Control

Control pairs a six-core Zen 5 desktop processor with an end-of-life GCN 4.0 graphics card, and the benchmark results in this Action Adventure title show a system that is heavily constrained by its graphics subsystem at nearly every setting. The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X, with its 6 cores and 12 threads boosting up to 5.40 GHz, provides ample processing headroom, but the AMD Radeon RX 570's 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and Polaris 20 chip become the decisive factor in how this combination performs. The measured frames per second data reveals a clear pattern: playable performance exists only at 1080p with reduced graphical fidelity, while higher resolutions push the GPU past its limits, resulting in a slideshow-like experience. This analysis breaks down the resolution scaling, GPU-specific bottlenecks, optimal settings, and the combo's standing among thousands of other tested pairings.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and tells a clear story about where the bottleneck resides. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo averages 57 FPS, but this falls to 43 FPS at 1440p and further to 29 FPS at 4K. That represents a 24.6% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a 49.1% reduction from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the RX 570's rendering capabilities scale poorly with pixel count. The trend is consistent across all settings presets, confirming that resolution is the primary performance killer for this pairing.

Looking at the High preset, the scaling is even more punishing. The average frame rate drops from 36 FPS at 1080p to 27 FPS at 1440p, a 25% decline, and then plummets to 18 FPS at 4K, which is exactly half of the 1080p figure. This steep decline suggests that the GPU's memory bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s and its 4 GB frame buffer are insufficient for the increased data demands of higher resolutions. The 256-bit memory bus helps at 1080p, but at 4K the card simply cannot feed the render pipeline fast enough, regardless of the CPU's capability.

The Ultra preset shows the most severe scaling, with averages of 31 FPS at 1080p, 24 FPS at 1440p, and 16 FPS at 4K. The jump from 1440p to 4K here is a 33.3% drop, the largest relative decline among all presets. This indicates that at maximum settings, the combination of high-resolution textures and advanced effects overwhelms the RX 570's 5.095 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power. The data suggests that the Ryzen 5 9600X is rarely the limiting factor; even at 1080p Low, where the CPU would typically matter most, the 57 FPS result is still below what the processor's single-thread performance (3DMark single-thread score of 1253) would allow in a less GPU-bound scenario.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570's specifications directly explain the measured results. With a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1244 MHz, the GCN 4.0 architecture card offers 2048 shading units and 32 ROPs, but its 4 GB of GDDR5 memory running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) is the critical limitation. The memory bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s is respectable for a card of this era, yet it proves insufficient for Control's demanding environments at resolutions above 1080p. The VRAM capacity is particularly problematic; 4 GB is simply not enough for High or Ultra presets at 1440p or 4K, leading to texture thrashing and the observed severe frame rate collapses.

The GPU's percentile ranking of 74 versus all GPUs places it in the lower-middle tier, and its average benchmark score of 28766 is within 0.8% of the AMD Radeon RX 470 and 1.2% of the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000, according to the nearestRivals data. This proximity to the RX 470 in performance benchmarks is expected given the architectural similarity, but the RX 570's 14 nm process node and 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die limit its efficiency compared to newer designs. The card's FP32 performance of 5.095 TFLOPS, while adequate for 1080p gaming in 2017, is outstripped by the demands of a 2019 game like Control at higher settings.

The measured FPS data shows that the GPU's role shifts from being merely insufficient at 1080p to being a complete bottleneck at 4K. At 1080p Low, the 57 FPS average suggests the card can still handle lighter loads, but the 4K Ultra result of 16 FPS demonstrates that the Polaris 20 chip is operating far beyond its intended design envelope. The absence of ray tracing cores and tensor cores, which are not listed in the specs, means the card relies entirely on traditional rasterization, and Control's use of indirect lighting and physics effects stresses this architecture heavily. The GPU's 150 W TDP and PCIe 3.0 x16 interface are also dated, but the primary issue is the memory subsystem, not the interface bandwidth.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1920x1080 with Low settings, where the average of 57 FPS provides a smooth, playable frame rate. This preset is the only one that clears the 60 FPS threshold, albeit barely, and it does so without the frame time inconsistency that might plague higher settings. The jump from Low to Medium at 1080p costs 17 FPS (from 57 to 40), a 29.8% performance penalty, which is substantial for the visual improvements Medium might offer in texture filtering and shadow quality. Given that the GPU's 4 GB VRAM is the limiting factor, staying at Low ensures that the memory footprint stays within the card's capacity.

At 1440p, Low settings yield 43 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action sequences. The Medium preset at 1440p drops to 30 FPS with a minimum of 26 FPS, which introduces noticeable stutter during combat. The High and Ultra presets at 1440p, with 27 and 24 FPS respectively, are borderline unplayable and should be avoided. For users who insist on higher resolutions, the data suggests that 4K is not viable for this combination; even the Low preset at 4K only achieves 29 FPS, which is below the 30 FPS minimum threshold for acceptable console-like performance. The Ultra preset at 4K, at 16 FPS, is a slideshow.

