Control

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination lands at rank 1333 out of 1636 tested combos for Control. That places this pairing in the bottom 20% of all systems tested, a modest result that reflects the age and tier of the GPU paired with a modern, capable CPU. The data shows this combo is workable for the game, but it is not a high-end performer; it sits firmly in the mid-range for this title, with the RTX 2060 acting as the primary constraint on overall frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

At rank 1333 of 1636, this pairing is positioned well below the median tested setup for Control. The combo’s standing is driven almost entirely by the GPU’s performance ceiling, as the Ryzen 5 8400F’s benchmark percentile (82nd among all CPUs) is substantially higher than the RTX 2060’s (58th among all GPUs). The data indicates a significant imbalance: the processor is capable of feeding far more frames than the graphics card can render in this title.

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the Ryzen 5 8400F posts an average benchmark score of 25064, which is virtually identical to the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X at 25057 (0% delta). It is also within a fraction of a percent of the AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 (25099, -0.1%) and the AMD EPYC 9474F (25103, -0.2%). The Ryzen 5 7500F trails slightly at 24993, putting the 8400F a marginal 0.3% ahead. These results confirm that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this configuration; its performance in synthetic workloads is robust and competitive with much older or more expensive parts.

For the GPU, the RTX 2060’s average benchmark score of 16074 places it just ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (15996, +0.5%) and slightly behind the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and Pro 5700 (both 16351, -1.7%). The AMD Radeon Pro W5500 is a bit further back at 15786, making the RTX 2060 1.8% faster. In practical terms for Control, this means the GPU delivers playable but not exceptional frame rates, and the combo’s low rank is a direct reflection of that mid-pack GPU standing.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 brings 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. For Control, a game known for its dense particle effects and physics-heavy environments, this memory configuration is adequate but not generous. The 6 GB frame buffer is a limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings, where texture data can exceed that capacity, potentially causing stutter or forcing the game to swap assets. The GPU’s base clock runs at 1365 MHz, boosting to 1680 MHz, which is typical for the Turing architecture.

The RTX 2060’s 1920 shading units and 30 RT cores are relevant for Control, which supports ray tracing, though the data does not include ray-traced benchmarks. In standard rasterization, the GPU’s 6.451 TFLOPS of FP32 performance translates to the measured frame rates. The card’s 48 ROPs and 120 TMUs handle pixel and texture throughput at a rate that matches its mid-range positioning. The data shows that at 1080p Ultra, the GPU manages 60.7 FPS, indicating that it is just barely sufficient for a smooth 60 Hz experience at maximum settings, but it cannot push much beyond that.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 107.5 FPS, which drops to 80.7 FPS at 1440p Low (-25%) and further to 54.9 FPS at 4K Low (-49% from 1080p). This scaling is consistent with a GPU-limited scenario, where the CPU has ample headroom and the graphics card’s fill rate and bandwidth become the deciding factors.

The gap between settings narrows as resolution increases, indicating that the GPU is the limiting component. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 46.8 FPS (107.5 vs 60.7), a large spread that shows the GPU has some headroom to trade for visual quality. At 4K, that same Low-to-Ultra spread shrinks to 24.2 FPS (54.9 vs 30.7), demonstrating that the GPU is saturated and cannot maintain high frame rates at higher resolutions regardless of settings. The 4K Ultra result of 30.7 FPS is essentially the floor for playability, while 4K High at 34.4 FPS is only marginally better. For 1440p gaming, the GPU hits a playable 53.9 FPS at High, but drops to 48 FPS at Ultra, suggesting that dialing back a few settings is necessary for a consistent experience.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Control with this combo?

A: Based on the data, 1080p is the most practical choice. At 1080p High, the combo achieves 68.1 FPS, which is smooth, and even 1080p Ultra holds at 60.7 FPS. At 1440p, only Low settings (80.7 FPS) or Medium (57.9 FPS) are comfortable, while 4K dips below 55 FPS on all settings.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X?

A: The Ryzen 5 8400F and the Ryzen 7 2700X have nearly identical average benchmark scores, with the 8400F at 25064 and the 2700X at 25057, a delta of 0%. In Control, this means the CPU choice between these two would not noticeably affect frame rates.

Q: Is the RTX 2060 fast enough for 1440p gaming in Control?

A: The data shows that 1440p is playable but requires compromises. High settings yield 53.9 FPS, while Ultra drops to 48 FPS. For a smoother experience, Medium at 57.9 FPS or Low at 80.7 FPS are the better options.

Q: Does the combo support ray tracing in Control effectively?

A: The RTX 2060 has 30 RT cores, but the measured FPS data does not include any ray-traced results. All listed benchmarks are for standard rasterization. Given the low frame rates at 4K, enabling ray tracing would likely push performance below playable levels.

Q: How much faster is the GPU than the AMD Radeon Pro W5500?

A: The RTX 2060’s average benchmark score is 16074, which is 1.8% higher than the Radeon Pro W5500’s 15786. This is a negligible margin that would translate to a difference of only a few frames per second in Control.

Q: What is the CPU’s single-threaded performance like?

A: The Ryzen 5 8400F scores 2943 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 3684 in PassMark single-thread. These scores support the notion that the CPU is not holding back the GPU in Control, as the game’s frame rates scale consistently with GPU load.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce 107.5 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Medium settings drop to 75.7 FPS, still comfortable. High settings yield 68.1 FPS, and Ultra comes in at 60.7 FPS, just barely maintaining a 60 FPS average. This resolution is the sweet spot for the RTX 2060, offering a playable experience across all quality presets.

At 2560x1440, performance takes a noticeable hit. Low settings remain fluid at 80.7 FPS, but Medium falls to 57.9 FPS. High settings produce 53.9 FPS, and Ultra drops to 48 FPS. For a consistent 60 FPS experience, users must stick to Low or Medium settings. The data suggests that 1440p requires tuning to maintain frame rates above 50 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly overmatched. Low settings manage 54.9 FPS, but Medium falls to 38.1 FPS, High to 34.4 FPS, and Ultra to 30.7 FPS. None of these results are ideal for fast-paced action, and even Low settings are only barely playable. The 4K data confirms that this combo is not suited for high-resolution gaming in Control.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, built on a 4 nm process by TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 4.20 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU’s 16 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support (with 83.2 GB/s bandwidth) provide ample data throughput for gaming workloads. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 20851 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2943 in single-core, numbers that place it in the 82nd percentile among all CPUs.

For Control, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics calculations. The game is not heavily multithreaded, but the 8400F’s strong single-thread performance (951 in 3DMark single-thread) ensures that it does not become a bottleneck. The measured FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a consistent drop that aligns with GPU load, not CPU limitations. At 1080p Low, the CPU is capable of pushing 107.5 FPS, but the GPU cannot sustain that at higher settings. The data indicates that upgrading the graphics card would yield significant gains in this game, while a CPU upgrade would provide little to no benefit for this specific title. The 8400F’s 6 cores and 12 threads are more than sufficient for Control’s requirements, leaving all performance headroom squarely on the GPU side.