Control

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor built on the Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 4.20 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. Its 16 MB of shared L3 cache and 83.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth are modest by modern standards, but the chip’s single-thread performance is strong, as indicated by a 3DMark single-thread score of 951 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2943. In Control, this CPU’s role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics data, a task where its 12 threads provide ample headroom. The multi-threaded results, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 20851 and a Passmark multithread score of 24530, place it in the 82nd percentile of all CPUs, suggesting it is far from a bottleneck in most gaming scenarios.

The CPU’s benchmark scores align closely with its nearest rivals, including the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X, which averages 25057 points against the 8400F’s 25064 average, a delta of 0%. The Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 trails by a negligible 0.1%, while the AMD EPYC 9474F is 0.2% behind, and the Ryzen 5 7500F is just 0.3% ahead. This clustering indicates that the 8400F delivers performance nearly identical to several established processors, meaning any frame rate differences in Control are unlikely to stem from CPU compute limits. Given the game’s 2019 release date, it is well within the CPU’s capability to maintain high frame rates, as evidenced by the measured results at 1080p, where even the most demanding Ultra preset achieves 65.8 FPS average. The data suggests that the processor is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions; instead, the GPU becomes the primary constraint as resolution increases.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is a Turing-architecture GPU with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock of 1470 MHz boosts to 1650 MHz, and the card features 2176 shading units, 136 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output units. With 34 ray tracing cores and 272 tensor cores, it offers hardware features that, while present, are not heavily utilized in Control’s standard rendering paths. The GPU’s 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 105.6 GPixel/s place it in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19774. Its nearest rivals include the GeForce GTX TITAN, which scores 19706 (0.3% behind), and the RTX 2070, which scores 19680 (0.5% ahead), showing that the 2060 SUPER sits in a tight performance band.

The GPU’s memory capacity and bandwidth become critical at higher resolutions, where the 8 GB frame buffer is sufficient for Control’s textures but the 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is taxed. At 4K Ultra, the card manages only 35.7 FPS, a clear sign that the GPU’s compute and memory subsystems are overwhelmed. The RTX 2060 SUPER’s role in this combo is decisive: it dictates the playable settings and resolutions. The measured frames show a consistent pattern where the GPU is the primary driver of performance across all tested configurations. The card’s 12 nm process node and 175 W TDP reflect its age, but its DirectX 12 Ultimate support ensures compatibility with modern rendering features. In Control, the GPU’s strengths in rasterization are evident at 1080p, where it delivers playable frame rates even on Ultra, but its weaknesses appear as pixel count grows.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear scaling pattern from 1080p to 4K, highlighting the GPU as the dominant constraint. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 116.9 FPS, which drops to 90.9 FPS at 1440p (a 22.2% reduction) and further to 62.2 FPS at 4K (a 46.8% reduction from 1080p). This steep decline is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the CPU has ample headroom but the RTX 2060 SUPER’s fill rate and memory bandwidth cannot keep pace with increasing pixel loads. The High preset tells a similar story: 73.6 FPS at 1080p falls to 54.8 FPS at 1440p (a 25.5% drop) and then to 37.1 FPS at 4K (a 49.6% drop from 1080p).

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is particularly punishing, with the Ultra preset dropping from 51.3 FPS to 35.7 FPS, a 30.4% loss for a 2.25x increase in pixel count. This non-linear relationship indicates that the GPU’s memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s becomes a bottleneck, as the 8 GB buffer must handle larger textures and higher resolution buffers. The Low preset at 4K still manages 62.2 FPS, suggesting that the GPU can deliver acceptable performance if settings are reduced, but the gap between Low and Medium at 4K is large (62.2 vs 40.6 FPS, a 34.7% difference), implying that even modest quality increases heavily tax the card. The data shows that the CPU’s performance remains consistent across resolutions, as the 8400F’s strong single-thread scores ensure it does not introduce additional frame time variability. Thus, the scaling analysis confirms that the RTX 2060 SUPER is the limiting component at every resolution above 1080p, and its influence grows disproportionately with pixel count.

How This Combo Ranks

In Control, the combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 1205 out of 1636 tested combos, placing it in the 73rd percentile of all configurations. This ranking is lower than the individual component percentiles might suggest, as the CPU sits in the 82nd percentile while the GPU is in the 63rd, indicating that the GPU drags the overall performance down. The combo’s position reflects the GPU’s age and mid-range status, even though the CPU is a modern, capable part. The rank of 1205 means that 431 combos perform worse, but it also implies that a vast majority of tested systems, likely those with newer or higher-tier GPUs, outpace this setup in Control.

The performance gap between this combo and better-ranked ones is primarily due to the GPU’s limitations at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the combo’s frame rates are respectable, but at 1440p and 4K, the RTX 2060 SUPER’s 63rd percentile standing becomes apparent. The CPU’s nearest rivals, such as the Ryzen 7 2700X, would likely produce similar results when paired with the same GPU, as their benchmark scores are within 0.3% of the 8400F. This suggests that the combo’s rank is not influenced by CPU choice but rather by the GPU’s absolute performance ceiling. The data indicates that users seeking higher rankings would need to pair this CPU with a stronger GPU, as the 8400F has ample headroom to support faster graphics cards. The combo’s rank of 1205 out of 1636 is a fair representation of a balanced, mid-range system from a few years ago, where the CPU is future-proof but the GPU is not.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, the High preset delivers 73.6 FPS, which is smooth for most players, while the Medium preset offers 82 FPS, a 11.4% improvement with presumably minor visual differences. The Ultra preset at 65.8 FPS is still playable, but the 10.6% drop from High suggests that the extra visual fidelity may not justify the performance cost. For competitive or high-refresh-rate play, the Low preset at 116.9 FPS is the best choice, as it provides a significant frame rate boost without compromising the core experience of Control’s action sequences. The data shows that 1080p is where this combo shines, with all presets exceeding 65 FPS.

At 1440p, the High preset drops to 54.8 FPS, which is borderline for smooth gameplay, while Medium delivers 62.4 FPS, a 13.9% improvement. The Low preset at 90.9 FPS is the only configuration that offers a consistently high frame rate, making it the recommended choice for 1440p gaming if fluidity is a priority. The Ultra preset at 51.3 FPS is playable for slower-paced exploration but may feel less responsive during combat. At 4K, the situation is more challenging: the Low preset is the only option that achieves a playable 62.2 FPS, while Medium drops to 40.6 FPS and High to 37.1 FPS, both of which are below the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset at 35.7 FPS is not recommended for any gameplay scenario. Therefore, the best experience per the measured rows is to run the Low preset at 4K, Medium at 1440p, and High at 1080p, balancing visual quality with frame rate. The data clearly indicates that the RTX 2060 SUPER’s 8 GB of VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for high-quality settings at 4K, making resolution scaling the primary lever for performance.