Control

Control with an Intel Core i7-12700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is a pairing that targets high-refresh 1440p and smooth 4K gameplay. The data shows a 12-core Alder Lake processor driving an Ampere flagship, with results that scale predictably across resolutions. This combination lands in the 69th percentile of tested combos for this title, indicating a strong but not top-tier position in the database.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Control with this combo?

A: The data shows 2560x1440 at High settings delivering 90.5 FPS, which balances visual fidelity with a high refresh rate. At 3840x2160, High settings drop to 60.4 FPS, which is still playable but leaves less headroom for demanding scenes.

Q: How much faster is the CPU compared to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i7-12700KF has an average benchmark score of 35355. It is 0.1% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14400 and 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i9-12900HX, while being 0.2% behind the Intel Core i7-13800H.

Q: What is the GPU's standing relative to other graphics cards?

A: The RTX 3080 has an average benchmark score of 35787 and sits in the 80th percentile of all GPUs. It is 0.2% behind the AMD Radeon Pro Duo and 0.9% behind the AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE, but 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon 880M and 1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Mobile.

Q: Does the CPU hold back the GPU at lower resolutions?

A: At 1920x1080, the frame rates are significantly higher (184.4 FPS on Low) than at 4K (93.7 FPS on Low). The scaling suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is more of a limiting factor, while at 4K, the GPU becomes the primary constraint.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings produce 140.3 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 74.9 FPS. This is a performance drop of 65.4 FPS when moving from the lowest to the highest preset.

Q: How much VRAM does the GPU have, and what type is it?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 features 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 760.3 GB/s.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows show a clear trade-off between visual quality and frame rate. For a 60 Hz display at 3840x2160, the High preset is the optimal choice, as it delivers 60.4 FPS. This is the only 4K setting that hits the 60 FPS threshold without going overboard; Ultra drops to 51.7 FPS, which may be noticeable on a standard refresh rate monitor.

For users with high-refresh 1440p monitors, the Medium preset at 2560x1440 offers a strong balance at 98.4 FPS. This is a significant step up from High (90.5 FPS) while still looking substantially better than Low (140.3 FPS). The jump from Medium to High costs 7.9 FPS, but the visual improvement is often worth it for a game like Control with its detailed environments.

At 1920x1080, the High preset at 116.7 FPS is the sweet spot for competitive or fast-paced play. This provides a high frame rate that takes advantage of the CPU's capabilities. While Low settings reach 184.4 FPS, the visual compromise is steep. The data suggests that High is the best experience for most users, as it keeps frame rates above 100 FPS while maintaining acceptable graphical fidelity.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial across all settings, indicating a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. At Low settings, the transition from 1920x1080 (184.4 FPS) to 2560x1440 (140.3 FPS) represents a 44.1 FPS drop, and further to 3840x2160 (93.7 FPS) is another 46.6 FPS drop. This steep decline shows that the RTX 3080 is the primary performance limiter as pixel count increases.

On High settings, the scaling is similar but less steep in absolute terms. The 1080p result of 116.7 FPS falls to 90.5 FPS at 1440p (a 26.2 FPS drop) and then to 60.4 FPS at 4K (a 30.1 FPS drop). This pattern confirms that the GPU's workload scales nearly linearly with resolution, while the CPU maintains sufficient headroom to feed the graphics card.

The Ultra preset shows the most pronounced drop-off. At 1080p, it averages 99.5 FPS, which is still respectable. However, at 1440p it falls to 74.9 FPS, and at 4K it drops to 51.7 FPS. This indicates that Ultra settings at 4K push the GPU to its limits, making it the least viable option for high-resolution play. The data points to the RTX 3080 as the bottleneck at 4K, while the i7-12700KF provides enough performance to avoid limiting frame rates at 1080p.

How This Combo Ranks

Out of 1636 tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i7-12700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 ranks 501st in Control. This places it in the upper half of all tested combos, though not in the top tier. The rank is a reflection of the hardware's overall capability, with the GPU being more critical for this title's performance.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 89th among all processors suggests it is a high-end part, but the combo's overall rank of 501 indicates that many other pairings, likely with newer or higher-end GPUs, outperform it in this specific game. The data shows that while the i7-12700KF is a strong pairing partner, the RTX 3080's performance ceiling is what ultimately defines the combo's position in the rankings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is the dominant component in this pairing for Control. Its 10 GB of GDDR6X memory is sufficient for the game's textures at 4K, as evidenced by the playable frame rates at that resolution. The GPU's boost clock of 1710 MHz and base clock of 1440 MHz contribute to its raw compute power, which includes 8704 shading units and 68 RT cores.

The memory bandwidth of 760.3 GB/s is a critical factor for this title, as it allows for the rapid streaming of textures and geometry. The data shows that the GPU's performance scales predictably with resolution, confirming that it is the limiting factor at higher settings. The RTX 3080's 80th percentile ranking among all GPUs underscores its position as a high-end graphics card, though it is starting to show its age against newer models like the AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE, which is 0.9% faster in synthetic benchmarks.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the frame rates are consistently high. Low settings produce an average of 184.4 FPS, Medium drops to 131.4 FPS, High further reduces to 116.7 FPS, and Ultra settles at 99.5 FPS. The 1080p results show a wide spread, with Low being 84.9 FPS faster than Ultra.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are 140.3 FPS on Low, 98.4 FPS on Medium, 90.5 FPS on High, and 74.9 FPS on Ultra. The 1440p results show a tighter grouping, with a 65.4 FPS difference between the lowest and highest presets.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 93.7 FPS on Low, 69.2 FPS on Medium, 60.4 FPS on High, and 51.7 FPS on Ultra. The 4K results show the smallest absolute spread between presets, with only a 42 FPS difference between Low and Ultra. This data confirms that the RTX 3080 is the primary driver of performance, with the CPU providing enough overhead to maintain consistent frame rates across all tested configurations.