fsx-ms NEWBIE.. What pc to buy for FSX

[jamespaul 0]

Hi guys,

 

First post on the site.

 

Love fsx, been playing for some time now, but over the years of all the downloads and add ons etc my computer has had it, I have to have all the settings on low just to play it!

 

So I want to invest in a pc purposely for this game, want to be able to have really good graphics and no lag etc, but not spend a small fortune.

 

Now I have no clue about computers whatever, very minimal at best., so please bare that in mind ha

 

I don't really want to upgrade my pc anything like that, just want to buy a pc all ready made, also want to buy myself some good controls as well.

 

So I have been looking at computers online and they range from £250 up to thousands! and me looking at them, I can't see much difference in terms of a pc which is £300 or one thats £1000, But I know there obviously is.

 

So I would love people to give me some recommendations on what they think is good enough.

 

Ive added 3 links below which are all different price range, are these any good? or good enough to play a good game.?

 

Many thanks for anyones help in advance!

 

James

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Freshtech-F2A68HM-HD2-Motherboard-Performance-Certified/dp/B00UC9YI1Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1467921083&sr=1-1&keywords=gaming+pc

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Freshtech-F2A68HM-HD2-Motherboard-Performance-Certified/dp/B013QYSP9O/ref=sr_1_2?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1468009681&sr=1-2&keywords=gaming+pc

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ADMI-ULTRA-GAMING-Multimedia-Pre-Installed/dp/B00CMQWJXQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1468009720&sr=1-1&keywords=gaming+pc

[charliearon 3,017]

You might have better luck sticking to a PC with an INTEL processor as opposed to an AMD.

 

For comparison, Google Search Jetline systems and check out their computers that are made especially

 

for FSX.  They are not cheap but check out the the CPUs and Graphic Cards that are used.  I'm

 

fairly sure that Jetline does not ship to the U.K. (sorry, maybe that should just be England, now!)

[richie894 45]

You are going to probably do better to build it yourself. Plenty of videos and tutorials online, it is not that difficult. i7 processor which can be overclocked to ~4.5 and Nividia graphics card - may be the GTX 1080. You need to up your budget if you want something for FSX which yields good FPS.

 

There are lots of threads on this forum and many others about hardware.

[Bert Pieke 7,584]

I am sure there is a business in the UK that will build you a proper system for FSX.

 

Suggest you tell them that you need:

 

i7-6700K CPU,  ASUS Z170-A motherboard,  GTX970 GPU or better.

2 X 4 GB fast memory or more.  Suitable power supply.

 

That will do the job!

[untoweechja 35]

Hi James, and welcome to AVSIM.

 

Of the three systems you have listed the third one is the best because it has a discrete NVIDIA graphics card.  I recently ditched my AMD machine and second charliearon's recommendation above: You'll get much better performance out of FSX on an Intel machine, even if it's a couple of generations behind the latest-greatest.

 

I was able to get acceptable (for me) performance for 'low and slow' GA flying out of my old AMD machine by dialing back the eye-candy and using Steve's DX 10 fixer, but flying any study-level tubeliner (with the exception of the Majestic Q400) was usually an exercise in futility.

 

You can certainly make an AMD machine work (I used mine for nearly four years), but there's no question that FSX benefits from Intel CPUs.

[Overload 91]

I've used specialist building companies, like pcspecialist.co.uk - They give you the chance to customise to your needs - I did a very quick customise based on an overclocked PC similar to Bert's recommendation, here:

 

 

 

You pick your components of choice, and watch the price top right changing, if over budget, revise options until the optimum spec/price is reached (currently £976 inc vat). There's a lot more options than shown, you'd scroll down on the web site proper.

 

They also let you know if any components are unsuitable, E.G. Graphics card too big for the case, power insufficient or over the top, ideal for those not comfortable building from scratch...

 

I've bought 2 PC's from them - been happy with both

 

Eugene

[jamespaul 0]

Hi guys,

 

 

Thank you all so much for you're advice, much appreciated.

 

But do I really have to fork out nearly £1000, Can I not spend half that and still have a decent game?

 

Im not looking for the most realistic graphics in the world, but just better than what I have now, and able to play a smooth game? and add ons not effect its speed?

