To The Core

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D paired with the Intel Arc B390 presents a striking contrast in To The Core: a high-end, 89th-percentile CPU driving an integrated GPU that lands in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. The measured frame rates confirm this bottleneck dynamic, with the system delivering playable results that scale predictably with resolution and settings. This analysis breaks down the measured data to show where this combo excels, where it struggles, and the practical settings you should use.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows show a clear hierarchy across the four presets, with the gap between them widening as resolution drops. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers an average of 86 FPS, which is a fully playable experience for an Idle game. The High preset jumps to 107 FPS, while Medium sits at 124 FPS, and Low reaches 147 FPS. Given that To The Core is an Idle genre title, the difference between 86 and 147 FPS is unlikely to impact gameplay mechanics, but the visual fidelity gain from Ultra is substantial. The data supports using Ultra at 1080p as the best balance, as the 86 FPS average is well above the threshold for smooth 60Hz operation.

Moving to 2560x1440, the picture changes. Ultra drops to 58 FPS, which is still technically playable but begins to show the GPU's limits. High produces 72 FPS, Medium hits 83 FPS, and Low reaches 99 FPS. The step from Ultra to High at 1440p is a 14 FPS gain (72 vs 58), a 24% improvement for the loss of some graphical effects. In this resolution, High is the recommended preset because it maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS while retaining most of the visual quality. Medium is a solid fallback if you prefer a higher refresh rate, but High is the sweet spot for this combo.

At 3840x2160, the Arc B390 struggles. Ultra averages only 33 FPS, which is below the playable threshold for most users. High improves to 41 FPS, Medium to 48 FPS, and Low to 56 FPS. None of these are ideal, but the data shows a clear pattern: even at Low settings, the system cannot hold a solid 60 FPS at 4K. The Low preset at 4K is the only reasonable choice if you must run at this resolution, but the 56 FPS average is tight. For the best experience on this combo, 1440p High or 1080p Ultra are the two presets that offer both strong visuals and a safe FPS buffer.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated GPU (IGP) based on the Panther Lake chip with the Xe3-LPG architecture. Its boost clock is listed at 2500 MHz, with a base clock of 300 MHz. The memory configuration is entirely "System Shared," meaning there is no dedicated VRAM; the GPU borrows from the system's DDR5 memory via the dual-channel bus. The memory bandwidth is therefore "System Dependent," which is a critical limitation. In To The Core, this shared-memory architecture directly impacts performance, particularly at higher resolutions where the GPU must access more data from system memory.

The GPU's raw compute figures are modest: 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 24 ROPs, with a 7.680 TFLOPS FP32 rate. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482 places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals are ancient parts like the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1.3% faster) and the GeForce 800M (1.5% faster). This context is crucial: the Arc B390 is not a discrete gaming GPU. It is an iGPU that happens to be paired with a very strong CPU.

In the measured results, the GPU's limitations are most visible in the scaling from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 147 FPS, which suggests the CPU is doing the heavy lifting. But at 4K Ultra, the average collapses to 33 FPS, a 78% drop. This is a classic sign of a GPU that is saturated by pixel throughput and memory bandwidth constraints. The Arc B390's 24 ROPs and shared memory are simply not equipped to handle 4K Ultra workloads. The data shows that the GPU is the definitive limiting factor at 4K, while at 1080p it can keep up with the CPU's output for this specific Idle title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data across the three resolutions provides a clear picture of how this combo scales. At 1080p Low, the average is 147 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 99 FPS, a 33% reduction. At 4K Low, it falls to 56 FPS, another 43% drop from 1440p. This steep decline indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck as resolution increases. The CPU's performance is relatively constant across resolutions, but the GPU's workload grows exponentially with pixel count.

The Medium preset shows the same trend: 124 FPS at 1080p, 83 FPS at 1440p, and 48 FPS at 4K. The High preset yields 107, 72, and 41 FPS respectively. Ultra, the most demanding, produces 86 FPS at 1080p, 58 FPS at 1440p, and 33 FPS at 4K. The pattern is consistent: each resolution step costs roughly 30-40% of the frame rate, regardless of settings. This is a strong indicator that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the constraining resources.

What does this say about the limiting component? At 1080p, the combo is relatively balanced, with the CPU able to feed the GPU enough data to hit high frame rates. But the moment you increase the resolution to 1440p, the GPU's ROPs and shared memory are overwhelmed, and the FPS drops significantly. At 4K, the Arc B390 is simply out of its depth. The data suggests that if you want to play To The Core at 4K with this combo, you must accept Low settings and frame rates in the 50s. For smooth 60 FPS gameplay, 1440p High is the ceiling, and 1080p Ultra is the comfortable sweet spot.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 2643 out of 2991 tested combinations in To The Core, placing it in the bottom 12% of all tested systems. This is a surprisingly low ranking given the CPU's strength, but it is fully explained by the GPU's performance. The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D is a top-tier desktop processor, sitting in the 89th percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 44573. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H (0.2% faster) and the Intel Core i9-13950HX (0.5% faster), showing it is competitive with high-end mobile and desktop chips.

