I've been away from MS flight sim for almost 2 years. I was way into FS9 with hundreds and hundreds of dollars of add ons, so many I forget. When FSX came out, I like many others went and loaded it only to find out that our machines really couldn't handle it. After months of tweaking I sort of got it running okay but I burned out I guess and shelved it all. I bought myself a good machine for Christmas and now can run FSX pretty well. I don't want to go all out as before with FS9 but I was wondering if some one could give me a few must haves such as ground texture/land class enhancements, weather add ons, ect.. Only what you consider musts that's all, dont want to burn out again. Really interested in making FSX look good.Also, this machine has a NVIDIA 3d card in it. It will turn all games into 3d and it lists FSX as a good candidate. However it doesnt seem to work properly in FSX. It kicks in and out but the thing doesnt seem to sync up to the glasses properly. Anyone know anything about this?One last thing, I down loaded and installed several freeware aircraft into FSX but the skins dont seem to show up. The aircraft are just gray. I am running Windows 7 64bit. Not sure what is wrong. Any ideas?Thanks for any help and it's good to be back.

I've been away from MS flight sim for almost 2 years. I was way into FS9 with hundreds and hundreds of dollars of add ons, so many I forget. When FSX came out, I like many others went and loaded it only to find out that our machines really couldn't handle it. After months of tweaking I sort of got it running okay but I burned out I guess and shelved it all. I bought myself a good machine for Christmas and now can run FSX pretty well. I don't want to go all out as before with FS9 but I was wondering if some one could give me a few must haves such as ground texture/land class enhancements, weather add ons, ect.. Only what you consider musts that's all, dont want to burn out again. Really interested in making FSX look good.

It really depends on what kind of flying you do, but one way to really appreciate FSX, is to install the Orbx Pacific NW scenery and fly the RealAir Scout (or Duke if that is more your kind of plane).

It really depends on what kind of flying you do, but one way to really appreciate FSX, is to install the Orbx Pacific NW scenery and fly the RealAir Scout (or Duke if that is more your kind of plane).

I do GA flying, anything from Cubs to King Airs. No heavy iron. That's why ground terrain is important. I have never been a fan of photo real stuff.I got the 3d figured out, it was DirectX 10 issue. Had to turn it off. Must admit it is really sic now.

Here are some of the must haves as far as I am concerned. This is going to get expensive. Ground textures: GEX and ORBX/FTX. I have most of NA and all of Australia (this is the best of the best)Landclass: UTX Mesh: FSGenesisWeather: Active Sky EvolutionCloud sky and water textures: REX AI Traffic: Ultimate Traffic 2Aircraft: Anything by PMDG and Level-DNone of these listed includes the many airports and aircraft that I have. I fly payware aircraft 99% of the time. However this list is a star if you really want change transform the default FSX.EDIT: By the way welcome back!

If you enjoy GA I'd recommend these:RealAir Dukehttp://realairsimulations.com/duke09/intro.php?page=duke09_introOrbx Lancairhttp://fullterrain.com/product_lancair.htmlCarenado Bonanza F33http://www.carenado.com/ecommerce/buscador.php3?id_producto=82Flight1 C510 Mustanghttp://www.flight1.com/products.asp?product=f1mustangEaglesoft Cirrus and Citation Xhttp://www.eaglesoftdg.com/CirrusSR22G2_G3T.htmhttp://www.eaglesoftdg.com/CitationX_20.htmLotus L39 (pretend it's a bizjet hehe)http://www.lotussim.com/Ant's P2002 Tecnam Sierrahttp://www.antsairplanes.com/sierralsa.htmlPersonally too slow for me but the A2A Cub is the best slow plane out there (don't forget Accusim):http://www.a2asimulations.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=36

Realair Duke, Carenado C208 and the Flight1 Pilatus are my 3 favorite propsAgreed with the list above too, expensive, but worth it.

If you like Cub's get the A2A cub with Accusim. Awesome....

Agreed with the list above too, expensive, but worth it.

I see this stuff as a foundation. Most of this stuff I owned in FS9 and most developers offered discouts which helped offset the cost. The rest like all the FSdreamteam, Flytampa and Aerosoft airports to name a few don't hurt as much when they are purchased as they come out.

Get the VRS SuperBug if you like high performance, detailed aircraft, and your system has the grunt to run it. Not for everyone, as you'll need to read the manual to even get off the ground, but offers unparalleled realism and system simulation. Imagine stalking AI aircraft with working radar and then launching your attack with operational missiles or guns. Amazing!Cheers,Noel.