Control

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates for Control with the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER show a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo delivers 93 FPS average. Moving to 1440p at the same settings, the average drops to 67.8 FPS, a reduction of approximately 27%. At 4K with Low settings, the average falls further to 46.5 FPS, which is exactly half of the 1080p Low result. This scaling pattern indicates that the GTX 1660 SUPER is the primary limiting component, as the frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial and directly tied to the GPU's rendering workload.

The data across all settings confirms this trend. At High settings, the 1080p average of 60.2 FPS drops to 42.5 FPS at 1440p and then to 29.1 FPS at 4K. The 4K High result is 48% of the 1080p High figure. Medium settings show a similar trajectory: 66.1 FPS at 1080p, 48.1 FPS at 1440p, and 31 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings produce the lowest absolute numbers, with 52.6 FPS at 1080p, 39.8 FPS at 1440p, and 23.6 FPS at 4K. The Ultra 4K result is less than half of the Ultra 1080p result, underscoring the GPU's inability to sustain high frame rates at higher resolutions.

The scaling behavior also reveals how the CPU's headroom is largely unused at higher resolutions. The Ryzen 9 5950X, with its 16 cores and 32 threads, is far more capable than what this game demands at 4K, where the GTX 1660 SUPER becomes the bottleneck. At 1080p, the gap between Low (93 FPS) and Medium (66.1 FPS) is 26.9 FPS, which suggests that even at lower resolutions, the GPU is still the limiting factor, as the CPU should easily handle the increased draw calls without a significant frame rate penalty. The fact that 4K Low (46.5 FPS) is still above 4K Medium (31 FPS) and 4K High (29.1 FPS) indicates that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth — 336.0 GB/s on a 192-bit bus — are the decisive constraints, not the CPU's compute capacity.

CPU Role

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. In Control, this level of CPU performance is far beyond what the game requires, even at the lowest settings. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo reaches 93 FPS, which is the highest measured result across all configurations. However, this is still well below the CPU's potential, as the GTX 1660 SUPER's 5.027 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is the limiting factor.

The CPU's benchmark scores support this assessment. In Cinebench R23, the 5950X scores 38607 in multi-core and 5450 in single-core, with a 3DMark max-threads score of 11597. These figures place it in the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 49062. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i5-14600K (average score 49166, delta -0.2%), the Intel Core i5-14600KF (49367, -0.6%), and the AMD EPYC 4345P (49595, -1.1%). The 5950X also trails the Intel Core i5-14600KF by only 0.6% in average benchmark score, indicating that its raw compute is competitive with modern mid-range parts.

In the context of Control, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics data. The game is an Action Adventure title from 2019, and its engine does not appear to scale with the 5950X's 16 cores beyond what a typical 8-core part would provide. The measured frame rates show that at 1080p Low, the CPU is not the bottleneck, as the GPU is already working near its limit. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see similar frame rates across different resolutions, but the data shows a clear degradation from 93 FPS at 1080p to 46.5 FPS at 4K, confirming that the GPU is the constraint.

The Ryzen 9 5950X's 64 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support (51.2 GB/s bandwidth) provide ample memory bandwidth for this game. The CPU's PCIe Gen 4 interface (20 lanes) also ensures that the GPU is not starved for data transfer, although the GTX 1660 SUPER uses a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, which is sufficient for this workload. In summary, the CPU's performance is more than adequate for Control, and the data indicates that users would see no meaningful frame rate improvement from a stronger CPU with this GPU.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate recorded for this combo in Control?

A: The highest average frame rate is 93 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo's performance at 4K Ultra compare to 1080p Low?

A: At 4K Ultra, the average frame rate is 23.6 FPS, which is 25.4% of the 1080p Low result of 93 FPS. This represents a 74.6% reduction in frame rate.

Q: Is the Ryzen 9 5950X the bottleneck in this game?

A: No. The data shows that frame rates drop significantly as resolution increases (e.g., from 93 FPS at 1080p Low to 46.5 FPS at 4K Low), indicating the GTX 1660 SUPER is the limiting component. The CPU has ample headroom.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 1447th out of 1636 tested combinations, placing it in the lower 11.5% of all combos.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its nearest rival in average benchmark score?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 14286, which is 0.2% lower than the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (14314) and 0.2% lower than the Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics (14315).

Q: At which resolution and settings does the combo achieve a playable 60 FPS or above?

