Control

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is a widely used mid-range desktop combination, and benchmark data for Control shows it handles the game well at 1080p and 1440p, with clear limitations at 4K. The measured frame rates across presets and resolutions provide a practical guide for what to expect, and the component-level scores help place this combo relative to other tested hardware.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset at 4K for this combo?

A: Only the Low preset stays at or above 60 FPS, averaging 81 FPS at 3840x2160. Medium drops to 57 FPS, High to 51, and Ultra to 44.

Q: Can this system run Control at 1440p on Ultra?

A: Yes. The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 averages 66 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. All four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) exceed 60 FPS at this resolution.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 5500 compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: Its average benchmark score is 19593. It is 0.4% slower than the Intel Core i5-12500, 0.1% slower than the AMD Ryzen AI 5 430, 0.5% faster than the Intel Core i7-10700F, and 0.7% slower than the Intel Core i5-11600KF.

Q: What is the GPU's standing against its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 3070's average benchmark score is 17208. It is 0.7% faster than the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT, 1.0% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690, 1.1% faster than the AMD Radeon HD 7970M, and 1.5% slower than the NVIDIA Tesla K40c.

Q: What are the launch MSRP values for these components?

A: The CPU has a launch MSRP of $159, and the GPU has a launch MSRP of 499 USD.

Q: Does the RTX 3070 support ray tracing and DLSS?

A: The GPU includes 46 ray tracing cores and 184 tensor cores, but the benchmark data provided does not include specific ray tracing or DLSS performance measurements for Control.

Best Settings per Resolution

The most demanding preset that maintains an average of at least 60 FPS is the key metric for a smooth experience.

• 3840x2160 (4K): Only the Low preset qualifies, with an average of 81 FPS. Medium falls to 57 FPS, so it cannot hold 60 FPS.
• 2560x1440 (1440p): The Ultra preset is the most demanding that still clears 60 FPS, averaging 66 FPS. All lower presets (High 76, Medium 85, Low 120) also exceed the threshold.
• 1920x1080 (1080p): The Ultra preset averages 87 FPS, and every preset from Low (158 FPS) to High (100 FPS) stays well above 60 FPS.

At 1080p and 1440p, the system can run Control at maximum settings without dropping below the playable threshold. At 4K, only the lowest quality setting is viable for consistent 60 FPS gameplay.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for each component helps identify hardware that would behave almost identically in Control.

CPU alternatives: The Ryzen 5 5500's average benchmark score of 19593 is within 0.7% of four other processors. The AMD Ryzen AI 5 430 (19617, -0.1%), Intel Core i5-12500 (19668, -0.4%), Intel Core i7-10700F (19499, +0.5%), and Intel Core i5-11600KF (19723, -0.7%) all fall in the same performance band. Pairing any of these CPUs with the RTX 3070 would yield nearly identical CPU-bound results in Control.

GPU alternatives: The RTX 3070's average benchmark score of 17208 is closely matched by several other graphics cards. The AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT (17083, +0.7%) is essentially a performance twin, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 (17037, +1.0%) and AMD Radeon HD 7970M (17019, +1.1%) are slightly slower. The NVIDIA Tesla K40c (17468, -1.5%) is a bit faster in raw compute, but it is a workstation part without the same driver support for gaming. For Control specifically, the RX 7600 XT would be the most direct alternative in terms of frame rates.

When combining the CPU and GPU alternatives, a system with an i5-12500 and an RX 7600 XT would deliver frame rates within a couple of percent of this Ryzen 5 5500 + RTX 3070 configuration.

The Verdict

Benchmark results indicate that this combo can run Control at 60 FPS or higher at 1080p and 1440p across all presets, including Ultra. At 4K, the situation changes: only the Low preset achieves an average of 81 FPS, while Medium (57 FPS), High (51 FPS), and Ultra (44 FPS) all fall short of the 60 FPS threshold.

• 1080p: Fully playable at Ultra, with an average of 87 FPS.
• 1440p: Fully playable at Ultra, with an average of 66 FPS.
• 4K: Playable only on Low, with an average of 81 FPS; higher presets drop below 60 FPS.

For gamers targeting high refresh rates at 1080p or 1440p, this system delivers a smooth Control experience. At 4K, it is limited to low-quality settings to maintain 60 FPS, which may be acceptable for some but not for those wanting higher visual fidelity.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data shows a clear shift in which component matters more as resolution increases. At 1080p, the CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads appear sufficient to keep the GPU fed, as evidenced by the very high frame rates on Low (158 FPS) and even on Ultra (87 FPS). The CPU's percentile ranking of 73 among all tested CPUs indicates it is a solid performer, and its average benchmark score of 19593 places it just behind the i5-12500 and i5-11600KF.

At 1440p, the GPU begins to take on more responsibility. The drop from 1080p Ultra (87 FPS) to 1440p Ultra (66 FPS) is a 24% reduction, while the CPU's workload does not change with resolution. This suggests the RTX 3070 is becoming the limiting factor. The GPU's percentile ranking of 61 among all tested GPUs is lower than the CPU's, reinforcing that the graphics card is the weaker link in this pairing.

At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck. The Ultra preset falls to 44 FPS, a 49% drop from 1080p Ultra, and even Medium only manages 57 FPS. The CPU's performance is unchanged, so the frame rate collapse is almost entirely due to the GPU's pixel and shading throughput. The RTX 3070's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448 GB/s bandwidth are not enough to maintain 60 FPS at 4K on higher presets in this title.

In practical terms, if you play at 1080p or 1440p, the CPU and GPU are balanced enough that either could be upgraded without a major immediate gain. At 4K, upgrading the GPU would yield a much larger improvement than upgrading the CPU.

How This Combo Ranks

Among the 3720 tested combinations for Control, this Ryzen 5 5500 + RTX 3070 setup ranks 1607th. That places it in the top 43% of all tested combos, meaning it outperforms 2113 other configurations. While not a top-tier enthusiast build, it sits comfortably in the upper-middle range of performance.

The rank reflects the combo's ability to handle Control at high settings at 1080p and 1440p, but its 4K limitations pull the overall standing down. For comparison, the CPU's 73rd percentile and GPU's 61st percentile suggest that the CPU is relatively stronger than the GPU in the overall benchmark pool. The combination's rank of 1607 is consistent with a mid-range system that excels at mainstream resolutions but struggles at 4K.

For anyone considering this pairing for Control, the data is clear: it delivers excellent performance at 1080p and 1440p, and acceptable performance at 4K only on the lowest preset. The ranking confirms it is a well-balanced, capable setup for this game, provided expectations are set appropriately for the resolution target.