Control

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT delivers a compelling 1440p and high-refresh 1080p experience in Control, though 4K Ultra remains out of reach for strict 60 FPS gameplay. The data shows a system that is heavily GPU-limited at higher resolutions, with the CPU's substantial headroom only becoming apparent at 1080p Low settings.

Resolution Scaling

The performance delta between 1080p and 4K is stark and clearly illustrates where the bottleneck lies. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 113 FPS at 1920x1080 to 86 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to 58 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 49% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, a scaling curve that points directly at the GPU as the primary constraint. The RX 6800 XT is being pushed progressively harder as pixel count rises, with the CPU's role diminishing.

The scaling pattern becomes even more revealing when examining the Low preset. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 179 FPS, which drops to 136 FPS at 1440p and 92 FPS at 4K. The 1080p Low figure is particularly telling—it is the only configuration where the CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads might begin to matter, yet the 43 FPS drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings still indicates a GPU-bound scenario. The fact that 4K Low (92 FPS) is still nearly double 4K Ultra (50 FPS) confirms that the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors, not the processor.

From Medium to Ultra at 4K, the average FPS falls from 65 to 50, a 23% penalty for the highest preset. At 1440p, the same preset jump costs 22 FPS (from 96 to 74). This consistent ~20% performance hit across resolutions when moving from Medium to Ultra suggests that the RX 6800 XT's 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 512.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for the asset streaming, but the 4608 shading units are saturated by the additional visual effects. The 1080p Medium to Ultra transition (127 to 98 FPS) shows a similar 23% drop, reinforcing that the GPU's compute throughput, not memory capacity, is the primary limiter at all resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of tested combinations, this pairing sits at rank 1183 out of 3720 combos for Control. This places it in the 68th percentile of all tested systems, meaning it outperforms roughly two-thirds of configurations. The ranking is respectable but not top-tier, reflecting the RX 6800 XT's position as a high-end but not flagship GPU from the Radeon RX 6000 series, even when paired with one of the strongest gaming CPUs available.

The combo's rank is more a function of the GPU than the CPU. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D's average benchmark score of 39768 places it in the 87th percentile among all CPUs, while the RX 6800 XT's average score of 48477 puts it in the 85th percentile among GPUs. In a game like Control, which is visually demanding but not particularly CPU-intensive at higher resolutions, the GPU's percentile ranking is what drags the overall combo rank down. A system with a faster GPU would climb significantly higher in the rankings, as the CPU would easily keep pace.

The measured results confirm this analysis. At 4K Ultra, the 50 FPS average is below the 60 FPS target that many users prefer, and the combo's rank reflects this limitation. However, the 1183rd position out of 3720 is not a poor showing—it indicates that this system delivers smooth gameplay for the majority of titles and settings, with only the most demanding 4K scenarios exposing its GPU ceiling.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is the defining component in this pairing for Control. Its 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 512.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is ample for the game's textures and geometry at 4K. The memory clocks run at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective), and the GPU's boost clock of 2250 MHz helps push frame rates at lower resolutions.

The GPU's architecture, RDNA 2.0 on a 7 nm process, includes 4608 shading units, 288 texture mapping units, and 128 raster operation pipelines. These specifications translate to a pixel rate of 288.0 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 648.0 GTexel/s, which are the raw throughput numbers that determine how quickly the GPU can fill the screen. In Control, a game known for its particle effects and physics-based destruction, these rates are crucial.

The FP32 performance of 20.74 TFLOPS is the key metric for this game's rendering. The measured results show that at 4K Ultra, the GPU is delivering 50 FPS, which aligns with its compute capacity. The 72 ray tracing cores are present but Control's implementation of ray tracing is optional; the data provided does not include ray tracing-specific measurements, so the analysis focuses on the standard rasterization performance. The GPU's 85th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 48477, positions it slightly above the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile (47743, +1.5% delta) and below the Intel Arc A550M (49737, -2.5% delta) in synthetic tests, though real-world gaming performance in Control follows the measured FPS data.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal balance between visual fidelity and frame rate in Control depends heavily on the target resolution. For 4K displays, the data strongly suggests that Medium settings are the sweet spot. At 3840x2160 Medium, the combo achieves 65 FPS average with a minimum of 55 FPS and a maximum of 75 FPS. This is the only 4K preset that consistently stays near or above 60 FPS, making it the clear recommendation for smooth gameplay. High settings at 4K drop to 58 FPS average, which is borderline for many users, while Ultra at 50 FPS is best avoided unless a 50 FPS cap is acceptable.

