The Long Drive

The Long Drive pairs the Intel Core i7-14700KF with the Intel Arc B370, a combination that produces a highly constrained gaming experience. The data shows a system where the processor's formidable multi-threaded capabilities are almost entirely neutralized by the graphics solution's limited output, resulting in frame rates that struggle to maintain playability at higher settings and resolutions. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, component roles, and scaling behavior of this specific pairing.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. It features a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The chip includes a substantial cache hierarchy: 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. This is a desktop-class CPU with a 94th percentile ranking against all CPUs, indicating that its raw processing power is in the top tier of available processors.

In synthetic benchmarks, the i7-14700KF demonstrates exceptional performance. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167 and single-core score of 6235 place it well ahead of most competitors. The Geekbench multi-core score of 21462 and single-core score of 2578 reinforce this picture of a high-end chip. The Passmark multithread score of 52425 and single-thread score of 4480 further confirm its capabilities. The processor's nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F (0.2% ahead), the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.4% ahead), and the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.9% ahead), with the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K trailing by 1%. These margins are minuscule, meaning the i7-14700KF is statistically tied with the fastest consumer CPUs available.

However, in The Long Drive, the CPU's role is largely theoretical. The measured FPS data shows that even at 1080p Low settings, where the CPU load is typically highest relative to the GPU, the system only achieves an average of 86 FPS. This is not a limitation of the processor but rather an indication that the graphics card is the bottleneck. The i7-14700KF's 20 cores and 28 threads are more than sufficient to handle the physics and simulation logic of a driving game, which is typically single-threaded or lightly threaded. The 5.60 GHz boost clock ensures that any single-threaded tasks are executed with maximum speed. The data suggests that the CPU is never the limiting factor in this configuration; the frame rates are dictated entirely by the GPU's output, even at the lowest resolution and settings tested.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and Intel Arc B370 ranks 2700 out of 2934 tested combos in The Long Drive. This places it in the bottom 8% of all configurations tested for this game, a position that reflects the severe imbalance between the CPU and GPU components. The rank is a holistic measure of the system's gaming performance, and a rank of 2700 indicates that the vast majority of other CPU/GPU pairings tested produce higher frame rates.

The gap between this combo's rank and its potential is stark. With a CPU that sits in the 94th percentile, one might expect a combo ranking in the top quartile. Instead, the rank is dragged down by the Intel Arc B370, which is an integrated graphics solution with a 5th percentile ranking against all GPUs. This creates a situation where the processor is capable of delivering hundreds of frames per second in most games, but the GPU can only render a fraction of that. The data shows that this combo is outperformed by 233 other configurations, meaning there are only 234 combos in the entire database that score worse. This is a clear case of a high-end CPU being paired with a low-end graphics solution, resulting in a gaming experience that is far below what the CPU alone could support.

The benchmark results indicate that the combo's performance is not a reflection of the CPU's capabilities but rather a direct consequence of the GPU's output limits. For a game like The Long Drive, which is not known for being exceptionally demanding on the CPU, this pairing wastes the i7-14700KF's potential. The rank of 2700 serves as a warning to users that this combination will not deliver a satisfactory gaming experience at higher settings, and that the graphics solution is the primary constraint.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling data provides clear evidence that the Intel Arc B370 is the limiting component in this system. From 1080p to 4K, the average FPS drops by a factor that is consistent with the GPU's fill rate limitations, not with CPU scaling. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 44 at 1920x1080 to 29 at 2560x1440 and then to 16 at 3840x2160. This is a reduction of 34% when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 45% when moving from 1440p to 4K. The frame rate is nearly halved at each step, which is typical for a GPU that is already at its limits at 1080p.

At Low settings, the scaling is less severe but still shows a clear GPU bottleneck. The average FPS drops from 86 at 1080p to 56 at 1440p and 31 at 4K. The 1080p Low score of 86 FPS suggests that the GPU has some headroom at the lowest resolution, but the drop to 31 FPS at 4K indicates that the pixel fill rate is insufficient for higher resolutions. The Medium settings data shows a similar pattern: 71 FPS at 1080p, 46 FPS at 1440p, and 26 FPS at 4K. The Ultra settings are the most telling, with 31 FPS at 1080p, 20 FPS at 1440p, and just 11 FPS at 4K.

