REX/ACTIVE SKY PRO AND CONS

[pete_auau 1,152]

 

 

Has anyone tried AS2016 without cloud art?

 

 

as2016  is  only  a weather  engine not  a texture  addon

[cmpbellsjc 2,960]

Hey,

 

Has anyone tried AS2016 without cloud art? I have 2016 and it did improve the look of clouds - and you get those motion effects going through clouds etc.

 

Am tossing up whether the Cloud Art is worth it?

 

Cheers,

I tried it without ASCA but found it to be very similar to ASN. I had to get ASCA to get the whole scope of what it can do since it does not only textures but also better cloud models, as well as injecting them into the sim while it's running.

[kevinh 409]

Hey,

 

Has anyone tried AS2016 without cloud art? I have 2016 and it did improve the look of clouds - and you get those motion effects going through clouds etc.

 

Am tossing up whether the Cloud Art is worth it?

 

Cheers,

You can run AS16 on its own. It is an improvement over ASN, I find the radar more convincing and the local weather it creates is less repetitive if you look at the map. The map itself is much improved as is the UI. I wasn't going to buy ASCA, I've always been happy enough with default textures. I only bought it as it was on sale but it integrates closely with AS16.

[Boomer 1,619]

Too bad there's no bundle discount.

[Nick Dobda 24]

injecting them into the sim while it's running.

 

Last night I had to turn off the ASCA dynamic updating because it was killing the performance. Once I turned it off, the performance came back up.

 

I have to read into it more, if I'm doing short flights, should only one boot up of ASCA be sufficient at the start of the flight. Leaving the dynamic updating on, seems like its trying to update the cloud art and things slow down.

 

Some folks don't like that cloud effect in the front of the plane when you go through clouds. I really like it, not the best, but I think its a pretty cool improvement.

[downscc 1,327]

 

 

Last night I had to turn off the ASCA dynamic updating because it was killing the performance. Once I turned it off, the performance came back up.

 

Was this FSX or P3D?  If P3D make sure you don't have multilayer TS clouds enabled for P3D (this option is best for FSX).

 

I'm sure you already have, but this observation would be of value to the guys at HiFi so thanks for a post over there.

[Nick Dobda 24]

 

 

I'm sure you already have, but this observation would be of value to the guys at HiFi so thanks for a post over there.

No, I haven't posted over there.. I haven't created an account. I haven't read into the instructions yet so I thought I'd look there first before officially lodging a complaint. Plus I've only done 3 flights with the cloud art and haven't had enough consistency to pinpoint whats going on.

I use FSX steam. Originally I ran the AS16 like I always do, dynamically, and it ran perfectly smooth. Once I bought the cloud art machine I noticed the performance was getting killed.

Last night I did a short flight from Minneapolis to Duluth, in the evening... and it was pretty cloudy. The cloud art machine kept kicking in and updating (as noted by the constant reminders popping up), when that happened performance killed. I'm not sure if it was due to constantly changing conditions... not only with the clouds, but the fact that it was evening and there is an evening theme... so as the sun goes down there might be different sets of cloud art that must be loaded... so maybe it was updating abnormal amount with the sun setting. 

I shut down the cloud art app descending into Duluth... into some thick clouds, but with the updates ceasing the performance came back up and didn't drop again even as I was going thorough the deck. 

[downscc 1,327]

There are certain cloud types that kill performance on my machine (P3D on i7-6700K 4.7GHz and 980Ti), such as overcast/undercast.  Could it be cloud type rather than updating themes (hint, you can turn off those annoying reminders)?

 

I was able to resolve the performance issue but not sure the same cure would work with FSX and your system.  I changed frame rate lock from 30 to 24, use VLock and triple buffering with a 4K monitor at 30Hz refresh rate.

 

Regardless, I recommend registering with HiFi forum and using them as a resource. They are pretty good at customer support and there is an active audience willing to help.

[Nick Dobda 24]

 

 

I changed frame rate lock from 30 to 24, use VLock and triple buffering with a 4K monitor at 30Hz refresh rate.

 

Yeah I'm totally not tech saavy. That sentence is greek to me. To this point its been pretty much plug and play. I am sure if I had an expert evaluate my setup it would run much better. I really don't even know where to begin though with that. 

Is there a such thing as a trusted source who can log into my computer remotely and optimize everything? 

[downscc 1,327]

Download this P3D guide from Rob over in the P3D forum, which is a good place to get help on P3D-specific issues (it is normally busier than this forum too): http://www.avsim.com/topic/494633-prepar3d-guide/

 

This guide is designed for those not so tech saavy.

[Nick Dobda 24]

 

 

P3D guide from Rob

 

is there an FSX equivalent... or is his guide good enough for fsx?

[downscc 1,327]

Ah yes, brain fart on my side. Sorry.

 

No, the settings for FSX are much different from P3D... there are many valuable resources for FSX but I recommend you visit the AVSIM FSX forum for specific guidance.  Again, my bad.

[pcubine 143]

No, I haven't posted over there.. I haven't created an account. I haven't read into the instructions yet so I thought I'd look there first before officially lodging a complaint. Plus I've only done 3 flights with the cloud art and haven't had enough consistency to pinpoint whats going on.

See post #4 of this thread - http://www.hifisimtech.com/forums/showthread.php?6529-Difference-between-full-dynamics-and-global-automatic. Maybe you need to change your cloud resolution. And these two for FSX - http://www.simforums.com/forums/setting-up-fsx-and-how-to-tune-it_topic29041.html. http://www.simforums.com/forums/drivers-nv-inspector-fsxcfg-complete-guide_topic36586.html.

[Boomer 1,619]

how can I tell if the REX textures are properly installed?

[JD396 38]

I've been using Active Sky for ages so I don't know (or really care, just bought AS16) but... does REX support the PMDG W/X radar? Someone on the fence might like to know.