Control

The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 combination delivers a highly capable Control experience, though the data reveals a clear 4K ceiling. At 1080p and 1440p, this pairing provides fluid performance across all tested presets, but at 3840x2160, only the Low preset maintains an average above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

FAQ

Q: What is the best preset for playing Control at 2560x1440 with this hardware?

A: The Ultra preset is fully playable at 1440p, with an average of 66 FPS. This is the highest quality option tested that remains above the 60 FPS threshold, making it the recommended choice for that resolution.

Q: Can this PC handle Control at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, only the Low preset clears the 60 FPS bar, with an average of 81 FPS. The Medium preset falls short at 57 FPS average, and High and Ultra are not viable, averaging 51 FPS and 44 FPS respectively.

Q: How does the RTX 3070 compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 3070's average benchmark score is 17,208, which is 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT (17,083) and 1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 (17,037). It also leads the AMD Radeon HD 7970M by 1.1%, while the NVIDIA Tesla K40c is 1.5% faster.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1920x1080?

A: The Low preset produces an average of 158 FPS, while Ultra delivers 87 FPS. This represents a significant 71 FPS gap, showing that the Ultra preset is roughly 45% more demanding than Low at this resolution.

Q: Does the Ryzen 7 9850X3D outperform its nearest CPU rivals in multi-threaded workloads?

A: The Ryzen 7 9850X3D's average benchmark score is 58,386. It is 0.1% ahead of the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M (58,323) and 0.5% ahead of the Intel Core i9-14900 (58,115), while trailing the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 by 0.7% (58,826).

Q: What kind of frame variance can be expected at Medium settings in Control?

A: At 1920x1080 Medium, the average is 112 FPS with a minimum of 96 FPS and a maximum of 129 FPS. At 2560x1440 Medium, the average is 85 FPS, with a minimum of 72 FPS and a maximum of 98 FPS. The 3840x2160 Medium preset shows an average of 57 FPS, with a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The data places this specific CPU-GPU pairing at rank 1607 out of 3,720 tested combinations in Control. This position, which sits in the 43rd percentile of all combos, indicates that while this system is not at the absolute state-of-the-art for this title, it is firmly in the upper-middle tier of performance potential. The ranking reflects a balance where the RTX 3070's capabilities are the primary constraint at higher resolutions, despite the substantial headroom offered by the Ryzen 7 9850X3D. This suggests that in a game like Control, which is heavily GPU-bound at high settings, the processor's impressive synthetic scores do not translate into proportionally higher frame rates, particularly as resolution scales upward.

Best Settings per Resolution

For 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that maintains an average of at least 60 FPS is Ultra, which achieves 87 FPS. This provides the full visual experience without compromising playability. At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset also remains viable, delivering an average of 66 FPS, which is comfortable for smooth gameplay. The situation changes at 3840x2160, where the Ultra preset averages only 44 FPS, and even High (51 FPS) and Medium (57 FPS) fail to hit the 60 FPS mark. The only playable option at 4K is the Low preset, which yields an average of 81 FPS, allowing for a responsive experience but with significant visual compromises.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Based on synthetic benchmark data, the CPU and GPU have distinct sets of near-equivalent rivals. For the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D, the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M is the closest match, with a score difference of only 0.1%. The Intel Core i9-14900 is also very similar, trailing by 0.5%, while the Intel Xeon w5-2545 is 0.2% faster, and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 leads by 0.7%. In practical terms, a system built with any of these processors would likely show nearly identical frame rates in Control, as the game's performance is more dependent on the graphics card.

On the GPU side, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT, which is just 0.7% slower in average score. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 and AMD Radeon HD 7970M are also within 1.1% of the RTX 3070's performance. The NVIDIA Tesla K40c is the only listed competitor that is notably faster, at 1.5% ahead. Users considering a comparable build could expect similar gameplay characteristics from these alternative components, though the specific driver optimizations for Control may cause minor variations not captured in synthetic tests.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data shows a classic pattern of GPU-bound scaling in Control. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset produces an average of 87 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440, the same preset drops to 66 FPS, a decrease of 21 FPS. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset falls to 44 FPS, representing a further 22 FPS decline. This consistent drop of roughly 25% per resolution step indicates that the RTX 3070 is the limiting factor. The Ryzen 7 9850X3D, with its high single-thread and multi-thread scores, is clearly not the bottleneck, as the frame rate scales almost entirely with the GPU's workload.

The role of the CPU is more apparent at lower resolutions and settings. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 158 FPS, which is a very high frame rate that begins to stress the CPU's ability to feed the GPU. However, the processor handles this without issue, as evidenced by the fact that the frame rate still scales up significantly from the Low to Ultra presets at this resolution. The data suggests that for the majority of playable settings, the RTX 3070 is the dominant component, while the CPU provides a solid foundation that does not introduce frame pacing issues or limit performance in a meaningful way.

The Verdict

This PC can absolutely run Control, but the definition of "run" depends heavily on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the system is exceptionally well-suited, with all presets from Low to Ultra clearing the 60 FPS threshold, with the Ultra preset averaging 87 FPS. The experience at 2560x1440 is also excellent, as all presets remain above 60 FPS, with Ultra delivering a solid 66 FPS average. For 4K gaming, the verdict is more nuanced. The system can run the game, but only at the Low preset, which averages 81 FPS. Users who prioritize visual fidelity at 4K will need to accept frame rates below 60 FPS, as the High preset averages 51 FPS and Ultra drops to 44 FPS. The verdict is clear: this is a top-tier 1080p and 1440p machine for Control, and a 4K machine only when willing to make significant graphical sacrifices.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the performance envelope is tight. The Low preset is the only one that is fluid, with an average of 81 FPS. The Medium preset averages 57 FPS, with a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS, indicating noticeable frame dips. High averages 51 FPS, and Ultra averages 44 FPS, both of which are below the playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, the system shows its strength. The Low preset averages 120 FPS, while Medium averages 85 FPS, with a minimum of 72 FPS and a maximum of 98 FPS. High averages 76 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 66 FPS. All of these are comfortably above 60 FPS, providing a smooth experience regardless of settings.

At 1920x1080, performance is plentiful. The Low preset averages 158 FPS, which is exceptionally high. Medium averages 112 FPS, with a minimum of 96 FPS and a maximum of 129 FPS. High averages 100 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 87 FPS. This resolution offers the most headroom, ensuring that even the most demanding scenes remain fluid. The data confirms that this combination excels at standard and high-resolution gaming, with 4K being the only area where compromises are required.