That sounds bit confusing for me. HD5870 works fine with DX10 on XP? But XP has no DX10 support. I heard about an upgrade, which gives XP DX10 capabilities, but is that 100% DX10 compatible for XP?I red about problem with HD5870 in DX10 mode with no Vsync. Do I really need VSync for FSX?

No DX10 preview is not an option within FSX on XP. I thought you knew that already, which is why I recommended staying with Nvidia if your intention was on only using DX10The HD5870 on XP works great but DX9 only. Hope this clears things up.Yes vsync is important. It causes screen tearing and frame rates to jump all over the place. Not nice. Plenty has been written about it not working with vista/win 7 in FSX so to understand it better, may I suggest you do some more studying by seaching here and on the web before making your descision.

I see, alright. So I have to stay at Win7 64-bit. Only HD 5870 is having problems with NoVsync at Win7 or GTX-285 also?Do you know a link on the net where I can see how tearing looks like?

I see, alright. So I have to stay at Win7 64-bit. Only HD 5870 is having problems with NoVsync at Win7 or GTX-285 also?Do you know a link on the net where I can see how tearing looks like?

This is what no vsync does to your display. Only worse since the effect is dynamic when you look around, such that the positions of the slices dance up and down wildly as you change your view and the number of slices is usually more than seen here. IMO vsync is essential for any sim/game and the naysayers are clueless. After all, isn't the reason for a high end gcard to obtain the best possible visual experience? And this 60/30/15 fps vsync effect nonsence is clearly that in my experience.ATI has lost a potential sale here for their refusal to fix the FSX vsync problem in vista/win7. Plus I'm glad I stuck with nvidia for I dreaded the thought of again dealing with bloatware ATI drivers; just purchased a new gtx 275 for a price that was too low to resist (even though I know that the 5850 is a better card). FSX, IL-2, Rise of Flight and Over Flanders Fields makes up about 95% of my gaming computer useage. At this time I don't care to sacrifice FSX for some yet to released game that I doubt I'll ever get, though two years from now things may be different....

That's right. Me, I'm also using 95% FSX, X-Plane 9, LockOn, RiseOfFlight, and such simulators. Although I also have played all Crysis and Half-Life

That's right. Me, I'm also using 95% FSX, X-Plane 9, LockOn, RiseOfFlight, and such simulators. Although I also have played all Crysis and Half-Life

Do u suggest me a special brand or version for the GTX-285 ? Maybe a factory overclocked one or with a good cooling device? Which GTX-285 should I choose, there a lots of available.

Do u suggest me a special brand or version for the GTX-285 ? Maybe a factory overclocked one or with a good cooling device? Which GTX-285 should I choose, there a lots of available.

I have no loyalty to any video card manufacturer. I shop by performance v price then read plenty of reviews. If the card has bad reviews then I move onto the next one on the list. Been doing that for years but tend to end up with BFG and have always been happy with my purchases. Maybe someone else can offer some other opinions.

Do u suggest me a special brand or version for the GTX-285 ? Maybe a factory overclocked one or with a good cooling device? Which GTX-285 should I choose, there a lots of available.

IF you are going to get the GTX285, then I can only suggest the EVGA I got. I still didn't clock it, as my watercooler is not yet here, but right now, on air, I have no idea what people mean that it's loud. I can barely hear mine, especially when gaming. I wouldn't get the factory overclocked, simple reason: price vs. performance is terrible. You can OC yourself if you have a good cooler - even stock one.Btw. EVGA: 10 year guarantee if you register after buying + they support overclocking, even on stock cards, as long as it's within limits - meaning not running the card @ 120c and upping the voltages to insane heights to achieve 10mhz more. I talked to EVGA Germany, and they told me it's very simple.FS9/X - beautiful. Speed, performance, absolute bliss. FSX still crappy a bit, since still C2D.For other games, I play Venetica, Batman Arkham Asylum, Crysis Warhead and NFS-Shift, I don't need anything more for a long time. In 3-4 years, Fermi or similar, yep.

I have used cards from the big 3 AIB partners for NV, EVGA, XFX, and BFG, and they've all been fantastic. Had to RMA the XFX card (GTX 285 in sig) and the card I received back from RMA, while the same model, had much better overclocking potential, so I'm happy overall. You really won't go wrong with any of those brands. Recently, other manufacturers such as MSI and Gigabyte have started offering cards with extremely high factory overclocks. I've heard good things about these cards but they can be hard to find and a good deal more expensive than other brands.

