SlimNasty 0 Posted November 27, 2009 Report Share Posted November 27, 2009 Hi Guys, I am looking to put another PC in the home in the new year (Mid January). I have pretty much decided on spec in a rough way sort of way as follows: either iFire Pro: http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/pc/range/ifire.html or iRiss Pro http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/pc/range/iriss.html However I am considering swapping out the Graphics card as I have always been ATI based here, but on searching the net a lot of forums suggest FSX runs better on an nVidia card, but these forums do look out of date as they are all talking about older cards. What I was planning is putting two SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X HD 4890 2GB GDDR5 PCI-E in crossfire, but have never tried anything like this as my current system is AGP. http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/?psn=000101&pid=263 Does anyone here have an ATI crossfire rig thats similar and if so what does it run at, e.g. what setting are you on, screen mode and how many FPS do you get? Or does anyone else have any views on the modern ATI against nVidia cards? You will need to remember I play a lot of other games too like, COD4, Test Drive Unlimited, Command & Conquer, Assassins Creed, the list goes on.... Also my FSX is fairly upgraded with add-ons like a few Mega Airports, VFR London, plus some aircraft packs, not to mention Air Hauler... I look forward to reading your posts guys... Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,498 Posted November 27, 2009 Report Share Posted November 27, 2009 Hi Phil, Gotta say I have always used nVidia cards. As far as FSX is concerned, I understand that SLI or Crossfire will be of no benefit. But as you say, things have moved on a bit recently so with the faster boards and memory they might be better able to cope with SLI and Crossfire. I assume you will be getting 64bit Windows 7? Have a look on Tom's hardware http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/for the latest updates, I haven't been on there for a while. Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted November 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2009 Hi Phil,Gotta say I have always used nVidia cards. As far as FSX is concerned, I understand that SLI or Crossfire will be of no benefit. But as you say, things have moved on a bit recently so with the faster boards and memory they might be better able to cope with SLI and Crossfire. I assume you will be getting 64bit Windows 7? Have a look on Tom's hardware http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/for the latest updates, I haven't been on there for a while. Cheers Hi M8, I have had a quick look on there, seems hard to find latest cards with FSX data, but it certainly looks like the nVidia cards run FSX better, but it was interesting to read that CPU is very important for FSX too, I may have to push for a i7 2.66Ghz instead as I should get better performance with that... I have until January to decide, but whatever I buy/build it will need to last me a few years.... Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,498 Posted November 27, 2009 Report Share Posted November 27, 2009 Phil, If FSX is your main interest then yes, go for the fasted CPU you can afford, I have got a single card, 768Mb nVidia Gx260 couple with an i7 965 Extreme and I can't fault it! Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted November 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2009 Phil,If FSX is your main interest then yes, go for the fasted CPU you can afford, I have got a single card, 768Mb nVidia Gx260 couple with an i7 965 Extreme and I can't fault it! Cheers nice rig I pretty much load AH everyday, but not necessarily FSX, but FSX is the only game which is struggling on my PC, you can hear it creek... I'm pretty sure I can't afford your CPU, so will probably end up with the i7 920 @ 2.66GHz as it supports triple channel memory where as the i7 860 whilst running at 2.8GHz only supports dual channel. So the i7 920 will let me add 6GB of ram in triple channel mode which can only help. In regards to graphics I have been ATi for so many years I think the last nVidia card I had was a voodoo.... lol. I can only assume that nVidia works better with FSX due to some internal instructions and processes that the ATi cards don't have, probably something like PhysX. I can probably afford the 275 from gainward, maybe even two, but will need to do my sums... In regards to motherboard I will probably go for something like an ASUS as they are one of the better makes. Case and power supply I am toying over, might get another Thermaltake or might try something different not sure. Also Hard Drive will probably be a western digital with 1TB, or maybe two depending on my budget... It's more than likely going to be mid January which is a shame as have some time off over Christmas so would have loved to have it before then. Link to post Share on other sites
