Control

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600GT paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D presents an unusual matchup in Control: a mid-range 6-core CPU from 2024 alongside a flagship 32 GB GPU from 2025. The measured frame rates across resolutions and presets reveal a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher settings, yet the CPU’s capabilities still set the ceiling at lower presets. This analysis breaks down the data to show exactly where each component matters.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data across all three resolutions consistently shows that the High preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance for this combo. At 1920x1080, High delivers 188 FPS average, which is only 36 FPS behind Low’s 224 FPS but a substantial 25 FPS ahead of Ultra’s 163 FPS. The jump from High to Ultra costs 25 FPS at 1080p, while the jump from High to Medium only gains 9 FPS. This pattern holds at 2560x1440, where High produces 142 FPS, Medium 160 FPS, and Ultra drops to 124 FPS. The 18 FPS gain from High to Medium is modest, but the 18 FPS loss from High to Ultra is more noticeable.

At 3840x2160, the High preset’s advantage becomes even clearer. High runs at 96 FPS, while Medium manages 108 FPS and Ultra falls to 83 FPS. The 4K Ultra setting pushes the GPU hard enough that the 13 FPS difference from High may be acceptable for some, but the data suggests diminishing returns. Low is the outlier in every resolution—it produces 152 FPS at 4K, 204 FPS at 1440p, and 224 FPS at 1080p—but these numbers come with substantially reduced visual fidelity that the benchmark data cannot quantify. For a game like Control with its physics-heavy environments, the Medium preset’s minimum frame rates are worth noting: 92 FPS at 4K, 136 FPS at 1440p, and 167 FPS at 1080p. These min FPS values are only recorded for Medium, suggesting that preset has the most stable frame pacing. The recommendation is to start with High, as it provides strong averages without the steep Ultra penalty, and drop to Medium only if minimum frame rates matter more than peak averages.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600GT is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 5000 series, built on Zen 3 architecture with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.60 GHz. Its 16 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth are typical for this class. The CPU’s benchmark scores place it in the 74th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 20,733. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12490F, scores 20,802, which is only 0.3% higher. This means the 5600GT is essentially at parity with that competitor.

In Control, the CPU’s role appears secondary to the GPU at most settings. The measured FPS differences between resolutions at the same preset show the GPU scaling, but the CPU’s 12 threads and 6 cores are sufficient to feed the RTX 5090 D at 1080p Low, where 224 FPS is achieved. However, the data hints at CPU limitations at lower resolutions. At 1920x1080, the jump from Low (224 FPS) to High (188 FPS) is 36 FPS, but at 4K, the same preset jump only costs 56 FPS (from 152 to 96). This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is doing more work per frame relative to the GPU, and the 5600GT’s single-thread performance—3dmark single-thread score of 913 and Cinebench R23 single-core of 2,438—may be the limiting factor for pushing beyond 224 FPS. The CPU’s multicore scores, like Cinebench R23 multicore at 17,272, are solid but not exceptional, and Control is known for using multiple threads for physics simulations. The 3dmark 8-thread score of 4,968 versus max-thread score of 5,554 indicates that scaling beyond 8 threads yields only an 11% improvement, meaning the game likely relies on fewer threads where this CPU’s per-core efficiency matters more.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a monster of a GPU: 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus delivering 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, with a boost clock of 2407 MHz. Its 21,760 shading units and 170 RT cores are built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture. The GPU’s benchmark scores place it in the 92nd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT, scores 76,904, which is 1.1% lower, while the RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, which is 1.6% higher. This places the 5090 D in a competitive bracket despite its flagship positioning.

In Control, the GPU’s massive memory and bandwidth are clearly leveraged at high resolutions. At 4K, the difference between Low and High settings is 56 FPS (152 vs 96), while at 1080p, the same difference is only 36 FPS (224 vs 188). This scaling indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K, where its 32 GB VRAM and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth are being taxed by higher-resolution textures and effects. The GPU’s FP32 performance of 104.8 TFLOPS is reflected in the High preset performance at 1440p, where 142 FPS is achieved—a figure that would be impossible without the GPU’s raw compute. However, the GPU’s nearest rivals in benchmark scores are all mobile or data-center parts, which suggests that in gaming workloads, the 5090 D may not fully utilize its theoretical advantage. The measured data shows that at 1080p Low, the 224 FPS is likely near the CPU’s limit, as the GPU has headroom but cannot be fed faster. This is a classic case where the GPU’s capabilities outstrip the CPU’s ability to issue draw calls.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of AMD Ryzen 5 5600GT and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks 59th out of 2,888 tested combos in Control. That places it in the top 2% of all tested configurations, which is impressive given the CPU is not a high-end part. The ranking suggests that the GPU dominates the performance equation, as the 5090 D’s 92nd percentile GPU score outweighs the CPU’s 74th percentile score. The combo’s rank of 59 means there are 58 other combinations that perform better, likely pairing the 5090 D with faster CPUs like higher-core-count Ryzen 5000 series chips or Intel 12th gen parts.

