For now I use P3D 2.5 (and FSX SE). I consider to buy P3D 4.5. So I wonder how is it going to be to go from P3D 2.5 to P3D 4.5 ? I’m thinking about the things you mostly will notice. For example here is my own impressions about previous transitions

Going from FSX boxed to FSX SE

Pro

Better performance in FSX SE. FSX SE is better than boxed FSX.

Con

Some addon products didn’t work in FSX SE

Going from FSX SE to P3D 2.5

Pro

Cloud shadows. Much better performance. No popup autogen and far less blurries. P3D 2.5 is clearly a better product than FSX SE.

Con

Again not all addons that worked in FSX SE can be used in P3D 2.5. Also the new EZCA does not support P3D2

Going from P3D 2.5 to P3D 4.5 how will it be ?

Pro

Con

Going from P3D 4.5 to P3d V5 what do you think it will be like ?

Pro

Con

I might also mention what system I have

CPU Haswell I/ 4770 K OC 4.5 GHz
RAM 16 Gb 2200 Mhz
VIDEO card GTX 970 4 Gb
SSD drives for OS and P3D
Win 10 64 bit

24 minutes ago, jfri said:

For now I use P3D 2.5 (and FSX SE). I consider to buy P3D 4.5. So I wonder how is it going to be to go from P3D 2.5 to P3D 4.5 ? I’m thinking about the things you mostly will notice. For example here is my own impressions about previous transitions

 

Going from FSX boxed to FSX SE

 

Pro

 

Better performance in FSX SE. FSX SE is better than boxed FSX.

 

Con

 

Some addon products didn’t work in FSX SE

 

Going from FSX SE to P3D 2.5

 

Pro

 

Cloud shadows. Much better performance. No popup autogen and far less blurries. P3D 2.5 is clearly a better product than FSX SE.

 

Con

 

Again not all addons that worked in FSX SE can be used in P3D 2.5. Also the new EZCA does not support P3D2

 

Going from P3D 2.5 to P3D 4.5 how will it be ?

 

Pro

 

Con

 

Going from P3D 4.5 to P3d V5 what do you think it will be like ?

 

Pro

 

Con

 

 

I might also mention what system I have

CPU Haswell I/ 4770 K OC 4.5 GHz
RAM 16 Gb 2200 Mhz
VIDEO card GTX 970 4 Gb
SSD drives for OS and P3D
Win 10 64 bit

Even though most users are familiar with the popular FSX addons, to my eyes, P3D v4.5 is a completely different sim than FSX/P3D with those addons. Many of the problems that we complained about with FSX are still there in P3D v4, such as low fps in certain areas, loading tiles in the distance, blurries due to low fps, floating objects in FTX regions, stutters, micro pauses, and dare I say CTDs. The more addons you add the greater the possibility of having performance issues or instability. Despite all that, I could never go back to FSX due to the amazing visuals I see on the screen.

You need to consider upgrading your hardware (ie GTX 1070 videocard or better & SSDs) and spend some dollars to get the upgrades to your favorite addons as well as take the time to explore all the new features that make P3D v4 much better or visually appealing than the legacy FSX/P3D 32bit sim.

As for v5, who knows. We can speculate, but ultimately it will be up to the talented addon developers that will make us want to invest more $$$ to upgrade.

10 minutes ago, DJJose said:

You need to consider upgrading your hardware (ie GTX 1070 videocard or better & SSDs) and spend some dollars to get the upgrades to your favorite addons as well as take the time to explore all the new features that make P3D v4 much better or visually appealing than the legacy FSX/P3D 32bit sim.

Replacing my HDD that my sim resided on with an SSD was one of the best things I could have done. Not just loading times but autogen loading in flight definitely improved. I have no blurries with my settings and couldn't be happier. I'm using a 6600k, 16GB 2666Mhz DDR4 and a GTX 1080. 

To the op. V4.x gives you better autogen loading distance, better lighting, PBR on supported products and solid stability if you're using aircraft compatible with/ designed for v4 and sceneries designed for v3.x and up. I stick to that rule and its been pretty solid.

10 minutes ago, FrankSalo said:

To the op. V4.x gives you better autogen loading distance, better lighting, PBR on supported products and solid stability if you're using aircraft compatible with/ designed for v4 and sceneries designed for v3.x and up. I stick to that rule and its been pretty solid.

One of the best features in v4 is the ability to install addons using the xml method. That alone is worth the upgrade price.