A: The combo achieves 60 FPS or above only at 1920x1080 with High settings (60.2 FPS) and Low settings (93 FPS). The 1080p Medium result is 66.1 FPS, which also exceeds 60 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X + NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER combination ranks 1447th out of 1636 tested combos in Control. This places it in the bottom 11.5% of all combinations, which is consistent with the GPU's modest performance profile. The GTX 1660 SUPER sits in the 55th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 14286. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (score 14314, delta -0.2%), Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics (14315, -0.2%), AMD Radeon Vega 11 (14352, -0.5%), and AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT (14389, -0.7%). This means the GPU is slightly below the performance of these integrated and entry-level discrete options in synthetic benchmarks.

The CPU, in contrast, is a high-end part. The Ryzen 9 5950X ranks in the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 49062. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i5-14600K (49166, -0.2%), Intel Core i5-14600KF (49367, -0.6%), Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (48698, +0.7%), and AMD EPYC 4345P (49595, -1.1%). The CPU's performance is essentially on par with these modern parts, with deltas of less than 1.1% in either direction.

The combination of a top-tier CPU with a mid-range GPU results in a system that is heavily GPU-limited in Control. The rank of 1447 out of 1636 reflects this imbalance. In games that are more CPU-intensive, this combo would rank higher, but in Control, the GPU's 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus are the primary constraints. The measured frame rates at 4K Ultra (23.6 FPS) and 4K High (29.1 FPS) are below the playable threshold, while 1080p Low (93 FPS) and 1080p Medium (66.1 FPS) are smooth. This ranking underscores the importance of matching GPU performance to the resolution and settings the user intends to play.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 93 FPS, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. Medium settings yield 66.1 FPS, High settings 60.2 FPS, and Ultra settings 52.6 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 40.4 FPS, indicating that the GPU's performance headroom is quickly consumed as settings increase. The 1080p High result of 60.2 FPS is just above the 60 FPS mark, making it a viable option for smooth gameplay.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop noticeably. Low settings average 67.8 FPS, Medium 48.1 FPS, High 42.5 FPS, and Ultra 39.8 FPS. The 1440p Low result is still playable, but the Medium, High, and Ultra settings all fall below 50 FPS. The gap between 1440p Low and 1440p Ultra is 28 FPS, which is smaller than at 1080p, suggesting that the GPU is becoming more constrained at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles to maintain playable frame rates. Low settings average 46.5 FPS, Medium 31 FPS, High 29.1 FPS, and Ultra 23.6 FPS. Only the Low setting comes close to 50 FPS, and all other settings are below 32 FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 23.6 FPS is the lowest measured value, representing a 74.6% reduction from the 1080p Low result. This resolution is not suitable for this GPU in Control, as even Low settings may feel inconsistent in fast-paced action sequences.

The data shows a clear hierarchy: 1080p is the only resolution where the combo consistently exceeds 50 FPS across all settings, and 1440p is playable only at Low settings. 4K is not viable for this game with this GPU, as the highest 4K result (46.5 FPS at Low) is still below the 60 FPS target.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the optimal experience for this combo in Control is at 1920x1080 with Medium settings, which delivers 66.1 FPS. This provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS while offering improved visual quality over Low settings. The High preset at 1080p (60.2 FPS) is also a strong choice, as it maintains 60 FPS exactly and provides better graphical fidelity than Medium. Users who prioritize smoothness above all else can select Low at 1080p (93 FPS), but the visual compromise is significant.

At 2560x1440, the only playable option is Low settings, which averages 67.8 FPS. Medium settings (48.1 FPS) and High settings (42.5 FPS) are below the 60 FPS threshold, and Ultra (39.8 FPS) is even lower. For users with a 1440p monitor, the data suggests that dropping to Low is necessary for a consistent frame rate, and even then, the experience is inferior to 1080p Medium.

At 3840x2160, no setting is recommended. The highest 4K result is 46.5 FPS at Low, which is below 60 FPS and may cause noticeable stuttering in a game like Control, which has dynamic action sequences. The 4K Medium (31 FPS), High (29.1 FPS), and Ultra (23.6 FPS) results are all well below playable thresholds. Users with a 4K display should either reduce the resolution to 1440p or lower the in-game rendering scale, although the latter is not captured in this dataset.

The best overall experience, balancing frame rate and visual quality, is 1920x1080 with High settings (60.2 FPS). This setting provides a playable frame rate while leveraging the GPU's capabilities to a reasonable degree. For users who want headroom above 60 FPS, 1080p Medium (66.1 FPS) is the safer choice. The data clearly indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, with 1440p viable only at the lowest settings.