Fantastic experience with PMDG 737 and immersion addons

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I just wanted to share how a few addons I recently acquired transformed my experience with MSFS.
Just for background, I started to fly in MSFS on Xbox series X. After developing some basic understanding of flying theory and procedures, and since I was also due for a computer upgrade, I migrated to MSFS on PC (i7-12700K, RTX 3080, 32 GB DDR5, 1TB NVMe). I took advantage of the large catalog of 3rd-party airplanes to start flying almost exclusively on the excellent FBW A32nx.

After three months, I decided to finally take the plunge to acquire a paid airliner, the PMDG 737-600. This aircraft completely changed my experience on the simulator. While the FBW A32 was excellent and FPS friendly, I always experienced micro stutters, which somewhat broke immersion. The PMDG completely eliminated those stutters and since then, I never found the need to even look at FPS again given how smooth my flying experience has become.

This positive experience motivated me to spend more time on flight planning. While I do not subscribe to Navigraph, I developed some familiarity with Simbrief and Little Navmap. This may sound redundant but Little Navmap provided the added ability to follow my flight elevation and trajectory on a map and to better build/understand my fight plan.

Recently, I started to consider addons for increasing immersion. I was gifted licenses for Rex Real Global Airport Textures and Rex Accuseason. Again, those are little things that improved the visuals of the simulator and had zero impact on performance. ILastly, I added GSX Pro and PACX, which added one more level of immersion by providing ground crew activity and crew-passengers interactions during flight.

So, what’s the take-home message here?

  • First, acquiring the PMDG 737-600 provided a transformative stutter-free flying experience, and for the price, it’s totally worth it.
  • Second, the PMDG 737-GSX Pro-PACX-Rex Accuseason-Rex Airport textures combo creates a high level of immersion in the game without sacrificing performance.

I thought that sharing my experience may help some simmers who are hesitant before taking the plunge and getting into purchasing addons. Not all addons are equal, but the right combination can really improve how the sim is running and the overall flying experience!

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I think it is awesome that you are having such a great time enjoying this hobby. I love it as well, including the PMDG 737 series :smiley:

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Welcome to wonderful world of 737 driving. One of my favorite aircraft in the sim and irl. When adding in the extras, this sim is Amazing. I cannot get enough flight time, there are not enough hours in the day. ’ :crazy_face: :canada:

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“I cannot get enough flight time, there are not enough hours in the day.” → I cannot agree more with this statement.

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I recommend adding FS2Crew to the mix as well. Use the voice control adds to the immersion factor.

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I reckon a natural progression is on to Vatsim
when you’re confident and ready. That’s a whole new and very realistic world for you to engage in.

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+1 for PMDG.

I bought their DC-6 aircraft ($$$!) but they obviously put the time into it to make it a first-rate aircraft model that’s worth the money.

I also like the “automagic flight crew” feature which allows you to delegate tasks to the other crew members in the same way you would do IRL.  That way you can concentrate on flying instead of twiddling knobs when you should be “head up” paying attention to what you’re doing.

Do their other models include this feature?

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I have just purchased one of the PMDG 737’s, I am so glad that I did, after a long deliberation. Two applications that have transformed my use of MSFS recently are Flo Pro and AviaServer which I purchased yesterday for approximately 11GBP.

There is an overhead panel available for the 737 too, I use a TrackIR and don’t feel that I need the overhead panel. A TrackIR is by far, providing the most transformative experience in flight simulation, ‘period’.

Charles

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I have been considering head tracking for a while. I actually tested the free solution consisting of my webcam and the free openTrack software but did not really like it (tuning was a bit of a pain). What head tracking solution do you recommend? Is TrackIR superior to devices sold on eBay for $80 (e.g., https://www.ebay.com/itm/204094368910?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=8640jt90rgq&sssrc=2047675&ssuid=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY)?

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Personally I gravitate to what I know, the TrackIR is the solution for me. I have the second generation version and not the latest hardware. Setting up the TrackIR is a ‘doddle’. I can always supply you with a MSFS2020 profile that I use in the simulator. I would just leave a copy in my Dropbox account for anyone to download however, there are so many of the profiles available. I believe the latest hardware incarnation is the TrackIR 5. Don’t buy the, (Manufacturers) three pronged ‘clip-on’ the side of a headset version with the three LED lights. It’s apparently a little fragile. You can make one yourself, plenty of instructions on the internet.

I bought something called a Delan Clip, its very robust and made of steel and just plugs into a USB port on your computer to power three LED’s. Here is the link to the Delan Clip. The Delan Clip will last you a life-time


I use a piece of double-sided foam tape to stick my Delan clip on the side of my reading glasses, or on the side of my cordless headphones. Sometimes I wear my headphones horizontally, (cordless Bluetooth) with the clip stuck on the side of the headphone arm. The band of the headphone that would go over the top of your head now goes around the front of your forehead, I hope you get my ‘drift’.

If the Ebay TrackIR is deemed to be fit for purpose and from a trusted source, it would make a good start for you with a Delan Clip.

I have the Delan Clip starter package shown on the website link.

BRGDS

Charles.

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While you are correct in that the free solution you mentioned can be a pain to tune I found YouTube videos which helped me tune it to my liking (sometimes even copying their settings outright). Not only was the price right (free!), there is nothing to connect to your head for tracking and works great using a large 55" LED TV/monitor. I have also found the accuracy very good, has no issues when I wear glasses and also works great across bright and low light conditions. The software runs in the background using very little resources (at least on my 5900x CPU) and is very stable and best of all does not impact FPS or create stuttering.

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i agree the PMDG 737 is the best addon i have the hangar, performance is excellent compared to other complex planes

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I really reccomend vr and buttkicker to really elevate the immersion ten folds:)

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When I wanted to get a head tracker over a year ago, TrackIR was out of stock from all the retailers, and their website estimated a 2-4 week delay for direct orders. Instead, I went with a semi-hobbyist solution from Grass Monkey Simulations. It uses the same exact basic tech as TrackIR (IR-emitting LEDs worn on a head-mounted transmiter) and an IR-compatible dedicated webcam-like device. The basic setup I got was like $80 and I had it about 3 days after ordering. Used with OpenTrack software and starter config files available from his website, it took me about a half an hour to come up with a working calibration curve for my personal montor setup and viewing distance, and a couple of days to get used to using it. Now I absolutely cannot fly without it.

Absolutely no hate for any other solution, just a very satisfied customer of a small hobby-oriented seller making good stuff at affordable prices.

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