Control

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers an exceptional Control experience, with benchmark data showing every tested resolution and preset combination clearing the 60 FPS playability threshold. Across twelve measured configurations spanning 1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160, this combo never dips below an average of 76 FPS, placing it at rank 147 out of 3,720 tested combos. The data indicates a system that is not merely capable of running the game, but one that consistently provides headroom for high-refresh-rate displays, even at 4K with maximum settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the combo produces frame rates that suggest the CPU may be the limiting factor rather than the GPU. The Low preset averages 243 FPS, while High averages 172 FPS, Medium 194 FPS, and Ultra 149 FPS. The Medium preset shows a min FPS of 165 and a max of 223, representing the only configuration in the entire dataset with full min/max data. The delta between Low and Ultra is 94 FPS, indicating that visual settings have a substantial impact on performance even at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages remain remarkably high. The Low preset reaches 206 FPS, High drops to 130 FPS, Medium sits at 146 FPS, and Ultra still delivers 113 FPS. The Medium preset at this resolution records a min of 124 FPS and a max of 168 FPS, showing a 44 FPS range. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is consistent: Ultra drops from 149 to 113 FPS, a 24.2% reduction, while Low drops from 243 to 206 FPS, an 15.2% reduction. This suggests that higher presets put more strain on the GPU, making the resolution increase more costly.

At 3840x2160, the true 4K stress test, the combo still maintains playable averages across all settings. Low averages 139 FPS, High averages 88 FPS, Medium averages 99 FPS with a min of 84 and max of 114, and Ultra averages 76 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 63 FPS, narrower than at 1080p where the gap is 94 FPS. This compression indicates that at 4K, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, and the relative cost of Ultra settings diminishes as resolution increases.

The Medium preset is the only one with complete min/max data across all three resolutions. At 1080p, the range is 165-223 FPS; at 1440p, it is 124-168 FPS; at 4K, it is 84-114 FPS. The min-to-max spread narrows from 58 FPS at 1080p to 44 FPS at 1440p to 30 FPS at 4K, suggesting that higher resolutions produce more consistent frame pacing with less variance.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo holds rank 147 out of 3,720 tested combinations, placing it in the top 4% of all systems tested. This ranking reflects the raw power of the RTX 4090 when paired with a mid-range 13th-gen Core i5 processor. The CPU alone sits at the 77th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU sits at the 88th percentile among all GPUs. The combination of a 77th-percentile CPU with an 88th-percentile GPU produces a system that ranks significantly higher than either component would individually suggest, indicating that Control is more GPU-bound than CPU-bound.

The data shows that the i5-13400F does not hold back the RTX 4090 in this title. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 243 FPS, which is likely near the engine's practical ceiling. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 22,604 and single-core score of 3,191 provide ample headroom for game logic and draw call processing. The 10-core, 16-thread configuration with a 4.60 GHz boost clock ensures that even CPU-heavy scenes in Control's physics-driven environments do not create bottlenecks.

The 3DMark results further contextualize the CPU's capability. A 16-thread score of 7,314 and a single-thread score of 960 indicate balanced performance across both multi-threaded and single-threaded workloads. The PassMark multi-thread score of 25,032 and single-thread score of 3,634 corroborate this. In Control, which benefits from both high single-thread performance for game logic and multi-thread performance for physics simulations, this CPU provides a solid foundation for the GPU to operate at full capacity.

CPU and GPU Roles

The scaling between resolutions reveals a clear division of labor. At 1920x1080, the GPU is underutilized, as evidenced by the 243 FPS Low preset result. The CPU becomes the limiting factor at this resolution, particularly at lower presets where the GPU can render frames faster than the CPU can submit draw calls. The 94 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p shows that the GPU has significant headroom to absorb increased graphical load without the CPU becoming a bottleneck.

At 2560x1440, the balance shifts. The GPU now has more pixels to render, and the gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 93 FPS. The 206 FPS Low result still exceeds what most displays can show, but the Ultra preset at 113 FPS demonstrates that the GPU is now doing more work per frame. The CPU still maintains a sufficient lead, as evidenced by the fact that the frame rate drops only 15.2% from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings, while the pixel count increases by 78%.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is definitively the bottleneck. The 139 FPS Low result at 4K represents a 42.8% drop from the 243 FPS at 1080p Low, while the pixel count increases by 300%. The Ultra preset at 76 FPS shows that even the RTX 4090 is challenged by 4K Ultra, but the CPU continues to feed frames without issue. The narrowing of the Low-to-Ultra gap from 94 FPS at 1080p to 63 FPS at 4K confirms that the GPU is the primary constraint at higher resolutions.

