Control

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for this AMD Ryzen 5 5600X + Radeon RX 7800 XT combination in Control shows a clear and expected scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo delivers 110 FPS average. Moving to 2560x1440 at High settings drops that to 83 FPS, a reduction of 27 FPS. At 3840x2160, the average falls further to 56 FPS. This trajectory reveals that the GPU is the primary scaling factor; the CPU headroom at lower resolutions is substantial, as evidenced by the 174 FPS at 1080p Low settings.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at High settings represents a 24.5% performance loss, while the jump from 1440p to 4K at High settings costs another 32.5%. This is a classic symptom of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. The data indicates that at 1080p, the system is likely pushing against the CPU's limits in less demanding scenes, but the overall frame rates remain high enough to suggest a balanced pairing for most users.

At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 49, which is below the 60 FPS threshold many consider ideal for smooth action gameplay. This suggests that for 4K gaming with maximum quality presets, this combination will require some settings compromises. Interestingly, the scaling between Low and Ultra settings at each resolution is consistent: at 1080p, the spread is 174 FPS (Low) down to 96 FPS (Ultra); at 1440p, it ranges from 132 FPS to 72 FPS; and at 4K, from 89 FPS to 49 FPS.

The fact that 4K Low (89 FPS) outperforms 1440p Ultra (72 FPS) by a significant margin highlights how much of the performance budget is consumed by pixel count and quality presets. The resolution scaling pattern strongly indicates that the RX 7800 XT's 16 GB memory buffer and 256-bit bus are sufficient for 4K, but the raw compute throughput at 37.32 TFLOPS FP32 becomes the limiting factor when pushing extreme pixel counts and settings simultaneously.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Control, this pairing of the Ryzen 5 5600X and Radeon RX 7800 XT achieves a combo rank of 1254 out of 3720 tested combos. This places it in the 66.3rd percentile of all tested system configurations for this game. The rank is a composite measure that accounts for both CPU and GPU contributions to frame rates across all tested resolutions and settings.

The CPU alone sits at the 75th percentile vs all CPUs, which is a solid position for a mid-range processor. The GPU, however, ranks at the 51st percentile vs all GPUs, which is surprisingly modest given its modern architecture. This discrepancy between the CPU's relative standing and the GPU's percentile suggests that the RX 7800 XT's average benchmark scores are dragged down by comparisons across a wide range of synthetic tests, even though its in-game performance in Control is respectable.

When examining the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Ryzen 5 5600X posts an average benchmark score of 21771, which is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 7 4800H (21749, deltaPct 0.1%), the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 6650U (21874, deltaPct -0.5%), and the Intel Core i7-11700 (21891, deltaPct -0.5%). This indicates that in synthetic workloads, the 5600X is effectively tied with these competitors, despite differences in core counts and architectures.

For the GPU, the RX 7800 XT's average benchmark score of 11627 places it near the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 (11680, deltaPct -0.5%), AMD Radeon Pro 5500M (11528, deltaPct 0.9%), and NVIDIA Tesla K20c (11479, deltaPct 1.3%). This is notable because the GTX 1660 is an older, lower-tier card, yet the synthetic averages are close. However, the in-game data for Control shows the RX 7800 XT performing much better than that comparison would suggest, highlighting the importance of game-specific testing over synthetic averages.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT is built on the Navi 32 chip with RDNA 3.0 architecture, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The GPU houses 28,100 million transistors on a 346 mm² die, giving it a transistor density of 81.2M per mm². Its memory configuration is substantial: 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, providing 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock runs at 2438 MHz, which translates to 19.5 Gbps effective.

In Control, the GPU's role is clearly dominant at higher resolutions. The 4K Medium result of 63 FPS with a minimum of 54 FPS and maximum of 73 FPS shows consistency, while the 1440p Medium numbers (94 FPS average, 80 min, 108 max) demonstrate strong performance. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is ample for Control, which does not require excessive memory at these settings, but it ensures there is no bottleneck from texture streaming or memory pressure.

The GPU's boost clock of 2430 MHz and game clock of 2124 MHz are relatively high for a modern card, and the pixel rate of 233.3 GPixel/s and texture rate of 583.2 GTexel/s provide the raw throughput needed for the game's particle effects and physics interactions. The RT cores (60 of them) are present but Control's implementation of ray tracing is not heavily exercised in these measurements, as the settings listed do not explicitly specify RT enabled.

