Control

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 combination delivers a robust experience in Control, with the data showing that the system comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold at most settings and resolutions. The pairing of a 12-core Zen 3 processor with the Blackwell-based RTX 5070 proves particularly strong at 1440p and 1080p, where even the most demanding Ultra preset maintains high frame rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the RTX 5070 demonstrates its high-resolution capabilities, though the most demanding preset begins to strain. The High preset averages 68.7 FPS, while the Medium preset delivers 75.6 FPS. The Low preset reaches 104.8 FPS, indicating that the GPU has substantial headroom when visual effects are scaled back. The Ultra preset, however, drops to 56.7 FPS, falling just short of the 60 FPS threshold.

The 2560x1440 results show a significant performance uplift across all settings. The Ultra preset, which struggled at 4K, averages 85.7 FPS here. The High preset delivers 99.5 FPS, while Medium reaches 112.6 FPS. The Low preset pushes performance to 158.1 FPS, making it the standout figure at this resolution. These numbers indicate that 1440p is the sweet spot for this combination, where visual fidelity and frame rate align well.

At 1920x1080, the system displays its full potential. The Low preset achieves 210.7 FPS, which is more than triple the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset hits 148.4 FPS, while High delivers 132 FPS. Even the Ultra preset, the most demanding configuration, maintains a strong 117.2 FPS. The scaling from 4K to 1080p shows a consistent pattern: as resolution drops, the Ultra preset gains roughly 60 FPS, moving from 56.7 to 117.2 FPS.

The data reveals that the frame rate differences between presets narrow at higher resolutions. At 4K, the gap between Low and Ultra is 48.1 FPS, while at 1080p that gap expands to 93.5 FPS. This suggests that at 4K, the GPU is the primary bottleneck, limiting the impact of preset changes, whereas at 1080p, the settings have a more pronounced effect on performance.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured FPS patterns indicate that the GPU becomes the dominant factor at 3840x2160, where the pixel throughput demands of the RTX 5070 are most evident. The relatively modest performance difference between presets at 4K—where Ultra is 56.7 FPS and High is 68.7 FPS—suggests that the graphics card is nearing its architectural limits, and adjustments to settings yield diminishing returns.

At 2560x1440, the balance shifts. The Ryzen 9 5900X, with its 12 cores and 24 threads, provides sufficient processing power to feed the RTX 5070, as evidenced by the large jump from Ultra at 85.7 FPS to Low at 158.1 FPS. This 72.4 FPS spread indicates that the CPU is capable of driving higher frame rates when the GPU workload is reduced, making the processor a less restrictive component at this resolution.

The 1920x1080 results confirm that the CPU and GPU work in concert effectively. The Low preset's 210.7 FPS demonstrates that the Ryzen 9 5900X can sustain very high frame delivery, while the Ultra preset's 117.2 FPS shows the GPU still has the headroom to handle demanding effects without becoming a bottleneck. The scaling between 1440p and 1080p at Ultra settings—from 85.7 FPS to 117.2 FPS, a 36.8% increase—indicates that both components contribute to performance, with neither being a clear limiting factor at these lower resolutions.

The resolution scaling data points to a system that is well-balanced for 1440p and 1080p gaming, but the GPU becomes the limiting factor at 4K Ultra. The CPU's benchmark percentile of 87 versus the GPU's 82 percentile supports this interpretation, suggesting the processor has more relative headroom in this pairing.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, which averages 68.7 FPS. The Ultra preset falls short at 56.7 FPS, so High is the recommended choice for 4K gaming. The Medium preset, at 75.6 FPS, offers a more comfortable margin above the threshold, but High provides the better visual experience while still clearing 60 FPS.

For 2560x1440, all presets remain playable, but the Ultra preset at 85.7 FPS is the best option. This preset delivers the highest visual quality while maintaining a solid 25.7 FPS margin above the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset at 99.5 FPS is also viable, but Ultra offers the full experience without compromising smoothness.

At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset at 117.2 FPS is the clear winner. This configuration provides the maximum visual fidelity while nearly doubling the 60 FPS threshold. The substantial headroom means that even in demanding scenes, the frame rate is unlikely to dip below playable levels. The Low preset at 210.7 FPS is available for competitive play, but for most users, Ultra is the recommended setting.

The verdict data confirms these selections, listing High as the best playable setting at 4K, and Ultra for both 1440p and 1080p.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the nearest rivals to the Ryzen 9 5900X are closely matched in average benchmark scores. The Intel Core Ultra 7 366H is 0.3% ahead, while the Intel Core Ultra 7 356H and AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 440 are each 0.4% ahead. The Intel Core i7-14650HX trails by 0.5%. These deltas are negligible, meaning systems built with any of these processors would exhibit nearly identical CPU-bound performance in Control. The 5900X's avgBenchmarkScore of 41376 places it in the 87th percentile of all CPUs, indicating that these rivals are all high-performing parts.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5070's nearest rivals show similarly tight margins. The AMD Radeon Pro 580 is 0.1% ahead, while the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 is 0.8% ahead. The AMD Radeon Pro 5300 trails by 1.2%, and the NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile is 2% behind. These differences are within the range of run-to-run variance, so a system with any of these GPUs would produce comparable frame rates in Control. The RTX 5070's avgBenchmarkScore of 40377 places it in the 82nd percentile of all GPUs.

For a builder seeking similar performance, a configuration using the Intel Core Ultra 7 366H or the AMD Radeon Pro 580 would behave nearly identically to the tested setup. The benchmark data suggests that these alternative components would yield frame rates within a few percentage points of the Ryzen 9 5900X and RTX 5070 combination across all tested resolutions and presets.

The Verdict

This PC can run Control with excellent results. The verdictByResolution data confirms that at 3840x2160, the High, Low, and Medium presets all clear the 60 FPS threshold, with High being the best playable setting at 68.7 FPS. The Ultra preset at 56.7 FPS is the only configuration that fails to reach 60 FPS, but it is close enough that a small reduction in other graphics options would bring it into playable range.

At 2560x1440, every preset—High, Low, Medium, and Ultra—is playable. The Ultra preset at 85.7 FPS is the optimal choice, offering the full visual experience with a comfortable performance margin. The system handles this resolution with ease, making it the recommended target for this combination.

At 1920x1080, the system excels. All presets, including Ultra at 117.2 FPS, are well above the 60 FPS threshold. The Low preset's 210.7 FPS shows that the hardware is capable of extremely high frame rates for competitive play, while the Ultra preset provides the best visual experience without any performance concerns.

The data indicates that this combination is well-suited for Control at 1440p and 1080p, with 4K being viable at High settings. The system never falls below 56.7 FPS in any tested configuration, and the majority of settings offer significant headroom above the playable threshold.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 ranks 701st out of 3720 tested combinations for Control, placing it in the top 18.8% of all configurations. This percentile positioning is strong, though it is notably the ranking reflects the full spectrum of hardware tested, including more powerful and more expensive setups.

The rank suggests that while this system performs admirably, there are many other combinations that deliver higher frame rates in Control. The 701st position, combined with the measured FPS data, indicates that this pairing is competitive with mid-to-high-end systems but does not represent the absolute top tier of performance. The CPU's 87th percentile ranking versus the GPU's 82nd percentile suggests that the processor is the stronger component in this pairing, and a more powerful GPU would be the logical upgrade path for users seeking higher 4K performance.

For the target resolutions and settings where this system excels—1440p Ultra and 1080p Ultra—the rank is more than sufficient to deliver a smooth, visually impressive experience. The 701st position out of 3720 confirms that this combination is a capable and well-matched pair for Control, with the data showing strong performance across the majority of tested configurations.