Delta Virtual Airlines Water Cooler - As Christmas Nears...

Delta Virtual Airlines Water Cooler | PC Support | As Christmas Nears...

DVA12146
Captain, B737-800

Joined on April 19 2014

Crozet, VA

24 legs, 55.1 hours
3 legs, 5.6 hours online
23 legs, 52.9 hours ACARS

Posted onPost created on December 01 2014 16:54 ET by Benjamin Scheiner

As Christmas nears I'm looking at potentially indulging myself and investing in a new rig. Below are the specifications for my current computer, which while adequate to run FS2004 with REX, ASE, and other various sceneries and addons, obviously isn't ideal for more intensive simulators, i.e., FSX, XPlane, P3D. And while it is sufficient, it is being pushed rather hard.

Processor: 2.3 GHz Intel Core i7
Memory: 8 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Graphics: Nvidia GT 650M

The question(s) is/are somewhat twofold.

First of all, if I was to invest in a new machine I'd (ideally) like to build it myself, as opposed to buying a pre-made rig. A bit more effort and labor involved, surely, but likely an overall better final product due to the increased customization, as well as the somewhat reduced cost. How much would a system like this (one that could run FSX/XPlane/P3D and multiple other addons/sceneries with consistently smooth FPS) cost, and furthermore, what specifications would I be looking for? This is a largely foreign area to me, so I really don't have a clue as to what I'd be getting myself into. To elaborate a bit more on specifically what addons, I'd be looking for the whole shebang. PMDG airplanes, airports, textures, meshes, GEX, UT, etc, etc. Obviously this will require a powerful machine.

The second part of the question pertains to if it's worthwhile to upgrade, or at least to the aforementioned extent. Obviously a slightly improved machine from the one I currently have would cost less and would be able to run FS2004 without any issue whatsoever. I also like that FS2004 tends to be more stable and experiences fewer crashes, however I don't care for the not-so-great ground scenery, lack of addons, and some other various blips/struggles I've had as far as model-matching online. With that said, if I did a minor upgrade, as opposed to an overhaul, I could save myself some money and run a stabler (yet limited) simulation.

I guess what I'm getting at is: should I go big, invest in a high-performance machine and make the leap to FSX, XPlane, and/or P3D, or should I make a smaller and less expensive upgrade, yet stay with FS2004? Obviously I could invest in an incredibly powerful rig and continue to use FS2004, but that would be overkill, no doubt. I don't want to get a more powerful machine than I need.

Again, this is a largely foreign subject to me, so as far as specifications, price, and the like, I'm going in blind. Thought I could turn to this fantastic community for some advice and assistance.

Thank you all so much in advance.

Benjamin Scheiner

Captain, B737-800

DVA7357
Captain, B737-800
OLP

Joined on May 22 2009
DVA Five-Year Anniversary

"With your eyes turned skyward"
Northeastern United States

90 legs, 155.2 hours
38 legs, 51.3 hours online
86 legs, 150.9 hours ACARS
2 legs, 2.8 hours event

Posted onPost created on December 01 2014 18:13 ET by Matthew McAlpine

Hey Benjamin, I've always been one to try and "future proof" if the funds are available. That translates into more money up front, less down the road potentially. Think of it as going to Sams Club vice the corner store. But like I said, its a bit more expensive. The build I just completed can be viewed here http://pcpartpicker.com/user/mmcalpine11b/saved/vqGdnQ - this rig shreds anything and everything I throw at it. Is it overkill for most games or sims? Yes, but who knows what the future holds. This can obviously be tailored to suit your needs, different/cheaper CPU and GPU to name the first things that come to mind. But like I said, FSX/P3D, ARMA III and many others including photo editing don't even begin to tickle this thing. I don't like talking bad about any flight sim, but FS2004 will die sooner or later, or you'll want that DX10 or 11, rolling waves etc etc. But, that's a matter of opinion and I won't banter much about what sim I think is better. But, if you build a powerful enough rig, then you know you can make a switch at any time.