 

My top budget would be £500 really,

 

Eugene could you do me another one on pc specialist as I have no clue and see if you can get it around the £500 mark? please

 

Thanks again everyone

 

James

[Ray Proudfoot 8,903]

Hi James,

 

As you're UK-based I'll offer my advice and recommendations. To start with £500 is not going to buy you a PC capable of running FSX good enough to make it realistic in all weather conditions. You would just be wasting your money.

 

If you can stretch to £900 then you would have the makings of a decent machine. £1400 will buy you one that will totally satisfy you and last many years. They also bench-test overclocked PCs for 24 hours so they're guaranteed stable. My own has been brilliant for nearly 3 years now.

 

I bought from Scan UK based up in Bolton (near Bolton Wanderers FC) and not only do they build very good PCs they also have a very good warranty service. They have the "By Royal Appointment" seal so quality is guaranteed.

 

Have a look at their two flight sim-based systems here. You can customise the package (using the Configure option) to adjust the price accordingly.

 

https://www.scan.co.uk/3xs/custom/pc-simulators/form-factors#anc

 

Select the flight simulator option on that page.

 

Even if you have to wait longer and save up these machines will give you much more satisfaction long-term that an underpowered £500 one.

[Corrie 2]

Hi Jamespaul

If in the UK, google "Chillblast". They do a range of PCs set up for FSX.

Mine cost less than £700 and is OK

Silent but a little larger than expected. ( To deaden the sound?)

Came very well packaged.

 

Corrie

[Boomer 1,619]

For FSX do not waste your money on a high end video card: FSX won't use it.

 

A mid range is sufficient.

 

Xplane will use it however so if you're eye balling xplane, and you should IMHO, get the best GPU u can afford.

[Calchet51 0]

You might have better luck sticking to a PC with an INTEL processor as opposed to an AMD.

 

For comparison, Google Search Jetline systems and check out their computers that are made especially

 

for FSX.  They are not cheap but check out the the CPUs and Graphic Cards that are used.  I'm

 

fairly sure that Jetline does not ship to the U.K. (sorry, maybe that should just be England, now!)

 

Jetline Systems is a good start, and they also make recommendations on which pc works best, but I find the cost in  one of their lower end systems a little too much. 

 

Been flying flight sim since the early days and stayed with FS2004 because of my last system and capabilities.  Now ready for new pc and one that is Intel i7-6700 Quad Core 4GHz and unlocked for overclocking to 4.2GHz, good if not great NVidia 2GB card, 16 GB RAM and 1TB/8GB Solid State Hybrid drive on Windows 10 Home 64-bit.  Will request Windows 7 Pro 64-bit when purchase.  Found this system which seems to be designed for FSX at well under $1,000 price on Amazon.

 

from CybertronPC Palladium 950C

 

I welcome opinions on above system, again it is under $1,000 and should be upgradeable.

 

Cal

[Ray Proudfoot 8,903]

James,

 

One thing I would recommend you don't do is buy through Amazon. Deal direct with the people building your PC. In that respect Chillblast or Scan would be my recommendation.

[joelpacheco 9]

Whatever you decide do not buy AMD, FSX runs much much better on Intel.

[Mickeyj 35]

Hi there, im not the biggest hardware guru but there is one golden rule i followed all these years in flightsimming -go for intel+nVidia

 

For me all three options are a nogo. Intel+nVidia is expensive thats for surebut in the end an investment.

 

I started with an i7 3770k watercooled to get 4.6GHz+nVidia660ti+8 GB Ram and 2 SSD. That was enough to drive mid to high settings depending on scenery. Then P3Dv2.x and now v3.x came up and i went further up to an i7 5820k and GTX 980 SLI. Expensive? Hell yes but it was worth it.

 

So if you want to have a good system you may want to stick with intel+nVidia. You wont need a killer machine like some of us have. Look for a budget intel that can be overclocked and get an nVidia card. Prices for should drop for GTX 9 series. You might want to habe a watercooler for the CPU cause you should have 4GHz+ 16GB Ram are sufficient at least 1 512 or 700+ GB SSD for the sim is recommended. The OS shoul run on its own HDD/SSD. Irecommend SSDs as it keeps loading times to a minimum.

 

If you start all over again think about P3Dv3.x which is imho the future of flight simming.

[Clutch Cargo 384]

Since you already want a PC ready to go and designed for flight simulation I would check out Jetline Systems.  That's their specialty.

 

Clutch