Control

# Control with Intel Core i5-12600KF + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti lands at rank 635 out of 1,636 tested combos in Control, placing it in the upper-middle tier of the database. This is a measured configuration, not an estimate, and the data reflects a system that can handle the game's demanding physics and particle effects at high settings across most resolutions, though it shows clear limits at 4K Ultra.

How This Combo Ranks

With a combo rank of 635 out of 1,636 tested combinations, this pairing sits comfortably in the upper 40% of all tested systems for Control. That rank indicates a machine that delivers smooth gameplay at 1080p and 1440p for most settings, but it is not among the elite setups that can crush 4K Ultra without compromise. The CPU's percentile ranking against all processors is 84, meaning it outperforms roughly five out of six CPUs in the database, while the GPU's percentile against all graphics cards is 74, a slightly lower but still strong standing.

The gap between CPU and GPU percentile is telling: the processor is more capable relative to its peers than the graphics card is relative to its own competition. In a game like Control, which stresses both the renderer and the physics simulation, this imbalance suggests the RTX 3070 Ti becomes the primary limiting factor as resolution and settings increase. The data supports this interpretation: at 1080p Low, the combo hits 167.8 FPS, but at 4K Ultra it drops to 44.7 FPS, a scaling curve that points squarely at GPU-bound performance at higher loads.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF brings 10 cores and 16 threads to the table, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. This is a 12th-generation Alder Lake part built on Intel's 10 nm process, and it supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory across a dual-channel bus. For Control, which was released in 2019 and relies on a mix of heavy single-threaded rendering tasks and moderate multi-threading for physics and AI, this CPU's architecture is well-suited.

Benchmark data shows the i5-12600KF excels in multi-threaded workloads: it scores 23,444 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 9,846 in Cinebench R20 multi-core. Single-thread performance is also robust, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3,309 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2,529. These numbers indicate that the CPU can feed the GPU efficiently at lower resolutions, where frame rates are high and per-frame CPU work is more critical. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 167.8 FPS, a figure that demands strong single-thread performance to avoid bottlenecking the graphics card.

However, the CPU's nearest rivals in aggregate benchmark scores include the Intel Core i9-10900K at a delta of 0%, the Core i5-12600K at -0.1%, and the Core Ultra 5 125H at -0.2%. The i7-13700H sits 0.4% ahead. These near-identical scores indicate that for general compute, the i5-12600KF is effectively interchangeable with those parts, but in Control specifically, the game's engine will leverage the 10-core, 16-thread configuration to maintain stable frame pacing during chaotic combat sequences with destructible environments.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Control at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, at 4K High the average FPS is 53.8, which is playable, but at 4K Ultra it drops to 44.7 FPS. For 60 FPS at 4K, you would need to use Medium settings, which yields 63 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The i5-12600KF scores 23,444 in Cinebench R23 multi-core. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i9-10900K, has an average benchmark score that is 0% different, while the i5-12600K is 0.1% slower in aggregate scores.

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for a 60 FPS target?

A: At 1440p High, the combo averages 81.6 FPS. At 4K Medium, it averages 63 FPS. For a locked 60 FPS experience, 4K Medium is the highest visual quality option that stays above the target.

Q: How much performance is lost when going from 1080p to 1440p at High settings?

A: At 1080p High, the average FPS is 107.9. At 1440p High, it drops to 81.6 FPS, a reduction of approximately 26.3 FPS, or about 24% lower performance.

Q: Is the RTX 3070 Ti the limiting factor at 4K Ultra?

A: The data suggests yes. At 4K Ultra, the combo averages 44.7 FPS, while at 1080p Ultra it reaches 89.9 FPS. The CPU's strong multi-threaded scores and the steep FPS drop with resolution increases indicate the GPU is the bottleneck at 4K.

Q: Does the combo support ray tracing features in Control?

A: The RTX 3070 Ti has 48 RT cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), which includes ray tracing capabilities. However, the measured FPS data in this database does not specify whether ray tracing was enabled during testing.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions (1080p, 1440p, 4K) and four settings tiers (Low, Medium, High, Ultra), providing a clear picture of performance scaling.

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce an average of 167.8 FPS, Medium yields 119.6 FPS, High reaches 107.9 FPS, and Ultra drops to 89.9 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 77.9 FPS, showing that even at 1080p, Ultra settings impose a significant load on the RTX 3070 Ti.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are 124.2 FPS at Low, 87.7 FPS at Medium, 81.6 FPS at High, and 71.2 FPS at Ultra. The spread between Low and Ultra narrows to 53 FPS, indicating that the GPU is becoming more strained as pixel count increases. The jump from High to Ultra at 1440p costs 10.4 FPS, a smaller penalty than at 1080p where the same settings change costs 18 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the averages drop to 84 FPS at Low, 63 FPS at Medium, 53.8 FPS at High, and 44.7 FPS at Ultra. This resolution clearly stresses the 8 GB GDDR6X memory and the GA104 chip, with even Low settings falling below the 1080p Ultra figure. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 39.3 FPS, the smallest absolute spread across all resolutions, but the percentage drop is steep.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K reveals how the system's components share the workload. At High settings, the combo averages 107.9 FPS at 1080p, 81.6 FPS at 1440p, and 53.8 FPS at 4K. This represents a 24.4% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 34.1% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The cumulative drop from 1080p to 4K is 50.1%, meaning the combo loses half its frame rate when quadrupling the pixel count.

At Low settings, the scaling is steeper in absolute terms: 167.8 FPS at 1080p falls to 124.2 FPS at 1440p (a 26% drop) and then to 84 FPS at 4K (a 32.4% drop from 1440p). The total reduction from 1080p Low to 4K Low is 49.9%. This pattern—where low settings show a similar percentage drop to high settings—indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor even at low graphical fidelity. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the FPS at 1080p Low to be capped by processor performance, with a less severe drop as resolution increases.

The data instead shows that the RTX 3070 Ti's rendering throughput scales almost linearly with pixel count, regardless of settings. At Ultra, the 1080p average of 89.9 FPS drops to 44.7 FPS at 4K, a 50.3% reduction. The consistency of this ~50% penalty across all settings tiers confirms that Control is GPU-bound in this configuration. The i5-12600KF, with its 10 cores and high boost clock, has enough headroom at 1080p to push frame rates past 160 FPS at Low, but the graphics card cannot maintain that pace when pixel count rises. For users targeting 4K, the RTX 3070 Ti's 8 GB memory and 608.3 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for Medium settings at 63 FPS, but Ultra settings will require a stronger GPU to reach 60 FPS.