To The Core

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and Intel Arc B390 combination delivers a playable, though not exceptional, experience in To The Core, an idle game that is far more demanding on the GPU than the CPU. The benchmark data shows a system that scales predictably with resolution and settings, with the Arc B390 acting as the primary performance limiter. The combo ranks 2643rd out of 2991 tested combinations, placing it in the lower percentile of tested hardware, a position that aligns with the GPU's low benchmark scores rather than the CPU's top-tier performance.

FAQ

Q: How does the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D compare to its nearest rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The Ryzen 9 9950X3D has an average benchmark score of 75779, which is only 0.1% higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 9755 and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 9755X3D, and 0.4% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285.

Q: What is the performance percentile of the Intel Arc B390 GPU?

A: The Intel Arc B390 sits in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 1482. Its closest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, scores 1463, which is 1.3% lower.

Q: What is the best average FPS achieved at 1920x1080 resolution?

A: The highest average FPS at 1920x1080 is 147, achieved with Low settings. The Medium preset yields 124 FPS, High yields 107 FPS, and Ultra yields 86 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's percentile rank is 95, while the GPU's is 9, and the system's performance scales significantly with resolution and settings, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario.

Q: What are the core and thread counts for the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D has 16 cores and 32 threads, based on the Zen 5 architecture with a boost clock of 5.70 GHz.

Q: Does the game run at a higher average FPS at 2560x1440 on High settings compared to 3840x2160 on Medium settings?

A: Yes, at 2560x1440 on High settings, the average FPS is 72. At 3840x2160 on Medium settings, the average FPS is 48. The lower resolution and higher settings preset provides a 24 FPS advantage.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is a system-integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture and Panther Lake chip. Its performance profile is modest, as evidenced by its 9th percentile ranking among all GPUs. The GPU's average benchmark score of 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 places it just 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, which scores 1463. This establishes a performance baseline that is near the bottom of the tested hardware pool.

The Arc B390 operates with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz. It has 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster operation pipelines, along with 12 ray tracing cores. Memory is system-shared, meaning its bandwidth is "System Dependent" and not a fixed figure. This shared memory architecture is a critical detail, as it means the GPU relies on the system's DDR5 memory, which the CPU supports with a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s. The GPU's pixel rate is 60.00 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 120.0 GTexel/s.

In the context of To The Core, the Arc B390's capabilities are the defining factor for the measured FPS. The GPU's low average benchmark score relative to other hardware directly correlates with the system's mid-to-low frame rates across all tested configurations. The data shows that the GPU is the component that dictates performance, as the CPU's substantial processing power does not translate into high frame rates when the GPU is the limiting factor. The GPU's TDP is 80 W, and it is classified as an IGP with no power connectors, reinforcing its role as an integrated solution rather than a high-performance discrete card.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and expected trend: performance decreases as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 147 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same Low settings, the average drops to 99 FPS, a reduction of 48 FPS. At 3840x2160 on Low, the average further declines to 56 FPS. This pattern holds across all settings presets, indicating that the GPU's rendering workload is the primary driver of performance changes.

This scaling behavior is a strong indicator that the system is GPU-bound. When the resolution increases, the number of pixels the GPU must process grows, and the frame rate falls proportionally. For example, at High settings, the average FPS is 107 at 1080p, 72 at 1440p, and 41 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K represents a 61.7% reduction in average FPS. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would be more consistent across resolutions, as the CPU's workload would not change with resolution. Instead, the data shows a steep decline, confirming that the Intel Arc B390 is the limiting component.

The transition from 1080p to 1440p results in a substantial performance hit, and the jump to 4K further compounds this. For instance, at Medium settings, the average FPS goes from 124 at 1080p to 83 at 1440p, and then to 48 at 4K. The data suggests that 1080p is the most viable resolution for achieving high frame rates, while 4K is only playable at the lowest settings, where it still only manages an average of 56 FPS. The GPU's limited pixel throughput, despite its 60.00 GPixel/s pixel rate, is insufficient to maintain high frame rates at higher resolutions in this game.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings preset depends on the user's target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, the Low preset yields the highest average FPS at 147, which is excellent for a smooth experience. However, the Medium preset still provides a very playable 124 FPS average, with a minimum of 105 FPS and a maximum of 143 FPS. The High preset at 1080p delivers 107 FPS average, which is also smooth. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to an 86 FPS average, which is still playable but shows a significant performance cost for the highest settings.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset provides a 99 FPS average, which is good. The Medium preset offers an 83 FPS average with a minimum of 71 FPS, ensuring it stays above 60 FPS. The High preset at 1440p yields a 72 FPS average, which is acceptable but not as fluid as the lower presets. The Ultra preset at this resolution falls to a 58 FPS average, which may not be ideal for all users.