Matthew McAlpine (DVA7357)

DVA12146
Captain, B737-800

Joined on April 19 2014

Crozet, VA

24 legs, 55.1 hours
3 legs, 5.6 hours online
23 legs, 52.9 hours ACARS

Posted onPost created on December 01 2014 19:27 ET by Benjamin Scheiner

Thank you so much, Matthew. I took a look and the way it's consolidated and labeled is fantastic. Makes it really easy to see what exactly you're getting.

I'll do a bit of research and look around a bit, but this looks great. I'll post here again once progress has been made. Thanks again!

Benjamin Scheiner

Captain, B737-800

AFV519
Senior Captain, B737-800
OLP
E-MAIL

Joined on May 01 2010
International Tourist
50 State Club
GVA 5 Year Anniversary
Diplomatic Mission
Online Triple Century Club
B737 Two Fifty Club
European City Bash
Quinticentenary Club

Copenhagen, Denmark

535 legs, 1,751.0 hours
393 legs, 1,166.1 hours online
504 legs, 1,634.5 hours ACARS
10 legs, 55.7 hours event
848 legs, 2,955.2 hours total
51 legs dispatched, 85.9 hours

Posted onPost created on December 02 2014 06:40 ET by Mathias Lund

If you were to go with FSX i would suggest getting an i5 with a high clockspeed over the i7 as FSX use a lot of CPU power(i think around 4ghz would be what you want) and it doesnt do multicore very well

Mathias Lund (AFV519)

DVA7171
Senior Captain, B757-200

Joined on March 14 2009
50 State Club
Event Half Century Club
Everett 250 Club
Online Quintuple Century Club
Seven Century Club
Black Pearl Club
DVA Fifteen-Year Anniversary

"Walk away from all your landings..."
Sebring, FL

725 legs, 1,676.2 hours
573 legs, 1,401.2 hours online
716 legs, 1,660.6 hours ACARS
56 legs, 127.6 hours event

Posted onPost created on December 02 2014 10:24 ET by Sergio Lopez

My current system went for about $1500 back in March of this year. It's not top of the line, but it provides room for improvement. I did custom build it. Bought all the parts on NewEgg. It runs FSX and P3D just fine, bit laggy at points but otherwise fine. 30 frames locked.

In a separate note, has anyone noticed FSX is at like $150 in most retailers?

Sergio Lopez (DVA7171)

Posted onPost created on December 02 2014 19:08 ET by Matthew McAlpine

Mathias Lund wrote:

If you were to go with FSX i would suggest getting an i5 with a high clockspeed over the i7 as FSX use a lot of CPU power(i think around 4ghz would be what you want) and it doesnt do multicore very well

Good point, Mathias. I went with an i7 for the fact that I can assign threads different tasks, i.e. core/thread 0-2 P3D, 3-5 windows tasks etc etc. I'm not saying this isn't possible with an i5, but with an i7 you have more to play with. Whatever you do, I'd suggest a "K" version for OC'ing if that's your thing.

Matthew McAlpine (DVA7357)

DVA11021
Captain, B757-200
OLP

Joined on September 13 2012
B757 100 Club
Everett 250 Club
Triple Century Club
Online Triple Century Club
DVA Five-Year Anniversary

Milford, NH

375 legs, 620.5 hours
365 legs, 604.5 hours online
374 legs, 618.9 hours ACARS
21 legs, 51.4 hours event

Posted onPost created on December 03 2014 07:09 ET by Sean Zarella

as christmas nears....

DVA12116
First Officer, B777-200
OLP

Joined on April 16 2014
50 State Club
Online Century Club
Toulouse Century Club
Quincentenary Club
Piranha Club
DVA Five-Year Anniversary

"On behalf of your Atlanta based flight crew"
Midwestern United States

593 legs, 1,268.8 hours
106 legs, 112.5 hours online
592 legs, 1,267.3 hours ACARS
1 legs, 4.2 hours event

Posted onPost created on December 03 2014 12:13 ET by Charles Schiaffo

Wow the price of FSX did shoot up...I bought it a year ago for $30 on amazon. Prepar3d isn't looking so expensive anymore.

