Control

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 ranks 3083rd out of 3720 tested combos in Control, placing it in the lower half of all system configurations recorded in our database. This ranking reflects a fundamental imbalance: the CPU is exceptionally capable, sitting in the 84th percentile against all processors, while the GPU is a legacy Pascal part that falls in the 47th percentile. The data shows a system where the processor is bottlenecked by the graphics card at every resolution tested, with the gap widening as settings increase.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 3083 out of 3720 represents the 17th percentile of all tested combinations, which is a poor showing for a CPU that individually outperforms 84% of all processors. This is a clear case where the overall system score is dragged down by the GPU component. The GTX 1070's average benchmark score of 9780 puts it in a class with professional workstation cards like the AMD FirePro W5000 (9803, 0.2% faster) and the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M (9832, 0.5% faster), while being slightly ahead of the Tesla M10 (9724) and Tesla C2070 (9716). These are not gaming-focused competitors, which underscores how dated the GPU is relative to modern titles.

In practical terms, this ranking means that users of this combo will experience Control at frame rates that are playable at 1080p but struggle to maintain smoothness at higher resolutions. The measured data shows that even at 1080p Ultra, the average FPS drops to 53, which is below the 60 FPS threshold many consider the minimum for action-adventure games. The system's position in the bottom half of the database is primarily a function of the GPU, as the CPU's individual benchmark scores place it near the top of the CPU hierarchy. The Intel Core i7-12700KF is essentially identical in performance (deltaPct of -0.2%), as are the Core i5-13600T (-0.1%) and Core i7-13700T (-0.3%), all of which cluster within 0.4% of each other in average CPU scores.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K is a 12-core, 20-thread processor from the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This is a high-end desktop part released in late 2021, built on a 10 nm process with a 125W TDP. Its L3 cache is 25 MB shared, and it supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory through a dual-channel interface. The CPU's benchmark results are impressive across the board: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19784 and a single-core score of 1850.5, a Geekbench multi-core score of 15790, and a Passmark multi-thread score of 34404.

In Control, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics calculations. The game is an action-adventure title released in August 2019, and it is known for its physics-heavy environments and destructible objects. The i7-12700K's 12 cores and 20 threads provide ample headroom for these workloads, as evidenced by its 3DMark scores: 9276 in the 16-thread test and 9979 at max threads. The single-thread score of 1043 in 3DMark is also strong, ensuring that the game's main thread won't be a limiting factor.

However, the benchmark results indicate that this CPU is rarely the bottleneck in this combo. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 97 FPS, which is the highest measured across all configurations. If the CPU were holding back performance, we would expect to see diminishing returns when lowering resolution or settings, but the data shows consistent scaling that points to GPU limitation. The CPU's percentile rank of 84 versus the GPU's 47 confirms this assessment. In Control, the i7-12700K is effectively overkill, providing far more processing power than the GTX 1070 can utilize, particularly at higher resolutions where pixel throughput dominates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is a Pascal architecture GPU with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1506 MHz with a boost clock of 1683 MHz, and it operates at a 150W TDP. The card has 1920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with a pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s. Its FP32 performance is 6.463 TFLOPS, which was competitive at its 2016 launch but is now significantly behind modern GPUs.

In Control, the GTX 1070 is the clear limiting factor. The measured FPS data shows a dramatic drop as resolution increases: at High settings, the average FPS goes from 61 at 1080p, to 46 at 1440p, to 31 at 4K. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU that is running out of pixel processing power. The card's 8 GB of VRAM is sufficient for this game's textures, but its raw compute throughput is insufficient for the game's rendering demands at higher resolutions. The GPU's benchmark scores reflect this: a Passmark G3D score of 13498 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1082, both of which place it in the 47th percentile of all GPUs.

The GPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores are all professional or older cards, which indicates that in the current GPU landscape, the GTX 1070 is a low-end option. Its performance in Control at 4K Ultra (27 FPS average) is nearly unplayable, and even at 1080p Ultra (53 FPS), it struggles to maintain a consistent 60 FPS. The card's memory clock of 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective) is not the bottleneck; rather, it's the 6.4 TFLOPS of compute that limits the game's visual effects and post-processing. This GPU is simply not designed for modern AAA titles at high settings, and the data confirms that it holds back the entire system.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall performance ranking of this combo in Control?

