Control

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT combination delivers a high-refresh-rate experience in Control, but the data reveals a clear scaling pattern where the graphics card becomes the dominant factor as resolution increases. At 1080p, the system excels with an average of 205.5 FPS on Low settings, while the 4K Ultra preset drops to 58.4 FPS, indicating a shift from CPU-bound to GPU-bound performance.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings presets. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 205.5 FPS at 1920x1080 to 157.6 FPS at 2560x1440, then further down to 104.1 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 49.3% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Low settings. The scaling pattern is similar at High settings, where the average drops from 132.3 FPS at 1080p to 100.7 FPS at 1440p and finally to 66.9 FPS at 4K — a 49.4% decline overall.

The Medium preset shows the same trend: 148 FPS at 1080p, 111.2 FPS at 1440p, and 74.8 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings produce the lowest absolute numbers, starting at 113.1 FPS at 1080p, dropping to 87.5 FPS at 1440p, and bottoming out at 58.4 FPS at 4K. The consistent percentage drops across presets suggest that the scaling is resolution-driven rather than settings-driven.

These results indicate that the limiting component shifts with resolution. At 1080p, the frame rates are high enough that the CPU’s 12 cores and 24 threads can keep up, but the GPU still has headroom. At 4K, the RX 7900 XT’s workload increases significantly, and the frame rates compress closer together across settings — the gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 45.7 FPS, while at 1080p it is 92.4 FPS. This compression signals that the GPU is nearing its limits at higher resolutions, making it the primary bottleneck.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor from the 5000 series, built on the Zen 3 architecture with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz. Its benchmark scores demonstrate strong multi-threaded capability: Cinebench R23 multicore reaches 33150 points, and Geekbench multicore hits 11877 points. Single-thread performance is also solid, with Cinebench R23 singlecore at 4680 points and a 3DMark single-thread score of 941.

In Control, the CPU’s role is most evident at 1080p resolution. At Low settings, the frame rate reaches 205.5 FPS, which is well above what the GPU can sustain at higher resolutions. This suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU enough data at lower resolutions, and the processor’s 64 MB of L3 cache helps maintain consistent frame pacing. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 9075 and max-thread score of 10075 further indicate that the CPU handles multi-threaded workloads efficiently, which matters for a game like Control that uses physics and AI calculations.

However, the CPU’s influence diminishes as resolution increases. At 4K, the CPU is no longer the limiting factor; the GPU’s rendering load takes over. The percentile ranking of 90 for this CPU versus all CPUs means it outperforms the vast majority of processors, and its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 4245P, has an average score of 39383 with a delta of 0.2%. This positions the 5900X as a high-end desktop part, but in Control at 4K, the data shows that even a strong CPU cannot compensate for GPU-bound workloads.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT is a high-end graphics card with 20 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 320-bit bus, providing 800.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock is 2394 MHz, and it features 5376 shading units and 84 ray-tracing cores. The GPU’s benchmark scores reflect its power: PassMark G3D scores 29009 points, and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 reaches 5623 points. The percentile ranking of 82 versus all GPUs places it in the upper tier.

In Control, the GPU’s role becomes increasingly critical at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 58.4, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The GPU’s memory bandwidth of 800.0 GB/s is sufficient for the game’s textures, but the rendering load at 4K limits performance. At 1080p Low, the GPU delivers 205.5 FPS, showing that it has ample headroom when the resolution is low.

The GPU’s nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile, has an average score of 38349 with a delta of 0%, meaning they are statistically tied in synthetic benchmarks. In game, the RX 7900 XT’s performance at 4K High (66.9 FPS) is 14.6% higher than at 4K Ultra (58.4 FPS), indicating that the Ultra preset imposes a significant load. The 20 GB VRAM is more than adequate for Control, as the game does not appear to hit memory limits at any settings, but the GPU’s raw compute power is the deciding factor at 4K.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 9 5900X and RX 7900 XT ranks 348 out of 1636 tested combos in Control, placing it in the top 21.3% of all configurations. This is a strong result, but the rank suggests that there are many other combos that deliver higher frame rates. The CPU’s percentile of 90 and GPU’s percentile of 82 are both high, yet the combo’s rank is not as high as either component’s individual percentile, indicating that the pairing may be slightly imbalanced for this game.

The rank is driven by the GPU’s performance at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the combo achieves frame rates above 113 FPS on all settings, which is excellent. At 1440p, the frame rates range from 87.5 FPS on Ultra to 157.6 FPS on Low, still very playable. At 4K, the combo falls below 100 FPS on all settings, with Ultra at 58.4 FPS. This means the combo is best suited for 1440p gaming, where it can maintain high frame rates with room to spare.

Compared to other combos, the rank of 348 out of 1636 indicates that there are 1288 combos that perform worse, but also 347 that perform better. The data suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this pairing; rather, the GPU’s performance at 4K holds the combo back from a higher rank. Users looking for 4K gaming would need a more powerful GPU, but for 1440p, this combo is well-positioned.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution. At 1080p, the High preset offers a balance of visual quality and performance, with an average of 132.3 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 113.1 FPS, which is still smooth, but the 19.2 FPS difference may not justify the visual gains. For competitive play, the Low preset delivers 205.5 FPS, but the visual quality suffers significantly.

At 1440p, the High preset is the best choice, delivering 100.7 FPS. The Medium preset is close behind at 111.2 FPS, but High provides better visuals for a modest 10.5 FPS cost. The Ultra preset at 87.5 FPS is still playable, but the drop below 90 FPS may be noticeable on high-refresh-rate monitors. Low at 157.6 FPS is excessive for most users and sacrifices too much visual fidelity.

At 4K, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, with an average of 74.8 FPS. This is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay and provides a good balance between quality and performance. The High preset at 66.9 FPS is also viable, but the 7.9 FPS difference between Medium and High is smaller than the 15.9 FPS difference between High and Ultra (58.4 FPS). The Low preset at 104.1 FPS is an option for those prioritizing frame rate, but it undermines the visual experience at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are: Low 205.5, Medium 148, High 132.3, and Ultra 113.1. The gap between Low and Medium is 57.5 FPS, while the gap between Medium and High is 15.7 FPS, and the gap between High and Ultra is 19.2 FPS. This shows diminishing returns as settings increase, with the largest drop occurring from Low to Medium.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low 157.6, Medium 111.2, High 100.7, and Ultra 87.5. The drop from Low to Medium is 46.4 FPS, from Medium to High is 10.5 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 13.2 FPS. The pattern is similar to 1080p, but the absolute values are lower.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low 104.1, Medium 74.8, High 66.9, and Ultra 58.4. The drop from Low to Medium is 29.3 FPS, from Medium to High is 7.9 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 8.5 FPS. At 4K, the differences between settings compress, indicating that the GPU is the primary bottleneck.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Control?*

A: The highest average FPS is 205.5, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

*Q: Is this combo capable of 4K gaming in Control?*

A: Yes, but with limitations. At 4K Medium settings, the average FPS is 74.8, while at 4K Ultra it drops to 58.4, which is below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Ryzen 9 5900X has an average benchmark score of 39453, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD EPYC 4245P (39383) and 0.9% higher than the Intel Core i7-13700F (39095).

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rival?

A: The RX 7900 XT has an average benchmark score of 38358, which is statistically tied with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile (38349, 0% delta) and 0.3% higher than the NVIDIA CMP 70HX (38225).

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

A: The data shows 1440p is the sweet spot, as the High preset delivers 100.7 FPS and even Ultra stays above 87.5 FPS, providing a good balance of quality and performance.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 348 out of 1636 tested combinations, placing it in the top 21.3% of all systems tested in Control.