Control

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti delivers a solid, if not spectacular, experience in Control. The data shows a configuration that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, but which can still push high frame rates at 1080p. The GTX 1080 Ti, with its substantial 11 GB of GDDR5X memory, provides enough headroom for the game's demanding visuals, though the older 6-core CPU limits performance in certain scenarios.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings?

A: At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, this combo achieves an average of 72.1 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the GTX 1080 Ti's benchmark score compare to its nearest rival, the NVIDIA TITAN Xp?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti has an average benchmark score of 19402, which is 1.1% higher than the NVIDIA TITAN Xp's score of 19184, placing it slightly ahead of that rival.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 2560x1440?

A: The difference is substantial. At 2560x1440, Low settings yield an average of 104 FPS, while Ultra settings drop to an average of 53.6 FPS, a significant 48.5% reduction in performance.

Q: Which resolution provides the highest average frame rate for this combo?

A: The highest average frame rate is achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings, reaching 134.7 FPS. This is the only setting tested that breaks the 130 FPS mark.

Q: Where does this CPU+GPU combo rank among all tested combinations in Control?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti combination ranks 946 out of 1636 tested combos, placing it in the middle of the pack.

Q: What is the average FPS at 3840x2160 with High settings, and is it playable?

A: At 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS is 45.9. While this is below the 60 FPS standard, it is still within the territory of playability for slower-paced action-adventure games.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti is the dominant component in this pairing for Control. Its 11 GB of GDDR5X memory across a 352-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 484.4 GB/s, which is critical for streaming high-resolution textures at 4K and 1440p. The GPU's architecture, based on the 16 nm Pascal design with 3584 shading units, delivers a raw FP32 performance of 11.34 TFLOPS. The boost clock of 1582 MHz allows the card to maintain high throughput under sustained load, which is essential for the particle effects and physics-based destruction in Control.

The data confirms that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher settings. At 3840x2160, the average frame rate scales directly with the graphics preset. Moving from Low to Medium sees a drop from 70.8 FPS to 47.4 FPS. The gap between Medium and High is smaller, with High only dropping to 45.9 FPS, suggesting a point of diminishing returns where other system components start to limit performance. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 34.8 FPS, indicating that the GTX 1080 Ti is pushed to its absolute limits with all settings maxed out.

The GPU's 11 GB of VRAM is a key asset. At 2560x1440, the performance differences between settings are more pronounced than at 4K, with a 30.3 FPS gap between Low and Medium. This suggests that at 1440p, the GPU has enough memory bandwidth to handle the increased geometry and texture work, but the shading units become the limiting factor as settings increase. The GTX 1080 Ti's position in the 61st percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19402, confirms it is a capable high-end card, even if its nearest rivals like the GTX 780 show nearly identical average scores.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal balance between visual fidelity and performance depends heavily on the target resolution. For 1920x1080, the High preset is the sweet spot, delivering 83.9 FPS. This provides a smooth, responsive experience while retaining most of the game's visual effects. Pushing to Ultra at 1080p drops the average to 72.1 FPS, which is still playable but sacrifices 14% of the frame rate for marginal visual gains. The Medium preset offers an even higher 97.7 FPS for players who prioritize refresh rate over graphical detail.

At 2560x1440, the High preset again appears optimal, with an average of 66 FPS. This is just above the 60 FPS target for a fluid experience. Choosing Ultra at this resolution drops the average to 53.6 FPS, which may introduce noticeable stutter in fast-paced combat sequences. The Medium preset at 73.7 FPS offers a substantial safety margin above 60 FPS, making it a strong alternative for those who want to ensure consistent performance, though it will reduce texture quality and shadow fidelity.

For 3840x2160, the data suggests that players must make significant compromises. The Low preset is the only one that achieves a near-60 FPS experience, hitting 70.8 FPS. The Medium preset at 47.4 FPS and High at 45.9 FPS are visually superior but will require a tolerance for sub-60 FPS gameplay. The Ultra preset at 34.8 FPS is not recommended for general play, as it falls below 40 FPS and will likely feel sluggish. For 4K owners, the Low or Medium presets are the only viable options for a playable frame rate.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a clear performance hierarchy across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the combo starts strong with a Low preset average of 134.7 FPS. This is the highest frame rate recorded in the entire dataset, showcasing the GPU's raw power when not constrained by high-resolution textures. The Medium preset drops to 97.7 FPS, a 27.5% reduction, while High settles at 83.9 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p produces an average of 72.1 FPS, which is still a very playable frame rate for a game like Control.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales predictably. The Low preset averages 104 FPS, which is a 22.8% drop from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset achieves 73.7 FPS, High reaches 66 FPS, and Ultra falls to 53.6 FPS. The relative difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 50.4 FPS, a larger absolute gap than at 1080p, where the difference is 62.6 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is more heavily taxed at the higher resolution, but the CPU is still able to keep up.

The 3840x2160 results show the most severe performance degradation. The Low preset is the only configuration that remains playable, with an average of 70.8 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 47.4 FPS, High to 45.9 FPS, and Ultra to 34.8 FPS. The data indicates a clear pattern: the GTX 1080 Ti can handle 4K at lower presets, but the gap between Low and Medium at 4K (23.4 FPS) is much larger than the gap between Medium and High (1.5 FPS). This suggests that the Medium preset introduces a significant rendering load, likely related to shadow quality or reflection effects, that the High preset does not increase further.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti combination ranks 946 out of 1636 total tested combos in Control. This places it in the 57.8th percentile, meaning it outperforms more than half of the tested configurations but trails a significant portion of higher-end systems. The ranking reflects the balance of this pairing: the GTX 1080 Ti is a strong GPU, but the Core i5-9400 is a mid-range processor that can bottleneck the GPU in CPU-intensive scenarios, which is common in a physics-heavy title like Control.

The CPU itself scores an average benchmark score of 2305, placing it in the 50th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals, the Intel Core i3-10305 and Intel Core i3-1125G4, both have average scores within 0.2% of the i5-9400, indicating that the processor is performance-equivalent to newer budget chips. The Xeon E-2134 is also closely matched at 0.4% higher. This suggests that the i5-9400's six cores and six threads, with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, are adequate for gaming but do not provide the multi-core headroom found in more modern or higher-tier processors.

The GPU's ranking is more favorable. The GTX 1080 Ti sits in the 61st percentile of all GPUs with an average score of 19402. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780, has a nearly identical score with a 0% delta, while the AMD Radeon Pro 560X is 0.1% lower. The NVIDIA TITAN Xp trails by 1.1%. This data shows that the GTX 1080 Ti remains a competitive high-end card, especially for 1440p and 1080p gaming, even though it is an older architecture. The combo's overall rank of 946 out of 1636 is therefore largely held back by the CPU, which is the weaker link in this specific pairing for Control.