Control

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is an overwhelmingly powerful combination for Control, ranking 152nd out of 3720 tested combos. This places the setup in the top 4% of all configurations evaluated, indicating exceptional headroom for this 2019 action-adventure title. At every resolution tested, the combo delivers far more performance than required, with the most demanding preset at 4K still producing an average of 77.8 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 152 out of 3720 tested configurations places it in the 96th percentile of all tested hardware pairings. This is a dominant position that reflects the sheer computational power of the RTX 4090, which sits at the 88th percentile among all GPUs, paired with a CPU that ranks at the 73rd percentile among all processors. The data shows a clear hierarchy: the GPU is the primary driver of performance, while the i5-12400F provides sufficient support without becoming a bottleneck at the tested settings.

In practical terms, this rank means the system outperforms roughly 96% of all tested combos for Control. The gap between this pairing and typical mid-range systems is substantial. At 1080p Ultra, the combo achieves 150.5 FPS, which is more than double the 60 FPS playable threshold. The performance scaling across resolutions is also noteworthy. Moving from 1080p Ultra (150.5 FPS) to 1440p Ultra (112.6 FPS) represents a 25% performance drop, while moving from 1440p Ultra to 4K Ultra (77.8 FPS) shows another 31% decrease. This scaling pattern indicates that the system is GPU-limited at lower resolutions, which is expected given the RTX 4090's massive compute resources.

The i5-12400F's benchmark scores corroborate its role as a capable partner. With a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 12380 and a single-core score of 1680, the CPU delivers strong thread performance. Its 3DMark single-thread score of 909 and 16-thread score of 5895 show balanced scaling. The CPU's average benchmark score of 19039 places it within 0.3% of the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (19047), indicating near-identical overall compute performance, despite the 7535HS being a mobile processor.

FAQ

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

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo achieves an average of 77.8 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. All four tested settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) at 4K are playable.

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

A: Ultra settings at 2560x1440 produce an average of 112.6 FPS. This is the most demanding preset tested at this resolution and it still provides nearly double the playable threshold of 60 FPS.

Q: How much performance headroom is there at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo reaches 230.7 FPS average. Even at Ultra settings, it maintains 150.5 FPS, which is 2.5 times the 60 FPS threshold. This indicates the system is heavily GPU-bound at this resolution.

Q: How does the i5-12400F compare to its nearest rival CPU?

A: The i5-12400F scores 19039 in average benchmark score, which is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS at 19047 (0% delta). The Intel Core 3 201E scores 19056 (-0.1%), meaning the i5-12400F is effectively performance-equivalent to all three of its closest rivals.

Q: Is the RTX 4090 overkill for this game?

A: The data suggests significant headroom. At 4K Ultra, the combo still delivers 77.8 FPS, which is 30% above the 60 FPS target. The GPU's percentile rank of 88 among all GPUs indicates it is a top-tier component, but Control's requirements are well within its capabilities.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, Low settings produce 140.2 FPS average, while Ultra produces 77.8 FPS. This represents a 44.5% performance reduction when moving from Low to Ultra, which is a significant but expected trade-off for maximum visual quality.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which delivers an average of 150.5 FPS. This is sufficient for high-refresh-rate monitors, providing more than double the playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, Ultra settings remain the best choice, producing an average of 112.6 FPS. This resolution offers a sweet spot for the RTX 4090, balancing visual fidelity with performance that comfortably exceeds 100 FPS.

At 3840x2160, Ultra settings are still viable, with an average of 77.8 FPS. While this is the lowest performance of any tested configuration, it remains 30% above the 60 FPS playable threshold. For users prioritizing frame rate over visual quality, High settings at 86.7 FPS or Medium at 97.2 FPS offer additional headroom, but Ultra is the recommended choice for maximum fidelity.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the Intel Core i5-12400F's nearest rivals in average benchmark score are the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (19047, 0% delta), the Intel Core 3 201E (19056, -0.1% delta), and the Intel Core i5-1335U (18982, 0.3% delta). These processors will behave nearly identically in terms of compute performance, meaning any of them paired with the RTX 4090 would produce similar frame rates in Control. The AMD EPYC 7773X also scores closely at 18979 (0.3% delta), though it is a server-class part.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090's nearest rivals in average benchmark score are the Intel Arc Pro A60 (60326, 0% delta), the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 (60140, 0.3% delta), and the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (61896, -2.5% delta). These GPUs show essentially identical aggregate performance in synthetic benchmarks. However, the RTX 4090's 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth are far beyond what these professional-oriented alternatives offer, so real-world gaming performance may differ. The AMD Radeon PRO V710 (58657, 2.9% delta) is slightly slower in average score.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance envelope spans from 230.7 FPS average on Low settings to 150.5 FPS on Ultra. The progression is as follows: Low (230.7 FPS), Medium (195.7 FPS), High (175.5 FPS), and Ultra (150.5 FPS). The step-down from Low to Medium is 35 FPS, from Medium to High is 20.2 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 25 FPS. This represents a total reduction of 34.8% from Low to Ultra.

At 2560x1440, performance ranges from 208.1 FPS on Low to 112.6 FPS on Ultra. The settings progression shows: Low (208.1 FPS), Medium (146.3 FPS), High (129.2 FPS), and Ultra (112.6 FPS). The largest drop occurs between Low and Medium, a 61.8 FPS reduction (29.7%), while the drop from Medium to High is 17.1 FPS and from High to Ultra is 16.6 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the lowest tested resolution performance is still well above playable. The breakdown is: Low (140.2 FPS), Medium (97.2 FPS), High (86.7 FPS), and Ultra (77.8 FPS). The transition from Low to Medium represents a 43 FPS drop (30.7%), while subsequent steps show smaller reductions: 10.5 FPS from Medium to High and 8.9 FPS from High to Ultra.

The min and max FPS values are not available in the measured data, so only average frame rates can be reported. The absence of min/max data means that frame pacing and 1% lows cannot be assessed from this dataset, but the high average values across all configurations suggest a smooth experience.

The Verdict

This PC can definitively run Control at playable frame rates across all tested resolutions and settings. The verdict by resolution confirms that every settings preset at every resolution clears the 60 FPS threshold. At 3840x2160, the best settings are Ultra with an average of 77.8 FPS. At 2560x1440, Ultra delivers 112.6 FPS. At 1920x1080, Ultra achieves 150.5 FPS.

The data indicates that this combination is overqualified for Control in its current form. The RTX 4090, with its 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 128 RT cores, provides massive compute headroom that the game cannot fully utilize. The i5-12400F, while not a top-tier CPU by percentile rank, delivers sufficient single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1680) to avoid bottlenecking the GPU in this title.

For users with 4K displays, the system offers a comfortable buffer above the 60 FPS target at Ultra settings. For 1440p and 1080p users, the frame rates are high enough to support 120Hz or even 144Hz displays at maximum quality. The only scenario where this system would struggle is if the user demands frame rates exceeding 150 FPS at 4K, which is beyond the tested presets and not a typical requirement for this game. Overall, this is a top-tier configuration for Control, with performance headroom that exceeds the demands of the game at every resolution.