Xbox to PC worth it?

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Since the last few weeks, I’m experiencing all sorts of bugs on Xbox. I’m currently playing on Xbox series X. Before the last Sim update, it was better. I’m tired of the frequent crashes while flying.I’m tired of the turtle beach Trim wheel pegging nose down, I’m tired of the Photogrammetry popping in my face when flying in Area with a lot of details and now the Airbus V2 freezes completely when trying to upload the flight plan On the MCDU.

So we all already know that on PC you have better Add-ons, joystick compatibility, Pilot edge, VR or headTracking and a lot more airplanes. But my question is regarding the graphics and performance. Is it going to be better on a gaming PC or I will still have some crashes From times to times and photogrammetry popping in my face? Are you experiencing all sorts of bugs on PC? I mean for people who did the change from Xbox to PC are you happy with the experience right now?

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Hi there, Here’s a nice link you might be interested in…That should be able to answer your questions…

Biting the bullet and migrating from Xbox to PC - A Journal - Discussion Hub / General Discussion - Microsoft Flight Simulator Forums

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From a reliability standpoint, it’s going to be about the same as on your Xbox, but the up side is you can often diagnose and fix (or at least improve) the issues. It’ll be frustrating, but doable and you’ll have plenty of people here to help. I’m pretty sure that trim wheel issue you mentioned is universal, though.

For the photogrammetry popping, you’ll have the ability to increase your level of details to help with that, but those will heavily affect your CPU load and often cause performance losses.

You can run the sim on a wide range of computer specs, but I would suggest you hold off unless you have a large budget. If you buy a mid-tier machine or less, don’t expect much extra fidelity over the Xbox. If you are wanting a noticable boost in fidelity and performance, then plan to spend $2000 or more if buying a new system to make it worth the effort. So a 7800x3d CPU, 7800XT/4070ti or better GPU (depending screen on resolution), at least 32 GB of fast ram, and lots of storage are things to put on your short list of specs. Otherwise consider the used market if you are on a budget, which can still net you good performance at much lower cost.

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I made the switch at the beginning or March. I average about 3-4hrs a day on the sim, most days —I can count on one hand the number of CTDs I’ve had from loading screens, and I’ve yet to experience one while actually playing.

If you have a good budget, and realistic expectations, MSFS on PC is a big step up from Xbox Series X. First thing that hits you is just how far the detail stretches into the distance — way better than Xbox! Then add a ton of freeware and payware mods that aren’t available for console, and you have the complete package.

I spent £2,400 (roughly $3,100) on my machine, and use it exclusively for MSFS. I had it custom-built, to include: MSI 670E motherboard; AMD Ryzen 7800X3D CPU; AMD Radeon 7900XTX GPU; 48gb RAM; 2TB SSD.

When I said “realistic expectations”, just be aware that there is currently no PC that will run MSFS perfectly, all of the time. Areas such as NYC can still be stuttery wherever you have multiple add-ons in a concentrated area. The Ryzen 7800X3D is considered the very best gaming CPU on the market, and the Radeon 7900XTX second only to the mighty Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 (and about on a par with the 4080) — but I still encounter significant fps drops in certain locations. Luckily such demanding places are few and far between in the sim and I typically average around 50-80fps at most third-party airports; but can top 100fps while flying over default or PG terrain.

Also be aware that you might experience some serious frustration as you begin to set your new PC up to run MSFS. It will quickly make you realise just how simple everything is on Xbox! I spent my first two weeks fiddling with every setting I could find (largely based on some excellent advice given here) because my new multi-thousand pound PC was running the sim worse than my Series X did! Several weeks (and lots more tweaking) later, and it’s running beautifully. But I was still fiddling with settings till just a couple of weeks ago — I don’t think you ever stop if you’re a framerate chaser!

Do I regret the move? Absolutely not. The differences aren’t massive but they’re enough to make the PC version of MSFS the complete experience. No more black screens; and no more CTDs just as you’re about to land after a 7hr flight! You can belt around with the drone to your heart’s content, without ever having to worry about whether your system’s gonna give up on you…

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As someone who migrated from PC to Xbox, PC is the superior experience except for cost, and the amount of tinkering you must do on a PC compared to a console.

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I can’t imagine how frustrating it would be for me not being able to tinker. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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I just wish I’d made the switch a year earlier.

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Made the switch in late May…. Wish I wouldn’t have waited this long. It’s been a smooth, no CTD experience for me.

