Control

AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT produces a performance profile in Control that is heavily dictated by resolution and preset selection. The measured data reveals a system capable of high refresh rate gaming at 1080p, but one that begins to struggle as pixel count rises, with the GPU clearly emerging as the primary limiting factor in this specific title.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a classic GPU-bound scaling pattern when moving from 1080p to 4K. At the Medium preset, the average frame rate drops from 84 FPS at 1920x1080 to 63 FPS at 2560x1440, and then further down to 43 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 25% performance loss when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a substantial 48.8% loss when moving from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is steep and consistent, indicating that pixel throughput is the dominant constraint.

At the High preset, the pattern is similar but the absolute numbers are lower. The system delivers 74 FPS at 1080p, 56 FPS at 1440p, and 38 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is 24.3%, and from 1440p to 4K it is 32.1%. The 4K result of 38 FPS is below the 40 FPS threshold often considered the minimum for a playable experience, suggesting that 4K High is not a viable configuration for this hardware combination.

The Ultra preset tells a similar story with even lower headroom. At 1080p Ultra, the system manages 65 FPS, which drops to 49 FPS at 1440p and bottoms out at 33 FPS at 4K. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is a 32.7% reduction. The 4K Ultra result of 33 FPS is the lowest average frame rate recorded in the entire dataset, confirming that this resolution and preset combination is not suitable for smooth gameplay.

The Low preset provides the clearest view of the scaling behavior. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 118 FPS, at 1440p Low it hits 89 FPS, and at 4K Low it reaches 60 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p results in a 24.6% drop, while the transition from 1440p to 4K results in a 32.6% drop. Interestingly, the 4K Low result of 60 FPS is identical to the 4K Medium result of 43 FPS, but the Low preset achieves this with significantly more headroom, suggesting that the 4K Low configuration is the most practical way to play at that resolution with this hardware.

The consistency of the percentage drops across presets is telling. Whether starting from 118 FPS or 65 FPS, the relative performance loss from resolution scaling remains fairly constant, hovering around 25% for the first step and 32% for the second. This uniformity is a hallmark of GPU-bound performance, where the CPU has sufficient headroom to keep up with increased pixel workloads, but the GPU's raw fill rate and memory bandwidth become the bottleneck.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is the dominant component in this pairing for Control. The GPU's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth, and the data shows this is the primary constraint at higher resolutions. The 4K Medium result of 43 FPS with a minimum of 36 FPS and maximum of 49 FPS shows that even at Medium settings, the GPU is working near its limits. The frame time variance at this resolution is notable, with the minimum being 16.3% below the average.

The GPU's clock behavior is relevant here. With a base clock of 1968 MHz and a boost clock of 2589 MHz, the card has a substantial overclocking headroom built into its design. The game clock of 2359 MHz represents the expected sustained frequency during gaming workloads. The 4K results suggest that the GPU is likely running at its boost limits but still cannot maintain higher frame rates, indicating that the 256.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is the limiting factor rather than raw shader throughput.

The GPU's FP32 performance of 10.60 TFLOPS and texture rate of 331.4 GTexel/s are adequate for 1080p and 1440p gaming, as evidenced by the strong results at those resolutions. However, the 4K results show that the 8 GB VRAM capacity and 128-bit memory bus are insufficient for the demands of Control at 4K. The game's particle effects and physics simulations require substantial memory bandwidth, and the 256.0 GB/s provided by this card is not enough to maintain high frame rates at 4K.

The GPU's benchmark scores provide context for its overall capabilities. The Passmark G3D score of 16461 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1804 place this card in the 70th percentile of all GPUs. The nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1630 with a delta of 0.7%, the Intel Arc A350M with a delta of -0.8%, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER with a delta of 1.1%. These close margins in synthetic benchmarks do not translate to similar performance in Control, where the RX 6600 XT's RDNA 2.0 architecture with 32 ray accelerators may provide specific advantages in this game's rendering pipeline.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D plays a supporting role in this configuration, and the data suggests it is not the bottleneck in Control. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads based on Zen 3 architecture, with a base clock of 3.00 GHz and boost clock of 4.00 GHz, provide ample processing power for this game. The 96 MB of shared L3 cache is a significant asset, as Control benefits from large cache capacities for its physics and AI computations.

The CPU's benchmark scores demonstrate its capability. The Passmark multithread score of 20363 and single-thread score of 2941 place it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs. The nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F with a delta of 0.2%, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 with a delta of -0.2%, and the Intel Core i9-12900T with a delta of -0.3%. These extremely close deltas indicate that the 5500X3D is performance-competitive with these alternatives, but the real story is that the CPU's performance is not the limiting factor in this game.

The frame rates across all resolutions and presets show no signs of CPU bottlenecking. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 118 FPS, which would typically be a point where CPU limitations might emerge, but the data shows no such constraint. The consistency of the resolution scaling patterns, regardless of preset, confirms that the CPU has sufficient headroom to feed the GPU at all tested configurations. The 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth from the dual-channel DDR4 setup is adequate for this game's data streaming requirements.

