Windows 8 and FSX - Worth the download!

[miggs 3]

Anyone on here finding the same as me? Windows 8 is something a bit special? I have run FSX over the years using a few iterations of Win 7, everything from Home Basic to Ultimate, all on x 64 based system, varying results with FSX on these different line ups - Ultimate x64 worked the best when it was running nicely, but if something was not quite right, it was the ginger haired stepchild from hell!

 

I actually stopped running FSX recently on Win 7 due to it getting upset with some of my add ons (anyone care to comment on this as it would be helpful before I go full hog installing everything again on FSX under Win 8 - My problems started after installing UTX Europe, GEX Europe 2.0, Dreamscapes UK Mesh, then adding on the UK2000 scenery for the UK volumes 1,2 and 3 along with a load of UK2000 individual airfields (I did disable them in the VFR scenery as advised - but still loads of hangs and crashes) I also have Aerosoft VFR Germany installed - I think this is probably too much for FSX, if anyone can suggest what I should install it would be appreciated. My current idea is to install the Dreamscapes UK Mesh, then UTX Europe, then GEX Europe, then individual UK2000 Airfields rather than the entire VFR package, then I want to add on the Horizon VFR UK photo scenery......will this work or is it another recipe for disaster?)

 

Anyway, back to Win 8, I upgraded to Pro for the 39.99 USD and unplugged all drives apart from my SSD (Intel 240GB 520) fresh install of Win 8 and it runs really nice.

 

Reconnected my other drives one at a time so as to get the drive letters I wanted rather than what Windows fancied. Fresh install of FSX on my SATA 1TB - SATA 6.0 GB/s D drive, Acceleration, and Dreamscapes UK Mesh. UTX Europe and GEX Europe, nothing else in the way of scenery just yet.

 

All config settings in FSX are full to the right apart from lens bloom, aircraft casts shadows on itself, water is at medium 2x, traffic is at 25% and autogen is at one notch to the left of fully right, frame rates unlimited.....da dee da dee da...there does not seem to be a need to use an external frame limiter as it is running nicely and smoothly at about 56FPS (Nvidia GTX 460 OC - 1GB

 

Then installed PMDG 737NGX, the only aircraft add on I love, but will be adding the PMDG 747 soon.

 

Everything is running like a dream! FSX is loading in about 15 seconds rather than 90, frame rates are smoother than they have ever been - unlimited settings with no external limiter - Bijotes tweaks are loaded for the config file. My processor is the 3770K at 4.3GHz. with 32GB Ram running at 1648MHz. on the ASUS P8Z77V-De luxe. (This Asus board is nice as long as you keep well away from ASUS suite software - I honestly believe that that was where I was getting a lot of problems on FSX with win7 - I had a few issues with this software (ASUS)

 

Now I have only loaded relevant drivers rather than the entire suite and things are running a treat.

 

For 39.99 USD, Win 8 is an offer that really is too good to be missed, you can download it and burn it as an ISO to a DVD and install at leisure once you are happy with updates etc. I also bought a second copy for my son, and we did the "ÜPGRADE" install rather than a clean install, and his machine is also running better than it ever did with Win 7 x64! There were no issues at all installing FSX or acceleration or any of the above software - I have heard a few reports regarding FSPUIC, I haven't had a need to run that yet so cannot tell at the moment.

 

Any feedback or suggestions as how to go with my proposed add ons would be greatly appreciated.

[deetee 164]

I regretably upgraded my W7 install (apps + settings) to W8 and have suffered some problems with FSX, most notably my joystick disappearing from within the sim (and permission errors which I fixed by running as Admin).

 

I will soon be carrying out a full reinstall (new SSDs) and may try again with a "fresh" upgrade (no apps or settings), but right now W8 is not in my good books.

(And don't get me started on that new Start Menu which is a dog's breakfast. :wacko: )

[Tom_G_2010 6]

Miggs, HOw much of the improvement do you think is purely the result of a fresh OS install and how much is the result of that OS install being Win 8? THe last time I did a ground up reload of my FSX pc the improvement was shocking, even staying with the same (Win7 64bit) OS.

 

I am hoping in a few months to buy a new pc for my sim so the Win 8 issue is a real attention getter right now.

