To The Core

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT paired with the Intel Arc B390 delivers a playable, though not spectacular, experience in To The Core. The data indicates a system heavily constrained by the graphics solution, where CPU headroom is abundant but the GPU struggles to maintain high frame rates at demanding resolutions. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, offering practical guidance for optimizing settings based on the provided benchmark rows.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and clearly identifies the Intel Arc B390 as the primary bottleneck. At 1080p with High settings, the combo averages 107 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 72 FPS, a 33% reduction in frame rate. The jump to 4K further reduces performance to 41 FPS, which is a 62% decrease from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario; the CPU is capable of feeding frames much faster, but the graphics processor cannot keep up with the increasing pixel count.

The trend holds across all settings presets. For Low settings, the combo achieves 147 FPS at 1080p, 99 FPS at 1440p, and 56 FPS at 4K. This represents a 33% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 62% drop from 1080p to 4K, mirroring the High preset scaling almost exactly. Medium settings show a similar pattern: 124 FPS at 1080p, 83 FPS at 1440p, and 48 FPS at 4K. The consistency of these percentage drops strongly suggests that the resolution scaling is independent of the graphics settings, which is a hallmark of a GPU-limited system.

The limiting component is unambiguous. The Ryzen 7 5800XT is a high-end desktop CPU with 8 cores and 16 threads, boasting a boost clock of 4.80 GHz. Its benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23794 and a single-core score of 3359, place it in the 81st percentile of all CPUs. Meanwhile, the Arc B390 is an integrated graphics processor with 1536 shading units and a 9th percentile ranking among all GPUs. The data shows that even at 1080p Low, the GPU is unable to push frame rates high enough to tax the CPU. The 5800XT could likely deliver far higher frame rates in a less graphically demanding scenario, but the B390’s 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is the hard ceiling.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the most balanced experience is found at Medium settings. For users targeting a smooth 60 FPS baseline, Medium is the only preset that consistently achieves this at 1440p and 1080p. At 1440p, Medium delivers an average of 83 FPS with a minimum of 71 FPS, ensuring no noticeable dips below the 60 FPS threshold. At 1080p, Medium provides an excellent 124 FPS average with a minimum of 105 FPS, offering a substantial buffer for demanding scenes. The only scenario where Medium falls short of 60 FPS is at 4K, where it averages 48 FPS.

High settings are a viable option for 1080p owners with high-refresh-rate monitors. The 107 FPS average is smooth, though the lack of a minimum FPS value in the data means there is no guarantee against occasional stutters. At 1440p, High settings drop to 72 FPS, which is still playable but leaves less headroom for frame time spikes. The Ultra preset is not recommended for any resolution in this configuration. It yields 86 FPS at 1080p, 58 FPS at 1440p, and 33 FPS at 4K. While the 1080p result is acceptable, the 1440p and 4K results fall below the 60 FPS target. The marginal visual gains from Ultra over High do not justify the significant performance cost, especially given the GPU’s limited capabilities.

For users prioritizing frame rate above all else, the Low preset provides the highest performance, with 147 FPS at 1080p and 99 FPS at 1440p. However, the visual quality trade-off is often significant in modern titles. The data suggests that Medium offers the best compromise between visual fidelity and performance, delivering over 60 FPS at both 1080p and 1440p. The recommendation is clear: stick to Medium for a consistent experience, or drop to Low if maximum frame rates are required.

FAQ

*Q: Can this combo run To The Core at 4K?*

A: Yes, but not at a consistently smooth frame rate. The measured data shows average FPS of 41 on High, 48 on Medium, and 56 on Low at 3840x2160. Only the Low preset approaches a playable 60 FPS, while Ultra drops to 33 FPS. For a stable 60 FPS experience, 1440p is the recommended resolution.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p gaming?

A: The Medium preset provides the best balance, with an average of 124 FPS and a minimum of 105 FPS. This ensures smooth gameplay with no drops below 100 FPS. High is also viable at 107 FPS, but Medium offers a better safety margin for demanding scenes.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT bottlenecking the Intel Arc B390?