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the Intel Core i5-12490F scores nearly identically (0.3% higher), so swapping the 5600GT for that CPU would likely not change the combo’s rank significantly. The GPU’s nearest rivals are all within 2.4% of its score, but none of those are desktop gaming GPUs—they are mobile or data-center parts. This means the 5090 D’s gaming performance in Control is not directly comparable to its benchmark rivals, and the combo rank reflects the GPU’s actual gaming capabilities rather than synthetic scores. The 59th rank out of 2,888 is a strong result, and the data implies that the CPU is not holding the combo back at 4K, where the GPU is clearly the limiting factor. At 1080p, however, the CPU’s lower single-thread performance compared to top-tier chips may be why this combo doesn’t crack the top 20.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drops from 1080p to 4K reveal where the bottleneck lies. At High settings, the progression is 188 FPS at 1080p → 142 FPS at 1440p → 96 FPS at 4K. That is a 24.5% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a 32.4% drop from 1440p to 4K. At Low settings, the progression is 224 FPS at 1080p → 204 FPS at 1440p → 152 FPS at 4K. The Low preset shows a smaller drop from 1080p to 1440p (8.9%) but a larger drop from 1440p to 4K (25.5%). At Medium settings, the numbers are 197 FPS at 1080p → 160 FPS at 1440p → 108 FPS at 4K, with drops of 18.8% and 32.5% respectively.

These patterns indicate that at 1080p, the system is not fully GPU-bound—the 224 FPS Low result is likely near the CPU’s maximum frame output, so the GPU is underutilized. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the FPS drops become more pronounced. The fact that the High preset’s drop from 1440p to 4K (32.4%) is similar to Medium’s (32.5%) suggests that the GPU’s workload scales consistently with resolution regardless of settings. However, the Low preset’s smaller drop from 1080p to 1440p (8.9%) versus the larger drop to 4K (25.5%) implies that at 1440p Low, the CPU is still partially limiting performance. This is a classic sign of a CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions and settings, where the GPU has enough headroom to render frames faster than the CPU can feed it. The data strongly suggests that for this combo, the optimal resolution is 1440p, where the GPU is adequately loaded without the CPU becoming a severe constraint.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS across presets is as follows:

• Low: 224 FPS
• Medium: 197 FPS (min 167, max 226)
• High: 188 FPS
• Ultra: 163 FPS

The Medium preset at 1080p has the only recorded min/max range, showing a 59 FPS spread between minimum and maximum. The 36 FPS gap between Low and High is notable, but the 25 FPS gap between High and Ultra is more significant for those seeking maximum quality.

At 2560x1440:

• Low: 204 FPS
• Medium: 160 FPS (min 136, max 184)
• High: 142 FPS
• Ultra: 124 FPS

The 1440p results show a tighter grouping, with 80 FPS separating Low from Ultra. The Medium preset’s min FPS of 136 is still above 60 FPS, indicating smooth gameplay. The drop from High to Ultra is 18 FPS, which is less severe than at 1080p, suggesting the GPU is becoming more of a factor.

At 3840x2160:

• Low: 152 FPS
• Medium: 108 FPS (min 92, max 124)
• High: 96 FPS
• Ultra: 83 FPS

The 4K results show a dramatic scaling, with Low nearly double the FPS of Ultra. The Medium preset’s min FPS of 92 is still respectable, but the High preset at 96 FPS average means some scenes may drop below 60 FPS. The Ultra preset at 83 FPS average is playable but leaves little headroom for demanding sequences.

The data shows that the Medium preset consistently has the most stable frame pacing, with recorded min/max values at every resolution, while other presets lack this data, implying less variance or less testing depth.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo better suited for 1080p or 4K gaming?

A: The data shows the system delivers 224 FPS at 1080p Low and 188 FPS at 1080p High, but at 4K High it drops to 96 FPS. The resolution scaling analysis indicates the CPU limits performance at 1080p, while the GPU becomes the bottleneck at 4K. The sweet spot is 1440p, where High preset achieves 142 FPS with balanced component utilization.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 5600GT compare to its closest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The 5600GT has an average benchmark score of 20,733, placing it in the 74th percentile. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12490F, scores 20,802, which is only 0.3% higher. The other rivals are within 0.5% of its score, indicating this CPU is well-matched against its direct competitors.

*Q: What is the GPU’s percentile ranking, and what does that mean for Control?*

A: The RTX 5090 D is in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT, scores 1.1% lower, while the RX 6850M XT scores 1.6% higher. This high percentile is reflected in the 4K High result of 96 FPS, which is strong for a demanding game.

Q: Which preset provides the most stable frame rates?

A: The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values at all three resolutions. At 1080p, it ranges from 167 to 226 FPS; at 1440p, from 136 to 184 FPS; and at 4K, from 92 to 124 FPS. This consistency suggests Medium offers the most predictable performance.

Q: Can this CPU handle the RTX 5090 D at lower settings?

A: The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 224 FPS, but the CPU’s single-thread score of 913 in 3dmark and 2,438 in Cinebench R23 suggest it may be the limiting factor above this threshold. The resolution scaling shows a smaller FPS drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings (8.9%) compared to High settings (24.5%), indicating the CPU is more of a constraint at lower resolutions.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: This combo ranks 59th out of 2,888 tested combos in Control, placing it in the top 2% of all configurations. This high rank is driven primarily by the GPU’s 92nd percentile performance, as the CPU’s 74th percentile score is less influential in this game’s GPU-heavy workloads.