Control

The pairing of AMD's Ryzen 9 9900X with NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 1070 presents a stark contrast between a modern, high-end processor and an older, mid-range graphics card. In Control, a game known for its physics-heavy combat and detailed environments, this combination produces a dataset that clearly illustrates where the bottleneck lies. The benchmark results show that while the CPU brings immense computational headroom, the GPU's age and memory configuration are the primary factors dictating the final frame rates.

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

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, with a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. It sits in the 94th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54450. This places it in a competitive tier with the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D, which scores 54681 (a 0.4% difference), and the Intel Core i7-14700F, which scores 54097 (0.7% difference). The data indicates that this processor is not the limiting factor in this specific game configuration.

The CPU’s massive multi-threaded capability, demonstrated by a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 46438 and a Passmark multithread score of 54643, suggests it can handle complex game logic and background tasks with ease. In Control, which features destructible environments and advanced physics, this headroom is theoretically beneficial. However, the measured FPS data tells a different story. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 97.8 FPS, but as settings rise, the frame rate drops significantly, indicating that the workload is shifting away from the CPU. The processor’s high single-thread score of 6555 in Cinebench R23 also ensures that it can feed the GPU with draw calls efficiently. The bottleneck is not in the CPU’s ability to process instructions, but rather in the GPU’s ability to render the resulting frames. The fact that the Ryzen 9 9900X is 0.7% ahead of the Intel Core i7-14700F in average benchmark scores is irrelevant here, as the performance ceiling in this game is set by the graphics card.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is a Pascal-architecture card from 2016, featuring 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus. Its base clock is 1506 MHz with a boost of 1683 MHz, and it has a memory bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. With a percentile ranking of 51 among all GPUs, it sits firmly in the mid-range, with an average benchmark score of 12331. Its nearest rivals include the GTX 1650 SUPER (score 12504, delta -1.4%) and the GTX 880M (score 12490, delta -1.3%), indicating it is a modest performer by modern standards.

In Control, the GPU’s role is dominant. The game’s visual effects, particularly at higher settings, place a heavy load on the graphics card. The GTX 1070’s 8 GB VRAM is likely a critical factor; at 4K resolution with High settings, the card delivers only 32.4 FPS, which suggests it is struggling with both memory capacity and raw compute. The data shows a clear pattern: the GPU is the performance bottleneck. For example, at 1440p, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is a 30.2 FPS drop (from 71.3 to 41.1), demonstrating that the card’s shading units and texture rate are being overwhelmed. The card’s 1920 shading units and 120 TMUs are simply not enough to maintain high frame rates with the game’s demanding post-processing and particle effects at higher presets. The benchmark results indicate that the GTX 1070 is operating near its limits, and the CPU has ample headroom to spare.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend heavily on the target resolution. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers a playable 97.8 FPS, which is the highest average frame rate recorded for this pairing. The Medium preset still offers a smooth experience at 70.1 FPS, while High drops to 62.8 FPS, which is still acceptable for many players. The Ultra preset falls to 52.3 FPS, which is on the edge of playability for a fast-paced action game. For a balance of visual fidelity and performance at 1080p, the High preset appears to be the sweet spot, offering a 10.5 FPS improvement over Medium while maintaining a solid frame rate.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more constrained. The Low preset is the only setting that provides a clearly fluid experience at 71.3 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 50.8 FPS, which might be acceptable for some, but the High and Ultra presets fall to 43.6 and 41.1 FPS, respectively, which are likely too choppy for a game that requires quick reflexes. At 4K, the data suggests that only the Low preset is viable for basic playability, with an average of 51.9 FPS. The Medium preset (35.5 FPS), High (32.4 FPS), and Ultra (27.7 FPS) are all below the 30 FPS threshold that is generally considered the minimum for a playable experience. The recommendation is clear: for a stable experience, players should use the Low preset at 4K or the High preset at 1080p.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the global database of tested combinations for Control, this specific pairing of the Ryzen 9 9900X and GTX 1070 ranks 1384 out of 1636 combinations. This places it in the bottom 15% of all tested systems, which is a surprisingly low ranking for a CPU that is in the top 6% of all processors. This stark contrast underscores the severity of the GPU bottleneck. The rank of 1384 indicates that the vast majority of other tested combos, even those with less powerful CPUs, are able to achieve better performance in this game simply because they are paired with stronger graphics cards.

