Control

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D paired with the Intel Arc B570 produces a mixed picture in Control. Benchmark results show the combo can clear 60 FPS at 1080p with High settings, but drops below that threshold at 1440p except on Low, and never reaches playable frame rates at 4K. The data reveals a system that is clearly GPU-bound, with the CPU's substantial headroom unused at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings average 101 FPS, Medium averages 71 FPS with a minimum of 61 and maximum of 82, High averages 63 FPS, and Ultra averages 55 FPS. The step from Medium to High costs 8 FPS on average, while the jump from High to Ultra costs another 8 FPS. Only Ultra falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold, and Medium's minimum of 61 FPS ensures it stays above that line throughout.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop noticeably. Low averages 76 FPS, Medium averages 54 FPS with a minimum of 46 and maximum of 62, High averages 48 FPS, and Ultra averages 42 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 22 FPS, indicating a heavy load increase. Medium's minimum of 46 FPS shows that even the middle preset can stutter below 60 FPS, making it unsuitable for a smooth experience.

At 3840x2160, the picture is bleak. Low averages 51 FPS, Medium averages 36 FPS with a minimum of 31 and maximum of 42, High averages 32 FPS, and Ultra averages 28 FPS. No preset reaches 60 FPS, and even Low is 9 FPS short. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at Low settings is a 33% reduction, while at High it is also 33%, confirming that the GPU is the limiting factor.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, with an average of 63 FPS. Medium also qualifies at 71 FPS, but High is the highest quality option that maintains the threshold. Low is of course playable but offers lower visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, only Low settings achieve the 60 FPS target, averaging 76 FPS. Medium dips to 54 FPS, so it is not considered playable. High and Ultra are even further below. Thus, the best playable setting at 1440p is Low.

At 3840x2160, no preset reaches 60 FPS. The closest is Low at 51 FPS, but it falls short. Therefore, there is no best setting; the resolution is not playable with this hardware.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data strongly indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck in this combination. The CPU, AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D, posts strong synthetic scores—Cinebench R23 multicore 23230 and single-core 2080, Geekbench multicore 18696—placing it in the 87th percentile of all CPUs. The GPU, Intel Arc B570, has a Passmark G3D score of 14195 and sits in the 65th percentile of all GPUs. When the resolution increases, the frame rate drops almost proportionally across all settings, which is a classic sign of GPU limitation.

For example, at Low settings, moving from 1080p to 1440p reduces the average from 101 to 76 FPS (a 25% drop), and from 1440p to 4K reduces it from 76 to 51 FPS (a 33% drop). At High settings, the corresponding drops are 63 to 48 (24%) and 48 to 32 (33%). This consistent scaling suggests that the CPU is not being stressed; if it were, the frame rates would plateau or show less degradation at higher resolutions. Furthermore, at 1080p Low, the system achieves 101 FPS, which is far above the 60 FPS target, indicating that the CPU can feed the GPU quickly. The GPU's workload increases with resolution and preset, and it runs out of headroom.

The CPU's high multi-threaded performance—3DMark max threads 10067, Passmark multithread 40009—would be more relevant in CPU-intensive scenes, but Control's measured FPS pattern shows that the GPU is the limiting component across all tested configurations.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Based on synthetic benchmarks, the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D has close rivals that would behave similarly in this game. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840HS scores 39603 (0.4% higher), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 scores 40048 (0.7% lower), the AMD Ryzen AI 7 450 scores 39485 (0.7% higher), and the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 scores 40081 (0.8% lower). Since Control is GPU-bound at the tested settings, swapping the CPU for any of these would likely produce nearly identical FPS numbers. The differences in average benchmark scores are within 1% of each other, so the impact on game performance would be negligible.

For the GPU, the Intel Arc B570's nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (avg score 20534, 0.1% faster), Intel Arc A750 (avg score 20582, 0.1% slower), NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (avg score 20480, 0.4% faster), and AMD Radeon R9 M390X (avg score 20662, 0.5% slower). These GPUs are within half a percent of the B570's average score, meaning they would deliver essentially the same frame rates in Control. A system with an RTX 3070 Mobile or an Arc A750 would show the same resolution and preset limitations as this combo.

FAQ

Q: What is the best playable setting at 1920x1080 for this combo?

A: High settings, which average 63 FPS. Medium also stays above 60 FPS at 71 FPS, but High offers higher visual quality while still meeting the threshold.

Q: Can this system run Control at 4K resolution?

A: No. At 3840x2160, even Low settings only average 51 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold. All other presets are lower, with Ultra at 28 FPS.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS at 1440p Medium?

A: The minimum is 46 FPS and the maximum is 62 FPS, with an average of 54 FPS. This indicates that the frame rate fluctuates significantly and often drops below the 60 FPS target.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations in Control?

A: It ranks 2995 out of 3720 combinations, placing it in the lower portion of the list. This means many other CPU/GPU pairings achieve higher frame rates in this game.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the CPU and GPU?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D has a launch MSRP of $479, and the Intel Arc B570 has a launch MSRP of $219.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more responsible for the performance in Control?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's high synthetic scores and the consistent FPS drop across resolutions indicate that the Intel Arc B570 cannot keep up with the demands of higher settings and resolutions, while the CPU has ample headroom.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested CPU/GPU combinations for Control, this pairing sits at rank 2995 out of 3720. That places it in the bottom 20% of all tested systems—only 725 combinations perform worse. The rank reflects the fact that the Arc B570's mid-range GPU performance is not sufficient for demanding settings at higher resolutions, despite the powerful Ryzen 7 9800X3D. The combo is clearly GPU-limited, and its ranking would improve if paired with a stronger GPU, but as configured, it is a below-average performer for this title.

The Verdict

Can this PC run Control? Yes, but with significant caveats. At 1920x1080, the system achieves playable frame rates on High (63 FPS), Medium (71 FPS), and Low (101 FPS). The best visual quality that stays above 60 FPS is High. At 2560x1440, only Low settings reach 76 FPS; Medium, High, and Ultra all fall below the 60 FPS threshold. At 3840x2160, no settings are playable—the highest average is 51 FPS on Low. Therefore, this combo is suitable for 1080p gaming at high settings and 1440p only with reduced graphical fidelity. For 4K, it is not a viable option. The data shows a system that is strong enough for mainstream 1080p play but quickly runs out of GPU headroom as resolution increases.