The CPU's TDP of 105 W and the fact that it is a desktop processor with a 7 nm process node from TSMC mean it generates manageable heat while delivering strong single-thread performance. The Passmark physics score of 2282 and floating point math score of 34511 indicate robust computational capabilities that are more than sufficient for Control's physics-based gameplay mechanics.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this hardware combination in Control?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where all presets maintain playable frame rates. At 1080p, even Ultra settings deliver 65 FPS, while 1440p High drops to 56 FPS and 4K High falls to 38 FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Control?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which achieves 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K drops to 43 FPS, and the High and Ultra presets fall to 38 FPS and 33 FPS respectively, making them impractical for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Ryzen 5 5500X3D has an average benchmark score of 37018, which is 0.2% higher than the Ryzen 5 5600F, 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 5 225, and 0.3% lower than the Intel Core i9-12900T. These are all statistically negligible differences.

Q: What is the GPU's performance percentile compared to all GPUs?

A: The Radeon RX 6600 XT ranks in the 70th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 24442. Its closest rival is the Intel Arc A350M, which is 0.8% lower in score.

Q: Is there a significant difference between the Low and Medium presets at 1440p?

A: Yes, the difference is substantial. Low settings produce 89 FPS while Medium settings produce 63 FPS, representing a 29.2% performance drop. This suggests Medium settings introduce significant graphical effects that impact GPU load.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum frame rates at the Medium preset across resolutions?

A: At 1080p Medium, the frame rate ranges from 71 to 96 FPS. At 1440p Medium, it ranges from 54 to 73 FPS. At 4K Medium, it ranges from 36 to 49 FPS. The frame time consistency degrades as resolution increases.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best performance across all presets. The Low preset achieves 118 FPS average, which is the highest recorded result in the entire dataset. Medium settings produce 84 FPS with a range of 71 to 96 FPS. High settings yield 74 FPS, and Ultra settings produce 65 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 53 FPS, representing a 44.9% performance difference between the two extreme presets.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops are consistent. Low settings produce 89 FPS, which remains highly playable. Medium settings deliver 63 FPS with a range of 54 to 73 FPS. High settings produce 56 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 49 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 40 FPS, a 44.9% reduction, matching the percentage gap seen at 1080p.

At 3840x2160, the system's limitations become apparent. Low settings produce exactly 60 FPS, which is the threshold for smooth gameplay. Medium settings drop to 43 FPS with a range of 36 to 49 FPS. High settings produce 38 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 33 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 27 FPS, an 45.0% reduction, maintaining the consistent scaling pattern seen at lower resolutions.

The Medium preset is the only configuration with full min/max data across all three resolutions. The frame time consistency, measured as the difference between max and min FPS, is 25 FPS at 1080p, 19 FPS at 1440p, and 13 FPS at 4K. While the absolute range shrinks as resolution increases, the relative variance (range divided by average) is 29.8% at 1080p, 30.2% at 1440p, and 30.2% at 4K, showing remarkably consistent frame pacing behavior.

Settings Recommendations

The data clearly indicates that the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance for this hardware combination. At 1080p, Medium achieves 84 FPS with a minimum of 71 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay without significant frame drops. At 1440p, Medium maintains 63 FPS with a minimum of 54 FPS, which remains playable for most users. Even at 4K, Medium produces 43 FPS, which while not ideal, is the highest quality preset that remains in the playable range.

For users prioritizing maximum frame rates, the Low preset provides exceptional performance. At 1080p, it achieves 118 FPS, which is ideal for high refresh rate displays. At 1440p, it maintains 89 FPS, and at 4K it holds exactly 60 FPS. The Low preset sacrifices visual fidelity but demonstrates the system's capability to exceed 60 FPS at all tested resolutions.

The High preset is a reasonable middle ground at 1080p and 1440p, producing 74 FPS and 56 FPS respectively. However, at 4K it drops to 38 FPS, making it unsuitable for that resolution. The Ultra preset is only recommended for 1080p gaming, where it achieves 65 FPS, but even at 1440p it falls to 49 FPS, which may be too low for some users.

The data suggests that users with 1440p displays should choose between Low at 89 FPS for competitive play or Medium at 63 FPS for a more visually rich experience. For 4K displays, the Low preset is the only configuration that maintains 60 FPS, making it the recommended choice despite the visual compromise.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT ranks 2054 out of 2888 tested combinations in Control. This places it in the 71st percentile of all tested combos, which is notably lower than the individual component percentiles of 85 for the CPU and 70 for the GPU. The ranking suggests that while both components are competent individually, the combination is not optimal for this specific game.

The ranking of 2054 out of 2888 means that approximately 71% of tested hardware combinations perform better than this setup in Control. This is a moderate ranking that reflects the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions. The CPU's strong performance, as evidenced by its 85th percentile ranking, cannot compensate for the GPU's 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus constraints in this game.

The individual component rankings provide context for the combo's performance. The CPU's 85th percentile ranking indicates it is well above average, while the GPU's 70th percentile is slightly above average. The combination ranking of 71st percentile closely tracks the GPU's percentile, reinforcing the conclusion that the GPU is the limiting factor. This is consistent with the resolution scaling analysis, which showed the GPU being the bottleneck at all tested resolutions.

The data suggests that users seeking better performance in Control would benefit more from upgrading the GPU rather than the CPU. The CPU has substantial headroom, as demonstrated by the consistent frame rates across resolutions, while the GPU shows clear signs of saturation at 1440p and above. The combination's ranking of 2054 out of 2888 places it in the lower middle of the performance distribution, indicating that while it is a capable setup, it is not optimized for this particular game's requirements.