Control

Similar Performance Alternatives

The Intel Core i5-9400 sits in a narrow performance band according to the database's aggregate benchmark scores. Its average benchmark score of 2254 places it within 0.4% of several comparable processors. The AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 scores 2246, a delta of 0.4% slower, while the Intel Core i7-10710U scores 2248, also 0.4% slower. On the other side, the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 scores 2259, which is 0.2% faster, and the Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2264, 0.4% faster. In practical terms, these four CPUs would deliver nearly indistinguishable frame pacing in most gaming workloads, as the recorded deltas fall well within typical run-to-run variance. The i5-9400's 47th percentile ranking among all CPUs in the database reinforces that this is a mid-pack processor, not a top-tier part, but one that avoids being a bottleneck for most GPU-bound scenarios.

For the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090, the aggregate benchmark picture is dramatically different. With an average benchmark score of 79842, the GPU ranks in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals are all professional or mobile parts with similar aggregate scores. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB scores 79605, just 0.3% lower, while the Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB scores 79396, 0.6% lower. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78940, 1.1% lower, and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X scores 80959, 1.4% higher. These deltas are all within 1.5%, meaning that in aggregate compute terms, the RTX 5090 behaves like these parts, though the gaming-specific features and driver optimizations will differ. The key takeaway is that the RTX 5090 is an exceptionally fast GPU, while the i5-9400 is a modest six-core processor from 2018. The pairing is inherently lopsided: the CPU will likely constrain performance in lightly threaded or latency-sensitive workloads, while the GPU has headroom to spare.

How This Combo Ranks

The database records this specific CPU and GPU combination as rank 466 out of 3720 tested combos for Control. That places it in the top 12.5% of all tested pairings, which is a strong showing for a system with a mid-range 2018 processor. The ranking reflects that the RTX 5090's raw rasterization power dominates the frame rate in this title, and even with a modest CPU, the combination lands well above the median. For context, the i5-9400 alone sits at the 47th percentile of all CPUs, but the combo rank is much higher because Control's rendering workload scales heavily with GPU throughput. The data shows that the GPU is the primary driver of the overall score, pulling the combination into the upper echelon of tested systems.

FAQ

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

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the recorded average frame rate is 78 FPS, which exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold.

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

A: At 2560x1440, Ultra settings produce an average of 115.9 FPS, making it the most demanding preset that remains well above 60 FPS.

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

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings deliver 159.7 FPS average, while Ultra delivers 133.2 FPS average, a drop of 26.5 FPS or roughly 17% lower.

Q: Is the i5-9400 a bottleneck for the RTX 5090 in this game?

A: The data suggests the CPU is not a limiting factor at the tested settings, as all resolutions and presets clear 60 FPS. However, the CPU's 47th percentile ranking indicates it is far weaker than the GPU's 92nd percentile, so in other titles or at lower resolutions the CPU could become more relevant.

Q: Which resolution gives the highest headroom above 60 FPS?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average of 159.7 FPS provides the largest margin above the playable threshold, nearly 100 FPS of headroom.

Q: Does the RTX 5090's launch MSRP affect the analysis?

A: The launch MSRP is 1,999 USD, but the performance data is measured independently of cost considerations.

The Verdict

This PC can run Control with substantial headroom at every tested resolution. The verdict by resolution in the database lists all four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) as playable at 3840x2160, 2560x1440, and 1920x1080. The playable threshold is set at 60 FPS, and the lowest recorded average across all combinations is 78 FPS at 4K Ultra. That means even the most demanding preset at the highest resolution clears the 60 FPS bar by 18 FPS. At 1440p, the worst case is 115.9 FPS at Ultra, and at 1080p, the worst case is 133.2 FPS at Ultra. The system never dips below 60 FPS in any measured configuration, so users can confidently select any preset without worrying about playability. The RTX 5090's immense compute resources, evidenced by its 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and 32 GB of GDDR7 memory, ensure that this game is thoroughly dominated.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded FPS data reveals how the balance shifts across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the GPU is not fully stressed: Low settings yield 159.7 FPS, while Ultra yields 133.2 FPS, a difference of 26.5 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is relatively modest because the GPU has enough headroom to absorb the increased load without dropping below 60 FPS. At 2560x1440, the spread widens slightly: Low produces 144.8 FPS and Ultra produces 115.9 FPS, a gap of 28.9 FPS. At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the dominant factor: Low produces 130.6 FPS and Ultra produces 78 FPS, a gap of 52.6 FPS. This widening gap shows that the GPU's workload scales strongly with resolution, as expected for a rasterization-heavy title like Control.

The CPU's role is consistent across all resolutions: it provides enough throughput to keep frame rates high, but it does not appear to be the limiting factor. The i5-9400's six cores and six threads, with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, are sufficient to feed the RTX 5090 at all tested settings. The smallest margin above 60 FPS is at 4K Ultra, where the average is 78 FPS, indicating that even in the most GPU-bound configuration, the CPU does not drag performance below the threshold. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see smaller FPS differences between Low and Ultra at lower resolutions, but the data shows meaningful scaling at every resolution, confirming that the GPU is the primary driver of performance.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the best settings preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 78 FPS. This is the highest quality option available, and it still provides 18 FPS of headroom above the playable threshold. At 2560x1440, the best preset is also Ultra, with an average of 115.9 FPS, offering 55.9 FPS of headroom. At 1920x1080, Ultra again is the best preset, with an average of 133.2 FPS, providing 73.2 FPS of headroom. In all three cases, the database's verdict lists all four presets as playable, so users can choose Ultra without sacrificing smoothness. The RTX 5090's 92nd percentile GPU ranking and the combo's 466th rank out of 3720 systems indicate that this is a high-performance pairing for Control.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the measured average frame rates are as follows: Low settings produce 130.6 FPS, Medium produces 104.7 FPS, High produces 92.7 FPS, and Ultra produces 78 FPS. The progression shows a steady decline as graphical fidelity increases, with the largest single-step drop occurring from Low to Medium, a reduction of 25.9 FPS. From Medium to High, the drop is 12 FPS, and from High to Ultra, the drop is 14.7 FPS. The minimum and maximum FPS values are not recorded in the database, so only averages are available for analysis.

At 2560x1440, the measured averages are: Low at 144.8 FPS, Medium at 131.6 FPS, High at 123 FPS, and Ultra at 115.9 FPS. The step from Low to Medium is 13.2 FPS, from Medium to High is 8.6 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 7.1 FPS. The diminishing returns at higher presets are evident, with the gap between High and Ultra being the smallest of any resolution. This suggests that the GPU has ample resources at 1440p and that the visual quality increase from High to Ultra costs relatively little in frame rate.

At 1920x1080, the measured averages are: Low at 159.7 FPS, Medium at 140 FPS, High at 137.5 FPS, and Ultra at 133.2 FPS. The Low to Medium drop is 19.7 FPS, the Medium to High drop is 2.5 FPS, and the High to Ultra drop is 4.3 FPS. Interestingly, the difference between Medium and High at 1080p is less than 3 FPS, indicating that the preset changes have minimal impact on performance at this resolution. The overall pattern across all resolutions is consistent: the RTX 5090 delivers well above 60 FPS in every configuration, with the i5-9400 providing enough CPU throughput to avoid limiting the system. The highest recorded average is 159.7 FPS at 1080p Low, and the lowest is 78 FPS at 4K Ultra, both comfortably above the playable threshold.