Hi folkses,I have a fresh install of FSX just waiting for tweaks. I have made no tweaks to it as of yet. I have made no tweaks to my system either. I know that it is all relative to the amount of software running and background processes. I just left my machine as I use it daily. My specs are in my sig.I have started a spreadsheet to track all changes and the results.I logged the first flights at four different airports (KLAX, KSEA, KPHX and KABQ, 4 busy favorites) and annotated the FPS while ready for takeoff.I went from around 6 fps at the four airports to 17 fps with one slider notch down each in that generic screen that seems to control everything. Pardon my ignorance but you can drill down deeper and set individual parameters. I'm talking about the first screen that is presented in the graphics settings.My impression of the graphics at this new level is good. Looks nice, not enough buildings when I look at the environment but that's not what I'm there for. The 17fps is very flyable. I have no stutters or any anomaly that I cannot live with.I think MS went a little overboard with it's default settings for my system, based on the results of this one change. If I didn't know better, I probably wouldn't be asking this question as I would have been happy with the settings it chose for itself at this level.That being said, I do want pretty. I do want WOW. My quest is to get 17 to 20 fps with WOW. So my question: What would you do next? Would you tweak your system or the sim itself?dolph

Do everything listed here. I used their advice and my frames went from 8 to around 15-19. http://ops.precisionmanuals.com/wiki/FSX_FPS_Guide#CPUHope this helps.

Wow. I guess my question was pretty open. Should I log each tweak one at a time (I don't have a full lifetime left, I'm 48) or just do all you suggest and log the results?Just kidding. What is the most important tweaks is what I'm looking for.dolph

To be honest, download the latest drivers, defrag, then edit your fsx cfg the way it states. Shouldnt take more than a few minutes. Scan for spyware, download drivers and the registry booster. I bought it and it sped up my system. Download the small program that controls the system tray. Knock as much out as you can to free up as many resources as you can get. Then edit your cfg with the lines they provide. It took me about 10 minutes to edit everything. It may sound complicated, but really, its not.Let me know if you need any help!BTW, here is my CFG if you'd like. Still playing with settings.[sOUND]AmbientUIMusicVolume=-6.000000SOUND=1SOUND_QUALITY=2SOUND_LOD=0UISound=1AmbientUI=0[Display]ChangeTime=4.000000TransitionTime=4.000000ActiveWindowTitleTextColor=255,255,255ActiveWindowTitleBackGroundColor=0,28,140,64NonActiveWindowTitleTextColor=255,255,255NonActiveWindowTitleBackGroundColor=24,33,87,64InfoUpperRightTextColor=255,0,0InfoUpperRightBackGroundColor=0,0,0,0InfoLowerLeftTextColor=255,255,255InfoLowerLeftBackGroundColor=255,0,0,128InfoLowerRightTextColor=255,255,255InfoLowerRightBackGroundColor=255,0,0,128InfoBrakesEnable=FalseInfoParkingBrakesEnable=FalseInfoPauseEnable=FalseInfoSlewEnable=FalseInfoStallEnable=FalseInfoOverspeedEnable=FalseBLOOM_EFFECTS=0SKINNED_ANIMATIONS=1TEXTURE_BANDWIDTH_MULT=400UPPER_FRAMERATE_LIMIT=22WideViewAspect=False[Main]User Objects=Airplane, 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XGAUGESCessna206M.GAU.tzruruicwuzewnbeazlwicwkkiacliqekeqazanr=0[RWW_WEATHER_MAP]SHOW_AIRPORTS=0SHOW_VORS=0SHOW_NDBS=0SHOW_APPROACHES=0SHOW_INTERSECTIONS=0SHOW_VICTOR=0SHOW_JET=0SHOW_AIRSPACE=0SHOW_FLIGHTPLAN=1SHOW_WEATHERSTATIONS=1SHOW_WEATHERSYSTEMS=1SHOW_DATATAGS=1SHOW_TERRAIN=1[ATC]ShowATCText=1COMM_MSG_NONE_COLOR=FFFFFFFFCOMM_MSG_ATC_USER_COLOR=FFB6FFB6COMM_MSG_USER_ATC_COLOR=FFFFD21BCOMM_MSG_ATC_AI_COLOR=FF00FF00COMM_MSG_AI_ATC_COLOR=FFFF7840AutoOpenAirTrafficWindow=1UsePilotVoice=1PilotVoice=0[PointOfInterestSystem]CycleSetting=0[sCENERY]LENSFLARE=1DAWN_DUSK_SMOOTHING=1IMAGE_COMPLEXITY=3[TrafficManager]AirlineDensity=10GADensity=21FreewayDensity=17ShipsAndFerriesDensity=35LeisureBoatsDensity=30IFROnly=0AIRPORT_SCENERY_DENSITY=1[TERRAIN]LOD_RADIUS=3.500000MESH_COMPLEXITY=87MESH_RESOLUTION=23TEXTURE_RESOLUTION=26AUTOGEN_DENSITY=3DETAIL_TEXTURE=1WATER_EFFECTS=4TERRAIN_MAX_AUTOGEN_TREES_PER_CELL=3000TERRAIN_MAX_AUTOGEN_BUILDINGS_PER_CELL=1500[AContain]ShowLabels=1ShowUserLabel=0ShowLabelManufacturer=1ShowLabelModel=1ShowLabelTailNumber=0ShowLabelDistance=1ShowLabelAltitude=1ShowLabelAirline=0ShowLabelAirlineAndFlightNumber=0ShowLabelFlightPlan=0ShowLabelContainerId=0ShowLabelAirspeed=0ShowLabelHeading=0LabelDelay=1000LabelColor=FFFF0000[iNTERNATIONAL]ASLAT=2ASLON=1MEASURE=0[REALISM]PFactor=0.000000Torque=0.000000GyroEffect=0.000000CrashTolerance=0.000000General=0.000000UnlimitedFuel=TrueTrueAirspeed=FalseAutoCoord=TrueRealMixture=FalseStressDamage=FalseGEffect=FalseManualLights=FalseGyroDrift=FalseCrashWithDyn=FalseCrashDetection=FalseAutoTrim=False[sIM]SYSCLOCK=1[sTARTUP]DEMO=0SHOW_OPENING_SCREEN=1STARTUP_DEMO=LoadWindow=1[FACILITIES]COUNTRY=STATE=CITY=GTL_BUTTON=1232[Misc]Com_Rate=7[bufferPools]PoolSize=5000000[FlightPlanMap]LineWidth=2SHOW_AIRPORTS=1SHOW_VORS=1SHOW_NDBS=1SHOW_APPROACHES=1SHOW_INTERSECTIONS=1SHOW_VICTOR=0SHOW_JET=0SHOW_AIRSPACE=1SHOW_FLIGHTPLAN=1SHOW_WEATHERSTATIONS=1SHOW_WEATHERSYSTEMS=1SHOW_DATATAGS=1SHOW_TERRAIN=1show_waypoints=1show_airways=1show_markers=1show_volume_boundaries=1show_ac_twr=1[MULTIPLAYER]AccoutUsername=N172BPcondAccoutPassword=0DefaultLobby=Free FlightEnableShare=1PasswordForSharingAircraft=1220Hope it helps!