Control

# Control: AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 — Benchmark Analysis

The pairing of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 in Control produces a dataset that clearly delineates the boundaries of each component's contribution. Across twelve measured configurations, the average frame rates span from 30 FPS at 4K Ultra to 107 FPS at 1080p Low, with the GPU consistently emerging as the performance-limiting factor. The CPU, a 12-core Zen 5 part with a 5.50 GHz boost clock and 128 MB of L3 cache, demonstrates ample headroom, while the RTX 2060's 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and Turing architecture set the practical ceiling for playability at higher resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic GPU-bound workload. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 68 at 1920x1080 to 51 at 2560x1440, then further to 35 at 3840x2160. This represents a 25% reduction moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a 31% further reduction moving to 4K, resulting in an overall 49% decrease from the lowest to highest resolution tested. The scaling pattern indicates that the RTX 2060's rendering throughput, not the CPU, dictates performance at every resolution.

Low settings show a steeper relative decline, with 107 FPS at 1080p falling to 81 FPS at 1440p (a 24% drop) and 55 FPS at 4K (a 32% drop from 1440p). This steeper curve at lower settings suggests that as the GPU's workload decreases, the remaining bottleneck shifts more heavily onto the graphics pipeline itself, though the CPU never becomes the limiting factor given the Ryzen 9 9900X3D's substantial single-thread performance (3dmark_single_thread score of 1269 and Cinebench R23 single-core of 6739).

The Medium preset exhibits the most consistent scaling, with 76 FPS at 1080p, 58 FPS at 1440p, and 39 FPS at 4K. The minimum FPS values recorded at Medium settings—65, 49, and 33 respectively—maintain a similar proportional relationship, indicating that frame pacing remains stable across resolutions. Ultra settings produce the lowest absolute numbers, with 59 FPS at 1080p, 45 FPS at 1440p, and 30 FPS at 4K, showing a 49% total reduction that mirrors the High preset's scaling behavior.

The data strongly suggests that resolution scaling is governed entirely by the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth. The RTX 2060's 336.0 GB/s bandwidth and 80.64 GPixel/s pixel rate become progressively more strained as pixel count increases, while the CPU's 24 threads and 5.50 GHz boost clock remain underutilized even at 1080p Low, where the GPU is pushed hardest to produce 107 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060, built on the 12 nm Turing architecture with the TU106 chip, is the dominant factor in all measured scenarios. Its 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth, and its boost clock of 1680 MHz (base 1365 MHz) drives 1920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The card's FP32 throughput of 6.451 TFLOPS and texture rate of 201.6 GTexel/s directly correlate with the observed frame rates, particularly at 4K where the 30-55 FPS range reflects the GPU's computational limits.

The 6 GB VRAM capacity is a critical constraint in Control, a game that can demand significant memory at higher settings and resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 30, and while no min/max values are recorded for that configuration, the Medium preset at 4K shows a minimum of 33 FPS, suggesting that memory pressure may cause occasional dips. The GPU's percentile ranking of 58 among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15290, places it near the performance of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (deltaPct 0), AMD Radeon 680M (deltaPct 0.1), and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (deltaPct 0.6) in synthetic tests, though real-world gaming results here show it holding up reasonably well for a 2019-era card.

The RTX 2060's DirectX 12 support (12 Ultimate, 12_2) and Vulkan 1.4 compatibility are relevant for Control's modern rendering pipeline. The passmark_directx_12 score of 53 and passmark_directx_11 score of 110 indicate that the card's API-specific performance varies significantly, with the older DirectX 11 path being more efficient. The GPU's compute capabilities, evidenced by a passmark_gpu_compute score of 5488 and Geekbench OpenCL score of 65014, are adequate but not exceptional, aligning with the observed mid-range performance envelope.