The 263 W TDP and dual-slot design indicate a power-hungry card, but the data shows it delivers consistent performance across the resolution spectrum. The GPU's percentile rank of 51 vs all GPUs is misleading for this title; the measured FPS in Control at 1440p High (83 FPS) and 4K High (56 FPS) are respectable figures that align with the card's positioning above the RX 6500 XT (avgScore 11842, deltaPct -1.8%) in synthetic tests, though the in-game results are far stronger than that delta suggests.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 174 FPS, which is exceptional for fast-paced action. Medium settings yield 124 FPS with a minimum of 105 and maximum of 142 FPS, showing good frame time consistency. High settings average 110 FPS, while Ultra drops to 96 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 78 FPS, indicating that the quality presets have a significant impact on GPU workload at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS figures are 132 (Low), 94 (Medium, with 80 min and 108 max), 83 (High), and 72 (Ultra). The Medium settings result at 1440p is particularly noteworthy because the minimum of 80 FPS is still well above the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting that this is a sweet spot for players seeking high refresh rates without sacrificing too much visual quality. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at each setting tier is roughly 24-28%, which is typical for this resolution increase.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes more constrained. Low settings average 89 FPS, Medium averages 63 FPS (54 min, 73 max), High averages 56 FPS, and Ultra averages 49 FPS. The 4K Low result is impressive, but the Ultra setting falls below 50 FPS, which may be problematic for players who demand maximum quality. The gap between 4K Medium and 4K High is only 7 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns as settings increase, but the jump from Low to Medium costs 26 FPS, indicating that the Medium preset introduces a significant computational load.

The data also reveals that the min FPS values, when recorded, are within reasonable range of the averages. At 1080p Medium, the min of 105 FPS is only 15% below the average of 124 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the min of 80 FPS is 15% below the 94 FPS average. At 4K Medium, the min of 54 FPS is 14% below the 63 FPS average. This consistency suggests stable frame pacing without major stutters.

FAQ

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

A: Based on the measured FPS, 1440p with Medium settings provides the best balance, achieving 94 FPS average with a minimum of 80 FPS. This offers high frame rates while maintaining visual quality.

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

A: Yes, but with compromises. At 4K High settings, it averages 56 FPS, and at 4K Low, it reaches 89 FPS. For a smooth 60 FPS experience, players would need to use Low or Medium settings at 4K.

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

A: The Ryzen 5 5600X has an average benchmark score of 21771, which is 0.1% above the AMD Ryzen 7 4800H and 0.5% below the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 6650U and Intel Core i7-11700. These differences are negligible in real-world performance.

Q: Is the GPU's synthetic benchmark score reflective of its in-game performance?

A: No. The RX 7800 XT has an average benchmark score of 11627, which is only 0.5% below the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660. However, in Control, the card delivers 110 FPS at 1080p High, far exceeding what the GTX 1660 would achieve, showing that synthetic scores do not fully capture gaming performance.

Q: What is the frame rate consistency like at 1440p Medium?

A: The data shows an average of 94 FPS, with a minimum of 80 FPS and a maximum of 108 FPS. The 14 FPS gap between average and minimum indicates good frame pacing with no severe drops.

Q: How much performance is lost from 1080p to 4K?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 110 at 1080p to 83 at 1440p, then to 56 at 4K. This represents a 49% reduction from 1080p to 4K, highlighting the GPU's diminishing returns at higher pixel counts.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture with the Vermeer codename. It operates on the AMD Socket AM4 with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. The CPU's 65 W TDP is modest, and it supports DDR4 memory with dual-channel configuration and a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. The L3 cache is 32 MB, which is crucial for gaming performance, and the process node is 7 nm at TSMC, housing 4,150 million transistors on a 74 mm² die.

In Control, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics calculations. The benchmark results from Cinebench R23 show a multicore score of 11838 and a single-core score of 1541. The single-core performance is particularly relevant for Control, which is not heavily multithreaded. The 3DMark scores also indicate strong thread scaling: 2-thread score of 1793, 4-thread of 3363, 8-thread of 4811, and max-thread of 5588, which is nearly identical to the 16-thread score of 5582. This suggests that beyond 8 threads, there is minimal performance gain, implying the game does not fully utilize all 12 threads.

The CPU's percentile rank of 75 vs all CPUs indicates it outperforms three-quarters of tested processors. Its nearest rivals in synthetic tests include the AMD Ryzen 7 4800H (8-core, but deltaPct 0.1%), the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 6650U (deltaPct -0.5%), and the Intel Core i7-11700 (deltaPct -0.5%). These scores show that the 5600X holds its own against higher-core-count parts, thanks to its efficient Zen 3 architecture.

In the measured FPS data, the impact of the CPU is most visible at 1080p Low settings, where the 174 FPS average likely approaches the CPU's ceiling for frame generation. At higher resolutions, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the CPU's contribution diminishes. The fact that the combo achieves 56 FPS at 4K High suggests the CPU is not holding back the GPU, as the frame rate is consistent with GPU-bound behavior. The Cinebench R15 single-core score of 254 and Geekbench single-core of 1989 further confirm the strong per-thread performance needed for this game's engine.

The CPU's memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s is adequate for the game's data streaming needs, and the 32 MB L3 cache helps reduce latency for frequently accessed data. Overall, the Ryzen 5 5600X provides sufficient processing power to avoid becoming a limiting factor in Control, except at the lowest resolution and settings where frame rates exceed 170 FPS, which is beyond what most displays can show.