At 1440p, the choice is less constrained. High settings deliver 86 FPS average, which is excellent for most gamers. Ultra at 74 FPS is also very playable and offers the full visual experience. The data shows that 1440p Ultra (74 FPS) is only 12 FPS slower than 1440p High (86 FPS), making Ultra the recommended preset for users with 1440p monitors who prioritize image quality. Medium at 96 FPS is available for those seeking higher refresh rates, but the visual downgrade from Ultra may not be worth the 22 FPS gain.

For 1080p, the system is clearly over-provisioned. Ultra settings at 98 FPS average provide a fully maxed-out visual experience well above 60 FPS. High at 113 FPS and Medium at 127 FPS offer even higher frame rates for competitive play, but the Ultra preset is the logical choice for most users. Low at 179 FPS is only useful for extreme refresh rate displays or if the user wants to eliminate any potential frame pacing issues, but the visual compromise is severe. The 1080p Low result of 179 FPS also serves as the clearest indicator of CPU performance in this pairing, as the GPU is less stressed at this resolution and preset.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the measured average frame rates are 50 FPS on Ultra, 58 FPS on High, 65 FPS on Medium, and 92 FPS on Low. The Medium preset is the only one with a recorded minimum (55 FPS) and maximum (75 FPS), indicating a frame time variance of 20 FPS. This range suggests that the GPU's 16 GB memory buffer is being utilized effectively, but the shading units experience occasional spikes in load during intense combat sequences.

The 2560x1440 results show 74 FPS on Ultra, 86 FPS on High, 96 FPS on Medium, and 136 FPS on Low. The Medium preset again has the full data range: minimum 82 FPS, maximum 111 FPS, a 29 FPS spread. This wider variance at 1440p Medium compared to 4K Medium is interesting, as it suggests that at 1440p, the GPU is occasionally hitting a CPU-related ceiling during complex scenes, allowing the frame rate to dip lower than the average would suggest.

At 1920x1080, the averages are 98 FPS on Ultra, 113 FPS on High, 127 FPS on Medium, and 179 FPS on Low. The Medium range is 108 FPS minimum and 146 FPS maximum, a 38 FPS spread. This is the largest variance recorded across all presets, and it highlights the transition zone where the CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads begin to influence frame pacing. The 179 FPS Low result is the highest measured value, and it approaches the limit of what a 144 Hz monitor can display, making the 1080p Low preset the only configuration where the CPU's 5.20 GHz boost clock and 96 MB of L3 cache are the primary drivers of performance.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is a Zen 5 architecture processor with 8 cores and 16 threads, running at a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.20 GHz. Its 96 MB of shared L3 cache is a massive amount for a desktop CPU, and while the data does not isolate cache-sensitive game performance, the benchmark results indicate strong single-thread and multi-thread capabilities. The 3DMark single-thread score of 1212 and Geekbench single-core score of 2964 are both strong, but in Control, the CPU's role is mostly to feed the GPU without becoming a bottleneck.

The measured FPS data confirms that the CPU is not the limiting factor at 4K or 1440p. At 4K Ultra, the 50 FPS average is entirely GPU-bound, as evidenced by the fact that dropping to 4K Low only raises the average to 92 FPS—a 84% increase that would not be possible if the CPU were constraining performance. Similarly, at 1440p, the jump from Ultra (74 FPS) to Low (136 FPS) shows a 84% improvement, again pointing to the GPU as the bottleneck.

The CPU's influence only becomes apparent at 1080p Low, where the 179 FPS average is likely near the processor's maximum frame rate output for this game. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23230 and single-core score of 2080 indicate that it has substantial headroom, but Control's engine does not scale perfectly with additional threads. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 10081 and 8-thread score of 8252 suggest that the CPU's performance is well-balanced, but the game's frame rate at 1080p Low is still limited by the GPU's ability to issue draw calls and process geometry, not by the CPU's raw compute.

The processor's TDP of 120 W and 4 nm process node from TSMC contribute to its efficiency, but these factors do not directly impact the measured FPS. The CPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 (average score 40081, -0.8% delta) and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 (40048, -0.7% delta), which have nearly identical average benchmark scores, yet the 9800X3D's larger L3 cache likely provides an edge in cache-sensitive titles. However, without specific Control benchmarks for those CPUs, the data only allows for a general statement: the 9800X3D is positioned in the 87th percentile among all CPUs, and in this game, it provides more than enough performance to avoid being a bottleneck at any resolution except possibly the extreme 1080p Low case.