Control

The Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7600 delivers a playable experience in Control, but the margin depends heavily on resolution. At 1920x1080, all presets clear the 60 FPS threshold, with the Ultra preset averaging 65 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440, the combo maintains 60 FPS at Medium settings (64 FPS average), while High falls just short at 56 FPS. At 3840x2160, only Low settings reach the 60 FPS target exactly, with Medium dropping to 43 FPS and Ultra to 33 FPS. The data confirms a system that is strong for 1080p and capable at 1440p with settings adjustments, but not suited for 4K beyond minimum presets.

FAQ

Q: What is the best preset for 1920x1080 that stays at or above 60 FPS?

A: Ultra is the most demanding preset that clears the threshold, with an average of 65 FPS. High averages 75 FPS, Medium 84 FPS, and Low 118 FPS, all above 60 FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 2560x1440 at High settings?

A: No. The High preset averages 56 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold. Medium is the best playable preset at 1440p, averaging 64 FPS.

Q: What is the playable settings list for 3840x2160?

A: Only Low settings are playable, averaging exactly 60 FPS. Medium averages 43 FPS, High 38 FPS, and Ultra 33 FPS, all below the threshold.

Q: How does the GPU rank among all tested GPUs?

A: The Radeon RX 7600 sits at the 57th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15171. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM, which scores 15199, a delta of -0.2%.

Q: What is the CPU's percentile ranking?

A: The Core i7-14700K ranks in the 94th percentile of all CPUs, with a multi-thread PassMark score of 52392. Its average benchmark score is 69355.

Q: Does the game's data show a clear GPU bottleneck at any resolution?

A: Yes. The frame rate drops sharply as resolution increases, from 118 FPS at 1080p Low to 60 FPS at 4K Low, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's high single-thread score (4472 in PassMark) is not the constraint.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals a pronounced GPU-bound workload for Control, particularly at higher resolutions. At 1920x1080 Low, the system averages 118 FPS, which drops to 89 FPS at 2560x1440 Low and 60 FPS at 3840x2160 Low. This scaling pattern—a 24.6% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a further 32.6% reduction from 1440p to 4K—indicates that the Radeon RX 7600's rendering capabilities are the primary determinant of performance. The CPU, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is unlikely to bottleneck at these frame rates, given its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 33440.5 and single-core score of 2160.

The role of the GPU becomes more evident when examining preset scaling at each resolution. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium reduces the average from 118 to 84 FPS, a 28.8% drop, and from Medium to High it falls to 75 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p still delivers 65 FPS. This degradation pattern is consistent with the GPU's fill-rate and shading limits. At 2560x1440, the average drops from 89 FPS at Low to 64 FPS at Medium (28.1% reduction), then to 56 FPS at High and 49 FPS at Ultra. The gap between Medium and High at 1440p (8 FPS) is smaller than between Low and Medium (25 FPS), suggesting diminishing returns from the increased shading workload.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily stressed. Low averages 60 FPS, but Medium drops to 43 FPS (28.3% reduction), High to 38 FPS, and Ultra to 33 FPS. The data shows a near-linear relationship between pixel count and frame time, confirming that the RX 7600's 8 GB memory and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for high-quality 4K rendering. The CPU's role is secondary; its PassMark single-thread score of 4472 and multi-thread score of 52392 ensure that even at 1080p Low with 118 FPS, the processor is not the limiting factor. The game's genre (Action Adventure) and release date (2019-08-26) suggest it is not heavily multi-threaded, so the i7-14700K's strengths are underutilized.

Best Settings per Resolution

For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the best choice, averaging 65 FPS. This is the most demanding configuration that remains above the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset offers a higher average of 75 FPS, but Ultra provides the maximum visual fidelity without sacrificing playability. The Medium preset averages 84 FPS, and Low 118 FPS, but these do not offer the same visual quality.

At 2560x1440, Medium is the best playable preset, averaging 64 FPS. This sits just above the threshold, with a minimum of 54 FPS and maximum of 73 FPS. The High preset at 56 FPS is below the 60 FPS target, so it is not recommended for smooth gameplay. Low averages 89 FPS, but the visual trade-off is significant. The data suggests that Medium at 1440p provides a balanced experience, though users sensitive to frame drops may prefer Low given the 54 FPS minimum.

For 3840x2160, only Low is playable, averaging exactly 60 FPS. This is a marginal result, as any demanding scene could push it below the threshold. Medium averages 43 FPS, which is too low for comfortable play. The Ultra preset at 33 FPS is not viable. For 4K, the system is limited to minimal settings, which undermines the visual experience of Control. The verdict data confirms this, listing Low as the only playable setting at this resolution.

