Valorant

# How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X paired with the Intel Arc B390 lands at rank 2534 out of 2883 tested combos for Valorant. That places this configuration in the bottom 12% of all combinations in the database, which is a striking result for a game as lightweight as Valorant. The data suggests this is not a combination built for competitive frame rates, despite the CPU's strong multi-threaded credentials.

The ranking becomes clearer when examining the individual components. The Ryzen 7 5700X sits at the 79th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27578. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i5-12600K at an identical 27578 score (0% delta), the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X at 27636 (-0.2% delta), and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800 at 27535 (0.2% delta). This CPU is firmly mid-pack to upper-mid-pack in overall processing power. The Intel Arc B390, however, tells a very different story. This GPU sits at just the 9th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 1482 from the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3% delta), the NVIDIA GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5% delta), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5% delta). These are entry-level or legacy mobile-class GPUs, which explains why the overall combo ranks so poorly.

The combination of a strong CPU and a weak GPU creates a significant bottleneck. In Valorant, which is known for being CPU-bound at high frame rates, the Arc B390's low percentile ranking becomes the limiting factor. The measured FPS data supports this interpretation, as even at 1080p Low settings the combo only reaches 331 FPS average, which is respectable but far below what a top-tier CPU paired with a discrete GPU could achieve. The combo rank of 2534 out of 2883 indicates that most other tested combinations—even those with weaker CPUs—likely outperform this pairing in actual gameplay due to the GPU constraint.

What makes this ranking particularly interesting is the disconnect between the CPU's capability and the overall result. The Ryzen 7 5700X's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 13184 and single-core score of 1499 suggest it can handle the game's logic and physics threads with ease. Yet the GPU's 9th percentile standing drags the entire combo down. The data implies that Valorant's frame rate ceiling here is set almost entirely by the Arc B390, not the Ryzen 7 5700X.

# FAQ

Q: What is the combo's overall rank in Valorant?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X + Intel Arc B390 combination ranks 2534 out of 2883 tested combos for Valorant, placing it in the bottom 12% of all configurations in the database.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Ryzen 7 5700X has an average benchmark score of 27578, which is identical to the Intel Core i5-12600K (0% delta), 0.2% higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 5800 (27535), and 0.2% lower than the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X (27636). The CPU sits at the 79th percentile among all CPUs.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Arc B390 has an average benchmark score of 1482 from the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. It is 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463), 1.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce 800M (1460), and 2.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446). The GPU sits at just the 9th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: What is the best measured FPS this combo achieves?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 331 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest average FPS is 135 at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: Does the combo perform better at lower resolutions?

A: Yes, the data shows a clear scaling trend. At 1920x1080, average FPS ranges from 198 (Ultra) to 331 (Low). At 2560x1440, it ranges from 169 (Ultra) to 282 (Low). At 3840x2160, it drops to 135 (Ultra) to 225 (Low).

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor?

A: Benchmark data indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck. The CPU ranks at the 79th percentile while the GPU ranks at only the 9th percentile. This massive gap, combined with the GPU's nearest rivals being legacy mobile-class parts, suggests the Arc B390 constrains performance far more than the Ryzen 7 5700X.

# Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimizing the experience across different resolutions. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 331 FPS average, while Medium achieves 218 FPS, High reaches 207 FPS, and Ultra drops to 198 FPS. For competitive play, Low at 1080p offers the highest frame rate headroom, which is critical for Valorant's fast-paced gameplay. The jump from Low to Medium costs 113 FPS, a 34% reduction, but the jump from Medium to High only costs 11 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns at higher presets.

At 2560x1440, the pattern shifts slightly. Low delivers 282 FPS, Medium 186 FPS, High 177 FPS, and Ultra 169 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium widens to 96 FPS, while the gap between Medium and High narrows to just 9 FPS. At 3840x2160, Low achieves 225 FPS, Medium 149 FPS, High 141 FPS, and Ultra 135 FPS. The resolution scaling is steep, with 4K Low performing worse than 1080p Ultra in terms of average FPS.

For the best balance of visual quality and performance, Medium at 1080p appears to be the sweet spot. It delivers 218 FPS average with a minimum of 185 FPS, which is still well above the 144Hz refresh rate common in competitive monitors. The minimum FPS data is only available for Medium settings, showing 185 FPS at 1080p, 158 FPS at 1440p, and 126 FPS at 4K. These minimums suggest that Medium preset maintains consistent frame pacing without severe drops. For players prioritizing maximum frame rate over visual fidelity, Low at 1080p (331 FPS) or Low at 1440p (282 FPS) are the strongest choices. The data indicates that Ultra settings offer minimal benefit over High at any resolution, with only 9 FPS separating them at 1080p and 8 FPS at 1440p.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS dataset reveals how this combo scales across settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the Low preset produces an average of 331 FPS, which is the single highest score recorded for this combination. Medium at 1080p averages 218 FPS with a minimum of 185 and maximum of 250. High at 1080p averages 207 FPS, while Ultra at 1080p averages 198 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 133 FPS, indicating that settings have a substantial impact on performance.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 282 FPS, a 49 FPS drop from 1080p Low. Medium at 1440p averages 186 FPS with a minimum of 158 and maximum of 214. High at 1440p averages 177 FPS, and Ultra at 1440p averages 169 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1440p narrows to 113 FPS. At 3840x2160, Low averages 225 FPS, Medium averages 149 FPS with a minimum of 126 and maximum of 171, High averages 141 FPS, and Ultra averages 135 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 4K shrinks further to 90 FPS.

