I would like to know if anyone is using a similar computer to mine, and what their frame rates are like. I'm not too thrilled with the frame rates I'm getting, which is on average of 9 to 14. I can't figure out why. I used to use an OLD P3 450mhz. I am currently using a P4 1.7Ghz, but ain't getting much improvement. I would appreciate anyone's help. I'm currently using the computer listed below. My display settings are as follows.Texture Quality = HighTerrain Mesh Complexity = 75Terrain Texture Size = MediumAutogen Density = Extremely DenseScenery Complexity = Extremely DenseDynamic Scenery = Extremely DenseEffects Detail = HighMaximum Visibily = 100 MilesWater Effects = NoneCloud Density = 100I DON'T have "Ground Scenery Cast Shadows" checked.I DO have "Dawn/Dusk Texture Smoothing" checked.I DO have "Extended Terrain Textures" checked.I DO have "Terrain Detail Textures" checked.Thanks for your help. :-)Regards,CostasKLWMDell Dimension 4400 Pentium 4 at 1.7 GHz640MB DDR SDRAM at 266MHzNvidia GeForce2 MX400 (2832)20GB Ultra ATA Hard Drive48x Variable CD-ROM DriveMicrosoft Windows XP

Since I use an AMD 1800+, I can't give you a comparison. However, if you don't have any third party addon dynamic scenery, it is best to deselect dynamic scenery. Dynamic scenery has no effect on any default FS2002 scenery or AI aircraft.

Try turning TERRAIN DETAIL_TEXTURES = OFF and see if anythingimproves? I saw a pretty good improvement.- MylesXP2000+GF4-Ti4600

I have just tried both of the recommendations above, and haven't noticed any frame rate change. Can't figure out what is wrong. :-( Could it be that I have Windows XP? You would think that the amount of RAM that I have would be sufficient.I would hate to lower the settings more, since that is the reason I recently bought a new computer. Regards,CostasKLWMDell Dimension 4400 Pentium 4 at 1.7 GHz640MB DDR SDRAM at 266MHzNvidia GeForce2 MX400 (2832)20GB Ultra ATA Hard Drive48x Variable CD-ROM DriveMicrosoft Windows XP

I think your video card is part of the problem.MX400 are at the low end of the GF2 spectrum. You sould try getting a GF3Ti card I think you will see a difference. GF3 cards are rather affordable these days.http://www.flightsimnetwork.com/dcforum/Us...9d503cc53ab.jpg

yeah it your vid card mine is a voodoo 5 and i get frame rate that never get much higher 35 but i soved the porblem with it crping out to 1 with other panels on

Dear Costas,Although you have plenty of memory, if your running a number of utilities (virus protection software is a killer) that could be hurting performance. Look for IRQ conflicts, that's another source of frustration. Also, I would turn down autogen to very dense. Have you selected to have the aircraft cast shadows? Turning this off can also improve performance. Try some of these and see what happens.As your well aware, upgrading your computer will improve performance, but if you then start turning all your sliders up, performance will go back down again ;). Did you use all the same settings on your previous computer? While we may want the most visually pleasing experience from MSFS, this does come at a price, even on the best systems. Without knowing where you're experiencing low frame rates (intense scenery versus blue sky), it's hard to determine if you may not just be asking more of your system than it can deliver. Best of luck - but don't forget to spend some time just having fun flying (even if those settings have to be turned down). Edit - I'm a slow poster, but I'm not that concerned about your video card. Granted the GF2 MX400s aren't as powerfull as a titanium series card, but they're not all that bad. I have used the same card as you (except it's a PCI version) and I think it actually holds it's own quite well. MSFS is very CPU intensive, and I don't think you'll see the amount of improvement you want with a VC upgrade.Edit 2 - check this post from Alpha, perhaps this will help you too?

Costas,Check my system info within my sig. With the exception of the video card (and the second HD) my system specs were exactly the same when I had the issues you are currently having. I found my issue to be with my video card. At the time I was using a Geforce2 MX400 PCI card. I got absolutely horrible frame rates with that card, and I couldn't figure out why until I upgraded my card. Once I upgraded to a better card FS became unbelievably smooth. SimMan is probably correct in pointing to your video card. It made all the difference in the world with my setup!Edit: I forgot to mention that upon upgrading cards I left the sliders within FS exactly the same and saw my fps increase from 2-3 (no kidding!) to over 20 without any 3rd party add-ons at KLAX. If you're able, you might consider borrowing someone elses card to try before you buy. Just a thought."Learn from your parents' mistake...use birth control."(I M A UCLA) BruinAddict *:-*DemetriousAsus A7V266 MBAthlon XP 1600+ (@ 1.53)512MB PC2100 DDRVisionTek Xtasy GeForce4 Ti 4400 (Detonator 29.42 WHQL)NEC MultiSync E1100+ 21"SoundBlaster Live! Platinum 5.1Cambridge DTT2500 Desk Top TheaterWestern Digital 7200RPM ATA/100 40G HD (Primary)Western Digital 7200RPM ATA/100 40G HD (Secondary)300W PSUWindows XP Professional (Both drives - Multiboot)DirectX 8.1("I am humorous and well versed in the subtleties of everything pertaining to nothing." - BA)

What display resolution are you using?Try 1024x768x16 and see if it makes a difference.I'm getting framerates in the 20s on a 1Gig Celeron and an MX card, so you should be able to do better!

I want to thank everyone for their excellent opinions. I have done 3 things which have given me approximately 5-8 solid frame rates extra. My framerates now are on average from 14-19, which to me is a big improvement. :-)What I did is as follows:I decreased Autogen to Dense.I decreased my display to 800x32.I downloaded the new Nvidia drivers. 29.42 (Awesome Improvement of colors and about 1-2 extra frame rates.Thanks again to everyone. :-walksmileP.S. I should add that I've been using the new Piper Archer II from Dreamfleet, which does reduce frame rates a bit. Regards,CostasKLWMDell Dimension 4400 Pentium 4 at 1.7 GHz640MB DDR SDRAM at 266MHzNvidia GeForce2 MX400 (2942)20GB Ultra ATA Hard Drive48x Variable CD-ROM DriveMicrosoft Windows XP

Hi Demetrious,What a great name! I just wanted to add, for those that read through this post, that when you see frame rates increase from 2 to 20, there is likely something else going on. In your case, with a PCI card, did you ever look for IRQ sharing? I had a PCI card, and saw frames improve from low teens to about 20 when I shelled out the bucks for one of those bad boy cards. Clearly better, but not the improvement I was expecting. After reading multiple posts in this forum, I've come to the conclusion that big improvements are unusual following a VC upgrade.Please don't misunderstand me. I'm very happy that you get much better performance, and it certainly improves the simming experience. I just want to prevent people from spending money to get that big improvement, only to be disappointed later. When possible, work on CPU/memory, as that's where the biggest improvements will come from. :-wave