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

I recently upgraded to an E8500 OC@ 4.0 GHZ, 4GB OCZ 1333. My OS is on a 500GB HDD, FSX is on a 150 GB Velociraptor. My PSU is PC Power &Cooling 610 w.My video card is a Evga GTX285. While FSX runs fairly well on this rig, I still get the annoying stutters and scenery lag. Would it be worthwhile to move to an i7-920 with an OC to 4.0GHZ. As much as I'd like to get the 975, I'd have leave enough money for a tent as that's where I'd be living after the wife found out how much I'd spent on another computer upgrade. Your thoughts and opinions would be appreciated.

System specs are below. This is a great-running FSX rig, and I'm not looking to make any radical changes, or spend a fortune. But... I'm sort of a weather freak and running heavy weather via ASA while driving three monitors through the TripleHead2Go can sometimes bog down the system, even though I mainly handle GA VFR. I use NickN's setup advice, but have found recently that in some settings (Tongass, FTX), I've had to cut the autogen down to "dense." And even in less-demanding places, the dense setting seems to accomodate the weather better.I'm considering one or more of the following upgrades:1. RAM - move to the Mushkin DDR3 1600 6-7-6-18 that Nick has been recomme…

Hi everybody, I have this week just upgraded my computer system for running FSX, after carefull consideration I have purchased the following components1. i7 975 (o/c 4.2 stable test ottc 80c 1hr ok)2. 6gig ddr3 2000mhz corsair doms 8-8-8-243. western digital 10,000rpm h/drive4. 1500watts power supply unit5. BfG 295 watercooled g/card6. zalman reserator xt watercooling system7. silverstone tj case8. Asus P6t Deluxe m/boardAll built up now and ready to start loading fsx on but before I do guys i am looking for some advice Please,I have managed to overclock to 4.2 quite easy by just increasing my vcore to1.35volts.ran occt for 1 hour , temps got to 79/81c but passed test.4.4…

I lost my computer system last week to a lightning strike. A local shop is assesing the damage, but I expect at least the motherboard is gone. My question: if I have to replace the motherboard, should I upgrade to a E8500 (3.166 ghz) and a Gigabyte EP45-UD3R or go to a I7 processor at a lower ghz? FSX is the only "game" i play on the PC, and I would like to increase my performance from the previous (see specs in signature). Cost is a factor, but I won't know how much the insurance will cover until I get the estimate from the shop.If I go to a I7, will I need DDR3 memory? Can I still use Win XP?Dale

I understand Vista 32 can only utilize 4Gig of ram....is that correct?I currently have 2 gig of ram (see system specs below) and would like to add as much additional ram as feasible. Given my current system...- Does anyone have suggestions on the best ram to get? Should I get 2x2? - Could you share a link to a site where I could get the suggested ram?- I've been told swapping out RAM is an easy job, even for a neophyte....do you agree?I plan to purchase a new system next summer but need to limp along on what I have for now.Thanks

Hello,I'm running a really old box,AMD3800+,GF6600,1 GB ram and a 20 and 80 GB hdd.Would I see a better performance in FS9 if I upgraded to 2 SATA II disks of 750GB each?They would be WD Caviar 750GB SATA 32MB .cheersJP.

I know every other thread is asking this question. I have read many of them and below is the system that I am looking at putting together for FSX. Although I am sure I will try oc'g the cpu, I'm a little leary about it. I always feel like I'm going to fry something when I start to play around. I'm going to purchase everything and have someone local build it for me. When flying, I usually fly between major aiports with payware add on scenery and full ai. I also like to fly between tropical islands so I will be running some photoreal scenery along with GE, UT and ASA.BOARD: ASUS P6T DELUXE V2 SOCKET LGA1366RAM: MUSHKIN 6GB DDR3 1600 998691 CL6VIDEO: EVGA 01GP31180 GTX 285CP…

So I bit the bullet and bought a computer case. Though I was very weary of buying a case that cost $85, I have to say, I'm impressed. I purchased the CoolerMaster 690 Black case..This thing isn't what I expected at all! It feels hefty and I must say looks pretty darn good! Aesthetics were an important part of the decision process, and this thing pleases the eye.I'm pleasantly surprised with it's stock air movement, and with my Corsair PSU, the cable management is great! The motherboard header cable can be ran beneath the motherboard and the stock cable ties are nifty--though a little on the cheap side. One should note the PSU is bottom mounted in this case, which I…

