Dream Computer for FSX

So far so good.
Be sure it has (with all that) at least a 750w power supply, a name brand.
Are you building it yourself or buying it.
Vista or XP.

Be sure that it's properly cooled also.

would something like this

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-062-OK

not run better than 2 GTX's in FSX as FSX does not have Dedicated Sli support yet

... heck, FSX barely supports ONE video card.

Please do not buy the expensive SLI setup thinking it will give you "ultimate super duper' Fps... it will not. FSX is CPU based, and not GPU based. This has been proven by several experiments, including my own.

If you really want to get great FSX performance, here is the system I would build

-Q6600 Quad Core (Extreme edition if you can afford it)
-4gigs (2x2gig sticks) of DDR2 800mhz minimum, 1066 if you can afford it
-680i or P965 Chipset motherboard
-7950GX2 (if you dont plan on going DX10) or 8800GTX (for DX10)
-Fastest HDs possible

Make sure your system is clean! Defragment often, virus scan often, etc... a dirty system runs slower, much slower.

Also, if you go with Vista 32bit, it only recognizes 4gb of total system memory, INCLUDNG the physical memory, so with TWO GTXs, you will lose over 1.5gigs of your physical memory right off the bat, leaving you with a system only showing 2.5ghz available and a waste of 2 gigs. Using only 1 video card allows more system memory to be allocated into the utilization.

Hi,

I have just got a new PC,

I have AMD dual core 6000+ (3.Ghz)
4GB RAM
160GB HDD
NVIDIA 512MB 8600GT

I can run FSX on all settings on Max

Hope this helps

John

If you want the ultimate FSX computer, i would recommend this

Asus P5K3 Deluxe WiFi Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-237-AS

Intel Core 2 Quad Extreme Edition QX6850 3.00GHz
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-154-IN

2 x Corsair 2GB DDR3 DHX 1333C9DHX TwinX (2x1GB) (Total 4GB)
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-134-CS&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=923

Windows Vista Ultimate 32 bit

2 x 150GB WD Raptor® X Clear Cover SATA 16MB CACHE (10000rpm)

768MB XFX 8800 Ultra XXX, PCI-E(x16) Mem 2300MHz, GPU 675MHz,
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=587940

Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ XtremeMusic 7.1

1000W Quiet Five Rail PSU

WIDE 22 INCH TFT Silver/Black 1680 x1050 5MS D-Sub, DVI

My cousin has this computer and ive seen some of the games he plays on it and they look life like as they are so clear

Anyway that should defently get you some extreme frame rates on FSX

What would you consider extreme rates?

I honestly think for the $4000 this sytem would costs to build, you will still see issues with FSX... right now, the problem with FSX isnt computer hardware, as much as it is programming errors.

It will be a year before we see anyone run FSX at full tilt, full traffic, add-ons galore, and no slow down... look how long it took FS9 to get that way, and that was released in late 2003.

jono1978 wrote:

Hi,

I have just got a new PC,

I have AMD dual core 6000+ (3.Ghz)
4GB RAM
160GB HDD
NVIDIA 512MB 8600GT

I can run FSX on all settings on Max

Hope this helps

John

You do not get good rates with all settings on max. Turn traffic to max, turn on light bloom, set all sliders to the right, and watch your PC explode! Well, not literally, but what Im getting at here is based on your screenshot you posted, you are NOT maxed. In fact, I dont even see a single building leading me to believe your autogen is in fact set very low...

Why am I ripping into you like this? Because people who come in here and give false information lead people to make improper purchases... Tell the truth, and if the truth isnt quite so exciting, then dont say anything at all.

Below are the specs of a PC I built in January this year after lot of research. It was built with Vista Ultimate and FSX in mind and the requirement of "a high performance, ultra quiet PC" .
But remember, FSX performance at any time is much related to the FSX settings and status of your PC at that time (programs running, HDD space/fragmentation etc)

Earl Best

"The Silent All Mighty" - Asus-P5N32-ESLI-QX6700 Extreme-ZalmanCNPS9500-Corsair XMS2 2GB-BFG Geforce 8800GTX-WD Raptor 2x150 GB RAID0 -Seasonic M12-ANTEC P180B

In order to help this guy out, let him know how the QX6700 is doing when it comes to FSX...

I guess I would still be surprised if the Extreme Edition Quad Core can produce super results since FSX is causing its own issues, not so much hardware. It will be about a year until we see anything come out that can truely give FSX a run for its money.

I looked at a dell xps 720 H2c.

