Control

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 delivers a compelling performance profile in Control, with benchmark results indicating that the combination is capable of handling the game at high frame rates across most settings. The data shows a clear scaling pattern where the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s strength is more evident at 1080p. With a playable threshold of 60 FPS, this system comfortably exceeds that mark at all tested resolutions except for the most demanding 4K Ultra preset, where it falls just short. The measured average FPS values provide a detailed look into how this hardware handles the game’s physics-heavy environments and particle effects.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160 (4K), the RTX 5070 shows its limits under heavy load. The Low preset delivers an average of 106.7 FPS, which is a strong result for 4K gaming. Moving up to Medium reduces the average to 78.7 FPS, still well above the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset maintains playability with an average of 66.5 FPS, leaving some headroom. However, the Ultra preset drops the average to 57.5 FPS, which falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold, indicating that the most demanding settings at 4K are not viable for a consistently smooth experience.

At 2560x1440 (1440p), the performance scales predictably. The Low preset produces an average of 157.7 FPS, demonstrating that the CPU is not a bottleneck at this resolution. The Medium preset averages 111.8 FPS, while High delivers 99.5 FPS. The Ultra preset remains comfortably playable with an average of 87.9 FPS, showing that the GPU still has enough headroom to handle the increased pixel count. This resolution offers the best balance between visual fidelity and frame rate, with all presets clearing the 60 FPS bar.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the combination is exceptionally fast. The Low preset reaches an average of 208.1 FPS, which is more than triple the playable threshold. The Medium preset averages 148.7 FPS, and High averages 130.3 FPS. Even the Ultra preset maintains an average of 115 FPS, indicating that the CPU and GPU are well-matched for high-refresh-rate gaming at this resolution. The data suggests that the i7-14700KF’s 20 cores and 28 threads, combined with the RTX 5070’s 6144 shading units, provide ample processing power to keep frame rates high even in the game’s most intense combat sequences.

It is importantly the measured FPS values for this game do not include separate min or max FPS data, so the analysis relies solely on average frame rates. The absence of min FPS data means that occasional dips below the average are possible, but the large margins above the 60 FPS threshold at most settings suggest that these dips would still remain playable.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Control at 4K with all settings maxed out?

A: No. At 3840x2160 with the Ultra preset, the average FPS is 57.5, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold. The High preset is the best option at 4K, averaging 66.5 FPS.

Q: What is the best preset for a 60 FPS experience at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, all four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) average above 60 FPS. The Ultra preset is the most demanding and delivers 87.9 FPS, making it the best choice for maximizing visual quality while maintaining smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the performance scale from 1080p to 4K?

A: The scaling is significant. For example, the Ultra preset averages 115 FPS at 1920x1080, drops to 87.9 FPS at 2560x1440, and falls to 57.5 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 50% reduction in average FPS from 1080p to 4K, highlighting the GPU’s increasing workload at higher resolutions.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the CPU’s role is more prominent. The Low preset achieves 208.1 FPS, while the Ultra preset still manages 115 FPS. The relatively small frame rate drop across presets indicates that the i7-14700KF can feed the GPU efficiently, but the GPU’s shading units and tensor cores still handle the rendering load.

Q: Does the RTX 5070’s 12 GB of GDDR7 memory affect performance at 4K?

A: The data shows that 4K Ultra falls below 60 FPS, but the Medium preset at 4K averages 78.7 FPS and High averages 66.5 FPS. The memory bus width of 192 bit and bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s appear sufficient for these settings, though the Ultra preset’s additional texture and lighting demands likely contribute to the lower frame rate.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to all other tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 706 out of 3720 tested combinations, placing it in the top 19% of all systems tested for this game. This indicates strong overall performance relative to the broader database.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals a clear division of labor between the Intel Core i7-14700KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 depending on resolution. At 1920x1080, the CPU’s capabilities are fully utilized. The jump from Low to Ultra presets only reduces the average FPS from 208.1 to 115, a drop of about 45%. This relatively modest decline suggests that the CPU, with its boost clock of 5.60 GHz and 33 MB of L3 cache, is able to keep up with the GPU’s rendering demands even at lower settings where the GPU is less stressed. The 157.7 FPS average at 1440p Low further confirms that the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at lower resolutions.

