Control

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 combination delivers a broad performance envelope in Control, ranging from a highly playable 113 FPS at 1080p Ultra to a demanding 58 FPS at 4K Ultra. The data indicates a system that is well-balanced for high-refresh 1440p gaming, with enough headroom at 1080p for maximum settings and a playable, though not flawless, 4K experience. The measured frame rates show a clear progression where the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck as resolution increases, while the processor's 14 cores and high boost clock ensure the engine remains fed at lower resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1440p with High settings?

A: The system achieves an average of 98 FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings.

Q: How much faster is the Low preset compared to Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 206 FPS, which is 93 FPS higher than the Ultra preset's 113 FPS, representing an 82% performance increase.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 4K?

A: The minimum FPS recorded at 3840x2160 with Medium settings is 63 FPS, with an average of 75 FPS and a maximum of 86 FPS.

Q: Does the RTX 5070 have enough video memory for this game?

A: The GPU is equipped with 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient for the tested presets.

Q: What is the CPU's boost clock and core count?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 features 14 cores and 14 threads, with a boost clock of 5.10 GHz and a base clock of 3.50 GHz.

Q: Where does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: It ranks 545th out of 2888 tested combos, placing it in the top 20% of all recorded results.

Q: What is the average FPS difference between High and Ultra at 1440p?

A: The High preset at 2560x1440 yields 98 FPS, while the Ultra preset yields 85 FPS, a difference of 13 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is the central component driving Control's rendering performance. Its 12 GB of GDDR7 memory, paired with a 192-bit bus, provides a bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is a critical factor in handling the game's high-resolution textures and complex shading at 4K, where the average frame rates remain within a playable range. The GPU's boost clock of 2512 MHz and base clock of 2325 MHz, based on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, contribute to its raw computational throughput.

Data from the measured FPS shows a clear scaling pattern tied to the GPU's workload. At 1080p, the GPU is often not the limiting factor, as evidenced by the high frame rates across all settings. However, as resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth demands grow, and the performance deltas between presets widen. For instance, at 4K, the difference between the Low and Ultra presets is 47 FPS (105 vs. 58 FPS), demonstrating the substantial impact of the GPU's shading and memory subsystems.

The GPU's 80 ROPs and 192 TMUs are instrumental in determining the final pixel output and texture filtering rates. The measured pixel rate of 201.0 GPixel/s supports the high resolutions tested, while the texture rate of 482.3 GTexel/s handles the detailed environments. The RTX 5070's percentile ranking of 82 among all GPUs indicates that it is positioned in the upper tier of graphics hardware, which is consistent with its ability to maintain over 60 FPS at 4K Medium settings in this title. The performance data suggests that the GPU's architecture is well-suited to Control's rendering requirements, with the 12 GB memory buffer providing sufficient capacity for the game's assets without capacity-related stutters.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 achieves a rank of 545 out of 2888 tested combinations in Control. This places the system in the 81st percentile of all tested configurations, indicating a high-performing setup. The rank reflects the synergy between the CPU's processing capabilities and the GPU's rendering power, which together produce the frame rates measured across the various settings.

The CPU's average benchmark score of 48995 places it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU's average score of 40377 places it in the 82nd percentile of all GPUs. The system's overall rank of 545 suggests that the combined performance is slightly less than the sum of its parts, which is typical for a balanced system where neither component is severely bottlenecking the other. The data shows that the GPU is the more likely limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the CPU's 14 cores and high clock speeds are sufficient to avoid limiting frame rates at lower resolutions.

When compared to other high-end combinations, this system's rank indicates that it outperforms the majority of tested rigs. The specific ranking within the 2888 combos suggests that users with this hardware can expect a smooth experience in Control, particularly at 1080p and 1440p where the frame rates are well above the 60 FPS threshold. The 4K Ultra setting is the only scenario where the system falls below 60 FPS, which is a common trade-off for maximum image quality at that resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a detailed look at the system's performance across three resolutions and four quality presets. At 1920x1080, the system delivers high frame rates across the board, starting with 206 FPS on Low, 146 FPS on Medium (with a min of 124 and max of 168), 130 FPS on High, and 113 FPS on Ultra. These numbers indicate that the system is heavily CPU-limited at this resolution, as the GPU has ample headroom to render frames quickly.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain strong but show a more pronounced GPU influence. The Low preset yields 156 FPS, Medium yields 111 FPS (min 94, max 127), High yields 98 FPS, and Ultra yields 85 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a 71 FPS drop, highlighting the increased load on the GPU at this resolution. The average frame rates are still well above 60 FPS, making 1440p an excellent sweet spot for this combination.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck. The Low preset achieves 105 FPS, Medium drops to 75 FPS (min 63, max 86), High yields 66 FPS, and Ultra falls to 58 FPS. The data shows that 4K Ultra is the only tested configuration that dips below 60 FPS, while the Medium and High presets remain playable. The difference between 1080p and 4K at the same settings is significant; for example, High settings drop from 130 FPS at 1080p to 66 FPS at 4K, a 49% reduction.

