Control

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 in Control is a study in contrasts: a top-tier 16-core processor from 2020 driving a mid-range Pascal GPU from 2016. The benchmark data shows a system where the CPU has immense headroom, but the GPU dictates the playable experience at nearly every resolution. At 1080p, the combo delivers a smooth experience on medium to high settings, but pushing to 1440p or 4K requires significant compromises. The data suggests the GTX 1070 is the primary bottleneck, as CPU load barely scales with the game's demands, leaving the Ryzen 9 5950X largely underutilized.

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

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. Its 64 MB of L3 cache and 8,300 million transistors on a 7 nm process place it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs tested, with an average benchmark score of 49,062. In synthetic tests, it achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 38,607 and a single-core score of 5,450, which indicates exceptional headroom for any gaming workload.

In Control, the CPU's role is minimal relative to the GPU. The game's frame rates are constrained by the graphics card across all measured settings, not the processor. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo hits 94.6 FPS, which is the highest average in the entire dataset. This suggests that even at this lower resolution, the GTX 1070 is still the limiting factor, as the Ryzen 9 5950X has far more multi-threaded capability than a single game thread would require. The 3dmark 16-thread score of 10,810 and the max-threads score of 11,597 show that this CPU can handle far more complex tasks than Control presents.

The nearest rivals for the Ryzen 9 5950X include the Intel Core i5-14600K with a score of 49,166 (0.2% higher) and the Intel Core i5-14600KF at 49,367 (0.6% higher). The data shows that the Ryzen 9 5950X trails these CPUs by less than 1% in average benchmark score, meaning that in CPU-limited scenarios, any of these processors would perform virtually identically. However, in this specific game, the bottleneck is elsewhere. The passmark physics score of 1,878 and the floating point math score of 100,280 confirm that the CPU is not being stressed by Control's physics or simulation systems at any resolution.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is based on the Pascal architecture, featuring 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, with a memory bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. Its base clock is 1506 MHz with a boost clock of 1683 MHz, and the memory runs at 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective). The GPU has 1,920 shading units and 64 ROPs, delivering a pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s. This places the card in the 51st percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 12,331.

In Control, the GTX 1070's performance is the defining factor for the entire combo. At 1920x1080 on Low settings, it achieves 94.6 FPS, but this drops to 61.2 FPS on High and 54.6 FPS on Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 40 FPS, which shows how sensitive this GPU is to the game's visual effects. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for 1080p, but the card's raw compute power, at 6.463 TFLOPS FP32, struggles with the game's higher presets. The nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER, scores 12,504 (1.4% higher), while the Quadro K4200 scores 12,241 (0.7% lower), confirming the GTX 1070 sits in a tight performance band for its class.

At 1440p, the GPU's limitations become more apparent. The average FPS on Low is 74.6, but this falls to 48.7 on High and 37.4 on Ultra. The difference between Low and Medium at 1440p is 21.6 FPS (74.6 vs 53), indicating that even minor preset changes have a significant impact. The GTX 1070's 256-bit memory bus and 8 GB of VRAM are adequate for 1440p, but the rendering load exceeds its capabilities at higher settings. The passmark G3D score of 13,498 and the 3dmark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1,082 reflect a card that is now entry-level for modern titles.

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

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of GPU limitation as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 High, the combo averages 61.2 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 High drops this to 48.7 FPS, a 20.4% reduction. At 3840x2160 High, the average is 33.1 FPS, a 45.9% drop from 1080p. This scaling is typical for a GPU-bound scenario, where the rendering resolution directly impacts the workload.

On Low settings, the pattern is similar but with higher absolute numbers. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 94.6 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 74.6 FPS, and at 4K Low, it falls to 48.3 FPS. The 4K Low result is actually higher than the 1080p Ultra result (54.6 FPS), which indicates that lowering the preset has a larger impact than resolution alone. This suggests that the GTX 1070 is not VRAM-limited at 4K, but rather shader-limited, as the pixel workload quadruples from 1080p to 4K.

