Control

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates for Control with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 reveal a pronounced shift in performance characteristics as resolution climbs. At 1080p with High settings, the combo delivers 161 FPS average; stepping up to 1440p drops that to 122 FPS, a 24% reduction. Moving to 4K High brings the average down to 82 FPS, which is 49% below the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is steep, indicating that the GPU is being increasingly taxed as pixel count rises, but the frame rates remain high enough to suggest headroom in the system.

The Low preset tells a clearer story about the CPU's contribution. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 225 FPS average, while 1440p Low yields 193 FPS and 4K Low produces 130 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 14%, and from 1440p to 4K is 33%. The fact that even at 4K Low the system still holds 130 FPS average indicates that the RTX 5080 is never fully idle, but the relatively smaller gap between 1080p and 1440p Low (32 FPS) compared to the jump from 1440p to 4K (63 FPS) suggests the CPU can feed frames efficiently at lower resolutions, with the GPU becoming the dominant limiter only at 4K.

The Medium preset, which is the only setting with recorded minimum and maximum frame times, shows 181 FPS average at 1080p with a 154 FPS minimum and 209 FPS maximum. At 1440p Medium, the average is 137 FPS with a 117 FPS minimum and 158 FPS maximum. The 4K Medium result averages 93 FPS, with a 79 FPS minimum and 107 FPS maximum. The consistency of these minimums—roughly 85% of the average in each case—indicates stable frame pacing even when the GPU is under heavy load. The Ultra preset shows the steepest scaling: 140 FPS at 1080p, 106 FPS at 1440p, and 72 FPS at 4K. That 4K Ultra figure is just 51% of the 1080p Ultra performance, confirming that ray tracing and other Ultra features impose a significant geometric cost as resolution rises.

The limiting component shifts based on preset and resolution. At 1080p Low, where the GPU has comparatively little work, the CPU's Zen 3 architecture with 6 cores and 12 threads can push 225 FPS. At 4K Ultra, the GPU's raw throughput becomes the bottleneck, and the frame rate falls to 72 FPS. The data indicates that neither component is severely underpowered for this game; instead, the balance favors the GPU at higher resolutions and the CPU at lower ones. The RTX 5080's 16 GB of GDDR7 memory and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth are likely sufficient for the 4K Ultra preset, as the 72 FPS average remains playable, though not ideal for high-refresh displays.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Vermeer, built on TSMC's 7 nm process. Its base clock is 3.70 GHz with a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, and it draws 65 W TDP. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU scores 11,838 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1,541 in single-core, while Geekbench shows 9,173 multi-core and 1,989 single-core. The 3DMark results range from 917 in single-thread to 5,588 in max-threads, indicating a balanced scaling pattern that suggests the processor can handle lightly-threaded game workloads effectively.

In Control, the CPU's role is most evident at 1080p Low, where the combo achieves 225 FPS average. This is the highest measured frame rate across all settings and resolutions, and it indicates that the 5600X can sustain a high instruction throughput for the game's physics and logic systems. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 1,793 and single-thread score of 917 suggest strong per-core performance, which is critical for a game that often relies on a few primary threads. The CPU's 32 MB L3 cache likely helps maintain low latency for game data, and the 4,150 million transistors on a 74 mm² die contribute to efficient power delivery and thermal headroom.

Compared to its nearest rivals in the database, the 5600X holds its ground. Its average benchmark score of 21,771 is 0.1% above the AMD Ryzen 7 4800H (21,749) and 0.5% above the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 6650U (21,874). It trails the Intel Core i7-11700 (21,891) by 0.5% and the AMD EPYC 9554P (21,899) by 0.6%. These deltas are negligible, meaning the 5600X offers competitive compute performance for its class. The CPU's percentile rank of 75 against all CPUs in the database reinforces that it sits above the median, though not in the top tier.

The measured FPS data shows that at 1440p High, the combo delivers 122 FPS, which is 24% lower than 1080p High (161 FPS). This gap is smaller than the 4K High drop (82 FPS, 49% lower than 1080p), suggesting the CPU still has influence at 1440p. At 1080p Medium, the system hits 181 FPS with a 154 FPS minimum, indicating the CPU can maintain consistent frame delivery. The 5600X's boost clock of 4.60 GHz likely helps in scenarios where single-core performance is paramount, and the 12 threads provide enough parallel capacity for the game's background tasks without becoming a constraint.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU built on TSMC's 5 nm process, featuring 45,600 million transistors on a 378 mm² die. It boosts to 2,617 MHz with a base clock of 2,295 MHz, and its memory subsystem includes 16 GB of GDDR7 on a 256-bit bus, providing 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU has 10,752 shading units, 336 texture mapping units, and 112 ROPs, with 84 RT cores and 336 Tensor cores. Its FP32 performance is rated at 56.28 TFLOPS, and the pixel rate is 293.1 GPixel/s with a texture rate of 879.3 GTexel/s.

In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 5080 scores 36,565 in Passmark G3D and 21,789 in Passmark GPU Compute, with a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8,637. Geekbench results show 235,901 in OpenCL and 255,450 in Vulkan. The GPU's average benchmark score of 56,083 places it in the 87th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon 8060S (55,757, 0.6% lower), AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55,698, 0.7% lower), and AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (54,828, 2.3% lower). The AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE (57,367) is 2.2% higher, meaning the RTX 5080 sits just below the top of its immediate competitor set.