The Medium preset is the only one with recorded min and max FPS values, showing a consistent frame delivery across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the spread is 44 FPS (124 to 168), at 1440p Medium it's 33 FPS (94 to 127), and at 4K Medium it's 23 FPS (63 to 86). The narrowing spread at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is working closer to its limits, reducing frame time variance.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the user's resolution and refresh rate priorities. For 4K displays, the Medium preset offers the best balance, delivering an average of 75 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay without dropping below the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset at 66 FPS is also viable, but the Ultra preset's 58 FPS average may result in noticeable frame pacing issues on a 60Hz display.

For 1440p, the High preset is the recommended choice, providing 98 FPS and a significant visual improvement over Medium's 111 FPS. The Ultra preset at 85 FPS is also an option for users with high-refresh displays, but the 13 FPS gain from High to Ultra may not justify the visual difference for all users. The Low preset at 156 FPS is excessive for most displays and sacrifices too much visual fidelity.

At 1080p, all presets are highly playable, with even Ultra achieving 113 FPS. For users with 144Hz displays, the High preset at 130 FPS is the best choice, as it provides a high frame rate while maintaining good visual quality. The Medium preset at 146 FPS is also viable, but the Ultra preset at 113 FPS is the most visually impressive and still exceeds the 60 FPS threshold by a wide margin. The data suggests that the Low preset is unnecessary at this resolution, as higher presets do not compromise playability.

The best experience per the measured rows is achieved by matching the preset to the display's refresh rate. For 60Hz displays, 4K Medium or 1440p Ultra are ideal. For 144Hz displays, 1440p High or 1080p Ultra are recommended. The system's performance is robust enough that users can prioritize visual fidelity without sacrificing smoothness at lower resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 plays a crucial role in ensuring the GPU can perform at its full potential, particularly at lower resolutions. With 14 cores and 14 threads, the processor provides substantial multi-threaded performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 and Passmark multi-thread score of 38706. The CPU's boost clock of 5.10 GHz ensures high single-thread performance, reflected in its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648, which is essential for game logic and physics calculations.

In Control, the CPU's influence is most apparent at 1080p, where the frame rates are high across all presets. The difference between Low (206 FPS) and Ultra (113 FPS) at this resolution suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough draw calls to maintain high frame rates. The CPU's memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s via dual-channel DDR5 support ensures that data can be transferred quickly to the GPU, preventing potential bottlenecks.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 90 among all CPUs indicates that it is a high-end processor, and its performance in synthetic benchmarks supports this. The nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, has an average score of 49228, which is 0.5% higher than the Core Ultra 5 245's 48995. This margin is negligible in real-world gaming, and the CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache helps in scenarios where game data needs to be accessed quickly.

At higher resolutions, the CPU's role diminishes as the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck. However, the CPU's ability to maintain consistent frame delivery is still important, as the data shows no significant frame drops in the Medium preset at 4K (min 63 FPS). The CPU's architecture, based on Arrow Lake, is well-suited for gaming workloads, and its 65W TDP indicates efficient power usage without compromising performance.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important insights into the system's bottleneck characteristics. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 130 at 1080p to 98 at 1440p (a 25% reduction) and then to 66 at 4K (a 49% reduction from 1080p). This scaling pattern indicates that the GPU becomes increasingly limiting as pixel count increases, which is typical for a demanding action-adventure title like Control.

The scaling is more pronounced at lower settings. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 206 at 1080p to 156 at 1440p (24% reduction) and then to 105 at 4K (49% reduction). The consistent ~49% reduction from 1080p to 4K across all settings suggests that the GPU's performance scales predictably with resolution, and the CPU is not introducing a bottleneck even at the highest frame rates.

The data shows that the system is balanced, with neither component severely limiting the other in most scenarios. At 1080p Low, the 206 FPS result indicates that the CPU is capable of supporting very high frame rates, while the GPU is still able to keep up. At 4K Ultra, the 58 FPS result shows that the GPU is the sole limiting factor, as the CPU's workload does not increase significantly with resolution.

The resolution scaling also highlights the GPU's memory bandwidth advantages. The 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth is sufficient to handle the increased data throughput at 4K, as evidenced by the playable frame rates at Medium and High settings. The 12 GB memory capacity does not appear to be a limiting factor in this game, as no stuttering or performance anomalies are present in the data. Overall, the scaling behavior indicates that users can achieve a smooth experience at 1440p with high settings, while 4K requires a trade-off between visual quality and frame rate.