Control

The Intel Core i5-14600K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 delivers a mid-table performance profile for Control, landing at rank 806 out of 1636 tested combos. This places the combination in the 49th percentile of all tested systems, meaning roughly half of the tested configurations produce higher average frame rates in this specific title. The data indicates this is a balanced pairing for a 2019 Action Adventure game, though the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM and the CPU’s strong multi-threaded throughput create an interesting dynamic at higher resolutions where the graphics card becomes the primary bottleneck.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 806 out of 1636 tested configurations situates it almost exactly at the median of the database. This is not a top-tier result for Control, but it is far from a weak showing. Benchmark results indicate that the pairing outperforms a significant portion of tested systems, yet the percentile data suggests that users seeking maximum frame rates would need more powerful hardware. The ranking reflects a system that is competent for 1080p and 1440p gaming but begins to struggle at 4K Ultra settings, where the average FPS dips below the 60 FPS threshold that many players consider the baseline for smooth gameplay. The data shows a clear correlation between the combo rank and the measured FPS across the resolution ladder, with the system’s standing improving as settings are lowered and resolution decreases.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 features 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. The GPU’s base clock is 2280 MHz, boosting to 2497 MHz. These specifications are directly relevant to Control’s performance, as the game’s visual effects and texture loading are sensitive to memory bandwidth and capacity. The 8 GB VRAM appears sufficient for 1080p and 1440p at most settings, but the data suggests it becomes a limiting factor at 4K. At 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS is 47.5, while dropping to Low settings at the same resolution yields 74.5 FPS—a substantial 27 FPS improvement that indicates the GPU is heavily taxed by the game’s higher-quality assets. The RTX 5060’s FP32 performance of 19.18 TFLOPS and its 30 RT cores provide the raw compute needed for the game’s physics and particle effects, but the 8 GB memory pool is the constraint that prevents higher frame rates at 4K Ultra, where the average drops to 42 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear picture of which settings offer the best experience. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 148.9 FPS, while High delivers 92.8 FPS and Ultra drops to 80 FPS. For players prioritizing a high-refresh-rate experience at 1080p, the High preset offers a strong balance, staying well above 60 FPS while retaining visual fidelity. At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 71.9 FPS, which is playable, but the Medium preset at 77.8 FPS provides a slight edge in performance with minimal visual compromise. The data suggests that for 1440p, Medium is the sweet spot, as it maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS. At 3840x2160, no preset achieves a consistent 60 FPS average—the best option is Low at 74.5 FPS, but this sacrifices significant visual quality. For 4K, the recommendation is to either accept Low settings or reduce the resolution to 1440p with Medium or High settings for a better overall experience. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it provides the lowest frame rates across all three tested resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The data provides a comprehensive look at performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset yields 148.9 FPS, Medium produces 103.2 FPS, High reaches 92.8 FPS, and Ultra drops to 80 FPS. This represents a 68.9 FPS spread between Low and Ultra, indicating that the GPU is the primary driver of performance at this resolution. Moving to 2560x1440, the results are 114.3 FPS for Low, 77.8 FPS for Medium, 71.9 FPS for High, and 64.9 FPS for Ultra. The spread narrows to 49.4 FPS, showing that the CPU begins to play a more significant role as resolution increases. At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 74.5 FPS, Medium drops to 52.4 FPS, High falls to 47.5 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 42 FPS. The 32.5 FPS spread between Low and Ultra at 4K is the smallest of the three resolutions, confirming that the GPU is the overwhelming bottleneck at this resolution. The data reveals that the RTX 5060 can handle high frame rates at 1080p but struggles to maintain 60 FPS at 4K with any setting above Low.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial and highlights the limiting component. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 148.9 at 1080p to 114.3 at 1440p (a 23.2% decrease) and then to 74.5 at 4K (a 34.8% decrease from 1440p). This progressive decline indicates that the GPU is the primary constraint, as the CPU has ample headroom to feed the graphics card. At High settings, the drop is from 92.8 FPS at 1080p to 71.9 FPS at 1440p (22.5% decrease) and then to 47.5 FPS at 4K (33.9% decrease). The consistent percentage drops across settings suggest that the scaling is primarily driven by the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth. The RTX 5060’s 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p but becomes a limiting factor at 4K, where the pixel count quadruples. The data shows that the CPU is not the bottleneck in this game, as the performance scaling follows the expected pattern of GPU-bound behavior, with the Intel Core i5-14600K’s 14 cores and 20 threads providing more than enough processing power.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K features 14 cores (6 performance and 8 efficiency) and 20 threads, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. The CPU has 24 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory. In Control, the CPU’s role is to handle the game’s physics, AI, and scene management, which are not overly demanding compared to the GPU’s workload. The benchmark results for the i5-14600K show a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32881 and a single-core score of 4642, placing it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. The CPU’s nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, has an average score of 49062, which is only 0.2% lower, indicating that the i5-14600K is competitive with higher-core-count parts in synthetic benchmarks. However, the measured FPS data for Control shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor, as the frame rates scale predictably with GPU load. The CPU’s strong single-thread performance, as evidenced by the Geekbench single-core score of 2803, ensures that it can keep up with the GPU’s frame output at lower resolutions, where the CPU’s per-core performance matters most. The data implies that upgrading the CPU would yield minimal gains in Control, as the system is firmly GPU-bound in this title.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with High settings for this combo?

A: The average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 92.8, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

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

A: At 3840x2160, the highest average FPS is 74.5 with Low settings. Medium settings drop to 52.4 FPS, High to 47.5 FPS, and Ultra to 42 FPS. Only Low settings achieve a playable 60+ FPS average at 4K.

Q: How does the RTX 5060’s performance compare to its nearest rival?

A: The RTX 5060 has an average benchmark score of 30109, which is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT’s score of 30097, showing a 0% delta. The RTX 5060 also matches the AMD Radeon RX 570’s score of 30158, which is 0.2% higher.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 1440p monitor?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 provides an average of 77.8 FPS, which is the best balance of visual quality and performance. The High preset at 71.9 FPS is also viable, while Ultra drops to 64.9 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data shows the GPU is the primary bottleneck. From 1080p to 4K, FPS drops by roughly 34-35% for each resolution step, which is consistent with GPU-bound behavior. The CPU’s 93rd percentile ranking and high multi-thread scores indicate it is not the constraint.

Q: How much FPS is gained by lowering settings from Ultra to Low at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Ultra averages 80 FPS, while Low averages 148.9 FPS. This represents a 68.9 FPS gain, or an approximately 86% increase in frame rate, by dropping to the lowest settings preset.