Control

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combination delivers a consistently playable experience in Control, with the data showing that this pairing’s performance is heavily dictated by resolution and preset selection. The measured FPS results indicate that the system scales predictably from a 4K experience that requires settings tuning to a 1080p powerhouse that exceeds all common refresh-rate targets.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU and GPU in this combo each sit near distinct hardware tiers according to aggregate benchmark data. The Ryzen 9 9900X holds a 92nd percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 57498. Its nearest rivals in the data include the AMD EPYC 9015 (avg score 57555, delta -0.1%), the AMD EPYC 7313 (avg score 57399, delta 0.2%), the Intel Core i9-14900 (avg score 58115, delta -1.1%), and the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M (avg score 58323, delta -1.4%). The deltas here are remarkably tight, with the largest gap being a 1.4% difference against the Xeon Platinum 8260M. This suggests that in CPU-bound scenarios within Control, the 9900X would behave nearly identically to these four alternatives, with performance differences likely falling within run-to-run variance.

On the graphics side, the RTX 4070 ranks at the 81st percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 37648. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Tesla P4 (avg score 37628, delta 0.1%), the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 (avg score 37507, delta 0.4%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile (avg score 38135, delta -1.3%), and the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 (avg score 37157, delta 1.3%). The RTX 4070 is effectively tied with the Tesla P4 and RX Vega 56 in aggregate compute metrics, while the RTX 4080 Mobile holds a marginal 1.3% lead. For Control, a system swapping in any of these GPUs would likely produce FPS figures within a few frames of the measured values, assuming the 9900X remains the paired processor.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured FPS data across resolutions reveals how the balance of CPU and GPU load shifts in Control. At 1080p, the system produces an average of 194.5 FPS on Low settings, which drops to 107.2 FPS on Ultra. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p represents a 44.9% performance reduction, indicating that the GPU is already becoming a limiting factor even at this lower resolution, though the high absolute numbers suggest the CPU is feeding frames efficiently. The 9900X’s strong single-thread score of 1286 in 3DMark and 2253 in Cinebench R23 single-core supports this, as Control’s gameplay logic and physics benefit from strong per-core throughput.

Moving to 1440p, the average FPS ranges from 149.1 on Low to 83 on Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 44.3%, nearly identical to the 1080p scaling. This consistent percentage drop indicates that the GPU is handling the increased pixel workload proportionally, while the CPU maintains its frame-feeding role without becoming a bottleneck. At 4K, the spread widens significantly: Low averages 96.8 FPS, Medium 69 FPS, High 62.5 FPS, and Ultra drops to 54.1 FPS. The jump from Low to Ultra at 4K represents a 44.1% reduction, but the absolute values show that the GPU is now the dominant constraint. The CPU’s role diminishes as resolution increases; at 4K Ultra, the system is clearly GPU-limited, as the 9900X’s 12 cores and 24 threads provide ample headroom for the game’s threaded workloads, evidenced by its 3DMark max-threads score of 13929.

The data implies that at 1080p and 1440p, the RTX 4070 is the primary determinant of final framerates, with the 9900X providing sufficient single-core and multi-core performance to avoid stalling the pipeline. At 4K, the GPU becomes unequivocally the bottleneck, and the CPU’s role recedes to maintaining minimum frame stability rather than pushing average FPS higher.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest performance. Low settings produce an average of 194.5 FPS, which is the single highest measured value across all configurations. Medium settings reduce this to 135.2 FPS, a 30.5% drop from Low. High settings yield 123.8 FPS, and Ultra settings bring the average down to 107.2 FPS. The step from High to Ultra at 1080p is a 13.4% reduction, which is the smallest relative jump between High and Ultra across all resolutions, suggesting diminishing returns from the highest preset tier at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 149.1 FPS on Low, 104.5 FPS on Medium, 94 FPS on High, and 83 FPS on Ultra. The Medium-to-High transition at 1440p costs 10.1% performance, while the High-to-Ultra transition costs 11.7%. These figures indicate a more balanced scaling curve than at 1080p, where the Low-to-Medium drop is steep but subsequent tiers degrade more gently.

