Returning to Flight Sims. What is P3D?

[felixflyer 0]

Hi guys

I am returning to flight simming after many years out of it. Previously I used FS2004 and FSX with the PMDG stuff. I like to use study level sims and am a RW pilot also.

I am doing some commercial training and would like to use a flight sim to help with my IR procedures and checks etc. I stress I will not be using it for any kind of general handling practice as I am well aware of the limitations of sims but for IR procedures and getting familiar with cockpit layouts it can be beneficial and save ££'s in the air.

That said I am unfamiliar with P3D or Xplane and these seem to have become popular since I have been away.

I would like a sim that replicates the UK navaids and airfields well, either standalone or with add ons and has a decent DA42 with G1000 available plus PMDG 737. I was thinking of using FSX but is P3D a viable option?

I would be grateful for any advice.

 

Regards

[Farlis 2,280]

It is the most viable option. Albeit an expensive one.

[CFIJose 5,485]

23 minutes ago, felixflyer said:

Hi guys

I am returning to flight simming after many years out of it. Previously I used FS2004 and FSX with the PMDG stuff. I like to use study level sims and am a RW pilot also.

I am doing some commercial training and would like to use a flight sim to help with my IR procedures and checks etc. I stress I will not be using it for any kind of general handling practice as I am well aware of the limitations of sims but for IR procedures and getting familiar with cockpit layouts it can be beneficial and save ££'s in the air.

That said I am unfamiliar with P3D or Xplane and these seem to have become popular since I have been away.

I would like a sim that replicates the UK navaids and airfields well, either standalone or with add ons and has a decent DA42 with G1000 available plus PMDG 737. I was thinking of using FSX but is P3D a viable option?

I would be grateful for any advice.

 

Regards

The right choice right now is FSX-SE. There's a plethora of great planes & nav equipment to choose from.

If you do not mind waiting, P3D V4 is the way to go. It's 64bit and the addons we know & love should be supported in the near future.

XP 11 has amazing lighting, but ground handling is poorly modeled, no G1000 yet, and weather depiction is no where near FSX/P3D's AS16.

What plane are you flying IRL? I ask you because there's probably one available for FSX/P3D/XP.

 

[xplanery 250]

P3D is basically an improved and more stable version of FSX, so yes I would recommend it over FSX. X-Plane has also seen huge improvements over the years, but system wise I don't think you'll be able to find as good 737 as the PMDG is for it. Also one plus side is that most of FSX scenery works without issues on P3D V4, even if some developers like to charge extra for updating, but that can be avoided simply through using migration tool of some kind to use the original installer of the FSX version. 

[OzWhitey 3,353]

Re: "The right choice right now is FSX-SE."

Bold words on the Prepar3d forum, old chap! If you want to fly with last decade's sim, go for it. But I think a LOT of people around here would disagree. 

[ricka47 611]

P3D is FSX with some improvements.  V4 is a 64-bit version.  If you are used to FSX, P3D will look almost exactly the same - that is both good and bad.  XP11 is also 64-bit and has made some major improvements.  I tried it for awhile and came back to P3D for a number of reasons (Traffic, Seasons, Add Ons).  But, LM has a money-back policy and XP11 has a demo.  So, try them both!

[Piotr007 164]

5 minutes ago, ricka47 said:

P3D is FSX with some improvements.  V4 is a 64-bit version.  If you are used to FSX, P3D will look almost exactly the same - that is both good and bad.  XP11 is also 64-bit and has made some major improvements.  I tried it for awhile and came back to P3D for a number of reasons (Traffic, Seasons, Add Ons).  But, LM has a money-back policy and XP11 has a demo.  So, try them both!

They can keep my money at LM. Well earned.

[MarkW 1,491]

For your needs which I think will be primarily scenario based if I read your post correctly I think FSX-SE is the way to go.  It will cost less and if you are just setting up scenarios to practice instrument procedures then you don't have a need for complex addon scenery or flying long distances between airports.  This means the likelihood of you getting an Out Of Memory error are low.  

[swiesma 625]

Just FYI: Puchase the 1 month option in P3D and try P3D for yourself. there is also a demo version for X Plane. :-)

[felixflyer 0]

Thanks guys, I have been told by a few people now that P3D would be best. 

I will be doing some longer flights. airways routes in a DA42 and longer ones in the 737. 

I fly the DA42 in the real world so would like a sim that has a good G1000. I do have the Alabeo DA42 for FSX but is is pretty much unusable as the G1000 is very basic. 

I have been thinking of buying the Mindstar G1000 add on

I see myself using this to practice but I do also enjoy it as a hobby and plan to build a decent PC to run it. I just don't want to go down a particular route and spend lots on add-ons then end up regretting using a particular base system.

[b1bmsgt 206]

P3D is marketed by Lockheed Martin as a training sim, so I would think that would add some weight to the argument...

[AviatorMan 253]

3 hours ago, felixflyer said:

Hi guys

I would like a sim that replicates the UK navaids and airfields well, either standalone or with add ons

Both FSX and P3D replicate navaids well, but I would say that neither FSX nor P3D replicate UK airfields well standalone. Their airfields are very basic renditions - often just a runway and a tower - and do not replicate the airfields accurately. You will need airport addons for that. Not sure where you are flying but I have been training in the Cambridgeshire area and have found that the Orbx airfields that come standard with FTX England are more accurate and have more detail. Same can be said for the airfields in the other FTX regions in the UK and Ireland. For more detail and accuracy, UK2000 has a set of VFR airfields that is very accurate and detailed for well over a hundred airfields in England. I have been training out of EGSC Cambridge and the UK2000 airfield is very near the real thing, as well as nearby EGSU Duxford where we often fly to.  The Orbx airfields in the UK are the best, but there are only thirteen of them.

[AviatorMoser 353]

@felixflyer

Either FSX or P3D will suit your needs. If you prefer some eye candy and performance gains, go for P3D. If you don't really care for the latter, then P3D does not offer much beyond FSX. For example, I used the default C172 in FSX to shoot instrument approaches during my training. Helped a lot. Just turn the visibility to the absolute minimum, and just do the procedures you'd do in real life. Cost me very little, and I passed my checkride.

Also, here's an addon DA42 by Alabeo. Officially supports FSX and P3D.

EDIT: Oh, I see you already have the DA42. Nevermind :)

[MikeT707 1,181]

P3D is the way to go. FSX is old and getting crustier by the day. Plus P3D will continue to have advancements as it is supported by a solid team of product managers and developers so if you get P3D v4, you will also get upgrades through its likely two year life. Also, third party developers will be creating P3D-specific features and content because the P3D platform has much more capacity than FSX which has been sunset by Microsoft back in 2007.

[virtualstuff 754]

http://www.prepar3d.com/

http://www.prepar3d.com/product-overview/