Should I Switch?

[Flaps30 3]

Hi,

I am currently an FSX user and have been for years, but have been still thinking about making the change over to X-Plane 10.  I tried once before with X-Plane 9 but it simply was no where close to the features I had in FSX.  Now that XP-10 is out, I thought I might give it another chance, especially after seeing some cool videos on Youtube. 

 

I have a good collection of addon scenery from Orbx for FSX but it takes so long to get new areas released (especially in my home area).  One of my favorite addon aircraft companies is A2A Simulations which features realistic maintenance and care of ownership with their Accusim features.  I read a post in a forum that said A2A won't develop any planes for X-Plane because they feel the X-Plane flight models are not accurate enough for A2A to work the design of their own aircraft with the existing X-Plane flight models. That seemed like quite a jolt to X-Planes flight model accuracy.  Do any addon planes feature the accuracy of A2A?

 

Another thing that frustrates me with FSX is that even with accurate landclass and accurately realistic roads they overlay non-existing fake streets and roads already painted on the FSX textures.  This is very unrealistic. However, I read briefly that X-Plane doesn't even use accurate landclass at all and its scenery detail is just based on rough placement of features such as roads and streets except for main roads and highways.

Lastly, does version 10 even have AI aircraft of different seasons?

 

Can anyone shed some imput on these points I've read about as to their truth and whether or not it's worth switching over or should I wait for version 11?  Any advice will be greatly appreciated. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Regards,  Tom

[hangar 658]

There's no reason to switch...and you wouldn't want to anyway because each sim has its good and bad points. Learn about how to make X-plane look good for YOU and how to use it well...and then use BOTH sims depending upon which mood you are in.

 

Neither sim is good enough on it's own...the grass is not greener, just different.

[Jimmy RFR 406]

There's nothing wrong with having more than one simulator in use.

 

It's not about switching, it's about enjoying what each platform may have to offer.  I currently have FSX, DCS, and XP10 all installed, and pop back and forth between them.  They each have their individual strengths that makes it hard to 'write off' any of them.

 

As of late, I've been using XP10 as my primary platform.

 

The things I've been enjoying:

 

- Flying in-depth helicopters.  The Dreamfoil B407 and R22 are works of art, and handle magnificently.

- Flying through mountain scenery. Spruced up by HD Mesh v3 (freeware), the crispness and resolution of the scenery is incredible.  There's no visibly blurred textures on distant slopes, such as in FSX.

- Cloud shadows. I only ran P3Dv2 for a little while shortly after release, so as a FSX user, I'm now finding out how amazing cloud shadows are.

- Very, very smooth sensation of flight.  Regardless of the debate about which flight model is better, the smoothness inherent in XP10 is amazing. And I have a very well behaved and good performing installation of FSX.

- Freeware airports. The community that has grown around XP has standardized itself around a handful of object libraries; this has allowed a flourishing freeware scenery community.  Some of the releases are on par with FTX.

- OSM based scenery.  When it's good, it's very good.

 

The things I don't enjoy (to some degree):

 

- Clouds come with far more of a performance hit in XP10 than in FSX.  I can easily handle fully socked in, soupy thick weather in FSX with barely a slowdown.  Not so much in XP10.

- I pretty much only ever fly VFR in my sims, and for that purpose in FSX, I always found the default ATC to be acceptable. Not so much in XP10.

- Lack of choice when it comes to weather engines.

- OSM based scenery, when flying somewhere without any.  When it's not there, it's simply not there. To be fair though, it's something that anyone can help rectify, and I'm surprised at how much OSM data is indeed there, even in my part of the world.

[787flyer 633]

Hi Tom,

 

For accuracy on aircraft, I just read an interesting article in PC Pilot re Flight Factor's 757 Professional, officially endorsed by Boeing.

It seems this could be heading in the same direction as PMDG in terms of accuracy, feel, level of detail  etc.

 

You can check it out here....

http://store.x-plane.org/Boeing-757-Professional_p_273.html

 

I don't have XP10 but this one did catch my eye.

 

Regards,

[Chris Crawford 49]

I use both. When I want to fly VFR, props, or short flights, I use X-Plane. They both have their ups and downs. X-Plane has a steeper learning curve, though. It takes some time to get used to it when coming from FSX.

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[CoolP 283]

Have to agree with the others when it comes to (happily) using two sims. You will have a lot of money and still current models running in FSX so you can try X-Plane and decide whether to 'grow' it or not. For your short after-work flight, FSX will still be around. Ready to go.