The Verdict

This PC can run Control, but the experience varies by resolution. At 1920x1080, the system handles all presets, with Ultra averaging 65 FPS, so it fully clears the 60 FPS requirement. At 2560x1440, the combo is playable at Low and Medium, with Medium averaging 64 FPS, though High and Ultra fall short at 56 and 49 FPS respectively. At 3840x2160, only Low settings achieve the 60 FPS target, averaging exactly 60 FPS. The verdict data lists Low as the sole playable setting at 4K, with Medium at 43 FPS, High at 38 FPS, and Ultra at 33 FPS.

The system is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it offers headroom across all presets. For 1440p, it is adequate with settings compromises, but users must accept Medium as the ceiling. At 4K, the system is barely playable, and only at the lowest visual quality. The GPU's 57th percentile ranking (vs all GPUs) and the combo's rank of 2608 out of 3720 tested combos indicate a mid-range performer. The CPU is not the bottleneck; its 94th percentile ranking shows it is overkill for this pairing. The data suggests that the RX 7600 is the limiting factor, particularly at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers 118 FPS on Low, 84 FPS on Medium (min 71, max 97), 75 FPS on High, and 65 FPS on Ultra. All presets exceed the 60 FPS threshold, with the Medium preset showing a narrow range of 71-97 FPS, indicating stable performance. The Low preset has no min/max data, but the average is well above the threshold. Ultra at 65 FPS is playable but offers less headroom.

At 2560x1440, the results are 89 FPS on Low, 64 FPS on Medium (min 54, max 73), 56 FPS on High, and 49 FPS on Ultra. Only Low and Medium clear the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset's minimum of 54 FPS is below the target, which could cause occasional stuttering. High at 56 FPS is close but not sufficient, and Ultra at 49 FPS is noticeably lower. The frame data shows a 25 FPS drop from Low to Medium, then a smaller 8 FPS drop from Medium to High.

At 3840x2160, the system averages 60 FPS on Low, 43 FPS on Medium (min 36, max 49), 38 FPS on High, and 33 FPS on Ultra. Only Low meets the 60 FPS target, and it does so exactly. The Medium preset's minimum of 36 FPS indicates significant frame drops under load. High and Ultra are far below playable. The degradation from Low to Ultra (60 to 33 FPS) represents a 45% reduction, highlighting the GPU's struggle at 4K. The min/max data for Medium shows a 13 FPS spread, suggesting variable performance.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700K and AMD Radeon RX 7600 combination ranks 2608 out of 3720 tested combos for Control. This places it in the lower half of tested systems, which is consistent with the GPU's mid-range positioning. The CPU ranks in the 94th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 69355, while the GPU ranks in the 57th percentile, with an average score of 15171. The disparity between the CPU's high ranking and the GPU's mid ranking explains why the combo underperforms at higher resolutions.

The combo's rank of 2608 suggests that many other pairings deliver better frame rates in Control. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 16634 and 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2310 are modest, while the CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 33440.5 is exceptional. This imbalance means the system is limited by the RX 7600, and upgrading the GPU would yield larger gains than upgrading the CPU. The data indicates that for this game, the GPU is the primary bottleneck at all resolutions above 1080p.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the CPU and GPU provide context for similar performance. The Core i7-14700K's closest matches are the AMD EPYC 9115 (avg score 69288, delta 0.1%), AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (69515, delta -0.2%), AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69875, delta -0.7%), and AMD Ryzen 7 9700F (69996, delta -0.9%). These CPUs would behave nearly identically in Control, as their benchmark scores are within 1% of the i7-14700K. None of these would change the game's performance, as the GPU remains the bottleneck.

For the Radeon RX 7600, the nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (avg score 15199, delta -0.2%), AMD Radeon Pro 560X (15082, delta 0.6%), AMD Radeon 680M (15270, delta -0.7%), and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti (15063, delta 0.7%). These GPUs would produce very similar frame rates in Control, within 1% of the RX 7600's performance. Users with any of these GPUs would see comparable results, meaning the same settings and resolutions would apply. For instance, the RTX 3050 OEM would likely also average 65 FPS at 1080p Ultra and 43 FPS at 4K Medium, based on the deltaPct values. The data shows that the RX 7600 sits in a tight performance cluster, with no significant outliers among its nearest rivals.