Control

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X is an 8-core, 16-thread desktop processor built on the Zen 2 (Matisse) architecture, using a 7 nm process from TSMC. Its base clock is 3.60 GHz with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, and it carries a 65 W TDP. The CPU supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration, with a memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. It has 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 512 KB of L2 per core, and a 32 MB L3 cache. The chip is unlocked for overclocking and fits the AMD Socket AM4.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 3700X scores 2092 in Cinebench R15 multi-core and 204 in single-core. Geekbench results show 8899 multi-core and 1593 single-core. PassMark tests put the multi-thread score at 22458, single-thread at 2656, and the average benchmark score at 34260. The CPU sits at the 84th percentile among all CPUs tested. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 (average score 34222, delta 0.1%), the AMD EPYC 4244P (34220, delta 0.1%), the Intel Core i5-13450HX (34333, delta -0.2%), and the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H (34083, delta 0.5%). These deltas are all within half a percent, meaning the 3700X is essentially tied with these parts in aggregate CPU performance.

For Control, an action-adventure title, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics calculations. The 3700X's 8 cores and 16 threads are more than sufficient for this game's threading model, which rarely scales beyond a few cores. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo hits 107 FPS, suggesting the CPU is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions; the GPU takes over as the primary bottleneck. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 30, which is a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU's strong multi-threaded scores (2092 Cinebench R15, 22458 PassMark multithread) indicate headroom, but the game does not require that headroom—it simply runs within the CPU's capabilities without causing frame drops due to processor stalls.

The 3700X's single-thread performance, reflected in a Geekbench single-core score of 1593 and PassMark single-thread of 2656, is adequate for Control's engine, which relies on a main thread for game logic. The delta between the 3700X and its closest rival, the Ryzen AI 7 350, is only 0.1%, so the CPU's performance class is standard for this era. In practice, the 3700X will not be the reason for low FPS in any of the measured settings; the data shows that FPS scales inversely with resolution and graphics preset, which is a hallmark of GPU limitation.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is a Turing-architecture GPU built on a 12 nm TSMC process, with the TU106 chip. It has 1920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. The GPU includes 30 RT cores and 240 Tensor cores, enabling ray tracing and DLSS features, though Control's measured data does not specify whether these are enabled. The base clock is 1365 MHz, boost clock is 1680 MHz, and memory runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). The card has 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s. Pixel rate is 80.64 GPixel/s, texture rate is 201.6 GTexel/s, and FP32 performance is 6.451 TFLOPS. The GPU's TDP is 160 W, and it requires a single 8-pin power connector with a suggested 450 W power supply.

In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 2060 scores 14111 in PassMark G3D, 5488 in PassMark GPU compute, and 1242 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan scores are 65014 and 65846, respectively. The GPU sits at the 58th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (avg score 15283, delta 0%), the AMD Radeon 680M (15270, delta 0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (15199, delta 0.6%), and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 (15171, delta 0.8%). These deltas are all under 1%, meaning the RTX 2060 is statistically equivalent to these cards in aggregate performance.

For Control, the GPU's 6 GB VRAM is a critical factor. At 4K Ultra settings, the average FPS is 30, which is borderline playable but below the 60 FPS target. At 4K Medium, the average is 39 FPS with a minimum of 33 and maximum of 45. The VRAM capacity likely becomes a constraint at high resolutions and presets, as the game's textures and effects demand more than 6 GB. The GPU's memory bandwidth of 336 GB/s is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the combination of VRAM capacity and bandwidth limits performance. The boost clock of 1680 MHz provides stable throughput, but the 12 nm process node means the card runs hotter and less efficiently than newer parts; however, the measured FPS data does not include thermal throttling metrics.

