I am confused. I hear everyone here complain about getting only 15 or so FPS. I am getting anywhere beween 12-14 FPS and at LAX outside view it drops to 9-11 FPS but it is almost totally smooth for me. Very little hesitation. My machine is a dual core AMD, 3 gig RAM and an ATI 1900 w/ 512 mb of video memory. Are FPS differently perceived from computer to computer? Can someone please expain why for some 15 FPS is stuttering while for others (me) 12 FPS is almost smooth.Thanks!

I'm sorry this isnt any help butWelcome to Flight Simulator X!

LOL, I know what you mean, but I really like FSX and I think that MS did a great job. I am just trying to understand why 12 FPS can be acceptable.Thanks for your reply!

It must have something to do with the program ;-)In FS2000 my fps is 40-100 and it stutters like #### :-)

I guess it depends on your equipment and the type of flying you do. Single digit frames are not acceptable for most avid simmers, and the constant chant from those with high end rigs to ignore your frame rates and enjoy is an oxy moron. The point is that FSX does NOT perform acceptably under the minimum specs, so I think that recommended specs should be emphasised more in the advertising. I still like FSX, but many people do not have the skills to "tweak", and are not going to be happy campers when they install FSX.Ron

It's completely subjective and there is no right or wrong. I've never known anyone to consider 9 FPS to be almost totally smooth but if you're happy then fine. Lucky you, that saves you a fortune in hardware upgrades!For me, I have it capped at 25 which I find okay for simming, although I'd like it higher. When it ducks below that I notice and below 18 or so, it's largely unplayable. If you use TrackIR or something like that, frame rate becomes more important to get the subconscious connection going - real head turns are smooth, so in game ones must be!In FPS games (First Person Shooters) like Quake or FEAR, I need at least 40 and much prefer 60 FPS (Frames Per Second ... this is confusing!), my monitor's limit, because I want to be able to quickly turn and get my cross-hair over someone's head fast but in sims or strategy games like Civilisation, 25 is fine.

Since you have an ATI card, you should download ATI Tray Tools. This excellent utility has a feature, On-Screen Display, that can show information about the card while the game is running. Among heat and memory usage, FPS can be displayed as well.According to this FPS counter, the FSX counter shows only about half the rate. So, as long as FSX shows 8 FPS or more, it is still playable, because we are really getting 15+ FPS.

Not true. It's well-documented that there is a problem with the ATI tools FPS display. The FSX counter is correct.Doug

I think one of the best explanations is at the FS Insider site: http://www.fsinsider.com/Community/News-Ar...-Frame-Rate.htm. I get about the same frames you are getting consistently with my slightly lower end system (Intel P4, 3.6GHz w/2 gigs of RAM and an ATI X800XT PCIe video card w/256 of video memory). I have no complaints but have turned autogen completely off to keep the FPS above 10 most of the time. This is the only adjustment I made to the default settings the ACES team set for my system and I have not encountered stuttering yet. No "tweaks" have been made. I enjoy it very much but believe I'll have to upgrade my system when highly detailed commercial aircraft like those from LevelD, PSS, or PMDG hit the market.Best regards,Jim

Gentleman i too like FSX and i would love to run it , i to wonder why some folks are satisfied with 15 to 20 fps, thats fine if you are fully loaded with add-ons.but be honest most of those guys are flying default craft with very little if any add-ons and are claiming good frame rate , what about the simmer that wants to add more add-ons , will he continue to get good frame rate , thats the one i want to here from.To me FSX is for the average user and not for the guy that wants more because there is no head room...........Robert

> Not true. It's well-documented that there is a problem>with the ATI tools FPS display. The FSX counter is correct.>>DougYou say this with great authority, yet I can find no reference to this "well-documented" problem.Many people, including me, find that FSX performs far better than the FPS counter would indicate. This is purely subjective, however.The real proof is in the fact that the ATI Tray tools FPS counter matches the FS9 counter perfectly.I have yet to see any indication, let alone proof, that the FSX counter is correct.

With autogen on and my sliders on the high side, I usually get 20-22 fps (max set at 220 and on big cities 12-16 fps and completely smooth. So with this in mind I never have the fps counter running. I just enjoy the FSX.Stelios

Back on topic, smoothness in gameplay is purely subjective. If you find the game playable at around 12-14 FPS, then that's fine. For other people that's far from enough. For me, i need "at least" 20 and if possible more before i find it smooth. So people who prefer eyecandy over FPS (always depending on the system), always accept lower FPS because they like a better looking environment instead of smooth gameplay and they will a lot more quickly say that their game play's smooth compared to someone who prefers smoothness over eyecandy.I check smoothness in FSX by the way the ATIS line scrolls. If this line scrolls jerky (and at 20 FPS it still does), overall gameplay isn't smooth either. The higher the FPS goes, the smoother the ATIS line scrolls and the moment it arives at a "superb" smooth scroll, gameplay will be smooth too. But then, that's only my opinion and taste.

So im to believe you have all settings above average and including autogen and you are enjuying 20 to 22 fps, and a drop to 15 to 16 in the cities.sorry that is hard to believe unless of course you using only default.id love to believe that but there are guys with better systems not getting that. So what is the trick or are you just lucky or a good tweaker:).................Robert

Thank you very much for all your responses. I downloaded ATI Tray and it shows pretty much the same FPS as FSX does - give or take 1-2 FPS. My ATIS runs totally smooth on top even when I show 8 FPS. I just took out Feelthere's Legacy, outside view over LAX RWY 7 and I got 9.5 FPS and I can barely see any hesitation. That is what is so crazy when some of you say that FSX is unflyable below 18 FPS. Oh well, again thanks for all your help.