A: No. The benchmark data shows that the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU has a high single-thread score of 3359 in Cinebench R23 and a multi-core score of 23794, indicating it can handle far more work. The frame rates scale with resolution, which is a classic sign of GPU limitation.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Arc B390 has an average benchmark score of 1482, placing it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, which scores 1463, making the Arc B390 1.3% faster. It also edges out the GeForce 800M (1460) by 1.5% and the GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446) by 2.5%.

Q: What is the expected frame rate at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS is 72. This is a playable frame rate, but it is lower than the 60 FPS baseline that many users target. For a more consistent experience at 1440p, the Medium preset averages 83 FPS with a minimum of 71 FPS.

Q: Is the Ultra preset worth using?

A: No. The Ultra preset delivers 86 FPS at 1080p, which is decent, but it drops to 58 FPS at 1440p and 33 FPS at 4K. The performance cost is too high for the visual improvement over High, especially considering the GPU’s low performance percentile.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data represents the exact measured average FPS for each resolution and settings combination. Minimum and maximum FPS were only recorded for the Medium preset.

1920x1080

• Low: 147 FPS average
• Medium: 124 FPS average, 105 FPS minimum, 143 FPS maximum
• High: 107 FPS average
• Ultra: 86 FPS average

2560x1440

• Low: 99 FPS average
• Medium: 83 FPS average, 71 FPS minimum, 96 FPS maximum
• High: 72 FPS average
• Ultra: 58 FPS average

3840x2160

• Low: 56 FPS average
• Medium: 48 FPS average, 41 FPS minimum, 55 FPS maximum
• High: 41 FPS average
• Ultra: 33 FPS average

The data reveals a clear hierarchy. At 1080p, the system is capable of high refresh rates on all presets, with even Ultra exceeding 80 FPS. At 1440p, the performance drops into the 60-100 FPS range, making Medium the sweet spot for consistent 60+ FPS. At 4K, the system struggles to maintain 60 FPS on any preset, with only Low approaching that threshold. The lack of minimum FPS data for Low, High, and Ultra presets means that frame pacing could be less stable than Medium, which shows a reasonable gap between average and minimum FPS (e.g., 124 average vs 105 minimum at 1080p).

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2643 out of 2991 tested combos in To The Core. This places it in the bottom 12% of all system configurations, which aligns with the GPU’s low performance percentile. The ranking reflects the significant bottleneck imposed by the integrated graphics solution.

The CPU itself is a strong performer, ranking in the 81st percentile of all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 29879 is nearly identical to rivals like the AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (29868), and it is only 0.6% faster than the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X (29713). However, the GPU’s 9th percentile ranking and low average score of 1482 drag the entire combo down in the game-specific ranking. This disparity between the CPU and GPU performance is the defining characteristic of this pairing.

The combo’s rank of 2643 indicates that while it can run the game, it does so at frame rates that are significantly lower than most other tested systems. The data suggests that users with this configuration are limited by the graphics processor, and upgrading the GPU would yield substantial performance gains. The CPU has ample headroom to support a much more powerful discrete graphics card.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT is a Zen 3 architecture processor based on the Vermeer codename. It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz. This configuration is well-suited for gaming, offering strong single-threaded performance and ample multi-threaded capability. The processor has a 32 MB shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory with a dual-channel bus.

In To The Core, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The benchmark data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23794 and single-core score of 3359 are strong indicators of high performance. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 7683 and single-thread score of 959 further confirm this. The CPU’s percentile rank of 81 against all CPUs demonstrates that it is a high-end part.

The game’s frame rates scale almost entirely with resolution, which is a direct result of GPU load. At 1080p, the CPU can easily push the GPU to its limits, resulting in 147 FPS on Low settings. However, the GPU’s 1536 shading units and 12 ray tracing cores are insufficient to maintain high frame rates as the pixel count increases. The CPU’s performance is consistent across all resolutions, but the GPU’s output drops significantly. This indicates that the Ryzen 7 5800XT has no trouble keeping up with the game’s processing demands, and any performance issues are solely attributable to the Intel Arc B390.