Control

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

The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D is an 8-core, 16-thread processor from the 9000 series, built on the Zen 5 architecture with the Granite Ridge codename. Its base clock is 4.70 GHz and it boosts to 5.60 GHz, with a 120 W TDP. This is a desktop CPU that uses the AMD Socket AM5 and supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus and 89.6 GB/s of memory bandwidth. The processor is manufactured on a 4 nm process by TSMC, incorporating 8,315 million transistors on a 70.6 mm² die. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache.

In terms of raw compute benchmarks, the CPU posts a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 22,807 and a single-core score of 2,228. Its Passmark multithread score is 41,318, with a single-thread score of 4,704. The processor ranks in the 92nd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 58,386. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M (avg score 58,323, delta 0.1%), the Intel Xeon w5-2545 (avg score 58,504, delta -0.2%), the Intel Core i9-14900 (avg score 58,115, delta 0.5%), and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 (avg score 58,826, delta -0.7%). These deltas are all within 1%, indicating the 9850X3D sits in a tightly contested performance band.

For Control, the measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings are consistently high, which points to the CPU providing a strong foundation. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 214 FPS average; at 1440p Low it reaches 162 FPS; and even at 4K Low it hits 110 FPS. These figures suggest the 8-core, 16-thread configuration with its large 96 MB L3 cache is more than sufficient to feed the GPU at lower resolutions where the CPU load is proportionally higher. The high boost clock of 5.60 GHz also helps single-threaded game logic tasks, and the benchmark results indicate that even at 1080p, the CPU is not creating a bottleneck that would cap frame rates below the 200+ FPS range.

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

The data provides measured average FPS for four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) at three resolutions. The verdict is clear: Medium settings offer the best balance of visual quality and performance headroom across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the combo delivers 152 FPS average with a minimum of 130 FPS and a maximum of 175 FPS. This is only a 62 FPS drop from Low (214 FPS) but a 34 FPS gain over High (135 FPS) and a 34 FPS gain over Ultra (118 FPS). The minimum frame time at Medium (130 FPS) is also substantially higher than the average of High or Ultra, meaning smoother gameplay in demanding scenes.

At 1440p, Medium delivers 115 FPS average with a minimum of 98 FPS and a maximum of 133 FPS. This is a 47 FPS reduction from Low (162 FPS) but a 13 FPS improvement over High (102 FPS) and a 26 FPS improvement over Ultra (89 FPS). The 98 FPS minimum at Medium ensures the experience stays above the 90 FPS threshold even during intense combat sequences. At 4K, Medium yields 78 FPS average with a minimum of 66 FPS and a maximum of 90 FPS. This is the only setting at 4K that maintains an average above 70 FPS while providing better visual fidelity than Low (110 FPS) at a cost of 32 FPS.

High settings at 1080p (135 FPS) are acceptable for competitive play, but Medium provides a 17 FPS uplift. Ultra settings at 1080p (118 FPS) are the most demanding, but the 34 FPS penalty over Medium is not justified by the marginal visual gains in this title. At 4K, Ultra drops to 60 FPS average, which is the minimum playable threshold, while High (69 FPS) is barely above it. The data strongly suggests that Medium is the sweet spot: it maintains a minimum FPS above 60 at all resolutions and provides the largest performance margin over High and Ultra while still delivering a richer visual experience than Low.

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

The frame rate scaling across resolutions reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario for this combo. Starting at 1080p Low (214 FPS), moving to 1440p Low (162 FPS) represents a 24.3% drop, and moving to 4K Low (110 FPS) represents a 32.1% drop from 1440p. For Medium settings, 1080p (152 FPS) drops to 1440p (115 FPS) at a 24.3% reduction, then to 4K (78 FPS) at a 32.2% reduction from 1440p. High settings show 1080p (135 FPS) dropping to 1440p (102 FPS) at a 24.4% reduction, then to 4K (69 FPS) at a 32.4% reduction from 1440p. Ultra settings follow the same pattern: 1080p (118 FPS) to 1440p (89 FPS) is a 24.6% drop, and 1440p to 4K (60 FPS) is a 32.6% drop.

The consistent percentage drops across all settings presets—roughly 24% from 1080p to 1440p and then another 32% from 1440p to 4K—indicate that the scaling is driven by pixel count rather than CPU or memory limits. The number of pixels quadruples from 1080p to 4K, but the FPS does not drop to a quarter; instead, it drops by roughly half from 1080p to 4K for each setting (e.g., 214 to 110 FPS at Low, 152 to 78 FPS at Medium). This sub-linear scaling suggests the RTX 4070 SUPER is the primary limiter at higher resolutions, as the CPU has sufficient headroom to maintain high frame rates at 1080p. The fact that even at 4K Low the combo achieves 110 FPS indicates the GPU is still delivering strong performance, but the diminishing returns from 1440p to 4K confirm that the graphics card is the bottleneck as resolution increases. The CPU is not the limiting component in any of these scenarios, as evidenced by the high 1080p frame rates that do not plateau.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER ranks 438th out of 2,888 tested combos in Control. This places the combo in the top 15.2% of all configurations tested for this game. The rank of 438 out of 2,888 combos indicates that while this is not a top-tier configuration, it is well above the median and represents a strong performer for the hardware involved. The benchmark data shows that this combo delivers playable frame rates at all settings and resolutions, with the minimum average FPS being 60 at 4K Ultra.

