Control

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D paired with the Intel Arc B370 presents a severely GPU-bound configuration in Control, where the integrated graphics solution becomes the primary bottleneck at every resolution. The data shows that even the most favorable settings yield only marginal playability, with the combo ranking in the bottom 8% of all tested configurations. The measured results indicate that this pairing is only suitable for low-resolution, low-detail gaming, as the Arc B370's performance ceiling is reached far before the 9900X3D's substantial processing power can be utilized.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and directly exposes the integrated GPU as the limiting component. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 59 FPS at 1920x1080 to 45 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 14 FPS, and then plummets to 30 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 49% loss in performance from 1080p to 4K at Low settings, a scaling curve that is characteristic of a GPU that is overwhelmed by pixel count rather than a CPU that is struggling with game logic.

The scaling pattern intensifies at higher settings. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 37 FPS at 1080p to 28 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 19 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset shows the same trend, with averages of 32, 25, and 17 FPS for 1080p, 1440p, and 4K respectively. The consistent ~10 FPS gap between 1080p and 4K across all settings suggests that the rendering pipeline is saturated; the 9900X3D is not the constraint, as its 12 cores and 24 threads are more than capable of feeding frames, but the Arc B370's 1280 shading units and 20 ROPs cannot keep up with the increasing fragment processing load.

Notably, the difference between 1440p and 4K is less severe than the jump from 1080p to 1440p. For Medium settings, the 1440p average is 32 FPS, while 4K drops to 21 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is hitting a memory bandwidth or fill-rate wall at higher resolutions. The "System Shared" memory configuration for the Arc B370 means that bandwidth is "System Dependent," and the data suggests that at 4K, the demand for texture and buffer data exceeds what the shared memory subsystem can provide, causing a disproportionate performance collapse. The conclusion is clear: this is a GPU-limited scenario at all tested resolutions, and the CPU's role is negligible in dictating frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of 2,888 tested CPU and GPU combinations for Control, this pairing of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D and Intel Arc B370 holds the 2,657th position. This rank places it in the bottom 8% of all configurations, a result that underscores a fundamental mismatch in capabilities. The 9900X3D is a high-end desktop processor, evidenced by its 91st percentile ranking against all CPUs, but it is paired with a GPU that sits in the 5th percentile against all GPUs.

This ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU's limitations. The Arc B370's average benchmark score is 1184, which positions it alongside legacy parts like the ATI Radeon HD 5770, which has an average score of 1190, and the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, with a score of 1186. The delta percentages are telling: the Arc B370 is within 0.5% of the Radeon HD 5770 and 0.7% of the Mobility Radeon HD 5570. This indicates that the integrated GPU performs at a level comparable to discrete graphics cards from over a decade ago.

The CPU's high standing cannot compensate for this. While the 9900X3D boasts a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 47737 and a Geekbench multicore score of 22884, these figures are irrelevant in a game where the GPU is the bottleneck. The combo rank of 2,657 is a verdict on the entire system, and the data confirms that the Arc B370's performance anchors the experience. It is not merely a low rank; it is a rank that places the system in the company of obsolete hardware, meaning that the user is paying for 9900X3D performance but receiving a fraction of it in Control.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the only viable configuration for this combo is the Low preset at 1920x1080. This is the sole setting and resolution combination that achieves an average frame rate near 60 FPS, posting a 59 FPS average. While this is not a locked 60 FPS, it is the only playable option. Every other configuration falls below 50 FPS, with most falling into the 17-45 FPS range, which is generally considered too choppy for a smooth action-adventure experience.

At 1440p, the Low preset yields a 45 FPS average, which is borderline but likely still below the comfort threshold for many. The Medium preset at 1440p offers a 32 FPS average but with minimums of 27 FPS, which will result in noticeable stutter during intense combat scenes. The High and Ultra presets at 1440p are not recommended, as they produce averages of 28 and 25 FPS respectively, which are not fluid enough for the game's fast-paced encounters.

