To The Core

The data for To The Core with an AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and Intel Arc B570 reveals a configuration that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while the CPU's substantial core count and clock speeds provide a high ceiling for frame rates at 1080p. The measured frames per second (FPS) across three resolutions and four settings presets show clear scaling patterns that point to the Arc B570 as the primary performance limiter as resolution increases.

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

The FPS drop from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 is dramatic and consistent across all settings, confirming that the GPU is the dominant constraint at higher pixel counts. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 165 at 1080p to 111 at 1440p, a 33% reduction, and then further to 64 at 4K, which is a 61% drop from the 1080p figure. This pattern of steep decline with each resolution step is a classic indicator of GPU-bound performance, as the rendering workload scales with pixel count.

Low settings show an even wider spread, with 225 FPS at 1080p dropping to 152 at 1440p (a 32% decrease) and then to 87 at 4K (a 61% drop from 1080p). The absolute delta between 1080p and 4K at Low settings is 138 FPS, which is substantial. The fact that the percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is nearly identical to the drop from 1440p to 4K (around 32% and 43% respectively) suggests a linear scaling with pixel count, which is typical for GPU-bound scenarios where the CPU is not the bottleneck.

At Medium settings, the measured minimum and maximum FPS at each resolution provide additional context. At 1080p, the average is 191 FPS with a minimum of 162 and maximum of 219, showing a tight frame time distribution. At 1440p, the average drops to 128 FPS with a range of 109 to 147. At 4K, the average falls to 73 FPS with a range of 62 to 84. The consistent ratio between minimum and maximum FPS across resolutions (roughly 0.75 to 0.8) indicates that the frame pacing remains stable even as the GPU load increases, which is a sign of a well-behaved rendering engine.

The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, shows the most severe scaling. At 1080p, the average is 133 FPS. At 1440p, it drops to 89 FPS (a 33% reduction), and at 4K, it falls to 51 FPS (a 62% drop from 1080p). The fact that the 4K Ultra score of 51 FPS is just above the 50 FPS threshold suggests that this preset at this resolution is at the edge of playability. The data strongly implies that the Intel Arc B570, with its 10 GB of GDDR6 memory and 160-bit bus, is the component that determines the upper bound of performance as resolution increases, while the CPU's role diminishes.

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

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its benchmark scores place it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53,288. This is a high-end desktop processor that typically provides ample headroom for gaming workloads.

In the context of To The Core, which is an idle game genre title, the CPU's role is likely to be less critical than in more demanding genres, but the data still shows its influence. At 1080p, the difference between Low (225 FPS) and Ultra (133 FPS) is 92 FPS, which is a 69% increase in performance when lowering settings. This gap is much larger than the 4K difference between Low (87 FPS) and Ultra (51 FPS), which is 36 FPS or a 71% increase. The fact that the percentage improvement from lowering settings is similar across resolutions suggests that the CPU is not the primary limiter at any resolution, as a CPU-bound scenario would show a smaller FPS gain from reducing graphical settings.

The Ryzen 9 7900X's multi-threaded performance is notable, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 29,300 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 19,267. Its single-thread performance is also strong, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,016.5 and a Passmark single-thread score of 4,238. These scores indicate that the processor can handle both lightly-threaded and heavily-threaded workloads efficiently. For an idle game, which may not utilize all 24 threads, the high single-thread performance is likely more relevant. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 2,137 and 4-thread score of 4,151 suggest that the processor excels in low-thread-count scenarios, which is typical for game logic and physics.

The CPU's memory support for DDR5 at dual-channel with a bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s also plays a role, though the data does not directly measure memory bandwidth impact on FPS. The 64 MB of shared L3 cache is another factor that could improve performance by reducing memory latency. However, given that the FPS scaling with resolution is so pronounced, the CPU's capabilities are likely not the bottleneck. The 170 W TDP and 5 nm process node indicate a power-hungry but efficient design, which is typical for high-core-count desktop processors.

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

The Intel Arc B570 is a discrete GPU based on the Xe2-HPG architecture, codenamed Battlemage. It has 2,304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 80 raster output pipelines. Its memory configuration includes 10 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus, with a bandwidth of 380.0 GB/s. The GPU's base and boost clocks are both set at 2500 MHz, and it has a TDP of 150 W. Its benchmark scores place it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, with an average score of 20,556.

The GPU's performance in To The Core is clearly the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as evidenced by the significant FPS drops from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p High, the GPU produces 165 FPS, which is above the typical 144 Hz refresh rate target. However, at 1440p High, it drops to 111 FPS, and at 4K High, it only manages 64 FPS. This pattern suggests that the GPU's raw compute power, rated at 11.52 TFLOPS for FP32, is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p but struggles at 4K.

The 10 GB of VRAM is another factor to consider. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 51, which is close to the minimum playable threshold. While the data does not include VRAM usage figures, the 160-bit memory bus and 380 GB/s bandwidth may become a bottleneck at higher resolutions with more demanding textures. The GPU's pixel rate of 200.0 GPixel/s and texture rate of 360.0 GTexel/s provide theoretical limits, but the measured FPS suggests that the actual performance is well below these limits due to other constraints.