At 2560x1440, the GPU begins to take on more of the load. The average FPS at Ultra drops to 87.9, which is a 24% reduction from the 1080p Ultra result. This scaling is consistent with the GPU’s pixel rate of 201.0 GPixel/s and texture rate of 482.3 GTexel/s becoming more critical as the pixel count increases. However, the CPU still provides enough headroom to keep the frame rate above 60 FPS across all settings.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor. The Ultra preset’s average of 57.5 FPS falls below the playable threshold, while the Low preset still achieves 106.7 FPS. This 46% reduction from 1080p Low to 4K Low demonstrates how the GPU’s memory bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s and the 192-bit bus are taxed by the higher resolution. The CPU’s role diminishes at 4K, as the RTX 5070’s rendering capabilities dictate the final frame rate. The data implies that for this game, the RTX 5070 is well-suited for 1440p gaming, where it can maintain high frame rates, but it needs careful settings management at 4K to stay above 60 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 achieves a rank of 706 out of 3720 tested combos for Control. This places the system in the top 19% of all configurations in the database. The CPU’s percentile of 94 versus all CPUs and the GPU’s percentile of 82 versus all GPUs indicate that both components are above average, but the GPU is slightly less exceptional relative to its peers. The combo rank suggests that while the RTX 5070 is a strong performer, it is not in the top tier of graphics cards, and the i7-14700KF’s high multi-threaded performance helps to boost the overall system ranking.

The rank implies that the system is well-balanced for this game, as the CPU’s strong single-core and multi-core scores (such as 6235 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 44167 in multi-core) complement the GPU’s solid 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 5077. In practical terms, this ranking means that users with this combo will experience performance that is better than the vast majority of systems tested, but there is still room for improvement at the top end, particularly for 4K Ultra settings.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Examining the nearest rivals for both components provides context for how other hardware might perform similarly. For the Intel Core i7-14700KF, the closest competitors are the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F with a delta of 0.2%, the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX at 0.4%, and the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X at 0.9%. These CPUs have average benchmark scores that are within 1% of the i7-14700KF, meaning that a system with any of these processors paired with the RTX 5070 would likely produce nearly identical frame rates in Control. The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is slightly faster with a delta of -1%, indicating it would provide a marginal performance increase.

For the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070, the nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro 580 with a delta of 0.1%, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 at 0.8%, and the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 at -1.2%. These GPUs have average scores that are very close to the RTX 5070, suggesting that a system with one of these cards and the i7-14700KF would deliver similar FPS in Control. The NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile is 2% slower, which would result in slightly lower frame rates, particularly at 4K where the GPU is the bottleneck. These alternatives indicate that the performance profile of this combo is not unique, and users with comparable hardware should expect similar results.

The Verdict

Based on the verdictByResolution data, this PC can run Control successfully at all tested resolutions with certain settings. At 3840x2160, the playable settings are Low, Medium, and High, with High being the best option at an average of 66.5 FPS. The Ultra preset, at 57.5 FPS, is not playable. At 2560x1440, all four settings—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—are playable, with the Ultra preset averaging 87.9 FPS. At 1920x1080, all settings are playable, with the Ultra preset reaching 115 FPS. Therefore, this system is fully capable of running the game smoothly at 1080p and 1440p with maximum settings, while 4K requires a reduction to High or lower to maintain 60 FPS.

Best Settings per Resolution

For each resolution, the most demanding preset that maintains an average FPS at or above 60 is as follows:

• 3840x2160: The High preset is the best choice, with an average FPS of 66.5. This provides a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold while offering better visual quality than Medium or Low.
• 2560x1440: The Ultra preset is the best option, averaging 87.9 FPS. This allows for the highest visual fidelity while still leaving significant headroom for dips in demanding scenes.
• 1920x1080: The Ultra preset is the best choice, with an average of 115 FPS. This ensures a smooth experience even during intense combat with multiple particle effects and destructible environments.

These settings represent the optimal balance between visual quality and performance for this specific hardware combination, based on the measured average FPS data.