Control

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 pairing delivers an exceptionally strong performance profile in Control, placing this combination in the 88th percentile of all 1,636 tested combos. With a 16-core, 32-thread Zen 3 processor operating at a 3.40 GHz base clock and 4.90 GHz boost clock, the CPU provides more than enough headroom for this action-adventure title. The RTX 5080, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with 10,752 shading units and 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, ensures that frame rates remain consistently high across all tested resolutions and settings. The data indicates a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s substantial multi-threading capabilities prevent it from becoming a limiting factor even at 1080p.

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

The Ryzen 9 5950X is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture (codenamed Vermeer), manufactured on TSMC's 7 nm process. Its base clock of 3.40 GHz and boost clock of 4.90 GHz, combined with 64 MB of L3 cache, make it a formidable partner for the RTX 5080. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 38,607 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 5,450 in single-core, placing it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 49,062 is virtually identical to that of the Intel Core i5-14600K, which scores 49,166 (a delta of -0.2%), and the Core i5-14600KF at 49,367 (-0.6%). The 5950X also edges out the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (48,698, +0.7%) and trails the AMD EPYC 4345P (49,595, -1.1%) by a negligible margin.

For Control, this CPU performance translates into a system that can feed the RTX 5080 effortlessly. The game is not heavily multi-threaded, but the 5950X’s strong single-thread score (944 in 3DMark single-thread, 2,289 in Cinebench R20 single-core) ensures that the primary game thread never becomes a bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 232.4 FPS, which is a clear indicator that the CPU can sustain very high frame rates. The 3DMark scores for 2 threads (1,856), 4 threads (3,595), and 8 threads (6,598) show that even when the game scales to a few cores, the 5950X provides more than adequate performance. The CPU’s 105 W TDP and 8,300 million transistors on a 2x 74 mm² die size are secondary details; what matters here is the consistent delivery of high frame rates without stutter.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

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

A: The highest recorded average FPS is 232.4, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the Ryzen 9 5950X compare to its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-14600K?

A: The Ryzen 9 5950X has an average benchmark score of 49,062, which is 0.2% lower than the Intel Core i5-14600K’s 49,166. This places the two CPUs in a statistical tie for overall performance.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 2560x1440?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset yields an average of 195.9 FPS, while the Ultra preset delivers 110.6 FPS. This represents a 85.3 FPS drop, indicating that Ultra settings impose a significant load on the GPU.

Q: Is the RTX 5080’s performance closer to the Intel Arc A570M or the Intel Arc Pro A60?

A: The RTX 5080’s average benchmark score is 59,188. It is 1.6% ahead of the Intel Arc A570M (58,239) and 1.9% behind the Intel Arc Pro A60 (60,326), placing it nearly equidistant between the two.

*Q: Does the combo rank higher in Control than in overall CPU benchmarks?*

A: Yes. The combo ranks 88th out of 1,636 tested combos in Control, which is in the 94.6th percentile. This is slightly higher than the CPU’s standalone percentile of 93 against all CPUs.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for this pairing?

A: The lowest average FPS is 74.5, recorded at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings.

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-bound scaling as resolution increases. At 1080p with High settings, the combo averages 163.7 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops this to 125.4 FPS, a reduction of 23.4%. At 4K High, the average falls further to 81.6 FPS, which is a 50.2% decrease from the 1080p figure. This scaling behavior is classic for a system where the RTX 5080 becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions. The 5950X has ample headroom; even at 1080p Low (232.4 FPS), the CPU is not struggling, as evidenced by the strong single-thread benchmarks.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens with resolution. At 1080p, Low (232.4 FPS) is 63.2% faster than Ultra (142.4 FPS). At 1440p, Low (195.9 FPS) is 77.2% faster than Ultra (110.6 FPS). At 4K, Low (132 FPS) is 77.2% faster than Ultra (74.5 FPS). This consistent pattern indicates that the GPU’s rendering load scales dramatically with both resolution and quality settings. The RTX 5080’s 960.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 56.28 TFLOPS of FP32 compute are being taxed heavily at 4K Ultra, while the CPU continues to feed frames without issue. The data strongly suggests that for competitive frame rates at 4K, users should consider Medium or High presets, as the jump from High (81.6 FPS) to Ultra (74.5 FPS) at 4K yields only a 9.5% performance penalty for a visually marginal gain.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the database of tested hardware combinations for Control, this pairing of the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 ranks 88th out of 1,636 combos. This places it in the top 5.4% of all tested systems, which is a strong result given the age of the game (released in August 2019) and its moderate hardware requirements. The rank reflects the RTX 5080’s high average benchmark score of 59,188, which puts it in the 89th percentile of all GPUs. The CPU’s 93rd percentile ranking further bolsters the combo’s standing.

