Control

The Intel Core i5-12400F and Intel Arc B370 combination delivers a strictly entry-level experience in Control, with measured frame rates that place it near the bottom of the database. The data shows that this pairing is only viable at the lowest settings and resolutions, and even then, it struggles to maintain smooth performance. For a playable experience, the Low preset at 1920x1080 is the only configuration that approaches acceptable frame pacing, yielding an average of 59 FPS. While this is technically playable, the lack of a reported minimum frame rate suggests potential instability, making it a borderline choice. The Medium preset at 1920x1080 drops to 42 FPS average, which is a significant step down and likely to feel sluggish during intense combat sequences. At higher resolutions, the situation degrades rapidly; the Low preset at 2560x1440 manages 45 FPS, but the 3840x2160 resolution falls to 30 FPS, which is below the threshold for a comfortable action game. Given the hardware's constraints, the recommended settings are Low at 1920x1080, as any increase in graphical fidelity or resolution results in a disproportionate loss of performance that is not worth the visual trade-off in a fast-paced title like this.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark data paints a clear picture: this combo is not designed for high-fidelity gaming. The most practical approach is to prioritize frame rate over visual quality. The Low preset at 1920x1080 is the only setting that yields an average FPS near 60, which is the baseline for a smooth action game experience. The Low preset at 2560x1440 produces 45 FPS, which is playable but not ideal, while the 3840x2160 resolution at the same settings only reaches 30 FPS, making it a slideshow for a game that demands quick reflexes.

The Medium preset offers a marginal visual improvement but at a steep performance cost. At 1920x1080, the average FPS drops from 59 to 42, a 29% reduction. The minimum frame rate of 36 FPS at this setting indicates that the game will stutter during heavy scenes. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 32 FPS, and at 3840x2160, it falls to 21 FPS. These numbers make Medium a poor choice for anything other than static screenshots. The High and Ultra presets are effectively unplayable across all resolutions, with the Ultra preset at 3840x2160 bottoming out at 17 FPS. The data strongly suggests that users should ignore these settings entirely.

For the best experience, stick to Low at 1920x1080. If a higher resolution is required, Low at 2560x1440 is the maximum viable option, but it requires accepting a significant compromise in smoothness. The performance headroom is simply not there for higher settings; the GPU's capabilities are the limiting factor, and the frame rate measurements confirm that the hardware is overwhelmed by the game's demands at anything above the lowest preset.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this pairing of the Intel Core i5-12400F and Intel Arc B370 ranks 2657 out of 2888 tested combos for Control. This places it in the bottom 8% of all systems, confirming its status as a low-end configuration. The percentile ranking for the GPU alone is 5, meaning it outperforms only 5% of all GPUs in the database, which is a stark indicator of its limited graphical processing power. The CPU, in contrast, is a much stronger component, ranking in the 73rd percentile against all CPUs, but it is severely bottlenecked by the GPU in this gaming scenario.

The combination's rank is dragged down almost entirely by the graphics card. The data shows a massive disparity between the CPU's synthetic benchmark scores and the GPU's single 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184. The GPU's nearest rivals are all legacy parts, such as the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 and the ATI Radeon HD 5770, which are over a decade old. The Intel Arc B370 is only 0.2% to 1.4% faster than these ancient cards, highlighting its position in the modern market. This is not a balanced system; it is a modern CPU paired with a GPU that is only suitable for the most basic of tasks. The benchmark results indicate that the CPU is not the bottleneck; rather, the GPU is unable to translate the CPU's processing power into playable frame rates in this title.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is the primary limiting factor in this configuration. The data indicates that it has 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 render output units. Its boost clock is listed at 2400 MHz, with a base clock of 300 MHz. The memory is "System Shared," which means it uses the system's main RAM instead of dedicated VRAM. This is a critical weakness for a game like Control, which is known for its heavy use of textures and visual effects. The lack of dedicated memory bandwidth, which is listed as "System Dependent," means the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory access, causing significant performance degradation under load.

