The Long Drive

The Long Drive presents an unusual challenge for hardware analysis: a driving simulation with vast, procedurally generated landscapes where performance can be surprisingly taxing. This page examines the measured performance of the Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the Intel Arc B370, a combination that produces some of the most striking resolution scaling data in the benchmark database. The data reveals a system where the graphics processor is the overwhelming bottleneck, and where playable performance exists only at specific, narrow configuration points.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for this combo shows a brutal, almost linear drop in performance as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average frame rate is 86 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same settings drops the average to 56 FPS, a reduction of 30 FPS. At 3840x2160, the average falls further to 31 FPS. This pattern indicates that the Intel Arc B370 is the limiting component at every step, with its rendering throughput being saturated well before the Core i5-12600KF can even begin to strain.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p represents a 34.9% reduction in average FPS at Low settings, and from 1440p to 4K, a further 44.6% reduction. These are massive drops that point directly at the GPU's fillrate and shader processing limits. The Arc B370 has a pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s, which are modest figures that get overwhelmed quickly as the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K. The data suggests that even at Low settings, the GPU is working at near maximum capacity at 1440p, making 4K virtually unplayable under any preset.

At High settings, the scaling is even more punishing. The 1080p average of 44 FPS drops to 29 FPS at 1440p, a 34.1% decline, and then to just 16 FPS at 4K, a 44.8% decline from the 1440p result. This consistent ~35% / ~45% drop pattern across settings reveals that the GPU's memory subsystem, which is System Shared and thus dependent on the system's DDR4 or DDR5 bandwidth, cannot keep up with the increased data demands of higher resolutions. The game's large open-world streaming likely amplifies this effect, as the shared memory controller becomes a secondary bottleneck.

The Medium preset shows a slightly different pattern, with 1080p at 71 FPS, 1440p at 46 FPS, and 4K at 26 FPS. The 4K result includes a minimum FPS of 22 and maximum of 30, showing some frame time variance but still a hard ceiling. The Ultra preset is essentially unplayable at any resolution above 1080p, with 4K averaging just 11 FPS and 1440p only reaching 20 FPS. The data clearly indicates that this combo is designed for 1080p gaming, and even there, only Low and Medium settings provide consistently smooth frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Core i5-12600KF and Arc B370 ranks 2700 out of 2934 tested combos in The Long Drive. This places it in the bottom 8% of all configurations, which is a stark reflection of the GPU's limitations. The Arc B370's percentile ranking among all GPUs is 5, meaning it performs better than only 5% of the GPUs in the database. This single fact explains the combo's low position more than any other data point.

The low rank is not due to the CPU, which sits at the 79th percentile among all CPUs. The Core i5-12600KF is a capable processor, but it is hamstrung by its partner. The benchmark results show that the GPU's average benchmark score is 1184, with its nearest rivals being the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (scoring 1186, a 0.2% difference) and the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (scoring 1190, a 0.5% difference). These are legacy parts from a different era, and matching their performance in a modern driving simulation explains why the combo rank is so low.

What is notable is that the combo rank is not at the very bottom. There are 234 other combinations that rank even lower, which suggests that some systems in the database are even less capable. The data implies that the Arc B370, despite its low absolute performance, still manages to run the game at playable frame rates at 1080p Low, which is more than some older integrated or entry-level discrete solutions can achieve. However, the gap between this combo and a mid-range setup is enormous, as the percentile data indicates.

The ranking also highlights a mismatch in system balance. A CPU in the 79th percentile paired with a GPU in the 5th percentile is a lopsided configuration. The CPU is capable of much more, but the GPU holds the entire system back. This is a classic case where upgrading the graphics card would yield a massive performance increase without touching the processor.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is the defining component of this combo, and its specifications explain every measured result. The GPU is based on the Xe3-LPG architecture on a 3 nm process, but it features only 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 render output units. These are entry-level numbers, and they translate directly to the low pixel and texture rates mentioned earlier.

The memory configuration is particularly important for this game. The Arc B370 uses System Shared memory, meaning it relies on the system's main RAM rather than dedicated VRAM. The bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent," which means performance will vary based on whether the system uses DDR4 or DDR5 memory. The Core i5-12600KF supports both memory types, but the benchmark data does not specify which was used. The shared memory architecture is a significant bottleneck in a game like The Long Drive, which likely streams terrain and world data continuously. The GPU must compete with the CPU for memory bandwidth, and the data suggests the GPU loses that competition frequently.

Clock speeds are modest, with a base of 300 MHz and a boost of 2400 MHz. The boost clock is respectable, but the low base clock and the small number of execution units limit overall throughput. The GPU's FP32 performance is 6.144 TFLOPS, which is low by modern standards. In contrast, the CPU's 3DMark 16-thread score of 7956 shows it can feed the GPU with data, but the GPU cannot process it fast enough.

The GPU's TDP is just 25 W, which is exceptionally low and confirms its integrated-class nature (the bus interface is listed as IGP). This means it is likely a graphics solution built into a portable device or a low-power desktop, not a discrete card. The measured 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the bottom tier of the database, with its nearest rival being the AMD FirePro M2000 at 1168 (a 1.4% difference). For a game released in 2019, this GPU simply does not have the raw power to handle high resolutions or high settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of this combo's capabilities across nine different configurations. At 1920x1080, the results range from 31 FPS at Ultra to 86 FPS at Low. The Low preset is the only setting that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, with the Medium preset at 71 FPS also being acceptable for most players. The High preset at 44 FPS is playable but noticeably less smooth, and Ultra at 31 FPS is borderline.

