System Hardware: PC | MOBO | RAM | CPU | HDD | SSD | PSU etc

I've been using AMD chips since the 486 DX4-100 and am going to be putting a new machine together to replace my FX-60 machine, mostly for FS9 use and was wondering if you think this will be good enoughAMD Phenom II X2 550 Callisto at 3.1ghz Gigabyte GA-790 XTA UDP4p motherboardPatriot Viper DDR3 PC3-12800 1600mhz 8GBZalman ZM770XT "quiet" power supplyDiamond 5870 1GB video cardSound Blaster Supreme X-fiWestern Digital Black 1TB Main Drive300GB WD Raptor for FS Lian Li PC-A05N case I have a Samsung 19" LCD monitor native resolution is 1280 x 1024Thanks for your time,Matt

Hey again,Im looking to OC my Intel Core 2 duo T6600. At the moment, its running at 2.2 GHz. I used Orthos (a version of Prime95 that was adapted for dual cores) to see if my computer could handle it and all seems fine. I tried using ClockGen and SetFBS to OC it, but no such luck. It freezes when I turn it up one notch and click apply changes; from there, I have to do a hard shut down. Am I missing something?Specs:Windows 7 64xDell Inspiron 1545Intel Core 2 Duo T6600 @ 2.2Ghz4GB of ramATI Mobility Radeon HD 4330Intel Chipset

Hi,I am still learning how to take care of a performance rig and I have set every thing up as NIck N suggest. I have 3 hard drives, acrois image, and disk director.The first drive has the os and another partion that has just bs stuff like pics and crap from the wife. the second is a 10k rpm raptor with only fsx and addons. the third is a clone of the first drive. Usually every couple months or when I make a signifigant change I back it all up by cloning the drive. I then defrag the cloned drive with o&o. As for the primary drive when I defrag that I open the case and swap for the cloned drive so that I can defrag when nothing is running. Is there any benefit to thi…

Process Explorer 11 is an expanded version of the venerable Task Manager. Link goes to Microsoft: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinte...s/bb896653.aspx

Intel X58 Core i7 ConfiguratorCase CoolerMaster HAF 932 Full Tower Gaming Case-BlackProcessor Intel

Includes a fix for FS9 - KB976264

Hi there,since my budget manager (wife) didn't allow to buy a new system I had to only replace my video card. I have a HDMI 25 inch flat screen that I used to run at 1920 x 1080 on my old (and now replaced) gforce.I just got a GTS250 and when I select the same screen resolution I can barely see my task bar and start button (barried half way below the bottom of the screen) and some icons (icons way out to the left outside the visible screen area). I hope this kinda explains my problem.I just installed the new drivers available from nvidia.com but it didn't solve the problem.Any tips, never seen this one before.Cheers,Pete

I have an ASUS P5N E SLI motherboard with currently an Intel E6700 CPU. Am thinking of upgrading to a Q9650. Does anyone have experience with this motherboard, and are there any problems in using that particular CPU with this motherboard?Any advice, pros or cons, or any other comments would be welcomed.Thanks,Donald E. Donovan

I currently have a newly installed instance of Windows XP (32) on a second partition of my primary drive, this is shown as D: when running from my older instance of XP (32). FSX is on another (logical) partitioned physical drive (F:) and is due to be uninstalled as I prepare to abandon my older XP instance (some years old at this time) and run from the newer instance. I also wish to replace the (logical) partitioned HD with a higher performance device once I migrate to the new XP partition. Here

I was one of the early purchasers of i7 920 and bought this memoryOCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1333LV6GKWould it be worthwhile to change out to faster for FSX?CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C8D - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820145224I have a GTX 260.

