Control

# Control: Intel Core i5-12400 + AMD Radeon RX 7600

The combination of an Intel Core i5-12400 and an AMD Radeon RX 7600 produces a playable but resolution-sensitive experience in Control, a 2019 Action Adventure title. Across the measured configurations, average frame rates range from 33 FPS at 4K Ultra to 118 FPS at 1080p Low, with the component pair landing at rank 2608 out of 3720 tested combos. The data reveals a system that handles 1080p comfortably, becomes marginal at 1440p, and requires significant settings reductions to remain playable at 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable performance decline as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 75 FPS at 1080p to 56 FPS at 1440p, then further to 38 FPS at 4K. This represents a 25% reduction moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a 32% reduction moving from 1440p to 4K. The total drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings is 37 FPS, or roughly half the original frame rate.

At Low settings, the scaling pattern shifts. The system produces 118 FPS at 1080p, 89 FPS at 1440p, and 60 FPS at 4K. The relative drops are smaller in percentage terms, but the absolute numbers reveal that even at the lowest quality preset, 4K resolution pushes the combination to exactly 60 FPS average — a threshold that leaves no headroom for demanding scenes. The Medium preset shows a similar pattern: 84 FPS at 1080p, 64 FPS at 1440p, and 43 FPS at 4K.

The Ultra preset produces the steepest curve, starting at 65 FPS for 1080p and falling to 49 FPS at 1440p and 33 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 33 FPS is the lowest measured value in the entire dataset, indicating that this settings/resolution combination is not viable for smooth gameplay.

The scaling behavior suggests that the AMD Radeon RX 7600 becomes the primary limiting factor as resolution increases. The 8 GB GDDR6 memory and 128-bit bus with 288.0 GB/s bandwidth appear insufficient for 4K workloads in this title, where even Low settings only achieve 60 FPS. The GPU's 57th percentile ranking among all GPUs and its average benchmark score of 15171 reinforce this interpretation — it is a mid-range part that struggles when pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 brings 6 cores and 12 threads to this combination, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Alder Lake-S architecture processor, built on Intel's 10 nm process, shows strong synthetic benchmark results: a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15989 and a single-core score of 2257. The PassMark multithread score of 18747 and single-thread score of 3456 place it in the 72nd percentile among all CPUs.

The CPU's nearest rivals in overall benchmark scores include the AMD EPYC 7643 (deltaPct -0.1), Intel Core i7-1355U (deltaPct -0.3), AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 (deltaPct -0.7), and Intel Core i3-14100F (deltaPct 0.9). These small deltas — all within 1% — indicate that the i5-12400 sits in a tightly contested performance band. None of these rivals appear in the measured FPS data for Control, so direct in-game comparisons are not available from this dataset.

Given that the frame rates scale consistently with resolution, the CPU role appears secondary to the GPU. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 118 FPS, which suggests the CPU can feed the GPU adequately at lower resolutions. The 3DMark scores — 5873 for 16 threads, 3012 for 4 threads, and 910 for single thread — indicate balanced multi-threaded capability. Control is known to use multiple threads, and the 12-thread configuration provides reasonable headroom without becoming a bottleneck at the measured settings.

The 18 MB shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB per-core L2 cache provide adequate data locality for game workloads. The memory support for both DDR4 and DDR5, with dual-channel configuration, offers flexibility, though the dataset does not specify which memory type was used in the measured results. The CPU's 65 W TDP and Intel Socket 1700 compatibility make it a mainstream option, and its release date of 2022-01-03 means it is several years newer than the game itself, which launched on 2019-08-26.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 33 chip, manufactured on TSMC's 6 nm process. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory operates at 2250 MHz with an 18 Gbps effective rate, delivering 288.0 GB/s across a 128-bit bus. The GPU has 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs, with 32 ray tracing cores. Boost clock reaches 2655 MHz, with a game clock of 2250 MHz and base clock of 1720 MHz.

The GPU's synthetic performance shows a PassMark G3D score of 16634 and a DirectX 12 score of 58. Its nearest rivals in overall benchmark scores are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (deltaPct -0.2), AMD Radeon Pro 560X (deltaPct 0.6), AMD Radeon 680M (deltaPct -0.7), and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti (deltaPct 0.7). The RTX 3050 OEM is the closest competitor at -0.2%, indicating similar raw compute capability.

The measured FPS data clearly demonstrates the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the 33 FPS average is below playable thresholds. At 4K High, 38 FPS remains marginal. Only by dropping to 4K Low does the system reach 60 FPS. The 8 GB VRAM capacity likely contributes to this bottleneck, as Control's texture-heavy environments at 4K can exceed this allocation. The 128-bit memory bus and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth may also constrain performance when large texture sets are streamed at high resolutions.

At 1080p, the GPU shows its strengths. The 118 FPS at Low and 75 FPS at High indicate that the RX 7600 can handle this resolution with ease across all settings. The 1440p results — 89 FPS Low, 64 FPS Medium, 56 FPS High, 49 FPS Ultra — demonstrate a usable experience for most presets, though Ultra dips below 50 FPS. The GPU's 57th percentile ranking among all GPUs places it in the mid-range segment, and the measured game data aligns with that positioning.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 1920x1080 produces the highest frame rates across all settings, with averages ranging from 65 FPS at Ultra to 118 FPS at Low. At 2560x1440, the combination delivers 49-89 FPS depending on settings, while 3840x2160 only reaches 33-60 FPS.

