I3 530 & FSX

[dazz 69]

I don't know about other games, all I'm doing is sharing my experience in FSX cause actually I don't know much about hardware in general, but I've had a P2 x4 965@ 3.7GHz, then the 1090T @ 4 and finally this I5 750the x4 is the same thing as the x6, but the x6 are hexas (I'm sure you know that) and overclock a bit better. The 965 performance was almost the same as the 1090T (see dez's comment) so by all means, if you want to go with AMD for some reason, pick the 955 (there's a 95W version now that will overclock great)Again, I think that FOR FSX the I3 will be the best bang for the buck by far, and will definitely outperform any AMD chip, but if you want a quad no matter what, I think for the price difference, the I5 7xx is still a much better choice than a Phenom II x4 955.

Thanks, I have been a long time AMD builder but am seriously considering the dark side.What about the Phenom II X4 (on the lower end, cost/benefit)? Tom's hardware had a fairly convincing write-up (vs. i3-540) linked to by Bangoman.

In a lot of gaming situations, a higher clocked quad is more use than a slower clocked 6/4 core, so it really depends on the game.

[sweetlou 0]

I don't know about other games, all I'm doing is sharing my experience in FSX cause actually I don't know much about hardware in general, but I've had a P2 x4 965@ 3.7GHz, then the 1090T @ 4 and finally this I5 750the x4 is the same thing as the x6, but the x6 are hexas (I'm sure you know that) and overclock a bit better. The 965 performance was almost the same as the 1090T (see dez's comment) so by all means, if you want to go with AMD for some reason, pick the 955 (there's a 95W version now that will overclock great)Again, I think that FOR FSX the I3 will be the best bang for the buck by far, and will definitely outperform any AMD chip, but if you want a quad no matter what, I think for the price difference, the I5 7xx is still a much better choice than a Phenom II x4 955.

Thanks again Dario, I think I will go the i3 route.

[bangoman 2]

I couldn't decide which thread to post in - the i3 seems to be a hot topic of conversation! Reference to my dilemma is here:http://forum.avsim.n...system-musings/So this post refers to this thread and the one you are reading now.HardwareNew pieces bought from my local Canada Computers. So much more civilised than mail order!Gigabyte H55M-UD2HGSkill Ripjaws 2x 2GB DDR3-1333 7-7-7-21 (stock)Core i3-540 at stock 3.06ghzStock Intel coolerReused pieces:EVGA 8800GTS 320mbAntec Neo 550W PSU / Gigabyte GZ-X1 case (2x120mm front and back)OCZ Solid 2 60gb SSD for Win7 and FSX / 500gb Samsung Spinpoint for Linux and General computing (the idea being I keep the Windows install as uncluttered as possible for FSX. Plus Linux Mint is far, far superior to Windows for everything but games. But that's an entirely different topic...)SoftwareWindows 7 Ultimate 64-bitFSX SP1 and SP2, no add-ons isn't a 172 enough for everyone ;-)Tweaks and install as per here:http://www.simforums...topic29041.htmlThere are lots of steps and the above link contains many other links to read. I followed them to the letter. Luckily I didn't have to defrag as I'm using an SSD. There are plenty of tweak guides for FSX out there, I just chose Nick's because I like his KISS approach. Of note, Windows 7 automatically installed nvidia drivers version 190.38. I just left it alone to see what it is like. It works fine.So here's my first experience with the new build.SettingsStart with ultra high defaults at 1280x1024x32 on a 19" monitor then make the following changes:Frame rate set to unlimitedFiltering anisotropicAnti-aliasing onLight bloom onFlight detailsCessna 172 (it's the only plane I can fly in FSX and the real world)Airport London City EGLCWeather - thunderstorms, daytimeFlight time approx 45 minutesI haven't got everything setup properly yet - I just have the frame counter onscreen for a quick look. FPS somewhere between 19 and 40. Gets lower as I fly into cloud. It's all very smooth. And it does look incredible. Ok, maybe my expectations are lower than most on the forum - after all it's only a 19" at 1280x1024 (4:3, old school). Not exactly groundbreaking but it looks great. I don't use any add-ons either so not exactly taxing there. The exterior shots look fantastic too with similar frame rates. To those who know London's airspace, it's off limits in the real world to single engine aircraft... not in FSX!Granted the CPU and GPU coolers sound like it too is going to take off! But it's drowned out whenever the nearby fridge kicks in and certainly drowned out by my ceiling fan.I'm very happy thus far. I quickly tried out the Airbus A321 but I have no idea how to fly it so all I did was take off from Heathrow and make it beep a lot. But it too looked great.If there's anything you want me to try out, let me know in this thread.