However, the Intel Arc B390's average benchmark score of 1482 places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1.3% faster) and the GeForce 800M (1.5% faster), which are entries from over a decade ago. This massive disparity between CPU and GPU performance drags the combo ranking down. The rank of 2643 out of 2991 means that the vast majority of tested combos, even those with weaker CPUs, outperform this pairing in To The Core because they have more capable graphics solutions.

For context, the data shows that the CPU is not the issue. The Ryzen 5 7500X3D is a 6-core, 12-thread part with a 96 MB L3 cache and a 4.50 GHz boost clock. It is more than capable of handling the physics and logic of an Idle game. The bottleneck is entirely the GPU. This combo is a classic case of a powerful CPU being held back by an integrated graphics solution. If you are building a system for To The Core, this ranking indicates that you should prioritize a discrete GPU over CPU spending to avoid this kind of imbalance.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 (Raphael) architecture, built on a 5 nm process. Its base clock is 4.00 GHz, boosting to 4.50 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The cache layout is substantial: 64 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a massive 96 MB of shared L3 cache. This large L3 cache is the hallmark of the X3D series and is particularly beneficial in games that are sensitive to memory latency and cache capacity.

In To The Core, the CPU's performance is reflected in the benchmark scores. The passmark_single_thread score is 3494, and the passmark_multithread score is 25047. The CPU's percentile rank of 89 indicates it is better than 89% of all CPUs tested. Its nearest rivals in average benchmark score are the Intel Core i5-14600 (0.7% faster), the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H (0.2% faster), and the Intel Core i9-13950HX (0.5% faster). These are all high-performance parts, confirming that the 7500X3D is a top-tier choice.

How does this translate to To The Core? The game is an Idle genre title, which typically relies more on single-threaded performance and consistent frame pacing than on multi-core scaling. The 7500X3D's strong single-thread score of 3494 and its large L3 cache should provide excellent frame times. However, the measured FPS data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor in most scenarios. At 1080p Low, the system hits 147 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's maximum output. But at 4K Ultra, the FPS drops to 33, which is a GPU limitation.

The CPU's role here is to feed the GPU efficiently. With 12 threads and a high boost clock, it can handle the game's logic and rendering commands without becoming a bottleneck. The data shows that the CPU is more than capable of supporting a much faster GPU. If the Arc B390 were replaced with a discrete GPU, the 7500X3D would likely push frame rates significantly higher. In its current configuration, the CPU is underutilized, particularly at higher resolutions where the GPU is saturated.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p gameplay with this combo?

A: The measured data shows Ultra at 1920x1080 delivers an average of 86 FPS, which is the highest quality preset that still maintains a comfortable frame rate. High runs at 107 FPS, Medium at 124 FPS, and Low at 147 FPS, but Ultra offers the best visual experience without sacrificing smoothness.

*Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in To The Core?*

A: At 3840x2160, the best result is 56 FPS on the Low preset. Medium drops to 48 FPS, High to 41 FPS, and Ultra to 33 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is below playable thresholds, so 4K is only viable on Low settings, and even then the frame rate is marginal.

Q: Why is the combo ranking so low despite having a strong CPU?

A: The combo ranks 2643 out of 2991 tested. The Intel Arc B390 GPU scores in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 1482, placing it near the GeForce GT 520MX. The CPU is in the 89th percentile, but the GPU bottleneck severely limits overall performance.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its rivals?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D has an average benchmark score of 44573. It is 0.2% slower than the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H, 0.5% slower than the Intel Core i9-13950HX, and 0.6% slower than the AMD Ryzen AI Max 385. It is 0.7% faster than the Intel Core i5-14600.

Q: Is the GPU or the CPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data shows the GPU is the primary limiter. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 147 FPS, but at 4K Ultra it drops to 33 FPS. The GPU's shared memory and low 9th percentile ranking indicate it cannot handle higher resolutions, while the CPU's strong benchmark scores suggest it has significant headroom.

Q: What is the memory configuration of the Intel Arc B390?

A: The GPU uses "System Shared" memory, meaning it has no dedicated VRAM. Its memory type, bus width, and bandwidth are all listed as "System Shared" or "System Dependent," which ties its performance directly to the system's DDR5 memory and dual-channel bus.