Maybe this is a silly question, but I'm wondering, if you have a really good system (let's say you can get 50 or greater FPS without problems), what effect does setting the FPS limit to 25FPS for example do? Does the CPU just say "ok I don't have to go faster so I'll do something else?" ..Does it run cooler? What actually happens?I'm only wondering this because I set mine at 25FPS thinking I would "reserve" some CPU processing power for other things but then I wondered, what is it going to do just sit there?Hope this isn't a stupid question..Jeff

Jeff - The CPU does lots of things with FS2004 besides just computing polygons for the videocard card to display. See the discussion here about the "blurries" http://www.steve-lacey.com/ for an explaination from one of the MS team.Doug

Wow great link! Thanks Doug! Now I see. I'll drop mine down to 20 FPS I have no issues at that speed.Jeff

>Wow great link! Thanks Doug! >Now I see. I'll drop mine down to 20 FPS I have no issues at>that speed.>>JeffI spoke at length with a couple of the Microsoft Gurus at the Avsim convention in San Diego. They both said to lock the frame rate around your lowest average. In otherwords, if you are flying around and you see your frame rate drop to 22 quite often, lock it at 22. I have done this to my system and it works great. No stutters at all.

I run mine at 20 all the time now Jeff. I can usually maintain a significantly higher rate almost anywhere except the really toughest situations, but I've found that my tired old eyes see 20 as being just as smooth as any other setting. There was a time when I always ran unlimited as the textures do load a bit faster but as I kept adding complex scenery and complex aircraft I started to see the dreaded micro-stutters. Now that I finally set the FPS lock back to 20 that problem is gone.DougP4 3.2E @ 3.680 (1.385 vCore - 230 FSB)Asus P4C800-E Deluxe (BIOS 1019)2 x 512MB Corsair TWINX CXM3700 (3-4-4-8)5 x 300GB WD HDD'sHercules 9800 Pro (128MB @ 410/360)Enermax 431W PSU

Like most, I usually throttle mine down from what it could do max...I think it makes it smoother overall. IE: If you jump from 70 to20 quite a bit, that can almost seem like a stutter, even though both speeds are prettyfluid looking. Also, I think it can help reservesome CPU power for other things like AI, etc..Myself, with the old fx-5200 card I've been using, I locked it at 30 fps. It's actual performance can hit the 60-70's range at high alt, but in denser scenery, it's never that fast, soI locked it at 30 to help even things out a bit. Often , it ran less than 30... But anywhereout in the boonies, ran the full 30. Now...That card "seems" to be flaking out on me."read earlier post about full screen problem"I still haven't been able to fix it, and finally gave up and decided the card itselfmust be flaking out when I go full screen.So anyway, I just bought a 9800pro AIW earlieroff of fleabay, and should get it in a few days.Hopefully, it will cure the problem, and alsogive me a fps boost over the fx-5200. TV tuner too..Now...It's possible I may slightly up my maxframe rate with that card, but probably not toomuch. Like one said, I'll see what it wants to average at, and set it a bit higher than that.May leave it at 30, and just run a near constant 30 most of the time...Or I hope... MK