Hi,I am trying to help a friend pick out a new PC. Flight Simulator X is the only game he wants to be able to play. He is budget conscious, but would like to get good performance on FSX, and hopefully be able get ok performance when the next version of Flight Simulator comes out. The following specs are from the Dell XPS 420 PC that I have in mind:Intel Quad Core 2 Q6600 Quad-Core (8MB L2 cache, 2.4GHz, 1066FSB)3 GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4 DIMMS512MB Nvidia GeForce 8800 GT22 inch SP2208WFP Wide Flat Panel with Webcam and Mic (1680 x 1050 native resolution )Vista Home Premium...I was wondering if anyone could tell me if any of these specs cause any problems or bottlenecks for him. Also, if any of these specs are overkill and I might be able to save him some money without much loss of performance, please let me know.Thanks in advance,Paul

Does he want Vista?? or to run FSX in DX10 preview?? FSX DX10 preview is just that a PREVIEW it works but not like it should. That being said you can get a little better performance out of Win XP. I happen to use Vista and DX9 and am quite happy with my performance.There is no way to purchase a computer today and expect it to run the next iteration of Flight Simulator with good performance. Flight Simulator has always pushed the hardware envelope. A trend that I would expect to continue with future releases.As for the system described, it should run FSX quite well. I would question the 3GB of RAM though. My guess is you are probably going to use a 32 bit OS however I would go for 4GB just incase you friend ever wants to try a 64 bit OS (future proof his machine a bit).

Thanks for your response. I am not sure I completely understand my choices of DX9 and DX10 Preview, and which of these options are available for Vista and XP. If you could answer the following questions to help me clarify, I would really appreciate it... Does FSX come with two "modes", DX9 and DX10 Preview?On Vista, do you have a choice whether you want to run FSX using DX9 or DX10 Preview?On XP, do you have a choice whether you want to run FSX using DX9 or DX10 Preview?Doesn't Vista support DX10 in its entirety? If it does, is the reason for DX10 preview in FSX just because FSX isn't fully DX10 compliant?Your help is greatly appreciated,Paul

FSX supports DX9 and DX10 Preview. (If run on XP there will be no option for DX10 Preview)Vista supports DX9 and DX10. XP supports DX9 period and will never support DX10.It's called DX10 Preview within FSX because its not 100% finished and polished and there will be NO more service packs or updates for FSX from MS. There are issues with DX10 Preview and FSX plain and simple. Now as for other games (DX10 compliant) running under DX10, if you do alittle googling and read some benchmarking reviews of DX10 vs. DX9 you'll find that the graphical quality is hard to distinguish and DX9 is the winner in the performance area hands down.As I said I happen to use Vista and DX9 and am quite happy. But, if I try to utilize DX10 Preview with the exact same settings as DX9.....FSX performs and looks horrible (DX10 Preview was touted as being a performance boost...hardly although light bloom has less of an impact on a system in DX10 preview).

>Hi,>>I am trying to help a friend pick out a new PC. Flight>Simulator X is the only game he wants to be able to play. He>is budget conscious, but would like to get good performance on>FSX, and hopefully be able get ok performance when the next>version of Flight Simulator comes out. The following specs>are from the Dell XPS 420 PC that I have in mind:>>Intel Quad Core 2 Q6600 Quad-Core (8MB L2 cache, 2.4GHz,>1066FSB)>>3 GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4 DIMMS>>512MB Nvidia GeForce 8800 GT>>22 inch SP2208WFP Wide Flat Panel with Webcam and Mic (1680 x>1050 native resolution )>>Vista Home Premium>>...I was wondering if anyone could tell me if any of these>specs cause any problems or bottlenecks for him. Also, if any>of these specs are overkill and I might be able to save him>some money without much loss of performance, please let me>know.>>Thanks in advance,>PaulHi!Is it possible to have 3GB working in dual channel?ThanksJoselito Sousa - SBGR - FS9 ALWAYSSao Paulo - Brazilhttp://www.smart.dj/imagens/forum_avsim.jpgVista BusinessASUS P5W DH DELUXE CORE 2 DUO E6600 @ 2.40GHzRadeon X1950 PRO - Cat 7.9 Corsair XMS2 Xtreme - 2 GB (CL5 - 1.9 V)PSU ANTEC 500WDUAL DVI Samsung 19" 940BF

I believe from reading my motherboard manual, that you have to install memory modules in matched pairs for dual channel to work. Therefore, you have to install 4 GB of memory to get 3 GB dual channel recognized under 32 bit Vista. Somebody please correct if not so. I just ordered a matched pair of 1 GB modules to increase recognized memory from 2 GB to 3 GB since I keep running out of memory when running FSX.

As the others imply, you need to make sure the new computer has 4gb of memory in matched pairs.That is either 2 sticks at 2 gigs each, or 4 sticks at 1 gig each. Take your pick.But do *not* install a 3-stick mem configuration. There are many drawbacks to doing so even under normal operation, and if you're spending the money, why hamstring yourself? Do it right.He could also get 2 gb if he is really budget-concious. But DDR2 ram is so cheap these days, I'd just get 4 gigs in matched pairs and be done with it.RhettAMD 3700+ (@2585 mhz), eVGA 7800GT 256 (Guru3D 93.71), ASUS A8N-E, PC Power 510 SLI, 2gb Corsair XMS 3-3-3-8 (1T), WD 150 gig 10000rpm Raptor, WD 250gig 7200rpm SATA2, Seagate 120gb 5400 rpm external HD, CoolerMaster Praetorian

I presume the memory modules discussion is based on the configuration of the Dell XPS 420 as originally posted on this thread including 3GB RAM. It stated that there were 4 modules, so could the dual channel be preserved by a matched pair of 1GB modules and a matched pair of 512MB modules? I'm thinking that this is what that computer has.

>I presume the memory modules discussion is based on the>configuration of the Dell XPS 420 as originally posted on this>thread including 3GB RAM. It stated that there were 4 modules,>so could the dual channel be preserved by a matched pair of>1GB modules and a matched pair of 512MB modules? I'm thinking>that this is what that computer has.You are probably right. If it were me I would not want that mem config (pair of 1's and 2 512's) either. Since he's getting a new one, he has a decision to make...RhettAMD 3700+ (@2585 mhz), eVGA 7800GT 256 (Guru3D 93.71), ASUS A8N-E, PC Power 510 SLI, 2gb Corsair XMS 3-3-3-8 (1T), WD 150 gig 10000rpm Raptor, WD 250gig 7200rpm SATA2, Seagate 120gb 5400 rpm external HD, CoolerMaster Praetorian