Control

Control is a game that scales aggressively with both resolution and settings, and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D + AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT combo demonstrates a clear performance curve across the measured configurations. The data indicates a powerful pairing that prioritizes high refresh rates at 1440p, while still delivering a playable experience at 4K, though the gap between presets widens significantly at the highest resolution. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS results to show exactly where this combo excels and where compromises are necessary.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, revealing that the limiting component shifts depending on the resolution. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 193 FPS, but this falls to 146 FPS at 1440p and further to 98 FPS at 4K. This represents a 49% reduction from 1080p to 4K at the lowest settings, which is a substantial decline. The pattern is similar at High settings, where the average drops from 122 FPS at 1080p to 92 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 62 FPS at 4K — a 49% loss from the starting point.

Moving from 1440p to 4K shows a more pronounced hit than the step from 1080p to 1440p. For example, at Medium settings, the average FPS goes from 137 at 1080p to 103 at 1440p, then falls to 70 at 4K. The 1440p-to-4K drop of 32% is larger than the 1080p-to-1440p drop of 25%. This suggests that at 4K, the GPU is becoming the primary bottleneck, as the pixel count demands more from the Radeon RX 9070 XT's 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and its 256-bit bus. At lower resolutions, the CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads have more headroom to feed frames, but at 4K the GPU's raw throughput is the deciding factor.

The scaling also becomes more uneven at 4K. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 87 FPS (193 vs 106). At 1440p, that gap narrows to 66 FPS (146 vs 80). At 4K, the gap shrinks further to 44 FPS (98 vs 54). This compression indicates that at higher resolutions, even the lowest settings cannot fully escape the GPU's limits, whereas at 1080p the CPU can push higher frame rates when graphical load is light. The data shows that this combo is best suited for 1440p gaming, where the FPS remains above 80 even at Ultra settings, providing a smooth experience without the steep penalties seen at 4K.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture and featuring the Navi 48 chip, is the dominant factor in this game's performance. Its 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus delivers a bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s, which is ample for Control's textures and effects at any resolution. The memory clock runs at 2518 MHz, effective at 20.1 Gbps, and the boost clock reaches 2970 MHz with a game clock of 2400 MHz. These clocks are high for a modern GPU, and the benchmark results reflect that: the passmark G3D score of 26795 places it in the 55th percentile among all GPUs, though its nearest rivals in the database (AMD Radeon HD 7770M, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570) have much lower average scores, indicating the 9070 XT is in a different class despite the percentile ranking.

The GPU's role is most evident in the 4K results. At Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 54, which is below the 60 FPS threshold many players target. The Medium preset at 4K produces 70 FPS on average, with a minimum of 59 FPS and a maximum of 80 FPS, showing that the GPU can handle moderate loads but struggles with the highest preset. The 4K Low setting yields 98 FPS, which is playable but still far from the 193 FPS seen at 1080p Low. This suggests that the RX 9070 XT's 48.66 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 128 ROPs are sufficient for 1440p but not fully adequate for 4K Ultra.

Compared to the CPU's benchmark profile, the GPU's performance is more variable. The GPU's passmark DirectX 12 score is only 78, which is low, while the DirectX 11 score is 292 and DirectX 10 is 154. This indicates that Control, which relies on DirectX 11 or 12, may not be fully optimized for the RDNA 4.0 architecture, leading to inconsistent results across APIs. The Geekbench Vulkan score of 65879 is much higher, suggesting that the GPU performs better in Vulkan-based workloads. For Control, the measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K, but at 1080p and 1440p, it has enough headroom to maintain high frame rates, especially when paired with the CPU's strong single-thread performance.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, with 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, provides the foundation for this combo's high frame rates at lower resolutions. Its base clock of 3.40 GHz and boost clock of 4.50 GHz are modest by today's standards, but the 96 MB of shared L3 cache is a key advantage. The CPU's benchmark scores show strong multi-threaded performance: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14317 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 11765. Single-thread performance is also solid, with a Geekbench single-core score of 2017 and a 3DMark single-thread score of 884. These numbers place the CPU in the 80th percentile of all CPUs, with nearest rivals like the Intel Core i9-10900K (deltaPct 0.1) and AMD Ryzen 7 6800U (deltaPct 0) showing similar average scores.

In Control, the CPU's role is most apparent at 1080p, where the GPU is less stressed. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 193 FPS, which is likely CPU-limited, as the GPU could probably push even higher if the CPU could keep up. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 7299 and max-thread score of 7285 indicate that the CPU can handle heavy multi-threading, but the single-thread score of 884 suggests that per-core performance is the bottleneck in lightly threaded games. Control is known to use multiple cores, but the 5800X3D's 8 cores are sufficient to avoid major bottlenecks, as evidenced by the consistent scaling from 1080p to 1440p.

