Recommendations for a flight simulator machine

[Computer Hobbyist]

Up to now I have assembled a number of office machines and internet cruisers. They all work fine, but lately I have had an itch. It started when I tried to load flightgear (a linux flight simulator) on my old celeron. Needless to say the flight simulator (and another one called gl-117) puked. Frame rates too low. etc.

What if I wanted to build a machine to run one of the flight simulators, what kind of hardware would you recommend. I think the machine would also be used for video and digital photo processing. I take pictures of flowers and like to crop them.

Let's say I have a budget of about $1,000. Am I thinking about some kind of midrange gaming machine?

[jayb1234]

Enter "1000 gaming build" in the search box at the top of the forum, and take a look through a few of those threads. That should give you a pretty good idea what people are building with that budget range.

[Computer Hobbyist]

Enter "1000 gaming build" in the search box at the top of the forum, and take a look through a few of those threads. That should give you a pretty good idea what people are building with that budget range.

Thanks, most of those threads, including the one toward the bottom of the front page go off on tangents. They ask for opinions on choices made by the poster or they discuss the virtues of buying a Dell.

I'll lurk for a while and figure it out on my own. Thanks.

[blue60007]

Yeah, a midrange gaming computer is probably what you are looking for...A good video card and CPU are important.

[kstatefan40]

Here's a very similar build to what I did for a friend who is a flightsim fanatic. He was on a tighter budget, so I didn't include the x700 video card. It runs flight sim, but at variable frame rates depending on load. So, I'm recommending a video card with this one. You can drop it if you'd like, or add a less expensive model (no lower than an x300se would be recommended). Pick your case and power supply (remember to get a PSU with dual 12 volts) and you'll be all set for about $300 under budget. This will run ANY flightsim fine. Hope this helps.

Link: http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wishlist/WishShareShow.asp?ID=1551970&WishListTitle=BRYAN%27S+SYSTEM

[glc]

You would have to research Linux compatibility with those components.

[Computer Hobbyist]

You would have to research Linux compatibility with those components.

What would create a problem with Linux? The pci express video card?

I really liked the recommended parts. Thanks a lot! Now if I can just get a big enough year end bonus.

For those who haven't linked.

ASUS P5GD1-VM Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 915G Micro ATX Intel Motherboard -
$94.00

SAPPHIRE 100121L Radeon X700 128MB DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card - art
$94.00

FSP Group (Fortron Source) ATX400-PA ATX12V 400W Power Supply - OEM
Model #: ATX400-PA

$36.99

Intel Pentium 4 630 Prescott 800MHz FSB LGA 775 EM64T Processor Model BX80547PG3000F - Retail

$172.50

Kingston ValueRAM 512MB (2 x 256MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model KVR400X64C3AK2/512 - l
Model #: KVR400X64C3AK2/512

$48.47

Seagate Barracuda 7200.7 ST380817AS 80GB 7200 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drive - OEM

$57.50

NEC Black IDE DVD Burner Model ND-3540A - OEM
Model #: ND-3540A Black

$38.99

Subtotal: $542.45

I would have to add a case and a few other things, but the whole shooting match should go for less than $600.

KStateFan, great recommendation. :D Too bad your team sucks this year. ;)

[jayb1234]

You also might need a Floppy drive for installing drivers , bios updates etc..

[archaic]

I think you should spring for a nice case with a psu, or get a better psu to put in it, there's a list somewhere on here. I remember seeing Antec, Thermaltake, Enermax, and Xclio on that list. Better power supplies will prolong the life and performance of your system. If you buy an Antec or Enermax case, you might get a nice PSU included, but cheaper cases, in the $50 range...quality is negligible.

I say your build looks most excellent and budget concious at the same time - such was my goal, till I got an X800 and an LCD, cause I had a fat credit rating to burn through...lol

I'm sorry, though, after you read all that, I still don't know anything about Linux and its compatibilities. If no one responds in a day or so, I will find out for you, I have a friend who's into Linux, he may know. But I can't get ahold of him till friday.

[Computer Hobbyist]

You also might need a Floppy drive for installing drivers , bios updates etc..

The last few computers I have built I haven't installed floppies, but I have one on the network someplace. I think you are better off with a CD burner. What is everybody else doing?

[kstatefan40]

That power supply is a good quality one.

What version of Linux will you be running?

Edit: I have a floppy drive in my machine for pretty much no reason. I've had it for about 4 months and it has never had a floppy disk in it. I have all my utilities that would normally go on a boot floppy on the Ultimate Boot CD.