At 2560x1440, the picture worsens significantly. Low settings produce 56 FPS, which is still technically playable, but Medium drops to 46 FPS with a minimum of 40 FPS, indicating occasional stutters. High settings at 29 FPS are difficult to play, and Ultra at 20 FPS is not recommended. The 4K results are uniformly poor: Low at 31 FPS, Medium at 26 FPS (with a minimum of 22 FPS), High at 16 FPS, and Ultra at 11 FPS. None of these are acceptable for a driving game that requires smooth, responsive controls.

Looking at the Medium preset across resolutions provides the clearest comparison. At 1080p, the average is 71 FPS with a minimum of 60 FPS and a maximum of 81 FPS, showing a stable frame time distribution. At 1440p, the average falls to 46 FPS with a minimum of 40 FPS and maximum of 53 FPS, which is a 35.2% drop. At 4K, the average is 26 FPS with a minimum of 22 FPS and maximum of 30 FPS, a further 43.5% drop. This consistent degradation pattern confirms that the GPU is the sole limiting factor.

The Low preset data is also telling. At 1080p, it achieves 86 FPS, which is the highest score in the entire dataset. At 1440p, it drops to 56 FPS, and at 4K, to 31 FPS. The fact that Low settings at 4K (31 FPS) matches High settings at 1080p (44 FPS) is not quite accurate, but the data shows that Low at 4K performs similarly to High at 1440p (29 FPS). This suggests that resolution has a larger impact on this GPU than graphics quality settings, which is typical for a fillrate-limited part.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal configuration for this combo is 1920x1080 with the Low preset, which delivers an average of 86 FPS. This is the only setting that provides a clear margin above the 60 FPS threshold, ensuring smooth gameplay in a driving simulation where frame pacing matters for control precision. The Low preset at 1080p is the recommended choice for a consistent experience.

For players who prefer better visual quality, the Medium preset at 1080p is the second-best option, yielding 71 FPS with a minimum of 60 FPS. This is a balanced choice, as it keeps the frame rate above 60 FPS while offering improved textures and effects over Low. The minimum FPS of 60 shows that even in demanding scenes, the combo rarely drops below the playability threshold.

The High preset at 1080p, at 44 FPS, is not recommended for serious play. While it is technically playable, the lower frame rate can lead to less responsive steering and a less immersive experience. The Ultra preset at 1080p, at 31 FPS, should be avoided entirely. At 1440p, the only acceptable configuration is Low at 56 FPS, but even this is marginal. The 4K resolution is entirely unsuitable for this combo, with all presets falling below 32 FPS.

The data suggests that players should prioritize resolution over settings. Dropping from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 30 FPS at Low settings, while dropping from High to Low at 1080p gains 42 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is more sensitive to pixel count than to shader complexity. Therefore, the best strategy is to lock the resolution at 1080p and then adjust settings downward until the frame rate is acceptable, with Low being the safest choice.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with 20 MB of shared L3 cache. In The Long Drive, this CPU is more than sufficient to feed the GPU. The benchmark data shows that the CPU sits at the 79th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27799. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, scores 27896, a mere 0.3% difference, indicating that the i5-12600KF is competitive with high-end gaming chips from a previous generation.

The CPU's 3DMark scores show strong scaling from 2 threads (1995) to 8 threads (6128) and max threads (7952). This indicates good multi-threading capability, which is relevant for a game that may use multiple cores for physics and world simulation. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23391 is robust, and the single-core score of 3302 is excellent for gaming. These scores confirm that the CPU is not the bottleneck in this combo.

In fact, the CPU's performance is vastly underutilized in this pairing. The GPU's 5th percentile ranking means that the CPU is likely idle for a significant portion of each frame, waiting for the GPU to finish rendering. The measured FPS data supports this: at 1080p Low, the 86 FPS is likely close to the GPU's maximum throughput, not the CPU's. If a faster GPU were installed, the CPU could likely push frame rates much higher, given its 79th percentile standing.

The CPU also has a 3DMark 16-thread score of 7956, which is nearly identical to its max-thread score of 7952. This suggests that the CPU does not benefit from more than 16 threads, which is typical for gaming workloads. The Geekbench multi-core score of 12137 and single-core score of 2157 further reinforce that this is a well-balanced CPU for gaming, but it is wasted in this configuration. The data clearly shows that the i5-12600KF is not the limiting factor in any of the measured scenarios.

FAQ

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

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution that provides acceptable frame rates. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 86, and at 1080p Medium, it is 71 FPS. At 1440p, even Low settings drop to 56 FPS, and at 4K, all presets fall below 32 FPS.

Q: Is the Ultra preset ever playable with these components?

A: No. The Ultra preset produces an average of 31 FPS at 1080p, 20 FPS at 1440p, and 11 FPS at 4K. These frame rates are too low for a smooth driving experience, which requires consistent control responsiveness.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck in this system?

A: The GPU is the clear bottleneck. The Intel Arc B370 has a 5th percentile ranking among all GPUs, while the CPU is at the 79th percentile. The GPU's System Shared memory and low pixel rate (48.00 GPixel/s) limit performance at all resolutions and settings.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Arc B370's average benchmark score is 1184. Its nearest rival, the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, scores 1186, which is 0.2% higher. The ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1190, 0.5% higher, and the AMD FirePro M2000 scores 1168, 1.4% lower.

Q: Can the CPU handle a better GPU?

A: Yes, the data indicates the CPU is not the limiting factor. The Core i5-12600KF scores 23391 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and has a 79th percentile ranking, suggesting it has significant headroom for a more powerful graphics card.

Q: What is the highest FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS in the dataset is 86, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The Medium preset at 1080p reaches a maximum FPS of 81, but its average is 71 FPS.