I am currently in the market for a new computer to enhance my FSX/NGX experience. My current specs are:AMD DUAL CORE 2.7Ghz3G RamWin7 64Nvidia 8800GT 524Mb.I get around 13-15fps with the ngx at small airports - Not able to fly in New York or anything like that, which is why I need an upgrade. However, I am not what you would call computer savvy. So I was hoping I could get some advice on a system that would allow me to get acceptable performance to be able to fly to any (default) airport. I'll be happy with around 20fps. The system I was considering is:HP Pavillion Core i7-2600 3.4Ghz8G Ram4 Processing Cores1TB Hard DriveNvidia GeForce GT 530Win 7 64Like I said, I was just hoping someone could let me know what kind of performance I can expect out of this system. I don't run any airport addons, I only use AS2012 and UTX/GEX without any addon scenery. and none of my sliders are full right, except Global Texture Resolution. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone. Happy flying!

Honestly, you'd be a lot better off building a pc yourself. It may seem daunting, but assembling a pc nowadays is child's play. (you'll also enjoy the additional knowledge gained from the experience) I and many others would be happy to help you choose the right parts. I don't know what that hp costs, but we could easily build you a system for $1500 or less that'll outperform it by a rather large margin.

Yeah, don't buy an off-the-shelf computer. Wait for 3 more months until Intel releases the Ivy Bridge processor to the market. It's the successor of the Sandy Bridge (the i7-2700) and is expected to be a lot faster for the same pricing range. Build your computer on specs you'll find in numerous topics you can find here on the forum. It's really not that difficult.

Ken Connors,Just for the record, did that include a monitor or were you planning to keep your existing one?I still consider myself a newbie, but I have built my last three computers and enjoyed every minute. The first thing I learned was not to skimp on the case. There are some very good tutorials on the internet which can give you the confidence you need. Although I am not competent to make recommendations, I can say the topic was thoroughly discussed in these forums last year so, if you don't want to wait 3 months for the new processors, you could do some searches for opinions right here.

If it comes from HP then you can probably guaranty you can,t overclock which for FSX + NGX is a must. For me anyway. Like Kenneth said, there are plenty of people only too willing to help.Regards,

Thanks for the input guys. I have considered this (building own system) in the past, but have been intimidated by it because of my lack of knowledge. Maybe it is something that I will get into, like a couple of you said, its nothing to ask for help if needed. Thanks again.

All pc builders were probably nervous the first time. You've got plenty of people here to help you make sure all the parts are well-matched & compatible.And to a previos poster: the i7-2600 can't be overclocked period, regardless of the manufacturer. It has to have the 'k' suffix, which means the multiplier is unlocked.

Thanks for the input guys. I have considered this (building own system) in the past, but have been intimidated by it because of my lack of knowledge. Maybe it is something that I will get into, like a couple of you said, its nothing to ask for help if needed. Thanks again.

Hi Ken. Don't know if you get then in your neck of the woods, but if you can , obtain a wonderful mag called Custom PC, or look online at www.bit-tech.net for walk-throughs to help you build a top-notch system.

Ya, I went with the forums suggestions also, and just ordered all my parts, and I will be putting it together myself. I am waiting on delivery now of all ky hardware.I have never built one myself before, but looking forward to learning, and like stated above, this forum is full of great people and knowledge....Take the plunge like I did, and just pull the trigger.

Mods, move this to the hardware forum.

All pc builders were probably nervous the first time. You've got plenty of people here to help you make sure all the parts are well-matched & compatible.And to a previos poster: the i7-2600 can't be overclocked period, regardless of the manufacturer. It has to have the 'k' suffix, which means the multiplier is unlocked.

Yup. Just pointing out that regardless of what cpu is in it, i do not believe a prebuilt HP pc can be OC'd.

Mods, move this to the hardware forum.

Hi Ben, you should use the report function in this case.Ken, I built a PC for the first time in August and I agree with what has been said, it isn't really that hard and it is quite the learning experience. With the SSD used as a cache combined with Intel IRST I get about 18 FPS at FSFDT's KLAX but it is more or less smooth as butter. FPS really shouldn't be used as a gauge but I included the metric to demonstrate that even though FPS is in the teens it should be used to determine a PC's capability vs FPS output.