Control

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti combination delivers a robust performance profile in Control, with the data indicating a system that scales predictably across resolutions. The measured frame rates show a clear transition from a CPU-bound scenario at 1080p to a GPU-bound one at 4K, with the RTX 5070 Ti’s substantial memory bandwidth and the Ultra 5 235’s solid single-thread performance both playing pivotal roles. This analysis breaks down the measured results, contextualizes them against rival hardware, and provides actionable settings guidance based strictly on the observed data.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate data for Control reveals a classic scaling curve, but with a notable acceleration in performance drop-off as resolution increases. At 1080p with High settings, the combo produces 146 FPS average. Moving to 1440p reduces that to 111 FPS, a 24% decrease. The jump to 4K is more severe, with the average falling to 75 FPS, which is a 32% drop from the 1440p figure and a 49% decline from the 1080p baseline. This pattern strongly suggests that while the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions, the rendering load at 4K becomes the dominant constraint.

The scaling behavior becomes even more telling when examining the Low preset. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 232 FPS, which is remarkably high and indicates the GPU is not the primary bottleneck at this setting. At 1440p Low, the average drops to 176 FPS, a 24% reduction. However, the 4K Low result of 119 FPS represents a 32% drop from 1440p. This near-identical percentage drop between High and Low presets across the same resolution transitions suggests that the scaling factor is more dependent on resolution than on the graphical complexity of the preset itself.

The data also shows that the gap between the Low and Ultra presets widens with resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low (232 FPS) and Ultra (127 FPS) is 105 FPS. At 1440p, that gap narrows to 80 FPS (176 vs 96). At 4K, the gap is 54 FPS (119 vs 65). This compression indicates that at higher resolutions, the GPU’s pixel throughput and memory bandwidth become the limiting factors, making the additional load from higher settings less impactful on the absolute frame rate difference but still significant in percentage terms.

The fact that the 4K Ultra average of 65 FPS is only slightly above the 60 FPS threshold suggests that this configuration is on the edge of smooth playability at the highest settings. The 1440p Ultra result of 96 FPS, however, shows a comfortable margin, indicating that the sweet spot for this hardware in Control lies at 1440p with higher settings or 4K with medium settings. The 4K Medium result of 84 FPS with a minimum of 72 FPS provides a more stable experience than the Ultra preset, which lacks a reported minimum but averages 19 FPS lower.

FAQ

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K with the High preset?

A: The measured average frame rate is 75 FPS. This is a playable result, though it is significantly lower than the 111 FPS observed at 1440p High, indicating that 4K imposes a substantial load on the RTX 5070 Ti.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this game?

A: At 1080p Low, the system reaches 232 FPS, which is a very high frame rate that suggests the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU efficiently. However, the sharp drop to 119 FPS at 4K Low, a 49% reduction, indicates that the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions due to the increased pixel count.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between the Medium and Ultra presets at 2560x1440?

A: At 1440p, the Medium preset averages 125 FPS (with a minimum of 106 FPS), while the Ultra preset averages 96 FPS. This represents a 23% performance hit for the Ultra settings, which may not be worth the visual gain for some users.

Q: Does the combination rank high among all tested combos?

A: The combo holds the rank of 266 out of 2888 tested combinations. This places it in the top 9.2% of all configurations, indicating a very strong overall performance level for this game.

Q: What is the performance difference between the 1080p and 4K Low presets?

A: The 1080p Low preset achieves 232 FPS, while the 4K Low preset achieves 119 FPS. This is a 113 FPS difference, which equates to a 49% reduction in average frame rate when moving to 4K.

Q: Is the 4K Ultra setting viable for this hardware?

A: The measured average is 65 FPS. While this is above 60 FPS, it is the lowest average recorded in the dataset and provides less headroom than the 4K Medium preset, which averages 84 FPS, for a more consistent experience.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is the dominant component in this pairing for Control, particularly as resolution scales. The GPU’s 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This is a critical asset for a game like Control, which features complex textures and physics effects that can consume memory bandwidth rapidly at high resolutions. The data supports this: at 4K, the frame rate drops significantly regardless of preset, from 119 FPS at Low to 65 FPS at Ultra, showing that the GPU’s rendering capabilities are being taxed heavily.

The GPU’s clock speeds, with a base of 2295 MHz and a boost of 2452 MHz, are the engine that drives these frame rates. The boost clock is the relevant figure for sustained gaming loads, and the performance scaling between presets indicates that the card is able to maintain high utilization. The 43.94 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is substantial, and the benchmark results show it translates into real-world performance. The GPU’s percentile rank of 86 (versus all GPUs) underscores its high-end positioning, though it is interesting to note that its average benchmark score of 49957 is closely matched by the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 (50001, a -0.1% delta), though the Vega 64 is an older architecture.

The memory subsystem is where the RTX 5070 Ti provides a clear advantage in this game. The 896.0 GB/s bandwidth is a key differentiator when moving from 1440p to 4K. The data shows that the 4K High preset averages 75 FPS, which is still a solid number, but the drop from the 1440p High of 111 FPS highlights how the memory bandwidth is being consumed by the increased pixel data. The 16 GB capacity also ensures that the game’s assets fit comfortably in VRAM, preventing potential stuttering or texture pop-in that could occur with smaller memory pools. The GPU’s 70 RT cores also play a role in Control, which is known for its ray tracing features, though the measured data does not specify whether these are enabled.

