Control

Control pairs the 12-core AMD Ryzen 9 7900X with the 8 GB AMD Radeon RX 6600, and the measured frame rates across three resolutions reveal a system where the GPU is the decisive factor in every settings preset. The Ryzen 9 7900X, a Zen 4 Raphael part on the AMD Socket AM5 platform, brings 12 cores and 24 threads with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its synthetic benchmark scores place it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 50556, sitting within 0.8% of rivals like the Intel Core i9-13980HX and AMD Ryzen 9 5900XT. For Control, a game that relies on physics and destruction, the CPU’s multi-threaded headroom is substantial, but the data shows that headroom goes largely unused as resolution and settings scale. The RX 6600, built on RDNA 2.0 with a Navi 23 chip, has a boost clock of 2491 MHz and a game clock of 2044 MHz, yet its 69th percentile GPU ranking and average benchmark score of 25235 put it in a different class than the processor. Benchmark results indicate that the combination ranks 1355th out of 1636 tested combos in this game, a position that underscores a lopsided pairing where the CPU’s potential is capped by the graphics card’s throughput.

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

The Ryzen 9 7900X is an over-provisioned partner for the RX 6600 in Control. With 12 cores and 24 threads running on the Zen 4 architecture at a 5 nm process node, the processor delivers a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 43695 and a single-core score of 6168. Its 3DMark results scale from a single-thread score of 1093 up to 12536 at max threads, and the Passmark multi-thread score of 51406 confirms that the chip can handle heavily threaded workloads without breaking a sweat. In the context of Control, the CPU’s job is to manage game logic, AI, and the physics engine that lets objects crumble and fly. The data shows that even at 1080p Low, where the GPU is least burdened and the CPU would typically become the bottleneck, the average frame rate reaches 110.4 FPS — a figure that suggests the processor is not limiting the experience.

The percentile ranking of 93 versus all CPUs, combined with an average benchmark score that is virtually identical to the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 (a 0.1% delta) and AMD Ryzen 9 5900XT (a 0.4% delta), places the 7900X in the upper echelon of desktop processors. Yet in this specific game, the CPU’s 3DMark 16-thread score of 10972 and Passmark physics score of 3060 indicate that its capabilities are only lightly exercised. Control is not a CPU-bound title at the settings tested; the frame rate deltas between presets at the same resolution are far larger than any change in CPU load would produce. For instance, at 1440p, moving from Low to Ultra drops the average FPS from 81.1 to 43.6, a 37.5 FPS swing that the CPU cannot influence because it is not the constraining resource. The 7900X’s 64 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s provide ample headroom for feeding the GPU, but the measured results show that this headroom is rarely needed.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 is the component that dictates performance in this pairing. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus delivers 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is adequate for 1080p and 1440p but becomes a constraint at higher settings. The GPU’s boost clock of 2491 MHz and game clock of 2044 MHz are respectable for the RDNA 2.0 architecture, yet the Passmark G3D score of 15096 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1492 place it in the 69th percentile of all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 25235 is statistically tied with the AMD Radeon 890M (0% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (a 0.2% delta), while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti sits only 0.5% higher — a narrow margin that shows the RX 6600 is a mid-range part, not a high-end one.

In Control, the GPU’s role is to render the game’s distinct visual style, which includes heavy use of particle effects, reflective surfaces, and dynamic lighting. The measured FPS data shows that the RX 6600 handles the game’s Low preset with relative ease, achieving 110.4 FPS at 1080p, but the High preset at the same resolution drops to 65.7 FPS, and Ultra falls to 59.1 FPS. The pattern is consistent across resolutions: the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM and 1792 shading units are sufficient for Low settings, but as the preset climbs to High and Ultra, the rendering load increases faster than the GPU’s compute and memory bandwidth can keep up. At 4K Ultra, the combination manages only 28.9 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay, confirming that the RX 6600 is not designed for 4K gaming at maximum quality. The GPU’s pixel rate of 159.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 279.0 GTexel/s are the raw numbers behind these results, and they show a card that is balanced for 1080p and playable 1440p, not for 4K.

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

Resolution scaling in Control with this hardware follows a predictable pattern that hinges entirely on the GPU’s throughput. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 110.4, which drops to 81.1 at 1440p Low (a 29.3 FPS decrease) and further to 56.7 at 4K Low (a 24.4 FPS decrease from 1440p). The frame rate at 4K Low is only 51.4% of the 1080p Low figure, demonstrating that the RX 6600’s fill rate and bandwidth are overwhelmed as pixel count quadruples. The same trend appears at High settings: 65.7 FPS at 1080p, 51 FPS at 1440p, and 36.3 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at High is 44.7%, which is a slightly smaller relative decline than at Low, but the absolute frame rates are all lower to begin with.