I currently have 4gb of DDR 2 ram in my system running at 1016mhz Due to my motherboard to upgrade to 8gb of ram I need to use either 2 4gb chips of pc8500 ram (1066 MHz) which is very expensive.Or the other option is use 4 2gb chips of pc6400 ram (800mhz) this I can afford.However in having more ram I would be losing out on memory speed 1016 down to 800. With this in mind can anyone suggest whether there is a benefit to upgrading to 8gb given the reduction in memory speed. Am I likely to see fsx perform any better? I do have a fairly smooth system but when Approaching areas such as heathrow I do notice a big performance hit and I want to reduce this hit.Thankstom

Hey all - I posted this in my earlier thread, but I think it may be overlooked there. I'm considering a new build, and had a couple of hardware related questions for all you techies out there. Any guidance you might have would be highly appreciated!1) Deciding between versions of the 900 series Intel i7 CPU - a lot of the commentary out there seems to say that there isn't much advantage in going for models over the 920 (2.6 GHz stock) because the 920s are easily OC'able to 4+ GHz with proper cooling. Is that the experience of folks around these parts? Would the pricier models have more headroom, or are they just setup at a higher "base" so that they can run faster witho…

I am rebuilding a PC after many years of running a pentium 4. Most years I have just upgraded parts but now its time for an almost complete new build. I bought a new mobo, PS, case, mem and vid card, as well as an Intel I5-750. I am planning on re-using my existing hard drive, and sound card. Do I really have to re-format and re-load XP all over again, or can I just update bios settings on the initial post bootup? I know the best thing, but is it also a requirement for the new systm to run? Thanks for your help. I have learned a lot about the current state of tech by reading your great comments.

I recently upgraded my windows xp 32 bit system from 2GB DDR2 to 4GB DDR2 and replaced my nvidia gforce 6800 256MB with a nvidia gforce 9400 GT 512MB. I know my window xp 32 bit can't use all 4GB of ram. it seems like my frame rates have dropped off some. Before I put the new card in with the upgraded RAM it seemed ok, any ideas why it got slower?Pentium D 2.8ghz4GB DDR2nvidia gforce 9400 GT 512MBwindows xp 32bit

Hello everyone,I am just annoyed with my FS9 performance.My rig is belowIntel Quad Core Q8200 2.34 Oc'ed to 2.50 GHz | 3 GB Corsair RAM DDR-II | NVIDIA GTX 260 sp216 |250+160 GB HD | P-43-NEOF | TX2 Hyper COOLING | COOLER MASTER 334 | Fs9.1 | 19 Inches DELL LCD | Microsoft Windows 7 Home premium x64|But the FPS i get with PMDG/CS 757 addons at areas like KJFK ( Adobe traffic rex and UT-max) is like 13-20 FPS! My windows is clean and virus free with No high temprature...Please can anyone tell me what's wrong with this?I have tried every possible thing but still there are bad lags with addons It is like 5-6 increase in FPS from my old pc which was (p4 3.0 Ghz 6600gt and 1GB…

Pc specs:E8400 O/C 4ghz4gb 800mhz ram8800gt 512mbWD 500gb caviar blackHD550w corsair PSU ADDONS: PMDG 747,MD11,CS 767, REX2, UTX, GEX, Hey all it seems no matter what I do I get slight stutters even with FPS @ 30's as an example. And alot more obviously when in VC especially with these addon planes. Iv'e tried setting FPS limiter to unlimited and 24. But same result really. Infact lowering to 24 makes scenery load quicker.I can be at FL280 getting mid 40's in vc and still have micro stutters.I mean it generally does get smother as fps go up but still. I just find it strange when on FS9 24fps was super smooth but with fsx....not so good. Could the 8800gt with 512 be a bot…

Just noticed that in device manager have exclamation marks against the core of my E8400 CPU. The status tells me "A driver (service) for this device has been disabled. An alternate driver may be providing this functionality (Code 32)I have not knowingly disabled any driver. If I click on 'update driver', do not go on the internet, install automatically, it comes back that wizard could not find a better match.Can anyone offer advice on this please?