The RTX 2060's role in Control is dominant—the FPS numbers clearly show that the GPU is the bottleneck across all resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 107 FPS, which is the highest measured. At 1080p Ultra, it drops to 59 FPS. This pattern, where FPS changes by roughly 45% between Low and Ultra at the same resolution, is characteristic of a GPU that is fully utilized. The RTX 2060's 6 GB VRAM is adequate for 1080p Medium (76 FPS) but becomes strained at 1440p Ultra (45 FPS) and 4K High (35 FPS). The card's FP32 throughput of 6.451 TFLOPS is modest by modern standards, but for Control, it delivers playable framerates only at lower settings and resolutions.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data across resolutions shows a clear and consistent drop as resolution increases, which is the signature of a GPU-limited system. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 107. At 1440p Low, it drops to 81, a 24% reduction. At 4K Low, it falls to 55, which is a 49% reduction from 1080p Low. For Medium settings, the progression is 76 FPS at 1080p, 58 FPS at 1440p (a 24% drop), and 39 FPS at 4K (a 49% drop from 1080p). High settings show 68 FPS at 1080p, 51 FPS at 1440p (25% drop), and 35 FPS at 4K (49% drop). Ultra settings yield 59 FPS at 1080p, 45 FPS at 1440p (24% drop), and 30 FPS at 4K (49% drop).

The pattern is remarkably consistent: doubling the pixel count from 1080p to 1440p (2.25x pixels) reduces FPS by roughly 24-25%, and moving from 1080p to 4K (4x pixels) reduces FPS by 49-50%. This near-linear scaling with pixel count indicates that the GPU's fillrate and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors. The CPU's performance does not change with resolution, so if the CPU were the bottleneck, FPS would remain flat across resolutions. Instead, the FPS halves as pixel count quadruples, which is exactly what a GPU-bound scenario looks like.

The 1440p to 4K transition is particularly telling. At 1080p, the GPU is likely not fully saturated, allowing the CPU to push higher framerates. At 4K, the GPU is working at its limit, and the FPS converges to 30-55 depending on settings. The minimum FPS values, available for Medium settings, show 65 at 1080p, 49 at 1440p, and 33 at 4K. These minimums are close to the averages, indicating consistent frame pacing without major stutters, which further supports a stable GPU bottleneck rather than CPU spikes.

The data suggests that this combo is best suited for 1080p or 1440p gaming. At 1080p, all presets except Ultra exceed 60 FPS (Low 107, Medium 76, High 68, Ultra 59). At 1440p, only Low (81 FPS) and Medium (58 FPS) are playable above 60 FPS, with High at 51 and Ultra at 45. At 4K, no preset reaches 60 FPS—the highest is Low at 55. The limiting component is unequivocally the GPU, as the CPU's scores are well above what Control requires. The RTX 2060's 6 GB VRAM and 336 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for 4K high-fidelity rendering, but they handle 1080p and 1440p with reasonable headroom.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In Control, this combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks 2950 out of 3720 tested combos. This places it in the bottom 21% of all systems tested for this game. The rank is based on measured FPS across all resolutions and settings, and it reflects the GPU's mid-range position (58th percentile) combined with a CPU that is strong but not elite. The 3700X ranks at the 84th percentile among CPUs, but the RTX 2060's lower percentile drags the overall combo down.

Compared to the nearest GPU rivals, the RTX 2060 is statistically tied with the GTX 580 (delta 0%), the Radeon 680M (delta 0.1%), the RTX 3050 OEM (delta 0.6%), and the RX 7600 (delta 0.8%). This means that swapping the RTX 2060 for any of these cards would yield nearly identical performance in Control. However, the combo rank of 2950 indicates that many other GPU+CPU pairings deliver higher FPS. For instance, a system with a higher-tier GPU (e.g., an RTX 2080 or above) would rank significantly better, as the CPU is not the limiting factor.

The rank of 2950 out of 3720 means that roughly 770 combos perform worse than this one. That places this setup in the lower-middle tier for Control specifically. The game is GPU-intensive, so the RTX 2060's 6 GB VRAM and mid-range compute power are the primary reasons for the low rank. The CPU's contribution is positive—it does not bottleneck the GPU—but it cannot compensate for the GPU's limitations. In the context of all tested combos, this pairing is adequate for 1080p gaming but not for high-refresh or high-resolution play.

