Control

Control, the action-adventure title from 2019, is a demanding showcase for any system. This analysis examines the measured performance of the Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 across three resolutions and four quality presets. The data indicates this combination provides a robust experience, with performance scaling patterns that clearly delineate the roles of the CPU and GPU. Benchmark results show a strong correlation between graphical settings and frame rate, revealing where the system's bottlenecks lie and how to optimize the experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a predictable and significant performance drop as resolution increases, indicating that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 becomes the primary limiting factor at higher pixel counts. At the Low preset, which is least dependent on GPU compute, the frame rate scales from 231 FPS at 1920x1080 down to 186 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 19.5%. Moving to 3840x2160 sees a further drop to 126 FPS, which is a 32.3% decrease from the 2560x1440 result and a 45.5% decrease from the 1080p baseline. This steep decline at 4K strongly suggests the GPU is working at its maximum capacity.

The scaling pattern is even more pronounced at the Ultra preset, where the visual fidelity demands the most from the graphics card. At 1080p Ultra, the combo achieves 135 FPS. This falls to 102 FPS at 1440p, a 24.4% drop, and then to 69 FPS at 4K, a further 32.4% decline. The relative performance gap between 1440p and 4K remains consistent across presets, reinforcing that the resolution increase places a heavy, linear burden on the RTX 4080. The data suggests that for players targeting 4K, the system is firmly GPU-bound, with the CPU having ample headroom to feed the graphics card.

Conversely, the scaling from 1080p to 1440p is less severe, with the High preset dropping from 156 FPS to 118 FPS (a 24.4% reduction) and the Medium preset from 175 FPS to 132 FPS (a 24.6% reduction). This consistent percentage drop across all presets, except for Low, points to the GPU being the bottleneck even at 1080p. The only anomaly is the Low preset's 19.5% drop, which may suggest that at such low settings, the CPU begins to play a more significant role in limiting performance, though it still maintains a very high frame rate.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is the dominant component in this system for Control. Its performance, as measured by the PassMark G3D benchmark at 34457, places it in the 86th percentile of all GPUs, indicating its high-end positioning. The card's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s, which is more than sufficient for the textures and assets in Control at any of the tested settings. The 22.4 Gbps effective memory clock and 1400 MHz base memory clock ensure that data transfer is not a limiting factor.

The GPU's clock speeds, with a base of 2205 MHz and a boost of 2505 MHz, are relatively high, contributing to its substantial compute power. This is reflected in its FP32 performance of 48.74 TFLOPS, which allows it to handle the game's physics and particle effects at high frame rates. The 76 RT cores and 304 tensor cores are also present, though the measured data does not specify whether ray tracing or DLSS was enabled. The benchmark results, therefore, represent the card's raw rasterization performance for this title.

The data shows the RTX 4080's performance ceiling is reached at 4K Ultra, where it produces 69 FPS. In contrast, the average benchmark score for the GPU is 54247, which is only 0.1% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER (with a deltaPct of 0.1). This indicates that the non-SUPER version is performing essentially at parity with its direct successor in synthetic tests. The GPU's role is clearly to drive resolution and detail, and the measured FPS shows it is capable of high refresh rate gaming at 1080p and 1440p, while being just at the edge of playable 4K on Ultra.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 provides the processing foundation for this combo, and its benchmark scores indicate it is well-matched to the RTX 4080 for this game. With 6 cores and 12 threads, it has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its performance in the Cinebench R23 multi-core test is 15989, and its single-core score is 2257. These scores, combined with its 72nd percentile ranking among all CPUs, show it is a solid mid-range processor. Its 18 MB of shared L3 cache is adequate for feeding the GPU.

Given that the FPS drops significantly as resolution increases, the data suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. For instance, at 1080p Low, the system produces 231 FPS, a very high number that still requires significant CPU work for game logic and draw calls. However, the fact that the frame rate drops to 126 FPS at 4K Low, while the CPU workload remains relatively constant, confirms the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU has enough headroom to maintain high frame rates, as evidenced by the 231 FPS result.

