Control

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT delivers a compelling 1080p and 1440p experience in Control, but the data reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution climbs. At 4K, the GPU’s workload becomes the dominant factor, while at lower resolutions, the CPU’s headroom allows the graphics card to stretch its legs. The measured frames per second (FPS) across the three resolutions and four settings presets paint a detailed picture of where this combination excels and where it begins to strain.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial, but the rate of decline varies significantly depending on the settings preset. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 171.2 at 1920x1080 to 130.4 at 2560x1440, a reduction of roughly 24%. Moving to 3840x2160, the average drops further to 91.1, which is a 47% decrease from the 1080p figure. This steep decline at Low settings indicates that the GPU is being pushed harder as pixel count increases, but the CPU still has ample capacity to feed it frames.

The scaling pattern changes dramatically at Ultra settings. Here, the 1080p average is 96.4 FPS, dropping to 74.9 at 1440p (a 22% reduction) and then to 49.8 at 4K (a 48% reduction from 1080p). The similar percentage drops across presets suggest that the rendering workload scales almost linearly with resolution, but the absolute numbers reveal where the system becomes less comfortable. At 4K Ultra, the 49.8 FPS average is below the 60 FPS threshold that many consider the baseline for smooth gameplay.

The data implies that at 1080p and 1440p, the RX 7800 XT is the primary limiter, especially at higher settings where the gap between Low and Ultra narrows. For instance, at 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 74.8 FPS, while at 4K, that difference shrinks to 41.3 FPS. This convergence suggests that as resolution increases, the GPU’s raw compute and memory bandwidth become the binding constraint, reducing the impact of settings changes on overall performance.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average FPS achieved by this combo in Control?*

A: The highest recorded average is 171.2 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

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

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 49.8, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth play.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the bottleneck at 1440p?

A: Benchmark results indicate the GPU is the limiting factor at 1440p, as the FPS drops from 130.4 (Low) to 74.9 (Ultra), showing sensitivity to graphical load rather than CPU constraints.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and High settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings yield 171.2 FPS, while High settings yield 108.4 FPS, a difference of 62.8 FPS.

Q: Does the combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K with any settings preset?

A: Yes, at 4K with Low settings, the average FPS is 91.1, and with Medium settings it is 60.6, both above the 60 FPS mark. High settings drop slightly to 55.7 FPS.

*Q: How does the combo’s rank in Control compare to other tested configurations?*

A: The combination ranks 597th out of 1636 tested combos, placing it in the upper-middle portion of the database.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT is the workhorse of this pairing, and its specifications directly explain the measured FPS trends. With 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, the card offers a bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s, which is crucial for handling the high-resolution textures and effects in Control at 4K. The GPU’s boost clock of 2430 MHz and game clock of 2124 MHz provide the raw processing speed needed to maintain playable frame rates, but the data shows that at 4K Ultra, the card’s 96 ROPs and 3840 shading units are pushed to their limits.

The GPU’s 37.32 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is substantial, yet the 4K Ultra result of 49.8 FPS indicates that the game’s rendering pipeline, which includes heavy use of asynchronous compute and alpha effects, is saturating the card’s capabilities. The 60 ray tracing cores are present, but the benchmark data does not isolate their impact; the measured FPS likely reflects rasterized performance. Notably, the GPU’s percentile rank of 76 places it above average among all GPUs, but its nearest rivals in the database—such as the NVIDIA P104-100 and AMD FirePro S9300 X2—have similar average scores, suggesting that the RX 7800 XT’s performance is competitive but not exceptional within its class.

The memory configuration is a key differentiator. The 16 GB capacity ensures that even at 4K with Ultra settings, there is no VRAM spillover that would cause stuttering or severe frame drops. The 624.1 GB/s bandwidth aligns well with the game’s demands, as evidenced by the relatively smooth scaling from 1080p to 1440p, where the FPS only drops by 20-30% depending on the preset. However, the jump to 4K reveals the card’s limitations, as the pixel fill rate of 233.3 GPixel/s becomes a bottleneck.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo shows strong performance across all presets. Low settings average 171.2 FPS, Medium 123.2 FPS, High 108.4 FPS, and Ultra 96.4 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a 43.7% reduction, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario at this resolution. The CPU’s 6 cores and 12 threads, running at a boost clock of 4.70 GHz, are sufficient to keep the GPU fed, as even the lowest FPS figure remains well above 90.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are 130.4 (Low), 91 (Medium), 84.1 (High), and 74.9 (Ultra). The drop from 1080p is noticeable but manageable, with the Ultra preset still delivering above 70 FPS. The gap between Medium and High is smaller (6.9 FPS) than between Low and Medium (39.4 FPS), suggesting that the Medium preset is a sweet spot for balancing quality and performance at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the numbers become more challenging. Low settings average 91.1 FPS, which is still excellent, but Medium drops to 60.6 FPS, and High falls to 55.7 FPS. Ultra bottoms out at 49.8 FPS. The step from Low to Medium is a 30.5 FPS reduction, indicating that the GPU’s shading units and texture units are heavily taxed by the increased pixel count. The 55.7 FPS at High is borderline, and the 49.8 FPS at Ultra is below the 60 FPS threshold, making 4K gaming viable only with reduced settings.

