Control

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile delivers a high-refresh-rate experience in Control, with the data showing that the combination ranks in the top quartile of tested configurations. The benchmark results across all resolutions and settings presets indicate that the GPU is the primary driver of frame rates, while the CPU provides ample headroom even at lower resolutions. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS data, the role of each component, and how this specific combo stacks up against other tested systems.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data across the four presets—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—at each resolution provides clear guidance for optimizing the experience in Control. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers an average of 106 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, yet the High preset at 122 FPS offers a 15% improvement in average frame rate. The Low preset reaches 194 FPS, but this comes at a significant visual cost. For most users at 1080p, the High preset strikes the best balance, providing a high frame rate with better visual fidelity than Medium or Low.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Ultra preset averages 80 FPS, which remains playable, but the High preset at 93 FPS is a more comfortable margin above 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 104 FPS is also viable, but High offers superior image quality for a 12% reduction in average FPS compared to Medium. For a 1440p display, the High preset is the recommended starting point, as it maintains a high frame rate while leveraging more of the GPU’s capabilities.

At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset drops to 54 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target for a smooth experience. The High preset at 62 FPS just clears this threshold, making it the minimum recommended setting for 4K. The Medium preset at 70 FPS provides a more comfortable margin, with a 13% increase over High, and is the best choice for those prioritizing frame rate stability at 4K. The Low preset at 99 FPS is unnecessary for most, as the visual degradation is substantial. The data suggests that the High preset at 1080p and 1440p, and the Medium preset at 4K, offer the optimal combination of visual quality and performance for this hardware.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile is central to Control’s performance, as evidenced by the FPS scaling across settings and resolutions. The GPU’s 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 576.0 GB/s, which is more than sufficient for the game’s textures and effects at all tested presets. The boost clock of 1695 MHz, combined with the Ada Lovelace architecture’s 9728 shading units, drives the substantial frame rates seen in the data.

The benchmark results show that the GPU is the limiting factor in most scenarios. At 1080p, the average FPS ranges from 106 at Ultra to 194 at Low, a 83% increase, indicating that the GPU’s workload scales significantly with settings. At 4K, the range is from 54 at Ultra to 99 at Low, a similar relative increase of 83%. This consistent scaling across resolutions suggests that the GPU is fully utilized, with the CPU providing enough headroom to avoid bottlenecking. The RTX 4090 Mobile’s directx 12 score of 107 in Passmark benchmarks aligns with its strong performance in a DirectX 12 title like Control, where the GPU’s capabilities are fully exercised.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile ranks 866 out of 3720 tested combinations in Control, placing it in the 77th percentile of all combos. This ranking indicates that while the hardware is capable, it is not at the very top of the performance hierarchy, as other combinations with higher-tier CPUs or desktop-class GPUs may achieve higher frame rates. The CPU itself has a percentile rank of 93 versus all CPUs, and the GPU has a percentile rank of 84 versus all GPUs, but the combined rank is lower than either individual percentile, suggesting that the pairing may not be perfectly optimized for this specific game.

The nearest rivals for the CPU show a tight cluster around the Ultra 7 265HX’s average benchmark score of 63173. The Intel Core i7-13790F is 0.1% ahead, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 450G is 0.2% behind, and the AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P185 is 0.5% ahead. The Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX is 0.7% behind. These small deltas indicate that the CPU’s performance is broadly comparable to its direct competitors, and any differences in game FPS are more likely attributable to the GPU or system configuration. The GPU’s nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 and the RTX 5050 Mobile, are within 0.9% of the RTX 4090 Mobile’s average score, further highlighting the competitive nature of this hardware tier.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS across presets is as follows: Low delivers 194 FPS, Medium delivers 138 FPS with a minimum of 117 and a maximum of 158, High delivers 122 FPS, and Ultra delivers 106 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 88 FPS, showing a 45% reduction in performance at the highest settings. The Medium preset’s minimum of 117 FPS ensures that even in demanding scenes, the frame rate stays well above 60 FPS, making it a solid choice for competitive play or high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS drops to 147 at Low, 104 at Medium (with a min of 89 and max of 120), 93 at High, and 80 at Ultra. The reduction from 1080p to 1440p is approximately 24% across all presets, which is consistent with the increased pixel count. The Medium preset’s minimum of 89 FPS is still above 60 FPS, but the High preset at 93 FPS average provides a better visual experience without a significant performance penalty.