Core 2 extreme Quad core 3.7ghz
4gb 800mhz ram
2 TB hard drive
Dual 8800 Ultra's
750 watt power supply
Extreme D Sound card
24/27/30 inch monitor

All for only about $7,000

Or if you don't like dell look at vigorgaming pc's

I encourage any one who is enclined to learn to build their own PC... Reason being, is that 737Flier mentioned (for only 7,000) If someone who knew how to build and configure a PC properly had 7,000 to spend on one, they could build two PCs that are comprable...

I can build the above mentioned PC for $4179, and that INCLUDES a Blu-Ray Disc Burner.

why the hell would you need 2 terabytes of storage?

Speaking as someone who does a lot of video editing of not only CGI material, but live and HD footage, I can tell you that the average filesize of a 15min HD recording is about 5gigs.

One thing I do as a hobby is amature film making. I have created and shot a full length feature film and with roughly 2.5hrs of footage, have seen about 300gigs used.

Anyone who is serious about that would need much more room... I now have 4 HDDs, as well as a small array of external drives to take with me to other small studios for some work.

Trust me, 2 tb's wouldnt last long, in the improper setting...

NOW, would someone who is plucking round the keyboard, and playing games need 2TBs? no way.

JLangevin wrote:

I encourage any one who is enclined to learn to build their own PC... Reason being, is that 737Flier mentioned (for only 7,000) If someone who knew how to build and configure a PC properly had 7,000 to spend on one, they could build two PCs that are comprable...

I can build the above mentioned PC for $4179, and that INCLUDES a Blu-Ray Disc Burner.

I have a few doubts on that.

The monitor, memory, hard drive, video card, and processor is $4,000

I didnt realize that there was a monitor included, but ok, lets say you really wanted to build this PC yourself, and save some money. Here is how I would do it, and get the same performance...

I would first not include the monitor in the price, since we are building a PC, not a monitor. I would also drop the 2tb drive down to something more practical... its also been proven that super large HDs are slower that smaller drives... there would be a lot of information to sift through for the drive... I would also ditch the Ultras since every forum regarding video cards will tell you that the Ultra is nothing more than a volt-modded GTX, and if you know how to build a PC, you will know how to do oa volt-mod.

All prices are based on current newegg.com prices:

Processor...........QX6700 - $870
Mobo..................EVGA NF68 - NVidia 680i - $199
Cooling...............Tuniq Tower - $59.99
Memory..............Patriot 2x2gig DDR2-800 - $239.99
Video Card......... 2 x Nvidia 8800GTX - 2x$546.99
Sound Card........SoundBlaster X-Fi Fatality Champion - $179.99
Case..................Black Stacker 830 w/1000w PSU - $429.99
Blu-Ray..............Lite-On Blu-Ray - $479.99
HDD...................Hitachi 1TB - $329.99 (largest drive on site)

So, for a grand total of
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----$3891.92 before tax.

Dont tell me that you cant build a system that is just as fast and SMOKIN as that PC would be for much much much cheaper. Also, the Tuniq Tower can handle a healthy overclock, and the memory I chose is rated at a VERY VERY high overclocking spec. Now, if you want to get even more picky, lets add in there a 24" LCD Monitor @ $519.99 (Samsung) making the total $4411.

You cant tell me that having 2 Ultras instead of two GTX's and another TB of space is worth $2600. This is also using a MUCH better case, and bigger power supply. a 750w would be pushing it with two GTX or Ultras.

See ya in three years...you realize of course your building my next computer. 😀

LOL, well, its not just a hobby of mine, but also a passion. Im never satisfied, and building PCs for other people is one way that I can get my "fix" without hitting the wallet too hard...

When the time comes, and you trust my work, Ill build it for you, no problem.

JLangevin wrote:

LOL, well, its not just a hobby of mine, but also a passion. Im never satisfied, and building PCs for other people is one way that I can get my "fix" without hitting the wallet too hard...

When the time comes, and you trust my work, Ill build it for you, no problem.

Thanks, I'll remember that.

Thanks for the great advice.

I have looked at several sites that will build the system but their choices are limited as you go through their online check-list.

This means I will probably build the system myself.

The monitors are not an issue, I have a 42 inch Akai (1920x1080) and two 22 inch Samsung Widescreen monitors.

This leaves me with the computer itself. I had not considered a blue-ray player and that is probably something I could add later.

My big question after reading the comments here is RAM and operating system. I will need two video cards to run the three monitors, but apparently I need to be careful and not add too much video ram? Will a VISTA install overcome the ram limit of 4gb?

Thanks for the great advice!

chrisjoi

Windows Vista 32bit will recognize 4 gigs total, however, you will see less on your "My Computer" since it includes the video ram in that 4gigs... so you will see more like 3.5gigs....

Windows Vista 64bit will recognize 160gigs of memory. Much much more than any home PC will use.