact that the CPU can support 166.4 FPS at 1080p Low suggests that it is not a limiting factor in this scenario. The single-thread performance, as measured by the 3DMark single-thread score of 909, is sufficient for the game’s logic and physics calculations. The 12 threads provide ample parallel processing for background tasks, but the game likely does not utilize all of them, given the high frame rates at lower settings. The data indicates that the CPU is well-matched to the GPU at 1080p, but at higher resolutions, the GPU’s workload increases to the point where the CPU’s performance becomes irrelevant to the final frame rate.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1080p is the only resolution where the combo can consistently exceed 60 FPS across all settings, with the Low preset reaching 166.4 FPS and the High preset at 84.7 FPS. At 1440p, only the Low preset (107.3 FPS) and Medium preset (87.4 FPS) exceed 60 FPS, while at 4K, all presets fall below 60 FPS.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at the same resolution?

A: At 1080p, the Ultra preset (61.8 FPS) is 22.9 FPS lower than High (84.7 FPS), representing a 27.0% reduction. At 1440p, the drop is 13.6 FPS (from 54.5 to 40.9), a 24.9% reduction. At 4K, the drop is 11.2 FPS (from 33.3 to 22.1), a 33.6% reduction. The Ultra preset provides diminishing returns in visual quality for a significant performance cost.

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

A: The benchmark results indicate that the GPU is the primary bottleneck, especially at higher resolutions and settings. The CPU’s performance is consistent across all tests, as evidenced by its ability to support high frame rates at 1080p Low (166.4 FPS). The GPU’s workload scales with resolution, causing FPS to drop sharply from 1080p to 4K.

Q: What is the measured FPS at 1440p Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings is 87.4 FPS. This is a playable frame rate for most users, though it is significantly lower than the 136.7 FPS achieved at 1080p Medium.

Q: How does the Arc B580 compare to its nearest rival in benchmark scores?

A: The Arc B580 has an average benchmark score of 23021, which is 0.7% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 (23181) and 0.1% higher than the AMD Radeon 760M (22999). The differences are minimal, suggesting similar performance potential, but the game-specific data shows the Arc B580’s actual capabilities.

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

A: At 4K, the combo achieves 58.8 FPS on Low settings, but this drops to 47.1 FPS on Medium, 33.3 FPS on High, and 22.1 FPS on Ultra. The data shows that 4K gaming is possible only at Low settings for a playable experience, and not recommended for higher presets.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo is achieved at 1080p with Medium settings, which delivers 136.7 FPS. This provides a smooth frame rate that is well above the 60 FPS threshold, while still offering a reasonable level of visual quality. The Low preset at 1080p (166.4 FPS) is optimal for competitive play or high-refresh-rate monitors, but the visual compromise may not be worth the additional 29.7 FPS. The High preset at 1080p (84.7 FPS) is a good middle ground, but the 38.0% drop from Medium suggests that the GPU is starting to struggle with the increased graphical load.

At 1440p, the Medium preset (87.4 FPS) is the best choice for a balance between quality and performance, as it remains above 60 FPS and provides a more detailed image than 1080p. The Low preset (107.3 FPS) is also viable for those prioritizing frame rate, but the High preset (54.5 FPS) falls below the 60 FPS mark and is not recommended. At 4K, only the Low preset (58.8 FPS) approaches playability, but it is still below 60 FPS and may result in noticeable stuttering. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it consistently delivers the lowest frame rates, with a 64.2% drop from 1080p to 4K. For the best overall experience, 1080p Medium is the clear winner, offering high frame rates and acceptable visual fidelity.