At 3840x2160, the average FPS is 99 at Low, 70 at Medium (with a min of 60 and max of 81), 62 at High, and 54 at Ultra. The drop from 1440p to 4K is more pronounced, with a 33% reduction in average FPS across presets. The Medium preset’s minimum of 60 FPS is exactly at the threshold for smooth gameplay, while the High preset at 62 FPS average is barely above it. The Ultra preset at 54 FPS is not recommended for 4K unless the user prioritizes visual quality over frame rate.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the bottleneck characteristics of this combo. At 1080p, the average FPS across all presets is 140, at 1440p it is 106, and at 4K it is 71. The reduction from 1080p to 1440p is 24%, while from 1440p to 4K it is 33%, indicating that the GPU’s workload increases disproportionately at higher resolutions. This pattern suggests that the GPU is the primary limiting factor, as CPU-bound scenarios would show less FPS variation with resolution changes.

The data shows that the RTX 4090 Mobile is capable of driving high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the GPU’s performance drops significantly, especially at higher settings. The 4K Ultra preset at 54 FPS is 72% lower than the 1080p Low preset at 194 FPS, demonstrating the GPU’s limits. The CPU, with its 20 cores and boost clock of 5.30 GHz, is unlikely to be a bottleneck in Control, as the game’s demands are primarily GPU-bound. The scaling from 1080p to 4K, with a 49% reduction in average FPS, confirms that the GPU’s rendering capabilities are the determining factor.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 2560x1440 with the High preset delivers an average of 93 FPS, which is a good balance between visual quality and frame rate. At 1920x1080, the High preset at 122 FPS is excellent for high-refresh-rate displays, while 3840x2160 requires the Medium preset to maintain an average of 70 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX perform relative to its nearest rivals?

A: The CPU’s average benchmark score is 63173, which is 0.1% below the Intel Core i7-13790F, 0.2% above the AMD Ryzen AI 7 450G, 0.5% below the AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P185, and 0.7% above the Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX. These differences are minimal, indicating similar CPU performance.

Q: Is the RTX 4090 Mobile a bottleneck at 4K?

A: Yes, at 3840x2160, the Ultra preset averages 54 FPS and the High preset averages 62 FPS, which are below or near the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset at 70 FPS is the only setting that provides a comfortable margin, showing that the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 194 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 106 FPS. This is a 45% reduction in average FPS, with the High preset at 122 FPS and Medium at 138 FPS in between.

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

A: The combo ranks 866 out of 3720 tested combos in Control, placing it in the 77th percentile. This indicates that it performs above average but is not among the top-tier configurations.

*Q: Does the CPU’s core count affect performance in Control?*

A: The CPU has 20 cores and 20 threads, but Control is primarily GPU-bound. The data shows consistent FPS scaling with GPU settings, suggesting that the CPU’s high core count and boost clock of 5.30 GHz are sufficient to avoid bottlenecking the GPU.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX, with its 20 cores and 20 threads, is a high-end mobile processor that provides significant computational headroom for Control. Its base clock of 2.60 GHz and boost clock of 5.30 GHz, combined with 30 MB of shared L3 cache, ensure that the CPU can handle the game’s physics and AI tasks without limiting the GPU. The CPU’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 40642 and single-core score of 5737 indicate strong performance, which is reflected in the game’s frame rates.

In Control, the CPU’s role is primarily to feed the GPU with data, and the measured FPS data shows that it does so effectively. At 1080p, where CPU bottlenecks are more likely, the average FPS of 140 across all presets is high, and the scaling with settings suggests that the GPU is still the main constraint. The CPU’s Passmark single-thread score of 4500 and multi-thread score of 47985 further support its capability to handle the game’s demands. The data indicates that the CPU is not a limiting factor in this combo, as the FPS is consistently GPU-bound, even at lower resolutions and settings.