At 4K, all presets are unplayable, with averages ranging from 17 FPS at Ultra to 30 FPS at Low. The Medium preset at 4K shows a minimum of 18 FPS, which is a slideshow. The analysis suggests that users should prioritize resolution over visual fidelity. The data indicates that dropping from High to Low at 1080p yields a 22 FPS improvement (from 37 to 59 FPS), a 59% increase. This is a massive gain that is worth the visual sacrifice. Therefore, the recommended setting is 1080p with the Low preset, with the understanding that any attempt to raise the preset or resolution will result in a significant and detrimental performance hit.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the performance envelope. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 59 FPS, which is the peak performance of this combo. The Medium preset at this resolution drops to 42 FPS, with a measured range of 36 to 48 FPS. High settings reduce the average to 37 FPS, and Ultra brings it down to 32 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p is a 27 FPS drop, indicating that the GPU struggles with the increased shader complexity and texture resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 45 FPS. Medium averages 32 FPS (with a 27-37 FPS range), High averages 28 FPS, and Ultra averages 25 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 20 FPS, showing that the GPU's fill rate is becoming a more significant constraint as pixel count rises. The minimum FPS values for Medium at 1440p (27 FPS) hint at potential frame-time spikes that would be noticeable during gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the results are uniformly poor. Low averages 30 FPS, Medium averages 21 FPS (with a minimum of 18 FPS and a maximum of 25 FPS), High averages 19 FPS, and Ultra averages 17 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is only 13 FPS, which suggests that the GPU is hitting a hard architectural limit, likely related to its 20 ROPs and the "System Shared" memory bandwidth. The 4K results are consistent with a GPU that is rendering at a resolution far beyond its intended design target.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics processor based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. Its specifications reveal its constraints: a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2400 MHz, which are relatively low for modern gaming demands. The GPU features 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and only 20 raster output units. This low ROP count is a primary reason for the poor high-resolution performance, as it limits the pixel fill rate to 48.00 GPixel/s.

The memory configuration is the most significant bottleneck. The Arc B370 uses "System Shared" memory, meaning it has no dedicated VRAM and instead relies on the system's main memory. The bus width is also "System Shared," and the bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent." This dependency on shared memory means that performance is heavily influenced by the CPU's memory controller and the speed of the installed DDR5 RAM. In Control, which is a texture-heavy game, this shared memory architecture creates a severe bandwidth limitation, especially at 4K where the demand for texture data is highest. The GPU's FP32 performance is rated at 6.144 TFLOPS, but this compute capability is undermined by the memory bottleneck.

The GPU's benchmark results confirm its low standing. Its single 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. The nearest rivals are all ancient or low-end parts: the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (-0.2% delta), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (-0.5% delta), and AMD Radeon HD 7650M (-0.7% delta). This data conclusively shows that the Arc B370's rasterization performance is on par with hardware from the early 2010s. Consequently, it is the sole component dictating the frame rates in this test, and its capabilities are insufficient for a modern title like Control at standard quality settings.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, codenamed Granite Ridge. It operates with a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. It features a substantial 128 MB of L3 cache, which is a hallmark of the X3D series and is designed to improve gaming performance by reducing memory latency. The processor has a TDP of 120 W and supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus. Its benchmark scores are impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 47737 and a Passmark multithread score of 56154.

In the context of Control, the CPU's role is almost entirely passive. The measured frame rates are so low that the 9900X3D is never challenged. The game's engine is not the limiting factor; instead, the GPU's inability to render frames quickly means the CPU spends most of its time idle, waiting to submit the next draw call. The 9900X3D's 3DMark single-thread score of 1269 and its Passmark single-thread score of 4646 are far more than sufficient for the game's logic and physics calculations.

The data suggests that the CPU's high performance does not translate into higher FPS in this pairing. The bottleneck is so severe that even a significantly weaker CPU would produce identical frame rates. The 9900X3D's percentile rank of 91 against all CPUs is irrelevant when the GPU is ranked in the 5th percentile. The processor's 12 cores and 24 threads are never saturated, as the GPU's 19 FPS at 4K High is a hard limit imposed by the graphics hardware, not the CPU. Therefore, while the 9900X3D is a top-tier gaming CPU by its own metrics, its contribution in this specific combo is nullified by the Arc B370's constraints, making it a wasted resource for this title.