The measured data indicates that Medium settings at 1080p, with a 40 FPS average and a minimum of 34 FPS, offer a reasonable middle ground for those who prioritize visual quality over raw frame rate. The minimum FPS of 34 is still above the 30 FPS floor, suggesting that the experience would be mostly consistent. However, the 17 FPS gap between Low and Medium at 1080p is significant, and given that the GPU's nearest rivals show it performing within 0.8% of the RX 470, there is no headroom for future patches or driver optimizations to close this gap. The recommendation is clear: use 1080p Low for the best performance, or 1080p Medium if you can tolerate occasional dips to 34 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Control, this pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X with the AMD Radeon RX 570 ranks 3549 out of 3720 total combos. This places it in the bottom 4.6% of all tested systems, which is a poor result for a CPU that individually ranks in the 81st percentile of all processors. The stark contrast between the CPU's strong standing (its average benchmark score of 29713 is within 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE and 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 7 7840H) and the combo's low rank highlights the extent to which the GPU drags down overall performance. The RX 570's percentile of 74 is also respectable on its own, but in this game, the combination fails to leverage either component's strengths.

The combo's rank of 3549 suggests that there are 171 tested combinations that perform worse, but the vast majority of systems in the database deliver better frame rates in Control. This is not surprising given the GPU's age; the RX 570 was released in 2017, and Control launched in 2019, meaning the card was already two years old at the game's release. The Ryzen 5 9600X, released in 2024, is a much newer component, and its 3DMark multi-thread score of 7590 and Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 17528.5 indicate that it is not the source of the bottleneck. The data shows that this combo would benefit immensely from a GPU upgrade, as the CPU has significant headroom to drive a more powerful graphics card.

The rank also reflects the settings and resolutions tested. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 57 FPS, which would likely place it higher than the 4K results do, but the aggregate rank considers all measured data points. The fact that the combo ranks so low despite the CPU's capabilities reflects the GPU's limitations in this specific title. The nearest rival data for the GPU shows it is comparable to the Radeon RX 470 (within 0.8%), which suggests that any system with a similar GPU would face similar constraints. For users considering this combo, the rank indicates that it is not suited for Control at high settings, but it can serve as a baseline for understanding how GPU-bound this game is.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Control at 1080p with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, at 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 57 FPS, which is playable. At Medium settings, the average drops to 40 FPS with a minimum of 34 FPS, which is still acceptable, but High and Ultra settings fall to 36 and 31 FPS respectively, which may feel less smooth.

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU and GPU pairing in Control?

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 is the only viable resolution. At 1440p, even Low settings only reach 43 FPS, and at 4K, the best average is 29 FPS on Low, which is below the 30 FPS threshold for acceptable performance.

Q: How does the RX 570's 4 GB VRAM affect performance?

A: The 4 GB of GDDR5 memory is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions and settings. At 1440p and 4K, the frame rates drop significantly, indicating that the memory capacity and bandwidth (224.0 GB/s) are insufficient for the game's texture and effect demands.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 9600X the limiting factor in this combo?

A: No, the data indicates the GPU is the bottleneck. The CPU has a high single-thread score (1253 in 3DMark) and multi-thread score (7590 in 3DMark), and the FPS scaling with resolution changes points to the GPU being the constraint.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: It ranks 3549 out of 3720 combos in Control, placing it in the bottom 4.6% of all tested pairings. This low rank is due to the GPU's age and limitations, not the CPU, which ranks in the 81st percentile of all processors.

Q: What settings preset provides the most consistent frame rate?

A: The 1080p Low preset offers the highest average of 57 FPS and no recorded minimum FPS drops, making it the most consistent. The 1080p Medium preset has a minimum of 34 FPS, which is still above 30, but the 40 FPS average is less stable.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for this combo in Control is as follows, organized by resolution and settings preset. At 3840x2160 (4K), the results are uniformly poor: Low settings average 29 FPS, Medium averages 21 FPS with a minimum of 17 and maximum of 24, High averages 18 FPS, and Ultra averages 16 FPS. None of these 4K results approach playable levels, and the minimum FPS of 17 on Medium indicates severe frame time spikes during intense scenes. The 4K data shows a clear ceiling of 29 FPS even on the lowest settings, confirming that the GPU cannot render this game at 4K with any degree of fluidity.

Moving to 2560x1440 (1440p), the results improve but remain marginal. Low settings average 43 FPS, which is the only 1440p preset above 40 FPS. Medium averages 30 FPS with a minimum of 26 FPS, High averages 27 FPS, and Ultra averages 24 FPS. The 26 FPS minimum on Medium indicates that even this preset has stutter issues during demanding moments. The 1440p results suggest that users would need to stick to Low settings to maintain a consistent experience, and even then, the 43 FPS average is below the 60 FPS target for competitive play.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the data shows the full range of performance. Low settings achieve 57 FPS, which is the best result in the entire dataset. Medium averages 40 FPS with a minimum of 34 and maximum of 46, High averages 36 FPS, and Ultra averages 31 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at 1080p is 17 FPS, which is the largest performance cliff between any two adjacent presets at this resolution. The 1080p results demonstrate that the combo can handle the game only at the lowest settings for a smooth experience, with Medium being a compromise for those who prioritize visual detail. The absence of minimum FPS data for Low, High, and Ultra presets at 1080p suggests that the frame times were consistent enough not to record drops, but the averages still indicate that the GPU is working near its limits.