I just upgraded from an 8800 GTS to an 8800 Ultra and I am concerned about the performance of that card. I have all the sliders at mid-point, DX10 enabled and my FPS are 14-18 at LAX which is about 2-4 FPS better than my old card. Not something to write home about. My system is a Dual core AMD 4200 with 3 gb Ram. I have a lot of add-on planes, do you think this could have something to do with that slow performance? Maybe it is time to just delete everything and start over again.

I'm afraid going from a GTS to an Ultra is going to do little for your FPS in FSX.FSX is very CPU speed dependent.The 2-4 FPS increase you are seeing is about right I would say.It will however, allow you to run at a higher resolution & AA/AF with no performance loss.Glenn

The gain you described is exactly what I would expect to happen.Your CPU is the bottleneck there....Honestly, IMHO, the video card upgrade was a waste of money, should have been spent on a new CPUThe 8800GTS is a fine card, coulda went with a AMD 6000 or 6400 or switched to C2D....You could always try a fresh reboot, and check your video drivers....

Thanks guys, I did the upgrade because the GTS card went bad and Comp USA gave me a full credit, so the difference was only $180 which is not bad.I talked to them about a new CPU today and they told me that IBM came out with a new set of CPUs today and that I should look into those. I first want to see what experience other people have with those. Do you know if there is any AMD processor upgrade which I can do in the mean time, which would make a performance difference and which would not require me to upgrade my motherboard and Ram?

Yeah like they said FSX is CPU bound, so giving it more graphics power won't do a whole lot when the bottleneck is the CPU.For the price of that card you could have stepped up to a 3.5GHz Core 2 Duo, new motherboard, and 2GB of super fast RAM, which would have given you a close to a 50% performance gain over your current system. I easily saw a 50% gain when I moved up from my 2.8GHz Athlon system. The good news is you can run high resolution with supersample AA and not see a performance hit. EDIT: I guess we were both typing at the same time. I wouldn't bother getting a new Athlon for that board, as the Athlons do not have much overclocking headroom, plus the intel chips are about 20-30% faster clock per clock. I'd save for one of the new 45nm C2D in january. You can get a 3.0Ghz one for less than $200, and it will overclock to nearly 4Ghz. With the 6MB cache they we even faster than the current line up clock per clock. This is the new line up:Dual Core---E8500 - 3.16Ghz - 9.5 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 6MB cache - $266 - Jan 08---E8400 - 3.00Ghz - 9.0 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 6MB cache - $183 - Jan 08---E8300 - 2.83Ghz - 8.5 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 6MB cache - $### - Jan 08---E8200 - 2.66Ghz - 8.0 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 6MB cache - $163 - Jan 08Quad CoreQX9650 - 3.00Ghz -unlockedmulti - 333 Base system clock - 12MB cache - $999 - Nov 11---Q9550 - 2.83Ghz - 8.5 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 12MB cache - $530 - Jan 08---Q9450 - 2.66Ghz - 8.0 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 12MB cache - $316 - Jan 08---Q9330 - 2.50Ghz - 7.5 multiplier - 333 Base system clock --- 6MB cache - $266 - Jan 08

Thank you so much for all your info, I will wait till January. One thing I can tell you, with this new card games such as Call of Duty 4 and Crysis are flying. With the new C2D you mentioned, this would mean also a new motherboad and RAM, so we are probably talking $700-800 for the dual E8500?

"Quad CoreQX9650 - 3.00Ghz -unlocked multi - 333 Base system clock - 12MB cache - $999 - Nov 11---Q9550 - 2.83Ghz - 8.5 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 12MB cache - $530 - Jan 08---Q9450 - 2.66Ghz - 8.0 multiplier - 333 Base system clock - 12MB cache - $316 - Jan 08---Q9330 - 2.50Ghz - 7.5 multiplier - 333 Base system clock --- 6MB cache - $266 - Jan 08" These are going to be tough to O/C. We need to be aware that the $266 Q6600 replacement (the Q9330) has as 7.5 multiplier. That means it's gonna take a 530+ mhz FSB to get to that 4.0ghz CPU clock. Even with the new X48s mobos, that just too much for a 24/7 setup. 450mhz is about the maximum 24/7 setting we want to consider as as set-and-forget FSB for the new(er) X-series Mobos. A 400mhz FSB is about "it" on the vanilla P35s for we ordinary folks.A 400mhz O/C with a Q6600 (x9 multi) gets a 3.6ghz clock. So, the Q9330 at a 450 FSM x 7.5 multi = 3.3Ghz CPU speed. That's with a $300 X-series mobo. That directly compares to a Q6600 at 3.6ghz. The Penryn will provide no performance increase over the Q6600 at a 3.3 clock. The Q 9330 at a 400 FSB x 7.5 multi = 3.0ghz CPU speed. That's with the P35 mobos. This setup will provide Less performance than a Q6600 at 3.6Ghz. We can certainly crank up the FSB 'till something explodes, but that's a little too much excitement, even for me!The penyrn gets us about a 10% clock for clock performance boost. That means at the $266 price point, the Q6600 is a better value. You get 3.6 ghz, but you get to use a cheaper mobo. (Remember too, the 775 socket only has 1 year to live. The next chip will be the Nethalem and has a whole new architecture. This upgrade is "it" till a whole new system will be required.) Intel has finally found a way to charge us for the speed we've been getting for free. They are now charging for higher multipliers. If we want those big clocks now, we will have to pay up, big time. But if we are willing to pay for a high (or unlocked) multiplier, 4.5ghz is do-able . . . on air. That'll be $1000, please. Value wise (meaning, "at the < $1000 price point"), the Penryn is a non-event.