The CPU's memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s (dual-channel DDR4) is a potential limitation, but it does not appear to hinder performance in this game. The L3 cache of 96 MB is unusually large and helps reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for gaming. The CPU's TDP of 105 W is modest, and its socket (AM4) is older, but the performance data shows it remains competitive. Compared to the GPU, the CPU's benchmark scores are more stable, with a PassMark multi-thread score of 28309 and a single-thread score of 3234. This stability suggests that the CPU is not the primary limiting factor in Control, except at very high frame rates (above 190 FPS) where the GPU's workload is light.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results: Low settings produce an average of 193 FPS, Medium yields 137 FPS (with a minimum of 116 and maximum of 157), High reaches 122 FPS, and Ultra drops to 106 FPS. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the combo is capable of hitting high refresh rates even on the most demanding preset, making it suitable for 240 Hz monitors.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but with noticeable reductions. Low settings average 146 FPS, Medium drops to 103 FPS (minimum 88, maximum 119), High falls to 92 FPS, and Ultra is 80 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p is particularly interesting, as it shows a narrower range (88-119 FPS) compared to 1080p, suggesting more consistent frame times. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 66 FPS, which is significant but still leaves Ultra above the 60 FPS threshold.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles to maintain high FPS. Low settings average 98 FPS, which is playable, but Medium drops to 70 FPS (minimum 59, maximum 80), High is 62 FPS, and Ultra falls to 54 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K is the only one with a reported minimum (59 FPS), which suggests it is the most stable option at this resolution. The Ultra preset's 54 FPS average is below 60, meaning it may not provide a smooth experience for all players. The data shows a clear hierarchy: 1080p is excellent, 1440p is good, and 4K requires settings compromises to maintain playability.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combos for Control, this pairing ranks 937 out of 3720 total combinations. This places it in the top 25% of all tested systems, which is a strong showing given the game's age and the high-end nature of the components. The rank is based on the measured FPS data, and it reflects the combo's ability to deliver high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p while being less competitive at 4K Ultra.

The rank of 937 out of 3720 means that approximately 2783 combos perform worse, while 936 perform better. This is a solid result, but it is not the top tier. The GPU's percentile of 55 and the CPU's percentile of 80 suggest that the CPU is relatively stronger than the GPU in this pairing. The combo's rank benefits from the CPU's strong L3 cache and multi-threaded performance, which help maintain high FPS at lower resolutions. However, the GPU's 4K performance holds it back from a higher rank, as many newer GPUs with higher TDPs and better 4K scaling would outperform it.

The nearest rival GPUs (AMD Radeon HD 7770M, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570) have much lower average scores, but they are not relevant to this game's performance. The nearest rival CPUs (Intel Core i9-10900K, AMD Ryzen 7 6800U) are closer in average score, but the 5800X3D's 96 MB L3 cache gives it an edge in gaming workloads. Overall, the rank indicates that this combo is well-balanced for 1440p gaming, but it is not optimized for 4K Ultra settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo depends on the resolution and the player's preference for frame rate versus visual quality. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is recommended, as it provides 106 FPS on average, which is above the 100 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The High preset at 122 FPS is also viable, but Ultra offers the best visual fidelity without sacrificing playability. The Medium preset at 137 FPS is unnecessary unless the player has a 144 Hz monitor and wants to maximize frame rates.

At 2560x1440, the High preset is the sweet spot, delivering 92 FPS on average. This is above 60 FPS and provides a good balance of quality and performance. The Ultra preset at 80 FPS is also acceptable for players who prioritize visuals, but the 12 FPS difference between High and Ultra may not justify the quality increase. The Medium preset at 103 FPS is a good choice for competitive play, but it sacrifices some visual effects. For most players, High is the recommended preset at 1440p.

At 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the only viable option for a smooth experience, with an average of 70 FPS and a minimum of 59 FPS. The High preset at 62 FPS is borderline, and the Ultra preset at 54 FPS is below the 60 FPS target. The Low preset at 98 FPS is playable, but it significantly reduces visual quality. For 4K, the Medium preset is recommended, as it provides the best balance of performance and quality, with the minimum FPS staying above 59. Players who insist on Ultra at 4K will need to accept lower frame rates, but the data shows that this combo is better suited to 1440p gaming overall.