Control

Control is a demanding action-adventure title that stresses both the CPU and GPU, and the combination of an Intel Core i5-14400F with an Intel Arc B390 produces a predictable but narrow performance envelope. The recorded data shows that this combo is only capable of delivering a smooth experience at 1080p on the lowest settings, with 4K and 1440p both falling well short of the 60 FPS playable threshold. The benchmark results indicate a system that is heavily constrained by the graphics solution, as the CPU has ample headroom while the GPU struggles to maintain frame rates as resolution and preset complexity increase.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the Intel Core i5-14400F and Intel Arc B390 combination delivers its lowest performance tier. With Low settings, the average frame rate is 33 FPS. Moving to Medium settings drops the average to 24 FPS, with a minimum of 20 FPS and a maximum of 27 FPS. High settings reduce the average further to 21 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at 18 FPS. None of these averages approach the 60 FPS target, and even the best case at 4K, which is the Low preset, remains less than two-thirds of the way to a playable experience. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 15 FPS, which shows that the graphics card is the dominant bottleneck, as increasing the visual load cuts performance nearly in half.

At 2560x1440, the results improve but remain below the playable threshold. The Low preset produces an average of 50 FPS, which is the closest this combo gets to 60 FPS outside of 1080p. Medium settings average 35 FPS, with a minimum of 30 FPS and a maximum of 40 FPS. High settings average 31 FPS, and Ultra settings average 27 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 23 FPS, a larger spread than at 4K, which suggests that the GPU is still the limiting factor but that the CPU is beginning to contribute more as resolution scales down. Even at Low, the 50 FPS average is 10 FPS short of the 60 FPS target, meaning that no preset at this resolution can be considered playable.

At 1920x1080, the picture changes significantly. The Low preset achieves an average of 65 FPS, which is the only measured configuration across all resolutions and settings that clears the 60 FPS playable threshold. Medium settings drop to 46 FPS, with a minimum of 40 FPS and a maximum of 53 FPS. High settings average 41 FPS, and Ultra settings average 36 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 29 FPS, the largest of any resolution, which indicates that the GPU is heavily taxed by higher presets even at the lowest resolution. The jump from Low to Medium, a drop of 19 FPS, is particularly steep and shows that even modest increases in visual fidelity have an outsized impact on this configuration.

How This Combo Ranks

The database ranks this combination at 3311 out of 3720 tested combos for Control, placing it in the lower tier of systems. This ranking reflects the overall performance ceiling imposed by the Intel Arc B390, which sits at the 9th percentile of all GPUs in the database. The CPU, by contrast, is much stronger, with the Intel Core i5-14400F ranking in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs. The massive discrepancy between the two components, a 74 percentile point gap, explains why the system struggles so much at higher resolutions and presets. The recorded data shows that the GPU is the clear limiting factor, and the combo rank of 3311 out of 3720 confirms that this pairing is not well balanced for a demanding title like Control.

The combo rank also illustrates how far this system is from the top of the database. Being in the bottom 11 percent of tested combinations means that most other configurations, even those with weaker CPUs, would outperform this setup in Control. The CPU's high percentile ranking does little to compensate for the GPU's low standing, as the game's frame rates are almost entirely dependent on the graphics card at the presets and resolutions tested. The data suggests that this combo is suitable only for the most modest gaming scenarios, and even then, only at 1080p with the lowest settings.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core i5-14400F has a benchmark score that is closely matched by several other processors. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U is 0.1 percent ahead, the Intel Core i9-11900 is 0.2 percent ahead, and the Intel Core i7-12800H is 0.5 percent ahead. The AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS is 0.2 percent behind. These delta values are all within half a percent, meaning that swapping the i5-14400F for any of these CPUs would produce nearly identical results in Control. Since the GPU is the bottleneck, the choice of CPU among these alternatives would have no measurable impact on the frame rates recorded for this game.

For the GPU, the Intel Arc B390 is matched with much older and weaker hardware. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX is 1.3 percent ahead, the NVIDIA GeForce 800M is 1.5 percent ahead, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM is 2.5 percent ahead, and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 is 2.7 percent ahead. These rivals are all integrated or entry-level discrete solutions from previous generations, which puts the Arc B390's performance into perspective. In Control, any of these GPUs would behave similarly to the Arc B390, meaning that the system would still be limited to 1080p Low settings for a playable experience. The delta values are small enough that none of these alternatives would change the outcome at any resolution or preset.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Control at 60 FPS?