You'll get more fps in P3D v4.5 with the same hardware than in FSX. You'll see the benefits of DirectX 11 with cockpit shadows and far better lighting like cloud shadows on the ground. The workload in P3D is pushed more to the GPU freeing up the CPU.

No running out of memory any more. Surprised no-one mentioned that. You can increase scenery complexity or add an Ai package and only reduce settings when fps become too low.

A fair bit of scenery designed for FSX will still work in P3D. Check with sellers if they have an updated installer with the P3D v4 option.

2 hours ago, jfri said:

CPU Haswell I/ 4770 K OC 4.5 GHz
RAM 16 Gb 2200 Mhz
VIDEO card GTX 970 4 Gb
SSD drives for OS and P3D
Win 10 64 bit

I have exactly the same hardware and am amazed at what performance I can get... flying the pmdg 737 ngx into Heathrow passing over EGLC (UK2000 payware), the city (FTX Global/Vector/OPENLC) and into EGLL (SimWings payware) in heavy rain/clouds (ActiveSky/Rex Skyforce) I can maintain a steady 35-40 fps resulting in an incredibly smooth approach. All of this whilst using 8xSSAA giving rock solid visuals without shimmering. Note that I don't use the VC as I have a home cockpit. So don't feel like you HAVE to upgrade your hardware, especially from day 1, you can adjust sliders to suit your hardware. You won't regret the upgrade IMO

53 minutes ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

A fair bit of scenery designed for FSX will still work in P3D. Check with sellers if they have an updated installer with the P3D v4 option.

What about addons that work in P3D 2.5 ? Will all of them work in P3D 4.5 ?

1 hour ago, DJJose said:

One of the best features in v4 is the ability to install addons using the xml method.

What does that mean and how does it work ?

25 minutes ago, jfri said:

What does that mean and how does it work ?

It means that if you re-install P3D from scratch or install the new version P3Dv5, you do not have to reinstall your addons.

45 minutes ago, jfri said:

What about addons that work in P3D 2.5 ? Will all of them work in P3D 4.5 ?

Couldn't tell you that without knowing which addons you have. Some have a free upgrade path to go from the old version to the new, some cost a token amount, and then there's PMDG where you'll be paying full price to get the compatible version.

 

50 minutes ago, jfri said:

What about addons that work in P3D 2.5 ? Will all of them work in P3D 4.5 ?

Suck it and see. No guarantees. If the new installer has a P3D v4 option then they will. But you can trick the FSX installers into 'thinking' you have FSX installed and then just copy the scenery folders over to P3D. Some will work but some won't.

But that's for experts so for now just look for P3D v4 installers for the airports you have.

1 hour ago, jfri said:

What does that mean and how does it work ?

It means that once all devs are on board with this new method of installing, you will never have to contact the dev for support when you run out of installations. 😀 It will be much easier & faster to update your sim. It will save you time, the most precious thing that we all have.

The way it works is that devs embrace the new method of installing or you use Lorby-SI Addon Organizer to take advantage of the xml method.

Edited June 5, 20197 yr by DJJose

1 hour ago, DJJose said:

It means that once all devs are on board with this new method of installing, 

The words h e l l and freeze spring to mind. 😁

6 hours ago, DJJose said:

 Many of the problems that we complained about with FSX are still there in P3D v4, such as low fps in certain areas, loading tiles in the distance, blurries due to low fps, floating objects in FTX regions, stutters, micro pauses, and dare I say CTDs. The more addons you add the greater the possibility of having performance issues or instability. Despite all that, I could never go back to FSX due to the amazing visuals I see on the screen.

You need to consider upgrading your hardware (ie GTX 1070 videocard or better & SSDs) and spend some dollars to get the upgrades to your favorite addons as well as take the time to explore all the new features that make P3D v4 much better or visually appealing than the legacy FSX/P3D 32bit sim.

I have noticed that the area you fly in make a tremendous impact on performance. The area around KSEA Seattle and New York.
The problems you mentioned can be mitigated to very large extent by staying outside these areas.

I noticed the issue with floating objects (houses) during a test flight a couple of days ago. Is this not going to be fixed ?

If we have CTD in P3D4 should it not be for other reasons than out of memory ?

A GTX 1070 seem to expensive for me. So I don't see any reason to upgrade that now. I already use SSDs.

Install 4.5 along side 2.5...fly and if you don’t like what u see get your money back. I think 60 day try..have some fun...