The percentile data supports this: the GPU's 58th percentile means it outperforms about 58% of all GPUs, but Control demands more than typical games due to its physics and rendering effects. The combo's rank is also influenced by the fact that many tested combos include newer GPUs with more VRAM and higher bandwidth. The RTX 2060, being from the 20-series with a 12 nm process, is outclassed by 30-series and 40-series cards in raw throughput. Thus, the 2950 rank is a fair representation of this combo's performance ceiling in Control.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and framerate. For 1080p, the High preset delivers 68 FPS average, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Medium offers 76 FPS, and Low offers 107 FPS, but High provides a better visual quality-to-performance balance. Ultra drops to 59 FPS, which is just below 60, so High is the recommended preset for 1080p to maintain a consistent framerate without sacrificing too much visual fidelity.

For 1440p, the Medium preset yields 58 FPS average with a minimum of 49 FPS, which is close to 60 but may experience occasional dips. Low delivers 81 FPS, which is smooth, but the visual quality is noticeably reduced. High sits at 51 FPS, and Ultra at 45 FPS—both are below the 60 FPS target. For 1440p, Medium is the best choice if you prefer visual quality, while Low is the safest for a locked 60+ FPS experience. The minimum FPS of 49 at Medium indicates that the GPU can handle the load but may stutter in intense scenes.

At 4K, no preset reaches 60 FPS. Low offers 55 FPS, which is the highest measured at 4K, but it requires sacrificing most graphical effects. Medium gives 39 FPS with a minimum of 33 FPS, which is playable but not smooth. High and Ultra yield 35 and 30 FPS, respectively, which are borderline playable for cinematic experiences but not for action-heavy gameplay. For 4K, Low is the only viable preset if you want framerates near 60, but the visual downgrade is severe. Alternatively, Medium is acceptable if you prioritize visuals over fluidity.

The best overall experience, balancing FPS and quality, is 1080p High (68 FPS) or 1440p Medium (58 FPS). The 1080p High setting provides a 60+ FPS experience with good detail, while 1440p Medium offers higher resolution at the cost of a few frames. Given that the game is action-oriented, a stable 60 FPS is preferable to a higher resolution at 50 FPS. Therefore, the recommendation is 1080p High as the primary choice, with 1440p Medium as an alternative for users with larger monitors who accept a slight FPS drop. Avoid Ultra at all resolutions, as the FPS penalty (e.g., 59 to 68 at 1080p, a 13% drop) is not worth the marginal visual improvement.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo can achieve in Control?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 107 at 1080p with Low settings. At 1080p High, it drops to 68 FPS, and at 1080p Ultra, it is 59 FPS.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Control?

A: At 4K, the highest average FPS is 55 on Low settings. Medium yields 39 FPS, High yields 35 FPS, and Ultra yields 30 FPS. None reach 60 FPS, so 4K is only playable at Low with compromises.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 2060 is statistically tied with the GTX 580 (delta 0%), the Radeon 680M (delta 0.1%), the RTX 3050 OEM (delta 0.6%), and the RX 7600 (delta 0.8%) in average benchmark scores. This means performance differences are negligible.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested systems for Control?

A: The combo ranks 2950 out of 3720 tested combinations, placing it in the lower 21% of systems for this game.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this setup?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck. The CPU ranks at the 84th percentile, while the GPU ranks at the 58th percentile. FPS scales inversely with resolution, confirming GPU limitation.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a smooth experience?

A: For 1080p, High (68 FPS) is recommended as it stays above 60 FPS. For 1440p, Medium (58 FPS) is the best balance, though Low (81 FPS) is smoother. At 4K, Low (55 FPS) is the only option near 60 FPS.