The Technomancer

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate for this combo at 1080p with Low settings?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X paired with the Intel Arc B390 achieves an average of 79 FPS at 1920x1080 on Low settings. This is the highest average FPS recorded across all tested resolutions and settings for this combination.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Arc B390 scores 1482 in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. Its closest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, scores 1463, meaning the Arc B390 is 1.3% faster. The GPU also leads the GeForce 800M by 1.5% and the GeForce GT 625 OEM by 2.5%.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations in The Technomancer?

A: This hardware combination ranks 2500 out of 2825 total tested combos in the game. This places it in the lower percentile of tested systems, indicating below-average performance for this title.

Q: Does the CPU's multi-threaded performance stand out relative to its rivals?

A: The Ryzen 9 5900X has an average benchmark score of 41376. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 7 366H, scores 41263, putting the AMD processor just 0.3% ahead. The 5900X also leads the Core Ultra 7 356H and Ryzen AI 5 PRO 440 by 0.4%, while trailing the Core i7-14650HX by 0.5%.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset delivers an average of 52 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 26 FPS. This represents a 50% reduction in average frame rate when moving from the lowest to the highest quality settings.

Q: Is there any scenario where this combo reaches 60 FPS at 4K?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the highest average FPS recorded is 28 on Low settings. The High preset averages 19 FPS, Medium averages 22 FPS, and Ultra averages just 15 FPS. None of the 4K configurations approach 60 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data for The Technomancer with this hardware combination shows a clear trade-off between visual quality and playability. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers an average of 79 FPS, which is the only configuration that approaches high-refresh-rate territory. The Medium preset at 1080p averages 61 FPS, still comfortably above 60 FPS, while High drops to 52 FPS and Ultra falls to 40 FPS.

For users prioritizing smooth gameplay, the 1080p Medium preset represents the optimal balance. It maintains an average of 61 FPS, with a minimum of 52 FPS and maximum of 70 FPS, ensuring consistent frame delivery without dipping below playable thresholds. The Low preset at 1080p offers headroom at 79 FPS but sacrifices visual fidelity that Medium restores.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more constrained. The Low preset averages 52 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action. Medium drops to 40 FPS, High to 34 FPS, and Ultra to 26 FPS. None of these configurations consistently maintain 60 FPS, so users on 1440p displays should accept lower settings to keep frame rates above 30 FPS.

The 4K resolution is not viable for this combo under any tested settings. Even Low averages only 28 FPS, and Ultra averages 15 FPS. These frame rates fall well below acceptable thresholds for an Action RPG, where responsive controls and smooth camera movement are essential.

Based on the measured rows, the recommended configuration is 1080p with Medium settings. This provides the best combination of average FPS (61) and visual quality, with the measured minimum of 52 FPS ensuring that demanding scenes do not cause severe stuttering. If users prefer higher graphical fidelity, the 1080p High preset at 52 FPS remains playable, but the gap to Medium is noticeable.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals how this system scales across resolutions. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at the same settings shows consistent frame rate drops. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 79 at 1080p to 52 at 1440p, a reduction of approximately 34%. At High settings, the drop is from 52 FPS to 34 FPS, again about 35%. Medium settings show a similar pattern, falling from 61 FPS to 40 FPS, a 34% decrease.

The transition from 1440p to 4K shows even more severe scaling. At Low settings, the average drops from 52 FPS to 28 FPS, a 46% reduction. Medium falls from 40 FPS to 22 FPS, a 45% decrease. High drops from 34 FPS to 19 FPS, a 44% reduction. Ultra falls from 26 FPS to 15 FPS, a 42% decrease.

This scaling pattern indicates that the Intel Arc B390 is the primary limiting component. The frame rate drops are roughly proportional to the increase in pixel count, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the scaling from 1080p to 4K would show smaller frame rate differences, as the CPU workload would remain relatively constant while pixel count increases.

The data shows that the GPU's performance degrades significantly with each resolution step. The fact that even at 1080p Low, the combo only reaches 79 FPS, suggests that the GPU is fully saturated even at the lowest tested load. The Ryzen 9 5900X, with its 12 cores and 24 threads, is not the constraint here; the Arc B390's 1536 shading units and 24 ROPs are the limiting factor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings shows the following averages: Low delivers 79 FPS, Medium averages 61 FPS with a range of 52-70 FPS, High averages 52 FPS, and Ultra averages 40 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 18 FPS, from Medium to High costs 9 FPS, and from High to Ultra costs 12 FPS. The Medium setting's measured minimum of 52 FPS matches the High average, indicating that Medium maintains a consistent experience.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low at 52 FPS, Medium at 40 FPS with a range of 34-46 FPS, High at 34 FPS, and Ultra at 26 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a halving of frame rate. The Medium setting's minimum of 34 FPS is equal to the High setting's average, suggesting that Medium at 1440p provides a similar experience to High at 1440p in terms of floor performance.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low at 28 FPS, Medium at 22 FPS with a range of 19-25 FPS, High at 19 FPS, and Ultra at 15 FPS. The Medium setting shows the only complete min/max data at 4K, with a narrow 6 FPS range. This tight range indicates that the GPU is consistently saturated at this resolution, with little variance between scenes.