At 1080p, the GPU manages 68 FPS on High and 59 FPS on Ultra, which are playable but far from the 107 FPS achieved on Low. This spread of 48 FPS between Low and Ultra at 1080p highlights the RTX 2060's sensitivity to settings, with each incremental preset step (Low to Medium to High to Ultra) costing roughly 9-11 FPS on average. The GPU's role as the bottleneck is further confirmed by the fact that resolution changes produce larger FPS swings than settings changes at the same resolution—for instance, moving from 1080p Ultra (59 FPS) to 4K Ultra (30 FPS) is a 49% drop, while moving from 1080p Low (107 FPS) to 1080p Ultra (59 FPS) is a 45% drop.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge), manufactured on TSMC's 4 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, with 128 MB of L3 cache spread across the chip. Its benchmark results are formidable: Cinebench R23 multicore scores 47737, Geekbench multicore reaches 22884, and PassMark multithread hits 56154, placing it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. The processor's single-thread performance, with a 3dmark_single_thread score of 1269 and Cinebench R23 single-core of 6739, is equally strong.

In this game, the CPU's role is largely secondary. The measured FPS data shows no evidence of CPU limitation, even at 1080p Low where the GPU produces 107 FPS—a rate that a lesser processor might struggle to feed, but one that the 9900X3D handles with ease given its 5.50 GHz boost clock and 24 threads. The 3dmark_16_threads score of 12490 and 3dmark_max_threads score of 13795 indicate that multi-threaded workloads are well-served, though Control's engine likely does not fully utilize all 24 threads.

Comparing the CPU to its nearest rivals in average benchmark score, the Ryzen 9 9900X3D sits 0.6% behind the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF (55093 vs 54762), and 1.3% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245K (54053). The Intel Xeon 6505P (53701) and Intel Core i7-14700F (53620) trail by 2% and 2.1% respectively. These margins are narrow, suggesting that in CPU-bound scenarios, the 9900X3D would perform nearly identically to these alternatives, but in this particular game, such scenarios do not arise.

The CPU's 128 MB L3 cache, while beneficial for many workloads, does not provide a measurable advantage in Control's frame rates, as the GPU-bound nature of the game masks any CPU-side differences. The processor's memory bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s (dual-channel DDR5) is more than sufficient for feeding the GPU, and its PCIe Gen 5, 24-lane interface ensures no bandwidth limitations on the data path.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 2060 and Ryzen 9 9900X3D combination delivers an average of 107 FPS on Low settings, 76 FPS on Medium (with a minimum of 65 and maximum of 88), 68 FPS on High, and 59 FPS on Ultra. The 48 FPS gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution represents a 45% performance drop, demonstrating that the GPU's shader and texture units are heavily taxed by the higher-quality assets and effects in the Ultra preset.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages become 81 FPS on Low, 58 FPS on Medium (min 49, max 66), 51 FPS on High, and 45 FPS on Ultra. The Low-to-Ultra spread narrows to 36 FPS (a 44% drop), indicating that at this resolution, the pixel fill rate begins to dominate the settings-based differences. The Medium preset's minimum of 49 FPS suggests that 1440p Medium is the threshold for maintaining a consistent 60 FPS experience, as the average of 58 FPS leaves little headroom for demanding scenes.

At 3840x2160, the data shows 55 FPS on Low, 39 FPS on Medium (min 33, max 45), 35 FPS on High, and 30 FPS on Ultra. The Low-to-Ultra spread is 25 FPS (a 45% drop), consistent with the other resolutions in relative terms. However, the absolute values are low enough that only the Low preset approaches a playable 60 FPS, and even that falls short. The Medium preset's maximum of 45 FPS indicates that no setting at 4K can sustain smooth gameplay on this hardware.

The settings scaling within each resolution follows a predictable pattern: Low to Medium typically costs 12-16 FPS, Medium to High costs 8-19 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 5-9 FPS. This non-linear degradation means that the High preset often provides the best balance of visual quality and performance, though the exact trade-off varies by resolution. The 1080p Medium preset, with an average of 76 FPS and a minimum of 65, is the only configuration that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS while maintaining a quality setting above Low.

How This Combo Ranks

Among the 2888 tested CPU-GPU combinations for Control, this pairing ranks 2274th, placing it in the bottom 21% of all configurations. This ranking reflects the RTX 2060's age and tier—it is an end-of-life product from 2019—rather than any deficiency in the Ryzen 9 9900X3D. The CPU itself ranks in the 91st percentile of all processors, but when paired with a GPU that sits in the 58th percentile, the combination's overall ranking is dragged down by the graphics card's limitations.

