Control

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 580 occupies rank 3308 out of 3720 tested combinations in Control. This places the combo in the lower 11% of all tested systems, meaning roughly 89% of recorded configurations deliver higher average frame rates in this title. The rank reflects a pairing where neither component is exceptional by current database standards, though the GPU holds a slightly stronger position than the CPU.

Looking at component-level percentiles, the RX 580 sits at the 53rd percentile among all GPUs, while the i5-9400 lands at the 47th percentile among all CPUs. This near-middle positioning for both parts explains the overall ranking, as neither component dramatically boosts the other. The GPU's percentile advantage over the CPU suggests that in GPU-bound scenarios, the graphics card is doing proportionally more of the heavy lifting.

The measured data confirms this is a 1080p-oriented configuration. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo reaches 64.7 FPS average, crossing the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, no settings preset achieves playable frame rates, and at 3840x2160 the results fall well below acceptable levels. The performance cliff between 1080p and 1440p is steep, with even Low settings at 1440p (49.9 FPS) failing to maintain the 60 FPS target.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded FPS data across resolutions and settings reveals how the workload shifts between the i5-9400 and RX 580. At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the dominant constraint. The spread from Low (31 FPS) to Ultra (20.6 FPS) at 4K is 10.4 FPS, a 33.5% drop in performance from the lowest to the highest preset. This relatively modest scaling indicates the RX 580 is already saturated at 4K, and additional graphical load produces diminishing returns in frame rate reduction.

At 2560x1440, the picture changes subtly. Low settings produce 49.9 FPS, while Medium drops to 36.3 FPS, a 13.6 FPS reduction (27.3%). The jump from Medium to High (32 FPS) is smaller at 4.3 FPS, and High to Ultra (27.4 FPS) costs another 4.6 FPS. The scaling pattern suggests the GPU remains the primary limiter at 1440p, but the CPU's six cores and six threads begin to matter more as resolution drops.

At 1920x1080, the scaling pattern inverts in an important way. Low settings deliver 64.7 FPS, but Medium drops to 44.7 FPS, a 20 FPS penalty (30.9%). High settings yield 42.4 FPS, and Ultra falls to 37.1 FPS. The large gap between Low and Medium at 1080p indicates that the CPU can keep up at Low settings, but once the GPU workload increases, the combination of the i5-9400's six threads and the RX 580's compute capacity creates a balanced bottleneck. Neither component is clearly dominant at 1080p; instead, the system's overall throughput limits performance.

The data shows that resolution scaling follows expected patterns. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings drops FPS from 64.7 to 49.9, a 22.9% reduction. From 1440p to 4K at Low, FPS falls from 49.9 to 31, another 37.9% reduction. At Ultra settings, the progression is 37.1 (1080p) to 27.4 (1440p) to 20.6 (4K), showing that the GPU's pixel throughput becomes progressively more limiting at higher resolutions.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the only preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Low, which produces an average of 64.7 FPS. This is the sole playable configuration for this combo across all tested resolutions and settings. Medium at 1080p falls to 44.7 FPS, well below the 60 FPS threshold, and High and Ultra are progressively worse at 42.4 and 37.1 FPS respectively.

At 2560x1440, no settings preset reaches 60 FPS. The closest is Low at 49.9 FPS, followed by Medium at 36.3 FPS, High at 32 FPS, and Ultra at 27.4 FPS. The gap between Low and the threshold is 10.1 FPS, indicating that even the lightest graphical load cannot compensate for the increased pixel count at 1440p.

At 3840x2160, the results are uniformly below playable levels. Low settings yield 31 FPS, Medium 24.4 FPS, High 22.9 FPS, and Ultra 20.6 FPS. The best case at 4K is less than half of the 60 FPS target, confirming that this hardware combination is not suitable for 4K gaming in Control.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU's nearest rivals in the database provide context for the i5-9400's processing capability. The Intel Core i7-1068NG7 scores 2259 average, just 0.2% higher than the i5-9400's 2254 average. The Intel Core i3-10305 is 0.4% higher at 2264, while the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 trails by 0.4% at 2246. The Intel Core i7-10710U is essentially identical at 2248, only 0.3% lower. These four processors would deliver nearly indistinguishable CPU-bound performance in Control, meaning any of them paired with the RX 580 would produce similar FPS results.

