Control

Control on this platform, pairing the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER, demonstrates a clear performance curve that is heavily dictated by resolution and preset. The measured frames per second across the three primary resolutions show a system capable of high refresh rate play at 1080p and solid 4K performance, but the scaling pattern reveals where the bottleneck shifts between the CPU and GPU.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows a predictable decline in average frame rate as resolution increases, but the magnitude of that drop is telling. At 1080p with High settings, the combo produces 135 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops that to 102 FPS, a reduction of 33 frames or roughly 24%. Stepping up to 4K High yields 69 FPS, which is another 33-frame drop from 1440p and a 66-frame drop from 1080p. This linear pattern of ~33 FPS loss per resolution step is a hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, where the rendering load outpaces the processor's ability to feed frames.

The Low preset data reinforces this interpretation. At 1080p Low, the system hits 214 FPS, a figure that suggests the CPU is capable of pushing very high frame rates when the GPU is unburdened. Dropping to 1440p Low yields 162 FPS, a 52-frame decline, and 4K Low produces 110 FPS, another 52-frame drop. The consistent 52-frame gap between resolution steps at Low settings, versus the 33-frame gap at High, indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting factor more aggressively as the preset increases, while at Low settings the scaling is more evenly distributed between the two components.

Between the Medium and Ultra presets, the scaling remains consistent. At 4K, Medium averages 78 FPS with a min of 66 and a max of 90, while Ultra averages 60 FPS. The 18-FPS gap between Medium and Ultra at 4K is the largest preset delta at that resolution, showing that Ultra settings impose a significant additional load. At 1440p, the Medium average of 115 FPS (min 98, max 133) drops to 89 FPS on Ultra, a 26-FPS difference. At 1080p, Medium hits 152 FPS (min 130, max 175) while Ultra falls to 118 FPS, a 34-FPS gap. The widening delta between Medium and Ultra as resolution decreases suggests that the CPU is able to expose more of the GPU's potential at lower resolutions, but the GPU's raw compute limits the Ultra preset's headroom at 4K.

The 4K Ultra result of 60 FPS is particularly noteworthy, as it sits right at the threshold of playability for many users. The fact that 4K Medium produces 78 FPS, a 30% improvement over Ultra, indicates that the Ultra preset's additional effects are disproportionately expensive at this resolution. Conversely, the 1080p Low result of 214 FPS shows the system is far from CPU-limited at standard resolutions, leaving ample headroom for competitive play or high refresh rate displays.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. This configuration, based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, provides substantial compute resources that are well-suited for modern game engines that can utilize multiple threads. The CPU's benchmark scores reinforce its capability: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44,253 and a single-core score of 2,439 suggest strong performance in both heavily threaded and lightly threaded workloads.

In the context of Control, which is an action-adventure title that leverages physics and particle effects, the CPU's role is to maintain a consistent frame delivery, particularly at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the primary constraint. The 1080p Low result of 214 FPS indicates that the CPU can sustain very high frame rates when the GPU is not burdened by high-resolution textures and effects. However, the fact that the 1080p Ultra result drops to 118 FPS, a 96-FPS decline from Low, shows that the GPU's rendering load at Ultra settings begins to outpace the CPU's ability to prepare frames, even at the same resolution.

The CPU's memory bandwidth of 115.2 GB/s and support for DDR5 memory likely contribute to its ability to feed the GPU efficiently, but the benchmark data does not isolate memory speed as a factor. The processor's 36 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB per-core L2 cache provide ample on-die storage for game data, which is critical for maintaining consistent frame times in a game with dynamic environments. The Passmark single-thread score of 5,068 and multi-thread score of 68,574 suggest that the CPU is well above average, ranking in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, which aligns with its ability to avoid becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios.

The data shows that the CPU's influence is most pronounced at 1080p Low, where the system achieves 214 FPS, and least pronounced at 4K Ultra, where the 60 FPS result is clearly GPU-bound. The 4K Low result of 110 FPS versus the 1080p Low result of 214 FPS indicates that even at Low settings, the resolution increase from 1080p to 4K imposes a significant GPU load that reduces frame rates, suggesting the CPU is not the limiting factor at 4K regardless of preset.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER ranks 438th out of 2,888 tested combos in Control, placing it in the 85th percentile of all tested systems. This rank indicates that the combo performs well above the median, but it is not at the very top tier, which is expected given the hardware's specifications.

The CPU's average benchmark score of 93,785 places it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rivals are all server-class processors: the Intel Xeon 6520P (score 93,786, delta 0%), the AMD EPYC 4564P (score 95,183, delta -1.5%), the AMD EPYC 9175F (score 95,615, delta -1.9%), and the AMD EPYC 4565P (score 95,764, delta -2.1%). These deltas show that the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is essentially tied with the Xeon 6520P, and it trails the EPYC parts by a small margin in synthetic benchmarks. However, in a gaming context like Control, the consumer-oriented design of the Core Ultra 7, with its higher boost clock and single-thread performance, likely provides an advantage over these server CPUs, though the measured FPS data does not include direct comparisons.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 43,223 places it in the 83rd percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB (score 43,262, delta -0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile (score 43,268, delta -0.1%), the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 (score 43,301, delta -0.2%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile (score 43,667, delta -1%). The RTX 4070 SUPER is effectively tied with these rivals, with the largest delta being just -1% against the RTX 4090 Mobile. This indicates that the desktop RTX 4070 SUPER performs on par with a mobile RTX 4090 in synthetic benchmarks, but in actual gaming at 4K, the desktop card's higher power budget and cooling likely allow it to sustain higher clocks, which is reflected in the Control results.