[miggs 3]

Most of it I would say is Win 8 - I have had to reinstall Win 7 x 64 at least 15 times in the past two weeks due to crap from ASUS Suite, so my recent experience is like for like. Win 7 with ASUS Suite - Forget FSX - I am talking load times in some cases of in excess of 5 minutes - which I must admit is down to ASUS and not FSX (mainly conflicts with NICs.) However, even after a fresh install of just the basic OS then a basic install of FSX you will se a huge difference (huge - I mean at least 30%)

 

If I was you (no I don't work for Microsoft) and to be truthfull, have never personally paid for an operating system in my life (They have all been paid for by the company I work for) Win 8 is the very first one I have actually shelled out cash for - and it is worth every cent!

 

At 39.99 you cannot go wrong, simply burn it to an ISO on a DVD and install it as and when you want.

 

There are a few things that at first appear to be a major PITA - i.e. the missing start menu, but after you play around with this for a few days, you will never go back!

 

I found that it behaves basically like two separate systems, you have the START/Apps Page, which works in a world of its own, totally alien to Win 7 - but after a while it is quite nice - you don't need touch or gestures, but they may make it easier - you can do everything using the mouse and keyboard. Once you pass the start menu and apps tiles, it is very similar to Win 7 only better at most things, again, the only downside I can fault it with is a lack of the start menu - you sometimes get confused as to how to find a program if you don't have a shortcut on your desktop etc. However there are a few apps out there that create a retro start menu for you if you want to download them.

 

The reason I liked it was that I bought a new SSD and wanted to minimize the junk I had on that drive - I basically only wanted to run the OS from C and as much else from any other spinner drive.

 

Win 7 let me get a basic install that added up to about 15GB after moving page files and disabling system restore etc. Win 8 gets you down to about 8GB - and it is about 20-30% faster on boot and shutdown compared to win 7 (win 8 shutdown for me takes less than 5 seconds!!!) Have a read on the internet - if you are not too long in the tooth you will pick it up in no time - being an old fart who grew up with DOS 1.0 then windows 3.1 - 98, etc...it is a bit of a learning curve....the only "Gestures" I know tend to be offensive!

 

Seriously, it is a bargain! Good luck.

 

I regretably upgraded my W7 install (apps + settings) to W8 and have suffered some problems with FSX, most notably my joystick disappearing from within the sim (and permission errors which I fixed by running as Admin).

 

I will soon be carrying out a full reinstall (new SSDs) and may try again with a "fresh" upgrade (no apps or settings), but right now W8 is not in my good books.

(And don't get me started on that new Start Menu which is a dog's breakfast. :wacko: )

 

I personally would never do an upgrade install as all you are doing is taking your old ###### with you - (Actually - I am lying - I have tried in the past with Win 7 and Win 8 - and in the end - the only way it works to me is a fresh install - I have managed to get Win 7 "working" after upgrading, but I always had this horrible doubt in the back of my mind that the upgrade was crap and was not working as well as a fresh install - and in most cases it is a compromise -) a fresh install is the only way to go! The Admin rights thing is no worse (in fact I think it is at least more consistent that Win7) You can drop the UAC which makes it easier, but in Win 8 I found that in most cases the Admin Rights are not as big as an issue as in Win 7, which seemed to chop and change depending upon wind direction. Sometimes you needed it sometimes you didn't and a lot of this seemed to vary on the weather depending what day it was when you installed it! I used the same disk for my Win 7 installs from day one, sometimes I had Admin rights sometimes I didn't! In some of the past 15 installs of win 7 I was unable to even overwrite a Notepad file without first opening Notepad using the damn command prompt as an administrator -and every install I have ever done has been exactly the same!

 

Joysticks and controllers have been no problem at all for me in a fresh install (logitech force 3d pro - Sony DV - Firewire ports etc all loaded up without any additional drivers) The only issue I had was trying to do an upgrade install and Win 8 would not recognize some Intel Win 8 drivers for some reason - if you go with the fresh install - not an issue.

 

As I said in a reply earlier - the Start Menu is a bit of a concern, but once you get used to using the top left corner of the screen and the context menus on the right hand side, then the bottom left screen -it is really quite nice. Again, there are apps you can download free that will give you the old Win 7 interface. I however have decided to struggle on and try to use the new interface as I want to add as little clutter as possible to the original OS.

 

If you spend a bit of time setting it up, you can run about 75% of everything you use (Not FSX Etc.) but e mail, browsing, notes apps etc. all from the ugly start screen without even having to get into the win7 style os and desktop - you can get rid of that crap tower lock screen and customize this until your heart is content. I am an avid "fiddler" I cannot leave an operating system alone, this thing is MAJOR fiddling in the making - I am a little apprehensive at the moment though as it is so new to me - but once you dare step into the world of Group Policies etc............hold me back!