Compared to the GPU’s nearest rivals, the RTX 5080 outperforms the Intel Arc A570M (58,239, +1.6%) and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X (57,661, +2.6%), while sitting slightly behind the Intel Arc Pro A60 (60,326, -1.9%). This positioning suggests that the combo’s rank is primarily driven by the GPU, as the CPU’s performance is more than sufficient for Control. The 88th rank out of 1,636 indicates that there are 87 combos that score higher, likely featuring even more powerful GPUs or CPUs with higher single-thread performance. However, for a 2020-era CPU paired with a 2025 GPU, this result demonstrates excellent longevity and balance.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The dataset provides 12 measured FPS points across three resolutions and four settings presets, all with average FPS values and no minimum or maximum data. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 232.4 FPS, Medium drops to 185.3 FPS, High comes in at 163.7 FPS, and Ultra settles at 142.4 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 90 FPS, showing that even at 1080p, settings have a substantial impact on frame rates.

At 2560x1440, the numbers decrease proportionally: Low yields 195.9 FPS, Medium achieves 143.9 FPS, High reaches 125.4 FPS, and Ultra produces 110.6 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra here is 85.3 FPS, which is slightly tighter than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is beginning to become more of a limiting factor.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops are more pronounced. Low averages 132 FPS, Medium gets 97.6 FPS, High falls to 81.6 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 74.5 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 57.5 FPS, which is the smallest absolute gap across the resolutions. This suggests that at 4K, the GPU is saturated even at Low settings, and the relative cost of each quality tier is compressed. Notably, the jump from Medium (97.6 FPS) to High (81.6 FPS) at 4K is a 16 FPS drop, while High to Ultra is only 7.1 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns at the top end.

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

For users targeting 60 FPS as a baseline, every preset at every resolution in the dataset exceeds this threshold, including 4K Ultra at 74.5 FPS. This means the combo is overqualified for standard 60 Hz displays. For high-refresh-rate 1080p monitors, the Medium preset (185.3 FPS) offers a strong balance, as it is 22.7 FPS faster than High (163.7 FPS) while likely retaining most visual quality. The Ultra preset at 1080p (142.4 FPS) is still excellent for 144 Hz displays, but the 42.9 FPS penalty from Medium to Ultra is significant.

At 1440p, the Medium preset (143.9 FPS) is the sweet spot for 144 Hz panels, as it is 18.5 FPS faster than High (125.4 FPS) and 33.3 FPS faster than Ultra (110.6 FPS). For 1440p 165 Hz monitors, the Low preset (195.9 FPS) is the only option that fully saturates the refresh rate. At 4K, the High preset (81.6 FPS) is recommended for users with 60 Hz displays who want maximum quality without sacrificing smoothness, as it is 7.1 FPS faster than Ultra (74.5 FPS) and likely looks nearly identical. The Medium preset (97.6 FPS) is the best choice for 4K users with 100 Hz or higher refresh rate displays, as it provides a 16 FPS advantage over High while still maintaining a high level of visual fidelity. The data clearly shows that Medium or High settings at 1440p provide the best combination of frame rate and visual quality for most users, while 4K is best enjoyed with Medium settings unless a 60 Hz cap is acceptable.