Regretting it, almost....

Ok, like the title says, i'm almost regretting the purchase of FSX, definetly not worth the $120.

Any time it has to load (before flying, opening program, autogen etc.) it take at lease 5-7 mins, and thats already enought to drive me insane.. then when i actually start playing it's all jerky and jumpy and theres no way you could control a plane when it does this.

Then when i turn the graphics level down to minimal, eveything dissapears, trees, cars, TERMINALS!

I'm not very computer prone so i don't know how to find out any of the specs, but i'll read whats on the tower;

Intel Pentium 4 2.8GHz 512 KB L2 800FSB
512 RAM of DDR333
80GB Hard Disk Drive (1.5GB for recovery program)
Radeon 900 128mb 8XAGP TV out
8X4X32X8 CDRWDVD ROM Drive
56k v.90 MOdem

I really hope you peeps can help me, as i was looking forward to this game ever since i heard of it and now, i kinda wanna return it. And i barely ever return anything.

Thanks
Alex

Your system has the same spec as mine and its just not high spec enough to make FSX or similar demanding software run well eneough to make it a pleasing experience. I had to take back Company of Heroes after the first 2 levels because it didn't run well. Its an amazing game so I'll wait until I have a more powerful system until I buy it again to really take advantage of the ultra high graphics and sounds settings it offers. The same with FSX. I used to think my system was pretty good and CofH really opened my eyes. It makes me wonder what I've lost out on with previous titles I've played.

Oh, and i forgot to mention (sorry for double posting) that right now i am filled with murderous rage, thanks to FSX. So full of rage right now i would like to take my computer tower to Brisbane Airport and put it through the engine of a very big and powerful jet plane, or throw it down my driveway, either is good.

Thanks
Alex

Looking at your specs the two weakest parts are your Ram and your graphics card.

Upgrading your Ram will give you a boast because FSX does like its sytem Ram. 1GB - 2GBof system memory is recommended, but check your computer manual to see how much memory your PC can take.

Your Graphics card is becoming old now and an upgrade should benefit. Remember your limited to AGP options because PCIE would not work in your system. Although options are limited with AGP there is some good cards like the 7600GS and 7800GS.

Oh ok thanks, i guess i'll play it with low res until i get a more powerful machine, which will be soon!

If your interested in a new system then Core Duo 2 is the way to go performance wise. Nothing can really match Core Duo 2 in performance or value.

If Funds are tight then Intels cheap 805 Pentium D presents excellent value in the budget sector specially over the sempron. Intels 805 is slow at stock, but it has great overclocking ability. Overclocking this processor turns a snail into a concorde

Actually in my experiance the Core 2 Duo isn't all it's cracked up to be...

Really?

http://tomshardware.co.uk/cpu/charts.html?modelx=33&model1=430&model2=464&chart=171

Looks impressive to me

Add RAM. I just went from 512Mb on my system to 1.5GB lastnight and the difference is obvious. Loading times are a lot faster and got rid of a lot of the jerky play. Now I just have to fine tune. My graphics are not set ti minimal and I am getting by okay.

As far as DUO Core, I'm not an expert but my Laptop runs this impressively. I have the sliders bumped up good (not maxed), but scenary and planes look great to me. My only problem on the laptop is the 1722 error, so I can only run for like 30 minutes at a time before it kicks me off.

I spent $140.00 on these two copies and that's frustrating. Microsoft says they are woking on it. We'll see how long this takes. I'm sending one copy back to them in the mean time. I may or may not get the second copy back when they fix it. I just went crazy when it came out and now I feel like with the new video card in my desktop, the extra RAM, and two copies of the same software that I have spent way too much to have issues with the software that the maker can not fix.

Your computer doesn't even look like it could run FS9 at full specs much less FSX.

Alex, the more RAM the better!
Stuff as much ram as you can into your system.
And ya, try an nvidea gs card--world of difference i will bet(i dont have FSX-but I do have FS2K4 with loads of addons)

By

I'm running a Core 2 Duo in an XPS700. 2 gB DDR2, fast video. FSX doesn't run well at all. Not at all. I am a professional photographer, I work with huge files. Photoshop CS2 renders a RAW image for me in less than three seconds, compared to the 15 seconds my pentium 4 machine takes. So maybe the Core 2 Duo is a good processor. Maybe it's a good processor for every application I run except FSX. FSX drags, stutters, locks up my machine.

Honestly, I feel stuck with FSX as bestbuy will not give me a refund for it. Terrible. The matter is now in the hands of the State Attorney General, who very conveniently has an office right across the street from bestbuy.

OTOH, MS tech support was very good in helping me resolve some installation problems.

It's really a shame that FSX performs so poorly on my machine. I had high hopes. Owell, it's back to FS9. which runs perfectly with all the sliders set to maxinum.

Cheers

Try these tweaks, that absolutely transformed FSX on my system from unusable to perfectly usable - even works well on my modest Dell P4 3.0Ghz...

http://flyawaysimulation.com/news/3806/fsx-performance-tips-and-tweaks/


But to the guys expecting FSX to work with 512Mb of RAM, no chance, you're gonna need at least 1Gb, pref 2Gb.

Also there is a whole range of processors under the "Intel Core 2 Duo" banner, some are a lot more powerful than others.

I have tested FSX on the top of the range Core 2 Duo (the 6800) and it runs as smooth as you could imagine with virtually all sliders set to max, and wow does it look good. The system I tested (which I have now ordered), also had a 1Gb GeForce Graphics Card which will no doubt have contributed to the stunning performance.

another secret to running flight sims better other than more ram and better graphics cards. Bring down screen resolution reduce ai trafic density and shut down all background applications that should improve things better.
I have a dell pc with
1GB of RAM
64mb graphics card
36GB of disk space
Intel Pentium 4 CPU 2.20 GHz.

WOW! thanks for all your feedback, heaps of help.
i'm going to go get a new tower, one with Core Duo 2 and heaps of RAM,

thanks again for all your help!

if you're in Brisbane, go to Gamedude at slacks creek. Best prices around. Check www.gamedude.com.au

Everything I own I've bought from there.

I'd appreciate if you could be more specific in this regard.

I have a Philips 107E 17" CRT and have always been running it at a Screen Resolution of 800 x 600 because it is easy on my eyes and all previous incarnations of FS ran just fine with this setting.

As you're obviously aware, FSX requires a minimum display of 1024 x 720.
My CRT monitor provides me with a value of 1024 x 768, so that's what I use.
Consequently, while running FSX, everything looks fine proportion-wise. Once I exit FSX though, everything on my screen is far too small for comfort and I'm forced to revert to SR of 800 x 600.

You're suggesting to 'bring down' screen resolution... how do I do this and can I do this with my CRT monitor?

Thanks for any light you can throw on this