Intel's newest "0x114" microcode apparently is unable to resolve the troublesome performance issues with Arrow Lake processors, as new benchmarks show further degradation.
Intel's Arrow Lake Desktop CPUs Are Having A Hard Time In Consumer Systems, Another BIOS Update Fails To Perform
Team Blue's desktop CPUs aren't having a great time in the markets since not only was the "Raptor Lake Refresh" series in jeopardy due to thermal instability issues, but it looks like a new fiasco is emerging with Arrow Lake-S processors. For those unaware, Intel previously saw a massive difference in ARL-S performance on consumer systems compared to their internal testing, which is why the firm recently released a new "0x114" microcode, which was set to fix multiple root issues identified by the firm in their recent "Field Update", but things haven't been resolved yet.
Alder Lake "performance" patches ⚠️
Massive performance drop with latest BIOS + MC + ME. Memory latency increased from ~69ns to ~80ns. I've run out of patience with this platform. @thraxbert pic.twitter.com/GSSeNNCEnX
— CapFrameX (@CapFrameX) December 30, 2024
According to benchmarks by @CapFrameX, Intel's 0x114 microcode has failed to address Arrow Lake-S issues, as testing reveals yet again a massive drop in gaming performance. While running Intel's Core Ultra 9 285K on Cyberpunk 2077, the average FPS saw around an 18% decline, which is a significant drop, especially when you stack up the original drop in performance numbers. Despite Team Blue assuring customers of a "double-digit" performance gain with the new BIOS update, it seems like the initial tests convey a completely different picture.
Memory latency is also said to have increased, and in the benchmarks, it rose by around 14%, which is indeed disappointing. It is important to note here that this particular testing is one of the more "reputable" ones on the newest 0x114 microcode. In order to justify the fact that the new ARL-S BIOS update is flawed, we would need to see further evidence, but for now, it is likely not wrong to say that Intel needs to rework its approach towards the desktop CPU segment.
Team Blue is also planning to hold a media briefing around CES 2025 to discuss the Core Ultra 200S performance issues, so that's most likely the next event we are looking at in terms of the fate of Intel's Arrow Lake-S series. However, for now, ARL-S consumers would need to wait for an official update from Intel to see if the newly emerged benchmarks are indeed consistent on all systems and show performance degradation with the 0x114 microcode.