The data reveals that the Ryzen 9 5950X is not the limiting component at any resolution. The CPU's average benchmark score of 49,062 places it in the 93rd percentile, and its single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 score of 5,450) is more than sufficient for Control. The consistent FPS drops across resolutions—from 94.6 FPS at 1080p Low to 48.3 FPS at 4K Low—show that the GPU is the sole bottleneck. The GTX 1070's 51st percentile GPU ranking, combined with the measured FPS, confirms that upgrading the CPU would not improve frame rates in this game.

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

For 1080p gaming, the High preset at 1920x1080 delivers an average of 61.2 FPS, which is smooth for most players. The Medium preset at 69.2 FPS offers a small improvement, but High is the better balance of visual quality and performance. The Ultra preset at 54.6 FPS is playable but dips below the 60 FPS target, so it is not recommended for competitive play. Low at 94.6 FPS is the highest performance option, but it sacrifices too much visual fidelity for a game like Control that relies on atmosphere.

At 1440p, the situation changes. The High preset averages 48.7 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset at 53 FPS is slightly better, but still not ideal. The Low preset at 74.6 FPS is the only option that provides a consistently smooth experience at this resolution. The data suggests that 1440p users should stick to Low or Medium, as the jump to High incurs a 10% performance penalty with diminishing visual returns. The Ultra preset at 37.4 FPS is effectively unplayable for most users.

For 4K, the measured results are marginal. The Low preset averages 48.3 FPS, which is the only playable option. Medium at 34.4 FPS, High at 33.1 FPS, and Ultra at 29.2 FPS are all below 35 FPS, making them unsuitable for smooth gameplay. The recommendation is clear: if you own a GTX 1070 and play at 4K, you must use Low settings. The 8 GB VRAM is not the issue, as the card's compute power is simply insufficient for higher presets at this resolution.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combo of the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 ranks 1,381 out of 1,636 tested combos in Control. This places it in the bottom 15.6% of all configurations, which is a direct reflection of the GPU's age and performance class. The Ryzen 9 5950X's high CPU ranking (93rd percentile) does not compensate for the GTX 1070's mid-range GPU ranking (51st percentile), because the game is overwhelmingly GPU-bound.

The ranking indicates that most other CPU/GPU pairings tested in this game outperform this combo. The GTX 1070's nearest rivals—the Quadro K4200, GTX 880M, and GTX 1650 SUPER—all have similar average scores, meaning the combo's rank is consistent with the GPU's expected performance. The CPU's rivals, such as the Intel Core i5-14600K, would likely produce identical frame rates when paired with the same GPU, as the bottleneck is the graphics card.

The rank of 1,381 out of 1,636 is not a reflection of a broken system, but rather a realistic assessment of a legacy GPU paired with a modern CPU. The data shows that this combo is suitable for 1080p gaming on medium settings, but it will struggle at higher resolutions. Users looking to improve this ranking would need to upgrade the GPU, as the CPU has ample headroom for future graphics card upgrades without becoming a bottleneck.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo consistently exceeds 60 FPS. At 1080p High, it averages 61.2 FPS, while 1440p High drops to 48.7 FPS and 4K High falls to 33.1 FPS.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X bottlenecking the GTX 1070?

A: No. The CPU ranks in the 93rd percentile with an average score of 49,062, while the GPU ranks in the 51st percentile with a score of 12,331. The FPS drops from 94.6 at 1080p Low to 48.3 at 4K Low indicate the GPU is the limiting factor.

Q: Can this combo handle Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: No. At 2560x1440 Ultra, the average FPS is 37.4, which is below playable thresholds. The Medium preset at 53 FPS is the highest playable option at this resolution.

Q: How does the GTX 1070 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The GTX 1070 scores 12,331 on average. The NVIDIA Quadro K4200 scores 12,241 (0.7% lower), while the GTX 1650 SUPER scores 12,504 (1.4% higher). All are within a 2% performance band.

*Q: What is the combo's overall ranking in Control?*

A: The combo ranks 1,381 out of 1,636 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 15.6%. This is due to the GPU's mid-range performance, not the CPU.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this setup?

A: Only on Low settings, where the average FPS is 48.3. The Medium preset drops to 34.4 FPS, and High/Ultra are below 33.1 FPS, making them unplayable.