Control

Control, the 2019 action-adventure from Remedy Entertainment, presents a demanding workload that clearly separates CPU and GPU limitations across different resolutions. The measured data for the AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT combination provides a clear picture of where the bottleneck shifts as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the system shows strong performance, with frame rates ranging from 68.1 FPS at Ultra settings to a high of 124 FPS at Low settings. This indicates a well-balanced configuration at the most common gaming resolution, where the six-core processor and the RDNA 3.0 graphics card work in tandem without a single component becoming a severe limiting factor.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 reveals a predictable yet significant performance drop, indicating the GPU is beginning to take on a heavier load. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 78.5 FPS at 1080p to 61 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 22.3%. This scaling is more pronounced at lower settings; the Low preset sees a decrease from 124 FPS to 90.4 FPS, a 27.1% drop. The data suggests that at 1440p, the Radeon RX 7600 XT's rendering capabilities—particularly its 128-bit memory bus and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth—are becoming more critical, though the Ryzen 5 5500 with its 12 threads still provides sufficient headroom to keep frame rates respectable.

Moving to 3840x2160 (4K) represents a substantial challenge for this combination, and the data shows the GPU is the definitive limiting component. At High settings, the average FPS collapses from 61 at 1440p to just 38 at 4K, a 37.7% reduction. The pattern is consistent across all presets: Medium drops from 68.6 FPS at 1440p to 42.2 FPS at 4K, and Ultra falls from 50.3 FPS to 32.7 FPS. The gap between Low and High settings at 4K (62 FPS vs. 38 FPS) is narrower than at 1080p (124 FPS vs. 78.5 FPS), further confirming that the GPU's pixel throughput and fill rate—176.3 GPixel/s—are saturated at this resolution. The processor's role diminishes at 4K, as the workload becomes dominated by the graphics card's ability to shade and rasterize frames.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU and GPU combo in Control?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 provides the most comfortable experience, with all settings presets achieving playable frame rates. At 2560x1440, High settings still deliver 61 FPS, but 3840x2160 is only viable at Low settings (62 FPS) or for slower-paced play on Medium (42.2 FPS).

Q: How does the RX 7600 XT compare to its nearest rivals in raw GPU performance?

A: The RX 7600 XT has an average benchmark score of 20146, placing it 0.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 460 and 1.9% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER. It trails the AMD Radeon RX 7600 by 0.6% and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile by 1.9%.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 5500 a bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the frame rate differences between settings (32.7 FPS at Ultra to 62 FPS at Low) are driven entirely by GPU load. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads, with a boost clock of 4.20 GHz, are sufficient to feed the GPU at this resolution; the bottleneck is clearly the RX 7600 XT's rendering limits.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1440p on High settings?

A: The measured average FPS for this combination at 2560x1440 with High settings is 61 FPS. This is a solid result, though it is noticeably lower than the 78.5 FPS achieved at 1080p on the same preset.

Q: How significant is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The delta is substantial. At 1920x1080, Low settings yield 124 FPS, while Ultra drops to 68.1 FPS. This represents a 45.1% reduction in average frame rate when moving from the lowest to the highest quality preset.

Q: Where does this combination rank among all tested systems for Control?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT combination ranks 1071 out of 1636 tested configurations, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database for this specific game.

Settings Recommendations

For a balanced experience prioritizing smooth gameplay, the High preset at 1920x1080 is the clear standout. It delivers 78.5 FPS while maintaining a significant visual upgrade over Medium (88.1 FPS) and a much larger one over Low (124 FPS). The 1080p High setting offers a 15.3% performance penalty compared to Medium but a 13.3% improvement over Ultra, making it the optimal trade-off between fidelity and speed. At 2560x1440, High settings at 61 FPS are playable for most users, but those seeking a higher refresh rate should consider Medium at 68.6 FPS, which provides a 12.5% boost in frame rate.

At 3840x2160, the recommendations shift drastically. The Ultra preset at 32.7 FPS is not suitable for action-oriented gameplay. High settings at 38 FPS are borderline, while Medium at 42.2 FPS is the minimum viable option for a smoother experience. The Low preset at 62 FPS is the only setting at 4K that meets standard 60 FPS expectations, but it sacrifices nearly all graphical fidelity. For this combination, the data suggests that 4K gaming is not a practical target unless the player is willing to accept the visual compromises of the Low preset or tolerate sub-50 FPS on higher settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT achieves a rank of 1071 out of 1636 tested combos in Control, placing it in the 34.5th percentile of all configurations. This rank reflects a system that is capable but not exceptional for this title. The GPU's position in the broader market—the 63rd percentile against all GPUs—combined with a CPU that sits in the 79th percentile against all CPUs, creates a pairing that is slightly CPU-favored in terms of raw potential.

However, the measured gaming data tells a more nuanced story. At 1080p, the system performs admirably, suggesting that the rank is held back by higher-resolution performance. The 4K results, where the GPU is the bottleneck, drag the overall ranking down. Compared to the GPU's nearest rivals, the RX 7600 XT is nearly identical to the RX 7600 in synthetic benchmarks (0.6% slower), yet the 16 GB of VRAM on the XT model does not provide a measurable advantage in Control at these tested settings. The rank indicates that while this is a competent 1080p machine, it falls behind more balanced or higher-end combos when pushed to 1440p and beyond.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 is a six-core, twelve-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, running on the AMD Socket AM4 platform. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.20 GHz, combined with 16 MB of L3 cache, provide solid single-threaded and multi-threaded performance for gaming. In synthetic tests, it scores 2319 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 16429 in multi-core, demonstrating a balanced profile. Its 79th percentile ranking against all CPUs indicates it is a capable mid-range processor.

In Control, the CPU's role is most evident at lower resolutions. At 1920x1080, the frame rate scales from 124 FPS at Low to 68.1 FPS at Ultra, showing that the processor can keep up with the GPU's output even in less demanding settings. The 3dmark single-thread score of 836 and the 2-thread score of 1645 suggest that the game's engine, which often relies on a few primary threads, is well-served by the 5500's architecture. However, as resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the CPU's influence wanes. The frame rate drops at 4K are consistent with GPU-bound scenarios, confirming that the 5500 is not the limiting factor at higher resolutions. The processor's 12 threads handle the game's background tasks without issue, but Control does not appear to leverage the full multi-threading capability, as the passmark multithread score of 19330 is not fully utilized at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average frame rates are as follows: Low settings achieve 124 FPS, Medium reaches 88.1 FPS, High delivers 78.5 FPS, and Ultra drops to 68.1 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 55.9 FPS, a substantial margin that gives players a wide range of options depending on their preference for speed or visual quality.

At 2560x1440, the performance is as follows: Low settings produce 90.4 FPS, Medium hits 68.6 FPS, High provides 61 FPS, and Ultra falls to 50.3 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows an average reduction of about 22% across all presets, which is typical for a GPU with 2048 shading units and a 128-bit memory interface.

At 3840x2160, the results are significantly lower: Low settings yield 62 FPS, Medium manages 42.2 FPS, High reaches 38 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 32.7 FPS. The drop from 1440p to 4K is severe, averaging a 39.7% reduction. This data confirms that the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT, with its 64 ROPs and 176.3 GPixel/s pixel rate, is not designed for native 4K gaming in demanding titles like Control. The 16 GB of GDDR6 memory is ample, but the bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s and the chip's overall compute capacity of 22.57 TFLOPS are insufficient to maintain high frame rates at this resolution.