Q: Can this combination handle 4K gaming in Control?

A: Yes, but with significant compromises. At 4K Low, the average FPS is exactly 60. At 4K Medium, it drops to 43 FPS. At 4K High, it falls to 38 FPS. At 4K Ultra, it reaches only 33 FPS. Only the Low preset provides a smooth experience at 4K.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 18683. Its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 7643, scores 18697 with a deltaPct of -0.1. The Intel Core i7-1355U scores 18730 (deltaPct -0.3), and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 scores 18811 (deltaPct -0.7). These differences are all under 1%.

Q: What is the GPU's closest competitor in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7600 has an average benchmark score of 15171. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM scores 15199 with a deltaPct of -0.2, making it the closest competitor. The AMD Radeon 680M scores 15270 (deltaPct -0.7), and the AMD Radeon Pro 560X scores 15082 (deltaPct 0.6).

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in this game?

A: The data does not indicate a CPU bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 118 FPS, which suggests the CPU can keep up with the GPU's output. The consistent frame rate scaling with resolution changes points to the GPU as the limiting component, particularly at higher resolutions.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS values recorded?

A: The dataset includes min and max FPS only for Medium settings. At 1080p Medium, FPS ranges from 71 to 97 with an average of 84. At 1440p Medium, the range is 54 to 73 with an average of 64. At 4K Medium, the range is 36 to 49 with an average of 43.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers 65 FPS average, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. This makes Ultra the recommended choice at this resolution — the system has enough headroom that even the heaviest preset remains playable.

At 2560x1440, the recommendation shifts. The Ultra preset drops to 49 FPS, which may feel sluggish in action sequences. The High preset at 56 FPS is close to 60 FPS but still slightly below. The Medium preset at 64 FPS crosses the 60 FPS threshold and provides the best balance, with a measured range of 54 to 73 FPS. For players prioritizing frame rate stability, Medium at 1440p offers the safest experience, while those willing to accept occasional dips can use High.

At 3840x2160, the choices are constrained. The Low preset achieves exactly 60 FPS average, making it the only viable option for consistent gameplay. The Medium preset at 43 FPS and High at 38 FPS are below the 60 FPS threshold and may result in noticeable stutter during combat. Ultra at 33 FPS is not recommended for any scenario. Given the significant visual compromise required at 4K, players with 4K displays should consider whether the resolution advantage outweighs the quality reduction.

The Medium preset at 1440p emerges as the overall recommendation for this combination. It provides 64 FPS average with a documented range of 54-73 FPS, which balances visual quality and performance. This aligns with the GPU's mid-range positioning and avoids the extremes of either the 1080p Ultra settings, which underutilize the display's resolution, or the 4K compromises, which degrade visual fidelity too heavily.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system produces its strongest results. The Low preset averages 118 FPS, the highest figure in the entire dataset. Medium averages 84 FPS with a range of 71 to 97 FPS. High averages 75 FPS. Ultra averages 65 FPS. All four presets exceed 60 FPS, making 1080p the only resolution where every settings level is fully playable.

At 2560x1440, performance remains usable but with more variation. Low averages 89 FPS, Medium averages 64 FPS with a range of 54 to 73 FPS, High averages 56 FPS, and Ultra averages 49 FPS. The Low and Medium presets stay above 60 FPS, while High and Ultra fall below. The 25 FPS spread between Low and Ultra at this resolution demonstrates the GPU's sensitivity to quality settings.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles. Low averages 60 FPS, exactly at the playability threshold. Medium averages 43 FPS with a range of 36 to 49 FPS, High averages 38 FPS, and Ultra averages 33 FPS. The 27 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is larger in absolute terms than at lower resolutions, reflecting the increased pixel load. The minimum recorded value across all measurements is 36 FPS at 4K Medium, while the maximum is 97 FPS at 1080p Medium.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-12400 with AMD Radeon RX 7600 combination ranks 2608 out of 3720 tested combos in Control, placing it in the 70th percentile of all configurations in the database. This ranking reflects the mid-range positioning of both components: the CPU sits in the 72nd percentile among all CPUs, and the GPU sits in the 57th percentile among all GPUs.

The gap between the CPU's higher percentile ranking and the GPU's lower one suggests that the overall combo performance is constrained by the graphics card. The CPU's synthetic scores — including the Cinebench R23 multicore result of 15989 and Geekbench multicore of 8564 — indicate a capable processor that exceeds the GPU's tier. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 16634 and its 57th percentile placement align more closely with the combo's overall rank.

The rank of 2608 out of 3720 means that roughly 70% of tested configurations perform better in Control. This is consistent with the measured FPS results, which show solid 1080p performance but significant degradation at higher resolutions. Combo rankings of this type typically reflect the aggregate performance across all tested games, and the synthetic benchmarks for both components support this assessment. The CPU's nearest rival deltas are all under 1%, and the GPU's nearest rival deltas are all under 1%, indicating that small performance differences separate this combination from many alternatives in the database.