Wing

I've heard a rumor that Alabeo will be modeling this for FSX/P3D but will be adding a glass cockpit.

I had the same issue, I have a wireless gaming headset and Prepar3D routes the game sound though my desktop speakers (a.k.a my "default device") and the voice sounds through my wireless headset, even if it's turned off.

Since your target audience is children getting their first flight sim experience and you're on a fairly limited budget, I would recommend spending the money on some reliable controller hardware, rather than add-on software. I would invest in a joystick or yoke, throttle, and rudder pedals. CH Products makes very reliable and well-regarded flight simulation hardware. The CH Products Flight Sim Yoke USB has built-in throttle levers and would leave enough room in your budget for rudder pedals. There are cheaper alternatives but they may not hold up as well considering who will be using them. FSX:SE should provide a fine experience for your kids out of the box. Software add-ons like ASN and the A2A Cherokee are must-haves for the serious flight simulator enthusiast, but I think the high-realism nuances they offer will be lost on kids who have never tried a flight simulator before. Also, since you're going to be running it on an i5 laptop, running a complex weather setup like ASN may be too much for your hardware; FSX's built-in weather engine should be more than enough for your target audience. In my opinion it's better to spend the money on reliable controller hardware, then later down the road think about adding some additional add-on aircraft if you have the budget for it.

Make sure to go into FTX Central, click Configure next to Southern California then turn off at least the harbor objects, if not the wind farms and other stuff. The harbor objects are particularly bad because they appear in areas that are already the toughest on your system.

I think Aerosoft SimStarter NG will do it if it bothers you that much.

I've had the exact same experience... glad it's not just me.

Also consider the Flysimware Cessna 402C. It's not the best looking thing out there but does well in every other area and is compatible with the GTN 750. I really wish RealAir would update their piston Duke for P3D.

I feel like I'm back in the third grade.

The hope that I would discover some revelation that will make it not tedious and annoying. I was compelled to get into X-Plane because there are several aircraft available for it that sadly aren't available for FSX/P3D--the vFlyteAir Grumman Traveler and the AeroSphere Seminole to name a couple. I really want to like it, it does some to have its own set of strengths and weaknesses, and a lot of people seem to be pretty passionate about it. I've invested some money and I'm not ready to delete it from my hard drive yet, so other people's experience with it interest me.

Unless you've spent megabucks on a full motion sim then debating which sim has the most realistic turbulence model based on sitting at a desk looking at a computer screen manipulating a flaccid joystick is pretty silly to me since you get none of the sensations or seat-of-your-pants feedback that you get in a real aircraft. I did most of my flight training around southern California and flew around the Ventura mountains many times. I certainly encountered my share of turbulence, sometimes pretty violent, especially when the Santa Anas were in full force. It never made me want to poop my pants though. X-Plane doesn't feel like that to me. X-Plane feels like you're in a row boat bobbing around on the ocean. To me it's tedious and annoying. For the record I'm not one of those people that feels FSX/P3D is like "flying on rails." P3D with ASN and the A2A Cherokee is a glorious combination and feels reasonably legit to me. I don't know how anyone could call that "flying on rails," but maybe if you've been bouncing around in X-Plane for many years then positive stability feels unnatural to you. For me flight simulation is largely the pursuit of that intangible joy I've experienced in real-world aviation. X-Plane doesn't do that for me. If it does it for you then that's great.

I completely agree. If FSX is like riding on rails, then X-Plane is like trying to jockey a butterfly.

You suppose wrong. I also purchased Kerbal and DIRT at a discount because they went on sale, not because they were in Early Access. There is no rule which says developers must sell Early Access games at a discount. http://store.steampowered.com/earlyaccessfaq/ "Some developers will start by offering a discount for buying early while others will charge a premium, depending on their goals and the level of commitment and feedback they desire from Early Access customers." Really really simple: If you don't want to pay full price for something then wait for it to go on sale, and if you don't want to be disappointed by purchasing an unfinished game don't buy it the moment it goes into pre-release. I have no idea what the finished product will be like, but apparently it was only released into Early Access a few hours ago, I wouldn't be too hasty to pass judgement.

You're not paying for Early Access, you're paying for a full copy of the game when it is officially released. Early Access is a bonus.

Seriously? The point of Early Access is so people that are passionate about a particular title can participate in its development. You should be giving feedback to the developers about the issues you encountered, not coming here and complaining that you purchased something that feels unfinished when it is clearly advertised as Early Access.

This is a little off topic but I've had problems with a Saitek throttle messing with my P3D control settings also. Once every 4-5 starts P3D would completely forget my controller assignments and do silly stuff like assigning the aileron axis to my throttle lever. I could fix this by restarting P3D and loading my saved controller assignments again. i thought this was a P3D thing but a few months ago I replaced the Saitek throttle quadrant with a CH Products one because I wanted the six levers for twins, and upon doing this the problem with P3D forgetting my controller assignments completely disappeared. I am 100% with you on the maintenance issue. For me flight simming is something I do for enjoyment, and I personally don't enjoy the "virtual maintenance" aspect of it, although I know that many people do and I think it's pretty amazing that A2A gives that option. I think systems modeling with this degree of realism can be a tremendous training tool for a student pilot; I wish P3D/A2A had been around 35 years ago when I was learning to fly, but as you say, at this point I'd rather focus on other things that I enjoy more than maintenance. If you don't like what's being discussed in this thread, why not just find another one or something?