[Louds3]

I bet that x700 card would run flight sim's fine but I wouldn't spend $95 for it I believe an nvidia 6600 will outperform that by quite a bit and can be had for $102 shipped. http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=321016&affiliate=pricegrabber
Your choice, also that motherboard is MicroATX, I'd get an ATX board for more expandability inthe future. I don't know anything about linux compatibility though. take care

Steve

[Computer Hobbyist]

I bet that x700 card would run flight sim's fine but I wouldn't spend $95 for it I believe an nvidia 6600 will outperform that by quite a bit and can be had for $102 shipped. http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=321016&affiliate=pricegrabber
Your choice, also that motherboard is MicroATX, I'd get an ATX board for more expandability inthe future. I don't know anything about linux compatibility though. take care

Steve

Thanks for the tip on the video card. I know nothing at all about PCI express (I have been working on my basement for a while now and every spare dime has gone to Home Depot.) I will do some more reading.

As to the microATX v a regular ATX board, if I decide to simply upgrade my current computer, I will opt for an ATX board with similar specs, but lately i have found that Micro boards have a lot to commend them. Very rarely do I need more than one CD and one hard drive, and expansion slots are not really a big deal most of the time. Of course, I don't build gaming machines, just office machines and internet cruisers so the last few years I have used the on-board audio and video a lot.

One thing occurs to me. Do PCI express cards run hot. I know they are power hungry. I wouldn't be a bit surprised to learn that they are regular toaster ovens. If that is the situation a bigger case might be preferrable to a smaller case.

What is your experience.

[blue60007]

Check to make sure all your parts have Linux drivers.

[Computer Hobbyist]

Thanks. I haven't had too much of a problem with drivers in Linux. Linux runs most everything. Linux driver problems usually happen on the bleeding edge of the technological envelope.

[Computer Hobbyist]

That power supply is a good quality one.

What version of Linux will you be running?

Edit: I have a floppy drive in my machine for pretty much no reason. I've had it for about 4 months and it has never had a floppy disk in it. I have all my utilities that would normally go on a boot floppy on the Ultimate Boot CD.

Ubuntu.

I can't recall the last time I have used a floppy. Oh wait I can. Somebody gave me a printer driver on a floppy. I think a CD Rom would have been cheaper.

[kstatefan40]

ANY video card will run flightsims fine. Heck, I used to run it on a PCI (there's no E there - 32 MB card) and it would run decent. The minimum requirements are VERY low - what's it got to do, display textures on the terrain? There is NO need for a A video card was put in there for breathing room because its reasonable to put it in with that budget, and it will allow for other games. Don't worry much about it, and personally, I'd dispute the fact that the 6600 outperforms the x700... but I'm not going to turn this into an ATI vs. NVidia debate.

I'd recommend nothing smaller a ATX case. If the video card doesn't run hot, the processor sure does. I recommend one with a side air duct as per Intel Spec.

Good luck!

[blue60007]

What flight sims are you playing? The latest MS Flight Sims need a very hefty card to play them nicely. And a halfway new one supporting DX9, etc just to play it.

[Computer Hobbyist]

KStateFan

I pay close attention to heat, and unless things have changed, most any Intel processor usually does just fine in a MicroATX case with proper cooling. Are the new generation Intel processors running hotter than the last? I hear more complaints about noise than anything. Don't you?

[Louds3]

As KsState fan wrote the x700 may actually outperform the 6600. A few posts ago I wrote the opposite but after a bit of research you may want to go with the x700. However, i really am no video card expert (i.e. my video card is crap) since I am not really a gamer. For what it's worth, Tom's hardware ran some GPU Benchmarks on a game called Pacific Fighters which is a flight game, here's the results http://graphics.tomshardware.com/graphic/20050524/vga_charts-11.html
My guess is that they would be pretty comporable and I don't think you could go wrong with either. As for the MicroATX board, it really does just depend on your upgrading needs, personally I like to keep my options open to adding stuff in the future as ya never know what they'll come up with next that you may want to add. completely up to you. take care

Steve

[kstatefan40]

Hobbyist, my P4 775 is running at 56'C idle without an air duct, and two fans. However, the hsf adjusts to the heat - so it rarely goes any over 60'C (highest I've seen is 62'C in bf2). That asus board (i believe) has a "Q-Fan" technology which makes it quieter by a LONG shot. Without that enabled (through bios) this thing is like an airplane.

As for the video requirements for MS Flight Sim 2004, I was referring to that game in the above post. Reading off the box, the minimum requirement is an 8 MB video card with DX9 and 3d support. That isn't exactly high, however, on all high settings, it runs on an Intel integrated "Media Accelerator 900" at 20 FPS steady. The X700 tears it up - I can easily hit 95 FPS, if not higher (I haven't checked lately).

Hope this helps.

[blue60007]

Hmm yeah, I thought the requirements would be a bit higher for FS2004, but...I was suprised to see that on my box. I guess it depends on which settings you want to play it on. If you don't mind low settings, then yes, any video card will run it.