Control

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 combination delivers a clear performance hierarchy in Control, with 1080p and 1440p proving highly capable while 4K requires significant compromises. The measured data shows that this PC is best suited for high-refresh-rate gaming at 1080p and solid 60+ FPS experiences at 1440p, while 4K gaming is limited to lower presets.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset achieves an average of 82 FPS, making it the most demanding setting that stays above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The frame rate headroom is considerable, with the Ultra preset delivering 37% higher average FPS than the 60 FPS baseline, allowing for smooth gameplay with all visual features enabled.

For 2560x1440, the Ultra preset remains viable with an average of 62 FPS, just barely clearing the 60 FPS threshold. This is the optimal choice for maximum visual quality, though the margin is slim at only 2 FPS above the playable limit. The High preset at 71 FPS offers more comfortable headroom for those who prefer stability over maximum fidelity.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. The Low preset is the only setting that maintains an average above 60 FPS, delivering 76 FPS. The Medium preset falls to 54 FPS, which is below the playable threshold, while High and Ultra drop further to 48 and 42 FPS respectively. For 4K gaming, Low settings are the only viable option for maintaining smooth performance.

CPU and GPU Roles

The performance scaling across resolutions reveals that the GPU becomes the dominant bottleneck as resolution increases, while the CPU's role diminishes. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra presets is 67 FPS (149 vs 82), indicating that the RTX 5060 has significant headroom and the CPU is capable of feeding it adequately. This 45% performance drop from Low to Ultra shows the GPU workload scaling with visual complexity.

Moving to 1440p, the spread between Low and Ultra narrows to 51 FPS (113 vs 62), a 45% reduction that mirrors the 1080p pattern. However, the absolute frame rates drop across all presets, confirming that the GPU is being pushed harder. The 1440p Ultra result of 62 FPS is 24% lower than the 1080p Ultra result of 82 FPS, demonstrating that resolution scaling directly impacts GPU-bound performance.

At 4K, the GPU's dominance becomes absolute. The Low preset achieves 76 FPS, but Ultra drops to 42 FPS, a 45% reduction. The Medium preset at 54 FPS and High at 48 FPS show the GPU struggling with the increased pixel count. The fact that 4K Low (76 FPS) is lower than 1440p Ultra (62 FPS might seem counterintuitive, but the data shows 4K Low at 76 FPS versus 1440p Ultra at 62 FPS——the resolution increase from 1440p to 4K represents a 2.25x pixel increase, which the GPU cannot overcome even with reduced settings.

The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads with a boost clock of 5.40 GHz provide sufficient single-thread performance for Control, as evidenced by the 1080p Low preset hitting 149 FPS. The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is not the limiting factor, but at 4K, the GPU's 8 GB of GDDR7 memory and 128-bit bus become the primary constraint.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080: The Low preset delivers an average of 149 FPS, representing the maximum achievable frame rate at this resolution. Medium drops to 106 FPS with a minimum of 90 and maximum of 122 FPS, showing some frame time variance. High achieves 94 FPS, while Ultra settles at 82 FPS. The entire preset range stays well above the 60 FPS threshold, with even the most demanding settings providing a 37% margin over the playable baseline.

2560x1440: Low produces 113 FPS, maintaining high responsiveness. Medium averages 80 FPS with a range of 68 to 92 FPS, demonstrating consistent performance with occasional dips. High reaches 71 FPS, and Ultra barely clears the threshold at 62 FPS. The minimum frame rate for Medium at 68 FPS indicates that even the lower bounds of performance remain playable, though Ultra's average of 62 FPS suggests that frame dips could approach the 60 FPS limit in demanding scenes.

3840x2160: Low is the only playable option at 76 FPS. Medium drops to 54 FPS with a minimum of 46 and maximum of 62 FPS, showing significant frame time instability that would result in noticeable stuttering. High averages 48 FPS, and Ultra falls to 42 FPS. The 4K results clearly show that the RTX 5060's 8 GB memory capacity and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for maintaining smooth performance at this resolution with higher presets.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU benchmarks place the Ryzen 5 9600X in the 81st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 29713. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE (0.2% higher score), AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (0.5% lower), AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT (0.6% lower), and AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS (0.8% lower). These alternatives would deliver nearly identical CPU-bound performance in Control, with differences well within measurement noise.

The GPU's benchmark results show the RTX 5060 in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs with an average score of 26331. The nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon 860M (0.3% lower score), NVIDIA GeForce MX550 (0.3% lower), AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary (0.8% lower), and AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT (1.2% higher). In practical terms, these GPUs would produce nearly identical frame rates in Control, with the RX 6750 XT potentially offering a marginal 1-2 FPS advantage at each preset and resolution.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Control at 1920x1080 with maximum settings?

A: Yes. The Ultra preset at 1080p achieves an average of 82 FPS, which is 37% above the 60 FPS playable threshold. All four presets (Low 149 FPS, Medium 106 FPS, High 94 FPS, Ultra 82 FPS) maintain smooth performance.

Q: What is the best preset for 2560x1440 gaming?

A: The Ultra preset at 1440p delivers 62 FPS, just above the 60 FPS threshold. This provides the best visual quality while maintaining playable performance. For more headroom, the High preset at 71 FPS offers a more comfortable margin.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this hardware?

A: Only with the Low preset, which achieves 76 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 54 FPS, below the playable threshold. High (48 FPS) and Ultra (42 FPS) are not viable for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the RTX 5060 compare to the RX 6750 XT in this game?

A: The RX 6750 XT has a 1.2% higher average benchmark score than the RTX 5060. In Control, this translates to a negligible 1-2 FPS difference at any given preset and resolution, making them functionally equivalent.

Q: What minimum FPS can be expected at 1440p Medium settings?

A: The measured data shows a minimum of 68 FPS and maximum of 92 FPS, with an average of 80 FPS. The minimum stays above the 60 FPS threshold, indicating consistent performance.

Q: Does the CPU limit performance at any resolution?

A: At 1080p Low, the system reaches 149 FPS, indicating the CPU can feed the GPU effectively. The performance drop from 1080p to 4K across all presets is consistent with GPU-bound scaling, suggesting the Ryzen 5 9600X is not the limiting factor in this game.

The Verdict

The data confirms that this PC can run Control with clear resolution-based limitations. At 1920x1080, all presets are playable, with Ultra delivering 82 FPS and Low reaching 149 FPS. This is the ideal resolution for this hardware, providing maximum visual quality with substantial frame rate headroom.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset achieves 62 FPS, making it the best playable option. The High preset at 71 FPS offers more stability, but all four presets clear the 60 FPS threshold. This resolution represents the sweet spot for balancing visual fidelity with smooth performance.

At 3840x2160, only the Low preset is playable at 76 FPS. The Medium preset falls below the threshold at 54 FPS, and High and Ultra are not viable options. The verdict is clear: this system is excellent for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but 4K requires significant visual compromises to maintain playable frame rates. The combination of the Ryzen 5 9600X's strong single-thread performance and the RTX 5060's mid-range capabilities makes this a capable 1440p gaming machine, with 4K as a secondary consideration.