P3D v3 vs P3D v4

[Nauman Sajid 1]

Hi everyone, just wanted to know about your experiences with v3 and v4. I'm intending to buy a new system with the following specs:

i5-2500k will overclock it to atleast 4.0 Ghz

R9 270 or 270x 2GB

8GB ram

Which sim will perform better? currently i'm running fsx on my laptop which is an i7 with dedicated graphics card and easily sit at 25-30 fps. what performance should i expect from each sim?   

[Anxu00 176]

That CPU is too old, are you sure you did not mistype?  In any case, if you are new to P3D, get v4.  You will need to buy add-on again and lucky for you, you only have to spend money once.  V4 removed the 32bit limitation and is certainly will last many of us a long time.

[ninerwhiskey9W 19]

2 hours ago, Nauman Sajid said:

Hi everyone, just wanted to know about your experiences with v3 and v4. I'm intending to buy a new system with the following specs:

i5-2500k will overclock it to atleast 4.0 Ghz

R9 270 or 270x 2GB

8GB ram

Which sim will perform better? currently i'm running fsx on my laptop which is an i7 with dedicated graphics card and easily sit at 25-30 fps. what performance should i expect from each sim?   

2GB VRAM is cutting it a bit too close to run P3D properly. What addons are you using in fsx when you get 25 fps ? I had FSX on my laptop, with frames around 20 with the Aerosoft bus. Using any good scenery or heavy weather would turn the sim into a slideshow.

In comparison, with v4, I can run the PMDG NGX, ASP4, with detailed payware airports at a smooth 30fps normally during approach, and around 25 in heavy weather. So I would definitely recommend the upgrade to V4.

[DaveCT2003 1,820]

I'm pretty sure you can't purchase V3 any longer.

If you're hardware will support it, then it's a slam dunk decision.  I'm running V4 on an i7-4770K at 4.3GHz and NVIDIA 1080 and get 30fps at most all payware airports with any of the third party airliners.  Any graphics card below a GTX1070 will likely have to be upgraded if you wish to run with Dynamic Lighting on, but I know people running V4 with a GTX950 (Dynamic Lighting off) just fine with AMD8350 running at 4.2 GHz.

I own a lot of payware airports, and did not have to pay to move from P3DV3 to V4, and in many cases from FSX to V4.  But you only you know what scenery you have, and you might want to visit the developers websites to check.

Laptops will never run P3D as well as a desktop, but other than that I can't advise about your laptop.

You should have at least 8GB of RAM to run P3DV4, especially if you run third party airliners along side payware airports.

Best wishes.

 

 

[Nauman Sajid 1]

thanks guys too far i think that my gpu is an issue which should be upgraded to atleast a 1070 or a card with 4GB vram. however my budget is also tight and strict. With this build i only have spare $50 or so. Which graphics card should i look to buy withing a range of $150-200.

[OzWhitey 3,353]

23 hours ago, Nauman Sajid said:

Hi everyone, just wanted to know about your experiences with v3 and v4. I'm intending to buy a new system with the following specs:

i5-2500k will overclock it to atleast 4.0 Ghz

R9 270 or 270x 2GB

8GB ram

Which sim will perform better? currently i'm running fsx on my laptop which is an i7 with dedicated graphics card and easily sit at 25-30 fps. what performance should i expect from each sim?   

I would strongly recommend Prepar3d v3:

- it has a calming, blue color scheme, rather than v4's oh-so-serious black.

- you wouldn't want to miss out on your last chance to experience a Prepar3d out-of-memory error. In the future, you'll be able to explain to your grandchildren that back in 2017 you used to spend all day flying a professional simulator across the pond, only for...

bing....bing...out of memory crash 

...to happen as you approach KJFK in your PMDG heavy.

I'm feeling all nostalgic for those OOM's already 😢 

[Bobsk8 12,586]

Been flying P3D V3 since it came out. Never had a ding//ding//ding.. OOM crash. In fact it never crashes and works well, without having to buy a new PC. 

[swiesma 625]

1 hour ago, Bobsk8 said:

Been flying P3D V3 since it came out. Never had a ding//ding//ding.. OOM crash. In fact it never crashes and works well, without having to buy a new PC. 

You're being sarcastic? Or are you running no addons at all?

[GSalden 4,656]

P3D v3 ?  Let me think.... 

Bing...bing... 

Sorry can’t remember ; I am out of memory 

[Guest Mik75]

I fly in P3Dv3.4 and I’m very happy. I’m flying my PMDG, FSLabs, Majestic, etc. aircraft over Orbx Open LC/Vector scenery from and into payware airport scenery. I fly online most of the time, with no additional AI traffic, AS16 weather and ASCA and REX4 textures. I also use Envshade. With reasonable settings, I get everything I need: smooth performance (actually never under 20 fps), great looks, and I can’t remember, when I had the last CTD or OOM, seriously. My flights are mostly 1-4 hrs long, and the sim is just super stable. So, I‘ve invested quite a bit of money since I’ve switched from FSX to P3Dv2, and I won’t be „upgrading“ to v4 anytime soon. All the update fees, plus the new sim, that’s just money I don’t want (need) to invest. 

[Nauman Sajid 1]

Settle down everyone!

I think everyone have there on POVs about their sims and systems. Too far i came across couple of answers. Some of yous suggested that I should buy a new GPU while others suggested that P3D v3 will run better on my build. I think i'll borrow p3d v3 from my friend while v4, i'll test it out by buying a monthly subscription. And ofcourse i'll do a fair test across both sims.

[swiesma 625]

11 hours ago, Nauman Sajid said:

Settle down everyone!

I think everyone have there on POVs about their sims and systems. Too far i came across couple of answers. Some of yous suggested that I should buy a new GPU while others suggested that P3D v3 will run better on my build. I think i'll borrow p3d v3 from my friend while v4, i'll test it out by buying a monthly subscription. And ofcourse i'll do a fair test across both sims.

Good way to go :-)

 

I personally would not invest in old versions, but everyone as he likes :-)