Control

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, running on the AM4 socket. Its base clock is 3.00 GHz with a boost clock of 4.00 GHz, and it uses a 65 W TDP. The chip features a 32 MB shared L3 cache, with 64 KB L1 and 512 KB L2 per core. Memory support is DDR4 over a dual-channel bus, providing 51.2 GB/s of bandwidth. This processor sits in the 85th percentile of all CPUs tested, with an average benchmark score of 36,945.

In Control, the 5600F's role is to feed the RTX 4070 with enough geometry and draw-call data to keep the GPU saturated. The game is an action-adventure title from 2019, which means its CPU demands are moderate by modern standards. The 6-core/12-thread configuration is well-suited for this workload, as Control does not heavily utilize more than a handful of threads in most scenes. The 4.00 GHz boost clock ensures that single-threaded physics and game logic tasks are handled promptly, which is critical for maintaining frame pacing.

The PassMark single-thread score of 2,872 places this CPU in a strong position for gaming. The multi-thread score of 19,236 indicates that even when Control's engine spawns multiple background tasks, the 5600F can handle them without becoming a bottleneck. Data from the benchmark suite shows the CPU scores 232,836 in data compression and 59,339 in integer math, both of which are relevant to game asset decompression and simulation logic. The floating-point score of 34,548 supports the physics calculations that Control's destructible environments and telekinetic combat rely on.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the 5600F is essentially tied with the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 (deltaPct 0), and is a hair behind the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D (deltaPct -0.2) and the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 (deltaPct -0.4). The Intel Core i9-12900T is slightly ahead at deltaPct -0.5. These differences are within noise, so the 5600F's CPU performance is not a differentiator in this combo — the GPU does the heavy lifting.

The CPU's 7 nm process node and 4,150 million transistors on a 74 mm² die indicate an efficient design, but these physical characteristics do not directly translate to gaming performance. What matters is that the 5600F can keep up with the RTX 4070 at 1080p, where the CPU's single-thread performance becomes more relevant. At higher resolutions, the GPU takes over as the primary performance limiter, which the measured FPS data confirms.

FAQ

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 5600F compare to its nearest CPU rivals in raw performance?

A: The 5600F's average benchmark score is 36,945. The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 scores 36,938 (deltaPct 0), the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D scores 37,018 (deltaPct -0.2), the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 scores 37,093 (deltaPct -0.4), and the Intel Core i9-12900T scores 37,112 (deltaPct -0.5). These differences are negligible.

Q: Is the RTX 4070's 12 GB of VRAM sufficient for Control at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The measured data shows 4K Ultra averages 54 FPS. The 12 GB GDDR6X memory with a 192-bit bus and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth is adequate for Control's textures and effects at this resolution. The FPS drop from High to Ultra at 4K (62 to 54) suggests the GPU is rendering-bound, not VRAM-limited.

Q: What is the CPU's PassMark multi-thread performance, and why does it matter for Control?

A: The multi-thread score is 19,236. Control uses multiple threads for physics, AI, and streaming, so a strong multi-thread score helps maintain consistent frame times. The 6-core/12-thread layout provides enough parallelism for these tasks without oversaturating the scheduler.

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

A: This specific combo (Ryzen 5 5600F + RTX 4070) ranks 700 out of 2,888 tested combos in Control, placing it in the top 24% of all systems tested.

Q: What is the RTX 4070's launch MSRP?

A: The RTX 4070 had a launch MSRP of 599 USD. The card uses a 200 W TDP and requires a 550 W suggested PSU.

Q: Does the 5600F bottleneck the RTX 4070 at 1080p?

A: At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 187 FPS, which is very high. The CPU's single-thread score of 2,872 is strong enough to avoid bottlenecking in most Control scenes. However, the 1080p Ultra result of 106 FPS is lower than the Low setting result, indicating that the GPU is still the primary limiter even at lower resolutions.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data reveals a clear scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1080p High, the combo averages 122 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops this to 92 FPS, and 4K High lands at 62 FPS. This represents a 25% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 33% further reduction from 1440p to 4K. These are significant but not linear drops, which indicates the RTX 4070 is becoming increasingly GPU-bound as pixel count rises.

Looking at the Low settings across resolutions: 1080p Low averages 187 FPS, 1440p Low averages 146 FPS, and 4K Low averages 98 FPS. The 1440p Low result is 78% of the 1080p Low figure, while 4K Low is 67% of the 1440p Low figure. This consistent degradation suggests that even at Low settings, the GPU's rasterization throughput is the limiting factor. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the FPS to remain relatively flat across resolutions at Low settings, but it does not.

The Medium settings row is the only one with min/max FPS data. At 1080p Medium, the average is 137 FPS with a range of 116–157. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 104 FPS (range 88–119). At 4K Medium, the average is 70 FPS (range 59–80). The min FPS at 4K Medium (59) is below the 60 FPS threshold, which could cause perceptible stutter on a 60 Hz display. This suggests that Medium at 4K is a borderline experience, while High and Ultra are more consistent.

The scaling from Ultra settings is similar: 1080p Ultra averages 106 FPS, 1440p Ultra averages 80 FPS, and 4K Ultra averages 54 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is just below 60 FPS, making it less than ideal for smooth gameplay. The pattern across all settings confirms that the RTX 4070's compute capabilities are the dominant factor in this combo's performance. The 5600F has sufficient headroom to avoid becoming a bottleneck even at 1080p Low, where the GPU is still producing 187 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific configuration of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 achieves a rank of 700 out of 2,888 tested combos in Control. This places the combo in the 76th percentile of all tested systems, meaning it outperforms roughly three-quarters of the configurations in the database. The rank is a combination of both CPU and GPU performance, but given the GPU's 81st percentile ranking versus the CPU's 85th percentile, the combo's overall rank is pulled down slightly by the GPU's relative position.