Oh and I highly recommend adding a Tobii eye tracker. So nice being able to look around without the mouse.

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Absolutely worth it in my opinion, made the switch a couple days after it was released on XBOX.

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Definitely worth it. I’ve got family members who started out on Xbox, but quickly became frustrated with the lack of modding ability and the usual problems people have faced. Plus, the PC version opens the door to the glorious world of freeware.

I often wonder if Microsoft could profit from a so called ‘Xbox Series FS’. :thinking:

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It was absolutely worth it.

I convinced myself for way too long that the significant expense was not going to bring me that better of an experience.

I was wrong.

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I went from PC to Xbox X and couldn’t be happier. Unless you spend a minimum of $1500 on a PC you’re gonna get better visuals on Xbox X. I’d wait till 2024 to make a decision.

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I waited until 3 months ago myself. It’s worth it if you BUY ENOUGH MACHINE.

It will not be perfect even on 4090, and there’s a heck of a lot of tinkering and time involved. Plus, peripherals will begin to multiply and procreate.

However, PC is essentially beating MSFS 2020 into submission. It is hard to say when they optimize/modernize 2024 if we’ve way overbuilt(as they fully intend to squeeze everything added into 2024 into the same XB).

IF you are willing to budget to go higher end, it won’t matter either way. If you are tight on budget, it may be even more frustrating than XB. Again, you almost need to ‘punch through’ so that between all the issues that still pop up with updates, crashes, or your flight just ‘stops’ for 5 seconds for no reason, that the rest of it is ‘worth it’.

Your CORE tiers of what you ‘should’ be buying depend on a few things:
-Staying forever on 1440 single screen or adding additional screens
-Expecting performance at 4K single screen or adding additional screens
-Expecting performance on VR

Building a 1440 machine and then deciding you want to go VR is going to be a disappointing and far more expensive endeavor.

2024 could completely change the best buy budget tiers around. More than likely, any build should see a performance increase with the new sim. But all the current ‘heroes’ may change. I went Nvidia because their software makes things work better than they should, but there’s unknowns like the 7900xtx may become a superstar with improved coding. On paper it should be the best card for this game.

If it is disposable income, then by all means go for it. As with most things, budget defines the experience. It’s different and you are a long-time dedicated PC and need to upgrade, XBSX is pretty much where a minimum ‘4K spec’ PC is right now. If on the other hand if ‘I have $1500 to burn!’ and starting from scratch, I’d probably wait it out.

I’m not a cockpit builder type, but I will say even with all the TB stuff sitting in front of a 55" on XBSX for 2+ years(which was amazingly capable for a console, I’m still impressed), that it’s definitely better on PC. But, if I had stayed linear on the XBSX, even with only 3-4 months I’d have a heck of a lot more flight hours not changing. But then there’s Octavi, head tracking, mods, freeware…

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That has not been my experience.

Sure, it isn’t plug-it-in-and-forget-about-it like an Xbox, but I really do not spend time tinkering with my build. There’s the relatively quick routine of checking for updates — including BIOS and chipset, which are very infrequent — and then I’m right back to it being a very Xbox-like experience where I just use it.

Maybe it’s a self control thing or a quality of build/components thing? I don’t find my PC needs to be “messed with” at all.

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It’s more like 300+ freeware items, tinkering with flight models and sound files, heck deleting every single aviator’s/xb livery, etc. Instead of looking at a dozen FFox models, I culled it down to 4, but then you have to modify the one analog to make analog work on other versions… yada yada. There’s plenty of rabbit holes.

I used to be big into FS about 15 years ago. Then got on XB, then back to PC again, I can’t help but tinker. Pretty much why I went with it on XB in the first place…

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I don’t bother with any of that, I keep a pretty lean and focused install.

I’d rather be flying.

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Being fair, whether it takes an hour or a month to get your PC set up how you want it, once it’s done, it’s no different to playing on Xbox — you turn the machine on, click the MSFS icon… and you’re away!

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My advice is two things: Get an Nvidia 4000 series gpu. It has native frame generation. Nothing else compares right now. Other solutions to getting FG have drawbracks.

Get an AMD 3DX gpu. Cache wins!

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Surely you mean X3D CPU?

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I love the resume function on Xbox though. I never have to wait to start it up unless there’s an update. Just hit the Xbox button on the controller which automatically changes my TV to its input, hit the FS button and go.

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