Hi all - In the never-ending quest for FPS in FSX, I've been considering some upgrades to my current system, which consists of a Core 2 Extreme QX6800 with 4 gigs of DDR2 memory (800MHz), a GTX 8800 vid card, running under Windows Vista 32.Here are some of the upgrades I've been considering. I'd appreciate any thoughts on the relative effectiveness of some or all of these:OS - Move to Win 7 64RAM - Add 2-4 gigs, and maybe faster memory (for a total of 6-8)Vid Card - upgrade to nvidia GTX (280 or 285)HDD - Velociraptor or SSD devoted to FSXWhat say you all? Based on some threads I've read in these forums, I get the impression that the additional RAM will help with a 64 b…

Hi,Since my hd was getting more packed with massive scenery files, it was time to invest in an external hd.I transferred a lot of vfr photorealistic scenery- the UK, Germany, etc to a Toshiba HDDR169E03E 160 GB external drive.I got it in a clearance sale in a store. It was a bargain for 45$, so it was impulse buying.At home, I found the hd was the older FAT32 format, which meant that not all the scenery files could be installed here.Anyways, what I have noticed is that it takes a longer time to load fs9.1. It's frustrating to wait 4-5 minutes until the main screen shows up.I'm wondering hether the new hd is causing the slowdown.Eytan OrnsteinIntel Core2 CPU 2 GHZGeforce 8…

Just a short question. Why does Driver Sweeper find NVIDIA Chipset files (registry) when I have a AMD/ATI chipset and SB?

Hi there,my current PC finally went up in smoke and I'm too old to be tweaking and upgrading anymore. I'd like to get a new PC that's capable of running FS9 with all the add-ons one can have (PMDG products, FSD sceneries, AI traffic, ASA etc.).I used to buy high end (and big bucks) systems but never overclocked and my budget has changed too. My time flying is now somewhat limited and I'd like a good system out of the box without the hassle of tweaking (other than normal FS tweaking of course ;-)I've found a HP Pavilion at bestbuy.com and wondered if this machine will run FS9 fine. Here's the link:http://www.bestbuy.com/site/HP+-+Pavilion+...p;skuId=9695866I'd really appre…

I've never been a great overclocker, and mainly used AMD systems. But is it true with the intel extreme variations of their CPU's you can simply set the multiplier in the BIOS and get a huge OC with minimal effort?Obviously you pay for it hehe :(

I just bought all the parts I'll need for my i7 920 FSX gaming rig.I also bought two hard drives - an OCZ 60 GB SSD HD and a 300 GB Velociraptor 10k RPM HD.I've heard some people say install FSX on the SSD, but then I've heard people say it would do better on the Raptor.So whats the final conclusion on this? Obviously I'll have Windows on the SSD, but will FSX be a better runner on there as well?Other PC Stats (just in case they're neccessary)i7-920 @ 2.66 (plan to over clock to 4.0+)Gigabyte X58A-UD7 MoboATi Powercolor 5870 1 GB GPU (considering buying a second or a 5970 (although I know FSX doesn't gain any improvement while running in Crossfire)12 GB G-Skill Ripsaw Ram…

Years ago, my local shop advised that your case should approximate a wind tunnel as closely as possible. Good airflow was better than case volume, which only delayed the onslaught of heat, they said. So I bought the mid-tower that they had rather than a full tower. When my AMD 6400 was always SO HOT, I cut a hole in the top of the case and put in a 3000 rpm 120mm fan. Now that I have my new i7 860, finding cooling is once again a challenge. It was idling at 40* and prime 95 took it to 85*, so I had to do something! I bought a Hyper212+ and got the idle down to 36 after I turned the top case fan up as fast as I could. Prime still took it over 82* and I wanted no mor…

RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WB Black 1.0mm SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Computer Case - Retail GIGABYTE GA-MA790XT-UD4P AM3 DDR3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard - RetailAMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition Callisto 3.1GHz Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Processor Model HDZ550WFGIBOX - Retail ZOTAC ZT-20201-10L GeForce GT 220 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Retail Kingston ValueRAM 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model KVR1333D3K2/4GR - RetailRosewill Stallion Series RD500-2DB 500W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail Grand Total: $553.41 (includes tax and shipping from newegg.com)The electric company rece…