The Arc B570's closest rivals in benchmark scores include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (with a delta of +0.1%), the Intel Arc A750 (delta of -0.1%), and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X (delta of -0.5%). These comparisons show that the Arc B570 is positioned in the mid-range segment. In To The Core, the GPU's performance at 4K Ultra (51 FPS) and 4K High (64 FPS) indicates that it is not a 4K-capable card for this title at high settings, but it handles 1440p well, with 89 FPS at Ultra and 111 FPS at High.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS achievable with this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS recorded at 1920x1080 is 225 FPS, achieved at Low settings. At Medium settings, the average is 191 FPS, at High it is 165 FPS, and at Ultra it is 133 FPS.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 51. This is the lowest measured average across all tested configurations, and it is just above the 50 FPS threshold, suggesting marginal playability.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the bottleneck at 1440p?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary limiter at 1440p. At Medium settings, the average FPS drops from 191 at 1080p to 128 at 1440p, a 33% reduction, which aligns with the increased pixel count and GPU workload rather than CPU constraints.

Q: What is the FPS range at Medium settings across all resolutions?

A: At Medium settings, the measured minimum and maximum FPS are as follows: at 1080p, the range is 162 to 219 FPS with an average of 191; at 1440p, the range is 109 to 147 FPS with an average of 128; at 4K, the range is 62 to 84 FPS with an average of 73.

Q: How does the Arc B570 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Arc B570's average benchmark score is 20,556. Its closest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile, has a score of 20,534, which is 0.1% lower. The Intel Arc A750 scores 20,582, which is 0.1% higher, and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X scores 20,662, which is 0.5% higher.

Q: Does the CPU's single-thread performance matter for this game?

A: The Ryzen 9 7900X has a Passmark single-thread score of 4,238 and a 3DMark single-thread score of 1,093. While the data does not isolate CPU usage in To The Core, the high single-thread scores suggest that the CPU is unlikely to bottleneck the game's logic, even at high FPS levels like 225 at 1080p Low.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, all presets deliver playable frame rates, with the High preset at 165 FPS and Ultra at 133 FPS both being well above the 60 FPS threshold. For users with a 144 Hz monitor, the High preset at 165 FPS is the better choice, as it provides a smoother experience than Ultra's 133 FPS while still maintaining high visual quality. The Medium preset at 191 FPS offers even more headroom, but the visual difference between Medium and High may justify the small FPS trade-off.

At 2560x1440, the High preset at 111 FPS is the recommended choice for a balance of visual fidelity and performance. The Ultra preset at 89 FPS is also viable, but the drop to below 100 FPS may be noticeable on high-refresh-rate displays. The Medium preset at 128 FPS provides the highest frame rate with only a slight reduction in visual quality, making it a strong alternative for competitive play. The Low preset at 152 FPS is excessively high for most displays and should only be used if visual quality is not a priority.

At 3840x2160, the situation is more constrained. The High preset at 64 FPS is the best option for a playable experience, as it stays above the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset at 73 FPS is also viable and offers a slight improvement in frame rate, but the visual difference between Medium and High is typically more noticeable at 4K. The Ultra preset at 51 FPS is borderline, and the Low preset at 87 FPS is the only option that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, but it sacrifices significant visual quality. For most users, the High preset at 4K is the recommended balance, as it maintains a stable frame rate without dropping below the 60 FPS target.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are as follows: Low settings produce 225 FPS, Medium settings produce 191 FPS with a minimum of 162 and maximum of 219, High settings produce 165 FPS, and Ultra settings produce 133 FPS. This shows a clear progression where each increase in settings level reduces the average FPS by roughly 20-30 FPS, with the largest gap between Medium and High being 26 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the measured average FPS values are: Low at 152 FPS, Medium at 128 FPS with a minimum of 109 and maximum of 147, High at 111 FPS, and Ultra at 89 FPS. The relative ordering is consistent with 1080p, with Low being the fastest and Ultra being the slowest. The gap between Medium and High is 17 FPS, which is smaller than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor.

At 3840x2160, the measured average FPS values are: Low at 87 FPS, Medium at 73 FPS with a minimum of 62 and maximum of 84, High at 64 FPS, and Ultra at 51 FPS. This resolution shows the most significant performance degradation, with the difference between Low and High being 23 FPS and between High and Ultra being 13 FPS. The minimum FPS at Medium settings (62 FPS) is close to the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting that frame dips could be noticeable in demanding scenes.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and Intel Arc B570 ranks 2,380 out of 2,991 tested combos in To The Core. This places it in the 20th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning that 80% of combos perform better in this specific game. This ranking is somewhat surprising given the CPU's high percentile (91st) and the GPU's mid-range percentile (65th), but it reflects the fact that the GPU is the limiting factor in this title.

The low ranking suggests that the Arc B570's performance in To The Core is not competitive with other GPUs that might be paired with a high-end CPU like the Ryzen 9 7900X. The combo's rank is likely dragged down by the GPU, which at 4K Ultra produces only 51 FPS, a figure that is below the average for many other GPU models. The CPU's high core count and clock speeds do not compensate for the GPU's limitations in this GPU-bound scenario.

The data shows that the combo is more competitive at lower resolutions, where the CPU's strength can shine. At 1080p Low, the 225 FPS figure is impressive and would rank higher relative to other combos. However, the overall ranking of 2,380 out of 2,991 indicates that for the majority of users who play at 1440p or 4K, this combination does not deliver top-tier performance. The ranking also suggests that users with a Ryzen 9 7900X would likely see better results with a more powerful GPU, as the CPU is not the bottleneck in this game.