The GPU's nearest rivals in average benchmark score include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (deltaPct 0), AMD Radeon 680M (deltaPct 0.1), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (deltaPct 0.6), and AMD Radeon RX 7600 (deltaPct 0.8). These comparisons show that the RTX 2060 is statistically indistinguishable from these cards in synthetic benchmarks, yet in Control specifically, its performance is constrained by its 6 GB VRAM and Turing-era architecture. The combo's rank of 2274 suggests that many other pairings—even those with less powerful CPUs—achieve higher frame rates in this game due to superior GPU performance.

The disparity between the CPU's high percentile (91) and the combo's low rank (2274 of 2888) is a clear indication of imbalance. The Ryzen 9 9900X3D's capabilities are largely wasted in this configuration, as the GPU cannot leverage the CPU's multi-threaded prowess or large cache. For users prioritizing Control performance, the data suggests that a more balanced pairing—perhaps a mid-range CPU with a stronger GPU—would yield a better overall ranking and higher frame rates.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers an average of 76 FPS with a minimum of 65, making it the only quality setting that reliably maintains 60+ FPS while offering improved visuals over Low. The High preset's 68 FPS average is playable but dips below 60 in demanding scenes, and Ultra's 59 FPS average is borderline. For competitive or responsive gameplay, Low at 107 FPS is the clear choice, but for a balanced experience, Medium is recommended.

At 2560x1440, no setting achieves a 60 FPS average. The Low preset's 81 FPS is the only option above 60, while Medium averages 58 FPS with a minimum of 49, which may cause noticeable stuttering. High at 51 FPS and Ultra at 45 FPS are suitable only for slower-paced play or if the user prioritizes visuals over smoothness. The recommendation here is Low or Medium, depending on tolerance for frame rate dips.

At 3840x2160, all settings fall below 60 FPS, with Low averaging 55 FPS, Medium 39 FPS, High 35 FPS, and Ultra 30 FPS. The 4K Low preset is the only viable option for near-playable performance, though even it will struggle in action-heavy sequences. For 4K gaming, the data indicates that this hardware combination is not well-suited, and users should either lower the resolution or accept sub-60 FPS frame rates.

Overall, the 1080p Medium preset offers the best compromise between frame rate (76 FPS average, 65 FPS minimum) and visual fidelity. For users with 1440p displays, the Low preset's 81 FPS is the safest choice for consistent performance, while 4K users should consider this setup unsuitable for Control and prioritize other configurations.

FAQ

Q: Can this combination run Control at 60 FPS at 1080p?

A: Yes, at 1080p Low (107 FPS average) and Medium (76 FPS average, 65 FPS minimum) settings. The High preset averages 68 FPS but may dip below 60, while Ultra averages 59 FPS, which is marginally below the 60 FPS target.

Q: What is the best resolution for this hardware in Control?

A: 1920x1080 is the only resolution where a quality setting above Low achieves a 60+ FPS average. At 2560x1440, only Low (81 FPS) exceeds 60 FPS, and at 3840x2160, no setting reaches 60 FPS, with Low topping out at 55 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060's average benchmark score of 15290 is essentially tied with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (deltaPct 0) and AMD Radeon 680M (deltaPct 0.1), and it is 0.6% ahead of the RTX 3050 OEM and 0.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7600.

Q: Is the Ryzen 9 9900X3D the bottleneck in this setup?

A: No. The CPU's benchmark results (Cinebench R23 multicore 47737, single-core 6739) and 91st percentile ranking indicate it is far more capable than the GPU. The frame rates are consistently GPU-limited, as shown by the significant performance drops when increasing resolution.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 68 at 1920x1080 to 35 at 3840x2160, a 49% reduction. The intermediate step at 2560x1440 averages 51 FPS, showing a 25% drop from 1080p and a 31% further drop to 4K.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations for Control?

A: It ranks 2274th out of 2888 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 21% of all pairings. This low rank is attributable to the RTX 2060's mid-range performance (58th percentile among GPUs) rather than the CPU, which ranks in the 91st percentile.