COMPLETE FSX INSTALL AND TUNING GUIDE

[Gumps 0]

Thanks for the response, Nick. I too would have waited until Win7 Final, but as I indicated, I'm compelled by the OOM issue.And yes, the Vista 64 DVD I bought was already at SP1, and I downloaded a large number of subsequent MS updates...so it's as patched as much as possible at this point.In this case, it seems to be FSX SP2, when combined with Vista, that's the bad actor. Apart from coming up with something clever on my own, I can't see MS addressing the issue as it's certainly a 'corner case' - not that many people are affected.As I said before, it would sure be good to hear from someone trying a similar configuration. If someone has managed success with Vista and multiple cards, I'd know whether to keep pursuing this or not. From my reading, I've not come across any successful reports.Noel W

[Guest]

Nick, I remember reading a post of yours about things you'd better turn off in the BIOS of a EX58 motherboard (like hyperthreading). But I can't find that post anywhere, not here and not on Simforums... Did you post something like that or am I mistaken? I also do remember it was only a short list of things to disable but there was no explanation why... I like explanations... :( I'll be getting my new computer tomorrow I7 920 CPU) and I have the idea current BIOS's are getting more and more complicated...

[Guest Nick_N]

Nick, I remember reading a post of yours about things you'd better turn off in the BIOS of a EX58 motherboard (like hyperthreading). But I can't find that post anywhere, not here and not on Simforums... Did you post something like that or am I mistaken? I also do remember it was only a short list of things to disable but there was no explanation why... I like explanations... :( I'll be getting my new computer tomorrow I7 920 CPU) and I have the idea current BIOS's are getting more and more complicated...

http://www.simviation.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/Ya...?num=1229409560http://www.simviation.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/Ya...?num=1232325236

[Chalkman 0]

Thanks for the guide - it has really improved my FSX experience. A question though. I have applied the nhancer settings you have listed in your guide as well as using the FSX.cfg as you recommended, but for some reason i'm getting the cloud disappear/reappear issue when panning around. I am using 2096 REX clouds. Is it possible a nhancer setting that my BFG 8800 gts doesn't like? My rig is listed below.Abit ip 35 proIntel q6600 2.4300gb seagate 7200BFG 8800GTS4 gb ram ddr-800FSX W/accelXP sp2 64bitUsing nvidia's 180.70 beta driver

[Guest Nick_N]

Thanks for the guide - it has really improved my FSX experience. A question though. I have applied the nhancer settings you have listed in your guide as well as using the FSX.cfg as you recommended, but for some reason i'm getting the cloud disappear/reappear issue when panning around. I am using 2096 REX clouds. Is it possible a nhancer setting that my BFG 8800 gts doesn't like? My rig is listed below.Abit ip 35 proIntel q6600 2.4300gb seagate 7200BFG 8800GTS4 gb ram ddr-800FSX W/accelXP sp2 64bitUsing nvidia's 180.70 beta driver

It may be something you simply never noticed beforeFSX has a bug in clouds where they pop in and out of the scene. It was discussed well over a year ago and I use the following fix myself to get rid of the annoyance which was provided by another member here at this forum==================================Anyway if you are experiencing flashing clouds and they have been driving you as nuts as they have me (equivalent to two pieces of styrofoam being rubbed together ) then read on, I found a fix:The ultimate culprit lies in the material handling of the cloud shader.Go to this folder:FSX\ShadersHLSL\miscThere you will find a file called SwarmCloud.fx. Make a backup copy of this file somewhere. (as always no crying if you don't do this step) Open the original SwarmCloud.fx in notepad or wordpad and then look down about 20 lines down from the top. You will see this entry:bool NewMaterialUsage = true;Change its value from true to false. Make sure to keep the semi-colon.Save and close the file.Now, go to C:\documents & settings\<your username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\FSX\(If you can't get to this folder make sure that "show hidden & system files/folders" is turned on in your windows folder options.)(This is the XP path by the way, Vista users will have to hunt for their equivlalent in the users folder.)You will see a folder there called: Shaders.Either move that folder out of there or delete it. Don't worry, FSX will build a new one the next time you run it. It contains a cache of the compiled shaders. This folder must be removed to ensure that the change you made to the cloud shader file above will be compiled and used on FSX's next run.=========================================You do not have to move or delete the entire SHADERS folder.. just open it and browse to the MISC folder.. inside just delete the file: SwarmCloud.fx_0x0000000000000000_0x0for any other file with the name SwarmCloud.fx in itFSX will create a new one when launched and the popping clouds are gone

[Guest SteveHookEm]

Nick, you might consider also that any installation of FSX on Vista 64 should be made outside of the standard "\Program Files (x86)" folder. When FSX is placed there the OS moves some files into something like 'protective custody' that causes a performance hit. As you suggested moving FSX to another drive all its own that would be more then adequate, but in the case someone is forced to use the same drive as the OS they would be best off to install FSX to another folder.

What if you use one fast drive (velociraptor) and XP 64? Is the standard installation location OK?