Hello Everyone,I have a big dilemma choosing right memory for my system. In couple of days I will be replacing my good old E8400 with a Q9650 processor. Currently my system consists of:- GTX260 OC GPU- ADATA DRR2 800 4GB Memory at 5-5-5-18- ASUS P5QC motherboardSo I'm sure that the memory slow downs FSX performance and I would like to get a better set. The motherboard can support both DDR2 (up to 1066MHz) and DDR3 (up to 1333MHz). I'm thinking buying this set: OCZ 2X2GB Kit OCZ ReaperX Heatpipe Heatspreader PC3 10666 1333MHz 6-5-5-20 but first I would like to hear suggestions from others. Keep in mind that I will be overclocking the processor to 3.8 - 4 GHz range.Your he…

Hello,Just would like some opinions on this upgrade path I am planning for my fs9 home cockpit. Ultimate terrain, genesis mesh, ultimate traffic, flight environment, ground environment. This PC runsin full screen mode no on screen cockpit as my main view with overhead projector. Two other networked pc's (no upgrade planned) are for my instrument monitors. I fly 737 using PDMG 737 air file. Currrent: AMD Athlon 64 4000+, 2gig single channel ddr pc3200 ram, ATI X850 pro agp, asus av8 mbProposed: Intel core duo 2 E8600, 4gig OCZ 1066 Reaper ram, EVGA GTS 250 Superclocked Edition 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported, Asus P50 Pro Turbo mbI ca…

Im having this issue with my laptop monitor ,this colored vertical pixel lines , im sure its the video card but ok.. and in top of that i have low specs. Even , i still want to install fs9 again i try to fly with these conditions , i know the cockpit will look different with all these colors (about 7 pixel lines , green , red , blue ...)but i want to try.My question is, is anybody here in same conditions, bad computer ,monitor screw'd up ,that still tries to enjoy the simulator? Safe flying. PS: that monitor is not mines , just an example of how it looks.

I'm wondering if a 1GB Video Card vs 512MB video card somehow reduces available memory in a windows xp 32-bit environment. I've read this somewhere and I'm trying to decide if I should upgrade to a 512MB card rather than 894MB or 1GB so my available RAM to fs9 isn't reduced too much...Any comments?

I'm looking for someone in the Detroit area that can provide personalized service for repairing rigs and building new ones. I don't quite have the expertise to build something from scratch on my own but I would want to choose all of the components. I used to go to Stone computers in Madison Heights but I found them to be pretty sloppy the last time I was there. I would go to Microcenter but there I would have no ability to deal directly with the tech.

So you saddled the shiny 975...strewn other ornaments...NOW WHAT?Frankenstein needs a BRAIN and a PUSH........So you insert the CD, be it XP, VISTA or WIN7.......how did it go? Smooth sailing with the first try......or MORE? I, and many others, would love to hear all sorts of anecdotes about the instant success or the repeated trials and errors of installing a BRAND NEW TOY. I know all of us have experienced that on numerous occasions.Love to hear from you ALL..........do not spare the DETAILS.Thanks.Abe

Hello all!I have been thinking of slapping a 32" or 37" on my desk and giving FS a go in LARGE SCREEN format (even though I have a 30" Dell).My biggest concerns are image quality loss due to the large dot pitch. I will have about 4.5 feet from the front of the screen to where I am sitting.For those of you using an HDTV as your primary PC monitor and simming rig, what are your thoughts on this? What about 32" vs 37" or even vs 40" (side note: shouldn't the 32" have the sharpest picture?)? Pros/Cons to this sort of setup? Anybody gone from PC Monitor to HDTV and been content?.... anybody gone from HDTV and back to PC Monitor, if so, why?I have already come to accept the fac…

Well, another one bites the dust. My Mushkin Redline Ascent DDR3 1600 6-6-5-18 kit, THE ONE THEY DON"T MAKE ANYMORE, died. No overvolting, no overheating, ran at 1684 stable (no memtest errors, no FSX crashes/anomalies). Now I'm on my backup RAM, Corsair 1600 8-8-8-24, and it's slow as S&*T! I can't take this. :( I sooooo hope Mushkin come through with another kit. I paid $300 for these paperweights and this is the FOURTH SET! These Elpida Hypers are completely unreliable.Those of you who have these chips it's only a matter of time. I was guarenteed these wouldn't fail and they did-it just took a couple months. I'm not knocking Mushkin but the quality control …

HiI am wondering if upgrading my PC is of any use.E8500 at 4.1GHzGigabyte EP45-DS44G 1066MHz RAM150GB Velciraptor750GB F1 SpinpointNivdia 260GTXI was thinking of 920i7 D0 CPU and 1366 mobo of course with 6GB RAM.I think FSX like FS2004 is single thread in which case overclocking the 920 to about the same 4GHz may not produce any noticable extra fps, would that be correct?krishan

