Control

# Control with Intel Core Ultra 5 235 + AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT — Benchmark Analysis

This combination delivers strong performance in Control, with the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT providing substantial headroom across all tested resolutions. The measured data shows that the sweet spot for this pairing is the High preset at 2560x1440, where the average of 99 FPS balances visual fidelity with smooth gameplay. At 3840x2160, the High preset maintains a playable 67 FPS average, while Ultra settings drop to 58 FPS — a marginal difference that suggests diminishing returns at the highest preset. The Intel Core Ultra 5 235, with its 14 cores and 14 threads, proves sufficient to feed the GPU without creating a bottleneck, as evidenced by the consistent scaling between resolution and settings tiers.

Settings Recommendations

The data reveals a clear hierarchy across presets, with the most compelling experience found at High settings. At 1920x1080, High produces 131 FPS average, which is 17 FPS below the Medium preset's 148 FPS but provides superior visual quality. The jump from High to Ultra at this resolution costs 17 FPS (131 to 114), a 13% reduction that may not justify the visual uplift in a fast-paced action game. For 2560x1440, High again stands out: 99 FPS average versus Ultra's 86 FPS, a 15% performance penalty for the highest preset. The 1440p High configuration delivers a buttery experience on high-refresh displays while retaining most of the game's visual features.

At 3840x2160, the choice narrows considerably. High yields 67 FPS, which is playable, while Medium offers 75 FPS with a tighter frame pacing window (64 min, 87 max). Ultra drops to 58 FPS, which approaches the threshold where motion smoothness degrades noticeably. For 4K owners, the Medium preset's 75 FPS average with a documented frame range of 64-87 FPS provides the best combination of responsiveness and visual quality, especially given that the Low preset at this resolution reaches 106 FPS — but at a significant visual cost. The Low preset's 106 FPS at 4K demonstrates the GPU's raw capability, yet the visual compromise is severe for a game that relies heavily on atmospheric lighting and particle effects.

The Low preset across all resolutions shows the GPU's ceiling: 208 FPS at 1080p, 157 FPS at 1440p, and 106 FPS at 4K. These figures indicate that the RX 7900 XT is rarely the limiting factor at lower settings; instead, the game's engine and CPU interaction become relevant. For competitive play or maximum frame rates, Low at 1080p delivers 208 FPS, which exceeds the refresh rate of most monitors. However, for the intended single-player experience of Control, High at 1440p (99 FPS) or Medium at 4K (75 FPS) represents the optimal balance, offering a 60+ FPS experience with acceptable visual quality. The Medium preset's measured min/max values at each resolution (64-87 at 4K, 95-128 at 1440p, 125-170 at 1080p) show consistent frame pacing, making it a reliable fallback if High proves too demanding.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications directly explain the measured performance. The GPU features 20 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 320-bit bus, delivering 800.0 GB/s of bandwidth — a figure that becomes critical at 3840x2160, where texture streaming and memory pressure increase substantially. The 20 GB capacity ensures that Control's high-resolution textures fit entirely within VRAM, preventing hitches from memory swapping. The boost clock of 2394 MHz, combined with a game clock of 2025 MHz, provides the compute throughput necessary for the game's physics-heavy combat sequences.

The GPU's RDNA 3.0 architecture, built on a 5 nm process with 57,700 million transistors, includes 5376 shading units and 192 ROPs. The pixel rate of 459.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 804.4 GTexel/s are directly relevant to Control, which uses extensive post-processing effects and detailed surface textures. The FP32 performance of 51.48 TFLOPS supports the game's real-time ray tracing features, though the benchmark data does not isolate RT performance specifically. What the data does show is that the GPU scales predictably across presets: at 1440p, moving from Low to Ultra reduces average FPS from 157 to 86, a 45% performance drop that aligns with the increased shader and memory workload.

The RX 7900 XT's 84 ray accelerators (RT cores) are notable for Control, which was an early ray tracing showcase. While the measured FPS values do not specify whether RT was enabled, the Ultra preset's 58 FPS at 4K suggests that even with demanding settings, the GPU maintains playable frame rates. The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) ensures full feature compatibility with the game's modern rendering pipeline. The GPU's 55th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13745, positions it as a mid-to-high-tier performer — though its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon 660M (deltaPct -0.5) and NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile (deltaPct -0.5), which are fundamentally different classes of hardware, indicating that aggregate benchmark scores may not capture gaming-specific strengths.