[miggs 3]

Another benefit to Win 8 is if you have a child in the age range of 8-14, it is amazing what they will find out just leaving them to it! Most of the problems I had finding how to open this , how to close that, where this was and where that was was solved in 10 seconds by my 12 year old son, who is an avid PS3 gamer and understands these new Smart Phones and Touch Pads! - SMART PHONES - THICK DADS!

[xplanery 250]

I'm using Windows 7 64 bit with Asus Suite and haven't had really any major problems with it, at least not yet.

[Mike T 208]

If you have a 3770 with 32 GB of RAM and had trouble running FSX then the problem was with your Windows 7 and FSX configuration and nothing to do with Windows 7 vs Windows 8 or FSX. As a matter of fact if you weren't happy with FSX performance with that rig then you had some serious issues with your setup. All tests have shown that there is no appreciable gain in gaming performance on Windows 8 vs Windows 7 for ANY games to date.

 

I have a 2600k OC at 5.1Ghz and only 8GB of ram and my rig screams. No blue screens, no blurries, no stutters, no low frame rates and that's with 100% AI and every major addon available for FSX in addition to all sliders right (except water and ground / water traffic), in addition to REX 4096 clouds. Running Windows 7. Out of curiousity I upgraded to Windows 8 on my FSX rig and eventually reformatted and reloaded everything because on a conventional PC you have to go through more clicks to do the same actions as on Windows 7.

 

With that said I brought a Windows 8 touchscreen ultrabook and I LOVE it. With the multitouch mouse and 10 finger touchscreen, Windows 8 is absolutely beautiful and makes sense. On my gaming rig Windows 8 makes no sense at all unless I install the application to replace the start button and get rid of the start screen...which turns Windows 8 right back into Windows 7. Which means I spent $39.99 just to boot my PC 10 seconds faster.

 

So in the end. There is no performance gain by upgrading to Windows 8 except for the "somehow it just feels smoother" perception. Of course, as a previous poster pointed out, if your setup was a mess to begin with then a fresh start can't hurt.

[miggs 3]

I'm using Windows 7 64 bit with Asus Suite and haven't had really any major problems with it, at least not yet.

 

Ahh.... that would depend on the Motherboard to a large degree - Do you have the ASUS P8Z77V- Deluxe? with its two Lan Controllers that constantly fight with each other for ultimate supremacy? then into the pot throw in throw in wireless controller and the Bluetooth controller with your two aerials - then the Microsoft Virtual WiFi driver...believe me, this excess makes a great deal of difference - Once installed (all of them running at the same time) then please tell me you actually managed to get an internet connection and within ASUS Suite 2.001 you were able to get Network Icontrol to actually "DISCOVER" let alone work, with your motherboard - Then, when it doesn't work, pleas can you let me know if you manage to get a) a date from Cherie Xie from ASUS Customer Support or B) An answer from Cherie Xie from Asus customer support that fixes your problem without Cherie Xie from Asus customer support asking you to re install Windows 7 for the 20th time?

 

If you have a 3770 with 32 GB of RAM and had trouble running FSX then the problem was with your Windows 7 and FSX configuration and nothing to do with Windows 7 vs Windows 8 or FSX. As a matter of fact if you weren't happy with FSX performance with that rig then you had some serious issues with your setup. All tests have shown that there is no appreciable gain in gaming performance on Windows 8 vs Windows 7 for ANY games to date.

 

I have a 2600k OC at 5.1Ghz and only 8GB of ram and my rig screams. No blue screens, no blurries, no stutters, no low frame rates and that's with 100% AI and every major addon available for FSX in addition to all sliders right (except water and ground / water traffic), in addition to REX 4096 clouds. Running Windows 7. Out of curiousity I upgraded to Windows 8 on my FSX rig and eventually reformatted and reloaded everything because on a conventional PC you have to go through more clicks to do the same actions as on Windows 7.

 

With that said I brought a Windows 8 touchscreen ultrabook and I LOVE it. With the multitouch mouse and 10 finger touchscreen, Windows 8 is absolutely beautiful and makes sense. On my gaming rig Windows 8 makes no sense at all unless I install the application to replace the start button and get rid of the start screen...which turns Windows 8 right back into Windows 7. Which means I spent $39.99 just to boot my PC 10 seconds faster.

 

So in the end. There is no performance gain by upgrading to Windows 8 except for the "somehow it just feels smoother" perception. Of course, as a previous poster pointed out, if your setup was a mess to begin with then a fresh start can't hurt.

