Control

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 delivers a playable experience in Control at 1080p and 1440p, but 4K requires a significant compromise on visual fidelity. At 1920x1080, the combo achieves an average of 81 FPS at Ultra settings, while 2560x1440 sees 61 FPS at the same preset. The 3840x2160 resolution is the breaking point, where Ultra settings drop to 41 FPS and only Low settings maintain a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold. This analysis breaks down the measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings, examines the CPU/GPU balance, and compares this combo against other tested configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The dataset provides average frame rates for all four settings presets at three resolutions, with minimum and maximum values available only for the Medium preset. Starting at 1920x1080, the performance envelope is broad: Low settings produce 148 FPS average, Medium hits 105 FPS, High reaches 93 FPS, and Ultra drops to 81 FPS. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 89 FPS and a maximum of 121 FPS, indicating a tight frame time distribution with no severe dips. All four presets at 1080p stay well above the 60 FPS playable threshold, with even the most demanding Ultra setting maintaining a 35% margin over that baseline.

Moving to 2560x1440, the scaling is predictable but the margins tighten. Low settings deliver 112 FPS average, Medium follows at 80 FPS, High lands at 71 FPS, and Ultra barely clears the playable bar with 61 FPS. The Medium preset at this resolution shows a minimum of 68 FPS and a maximum of 92 FPS, meaning the worst-case frame rate still exceeds the 60 FPS threshold. The gap between Ultra and High at 1440p is 10 FPS, which is notable since both are viable for gameplay, but Ultra offers the full visual experience at the cost of that performance headroom.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. Low settings produce 76 FPS average, which is the only preset that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS. Medium drops to 54 FPS average with a minimum of 46 FPS and maximum of 62 FPS, meaning the experience is inconsistent and will frequently dip below the playable threshold. High settings average 48 FPS, and Ultra falls to 41 FPS. The 4K results show a clear pattern: the RX 7700’s 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 256-bit bus are sufficient for the resolution, but the raw compute power of 25.18 TFLOPS is not enough to maintain high frame rates with demanding settings.

Comparing resolution scaling, dropping from 1080p to 1440p reduces Ultra performance from 81 to 61 FPS, a 25% decrease. Dropping from 1440p to 4K at Ultra reduces performance from 61 to 41 FPS, a 33% decrease. The scaling is not linear, and the 4K Ultra result indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at that resolution.

CPU and GPU Roles

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor with a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, placing it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. Its multi-core performance is substantial, with a Cinebench R23 score of 35122 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 19620. The AMD Radeon RX 7700, by contrast, sits in the 58th percentile of all GPUs with a Passmark G3D score of 20974. This asymmetry suggests the CPU has considerable headroom in gaming workloads, and the data supports that conclusion.

At 1080p, the frame rates are high enough that the CPU’s single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4958) is sufficient to feed the GPU without bottlenecking. The 148 FPS Low result at 1080p is likely near the CPU’s practical limit for this game, but the 81 FPS Ultra result indicates the GPU is the primary constraint at higher settings. As resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes progressively more dominant. The 4K results show only a 35 FPS difference between Low (76 FPS) and Ultra (41 FPS), which is a 46% reduction in performance attributable entirely to GPU load, while the CPU workload remains roughly constant.

The scaling between presets reveals the GPU’s role. At 1080p, moving from Low to Ultra reduces FPS from 148 to 81, a 45% decrease. At 4K, the same preset change reduces FPS from 76 to 41, a 46% decrease. The proportional impact is similar, but the absolute numbers confirm that the RX 7700 is the limiting factor at 4K. The CPU’s 4.0 GHz difference between base and boost clocks (2.10 GHz to 5.40 GHz) ensures it can handle the game’s physics and logic without becoming a bottleneck, even at high frame rates. For this title, the i7-14700F is overqualified, while the RX 7700 is the component that determines playability at each resolution.

FAQ

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

A: No. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 41, which is 19 FPS below the 60 FPS playable threshold. Only Low settings at 4K achieve a playable average of 76 FPS.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 1440p?

A: Ultra settings at 2560x1440 produce an average of 61 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS threshold. All four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are playable at this resolution according to the verdict data.

Q: How much performance is lost by enabling Ultra vs High at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, High settings deliver 93 FPS average, while Ultra delivers 81 FPS. The difference is 12 FPS, or approximately 13% less performance for the Ultra preset.

Q: Is the frame rate stable at Medium settings?

A: The Medium preset is the only one with min/max data. At 1080p, the range is 89–121 FPS with an average of 105. At 1440p, the range is 68–92 FPS with an average of 80. At 4K, the range is 46–62 FPS with an average of 54. Stability is good at 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K Medium range shows dips below 60 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to similar processors?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F has an average benchmark score of 53620, placing it in the 91st percentile. Its nearest rival, the Intel Xeon 6505P, scores 53701, which is 0.2% higher. The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X scores 53288, which is 0.6% lower.

Q: What GPU performance class does the RX 7700 belong to?