The GPU's 300 W TDP and dual-slot design with 2x 8-pin power connectors suggest ample power delivery for sustained gaming loads. The 800.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is particularly advantageous for Control's use of large texture arrays and dynamic resolution scaling. At 1080p, the GPU's performance is so high (208 FPS on Low) that it likely becomes CPU-limited, but at 4K, the GPU's compute and memory subsystems are fully exercised, as shown by the 58-106 FPS range across presets. The GPU's end-of-life production status and November 2022 release date mean it is a mature product with well-established drivers, which likely contributes to the consistent frame pacing observed in the Medium preset data.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Control?*

A: Based on the measured data, 2560x1440 at High settings provides the best overall experience, with a 99 FPS average that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS while maintaining strong visual quality. At 3840x2160, the High preset's 67 FPS is playable, but the Medium preset's 75 FPS with a documented 64-87 FPS range offers better consistency.

*Q: Does the RX 7900 XT's 20 GB VRAM matter for Control?*

A: Yes, the 20 GB GDDR6 memory with 800.0 GB/s bandwidth ensures that Control's high-resolution textures and effects load entirely into VRAM, avoiding stutter from memory swapping. This is especially relevant at 3840x2160, where the Ultra preset still achieves 58 FPS, indicating no memory-related bottlenecks.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at 1440p?

A: Ultra delivers 86 FPS average versus High's 99 FPS, a 13 FPS (13%) reduction. The visual difference between these presets is typically subtle in Control, making High the recommended choice for smoother gameplay, particularly on 144Hz displays.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 a bottleneck at any resolution?

A: The data does not indicate a CPU bottleneck. The scaling from 1080p to 4K is consistent with GPU-bound performance. At 1080p Low, the 208 FPS average suggests the GPU is still the primary driver, and the CPU's 14 cores/14 threads with a 5.00 GHz boost clock provide sufficient headroom for the game's physics and AI routines.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 4K with this setup?

A: At 3840x2160, the measured averages are 58 FPS on Ultra, 67 FPS on High, 75 FPS on Medium, and 106 FPS on Low. For a locked 60 FPS experience, High is sufficient, while Medium provides additional headroom for frame time spikes.

Q: How does the combo rank among tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 518th out of 2888 tested combinations, placing it in the top 18% of all configurations tested for Control. This ranking reflects the GPU's strong performance, though the GPU's aggregate benchmark percentile (55th) is lower than its gaming-specific results suggest.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RX 7900 XT delivers exceptional performance across all presets. The Low preset achieves 208 FPS average, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. Medium produces 148 FPS with a documented range of 125-170 FPS, showing tight frame pacing. High reaches 131 FPS, while Ultra drops to 114 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 45% performance reduction (208 to 114 FPS), which is steeper than at higher resolutions, indicating that at 1080p, the CPU or engine overhead becomes relatively more significant. The 1080p Medium preset's 125 FPS minimum ensures that even in intense combat sequences, the frame rate stays well above 100 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales more predictably. Low produces 157 FPS, Medium 112 FPS (95-128 range), High 99 FPS, and Ultra 86 FPS. The gap between Medium and High is 13 FPS, while High to Ultra is also 13 FPS, showing a linear degradation. The Medium preset's 95 FPS minimum is notable — it remains above 90 FPS even in the worst-case measured frame, making it an excellent choice for 144Hz displays that can utilize the extra headroom. The 1440p Ultra's 86 FPS average is still well above the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting that even the most demanding settings are playable at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limits become apparent. Low achieves 106 FPS, which is surprisingly high for 4K and indicates the game scales efficiently at lower settings. Medium produces 75 FPS with a 64-87 FPS range, where the 64 FPS minimum approaches the edge of smoothness but remains acceptable. High reaches 67 FPS, and Ultra drops to 58 FPS — the only preset/resolution combination in the dataset that falls below 60 FPS. The 4K data shows a 45% reduction from Low to Ultra (106 to 58 FPS), similar to the 1080p scaling, but the absolute values are much lower, confirming that 4K is the most demanding scenario for this GPU. The Medium preset's 87 FPS maximum at 4K demonstrates that the GPU can burst well above its average, providing headroom for less demanding scenes.

