May be over my head

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I used the very first MS flight simulator, and it wasn’t my first, which was an IFR flight simulator for the Vic 20, so I was excited to see the current version… but after a couple of months, I’m afraid it is a bit too much for this casual user.

I went through the multi-hour install process, and eventually managed to figure out the basics. I was impressed by the graphics (even at their lowest setting), and gameplay, but the amount of flying I am able to do before a crash (of the program) is just too low relative to the time I spend waiting for FS to launch, update, etc., and I am not sure what to do.

I would like to just leave FS installed for those occasions when I feel really motivated, but ever since I installation, it seems that my computer has some sort of network activity going constantly, even when the task manager says there is no network traffic. This may have nothing to do with flight sim, but it would be nice to be reassured that FS is not consuming system resources when not running. Often when I launch FS, I see a message stating that it is already running, which seems to indicate that it might be part of the problem.

I would gladly transfer the license to some other user, but I am guessing that such things are not permitted. The other option is to simply uninstall, and take the loss.

Any advice on what to do in my situation would be appreciated. I don’t mean to be disparaging… the program seems wonderful for anyone who has the time to devote to it!

BTW, I think I have a reasonably powerful computer (3.6GHZ core i9, 32GB RAM, 5GB Quadro graphics card), and I have the graphics and gameplay set to be very simple and forgiving, but this doesn’t help.

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This one imo isn’t reasonable for MSFS even on lowest settings. It might be powerful for its own applications, but it’s not a gaming card - too little memory and inadequate memory interface (160-bit if I’m not mistaken?).

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I’m afraid @ZdenniZ is correct not the GPU to be running a software this demanding.The CUDA,memory bandwidth plays a big role.Your Vram is also on the low side.
Maybe get a better GPU?

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Argh. I feel for you.
I see that the solution to your problems have already been highlighted.

And yes, the sim is so new that it inevitably has bugs [though these are already being addressed].
But I can assure you that, with good enough kit, MSFS 2020 is just wonderful to ‘fly’.
Even right out of the box.

It would be a shame if the community loses you!
So, if you can find the justification for the outlay, upgrade.
You won’t regret it.

Good luck.

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You can grab a Radeon RX 5700 XT Gaming OC 8G (rev 2.0) for $419 right now… this is similar to the card I use to run the software. I have had very few issues since release, and I’ll go out on a limb and say none of them seem to be related to the graphics card.

As mentioned, the Quadro is a fine card for business applications (i.e. Illustrator - it is what we use at work) but is not designed for gaming. As much as some folks think “gaming” is a dirty word when describing Flight Sim (or simulation software in general) the bottom line is that you will have better results with a card tuned for gaming, and with as much fast VRAM as you can get.

The 5700XT uses GDDR6; the Quadro uses GDDR5. The difference in throughput is double for GDDR6 vs. GDDR5. That by itself (for this software) should make a big difference.

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That would have most likely been SubLOGIC. It was barely usable on the C-64, but worked reasonably well on the Amiga. I didn’t even know they did a V-20 version. :slight_smile: Must have been excruciating to use.

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That sounds familiar. I just texted my dad to see if he can find it and send me a photo. I can’t remember if it was a cartridge or a cassette.

If I recall correctly, you couldn’t see anything, but when you crashed, the windshield cracked.

Edit: Yes, it was excruciating, but this was the norm at the time. I also still recall the ~1FPS screen updates on MS Flight Sim on my PC Jr:-)

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Thanks to everyone for their replies. It is great to know that there is such a supportive community! I will definitely consider getting a second computer if I am able. My main computer is a CAD workstation, and since the Quadro cards seemed more costly than gaming cards, I thought I was in good shape.

Aside from the issue of computer slugishness, another serious frustration was that one of the scenery updates seems to have reset some of my preferences, and now I have to figure out how to turn off the autopilot and the cockpit warnings again.

Also, I was really surprised that I couldn’t find a reference card for the keyboard commands on the internet. Perhaps most users have a fancy setup with a yoke and pedals.

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You guys are hilarious with this quadro nonsense. I, as well as plenty of other people, have run quadro’s in MSFS without, extra, issue since the alpha days. I run a 5gb p2000 without issue (CTD for unknown reasons) at ~30 fps on 1080 medium/high when I’m too lazy to change the GPU out after work. It’s been just as reliable if not more than my 2060S in terms of CTD. Although, aside from the known CTD causes, I havent had many others.

To the op, have you tried running your quadro on geforce drivers to see if you see any difference?

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I’m using a GTX 1070 on ultra settings which can be had for not much money. Runs it fine.

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Thanks for your suggestion. I don’t feel comfortable enough with these things to change the graphics card drivers… but in truth, my problem was less with the performance while flying than it was with the 5 minutes it took between launching the program and starting to fly… and I found the user interface to be pretty, but not very intuitive for an infrequent or new user.

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GTX1070 on Ultra? As in ALL the settings are as high as they can go and all the eye candy turned on with all the AI traffic in densely populated areas? How? What’s your screen resolution?

I’ve got a 1070ti and my system can run it about generally medium high at about 22fps at 4K, with occasional CTDs due to the GPU throttling back.

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well this is definitely not a gpu issue haha. The game is definitely long in the startup screens.

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It has gotten much better (I’d guess 30% faster ) with the last 2 updates. OP are you running the game from a HDD? If so, there’s your problem. NVME M.2 drive if your motherboard will accept one.

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Thanks. This sounds like great advice!

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My experience is if you want all that MSFS has to offer you need the latest and greatest you can afford with tons of ram and memory etc etc. Unfortunately this game is not for the lower end of computer rigs, which is a shame.

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Several reviews said before release that there is currently no hardware available to consumers at any price that can run this sim full tilt. But then that seems to be historically accurate for ALL versions of FS. It’s always been a resource hog and always been a compromise between FPS and eye candy.

It used to be used in benchmarks, and I’ve seen a few graphics card reviews, mostly Nvidia’s RTX 3XXX series cards, that include it in their evaluations. It ALWAYS has the lowest FPS rates of all the games they test. :sleepy:

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Yep! On ultra with all the defaults that are set for ultra. I’m only doing 1080 though and not 4K and I don’t fly the heavy iron, just GA planes, and about the biggest airport I use is like KBWI or KCLT. Medium size I guess. The huge airports like JFK or O’Hare just aren’t my cup of tea. I kind of like floating down between the trees but I can fly over Chicago or NYC. But getting close to those huge airports slows me down too much so I steer clear. If I stay like 5 miles away from them it works fine. Also I usually don’t fly with AI because those buggers never get off the runway fast enough. Usually I fly with all players, live traffic, and live weather. Most of the time I am off the beaten path though. Guess you can’t take the country out of the girl! LOL! :slight_smile: (example here: Paderborn Area Formation Flight MSFS - YouTube )

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Same here. I have 28 hours in a 152 back in the early 90s and my uncle had a Cherokee that he would take me up in when I was a kid. That’s my kind of flying. I live vicariously as a private pilot through FS. Have no desire for airliners or multi-prop or turbo-prop airplanes. VFR only. That’s why MSFS is great, lovely realistic scenery to look at. IRL though there’s not much time for gawking out the windows lol. Much safer and cheaper and enjoyable in a sim.

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Also I’m running 4K on the 1070ti so that’s 4x the pixels than 1080. I could turn my rez down but 4K on a 27” screen 18” from my face looks amazing. I’ll be right there with you in the FPS department once I upgrade to a RTX 3080. Someday…sigh.

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