Settings Recommendations

For players targeting 60 FPS as a minimum, the data suggests that 1080p and 1440p are the sweet spots for this combo. At 1920x1080, even Ultra settings deliver 96.4 FPS, meaning users can max out the game without concerns. At 2560x1440, the High preset (84.1 FPS) offers an excellent balance, while Ultra (74.9 FPS) is still playable and provides the best visual fidelity.

At 3840x2160, the recommendation is more nuanced. The Low preset (91.1 FPS) is the only setting that provides comfortable headroom above 60 FPS, but it sacrifices visual quality. The Medium preset (60.6 FPS) hits the 60 FPS target almost exactly, making it a viable option for those who want better graphics without dipping below the threshold. High (55.7 FPS) and Ultra (49.8 FPS) are best avoided unless the user is willing to tolerate sub-60 FPS performance or has a display with adaptive sync technology.

The measured data indicates that the Medium preset at 4K is the most sensible choice, as it offers a 21.7% improvement over High in FPS while likely retaining most of the visual enhancements that matter. For competitive play or high-refresh-rate monitors, dropping to 1440p with High settings (84.1 FPS) provides a smoother experience than 4K Medium (60.6 FPS) and is the recommended route for maximizing frame rate.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, plays a supporting role in this combination. Its boost clock of 4.70 GHz and base clock of 4.20 GHz provide strong single-thread performance, which is critical for Control’s engine that relies on a few main threads for game logic and physics. The CPU’s 3DMark single-thread score of 951 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2943 indicate it can handle the game’s CPU-bound tasks without becoming a bottleneck.

The CPU’s 16 MB of shared L3 cache and 1 MB per-core L2 cache help reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for maintaining consistent frame times. In the benchmark data, the CPU’s average score of 25064 places it at the 82nd percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rivals—such as the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X and AMD Ryzen 5 7500F—have nearly identical average scores (25057 and 24993, respectively). This suggests that the 8400F is well-matched to the RX 7800 XT, as neither component is dramatically stronger or weaker than the other.

The CPU’s memory support for DDR5 with dual-channel bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s ensures that data can flow quickly to the GPU. However, the measured FPS at 1080p Low (171.2) is likely near the CPU’s limit for this game, as further increases in frame rate would require more CPU throughput. The fact that the FPS drops by 40 FPS when moving from 1080p Low to 1440p Low (130.4) confirms that the GPU is taking over as the primary limiter at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 5 8400F and RX 7800 XT ranks 597th out of 1636 tested combos in Control, placing it in the upper third of the database. This rank reflects the balance between the two components, neither of which is a top-tier performer but both of which are above average. The GPU’s percentile rank of 76 and the CPU’s percentile rank of 82 suggest that this system is well-suited for 1440p gaming, which aligns with the measured FPS data showing strong performance at that resolution.

In the context of Control, the combo’s rank indicates that many other configurations—likely those with higher-end GPUs or CPUs—can outperform it, but it also means that this pairing is far from the bottom. The nearest GPU rivals, such as the NVIDIA P104-100 and AMD FirePro S10000, have similar average scores (32747 and 32388, respectively), but the RX 7800 XT’s 16 GB VRAM and modern architecture give it an advantage in this specific game. The CPU’s rivals, including the Ryzen 7 2700X and Ryzen 5 7500F, perform within 0.3% of the 8400F, indicating that the CPU choice has minimal impact on the overall ranking compared to the GPU.

The data suggests that this combo is a solid mid-range option for Control, capable of delivering excellent 1080p and good 1440p performance, with 4K requiring settings compromises. The 597th rank out of 1636 combos reinforces that while it is not a top-tier setup, it provides a consistent and enjoyable experience for most players, particularly those with 1440p monitors.