The data indicates that the CPU is not the limiting component at any resolution or preset. If the Ryzen 9 7900X were the bottleneck, the FPS would remain relatively flat as resolution increases, because the CPU’s work is independent of pixel count. Instead, the FPS drops significantly at every step from 1080p to 1440p to 4K, which is the signature of a GPU-bound scenario. For example, at Medium settings, the FPS goes from 79.7 at 1080p to 56 at 1440p, a 29.7% decline, and then to 37.5 at 4K, a 33% decline from 1440p. The Ultra preset shows the same pattern: 59.1 FPS at 1080p, 43.6 at 1440p, and 28.9 at 4K. These numbers reveal that the RX 6600’s compute resources are exhausted at higher resolutions, and the CPU’s 12 cores and 24 threads are never the constraint. The result is a system where upgrading the GPU would yield immediate frame rate gains across the board, while the CPU would remain underutilized.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU combination in Control?

A: The measured data shows that 1080p is the only resolution where all presets remain playable, with a minimum of 59.1 FPS at Ultra and a maximum of 110.4 FPS at Low. At 1440p, the Low preset achieves 81.1 FPS, but Ultra drops to 43.6 FPS, and at 4K, even Low only reaches 56.7 FPS.

Q: How does the Ryzen 9 7900X compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The CPU’s average benchmark score of 50556 is 0.1% lower than the Intel Core Ultra 5 235, 0.4% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 5900XT, 0.5% lower than the Intel Core i7-13850HX, and 0.8% lower than the Intel Core i9-13980HX. These deltas are within the margin of error, placing the 7900X in a performance tie with those parts.

Q: Is the RX 6600’s 8 GB VRAM sufficient for Control at 4K?

A: The frame rates at 4K suggest that VRAM capacity is not the primary issue; rather, the GPU’s compute throughput is insufficient. At 4K Low, the average FPS is 56.7, which is playable, but at 4K High it drops to 36.3 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it falls to 28.9 FPS. The 8 GB VRAM is enough for Low and Medium, but the rendering load at High and Ultra exceeds the GPU’s capabilities.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck in this system for Control?

A: The benchmark results indicate the GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions and settings. The FPS drops significantly from 1080p to 4K, which would not happen if the CPU were the constraint. The Ryzen 9 7900X’s 93rd percentile CPU ranking and multi-thread scores are far above what Control requires.

Q: How does the RX 6600 perform relative to its closest GPU rivals?

A: The RX 6600’s average benchmark score of 25235 is exactly tied with the AMD Radeon 890M (0% delta), 0.2% above the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP, 0.2% below the AMD Radeon RX 6700M, and 0.5% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti. These differences are negligible in real-world gaming.

Q: What is the playability threshold for Control with this hardware?

A: If the threshold is 60 FPS, then the 1080p Medium preset (79.7 FPS) and 1080p High preset (65.7 FPS) meet it, while 1080p Ultra (59.1 FPS) just misses. At 1440p, only the Low preset (81.1 FPS) exceeds 60 FPS, and at 4K, none of the tested presets reach 60 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy for settings selection based on the desired frame rate target. For a 60 FPS experience at 1080p, the High preset is the best choice, delivering 65.7 FPS with a 6 FPS margin over the threshold. The Ultra preset at 1080p falls to 59.1 FPS, which is only 0.9 FPS below 60, but the High preset offers a more comfortable buffer without a significant visual penalty. If the user prioritizes smoothness over visual fidelity, the Low preset at 1080p achieves 110.4 FPS, which is nearly double the High preset’s frame rate and provides ample headroom for demanding scenes. At 1440p, the data shows that the Low preset is the only option that consistently stays above 60 FPS, with an average of 81.1 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p (56 FPS) is close to the threshold but dips below it, so Low is the recommended setting for a locked 60 FPS experience at this resolution. For 4K, the results are less favorable: the Low preset achieves 56.7 FPS, which is slightly below 60, and the High preset drops to 36.3 FPS. None of the 4K presets reach a smooth 60 FPS, so users are advised to either play at 1440p Low or accept a lower frame rate at 4K. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution except 1080p, where it still produces 59.1 FPS, but the High preset offers a better balance of performance and quality. Overall, the data suggests that the best experience for this hardware is 1080p High, which combines the game’s enhanced visuals with a frame rate that clears the 60 FPS mark, or 1440p Low for users who prefer a higher resolution over graphical details.