The data implies that the GTX 1070 is holding back the Ryzen 9 9900X to a significant degree. While the CPU has the potential to drive much higher frame rates, the GPU’s rendering limits cap the system’s overall output. This ranking is a critical insight for users: the performance of this combo is not a reflection of the CPU’s capabilities but rather proof of the GPU’s age. The 1384th rank out of 1636 combinations suggests that users looking for a better experience in Control would see a dramatic improvement by upgrading the GPU, rather than the CPU, as the processor has ample headroom for future graphics card upgrades.

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

The resolution scaling data provides a clear picture of the system’s bottleneck. At 1080p with High settings, the combo achieves 62.8 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops the frame rate by 19.2 FPS to 43.6 FPS, a 30.6% reduction. Scaling further to 4K High results in 32.4 FPS, an additional 11.2 FPS drop. This pattern is consistent across all settings presets. For example, at Low settings, the frame rate drops from 97.8 FPS at 1080p to 71.3 FPS at 1440p and then to 51.9 FPS at 4K.

This steep decline in performance as resolution increases is a classic indicator of a GPU-limited scenario. The Ryzen 9 9900X has more than enough processing power to handle the increased pixel count; the GTX 1070, however, does not. The GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth are insufficient to handle the increased workload at higher resolutions. The fact that the FPS drops by roughly 46% from 1080p to 4K at Low settings (from 97.8 to 51.9) aligns with the GPU being the primary constraint. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions, which is not the case here. The data strongly suggests that the GTX 1070’s rendering capabilities are the sole limiter in this configuration.

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

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

A: The highest average frame rate is 97.8 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X or the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 the primary bottleneck in this game?

A: The benchmark results indicate the GPU is the primary bottleneck. The Ryzen 9 9900X ranks in the 94th percentile of CPUs, while the GTX 1070 ranks in the 51st percentile of GPUs. The FPS drops significantly with resolution increases, which is a sign of GPU limitation.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations in Control?

A: This combination ranks 1384 out of 1636 tested combos for Control, placing it in the lower performance tier despite having a high-end CPU.

Q: At 1440p, which settings preset provides a frame rate above 60 FPS?

A: According to the measured data, only the Low preset at 2560x1440 achieves a frame rate above 60 FPS, with an average of 71.3 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 50.8 FPS.

Q: What is the average FPS difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 51.9 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 27.7 FPS, a difference of 24.2 FPS.

Q: Is the GTX 1070’s performance closer to the GTX 1650 SUPER or the GTX 880M?

A: The GTX 1070’s average benchmark score is 12331. It is 1.4% below the GTX 1650 SUPER (score 12504) and 1.3% above the GTX 880M (score 12490), making it very close to both in raw compute performance.

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

1920x1080 (1080p)

• Low: 97.8 FPS
• Medium: 70.1 FPS
• High: 62.8 FPS
• Ultra: 52.3 FPS

2560x1440 (1440p)

• Low: 71.3 FPS
• Medium: 50.8 FPS
• High: 43.6 FPS
• Ultra: 41.1 FPS

3840x2160 (4K)

• Low: 51.9 FPS
• Medium: 35.5 FPS
• High: 32.4 FPS
• Ultra: 27.7 FPS

The data shows a consistent performance hierarchy, with the Low preset always yielding the highest frame rate and the Ultra preset the lowest. The scaling from 1080p to 4K is steep, reinforcing the conclusion that the GTX 1070 is the limiting component in this setup. The Ryzen 9 9900X’s impressive compute power is left largely untapped, as the graphics card is unable to translate the CPU’s potential into higher frame rates in Control.