Do u suggest me a special brand or version for the GTX-285 ? Maybe a factory overclocked one or with a good cooling device? Which GTX-285 should I choose, there a lots of available.

BFG is life time Warranty, BestBuy was selling the O/C version for $280 back in the fall when I picked mine up, you can still find plenty at $320 and up.

AA works just like it always has in DirectX 10 preview, "in-game" only, meaning you cannot force it on FSX with the video card

yeah as Word Not Allowed said go for the EVGA gtx285. They have great support forums and easy to use o/c application. There also quick with updates with *newer* products (like when the 196.21 driver caused o/c issues recently)

Hi to @ll,actually I am using a GTX-295 which I really want to replace by a single-gpu card. Although I aimed the Vapor-X HD 5870 I have red some issues about this card having problems with FSX. Mainly I want to use my system for flightsims like FSX and X-Plane.I am not sure, which one is better? What do you think? My specs:Asus Rampage II Extreme X58, i7 920 @3.9 GHz, 12GB RAM OCZ Platinum @1.646MHz 7-7-7-20 (1T), Noctua NH-U12P SE1366, Gainward GTX-295, SSD Intel X-25 M OS C:\, 2x 1000GB WD Caviar Green D:\ and E:\, be quiet Dark Power Pro P7 650W AT, Creative X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion, LG Blu-Ray-ROM LG DVD+/-RW, Aerocool FP-01 Flip-Panel, Lian Li ARMORSUIT P60 black, 2x 24" Dell 2408WFP @1920x1200, Windows7 64bit Ultimate.Any help appreciating. Thanks in advance.

I have a different opinion than most of the people here. I had a Nivida GTX 280. It looked awesome with nhancer but the frames always sucked with the payware aircraft I use and other payware in FSX. I have an i7 system clocked to 3.6ghz turbo mode on. For me i liked the eye candy but couldnt stand the lower frames. I recently upgraded to a sapphire HD 5870 and I am so happy I cant even express it. I have consistently high frames. Flying into Lax with mostly maxed out sliders 500 ft up flying onto 25R over heavy scenery it was smooth as silk even in the VC on a pmdg plane. This card just blazes. Smooth flight in FSX for me is a reality.I always fly in DX10 mode because REX clouds and water in DX10 mode are just awesome. Now there is a slight and I do mean a slight loss in IQ compared to the nvidia cards but I would gladly sacrifice this for the massive increase in frames resulting in a smoother flight. Vsync doesn't appear to be a problem on my system or I dont notice it. There is also a vsync work around option in ATI tray tools if vsync is a problem. ATI tray tools is similar to nhancer. I do not use it though so I dont know all the ins and outs.I can highly recommend this card for FSX DX10 mode i can guarantee you wont be let down.Guthrie

Dear Guthrie,thank you very much for your opinion. I still have some questions to you according FSX + HD5870:- Does Anti-Aliasing work correctly when you are in DX10 mode? Did you check FSX-internal AA-mode and Anisotropic Filter. Or did you force AA and AF through ATI Tools ?- What does IQ stand for? I.... Quality? :) How did you realize that you have a slight loss in IQ compared to your former GTX-285?- Do you have texture flickering on runways at many airports?- Is it possible for you to do some screenshots, where you can show that DX10 looks much better than DX9 mode?Thank you very much and many greetings,Pegasus.

My main concern with FSX is smooth flight...IQ stands for image quality. I can tell a very slight difference with IQ but its barely and I mean barely noticable. I do not force aa and af in dx10 mode i just use the game as far as the zbuffer issue in dx10 mode i havnt seen it yet but I am not 100% sure its totally gone. Ill check it later. the jumping airport lines dont typically bother me as I spend 90% of my time in the air flying heavies. I personally like DX10 mode because the water and clouds look awesome! and its worth it for me. I can also run bloom on in dx10 mode. DX9 looks good as well and i didnt notice any loss in frames between the two. the only thing that makes the game stutter that i have found is turning on supersampling i dont use it. ill get some screens up later.there has also been critcisim of the ati 5870 shimmer i dont notice it with the current drivers.Guthrie