Best VR graphics settings for MSFS 2020 with an RTX 2070 Super

Hello fellow flight simmer,

The term "best" can be somewhat subjective as it heavily depends on your specific setup, and expectations for virtual reality (VR) performance in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 (MSFS 2020). However, I'll provide some general guidance that you may find useful.

• First, you need to ensure that you have the latest drivers for your RTX 2070 Super graphics card. These can be obtained from NVIDIA's official website. Remember, up-to-date drivers can sometimes make a significant difference in performance.
• Secondly, make sure that you are running the latest version of MSFS 2020. Game updates often bring performance optimizations.
• Lastly, close unnecessary applications running in the background to free up system resources.

In terms of in-game settings, it's a bit of a balancing act. Here are some general recommendations:

• Render Scaling (the resolution at which the simulator renders scenes before they are output to your display): For most users, setting this to around 70-80% should provide a good balance between visual fidelity and performance.
• Anti-Aliasing (a technique used to smooth jagged edges in digital images): TAA (Temporal Anti-Aliasing) generally provides the best visuals, although it is quite resource-intensive. If performance is a concern, you might want to try using DLAA (Deep Learning Anti-Aliasing) or FXAA (Fast Approximate Anti-Aliasing).
• Terrain Level of Detail (the quality of the terrain textures): This can typically be set to around 100 without much performance impact.
• Texture Resolution: High should be fine for a RTX 2070 Super. Ultra might be possible, but it could impact performance.
• Texture Synthesis: Medium or High would be suitable choices.

In terms of VR-specific settings:

• VR Traffic: Set to Static (performance) or Real-Time (realism).
• VR Graphics Quality: Depends on your specific VR headset's resolution and refresh rate, but for most users, Medium should be a good starting point.

Remember, these are just general suggestions. Your ideal settings will depend on your specific hardware configuration and your personal preference for the balance between visual fidelity and performance. I recommend starting with these settings and then tweaking each one individually to see what works best for you.

One other thing to bear in mind is that VR performance in MSFS 2020 can also be significantly affected by the settings in your VR software. For example, in the Oculus software, there are settings for resolution, refresh rate, and supersampling that can all have an impact on performance.

I hope this gives you a good starting point for optimizing your VR settings in MSFS 2020 with your RTX 2070 Super. Happy flying!

VR settings in MSFS can definitely be confusing at first — and a lot of those “super crisp” YouTube VR videos are also helped by capture/sharpening, ideal lighting, and sometimes just being recorded from the mirror window (which can look a bit better than what the headset is actually rendering). Still, you can absolutely get very good clarity with your 3700X + 2080 Super if everything’s set up sensibly.

1) Do the PC-tab graphics settings affect VR quality, or only the VR tab?
In MSFS, the PC and VR graphics settings are separate profiles.

• When you are in VR mode, MSFS uses the settings under the VR tab.
• When you are in 2D (normal monitor) mode, it uses the settings under the PC tab.

So, in general: changing the PC tab won’t change what you see in the headset while you’re actually flying in VR.

That said, a couple practical notes:

• It’s still worth keeping your PC settings “reasonable” so the sim isn’t doing something extreme when you’re in menus / switching modes (mainly just for smoothness and avoiding stutters during transitions).
• If you’re tuning performance, always do it in a consistent test scenario and make the changes in the VR tab while you are actively in VR.

Quick VR clarity checklist (the stuff that usually moves the needle):

• Render Scale (VR tab): This is the first place to look for sharpness vs performance. Too low = blurry gauges. Too high = stutters.
• Anti-aliasing mode: TAA is commonly used in VR because it reduces shimmering, but it can look soft if render scale is low.
• Terrain/Object LOD: These can hammer the CPU (and the 3700X can become the limiter in heavy areas). If you get stutters in cities/large airports, LOD is often the culprit.
• Cloud quality: Big GPU hitter in MSFS; often needs to be Medium/High rather than Ultra for smooth VR.

2) “Virtual Desktop” — which one is “the right one” and where do you get it?
This one trips a lot of people up because “virtual desktop” is also a generic term.

The one most VR folks mean is an app actually named Virtual Desktop, used to stream PC VR to a headset (commonly associated with Quest headsets), and it has its own interface/settings that look different from other “remote desktop” style apps.

However, which “right” one you need depends entirely on your headset and how you’re connecting:

• If you’re on a Meta/Oculus Quest headset (Quest 2/3/Pro): people typically mean the dedicated “Virtual Desktop” VR streaming app (and they’re using it instead of the default Link/Air Link method).
• If you’re on something like a Reverb G2 (WMR) or a native SteamVR headset (Index, etc.): “Virtual Desktop” usually isn’t required at all for MSFS VR — you’d typically just run through the normal OpenXR/SteamVR/WMR path.

So before recommending a “get this one” answer, it really hinges on what headset you have and whether you’re trying to do wired VR, wireless VR, SteamVR, OpenXR, etc.

A couple quick questions so we can point you in the right direction (and suggest settings that actually match your setup):

• Which VR headset are you using (exact model)?
• Are you connecting wired or wireless?
• What’s your target refresh rate (72/80/90Hz etc), and what FPS/smoothness are you aiming for (locked/reprojected vs “as high as possible”)?
• Any major add-ons running (traffic injectors, heavy airports, photogrammetry cities), and what kind of areas do you usually fly (airliners into big hubs vs GA in rural)?

Answer those and I’ll give you a solid baseline VR preset for the 3700X + 2080 Super, plus the “first three things to tweak” depending on whether you’re GPU-limited or CPU-limited.