 

If you look at the post, it was issues with ASUS Software, nothing to do with RAM or anything else. However, even on a basic setup of Win 7 x 64 compared to Win 8 X64 Pro, there is one hell of a difference. (It is a 3770K too - please remember that in future posts - 3770's are for poor people that don't have the spare cash to buy a K) (It also uses an Intel liquid overpriced cooler too - that only rich people can afford - it has nice blue LED's that also make FSX run twice the speed of anyone elses, and if you think I am lying, I can simply upgrade to another set of LED's and double my processor speed - besides, once I get my overclock up and running, we don't need any central heating in the entire street as my computer provides enough warmth for the entire community!

I perceived that my win 7 booted up and loaded FSX in 90 seconds on a good day, then for some reason I perceived it did the same in 15 seconds in Win 8 - maybe it is my perception?

 

And just one more thing - I have been running FSX under loads of operating systems, and as far as I am aware in most forums that discuss FSX - we would never class it in the same breath as "GAMING" I suggest you wash your mouth out with some carbolic soap!

 

I had to downgrade my CPU from 12GHz - I was using Urine as a cooler, but found that FSX just couldn't keep up with the speed. Besides, My dad is going to come round to your house and floor you dad in half an hour.......(Well he would if he wasn't dead) But seriously, give win 8 a try, I am sure you will see a difference!

[Taver 57]

I have had the same experience with windows 8 as miggs. My system is not typical with the eyefinity+1 setup but windows 8 solved all my multi-monitor issues. The conclusion I have come to is if you use multi-monitors then Windows 8 is for you, if you are on a single monitor Windows 7 is better in my opinion.

[Noel 4,486]

 

So in the end. There is no performance gain by upgrading to Windows 8 except for the "somehow it just feels smoother" perception.

 

I have to think this is what's happening. FSX has always been exceedingly difficult to pinpoint exactly what gives it durable improvements, and this seems like the first guess about why the OP is experiencing this in this way. Having to reinstall the OS 15x in 2 weeks is in itself makes one wonder if the apple the orange was compared to was outright rotten! All these conjectures (on my part) aside, it's always good to hear impressions of new technology!

[1st fltsimguy 466]

I would need some good bench marking to make it worthwhile for an upgrade.

And, not sure I like the look of Win8 but eventually I guess I will be forced into it with my next computer.

 

32 Gigs RAM, OC 5.1...I'm doing just fine with i7 920, 16 gigs RAM, GTX260 1.7 gig video card. You guys must be screaming fast.

[ErnieAlston 33]

I regretably upgraded my W7 install (apps + settings) to W8 and have suffered some problems with FSX, most notably my joystick disappearing from within the sim (and permission errors which I fixed by running as Admin).

 

 

I've had this dissappearing joystick issue in Win8 / FSX as well, only thing that seems to get it back for me is a restart of FSX.

 

Regards.

Ernie.

[deetee 164]

 

 

I've had this dissappearing joystick issue in Win8 / FSX as well, only thing that seems to get it back for me is a restart of FSX.

 

Regards.

Ernie.

Indeed a restart will do it but is not always convenient! ;-)

[JMR 2]

I haven't noticed a change an increase or decrease in performance coming from Win 7 but I will caution others out there that you may run into compatibility issues with some of your addons. Specifically, the Level D 767 and the Eaglesoft Cirrus SR22 won't run with Windows 8. On the Level D forums the canned response is 'Windows 8 is not supported' and judging from the feedback who knows when or if it will get a patch to run on Windows 8. Such a shame as it's one of my all time favorite addons but Win8 has grown on me and I've changed my mind about going back to Win7. With regards to the Eaglesoft Cirrus, that's the only Eaglesoft product I own so I can't speak for their other planes when it comes to Win 8 compatibility.

[1st fltsimguy 466]

I haven't noticed a change an increase or decrease in performance coming from Win 7 but I will caution others out there that you may run into compatibility issues with some of your addons. Specifically, the Level D 767 and the Eaglesoft Cirrus SR22 won't run with Windows 8. On the Level D forums the canned response is 'Windows 8 is not supported' and judging from the feedback who knows when or if it will get a patch to run on Windows 8. Such a shame as it's one of my all time favorite addons but Win8 has grown on me and I've changed my mind about going back to Win7. With regards to the Eaglesoft Cirrus, that's the only Eaglesoft product I own so I can't speak for their other planes when it comes to Win 8 compatibility.

 

I don't have those planes but this really concerns me. Who knows what other stuff might not work.

 

I have to ask then, is P3D compatible with Win8 and those addons that can be migrated over?