A: This combo ranks 3083rd out of 3720 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 17% of all systems in our database for this game.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Core i7-12700K has an average benchmark score of 35287, which is within 0.4% of the Core i5-13600T (35305), Core i7-12700KF (35365), Core i7-13700T (35403), and Core 5 213PE (35428). All five processors are essentially tied in performance.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking, and how does it affect gaming?

A: The GTX 1070 sits in the 47th percentile of all GPUs, which means it performs worse than 53% of graphics cards. This low ranking directly impacts Control's frame rates, especially at higher resolutions where the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck.

Q: At which resolution and settings does this combo achieve 60 FPS or higher?

A: The only configurations that average 60 FPS or above are 1080p Low (97 FPS) and 1080p High (61 FPS). At 1440p Low, it drops to 73 FPS, but any Medium or higher setting at 1440p falls below 52 FPS.

Q: How does the GPU's memory bandwidth compare to its compute performance?

A: The GPU has 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth from its 8 GB GDDR5 memory, but its FP32 compute is only 6.463 TFLOPS. The data shows that the compute limitation is more impactful than memory bandwidth, as frame rates scale predictably with resolution rather than showing sudden drops from VRAM exhaustion.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more responsible for the system's low rank?

A: The GPU is overwhelmingly the limiting factor. The CPU ranks in the 84th percentile, while the GPU ranks in the 47th. The frame rate data shows consistent GPU-bound scaling, with a 53% drop from 1080p Low to 4K Low, which is characteristic of a graphics card bottleneck.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data reveals a steep performance decline as resolution increases, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound system. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 97 at 1080p, to 73 at 1440p, to 49 at 4K. This represents a 25% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 33% drop from 1440p to 4K. At High settings, the decline is similar: 61 FPS at 1080p, 46 at 1440p, and 31 at 4K. The pattern is consistent across all settings, confirming that the GPU's pixel processing capabilities are the primary constraint.

The scaling behavior indicates that the CPU is not a factor in these results. If the CPU were limiting, we would see frame rates that plateau as resolution increases, since the CPU workload stays constant while the GPU workload grows. Instead, the FPS drops proportionally with the number of pixels, which is the expected behavior when the GPU is saturated. At 4K, the system averages 31 FPS at High settings, which is a 49% reduction from the 1080p High result. This is a clear indicator that the GTX 1070's 6.463 TFLOPS of compute is insufficient for 4K rendering in Control.

The resolution scaling also shows that the GTX 1070's 8 GB of VRAM is not a limiting factor, as the game does not show sudden frame rate collapses at higher resolutions. Instead, the performance degrades smoothly, which points to compute and fill-rate limitations rather than memory capacity issues. The 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth is enough to feed the GPU at these settings, but the 107.7 GPixel/s pixel rate and 202.0 GTexel/s texture rate are simply too low for 4K output. Users targeting higher resolutions would need to significantly reduce settings, as the data shows that even 4K Low (49 FPS) is barely playable, and 4K Ultra (27 FPS) is not.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1080p with High settings, which delivers an average of 61 FPS. This is the highest quality preset that maintains a playable frame rate at 1080p. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 53 FPS, which is a 13% reduction for what is typically a marginal visual improvement. For users who prioritize smoothness over visual fidelity, the Medium preset at 1080p offers 69 FPS and includes a minimum FPS of 58, which is a more stable experience than High's average of 61.

At 1440p, the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates. The Low preset averages 73 FPS, which is acceptable, but the High preset drops to 46 FPS, and Ultra falls to 40 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p averages 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS, which is borderline playable but may experience noticeable stutter during intense action. For 1440p use, the data suggests that Low settings are the only reliable option, as they are the only preset that consistently stays above 60 FPS.

At 4K, the system is not capable of delivering a playable experience at any setting. The best result is 49 FPS at Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS threshold, and the High and Ultra presets deliver 31 FPS and 27 FPS respectively, which are effectively unplayable. The data indicates that this combo should be used at 1080p for the best balance of visual quality and performance. The Medium preset at 1080p provides the most stable frame rate (minimum 58 FPS) while retaining reasonable visual fidelity. For users who want the best-looking experience that remains playable, High at 1080p is the recommended choice, as it stays above 60 FPS on average without the significant performance hit of Ultra.