The GPU's performance is reflected in its single benchmark score: a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 result of 1184. This score is nearly identical to that of the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190), which is a GPU from 2009. The data shows that the Arc B370 is only 0.5% faster than this ancient part. Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s, which are figures that were considered mid-range over a decade ago. The FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS is also modest. This hardware is simply not equipped to handle the demands of a modern action-adventure title at high settings. The measured FPS data confirms this, with the GPU failing to produce playable frame rates at any setting above Low at 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a comprehensive look at the system's capabilities. The data is categorized by resolution and settings, revealing a clear pattern of severe performance degradation as demands increase.

At 1920x1080, the best-case scenario is the Low preset, which achieves an average of 59 FPS. This is the only playable result in the entire dataset. The Medium preset drops to 42 FPS average, with a minimum of 36 FPS and a maximum of 48 FPS. The High preset falls to 37 FPS, and the Ultra preset is unplayable at 32 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is substantial, showing that even a single step up in quality costs 29% of the frame rate.

At 2560x1440, the performance falls below playable thresholds for most users. The Low preset averages 45 FPS, which is a 24% drop from the same settings at 1080p. The Medium preset averages 32 FPS, with a minimum of 27 FPS and a maximum of 37 FPS. The High preset averages 28 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 25 FPS. None of these results would provide a smooth experience in a game that requires precise aiming and timing.

At 3840x2160, the results are purely academic. The Low preset averages 30 FPS, which is below the threshold for a playable game. The Medium preset averages 21 FPS, with a minimum of 18 FPS and a maximum of 25 FPS. The High preset averages 19 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 17 FPS. These numbers are far too low for any practical use, confirming that this resolution is out of the question for this hardware.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best settings preset for this combo in Control?*

A: The Low preset at 1920x1080 is the only configuration that yields a near-60 FPS average (59 FPS). Any other settings preset or resolution results in average frame rates below 45 FPS, which is generally considered too low for a fast-paced action game.

*Q: Can this system run Control at 1440p?*

A: Yes, but only at the Low preset, which achieves an average of 45 FPS. The Medium, High, and Ultra presets all fall below 32 FPS, making them unplayable. The experience at 1440p will be noticeably less smooth than at 1080p.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The GPU's benchmark score is 1184, which is virtually identical to that of the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190). The data shows the Arc B370 is only 0.5% faster than this legacy part, and it is 0.2% slower than the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, indicating it is a very low-performance part.

Q: Is the CPU or the GPU the bottleneck in this system?

A: The GPU is the clear bottleneck. The Intel Core i5-12400F ranks in the 73rd percentile among CPUs, showing it is a capable processor. However, the GPU ranks in the 5th percentile and is unable to translate the CPU's power into high frame rates, as evidenced by the low FPS numbers across all settings.

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with the Medium preset?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 produces an average of 42 FPS, with a minimum of 36 FPS and a maximum of 48 FPS. This is playable but will struggle during intense scenes, and it is a 29% drop from the Low preset.

Q: Is the 3840x2160 resolution usable with this hardware?

A: No. The best result at 4K is the Low preset, which averages 30 FPS. The Ultra preset averages only 17 FPS. These frame rates are far too low for a game that requires quick reaction times, making this resolution entirely impractical.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F provides a solid foundation, but its potential is wasted in this pairing. The CPU features 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It is based on the Alder Lake architecture and has 18 MB of shared L3 cache. The synthetic benchmark results show it is a strong performer: it scores 12380 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1680 in single-core. It also achieves a Geekbench multi-core score of 9472 and a single-core score of 1964. In the database, it ranks in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs, indicating it is a mid-range to upper-mid-range processor.

However, the CPU's performance is irrelevant in this context because the GPU cannot keep up. The measured FPS data shows that the system's performance is consistently low, regardless of the CPU's capabilities. For example, the CPU's Passmark multi-thread score is 19433, which is robust, but the game's frame rate is limited by the GPU. The CPU is not the bottleneck; the Intel Arc B370 is. The data shows a clear mismatch between the two components. The CPU is capable of handling the game's physics and AI calculations, but the GPU is unable to render the frames fast enough to utilize that headroom. This is a classic case of a system being unbalanced, where a high-performing CPU is paired with a severely underpowered GPU, resulting in a gaming experience that is far below what the CPU alone would suggest.