At 3840x2160, the options are more limited. The Low preset achieves a 56 FPS average, which is the only configuration at this resolution that approaches a standard 60 FPS target. The Medium preset at 4K averages 48 FPS with a minimum of 41 FPS and a maximum of 55 FPS, which can feel sluggish. The High preset at 4K averages 41 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 33 FPS. For the best experience per the measured data, the Medium preset at 1080p offers a strong balance of frame rate and visual quality, while the Low preset at 1440p is the best choice for higher resolutions without dropping below 60 FPS. At 4K, the Low preset is the only playable option, though it still falls short of a solid 60 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets.

At 1920x1080, the Low settings preset achieves an average FPS of 147. The Medium preset averages 124 FPS, with a minimum of 105 FPS and a maximum of 143 FPS. The High preset averages 107 FPS. The Ultra preset yields an average FPS of 86.

At 2560x1440, the Low settings preset reaches an average of 99 FPS. The Medium preset averages 83 FPS, with a minimum of 71 FPS and a maximum of 96 FPS. The High preset averages 72 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 58 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Low settings preset produces an average of 56 FPS. The Medium preset averages 48 FPS, with a minimum of 41 FPS and a maximum of 55 FPS. The High preset averages 41 FPS. The Ultra preset has the lowest average of all tested configurations at 33 FPS.

The data shows a consistent pattern where each step up in settings or resolution results in a measurable decrease in average FPS. For instance, at 1080p, moving from Low to Ultra reduces the average FPS from 147 to 86, a 41.5% drop. At 1440p, the same settings change reduces the average from 99 to 58 FPS. At 4K, the reduction is from 56 to 33 FPS. The minimum FPS data, available only for the Medium preset at each resolution, shows that the system can dip below the average, with a 41 FPS minimum at 4K, 71 FPS at 1440p, and 105 FPS at 1080p.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is a high-end desktop processor with 16 cores and 32 threads, based on the Zen 5 architecture with the Granite Ridge codename. It has a base clock of 4.30 GHz and a boost clock of 5.70 GHz. The CPU's benchmark scores are impressive, with a 95th percentile ranking among all CPUs and an average benchmark score of 75779. It scores 42018 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2259 in single-core, and 26736 in Geekbench multi-core and 3064 in single-core.

However, these strong CPU benchmarks do not translate into high frame rates in To The Core because the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's role is to feed the GPU with data, and in this case, the Arc B390 cannot keep up with the processing power of the 9950X3D. The CPU's performance is more than sufficient for this game, as evidenced by its high passmark multithread score of 70255 and single-thread score of 4737.

The CPU's large L3 cache of 128 MB and 16 cores are features that would benefit CPU-intensive tasks, but To The Core is an idle game that does not appear to be CPU-bound. The measured FPS shows a clear GPU bottleneck, as frame rates scale directly with resolution and settings. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar FPS across different resolutions, which is not the case. The CPU's high performance, including its 16 cores and 32 threads, ensures that it does not impede the GPU's work, but it also does not enhance it. The system's overall performance in this game is thus entirely dependent on the Intel Arc B390's capabilities.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2643rd out of 2991 tested combos in To The Core. This places it in the bottom 11.6% of all tested configurations, a position that is heavily influenced by the GPU's low performance. The CPU alone ranks in the 95th percentile, but the GPU's 9th percentile ranking drags the overall combo ranking down significantly.

This disparity highlights the imbalance of this pairing. The top-tier CPU is paired with a bottom-tier GPU, resulting in a system that underperforms relative to what the CPU alone would suggest. The combo's rank of 2643 is consistent with the GPU's benchmark score, which is only 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX. The data indicates that the GPU is the overwhelming bottleneck, and the system's performance in this game would be nearly identical if paired with a much weaker CPU.

The comboRankInGame data shows that this configuration is not competitive with most other tested hardware. While the CPU is a top performer, the GPU's limitations are the defining factor for the user experience in To The Core. The system's measured FPS, which ranges from a high of 147 FPS at 1080p Low to a low of 33 FPS at 4K Ultra, is a direct result of the GPU's performance ceiling. This ranking serves as a clear warning that the Intel Arc B390 is not suitable for demanding gaming workloads, despite being paired with one of the most powerful CPUs available.