The RTX 4070's average benchmark score is 37,648, which places it in the 81st percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla P4 (deltaPct 0.1), the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 (deltaPct 0.4), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile (deltaPct -1.3), and the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 (deltaPct 1.3). These rival scores are very close, indicating that the RTX 4070 sits in a tightly packed performance cluster. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 26,927 is the most relevant metric for gaming performance, and it confirms that this card is a strong 1440p-class GPU.

The combo rank of 700 out of 2,888 is respectable but not top-tier. For context, the top 10% of combos would be ranked 289 or better. This combo sits outside that tier, which is consistent with the RTX 4070 being a mid-range-to-upper-mid-range GPU rather than a flagship. The 5600F's contribution to the rank is positive, as its 85th percentile CPU score is higher than the GPU's 81st percentile, meaning the CPU is not dragging the combo down.

The rank also reflects Control's specific optimization. As a 2019 title, Control benefits from modern GPU architectures like Ada Lovelace, but it does not heavily utilize ray tracing or DLSS in the measured settings. The RTX 4070's 46 RT cores and 184 tensor cores are available for these features, but the measured FPS data is for rasterized rendering only. This means the combo's rank could improve if ray tracing were enabled, but the measured data does not include those scenarios.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

1080p (1920x1080):

• Low: 187 FPS average
• Medium: 137 FPS average (min 116, max 157)
• High: 122 FPS average
• Ultra: 106 FPS average

The 1080p results show a clear progression: dropping from Low to Medium costs 50 FPS (27%), while moving from Medium to High costs 15 FPS (11%), and High to Ultra costs 16 FPS (13%). This suggests that the Low setting is stretching the GPU's fill-rate capabilities, while the gap between Medium and Ultra is more moderate. The 106 FPS at Ultra is still well above 60 FPS, making 1080p Ultra a fully playable experience.

1440p (2560x1440):

• Low: 146 FPS average
• Medium: 104 FPS average (min 88, max 119)
• High: 92 FPS average
• Ultra: 80 FPS average

At 1440p, the pattern is similar but with lower absolute numbers. Low to Medium drops 42 FPS (29%), Medium to High drops 12 FPS (12%), and High to Ultra drops 12 FPS (13%). The 80 FPS at Ultra is still smooth, and even the minimum FPS at Medium (88) is well above 60. This resolution is the sweet spot for this combo, offering high frame rates with quality settings.

4K (3840x2160):

• Low: 98 FPS average
• Medium: 70 FPS average (min 59, max 80)
• High: 62 FPS average
• Ultra: 54 FPS average

The 4K results show the RTX 4070 hitting its limits. Low to Medium drops 28 FPS (29%), Medium to High drops 8 FPS (11%), and High to Ultra drops 8 FPS (13%). The 70 FPS at Medium is playable, but the minimum of 59 FPS is a concern. High at 62 FPS is borderline, and Ultra at 54 FPS is below the 60 FPS target. For 4K gaming, users should stick to Medium or Low settings to maintain smooth frame rates.

Across all resolutions, the Medium setting consistently shows the largest absolute FPS difference from Low, while the High-to-Ultra gap is smaller. This suggests that Control's Ultra preset adds visual effects that are less GPU-intensive than the step from Low to Medium, which may represent a significant quality jump in texture filtering and shadow resolution.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset at 106 FPS is the clear recommendation. The game runs well above the 60 FPS target, and the visual fidelity of Ultra settings is the best available in the measured data. Even the most demanding scenes are unlikely to drop below the minimums seen at Medium (116 FPS), so there is no reason to sacrifice quality. The 122 FPS at High is also excellent, but Ultra's 106 FPS is still smooth and offers maximum visual quality.

At 1440p, the Ultra preset at 80 FPS is the best choice for most players. The 80 FPS average is well above 60, and the visual quality improvement from High (92 FPS) to Ultra (80 FPS) is worth the 12 FPS cost. The Medium preset at 104 FPS is also viable for competitive play or if frame rate consistency is prioritized over visual fidelity. However, the minimum FPS at Medium (88) is already high, so there is little risk of stutter at Ultra.

For 4K, the Medium preset at 70 FPS is the recommended starting point. The minimum FPS of 59 is just below 60, but the average is solid. The High preset at 62 FPS is also playable, but the average is close to the minimum threshold. The Ultra preset at 54 FPS is not recommended for smooth gameplay, as it will dip below 60 FPS regularly. The Low preset at 98 FPS is overkill for most displays and sacrifices too much visual quality.

The overall best experience across all resolutions is the 1440p Ultra setting at 80 FPS. This balances visual fidelity with frame rate, and the 80 FPS average leaves enough headroom for scene complexity spikes. The 1080p Ultra at 106 FPS is the best raw performance option, but 1440p provides a sharper image that takes better advantage of the RTX 4070's capabilities.

For players with high-refresh-rate 1080p monitors (144 Hz or higher), the Low preset at 187 FPS is the only way to fully utilize the display's refresh rate, but this sacrifices visual quality. A more balanced approach would be High at 122 FPS, which still exceeds most 120 Hz displays' capabilities. The Medium preset at 137 FPS is a middle ground, but the min FPS of 116 ensures it stays above 100 FPS at all times.

In summary, the data supports these recommendations: 1080p Ultra, 1440p Ultra, and 4K Medium. These settings offer the best combination of visual quality and frame rate stability based on the measured FPS values. The combo is not well-suited for 4K Ultra, but it handles 1440p Ultra with ease, making that the primary target resolution for this system.