SEATAC 400 Posted November 28, 2009 Report Share Posted November 28, 2009 I used to run ATI exclusively and I switched to Dual Nvida cards when I upgraded to 64 bit quad core. Works great and I play other games besides FSX. Nvidia's are a bit better than ATI I think. Also, if you use Intel moherboard and CPU nvidia are a better choice. Asus motherboards are top notch. You may want to check out Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted November 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2009 I used to run ATI exclusively and I switched to Dual Nvida cards when I upgraded to 64 bit quad core.Works great and I play other games besides FSX. Nvidia's are a bit better than ATI I think. Also, if you use Intel moherboard and CPU nvidia are a better choice. Asus motherboards are top notch. You may want to check out Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,498 Posted November 29, 2009 Report Share Posted November 29, 2009 I work for a major PC manufacturer here in the UK called Novatech.... Phil you have just become my best friend!! I'm often in Novatech, must have spent a fortune in there! very handy for me. Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted November 29, 2009 Report Share Posted November 29, 2009 As Uncle Mutley said, Crossfire or SLI is of 'almost' no benefit in flight sim. Perhaps a tad at high resolutions but not much and certainly not worth the expense of two cards. In games yes, but not in the sim. You WILL be disappointed if you expect two cards to be of benefit in the sim. It's always been the tradition in flight sim to regard nVidia as king. Whether that's really the case is open to debate, especially considering the best cards around at the moment in terms of power, are ATI. Many use ATI and are happy, they are usually cheaper as well. I wouldn't write off ATI just because some in the flight sim community are traditionalists. I may be buying a card around January, currently I have nVidia, but I won't dismiss ATI. Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted November 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2009 As Uncle Mutley said, Crossfire or SLI is of 'almost' no benefit in flight sim. Perhaps a tad at high resolutions but not much and certainly not worth the expense of two cards. In games yes, but not in the sim. You WILL be disappointed if you expect two cards to be of benefit in the sim.It's always been the tradition in flight sim to regard nVidia as king. Whether that's really the case is open to debate, especially considering the best cards around at the moment in terms of power, are ATI. Many use ATI and are happy, they are usually cheaper as well. I wouldn't write off ATI just because some in the flight sim community are traditionalists. I may be buying a card around January, currently I have nVidia, but I won't dismiss ATI. It has been interesting seeing what people have put here and on other forums which I have been scanning and it has steered me in a different direction as originally I was going to go crossfire purely to increase graphics memory for FSX, but it doesn't seem to make a different, so by not going that route I will save Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted November 30, 2009 Report Share Posted November 30, 2009 CPU power is the requirements for the sim, it's CPU bound. The GPU does make a difference, but not to the degree the CPU does. As for your ram... I have been running FSX since it was released with no issues like yours at all. And thats with 2gb RAM. I suspect your OOM issues are from other causes, unless you are plotting a trajectory to mars in the background. I believe scenery issues can cause OOM issues. Along with other software issues. Increasing memory helps to a degree, but people get far too obsessed with memory and assume it will boost their performance when in many cases it won't. You need enough for your needs, more isn't necessarily better. There's some OOM advice here, a little way down from the top... Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted November 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2009 CPU power is the requirements for the sim, it's CPU bound. The GPU does make a difference, but not to the degree the CPU does.As for your ram... I have been running FSX since it was released with no issues like yours at all. And thats with 2gb RAM. I suspect your OOM issues are from other causes, unless you are plotting a trajectory to mars in the background. I believe scenery issues can cause OOM issues. Along with other software issues. Increasing memory helps to a degree, but people get far too obsessed with memory and assume it will boost their performance when in many cases it won't. You need enough for your needs, more isn't necessarily better. There's some OOM advice here, a little way down from the top... Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted December 2, 2009 Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 Incidentally, and regarding ATI cards again... even Nick Needham, [GEX developer] who advocated nVidia for a long time, now speaks favorably of the 5800 series. It's in the same link I gave you. Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2009 Incidentally, and regarding ATI cards again... even Nick Needham, [GEX developer] who advocated nVidia for a long time, now speaks favorably of the 5800 series. It's in the same link I gave you. Hi Martin, I think budget is going to restrain me from getting any of the high end cards and I am probably leaning towards a nVida 275 card now as they are reasonably priced, the ATI alternative for me would have to be 4890 and I don't think there is a lot between them, so a change to nVidia isn't a bad thing, I hope lol... I am also restricted as to what I is in stock around the 15th of this month or what I can get in stock around that date, as want to build it and use over Christmas. Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 Hi Guys, Okay I think I have just about made my decision on what I am upgrading too and should hopefully be able to afford it all next week, as long as I get paid all my bonuses... i5 @ 2.66 Ghz MSI Motherboard GD65 with Intel P55 Chipset nVidia GTX 275 Graphics Card with 896MB Ram 8GB DDR3 memory set in Dual Channel 1TB Western Digital Hard Drive Thermaltake Soprano Case (matches my Thermaltake Tsunami case with my current PC) OCZ 500w Silent Power Supply (SLI Ready) LG Blue Ray Reader/DVD RW Optical Drive Logitech Wireless Keyboard and Mouse Windows 7 Home Premium Now I am pretty sure I haven't forgotten anything and it should give me room to add a second graphics card and another 1TB Hard Disk later on. Hopefully this will run FSX and all my other games a dream, I don't see why not as I am jumping up from a dual 3GHZ AMD machine with 2GB Ram and an AGP ATI 3850 graphics card with 512 MB. I can't wait to get building it and installing everything... Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted December 11, 2009 Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 The only thing I'd say is if you can go for an i7, then do. An i7, especially moderately overclocked is the CPU of choice. What was the cost if you don't mind me asking? Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 The only thing I'd say is if you can go for an i7, then do. An i7, especially moderately overclocked is the CPU of choice.What was the cost if you don't mind me asking? The cost is about Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 i7 = Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 15, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 i7 = Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,498 Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 Hey Phil, Congrats on getting the new PC at last, well deserved I'm sure for all the business you pull in for Novatech. Looks like a great spec although I don't know much about the i5, you must keep us up together with how it performs with FSX as there must be other people considering this option too. By the way, I wanted to buy a Soundblaster card last weekend and couldn't believe Novatech don't sell them any more, only Asus and own brand. I've gone off the idea now, just as well none were stocked as it was going be be an impulse purchase to overcome a problem I have with filming a video last week end but I found another get around! Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Hey Phil,Congrats on getting the new PC at last, well deserved I'm sure for all the business you pull in for Novatech. Looks like a great spec although I don't know much about the i5, you must keep us up together with how it performs with FSX as there must be other people considering this option too. By the way, I wanted to buy a Soundblaster card last weekend and couldn't believe Novatech don't sell them any more, only Asus and own brand. I've gone off the idea now, just as well none were stocked as it was going be be an impulse purchase to overcome a problem I have with filming a video last week end but I found another get around! Cheers Hi M8, I will post some more info on my system as and when, only installed Call of Duty 4 so far which is pulling an amzing 180 - 250 FPS, but won't load multiplayer as there is a bug and it doesn't like the Realtek sound drivers. In regards to Creative Soundcards, it's not just Novatech it is everywhere as Creative Labs has pulled out of Europe as the demand for their cards was only in High End Gamers machines due to better on board sound these days, there isnt much call for sound cards. Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 yeah but when you spec that up to what I wanted it was a hell of a lot more...I Have bought everything today and it is up and running: Fair enough. Hope you enjoy it. Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 yeah but when you spec that up to what I wanted it was a hell of a lot more...I Have bought everything today and it is up and running: Fair enough. Hope you enjoy it. Oh I will do don't you worry. I have installed about half of my packs for Flight Sim so far, hopefully get the rest on tonight and then copy across my data saturday with any luck. Not sure I have got everything right though as installed some plane packs last night and if you turn on direct x 10 preview mode the textures on the planes don't load. very strange, will need to have a look into that also. might be because im on windows 7 64 bit with direct x 11 installed... Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 hi Guys, I am finally back in business again. It has taken me most of this week to re-install all my flight sim stuff back onto the PC, had a minor problem when I installed AH, but after having a browse on Just Flight Forum I found the answer, it was an invalid path to my FSX Folder. Just about tweaked it all up and running SlimAir Logistics again. I am getting between 20 - 70 FPS depending on whether I am at a busy airport or at 30,000 ft. I have also upped all the settings and it has really settled down, no problems so far with out of memory crashing FSX or .net issues which is great. Funnily though I can't seem to get DX 10 Preview running as if I turn it on both my Airbus Collectors Edition and F-Lite 747 - 200/300 aircraft load without any textures which is naff. So I have left it off. I will update the SlimAir Logistics site soon as my AI pilots were grounded during the upgrades and have only just started taking on jobs. Oh got an Airbus A380 F for one of them too.... Link to post Share on other sites
SlimNasty 0 Posted December 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2009 Hi Guys, Okay I think I have this system running just about right now. Tonight I had Air Hauler Running, REX 2 sending weather information to FSX with FSX running with fairly high settings and I was getting an easy 30 FPS + whilst having MSN, Explorer 8, Live Mail and copying 34.7 GB of files across my LAN all at the same time. My CPU was jumping from about 70% most of the time and I still had almost 4.5GB of RAM left to use. Hmmm now what else can I run at the same time... Oh and whilst FSX was on auto pilot, I build a really old third PC, now that's what I call multitasking... Link to post Share on other sites
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