[dazz 69]

That's pretty close to what I see (all 4 cores active), and you have not overclocked yet. Looks good to me, but turn off light bloom. If you want it use ENB Series cause the performance hit is much lower than the default bloom I've been doing more tests and there seems to be a small hit on 2 cores (5-10%) but the higher OC those I3 achieve should make up for that small frame loss Are you overclocking BTW?

[bangoman 2]

Did ~45 min flight from EGLC London City along the Thames to Heathrow EGLL with FRAPS running with the settings as above:Minimum 18fps, maximum 44 fps, average 26.6fps. I'll give the ENB series a go for light bloom.And I will certainly be overclocking, just went out to look at aftermarket coolers. $50 seems to be the sweet spot. I'll see where I end up on the stock cooler and decide whether I need another $50 performance. This is my first time using a stock cooler though!

[bangoman 2]

So I've got started with an overclock: BLCK 175mhz x 23 (CPU multiplier) = 4025mhz on 2 cores / 2 threads. I disabled HT to keep my temps reasonable. I'm not as scientific as some of the benchmarkers out there but I did the same trip as above although it was a different flight from a piloting point of view (managed to stall on approach to LHR in the high winds. oops).Stock 3.06ghz - min 18fps, max 44 fps, avg 26.6fpsOverclocked 4.025ghz - min 18 fps, max 62 fps, avg 29.9fpsNot exactly ground breaking but a decent improvement. I haven't gotten the most out of the memory yet, it's chugging along at 600mhz i.e. DDR3-1200 so I have room for tweaks there. I haven't read much about how FSX behaves in terms of memory bandwidth.Disclaimer: I don't claim to be consistent in all of these different runs. I'm loving the thunderstorm preset for the weather and the clouds are in different places requiring different levels etc to maintain VFR. So don't read too much into my numbers! Plus a reminder that I'm playing at 1280x1024 which is probably lower than most of you here. I figure that my 46" HDTV is 1080 pixels high and looks pretty good so 1024 pixels on 19" is plenty for me.With that out of the way I can give my subjective opinion - to be honest my eyes didn't feel any different between the two runs! My feet did though because they're next to the PC case which has now become heater like. FSX peak of 70 deg C, peak of around 80 deg C in Prime95. Idle at 50 deg C. Remember no turbo boost or speedstep here.In summary, I am very happy with my Core i3 rig and I, like Dazz, believe that the i3 will fulfil the needs of most FSX drivers on one screen. The cost to me was about C$330 + tax = about C$370. A staggering upgrade as I've jumped up 2 levels from medium to ultrahigh on the settings and more than doubled my frame rates compared to my Core 2 Duo. I saved about C$100 over a Core i5 quad core setup. I'm not even sure I need a new graphics card as far as FSX is concerned - I'm happy with the way everything looks and feels. I also wonder how much the SSD has to do with it as well.I'm sure getting the memory multiplier/clock will help. I've hit the limit for now due to heat issues - remember I'm on the stock cooler here. I saw the Coolermaster Hyper 212 in Tigerdirect today - I'll mull over it and whether it's worth it or not.Anyway enough tweaking for one day - I'll post again if I find anything groundbreaking.