A: Yes, but only at 1920x1080 with the Low preset, which produces an average of 65 FPS. All other resolutions and presets fall below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the best preset at 1440p for this combo?

A: There is no playable preset at 2560x1440. The Low preset averages 50 FPS, which is the highest at that resolution but still 10 FPS short of the target.

Q: How does the Intel Core i5-14400F compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The CPU is within 0.5 percent of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U, Intel Core i9-11900, Intel Core i7-12800H, and AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS in benchmark scores. This means performance in Control would be nearly identical with any of these processors.

Q: Is the Intel Arc B390 similar to any other GPUs?

A: The GPU is within 2.7 percent of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, NVIDIA GeForce 800M, NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM, and NVIDIA GeForce GT 710. These are all low-end or integrated solutions, so the Arc B390 behaves similarly in Control.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: The Low preset averages 65 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 36 FPS, a difference of 29 FPS. The Medium preset averages 46 FPS and the High preset averages 41 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance in Control?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions. The CPU ranks in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU ranks in the 9th percentile, and frame rates drop sharply as resolution and preset increase.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data makes it clear that the Intel Arc B390 is the primary constraint in this system for Control. The GPU's 9th percentile ranking against all GPUs contrasts sharply with the CPU's 83rd percentile ranking, and the frame rate scaling across resolutions reflects this imbalance. At 4K, the average frame rate ranges from 18 FPS on Ultra to 33 FPS on Low, a range of 15 FPS. At 1440p, the range is 27 FPS on Ultra to 50 FPS on Low, a spread of 23 FPS. At 1080p, the range is 36 FPS on Ultra to 65 FPS on Low, a spread of 29 FPS. As resolution decreases, the gap between Low and Ultra widens, which is the opposite of what would be expected if the CPU were the bottleneck. When the GPU is the limiting factor, lowering resolution should reduce the GPU load and allow higher presets to perform relatively better, but here the opposite occurs, indicating that even at 1080p, the GPU is struggling with higher presets.

The CPU's role becomes more apparent only at the lowest resolution and preset. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 65 FPS, which suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU enough data to hit 60 FPS when the GPU load is minimal. However, at 1080p Medium, the frame rate drops to 46 FPS, a 19 FPS decrease that is larger than the drop from Medium to High or High to Ultra. This steep cliff between Low and Medium indicates that the GPU's limited shading units and texture units are overwhelmed by even modest increases in rendering complexity. The CPU, with 10 cores and 16 threads, has no trouble keeping up, but the GPU simply cannot translate that CPU headroom into higher frame rates once the preset moves beyond Low.

The resolution scaling further supports this conclusion. Moving from 1080p Low to 1440p Low drops the average from 65 FPS to 50 FPS, and moving from 1440p Low to 4K Low drops it from 50 FPS to 33 FPS. These are consistent reductions that track with the increase in pixel count, which is a hallmark of GPU-bound performance. The CPU, which ranks in the 83rd percentile, would not show such consistent pixel-driven scaling unless it had significant headroom. The recorded data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor at any resolution or preset, and that the GPU determines the playable settings for this game.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, there is no playable setting. The highest average frame rate is 33 FPS on Low, which is far below the 60 FPS threshold. The data shows that no preset at this resolution can be recommended for playable performance.

At 2560x1440, there is also no playable setting. The Low preset averages 50 FPS, which is the best result at this resolution, but it still falls short of the 60 FPS target by 10 FPS. The Medium preset averages 35 FPS, and the High and Ultra presets average 31 FPS and 27 FPS respectively, so none of them are viable.

At 1920x1080, the Low preset is the only playable option, with an average of 65 FPS. This is the single configuration in the measured data that exceeds the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset averages 46 FPS, the High preset averages 41 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 36 FPS, all of which are below the playable threshold. For users who want to stay at or above 60 FPS, the Low preset at 1080p is the only choice, and it delivers a 5 FPS margin over the target. This makes the system strictly limited to 1080p Low for a smooth experience in Control, with no headroom for higher presets or higher resolutions.