At 3840x2160, the system averages 96.8 FPS on Low, 69 FPS on Medium, 62.5 FPS on High, and 54.1 FPS on Ultra. The 4K Low result is notable because it exceeds the 1440p Ultra average of 83 FPS by 16.6%, showing how much headroom exists at lower settings even at the highest resolution. The 4K Medium-to-High transition costs 9.4%, while High-to-Ultra costs 13.4%, mirroring the 1080p pattern. No minimum or maximum FPS values are recorded in the data, so the analysis relies solely on averages, but the consistency of the scaling suggests stable frame delivery across all tested configurations.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific CPU-GPU pairing holds a combo rank of 844 out of 3720 tested combinations in Control, placing it in the top 22.7% of all tested systems. The rank reflects a balanced pairing where neither component severely limits the other: the 9900X’s high CPU percentile (92) and the RTX 4070’s solid GPU percentile (81) combine to produce a system that excels at 1080p and 1440p but falls just short of maxing out 4K Ultra settings. The data shows that the combo performs best relative to other systems at lower resolutions, where the CPU’s strong single-thread performance and the GPU’s ample bandwidth (504.2 GB/s) allow for high frame delivery. At 4K Ultra, the 54.1 FPS average would place this combo in a lower percentile relative to systems with more powerful GPUs, but the overall rank of 844 indicates that the majority of tested configurations are either weaker in both components or imbalanced in a way that hurts Control performance more significantly.

The Verdict

The verdict data is unambiguous: this PC can run Control with playable performance at every resolution tested, provided settings are chosen appropriately. At 3840x2160, the playable settings are High, Low, and Medium, with High delivering an average of 62.5 FPS. Ultra at 4K is not playable, as it averages 54.1 FPS, falling below the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, all four settings — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — are playable, with Ultra averaging 83 FPS. At 1920x1080, all settings are likewise playable, with Ultra averaging 107.2 FPS. The system clears the 60 FPS threshold at every resolution when using the recommended best settings, and even at 4K High it maintains a 2.5 FPS margin above the threshold. The only configuration that fails to reach 60 FPS is 4K Ultra, which misses the mark by 5.9 FPS.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, which produces an average of 62.5 FPS. This is the maximum playable setting at 4K, as Ultra drops to 54.1 FPS. At 2560x1440, the best settings are Ultra, delivering an average of 83 FPS. This provides a comfortable 23 FPS buffer above the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that there is headroom for future driver updates or additional background processes. At 1920x1080, the best settings are also Ultra, with an average of 107.2 FPS. This is the optimal configuration for high-refresh-rate displays, as the 47.2 FPS margin above the threshold allows for smooth gameplay even during demanding scenes. The data shows a clear pattern: the RTX 4070 can handle Ultra settings at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, users must step down one tier to High to maintain playability.

FAQ

*Q: Can this PC run Control at 4K with maximum settings?*

A: No. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 54.1, which falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold. The highest playable setting at 4K is High, which averages 62.5 FPS.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p?

A: Ultra settings at 2560x1440 produce an average of 83 FPS, making it the best playable configuration at this resolution. All four settings presets — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — are playable at 1440p.

Q: How much performance is lost going from Low to Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings average 194.5 FPS, while Ultra averages 107.2 FPS. This represents a 44.9% reduction in average framerate when moving from the lowest to the highest preset.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for high FPS at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the GPU is the dominant factor. The average FPS drops from 96.8 on Low to 54.1 on Ultra, a 44.1% reduction, while the CPU’s performance headroom (3DMark max-threads score of 13929) suggests it is not the limiting component at this resolution.

Q: Which resolution provides the highest average FPS?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 194.5, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. At 2560x1440, the highest average is 149.1 FPS on Low, and at 3840x2160, the highest is 96.8 FPS on Low.

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

A: This CPU-GPU combination ranks 844th out of 3720 tested combos, placing it in the top 22.7% of all configurations tested for this game.