Given the combo's rank of 438 out of 2,888, the data suggests that this system is well-balanced for Control, with neither component severely bottlenecking the other. The rank is likely driven by the GPU's mid-to-high-end positioning, as the CPU's 96th percentile ranking places it above most gaming processors, meaning the GPU is the more likely constraint in demanding scenarios like 4K Ultra.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo achieves in Control?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 214 at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

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

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo achieves an average of 60 FPS, with no minimum or maximum FPS data provided.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck at 1440p High settings?

A: The combo produces 102 FPS at 2560x1440 High. Given that the 1080p High result is 135 FPS and the 4K High result is 69 FPS, the scaling pattern indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at 1440p High, as the frame rate drops significantly with each resolution increase.

Q: What is the difference in average FPS between Medium and Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Medium preset averages 152 FPS (with a min of 130 and max of 175), while the Ultra preset averages 118 FPS, resulting in a 34-FPS difference.

Q: How does the CPU's single-thread performance compare to its multi-thread performance in the context of Control?

A: The CPU has a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,439 and a multi-core score of 44,253. In Control, the 1080p Low result of 214 FPS suggests strong single-thread performance, as the game's frame delivery at low settings is often dependent on the CPU's ability to process game logic quickly.

Q: What is the combo's rank relative to all other tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 438th out of 2,888 tested combos, placing it in the 85th percentile.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with an AD104 chip, featuring 7,168 shading units, 224 texture mapping units, and 80 raster operation units. It operates at a base clock of 1980 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz, with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus providing a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The GPU's FP32 performance of 35.48 TFLOPS and a pixel rate of 198.0 GPixel/s are indicative of its capability to handle modern game rendering workloads.

In Control, the GPU's role is clearly dominant at higher resolutions and presets. The 4K Ultra result of 60 FPS is a direct reflection of the GPU's compute limits, as the CPU is unlikely to be a bottleneck at that resolution given its high benchmark scores. The 4K High result of 69 FPS and 4K Medium result of 78 FPS show that the GPU's performance scales predictably with preset quality, with a 9-FPS improvement from High to Medium and an 18-FPS improvement from Medium to Low (110 FPS). This linear scaling suggests that the GPU's memory bandwidth and shading unit count are the primary determinants of performance at 4K.

At 1440p, the GPU continues to be the main constraint, with High settings producing 102 FPS and Low settings producing 162 FPS. The 60-FPS gap between these presets is substantial, indicating that the GPU's workload at 1440p High is significantly heavier than at Low. The 1080p results, however, show a different pattern: High yields 135 FPS, Medium yields 152 FPS, and Low yields 214 FPS. The 62-FPS gap between Low and High at 1080p is larger than the 33-FPS gap between 1440p and 4K at High, which suggests that at 1080p, the GPU is still the primary bottleneck, but the CPU's headroom allows the GPU to run at its full potential.

The GPU's 12 GB of VRAM is sufficient for Control at all tested settings, as the data does not indicate any memory-related performance drops. The 504.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth provides ample throughput for the game's textures and effects, even at 4K Ultra. The GPU's 83rd percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 43,223, places it in the upper tier of graphics cards, and its performance in Control aligns with this positioning, delivering playable frame rates at 4K and excellent performance at 1440p and 1080p.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal balance between visual quality and performance depends on the target resolution and refresh rate. At 1080p, the High preset (135 FPS) offers a significant improvement over Ultra (118 FPS) in terms of frame rate, with only a modest visual downgrade, making it a strong choice for high refresh rate displays. The Medium preset (152 FPS) provides an even higher frame rate, but the visual difference from High is noticeable in a game like Control, which relies on atmospheric effects.

At 1440p, the High preset (102 FPS) is the recommended choice for a smooth experience on a 144Hz monitor, as it maintains a frame rate above 100 FPS while preserving most visual details. The Ultra preset (89 FPS) is still playable but may not fully utilize a high refresh rate display. The Medium preset (115 FPS) offers a better frame rate than High, but the reduction in effects quality is more apparent at this resolution. For users prioritizing frame rate over visuals, Low (162 FPS) provides a competitive edge.

At 4K, the High preset (69 FPS) is the best compromise, delivering a playable frame rate above 60 FPS while maintaining high-quality visuals. The Ultra preset (60 FPS) is exactly at the 60 FPS mark, which is acceptable for console-like play, but the Medium preset (78 FPS) offers a more comfortable margin above 60 FPS, making it a better choice for overall smoothness. The Low preset (110 FPS) is the best option for users with 120Hz 4K displays, as it provides a high frame rate, but the visual quality is significantly reduced. Given the data, the Medium preset at 4K (78 FPS) is recommended for the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, while 1440p High (102 FPS) is the sweet spot for most users seeking a high-quality experience without sacrificing frame rate.