These numbers indicate that the system is almost exclusively GPU-limited. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the FPS to remain relatively constant across resolutions, as the CPU's workload does not change significantly with resolution. Instead, the FPS drops dramatically with each resolution increase, which is the classic signature of a GPU that cannot keep up with the pixel and texture processing demands. The i7-14700KF is effectively idle, waiting for the Arc B370 to render each frame. The scaling behavior confirms that upgrading the GPU would yield a massive performance increase, while upgrading the CPU would have no measurable effect on frame rates in this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the system's performance across all tested configurations. At 1920x1080, the system achieves its best results. With Low settings, the average FPS is 86, which is the only setting that approaches playable levels. Medium settings produce an average of 71 FPS, with a minimum of 60 and a maximum of 81 FPS. High settings drop the average to 44 FPS, and Ultra settings yield just 31 FPS. The 1080p data shows that this GPU is only comfortable at Low or Medium settings, with High and Ultra falling below the 60 FPS threshold.

At 2560x1440, the performance degrades further. Low settings produce an average of 56 FPS, which is playable but not smooth for a driving game. Medium settings average 46 FPS, with a minimum of 40 and a maximum of 53 FPS. High settings drop to 29 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 20 FPS. None of these results are ideal, and the system is clearly struggling to maintain a consistent frame rate at this resolution. The Medium settings data shows a 13 FPS spread between minimum and maximum, indicating some frame pacing issues.

At 3840x2160, the system is not viable for gaming. Low settings produce an average of 31 FPS, Medium settings drop to 26 FPS with a minimum of 22 and a maximum of 30 FPS, High settings yield 16 FPS, and Ultra settings produce just 11 FPS. The 4K results are consistently below 30 FPS, which is far below the threshold for a smooth experience. The data shows that the Intel Arc B370 is not capable of handling 4K gaming in The Long Drive, regardless of the settings used. The minimum FPS at 4K Medium is 22, which is a significant dip from the average and indicates that the GPU can stutter under load.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics processor based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It has a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2400 MHz. The memory is listed as "System Shared," meaning it uses a portion of the system's main memory rather than dedicated VRAM. The memory bus width is also "System Shared," and the bandwidth is "System Dependent," which means performance is heavily reliant on the CPU's memory configuration. The GPU has 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster operation units, along with 10 ray tracing cores.

The GPU's raw specifications are modest. Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s, with an FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS. The 25 W TDP and "IGP" slot width confirm that this is not a discrete graphics card but rather an integrated solution designed for low-power devices. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, which is exceptionally low. Its nearest rivals include the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (0.2% ahead), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (0.5% ahead), and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (0.7% ahead), with the AMD FirePro M2000 trailing by 1.4%. These are all older or lower-end parts, underscoring the Arc B370's limited capabilities.

In The Long Drive, the GPU's lack of dedicated VRAM and low fill rate are the primary causes of the poor performance. The system-shared memory means that the GPU is competing with the CPU for memory bandwidth, which can cause stuttering. The low pixel rate of 48 GPixel/s is insufficient for higher resolutions, explaining the dramatic FPS drops when moving from 1080p to 4K. The boost clock of 2400 MHz is not enough to compensate for the low number of shading units and ROPs. The data shows that this GPU is only suitable for very light gaming at 1080p with low settings, and even then, it struggles to maintain a solid frame rate in The Long Drive.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings resolution combination for this system in The Long Drive?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 with Low settings yields the highest average FPS at 86. Medium settings at 1080p also produce a playable average of 71 FPS, with a minimum of 60 FPS. Any higher resolution or settings tier results in averages below 60 FPS.

Q: Why does the system perform so poorly despite having a high-end CPU?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a top-tier processor, but the Intel Arc B370 is an integrated GPU with a 5th percentile ranking. The GPU is the bottleneck, and the CPU's power cannot be utilized because the graphics solution cannot render frames fast enough.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: This combination ranks 2700 out of 2934 tested combos in The Long Drive. This places it in the bottom 8% of all configurations, meaning that 2330 other CPU/GPU pairings deliver better performance.

Q: Is this system capable of 4K gaming in The Long Drive?

A: No. The measured 4K results show an average of 16 FPS at High settings and 11 FPS at Ultra settings. Even at Low settings, the average is only 31 FPS, which is not smooth. The GPU's pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s is insufficient for 4K rendering.

Q: What does the resolution scaling data tell us about the limiting component?

A: The FPS drops dramatically as resolution increases, from 86 FPS at 1080p Low to 31 FPS at 4K Low. This is a clear sign of a GPU bottleneck, as a CPU bottleneck would show similar frame rates across all resolutions.

Q: What is the performance difference between this GPU and its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. The ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 scores 1186 (0.2% higher), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1190 (0.5% higher), and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M scores 1192 (0.7% higher). The AMD FirePro M2000 scores 1168 (1.4% lower). These are all very close, indicating similar performance levels.