I had this PC custom built to play FS2020 in VR using Pimax Crystal headset. I fly with the Turtle Beach Velocity One stick and throttle.
I will note that I also have this problem with other games. I have seen it religiously occur with Cities Skylines II, usually after 8-10 minutes of play. I also had it happen within a few minutes of launching “Enlisted,” a MMO game. And it happens in FS2020 USUALLY and OFTEN when I am in the menu AFTER I have ended a flight and I select another aircraft to fly. However, it sometimes happens during flight.
This problem ALSO happens when when I am NOT flying in VR. The only other commonality is the Turtle Beach Velocity One flight stick.
Originally, I suspected this was due to a known issue with the Intel i91400K processor. However, I have returned by PC to Cyberpower TWICE for inspection and replacement of the processor. The BIOS Is updated to the latest version, which Intel claims is fixed.
At this time, and on my third processor, the problem persists. The only changes to my system from factory settings is the installation of FS2020.
I am beside myself with concern over this problem. I have spent $4,000 and months of repair turnarounds to have a system that can run FS2020 the way I want to fly, and it fails at doing so.
Strangely, when I revert to my old PC, which is an i7 processor, I can fly with my HP Reverb G2, and the Velocity One flight stick it works great.
Steam Version of the game.
Other stats:
Operating System: Windows 11 Home 64-bit
System Manufacturer: Micro-Star International Co., Ltd.
Thank you for this report. We’ve moved your topic into the User Support Hub.
The Bug Reporting Hub is for posting suspected or confirmed bugs that other users are able to reproduce without duplicating an existing bug report. Using the template or providing all the relevant information about your bug and sim setup is required in order to provide valuable information, feedback, and replication steps to our test team.
If you are not sure if your issue is a bug or need further input from the community, please use the User Support Hub category. If the community can replicate your issue, first search the Bug category to see if there’s an existing topic. If it already exists, contribute to that report. Duplicate bug reports will be closed.
If you believe it is a new report and no duplicate exists, then create a new bug topic using the provided topic template.
All issues caused by or involving third-party addons/mods should be reported to the third-party developer. Assure that no addons/mods are used when reporting issues in Bug Reports.
some too aggressive BIOS settings with the CPU or RAM.
Usually a crash of the whole computer is in some way hardware-related. Since you already had the CPU changed the RAM chips might be another possible solution. Some RAM chips work better with certain motherboards than orhers.
MSFS might be the linch pin in the end because it puts extremely high strain on CPU and RAM. More than most other games that are designed to run mostly on GPU power. Also MSFS flights are often longer than the average session of many other games, so the strain on the system is continuous. So if there is a slight hardware instability that 99% of software applications won’t have a problem, MSFS is likely to be the one to crash the PC.
Had a similar problem myself and could solve it by setting the RAM 200 MHz lower than their advertised max settings.
You might want to try monitoring CPU and RAM temperatures while playing MSFS and resetting the BIOS to default settings.
What brand and wattage is the PSU? If it’s a no named brand or not powerful enough it could cause your issue. And as another poster has said a BIOS setting that is incorrect could be causing it. Though usually overheating will just cause the system to lockup and not reboot. One thing you can check on your own is to download Memtest 86+. Follow the instructions on making a bootable disk and how to run the program. It will test your memory. Also even though I don’t feel it’s a temperature issue you could always remove the side of the PC case and run MSFS. See if the issue occurs or not.
If you’re also experiencing issues with other games then why post on this forum? It might be more suitable to reach out to MSI forum as MSI is the manufacturer of your motherboard. MSI Intel boards | MSI Global English Forum
Also, you forgot to specify the exact model of your RAM and which slots it is installed in. Additionally, you didn’t mention details about your PSU and your monitor.
The fact that your PC restarts suggests that a BSOD (Blue Screen of Death).
To view the BSOD instead of having your PC automatically restart, follow these steps:
Open File Explorer (you can do this by pressing Windows Key + E
Right-click on “This PC” and select “Properties”.
Click on “Advanced system settings” on the right.
Under the “Startup and Recovery” section, click “Settings”.
Uncheck the box that says “Automatically restart” under the “System failure” section.