The ranking is influenced by the GPU's performance characteristics. The RTX 4070 SUPER has a Passmark G3D score of 29,995 and a Passmark G2D score of 1,184, with a GPU compute score of 17,108. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 4,627. These scores place the GPU in the 83rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 43,223. The GPU's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB (avg score 43,262, delta -0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile (avg score 43,268, delta -0.1%), the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 (avg score 43,301, delta -0.2%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile (avg score 43,667, delta -1%). All deltas are within 1%, confirming the RTX 4070 SUPER is positioned in a competitive performance segment.

The CPU's ranking in the 92nd percentile among all CPUs, combined with the GPU's 83rd percentile, yields a combo that is better than the average pairing. The 438th rank out of 2,888 combos means there are 2,450 combos that rank lower, but also 437 combos that rank higher. These higher-ranked combos likely pair the same or stronger GPUs with even more powerful CPUs, or use multiple GPUs. For a single-GPU configuration with this specific processor and graphics card, the data indicates the performance is strong but not class-leading, which is consistent with the mid-to-high-end positioning of both components.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is based on the AD104 chip using the Ada Lovelace architecture, manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC. It has 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, with a transistor density of 121.8M per mm². The GPU has a base clock of 1980 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz, with memory running at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). The memory subsystem consists of 12 GB of GDDR6X on a 192-bit bus, providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU features 7,168 shading units, 224 TMUs, 80 ROPs, 56 RT cores, and 224 tensor cores. Its pixel rate is 198.0 GPixel/s, texture rate is 554.4 GTexel/s, and FP32 performance is 35.48 TFLOPS. The GPU has a TDP of 220 W and is a dual-slot card with a 16-pin power connector, suggesting a 550 W PSU.

In benchmark tests, the RTX 4070 SUPER scores 172,795 in Geekbench OpenCL and 205,624 in Geekbench Vulkan. In Passmark, it scores 167 in DirectX 10, 273 in DirectX 11, 110 in DirectX 12, and 344 in DirectX 9. The G3D score of 29,995 and G2D score of 1,184, combined with a GPU compute score of 17,108, give it an average benchmark score of 43,223. The GPU's percentile rank is 83rd among all GPUs, and it is classified as end-of-life with a successor in the GeForce 50 series.

For Control, the GPU's 12 GB VRAM is sufficient for all tested settings, as evidenced by the consistent frame rates at 4K Ultra (60 FPS average) without any reported issues. The 504.2 GB/s memory bandwidth is ample for this game's textures and effects at 4K. The boost clock of 2475 MHz combined with 35.48 TFLOPS of FP32 performance explains the strong scaling from 1080p to 4K. The GPU's role as the primary limiter at higher resolutions is clear: at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 214 FPS, but at 4K Ultra it drops to 60 FPS, a 71.9% reduction. This indicates that the GPU is fully utilized at 4K, while at 1080p, the CPU is able to feed it with enough frames to keep it busy. The RTX 4070 SUPER is a capable card for this title, delivering playable performance at all settings, but Ultra at 4K is right at the edge of playability with a 60 FPS average.

FAQ

Q: What is the best setting preset for this CPU/GPU combo in Control at 1440p?

A: Medium settings at 1440p deliver 115 FPS average with a minimum of 98 FPS and a maximum of 133 FPS. This provides the best balance between visual quality and performance, as High settings drop to 102 FPS average and Ultra drops to 89 FPS average.

Q: Can this combo run Control at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, at 4K Medium the combo achieves 78 FPS average with a minimum of 66 FPS, while High settings yield 69 FPS average. At 4K Ultra, the average drops to 60 FPS, which is still playable but with no headroom for demanding scenes.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in overall benchmark performance?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D has an average benchmark score of 58,386. Its nearest rival, the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M, scores 58,323 (0.1% higher), while the Intel Xeon w5-2545 scores 58,504 (0.2% lower). The Intel Core i9-14900 scores 58,115 (0.5% higher), and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 scores 58,826 (0.7% lower). All rivals are within 1% of the 9850X3D's score.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At 1080p High, the combo achieves 135 FPS average. At 1440p High, it drops to 102 FPS (a 24.4% reduction), and at 4K High, it drops to 69 FPS (a 32.4% reduction from 1440p). The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 66 FPS, or 48.9%.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the limiting factor at 1080p in Control?

A: The data shows the CPU is not the limiting factor at 1080p. At Low settings, the combo reaches 214 FPS, which indicates the CPU has ample headroom. The consistent percentage drops when moving to higher resolutions (around 24% from 1080p to 1440p and 32% from 1440p to 4K) confirm that the GPU becomes the primary limiter as resolution increases.

Q: How does the RTX 4070 SUPER compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 4070 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 43,223. The NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB scores 43,262 (0.1% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile scores 43,268 (0.1% higher), the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 scores 43,301 (0.2% higher), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile scores 43,667 (1% higher). All deltas are within 1%, indicating the 4070 SUPER is competitively positioned.