The i5-12400's average benchmark score of 18683 is remarkably close to its nearest rivals. It is only 0.1% slower than the AMD EPYC 7643 and 0.3% slower than the Intel Core i7-1355U, while being 0.9% faster than the Intel Core i3-14100F. This indicates that the CPU's processing power is consistent with other capable processors in its class. In the context of Control, this CPU ensures that the RTX 4080 is not starved of data, allowing it to operate at its full potential, particularly at 1080p and 1440p where high frame rates are achievable.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings for this combo depend entirely on the target resolution and refresh rate. For a 1920x1080 display, the Ultra preset is the clear recommendation, as it delivers an average of 135 FPS. This provides a fully playable and smooth experience for high-refresh-rate monitors while maximizing visual quality. The High preset also offers an excellent experience at 156 FPS, but the Ultra preset's 135 FPS is still well within the range for a high refresh rate experience.

At 2560x1440, the High and Ultra presets are both viable. The High preset achieves 118 FPS, which is ideal for 144Hz displays. The Ultra preset, at 102 FPS, is also highly playable and might be preferred for those who prioritize visual fidelity over a slightly higher frame rate. The Medium preset, at 132 FPS, offers a higher frame rate but at a significant visual cost, making it a less compelling choice than High.

For 3840x2160, the data shows a trade-off. The High preset delivers 79 FPS, which is playable on a 60Hz display and provides a good balance of quality and performance. The Ultra preset drops to 69 FPS, which is still technically playable but may not feel as smooth. The Medium preset at 89 FPS offers a more comfortable margin above 60 FPS, but the visual downgrade from High is noticeable. Therefore, High is recommended for 4K as it provides the best balance between visual quality and a stable frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested configurations for Control, this specific combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 holds a rank of 314 out of 3720 tested combos. This places it in the top 8.4% of all configurations, indicating a very strong performance level. The high rank is primarily driven by the powerful RTX 4080, which excels in this GPU-intensive title.

The combo's high ranking is noteworthy considering the CPU is not a top-tier part. The i5-12400's performance, while solid, is not exceptional, yet it is sufficient to allow the GPU to perform near its peak. This suggests that the pairing is well-balanced for this game, as the CPU does not bottleneck the GPU at the tested settings. This is further supported by the significant FPS drops seen at higher resolutions, which confirm the GPU is the limiting component.

This ranking demonstrates that a high-end GPU paired with a mid-range CPU can yield excellent results in games like Control. The data shows that the RTX 4080 is the primary driver of performance, and the i5-12400 provides enough support to keep it operating efficiently. This particular combination proves to be a highly effective choice, outperforming the vast majority of other tested systems.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following is the complete set of measured FPS data for this combo.

• 1920x1080
• Low: Average 231 FPS.
• Medium: Average 175 FPS, with a minimum of 149 FPS and a maximum of 201 FPS.
• High: Average 156 FPS.
• Ultra: Average 135 FPS.

• 2560x1440
• Low: Average 186 FPS.
• Medium: Average 132 FPS, with a minimum of 113 FPS and a maximum of 152 FPS.
• High: Average 118 FPS.
• Ultra: Average 102 FPS.

• 3840x2160
• Low: Average 126 FPS.
• Medium: Average 89 FPS, with a minimum of 76 FPS and a maximum of 103 FPS.
• High: Average 79 FPS.
• Ultra: Average 69 FPS.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with the Ultra preset?

A: The average frame rate at 1920x1080 with the Ultra preset is 135 FPS.

Q: Is this combo capable of 4K gaming in Control?

A: Yes, it is. At 3840x2160, the High preset achieves an average of 79 FPS, and the Ultra preset achieves 69 FPS, both of which are playable.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its nearest rival, the Intel Core i3-14100F?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 18683, which is 0.9% higher than the Intel Core i3-14100F's score of 18519.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: The minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 2560x1440 is 113 FPS, with an average of 132 FPS.

Q: Which component is the main bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: The data suggests the GPU is the limiting factor. The frame rate drops significantly from 1080p to 4K across all presets, indicating that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is being pushed to its limits.

Q: Does the GPU's benchmark score differ much from the RTX 4080 SUPER?

A: The RTX 4080 has an average benchmark score of 54247, which is only 0.1% higher than the RTX 4080 SUPER's score of 54209, indicating near-identical performance.