On the GPU side, the RX 580's nearest rivals show tight clustering. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile scores 12940, just 0.1% higher than the RX 580's 12928 average. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is 0.4% higher at 12986, while the AMD Radeon 740M trails by 0.5% at 12870. The AMD FirePro W5100 is 0.6% lower at 12847. Users with any of these GPUs paired with a similarly performing CPU would expect nearly identical frame rates in Control, within a margin of roughly 1% or less.

The practical implication is that swapping the i5-9400 for any of its four nearest CPU rivals, or swapping the RX 580 for any of its four nearest GPU rivals, would change measured FPS by less than 1%. This makes the entire cluster of hardware effectively interchangeable for this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the recorded average frame rates are 31 FPS on Low, 24.4 FPS on Medium, 22.9 FPS on High, and 20.6 FPS on Ultra. The spread from best to worst is 10.4 FPS. No minimum or maximum frame rate data was recorded for any 4K preset.

At 2560x1440, Low settings produce 49.9 FPS average, Medium 36.3 FPS, High 32 FPS, and Ultra 27.4 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 22.5 FPS. Again, no min or max values are available in the measured dataset.

At 1920x1080, the results are 64.7 FPS on Low, 44.7 FPS on Medium, 42.4 FPS on High, and 37.1 FPS on Ultra. The Low preset is the only one exceeding 60 FPS, and it does so by 4.7 FPS. The gap between Medium and Low is 20 FPS, the largest single-preset jump in the entire dataset. High and Ultra are separated by only 5.3 FPS, showing diminishing returns at the top end.

Across all resolutions and presets, the data reveals a consistent pattern: the RX 580's performance scales predictably with resolution, but the CPU's six threads create a ceiling around 65 FPS at 1080p Low. This suggests that even with a more powerful GPU, the i5-9400 would likely cap frame rates in the mid-60s range for this game.

The Verdict

Based on the verdictByResolution data, this PC can run Control at 1920x1080 with Low settings, achieving an average of 64.7 FPS. This is the only playable configuration in the entire measured dataset. At 2560x1440, no settings preset reaches 60 FPS, with the best case (Low) at 49.9 FPS. At 3840x2160, the best case is 31 FPS on Low, which is far below playable thresholds.

The practical verdict is that this combo is a 1080p Low-settings machine for Control. Users who prefer Medium or higher quality presets will need to accept frame rates in the 37 to 45 FPS range at 1080p, which may be tolerable for some but falls short of the 60 FPS standard. For 1440p or 4K gaming, this hardware is not viable for Control, regardless of settings.

The i5-9400 and RX 580 combination represents a baseline configuration that can handle this game only at its lowest graphical preset and most common resolution. Any increase in resolution or graphical fidelity comes at a substantial cost to frame rate, and the system cannot maintain 60 FPS outside of the single playable configuration identified.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Control at 60 FPS?

A: Yes, but only at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings, where the average FPS is 64.7. At 2560x1440, the best preset (Low) achieves 49.9 FPS, and at 3840x2160, the best preset (Low) achieves 31 FPS, both below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p?

A: Low is the only preset that maintains at least 60 FPS at 1920x1080, with an average of 64.7 FPS. Medium drops to 44.7 FPS, High to 42.4 FPS, and Ultra to 37.1 FPS.

Q: How does the RX 580 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RX 580 has an average benchmark score of 12928. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile scores 12940 (0.1% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER scores 12986 (0.4% higher), the AMD Radeon 740M scores 12870 (0.5% lower), and the AMD FirePro W5100 scores 12847 (0.6% lower).

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more limiting at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the GPU is the primary constraint. Low settings produce 49.9 FPS, and the drop to Medium (36.3 FPS) represents a 27.3% reduction, indicating the graphics card is saturated by the increased pixel count before CPU limitations become apparent.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at 4K with this combo?

A: At 3840x2160, average FPS ranges from 20.6 on Ultra to 31 on Low. Medium produces 24.4 FPS and High produces 22.9 FPS. None of these presets are close to the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the i5-9400 compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2254. The Intel Core i7-1068NG7 scores 2259 (0.2% higher), the Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2264 (0.4% higher), the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 scores 2246 (0.4% lower), and the Intel Core i7-10710U scores 2248 (0.3% lower). All five processors would perform nearly identically in Control.