The Medium preset min/max data supports this analysis. At 4K, the min FPS of 84 is close to the average of 99, indicating that the GPU's rendering time is the dominant factor and the CPU is not causing frame hitches. At 1080p, the min of 165 against an average of 194 shows more variance, suggesting occasional CPU-related frame pauses when the GPU finishes frames faster than the CPU can prepare them.

The Verdict

This PC can run Control at every tested resolution and setting while maintaining an average FPS above 60. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset averages 76 FPS, which clears the playable threshold by 16 FPS. The High preset at 4K averages 88 FPS, Medium averages 99 FPS, and Low averages 139 FPS, all well above 60. The verdict data confirms that all four settings at 4K are playable, with Ultra being the best settings at 76 FPS average.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset reaches 113 FPS, providing a comfortable margin for high-refresh-rate 1440p monitors. The High preset at 130 FPS, Medium at 146 FPS, and Low at 206 FPS all offer substantial headroom. The best settings at this resolution are Ultra, with an average of 113 FPS. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset averages 149 FPS, making this resolution ideal for 144Hz or even 165Hz displays. The Low preset at 243 FPS approaches the limits of what most monitors can display.

The only configuration that comes close to the 60 FPS threshold is 4K Ultra at 76 FPS, but even this remains comfortably above the playable threshold. For users seeking maximum visual fidelity with ray tracing and all effects enabled, the 4K Ultra preset is not just playable but smooth, with no data indicating frame drops below 60 FPS.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Control at 4K Ultra settings?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 76 FPS, which exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold by 16 FPS.

Q: What is the best settings preset at 2560x1440?

A: The Ultra preset is the best at 1440p, delivering an average of 113 FPS. All four presets at this resolution are playable, with Low averaging 206 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1920x1080?

A: At 1080p, the CPU becomes the limiting factor, especially at lower presets. The Low preset reaches 243 FPS, which suggests the CPU can only feed the GPU so many frames per second, while the GPU has additional rendering headroom.

Q: Does the RTX 4090 bottleneck the Core i5-13400F in this game?

A: No. At 4K, the GPU is the primary bottleneck, but the CPU keeps up effectively. The 4K Low preset averages 139 FPS, showing that the CPU can still feed the GPU at high throughput even at lower rendering loads.

Q: What min FPS can be expected at 1920x1080 Medium?

A: The measured min FPS at 1080p Medium is 165 FPS, with a max of 223 FPS and an average of 194 FPS.

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

A: It ranks 147 out of 3,720 tested combos, placing it in the top 4% of all configurations tested for Control.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the most demanding option that maintains an average of 149 FPS. This provides a 89 FPS margin above the 60 FPS threshold, making it suitable for high-refresh-rate gaming. The Low preset at 243 FPS is only useful for competitive play or benchmarking, as the Ultra settings offer significantly better visual quality at no risk of dropping below playable frame rates.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset averages 113 FPS, which is the best balance of visual fidelity and performance. The 53 FPS margin above the playable threshold ensures smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. Medium at 146 FPS and High at 130 FPS are also viable, but Ultra provides the maximum visual quality without compromising the 60 FPS requirement.

At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset averages 76 FPS, which is the best settings that remains at or above 60 FPS. This is the most demanding configuration tested, and it still delivers a 16 FPS margin above the threshold. For users who prioritize frame rate over visual quality, the High preset at 88 FPS or Medium at 99 FPS offer additional headroom, but Ultra remains the recommended choice for maximum image quality.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU's nearest rivals, based on average benchmark scores, include the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS with a delta of 0%, the Intel Core 5 120 with a delta of -0.3%, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D with a delta of -0.3%, and the AMD Ryzen 7 6800H with a delta of 0.4%. These processors would produce nearly identical frame rates in Control when paired with the RTX 4090, as the game is not heavily CPU-bound at higher resolutions.

The GPU's nearest rivals are the Intel Arc Pro A60 with a delta of 0%, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 with a delta of 0.3%, the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M with a delta of -2.5%, and the AMD Radeon PRO V710 with a delta of 2.9%. These GPUs would perform within a few percentage points of the RTX 4090 in this title, though the RTX 4090's 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth provide advantages in texture-heavy scenes that may not appear in average benchmark scores.

The deltaPct values indicate that the Core i5-13400F and the Ryzen 9 6900HS are functionally equivalent for this game, while the Core 5 120 and Ryzen 5 5600X3D are marginally slower. On the GPU side, the Arc Pro A60 is the closest match, with the Pro Vega 48 slightly faster and the Pro W6600M slightly slower. These alternatives would deliver essentially the same playable experience, with differences of only a few frames per second at most.