Across all resolutions, the Low preset provides roughly double the frame rate of Ultra. At 1080p, the difference is 39 FPS (79 vs 40); at 1440p, it is 26 FPS (52 vs 26); at 4K, it is 13 FPS (28 vs 15). The absolute gap narrows as resolution increases, but the relative performance difference remains consistent.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics processor based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz. The GPU contains 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster output units, along with 12 ray tracing cores.

The memory configuration is entirely system-shared, with no dedicated VRAM. The memory type, bus width, and bandwidth are all listed as "System Shared" or "System Dependent," meaning the GPU relies on the host system's memory. This architecture inherently limits performance, as the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory bandwidth.

The measured 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482 places this GPU in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, indicating very low performance relative to the broader market. Its nearest rivals are all older or entry-level discrete GPUs: the GT 520MX (1463), GeForce 800M (1460), GT 625 OEM (1446), and GT 710 (1443). The Arc B390 leads these by margins of 1.3% to 2.7%, but all of these GPUs are from a much older generation.

The GPU's pixel rate is 60.00 GPixel/s and texture rate is 120.0 GTexel/s. The FP32 compute is 7.680 TFLOPS, with FP16 at 15.36 TFLOPS (2:1). These specifications suggest moderate compute capability, but the system-shared memory and integrated nature of the GPU severely limit real-world performance. The measured FPS data confirms this: even at 1080p Low, the combo only reaches 79 FPS, indicating the GPU is the bottleneck.

The TDP of 80 W and IGP slot width indicate this is designed for portable devices, as evidenced by the "Portable Device Dependent" display outputs. The GPU's performance in The Technomancer aligns with its low synthetic benchmark score, reinforcing that this is an entry-level integrated solution.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X is a desktop processor from the 5000 series, based on the Zen 3 architecture (codename Vermeer). It features 12 cores and 24 threads, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz. The processor is manufactured on TSMC's 7 nm process and fits the AMD Socket AM4.

The cache hierarchy includes 64 KB L1 per core, 512 KB L2 per core, and 64 MB of L3 cache. Memory support is DDR4 with dual-channel configuration, providing 51.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth. The CPU supports ECC memory and PCIe Gen 4. It was released in November 2020 with a launch MSRP of $549.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 5900X scores 16262 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1527 in single-core. The Geekbench scores are 14118 multi-core and 2083 single-core. In PassMark tests, it achieves 39002 in multithread and 3469 in single-thread. The 3DMark thread tests show scaling from 941 (single-thread) to 10075 (max threads), with 9075 at 16 threads.

The CPU's percentile rank is 87th among all CPUs, indicating strong all-around performance. Its average benchmark score is 41376, with nearest rivals being the Intel Core Ultra 7 366H (41263, +0.3%), Core Ultra 7 356H (41215, +0.4%), Ryzen AI 5 PRO 440 (41208, +0.4%), and Core i7-14650HX (41576, -0.5%). These narrow margins show the 5900X is competitive with modern mid-range mobile processors.

In the context of The Technomancer, the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS scaling across resolutions follows a GPU-bound pattern, with frame rates dropping proportionally to pixel count increases. The 5900X's 12 cores and high boost clock provide ample processing power for the game's CPU workload, but the Arc B390's integrated nature prevents the system from taking full advantage of the CPU's capabilities.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2500 out of 2825 tested combos in The Technomancer. This places it in the bottom 11.5% of all tested systems, near the absolute bottom of the performance spectrum.

This ranking is heavily influenced by the GPU, which sits in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. The CPU, by contrast, ranks in the 87th percentile, showing a significant mismatch between the two components. The system is effectively a high-end CPU paired with an entry-level integrated GPU, resulting in overall performance that is far below what the CPU alone would suggest.

Within the context of the game's tested combos, this pairing represents a scenario where the GPU is the overwhelming bottleneck. The measured FPS data confirms this, as even the lowest settings at 1080p only achieve 79 FPS, and the system cannot maintain 60 FPS at 1440p on any setting.

The rank of 2500 out of 2825 places this combo alongside systems with much older or lower-end GPUs. The GPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks — the GT 520MX, GeForce 800M, GT 625 OEM, and GT 710 — are all legacy or entry-level parts from a different era. The combo's in-game performance aligns with this positioning, making it suitable only for low-resolution, low-settings gaming.

For users considering this combination, the data clearly indicates that the CPU's potential is untapped in this game due to GPU limitations. The 5900X would perform much better with a discrete GPU, but as configured, the Arc B390 restricts the experience to 1080p Low or Medium settings for acceptable frame rates. The 4K results, with averages between 15 and 28 FPS, are not viable for gameplay.