Hi everyone,I am thinking about jumping on the i7 bandwagon, as everyone seems to be raving about how good they are for FSX... I currently have an E8500 with 4Gb of RAM and a GTX250, using Windows Vista 64bit. PSU is an Antec 650W. The CPU has a Shuriken Scythe cooling fan. The mobo is an Asus P5E. Nothing really overclocked, but I can't run sliders up very high and I get stutters and pauses. I have followed Nick_N's guide so it runs pretty optimised. I am thinking about an i7-975, Asus P6T mobo, 6Gb of 1600Mhz 6-6-6 (hard to find) or 7-7-7 RAM, with the same PSU. When W7 comes out I will upgrade to that. Is that a worthwhile upgrade? I'm looking for an improvement in smo…

Searching through all the cases on Newegg has made for a migrain. This has been the single most difficult piece to decide on. Motherboard, processor, RAM, all without a hitch.I'm looking for a good sized Extended ATX case with plenty of room at a decent price(under say $200-250). I'll be using the EVGA E760 CLASSIFIED MB with an IFX-14 cooler for the CPU. I want plenty of clearance, but don't want something I can park my car in :( Another thing, and I hate to sound like a girl (sorry ladies): Must have a black or black two tone finish, and no silly LEDs if I can help it. Good cooling is a must.Once I order this thing, I'll just have to wait for all the parts. :(I've be…

I had some time on my hands to play around with my computer this weekend and have come up with a different config for my OC on my i7940 and wanted to pass it along. Since I have built this i7 system I have been running at 4.05 GHZ OC with my ram never running full speed do to the way all the multiplyers worked out. I have the EVGA 260 superclocked edition VC and understand it may not be the perfect match for a i7 with a high OC but never the less actually do get great performance out of it maybe due to the fact it is the Super Clocked version. Anyways that being the case I began thinking about all the posts I have read about matching it all up for best performance so I th…

Hi, have read loads of posts on i7 cpu's but not many on AMD cpu's. Having used AMD cpu's for many years and now thinking of upgrading to the Phenom II x4 955 black edition with thoughts of o/c, but looking on this and other forums the AMD cpu's don't get much mention is there a reason for this, are the intel chips better or what......any views on this, I could be persuaded to convert to intel!!!! peter

So I've read dozens of posts about Intel vs AMD most of them have at least one thing in common. They're filled with lots of emotion.Filtering out the relevant information, I finally came to the following conclusion: In absolute (fps) sense, the Core i7 is the best processor I can get. However, looking at my wallet (monthly robbed by wife and kids :( ) and unless Intel and the X58 mainboard manufactors significantly lower their prices, I can not afford a Core i7 (eventhough I really, really want to!).But also another fact plays a role... I am not yet ready to give up on my 1100+ (!!) addon-airports and custom scenery in FS2004. FSX makes me drewl, especialy flying VFR, but…

I'm thinking of buying a new system for FSX which is being 'specced' by the manufacturer as follows:i7 975 Extreme (3.33 GHz).ASUS P6T SE motherboard - i7 & i7 Extreme - ATX.6 GB triple-channel DDR3 RAM (1333 mHz) (Manufacturer unspecified).They're also specifying the Nvidia 1792MB GTX295 graphics card.Please help with these questions: 1. Is the above likely to give best FSX performance with 'intense' add-on scenery and aircraft (with no overclocking)?2. Is it worth going for 8 GB RAM rather than 6?3. Is that graphics card 'over the top'? (i.e. Will 1MB GTX285 be good enough?)Thanks for any advice and/or comments.....Toni.

Priced at 1649.99The Gateway FX6801-09h desktop PC packs a powerful punch thanks to the Intel Core i7 920 processor and a barely-fathomable 12GB DDR3 SDRAM for blazing fast performance. It's also home to super powerful NVIDIA GeForce GTX285 graphics with 1GB dedicated graphics memory and so much more. If you want a PC that does it all, this is the one. More Info WebID: 10124869 Mfr. Part Number: FX6801-09h Base Features Processor Type Intel Core i7 920 Processor Speed Core I7 2.66 GHz RAM 12GB DDR3 SDRAM Hard Drive Speed/Capacity 1TB 7200RPM Optical Drives 18x DVD+/-R/RW SuperMulti Drive Graphics NVIDIA GeForce GTX285 Pre-loaded Operating System Windows Vista Hom…

here's what I'm planning for:Motehrboard: Intel DX58SO (1366 Socket)CPU: Intel i7-920 Core (2.66GHz - 8mb Cache)RAM: 4Gb (2 x 2Gb) 1333 MHz DDR3Graphix: GeForce 9800GT 1Gb DDR3Power Supply: 550Wwhat do you think of this build? I'm looking to run FSX smoothly..does this motherboard support SLI?which O/S better to use for gaming? if XP or Vista, will it run more than 2Gb of RAM? I'm planning for 6GBswhat MHz should I get for the RAMs?I'm upgrading to i7-965 EXTREME later next year..Any Tips??