The minimum and maximum FPS data, available only for Medium settings, provides additional insight. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 185 and maximum of 250 suggest a relatively tight frame delivery window. At 1440p Medium, the minimum drops to 158 and maximum to 214, showing wider variance. At 4K Medium, the minimum falls to 126 and maximum to 171. These figures indicate that frame consistency degrades as resolution increases, even when the average FPS remains relatively high. The lack of min/max data for other presets means the Medium data serves as the primary reference for frame pacing analysis.

# Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K reveals important information about where the bottleneck lies. At Low settings, the progression is 331 FPS at 1080p, 282 FPS at 1440p, and 225 FPS at 4K. This represents a 15% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 20% drop from 1440p to 4K, for a total reduction of 32% from 1080p to 4K. At Medium settings, the progression is 218 FPS at 1080p, 186 FPS at 1440p, and 149 FPS at 4K—a 15% drop, then a 20% drop, totaling 32% overall. At High settings, the progression is 207 FPS at 1080p, 177 FPS at 1440p, and 141 FPS at 4K, showing a 14% drop, then a 20% drop, totaling 32% overall. At Ultra settings, the progression is 198 FPS at 1080p, 169 FPS at 1440p, and 135 FPS at 4K, with a 15% drop, then a 20% drop, totaling 32% overall.

The consistency of this scaling pattern—roughly 15% from 1080p to 1440p and 20% from 1440p to 4K across all settings—is revealing. In a purely GPU-bound scenario, the resolution scaling would typically show larger penalties at higher resolutions, especially at 4K. Here, the relatively modest 32% total reduction from 1080p to 4K suggests that the GPU's workload is not the dominant factor at lower settings. Instead, the CPU appears to be maintaining a reasonably high frame rate ceiling even at 4K, with the Arc B390's limitations becoming more apparent as settings increase.

The fact that Low at 4K (225 FPS) outperforms Ultra at 1080p (198 FPS) further supports the idea that settings impact performance more than resolution in this configuration. This is unusual for most games, where resolution scaling typically dominates. For Valorant, the data implies the game's engine is efficient enough to handle higher resolutions without proportional FPS penalties, and the Ryzen 7 5700X's strong single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1499) helps maintain frame rates even as pixel count increases. The limiting component appears to be the GPU's fill rate and shading capacity, which constrains performance more noticeably when settings are raised to Medium and above.

# CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X brings substantial processing power to this combination. With 8 cores and 16 threads, a base clock of 3.40 GHz, and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, this Zen 3 architecture chip (codenamed Vermeer) is built on TSMC's 7 nm process with 4,150 million transistors on a 74 mm² die. The cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 512 KB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 memory with dual-channel configuration and 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth, with ECC memory support included. It uses the AMD Socket AM4 interface, has 20 PCIe Gen 4 lanes, and comes with an unlocked multiplier for overclocking. The CPU's launch MSRP was $299.

Benchmark scores show the CPU's capabilities: Cinebench R23 multi-core at 13184 and single-core at 1499, Geekbench multi-core at 10779 and single-core at 2016, and 3DMark scores of 6858 for 16 threads, 5768 for 8 threads, 3512 for 4 threads, 1821 for 2 threads, and 921 for single thread. PassMark scores include multi-thread at 26612, single-thread at 3385, and various specialized tests like integer math at 92749, floating point math at 51842, and data compression at 323610. The CPU's percentile rank of 79 among all CPUs indicates it outperforms the majority of processors in the database.

In Valorant, these specifications matter for maintaining high frame rates. The game's engine is known for utilizing multiple threads, and the 5700X's 16 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks while gaming. The strong single-thread score of 1499 in Cinebench R23 suggests the CPU can handle the game's primary game thread without becoming a bottleneck. However, the measured FPS data shows that even with this capable CPU, the combo cannot reach the highest frame rates seen in the database. This indicates that while the CPU is well-suited for Valorant, its performance is not being fully utilized due to the GPU constraint.

# GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 presents a unique case in this combination. This GPU uses the Panther Lake chip with Xe3-LPG architecture, part of the Arc Graphics-M generation. It is built on Intel's 3 nm process and features a base clock of 300 MHz with a boost clock of 2500 MHz. The GPU has 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, 24 raster output units, and 12 ray tracing cores. Its pixel rate is 60.00 GPixel/s, texture rate is 120.0 GTexel/s, and FP32 performance is 7.680 TFLOPS with FP16 at 15.36 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio). The TDP is 80 W, and it uses system shared memory with system dependent bandwidth. The GPU supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

The GPU's benchmark showing is modest: a single 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, placing it at the 9th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3% delta), NVIDIA GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5% delta), and NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5% delta). These are all entry-level or legacy parts, indicating the Arc B390's raw performance is in a similar class despite its modern architecture and features.

In Valorant, the GPU's role is critical at higher settings and resolutions. The measured FPS data shows that at 4K Ultra, the combo drops to 135 FPS average, while at 4K Low it achieves 225 FPS. This 90 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 4K highlights how the GPU's shading and memory bandwidth constraints become more pronounced with increased graphical complexity. The system shared memory configuration means the GPU relies on the CPU's DDR4 memory, which could be a limiting factor. The GPU's low percentile ranking compared to the CPU's 79th percentile creates a severe imbalance, and the data suggests that upgrading the GPU would yield far greater performance gains in Valorant than any CPU change. The Arc B390's capabilities are sufficient for playable frame rates, but its performance ceiling prevents this combo from reaching the high refresh rates that competitive Valorant players typically seek.