The measured FPS data includes min/max values only for the Medium preset at each resolution, which provides insight into frame pacing. At 1080p Medium, the 125-170 FPS range represents a 45 FPS spread, while at 1440p Medium, the 95-128 FPS range is a 33 FPS spread, and at 4K Medium, the 64-87 FPS range is a 23 FPS spread. This tightening of frame variance at higher resolutions suggests that GPU workload becomes more consistent, reducing CPU-related frame time spikes. The absence of min/max data for other presets limits deeper analysis, but the Medium data alone shows that this combo maintains stable performance across all three resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT achieves a rank of 518 out of 2888 tested combos in Control, placing it in the 82nd percentile of all configurations. This ranking is notably strong given that the GPU alone sits at the 55th percentile among all GPUs in aggregate benchmarks. The discrepancy suggests that the RX 7900 XT's gaming performance in Control exceeds its general-purpose benchmark showing, likely due to the game's optimization for RDNA architectures and the GPU's substantial memory bandwidth.

The CPU's performance context helps explain the combo's ranking. The Intel Core Ultra 5 235, with an average benchmark score of 46062, is nearly identical to its nearest rivals: the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (46030, deltaPct 0.1), Intel Core i9-13900HX (46098, deltaPct -0.1), and AMD EPYC 4364P (45970, deltaPct 0.2). This tight clustering indicates that the CPU is not a differentiating factor — any of these processors would likely produce similar results in Control. The CPU's 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms that it is a high-end performer, though its 14 cores/14 threads configuration (no hyperthreading) is unusual for a desktop part.

The combo's rank of 518 out of 2888 means that approximately 82% of tested configurations perform worse, while 18% perform better. Given the GPU's end-of-life status and the CPU's recent release, this ranking reflects a well-balanced pairing that maximizes the GPU's strengths in a specific game. The GPU's nearest rivals in aggregate benchmarks include the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT (deltaPct 1.5), which is a newer part, and the AMD Radeon 660M (deltaPct -0.5), which is an integrated GPU — the latter comparison highlights how aggregate scores can be misleading for gaming performance. The RX 7900 XT's 29009 Passmark G3D score and 5623 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score indicate strong DirectX 12 performance, which aligns with Control's DX12 capabilities.

The ranking suggests that this combo is well-suited for Control specifically, rather than being a general-purpose leader. The 4K Ultra performance of 58 FPS is the only sub-60 FPS result, and even that is close to playable. For context, the combo outperforms the vast majority of tested systems, and the data indicates that the RX 7900 XT's 20 GB VRAM and 800 GB/s bandwidth provide a significant advantage in this game's memory-intensive scenes.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 provides the computational foundation for this combo, and its specifications are well-matched to Control's requirements. The CPU features 14 cores and 14 threads — notably, there is no hyperthreading, so thread count equals core count. This configuration is unusual for a desktop part and suggests that the 3 nm Arrow Lake architecture prioritizes single-thread efficiency over multi-thread throughput. The base clock of 3.40 GHz and boost clock of 5.00 GHz provide strong single-thread performance, which is critical for Control's physics simulation and game logic, both of which are largely single-threaded.

The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 192 KB L1 per core, 3 MB L2 per core, and 24 MB shared L3, totaling a substantial amount of on-die memory. For a game like Control, which features complex environmental interactions and destructible objects, the L3 cache helps reduce memory latency and improves frame consistency. The 24 MB L3 shared across 14 cores provides ample room for the game's hot data sets, likely contributing to the tight frame pacing observed in the Medium preset measurements. The CPU's memory support for DDR5 with dual-channel configuration delivers 102.4 GB/s bandwidth, which, while lower than the GPU's 800 GB/s, is sufficient for the game's CPU-side data requirements.

The CPU's Cinebench scores provide context for its gaming performance: R23 multi-core score of 14769 and single-core score of 2085. The single-core score is particularly relevant for Control, where the game's main thread often becomes the limiting factor in high-FPS scenarios. The Passmark single-thread score of 4516 and multithread score of 37816 suggest that the CPU is well-balanced for gaming workloads. The CPU's 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46062, places it in the upper tier of desktop processors, though its nearest rivals are a mix of mobile and server parts, indicating that the Core Ultra 5 235 competes with a wide range of hardware.

In the context of this combo, the CPU's role is to avoid becoming a bottleneck. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 208 FPS, which is likely near the game's engine limit or the CPU's frame-delivery ceiling. At 4K Ultra, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor at 58 FPS. The CPU's 14 threads are more than sufficient for Control, which typically uses fewer than 8 threads. The boost clock of 5.00 GHz ensures that the game's primary thread has ample processing power, while the 14 cores provide headroom for background tasks and the game's auxiliary systems. The CPU's 65 W TDP and 3 nm process node (built by TSMC) contribute to efficient operation, though these factors do not directly impact game performance. Overall, the Core Ultra 5 235 performs its role admirably, enabling the RX 7900 XT to reach its performance potential in Control without introducing CPU-related frame drops.