PSU: THERMALTAKE TOUGHPOWER GF3 1650W 80+ GOLD FULL MODULAR W/ PCIE 12+4PIN CONNECTOR POWER SUPPLY
RAM: TEAM T-FORCE DELTA 16GB DDR5-6000MHZ RGB BLACK
BIOS is factory settings, BIOS: A.F1, which Intel rolled out to repair instability issues with the i9-14900K.
In previous attempts to monitor temperatures, I would get a crash regardless of temp. Based on that, I am skeptical that temperature is the culprit. Also, programs such as Cities Skylines II should not spike temperature, and especially not after 8-10 minutes.
The PC came from Cyberpower. It has a liquid cooling core. They build these PCs professionally, and are a major custom builder, so I would be surprised if they allow something to roll out that isn’t workable. In fact, your options are limited to what will work. Any non-working configuration, such as selecting too weak a cooling system, will gray out and become unselectable.
I can fly for awhile without a reboot. However, when I select another plane for a second flight, I almost always get an instant crash to black and reboot. This also happens when I have made only a short flight of a couple minutes.
The RAM is something I suspect, but I do not know how to check if this is the cause. My RAM is well above the minimum required, but how do I test it?
For the record, I have sent yet another email to Cyberpower on this issue.
The PC is still under repair warranty, so any issues with it are still theirs to repair. That would include the motherboard.
What is surprising to me is that they have not checked these issues themselves. They claim to do testing before the machine leaves the shop, but I have no idea what that really means. Obviously, the test is insufficient because it is not catching this issue.
You would be surprised at how often these prebuilt systems have issues.
I would first try setting a frame cap in Nvidia control panel. Try for around 30fps and then in the sim turn your render resolution down. This will let your system run at an artificially reduced power level. If it’s stable this way, you could be having a power supply issue. I would expect that power supply to be strong enough, so I would focus more on making sure EVERYTHING is plugged in to the correct ports and that those plugs are fully inserted. Do the same with your RAM, and make sure they have the sticks (there are two sticks, right?) in every other slot.
Side note: While likely not related to your problem, 16 GB of memory on an otherwise so powerful system is extremely low and could be a bottleneck for you.
I already explained to you how to test the memory. Use Memtest 86+ which is a free program. Their website has instructions on how to use the program. Good luck.
I have 32 GB of RAM, not 16.
I have tried reseating the RAM.
I am running the updated BIOS. It came from Cyberpower’s repair shop with the BIOS updated.
I was using a Turtle Beach Velocity 1 Flight Stick and Throttle. I love that stick, but it has been nothing but trouble. I figured out that it was contributing to the problem. This is because when I would load into FS2020, I would have to unplug and plug back in the stick to get the controls to work properly. Sometimes when I would plug it back in, the system would shut down and repoot instantly.
I revered to using an older stick and throttle (Saitek X56 Rino) and it worked fine, however when making a new aircraft selection in the menu, the system crashed once more.
When I use the same components on my older i7 PC, I have no issues, other than everything is a bit slower, of course.
I am still at a loss, and I do wonder if I need more RAM, or if there is some problem with the power or heat. However, the PC does not seem to be running hot, and I can get the crash if I simply turn on the PC and load FS2020 and try flying.
One final note is that I can usually do one flight without any issues. But when I try to do a second flight, that is when I typically get the crash.
Have you looked at your event viewer yet for any clues? I had a similar situation about a year ago, and that’s how I eventually found the problem. I noticed that every time the system reset during the sim, Logitech Options was also crashing in the background. I didn’t actually need that program, so I uninstalled it as a test and the crash reboots stopped immediately.
My current build had a cooling system that was insufficient to keep the chip cool during heavy load.
The solution was to get a 360mm cooling system, which I installed myself with some difficulty. However, I was successful and I can now run FS2024 without a crash.
The loading times are extremely long after I click “Fly Now,” and the terrain graphics are generic, but hey at least I am flying and I have faith that Microsoft will get the rest of the sim working well over time.
I would like to thank all of you who took time from your limited free time available to help me. I know you could have passed on my questions and spent your time flying, eating, watching TV, or simply enjoying your peace. But instead, you chose to help me, and who knows how many others in the process.