The GPU's role in Control becomes dominant as resolution and settings increase. At 4K Ultra, the combo averages 72 FPS, which is the lowest measured result and indicates the GPU is fully saturated. The 4K High result of 82 FPS and 4K Medium of 93 FPS show a clear progression, with the GPU's compute and memory bandwidth being the primary drivers. The 16 GB VRAM is likely sufficient for the game's textures at 4K Ultra, as the frame rate drops are consistent with compute load rather than memory spillover. The 960.0 GB/s bandwidth provides ample headroom for the game's asset streaming, and the 84 RT cores handle any ray-traced effects in the Ultra preset without causing a catastrophic frame time spike.

At 1080p Low, the GPU is partially idle, as evidenced by the 225 FPS average, which is more than triple the 4K Ultra result. This indicates that the CPU can issue draw calls faster than the GPU can process them at low settings, but the GPU's peak throughput is not the limiting factor. The 1440p Low result of 193 FPS and 4K Low of 130 FPS show that the GPU scales predictably with pixel count, and the 56.28 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is sufficient to maintain high frame rates even at 4K when visual effects are reduced. The GPU's 112 ROPs and 293.1 GPixel/s pixel rate likely contribute to the solid minimum frame rates observed in the Medium preset across all resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy of performance across presets, and the optimal choice depends on the target resolution and frame rate preference. At 1080p, the High preset delivers 161 FPS average, which is suitable for high-refresh monitors. The Medium preset at 181 FPS offers a 12% improvement over High, with a 154 FPS minimum that ensures smoothness, while the Ultra preset at 140 FPS is still playable but with diminishing returns over High. For 1080p, Medium is the best balance of frame rate and visual fidelity, as the 181 FPS average with a 154 FPS minimum provides a consistent experience without the steep cost of Ultra.

At 1440p, the High preset averages 122 FPS, which is solid for most displays. The Medium preset at 137 FPS with a 117 FPS minimum offers a better frame rate with a modest visual reduction, and the Ultra preset at 106 FPS remains viable for 60 Hz panels. The data suggests that Medium is the preferred choice at 1440p for competitive play, while High is acceptable for slower-paced exploration. The Low preset at 193 FPS is only relevant for extreme refresh rate scenarios, but the visual compromise is likely too severe for the game's atmospheric presentation.

At 4K, the situation changes. The High preset averages 82 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold, and the Medium preset at 93 FPS with a 79 FPS minimum provides a more comfortable margin. The Ultra preset at 72 FPS is playable but close to the edge for 60 Hz displays, and the Low preset at 130 FPS sacrifices too much visual quality for the resolution. The recommended setting for 4K is Medium, as it delivers the highest average frame rate among presets that maintain meaningful visual fidelity, and the 79 FPS minimum ensures that brief dips stay above the 60 FPS line. The High preset is a secondary option for users who prioritize image quality over a larger frame rate cushion.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 ranks 228th out of 3,720 tested combos in Control, placing it in the top 6.1% of all configurations in the database. This is a strong result, indicating that the pairing is well-suited for the game's demands. The rank reflects the balance between the CPU's 6-core, 12-thread design and the GPU's high-end Blackwell architecture, which together deliver the measured frame rates across all settings and resolutions.

The 228th position out of 3,720 combos suggests that there are 227 configurations that perform better, likely featuring higher-tier CPUs (such as those with more cores or newer architectures) paired with the same or more powerful GPUs. However, the 5600X's percentile rank of 75 against all CPUs and the RTX 5080's percentile rank of 87 against all GPUs indicate that this combo sits above average in both components. The CPU's nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 4800H, has an average score just 0.1% lower, meaning the 5600X is competitive with mobile high-end parts, while the GPU's nearest rival, the AMD Radeon 8060S, is 0.6% lower, showing the RTX 5080 holds a slight edge.

The measured FPS data confirms that this combo can handle Control at high settings across all resolutions, with only the 4K Ultra preset dipping below 80 FPS average. The 228th rank out of 3,720 reflects the combo's ability to maintain high frame rates, and the data suggests that users with this configuration can expect a smooth experience at 1080p and 1440p, with 4K requiring a preset choice between Medium and High for optimal performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Control?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 225, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 Ultra, the combo delivers an average of 72 FPS, which is the lowest measured result but still above the 60 FPS threshold for playability.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested configurations in Control?

A: The combo ranks 228th out of 3,720 tested combos, placing it in the top 6.1% of all configurations.

Q: Which preset provides the best frame rate stability at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers 137 FPS average with a 117 FPS minimum and 158 FPS maximum, offering the best balance of stability and performance.

Q: How does the RTX 5080 compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5080's average benchmark score of 56,083 is 0.6% higher than the AMD Radeon 8060S (55,757) and 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55,698).

Q: What is the difference between 1080p High and 4K High average FPS?

A: At 1920x1080 High, the combo averages 161 FPS, while at 3840x2160 High, it averages 82 FPS, representing a 49% reduction in performance.