A: The Radeon RX 7700 has an average benchmark score of 15852, placing it in the 58th percentile. Its nearest rival is the AMD Radeon R9 370X with a score of 15862 (0.1% higher), while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti scores 16129 (1.7% higher).

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700F + AMD Radeon RX 7700 combination ranks 1756 out of 3720 tested combos for Control, placing it in the 53rd percentile of all configurations. This is a middle-of-the-pack result, which aligns with the GPU’s 58th percentile standing but is dragged down by the fact that many combos in the database likely pair higher-end GPUs with similar CPUs. The rank indicates that this system is neither a top-tier performer nor a weak one; it sits comfortably in the upper-middle range.

The rank of 1756 out of 3720 means that 1964 combos perform worse and 1755 perform better. Given that the CPU is in the 91st percentile and the GPU is in the 58th percentile, the combo’s ranking is almost entirely determined by the GPU. A stronger GPU would push this combo significantly higher in the rankings, while a weaker CPU would have minimal impact. The data shows that for Control specifically, the RX 7700 is the performance ceiling, and the i7-14700F provides ample headroom for future GPU upgrades without needing a platform change.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Based on the nearest rivals data, the CPU and GPU each have close performance equivalents that would produce similar results in Control. For the Intel Core i7-14700F, the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X is the most relevant comparison, with an average benchmark score of 53288 versus the i7’s 53620, a delta of 0.6%. In gaming workloads, these two processors would deliver nearly identical frame rates, differing by less than 1%. The Intel Xeon 6505P (53701, -0.2%) and AMD EPYC 7313P (53206, 0.8%) are also close but are server-class parts less relevant for gaming.

For the AMD Radeon RX 7700, the nearest rival is the AMD Radeon R9 370X with a score of 15862, which is only 0.1% higher. However, this is an older architecture and the similarity is coincidental. More relevant is the AMD Radeon RX 9060 (16014, -1.0%) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (16129, -1.7%). The RTX 3060 Ti is a direct contemporary competitor, and its 1.7% higher average score suggests it would deliver roughly 1–2 FPS more in Control at the same settings. The RX 9060, being 1% lower, would perform nearly identically to the RX 7700.

A system with the i7-14700F and RTX 3060 Ti would be the closest alternative, with the GPU being 1.7% faster on average. Conversely, pairing the Ryzen 9 7900X with the RX 7700 would yield essentially the same results as the tested combo, since the CPU difference is negligible for gaming. Users with these alternatives should expect frame rates within 1–2 FPS of the measured values.

The Verdict

The data clearly shows that this PC can run Control at 1080p and 1440p with all settings presets playable. At 1920x1080, the lowest average FPS across all presets is 81 (Ultra), which is 21 FPS above the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, the lowest average is 61 FPS (Ultra), which just barely clears the threshold. The 4K resolution is the limitation: only Low settings achieve a playable average of 76 FPS, while Medium (54 FPS), High (48 FPS), and Ultra (41 FPS) all fall short.

The verdict by resolution confirms this assessment. At 3840x2160, the only playable setting is Low, with an average of 76 FPS. At 2560x1440, all four settings are playable, with Ultra being the best at 61 FPS. At 1920x1080, all four settings are playable, with Ultra being the best at 81 FPS. For gamers targeting 60 FPS, this system is fully capable at 1080p and 1440p with maximum settings. At 4K, it requires Low settings, which still delivers a smooth experience but sacrifices most of the visual enhancements.

The 16 GB of VRAM on the RX 7700 is not the limiting factor at 4K, as even the largest textures in Control would fit within that budget. Instead, the GPU’s 25.18 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 393.4 GTexel/s texture rate are insufficient for 4K Ultra. The CPU’s 28 threads and 5.40 GHz boost clock ensure it is never the bottleneck, even at 1080p Low where the GPU is pushed to 148 FPS.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which delivers an average of 81 FPS. This provides the full visual experience with a comfortable 21 FPS margin above the threshold. The next step down, High, offers 93 FPS but sacrifices some graphical fidelity for a 12 FPS gain that is unlikely to be noticeable on most displays.

At 2560x1440, the most demanding playable preset is Ultra, averaging 61 FPS. This is a marginal result, with only 1 FPS of headroom above the 60 FPS threshold. The minimum FPS data is not available for Ultra, but the Medium preset shows a minimum of 68 FPS, suggesting that Ultra’s minimum could dip below 60 FPS in intense scenes. Players who prioritize frame rate stability over maximum quality might prefer High at 71 FPS, but the data shows Ultra is technically playable.

At 3840x2160, the most demanding playable preset is Low, with an average of 76 FPS. This is the only setting that meets the 60 FPS criterion. Medium is close at 54 FPS average, but its minimum of 46 FPS indicates significant frame drops that would be noticeable during gameplay. For 4K, the choice is between Low settings at 76 FPS or sacrificing resolution to 1440p for Ultra at 61 FPS. The data suggests that 1440p Ultra is the better overall experience, as it provides both higher visual quality settings and a stable frame rate.