 

A lot of the things really enhancing XP come as free and donationware so trying won't cost you a lot. Once you are feeling confident enough, head for some payware items and add to the small but growing market. After all, this is what lets companies join the game. :smile:

[Flying Penguin 44]

Definitely run both.  If nothing else, you're probably going from a mature FSX setup, but will be starting from scratch with a much less mature XP-10 installation, and until you get set comfortable with XP, you'll want to be able to escape back to "just go fly".

 

I'd mostly agree with Jimmy's list, except as a P3D user cloud shadows are not such a novelty and I'd add to the dislikes "an interface only a mother could love".

 

Structurally, it's great (reservations about the flight model aside), and there's a lot of stuff I would really like to see replicated in P3D (e.g. World2XP, which is jaw dropping when combined with G2XPL), but whether you, personally, should switch comes down to content.  Can you find the content, at sufficient level of quality, to do the flying you want to do?  If you can, great, if not, well you always have that mature FSX setup waiting for you.

 

I've not been on XP10 that long, but I'm quite liking it (unlike XP9 which I uninstalled in disgust!), the things that stop me using it more right now is coverage of the airfields I want to fly in good quality (good ol' UK2000 keep me happy on the UK fields front in P3D), the relative scarcity of truly top-notch A2A/PMDG level aircraft (though this is improving) and the lack of decent weather/ATC engines.  I'm sure most of my reservations will be dealt with in time and my XP10 to P3D flight time ratio will improve, but for now I'm happy to flit between the two.

 

So yeah, that's a long way of saying "buy it, just expect to use both for the foreseeable future"... 

[HansRoaming 73]

Having recently built up an X-plane ecosystem installation alongside FSX I would concur with others that having FSX, DCS and X-Plane is a great match, especially as X-Plane seems to offer more general quality scenery with HD Mesh, World2XP and G2XP which for me in the UK means photo scenery without looking at flat wall paper when down low.

 

PFPX, Navigraph and Plan-G work with it and there is a collection of high end aircraft that complement the high end aircraft in FSX and I seem to get high FPS with more complex scenery than FSX. What I really like is 64 bit means that I don't have to use Scenery manager to choose in advance which scenery I want in FSX.

 

What I would like is Aivlasoft EFB, Opus (FSRealWX is not bad) and Vox ATC or equivalents to work with X-Plane as well as some improvements such as seasons and a better default sound engine as it lags far behind FSX and DCS in immersion.

 

However with all its deficiencies X-Plane and its ecosystem can have some unbeatable moments and with that in mind I would well worth recommending it as a must purchase to another simmer.

[twiggys 41]

sound engine as it lags far behind FSX and DCS in immersion.

 

The sound immersion in X-Plane was recently improved with the release of "SoundMaxx" it's a completely new immersion level.

[HansRoaming 73]

The sound immersion in X-Plane was recently improved with the release of "SoundMaxx" it's a completely new immersion level.

Yeah I saw that, I guess what I'm saying is that apart from developers who have done their own sound engines it can be pretty poor compared to FSX and its sound cones.

 

Maybe its the planes but that is my impression, could be wrong.

[RJC68 822]

Should I switch ...

 

That's always going to be the million dollar question. I did purchase X-Plane a few months and it does take a little researching to find some incredible free scenery 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I did also invest in the FF757 & JarDesign A330. Both good aircraft. I still fly in FSX (DX10) as well as x-Plane and enjoy my time in both.

 

Richard

[MSFS Ralf 149]

World2XP, G2XP, I can't run them on my old notebook. But nevertheless I have good reasons to enjoy XP. Skymaxx, Soundmaxx, recent navdata, configurable views accessible through my num keys, good airport scenery, just to name a few. And a ton of well done payware aircraft.

[mjrhealth 820]

Being using xp10 for a few weeks now but still have FSX too much money invested and XP10 is far from as nice looking specially for those VFR flights. Even got teh carenado 58 and 72-500 i think it was so now to get it set up the way I like it.

[Jimmy RFR 406]

 

 

XP10 is far from as nice looking specially for those VFR flights.

 

Depends on where you fly.  I very recently did a set of VFR helicopter flights  in the B407, where I hopped my way from CYEG to CYXS through the rockies.  Disregarding the lack of airport scenery for CYXS, the low altitude trip through the mountains was absolutely amazing.

 

Once I finish playing with all the new XP toys I bought in the July 4th sale, I'll be continuing on to CYPR. ^_^