The GPU’s performance is further contextualized by its nearest rivals in the benchmark database. The RTX 5070 Ti’s average score is 3.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT and 2% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT. This places it in a competitive tier, and the measured FPS in Control reflects this positioning, with the card delivering high refresh rates at 1440p and solid 4K performance. The 300 W TDP and 700 W suggested PSU indicate the power requirements, but the performance delivered per frame is a matter of the data at hand.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti achieves a rank of 266 out of 2888 tested combos in Control. This places it in the top 9.2% of all configurations tested, which is an impressive result. The rank reflects the synergy between the CPU and GPU, and the data indicates that the pairing is well-balanced for this title. The CPU’s percentile rank of 89 versus all CPUs and the GPU’s percentile rank of 86 versus all GPUs are both high, but the combo’s overall rank of 266 suggests that the combination is greater than the sum of its parts.

To put this rank in perspective, it is important to consider the CPU’s nearest rivals. The Intel Core Ultra 5 235’s average benchmark score is 46062, which is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (46030, a 0.1% delta) and the Intel Core i9-13900HX (46098, a -0.1% delta). This means that the CPU is performing at a level consistent with these high-end chips. However, the combo’s rank of 266 is not solely determined by the CPU; the GPU’s contribution is equally critical. The RTX 5070 Ti’s score of 49957 is 3.1% higher than the RX 6800 XT, and the measured FPS in Control shows that the GPU is not being held back by the CPU.

The rank of 266 also implies that there are 265 combos that perform better, which likely include configurations with even more powerful GPUs or CPUs that can sustain higher frame rates at 1080p. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system hits 232 FPS, which is excellent, but there may be combos that can push beyond this. However, for a 1440p-focused build, this combo is exceptionally well-positioned, as the 1440p Medium result of 125 FPS and 1440p High result of 111 FPS are both very strong. The rank suggests that users would need to step up to significantly more expensive hardware to see a substantial improvement in this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The dataset provides 12 distinct measurement points, covering three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, 3840x2160) and four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra). The results are as follows:

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. The Low preset achieves 232 FPS average. The Medium preset averages 165 FPS, with a minimum of 140 FPS and a maximum of 190 FPS. The High preset averages 146 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 127 FPS. This shows a clear progression, with the Low preset being nearly 83% faster than the Ultra preset, indicating that the game’s visual effects at Ultra have a significant cost.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show the expected decline. The Low preset averages 176 FPS. The Medium preset averages 125 FPS, with a minimum of 106 FPS and a maximum of 143 FPS. The High preset averages 111 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 96 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is consistent, with the Low preset dropping by 24%, the Medium by 24%, the High by 24%, and the Ultra by 24%. This uniformity indicates that the GPU is scaling as expected with pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates drop more steeply, revealing the GPU’s workload. The Low preset averages 119 FPS. The Medium preset averages 84 FPS, with a minimum of 72 FPS and a maximum of 97 FPS. The High preset averages 75 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 65 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is more severe than the 1080p to 1440p transition. The Low preset drops by 32%, the Medium by 33%, the High by 32%, and the Ultra by 32%. This consistent percentage drop across all presets suggests that the resolution increase is the primary factor in performance loss, rather than the settings.

The data also shows that the Medium preset is the most consistent in terms of frame pacing. At all three resolutions, the Medium preset is the only one with reported minimum and maximum FPS values. At 1080p, the minimum is 140 FPS and the maximum is 190 FPS. At 1440p, the minimum is 106 FPS and the maximum is 143 FPS. At 4K, the minimum is 72 FPS and the maximum is 97 FPS. This consistency suggests that the Medium preset avoids the extreme spikes in rendering complexity that can cause frame drops in the High and Ultra presets.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this hardware depend heavily on the target resolution. The data provides clear guidance for each of the three tested resolutions.

For 1920x1080, the High preset is the recommended choice for most users. It delivers 146 FPS average, which is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate of most gaming monitors. The Ultra preset, at 127 FPS, is still highly playable, but the 13% performance cost may not be justified by the visual improvements, especially since the High preset already provides a smooth experience. The Low preset, at 232 FPS, is only useful for competitive play where maximum frame rate is critical, but the visual quality loss is substantial. The Medium preset, at 165 FPS, is a good middle ground if the user wants a frame rate buffer above High, but the High preset offers a better balance of visual fidelity and performance.

For 2560x1440, the Medium preset is the clear sweet spot. It delivers 125 FPS average with a minimum of 106 FPS, ensuring a smooth experience even in demanding scenes. The High preset, at 111 FPS, is also excellent, but the Medium preset’s higher average and reported minimum make it the safer choice for maintaining a stable frame rate. The Ultra preset, at 96 FPS, is playable but starts to approach the 60 FPS threshold. The Low preset, at 176 FPS, is unnecessary for this resolution, as the visual quality reduction is too steep for the frame rate gain.

For 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the recommended choice. It averages 84 FPS with a minimum of 72 FPS, providing a consistently smooth experience above the 60 FPS target. The High preset, at 75 FPS, is also viable, but the lack of a reported minimum makes it riskier in terms of frame pacing. The Ultra preset, at 65 FPS, is technically above 60 FPS, but the margin is thin, and any demanding scene could push it below the threshold. The Low preset, at 119 FPS, is a high-performance option, but the visual quality at 4K with Low settings may not be worth the frame rate advantage.

In summary, the data suggests the following optimal configurations: 1080p High (146 FPS), 1440p Medium (125 FPS), and 4K Medium (84 FPS). These settings offer the best balance of visual fidelity and frame rate stability for each resolution, ensuring that the user gets the most out of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and RTX 5070 Ti combination.