Control

Control, the 2019 action-adventure from Remedy Entertainment, presents a demanding workload that stresses both CPU and GPU. This analysis examines the performance of the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700, based on measured FPS data. The combination achieves a rank of 1294 out of 2888 tested combos, placing it in the upper-middle tier of systems. The data reveals a system where the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, while CPU capabilities become more relevant as resolution drops. The following sections break down the performance characteristics across different settings and resolutions, offering a detailed look at what this hardware can deliver in this specific title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 93 FPS at 1080p to 71 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 48 FPS at 4K. This represents a roughly 24% performance hit when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 32% drop when scaling from 1440p to 4K. The scaling behavior indicates that the Radeon RX 7700 is the limiting component at higher resolutions, as the pixel throughput demands increase significantly.

The Low preset shows a similar trend but with higher absolute numbers. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 148 FPS, which drops to 112 FPS at 2560x1440, and then to 76 FPS at 3840x2160. The relative drops are 24% and 32% respectively, mirroring the High preset's scaling pattern. This consistency suggests that the GPU's compute resources are being saturated in a predictable manner as resolution increases, regardless of the visual complexity.

At the Medium preset, the system delivers 105 FPS at 1080p, 80 FPS at 1440p, and 54 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset yields 81 FPS, 61 FPS, and 41 FPS across the same resolution ladder. The Ultra preset at 4K falls below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that this combination cannot maintain smooth gameplay at maximum settings in 4K. The scaling from 1080p to 4K at Ultra results in a 49% performance reduction, which is the most severe drop among all presets, highlighting the intense computational load of the Ultra settings at high pixel counts.

The frame time data available for the Medium preset provides additional insight. At 1920x1080, the minimum FPS is 89 and the maximum is 121, showing a 32 FPS variance. At 2560x1440, the range tightens to 68-92 FPS, a 24 FPS variance. At 3840x2160, the range narrows further to 46-62 FPS, a 16 FPS variance. This decreasing variance at higher resolutions indicates that the workload becomes more consistent as the GPU becomes fully saturated, reducing the impact of frame-to-frame complexity spikes.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the Medium preset offers the most balanced experience across all resolutions. At 1920x1080, it delivers 105 FPS, which is only 12 FPS lower than Low but significantly higher than the 93 FPS of High. The jump from Medium to High at 1080p costs 12 FPS, while the jump from High to Ultra costs another 12 FPS. This suggests diminishing returns for the visual quality increase at higher presets.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset achieves 80 FPS, which remains comfortably above the 60 FPS playability threshold. The High preset at this resolution delivers 71 FPS, still playable but with a noticeable 11% reduction in smoothness. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 61 FPS, which is borderline for fast-paced action sequences. For a game like Control with its intense combat and physics-based environments, maintaining a higher frame rate is often more beneficial than pushing visual fidelity.

At 3840x2160, the Medium preset yields 54 FPS, which is below the ideal 60 FPS target but still playable for a slower-paced exploration experience. The High preset at 4K delivers 48 FPS, and Ultra drops to 41 FPS. These lower frame rates may cause noticeable input lag and reduced responsiveness. For 4K gaming, the Low preset at 76 FPS provides the smoothest experience, though it sacrifices significant visual quality.

The data suggests that Medium is the optimal preset for this combination, as it provides a solid balance between visual fidelity and performance. At 1080p, it offers high refresh rate capability, while at 1440p it maintains smooth gameplay. Only at 4K does the system struggle to maintain 60 FPS at Medium, making Low the preferred choice for competitive or fast-paced play at that resolution.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Zen 2 architecture processor, codenamed Matisse, is built on a 7 nm process from TSMC. The CPU's benchmark scores show strong multi-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R15 multicore score of 2092 and a Geekbench multicore score of 8899. The single-thread performance is more modest, with a Cinebench R15 single-core score of 204 and a Geekbench single-core score of 1593.

In the context of Control, the CPU's role becomes more apparent at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system achieves 148 FPS, indicating that the CPU can feed the GPU sufficiently to reach high frame rates. However, the single-thread performance may limit maximum frame rates in scenes with heavy physics calculations or complex AI routines. The Passmark single-thread score of 2656 places the CPU in the 84th percentile of all CPUs, suggesting it handles single-threaded workloads reasonably well.

The CPU's memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s, delivered through dual-channel DDR4 support, is sufficient for this game's demands. The 32 MB of L3 cache helps with data locality, reducing memory latency in compute-heavy scenarios. The 65W TDP indicates efficient power consumption, which is beneficial for sustained performance in extended gaming sessions.

At higher resolutions like 3840x2160, the CPU's influence diminishes as the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck. The difference between the best and worst CPU performance at 4K is minimal, with the 76 FPS at Low settings indicating that the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's 16 threads are more than adequate for Control's multi-threaded rendering and physics tasks, ensuring that the GPU is not starved for data.

How This Combo Ranks

The Ryzen 7 3700X paired with the Radeon RX 7700 achieves a combo rank of 1294 out of 2888 tested combinations in Control. This places the system in the 55th percentile of all tested combos, indicating a solid mid-range performance level. The GPU's individual percentile rank of 58 is slightly higher than the combo's overall percentile, suggesting that the CPU may be a minor limiting factor in some scenarios.

The CPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350, which has an average score of 34222 and a delta of 0.1%, and the AMD EPYC 4244P, also at 34220 with a 0.1% delta. The Intel Core i5-13450HX scores 34333, representing a -0.2% delta, while the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H scores 34083 with a 0.5% delta. These rivals are all within 0.5% of the Ryzen 7 3700X's average score of 34260, indicating that the CPU's performance is competitive with much newer processors.

The GPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R9 370X with an average score of 15862 and a -0.1% delta, and the AMD Radeon RX 9060 with a score of 16014 and a -1% delta. The AMD Radeon Pro W5500 scores 15679 with a 1.1% delta, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti scores 16129 with a -1.7% delta. The RX 7700's average score of 15852 is closely matched with these rivals, though it trails the RTX 3060 Ti by a small margin.

In the game itself, the combo's rank of 1294 out of 2888 places it in the middle of the pack. This suggests that while the hardware is capable, it does not deliver top-tier performance in Control. The 4K performance at Ultra settings, which drops to 41 FPS, contributes to this mid-range ranking. At 1080p, the system performs much better relative to other combos, with the 148 FPS at Low settings representing a high percentile.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 32 chip, codenamed Wheat Nas. It features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 1900 MHz, a game clock of 2041 MHz, and a boost clock of 2459 MHz. With 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 96 raster operation units, the GPU delivers 25.18 TFLOPS of FP32 compute performance.

The GPU's memory configuration is particularly relevant for Control, which is known for its high-resolution textures and complex particle effects. The 16 GB VRAM capacity ensures that even at 4K with Ultra settings, the GPU does not run out of memory, allowing for consistent performance without texture swapping. The 624.1 GB/s bandwidth provides ample data throughput for the GPU's compute units.

In benchmark tests, the RX 7700 achieves a Passmark G3D score of 20974 and a Geekbench OpenCL score of 106028. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2865 indicates strong DirectX 12 performance, which is relevant for Control's modern rendering pipeline. The GPU's 40 ray tracing cores support hardware-accelerated ray tracing, though the game's implementation may not heavily utilize this feature.

The GPU's performance in Control is primarily limited by its shader throughput at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the 41 FPS average indicates that the GPU is fully saturated, with the rendering workload exceeding its compute capabilities. The 96 ROPS and 236.1 GPixel/s pixel rate are adequate for 4K, but the overall compute power is insufficient for maximum settings at that resolution. The GPU's 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs reflects this mid-range positioning.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Control?

A: At 1920x1080, the system delivers between 81 FPS (Ultra) and 148 FPS (Low), making it ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. At 2560x1440, the frame rates range from 61 FPS (Ultra) to 112 FPS (Low), providing a good balance. 4K performance is more limited, with a maximum of 76 FPS at Low settings.

Q: How does the Ultra preset perform at different resolutions?

A: The Ultra preset yields 81 FPS at 1080p, 61 FPS at 1440p, and 41 FPS at 4K. This indicates that Ultra settings are only playable at 1080p, while 1440p is borderline and 4K is not recommended for smooth gameplay.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the main bottleneck in this game?

A: At higher resolutions like 4K, the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as shown by the significant FPS drop from 76 FPS at Low to 41 FPS at Ultra. At 1080p, the CPU's single-thread performance may become a factor, but the 148 FPS at Low suggests it is sufficient.

Q: What is the average FPS at Medium settings in 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the system achieves an average of 80 FPS, with a minimum of 68 FPS and a maximum of 92 FPS. This provides a smooth experience with some headroom for demanding scenes.

Q: How does this combo compare to other systems in the database?

A: The combo ranks 1294 out of 2888 tested systems in Control, placing it in the upper-middle tier. The GPU's individual rank is 58th percentile, while the CPU ranks 84th percentile, indicating the GPU is the more significant performance limiter.

Q: Does the 16 GB VRAM cause any issues in Control?

A: The 16 GB VRAM capacity is more than sufficient for Control at all settings and resolutions tested. The GPU's memory bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s ensures that the GPU has access to data without stuttering or texture pop-in.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system's performance varies significantly across presets. The Low preset delivers an average of 148 FPS, which is the highest frame rate achieved in any configuration. The Medium preset achieves 105 FPS, with a minimum of 89 FPS and a maximum of 121 FPS. The High preset yields 93 FPS, while the Ultra preset produces 81 FPS. This range from 81 to 148 FPS demonstrates that the system is well-suited for 1080p gaming, with all presets providing playable frame rates.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down proportionally. The Low preset achieves 112 FPS, maintaining high refresh rate capability. The Medium preset delivers 80 FPS, with a range of 68 to 92 FPS. The High preset produces 71 FPS, and the Ultra preset yields 61 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra at this resolution is 45%, indicating that the GPU's workload increases substantially with higher settings.

At 3840x2160, the system becomes more constrained. The Low preset achieves 76 FPS, which is still smooth for most gameplay. The Medium preset produces 54 FPS, with a range of 46 to 62 FPS. The High preset yields 48 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 41 FPS. The performance range at 4K is from 41 to 76 FPS, with only the Low preset providing consistently playable frame rates above 60 FPS.

The Medium preset's min/max data at each resolution provides insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p, the 89 to 121 FPS range shows a 32 FPS variance, which is acceptable for most displays. At 1440p, the 68 to 92 FPS range tightens to a 24 FPS variance. At 4K, the 46 to 62 FPS range shows a 16 FPS variance, indicating more consistent frame pacing even at lower average frame rates. This data suggests that the system maintains stable performance across all tested configurations, with no severe frame time spikes.