Charles Schiaffo

First Officer, B777-200

Posted onPost created on December 03 2014 16:38 ET by Sergio Lopez

Charles Schiaffo wrote:

Wow the price of FSX did shoot up...I bought it a year ago for $30 on amazon. Prepar3d isn't looking so expensive anymore.

That's what my point was. Had a friend try to buy FSX the other day and ended up getting Prepar3d.

Sergio Lopez (DVA7171)

DVA12146
Captain, B737-800

Joined on April 19 2014

Crozet, VA

24 legs, 55.1 hours
3 legs, 5.6 hours online
23 legs, 52.9 hours ACARS

Posted onPost created on December 03 2014 17:28 ET by Benjamin Scheiner

For those curious, this is the build I ended up opting for:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KZXZrH

I started with Matthew's build and worked from there, making several changes. Thank you again Matthew. Your help is hugely appreciated and put me on the right track.

As far as those mentioning FSX's increased price, it appears to be limited to Amazon. fspilotshop is carrying 'Gold' for $49.95.
http://www.fspilotshop.com/flight-simulator-fsx-gold-edition-p-1792.html

I'm still debating between FSX and P3D (X-Plane is just too limited in terms of addons), but I'm leaning towards FSX and will likely purchase it from the above link. I was a bit shocked when I saw the price listed on Amazon.

Benjamin Scheiner

Captain, B737-800

Posted onPost created on December 03 2014 19:22 ET by Matthew McAlpine

Awesome Benjamin!! I just realized I forgot to add my additional fans and heat sink also to that list. You picked the same heat sink as mine. Glad I could help! And I like the upgrade to the Z97

Matthew McAlpine (DVA7357)

DVA9545
Senior Captain, B777-200
OLP, 737-ATP

Joined on March 03 2011
50 State Club
Globetrotter
Quad-Jet Quartermaster
US Coastal Club
US Mountaineer Club
Million Mile Club
Events Double Century Club
DVA Ten-Year Anniversary
Toulouse 500 Club
Bi-Millennium Club
Online Twenty Century

"YUPIIIII"
Goiás Brazil

2,495 legs, 5,044.8 hours
2,324 legs, 4,766.4 hours online
2,487 legs, 5,015.2 hours ACARS
271 legs, 683.8 hours event

Posted onPost created on December 04 2014 00:08 ET by Thiago Braga

Benjamin;
I would add another SSD just for Win OS and leave the Crucial 512MB for FSX only.

Thiago Braga (DVA9545)

DVA12146
Captain, B737-800

Joined on April 19 2014

Crozet, VA

24 legs, 55.1 hours
3 legs, 5.6 hours online
23 legs, 52.9 hours ACARS

Posted onPost created on December 04 2014 00:16 ET by Benjamin Scheiner

Thiago Braga wrote:

Benjamin;
I would add another SSD just for Win OS and leave the Crucial 512MB for FSX only.

Ah, I should clarify this.

I have a 240GB SSD lying around at home that I recently purchased and has received little usage. I'll use that for my OS and utilize the 512GB SSD listed under my build for FSX.

Benjamin Scheiner

Captain, B737-800

Posted onPost created on December 05 2014 10:18 ET by Sergio Lopez

Benjamin Scheiner wrote:

Thiago Braga wrote:

Benjamin;
I would add another SSD just for Win OS and leave the Crucial 512MB for FSX only.

Ah, I should clarify this.

I have a 240GB SSD lying around at home that I recently purchased and has received little usage. I'll use that for my OS and utilize the 512GB SSD listed under my build for FSX.

Nice.

Posted onPost created on December 05 2014 12:18 ET by Thiago Braga

Good

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