That is great information, thank you! Is there a way to safely overclock my AMD Athlon dual core 4200? I have never done that, is it pretty easy? Also, could I just buy a new processor which would give some performance increase without having to get a new motherboard and RAM?

AMDs don't O/C for beans. It's not really worth the trouble. That 4200 sounds like a 939 socket. If so, it looks like the 4200 is the end of the road. If it's an AM2 socket, then $200 will buy you a pretty decent CPU here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819103191That'd hold you through FSX.If you're in the US and near a Frys, they're selling a Q6600 with a mobo for $200 tomorrow. That's a steal. $50 for 2 gigs of ram and $250 for that 8800GT and your rollin'. Reuse your other stuff. $500 for a top-dog rig that'll last 3 years? Not too shabby.

I am 30 minutes away from Frys in Ventura, CA. I think I am going for that with 4gig of ram, great recommendation - thank you!

Try to get the Q6600's "GO" stepping. It's the latest spin and will get you to 3.6ghz on a good mobo. Its I.D.# is "SLACR."http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=534470FYI, that ECS mobo will NoT allow much of an O.C. Run it for a while. But if you feel the need for speed, the Asus P5K-e or the Abit IP35 will get a SLACR to 3.6ghz. You'll need aftermarket cooling. The Thermalright Ultra 120 is just the ticket. Also make sure you have DDR2-800 ram. You'll be going to a 400mhz FSB which means Any DDR2-800 ram will do. Get the cheapest.Good luck and be careful out there. Frys is gonna be in stampede mode.

Thanks Sam, I will get the one you recommended. I am going to get up at 4am, hopefully not too many people will be out there at 5am. Is there a good instruction manual out there for overclocking for beginners? Again, thanks for all your help.

With my Asus P5K-e, all I did was adjust the FSB to 400 mhz and the CPU voltage to 1.4volts. Everything else stayed in "Auto." All boards will be a bit different, but FSB and Vcore are the basic adjustments. Google (and get) Coretemp, SpeedFan and CPUZ There's a single temp sensor between the cores ("CPU" or Tc) and then a temp sensor actually inside each individual core ("Core" or Tj). Speedfan watches the one between the cores. It's the top reading called "CPU." With a GO, don't go above 71C. With the B3 (the one you might end up with) don't go above 65C. Coretemp watches the temps inside the cores. The "cores" will run about 10-15 C above the "CPU." The G0 can go to 100C. So there's no real worry about the "Core" temps if you keep "CPU" temp under control. Gotta have the cooling though. The CPU has a VID (Voltage ID). The CPU uses this to tell the mobo what voltage to set for its default voltage. CPUZ will show you this number (~ 1.25v). You will need to turn this voltage up (slowly!) to get any clock above about 3.0 ghz. Higher voltage will increase heat. This is where the cooling comes in. The stock cooler will not keep the temp below limits much above 1.3 volts. You will need around 1.4 to get the full 3.6ghz. Do NoT go above 1.5v. If you want the rest of the clock, ya gotta get the cooler I recommended. or the Thermalright Ultima 90. It's as good and cheaper. Get some "Artic Silver 5" thermal paste while you're there. Google "Artic Silver" and apply correctly If you do not get the GO (SLACR), it will be a "B3" (SLACU?). This one has a lower thermal (CPU) limit and will not O/C as far as the GO. Expect 3.2Ghz from the B3 even with good cooling.Use the quad version of Prime 95 (Orthos) to stress test your O/C attempts, here: ftp://mersenne.org/gimps/p95v255.zipNot much more to it.

Thanks so much for the info Sam. Just got back from Fry's and got the Quad (GO) as well as 4gb of DDR2 800 Ram. The ram was $59 for 2gb minus a $40 mail-in rebate. So I got the 4gb for $40 plus $198 for the processor and MB. What a deal. Again, thanks for your great ideas.

That is an outstanding deal - well done!Gary