[luckyman 0]

Nice results. The SSD is only helping you by loading FSX faster and windows to boot quicker. It won't improve your FP/S if that's what your interested in. It might make the textures load a bit faster and flight smooth but that's it. As for a cooler Noctua NH-14 is a great one. And if you want something a little better consider the Corsair H70 watercooler, it'll save you tons of room.

[bangoman 2]

I see that many use the NH-14 but it's $100 - I somehow feel it's against the spirit of the build... maybe that $100 should have gone on a quad core or an i5-660. But then I would probably end up with an aftermarket cooler regardless of the CPU. I'm still keen on the Hyper 212+ and the ability to put 2x120cm fans in a push/pull arrangement.Just had another play OC'd at 4.025ghz, this time in Toronto with another thunderstorm. I've pushed the memory a little harder as well (1400mhz).Light bloom on: min 21fps, max 55 fps, avg 29.9fpsLight bloom off: min 32 fps, max 79 fps, avg 53.5fpsAs I push my hardware to higher speeds, the FPS goes up but the flight seems less smooth somehow, a few stutters are creeping in. Is there such a thing as "quality of clock"?!In other news I bought a Blue Planet Energy Meter from Canadian Tire: http://www.canadiant...r.jsp?locale=enA bargain at $25. I got it to underclock my HTPC for some energy savings. What I was surprised at is that my FSX i3 setup (in the sig) only draws a max power of 224W when playing FSX at these OC'd settings. Thought I would be pushing the limits of my PSU (550W). Or are the numbers somehow not related?

[dazz 69]

224W sounds reasonable to me. Keep in mind your 71W TDP GPU is not even being 100% used, and there's a lower effective power output below your nominal 550W. You still have some nice headroom for future GPU upgrades and higher clocks.As for the CPU cooler (and don't quote me on this) I think you will be limited by Vcore rather than temps with that chip. Here's a great performance/price ratio cooler that I think fits the spirit of your build: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 That Cooler Master Hyper 212 looks good too

[bangoman 2]

Well, my current experience is that I'm limited by temps - I was hitting core temps of 90 at a base clock of 180mhz with HT off running Prime95's torture test. I reckon with better cooling I can get higher on the base clock.Interesting choice on the Freezer 7 Pro - that is exactly what was cooling my socket 775 Core 2 Duo. Maybe I'll look into getting the right bracket for a 1156 fit. I still have the (unused) stock 775 Intel cooler. Even more interesting was your choice of retailer - I have spent many a happy £££ there in a previous life!Whilst we can quote numbers at each other all day, it would be interesting to do a side by side comparison of our systems! Shame you're in Mallorca and I'm in Canada.

[dazz 69]

I did a quick search and the CM hyper 212 should be quite a better performer even though it seems it's a bit noisier. Pretty sure you already know what you're doing.Considering how I'm wasting my summer in front of my computer instead of going sun bathing to some paradise beach here, I might be better off moving to canada and keeping my OC temps lower hehe

[luckyman 0]

I did a quick search and the CM hyper 212 should be quite a better performer even though it seems it's a bit noisier. Pretty sure you already know what you're doing.Considering how I'm wasting my summer in front of my computer instead of going sun bathing to some paradise beach here, I might be better off moving to canada and keeping my OC temps lower hehe

Nope it's 30 Celcius here and 34 tomorrow, no worth comming here to cool your PC!! Anyway I still say Noctua NH-14! It's big but it's one of the best aftermarket cooler out there!!

[FSP532 1]

Nice topic here. I too am undecided about i3/i5/1095T, and prolly will go for the i5 because the extra two cores can be useful for Tileproxy. Another prime need is triple-monitor setup: an AMD 5850 is my fav budget card (the 5870 is 125€ more). Different people, different needs I guess. Keep coming those benchs

[bangoman 2]

He he, I'm in Ontario - would it be acceptable practice to leave my PC outside in a waterproof jacket in the winter when it's -20degC outside!!@FSP532 Welcome to the party... glad we could be of help, at least there's some info about the core i3 and FSX on the interwebs. Have you got the 5850 yet? If so, how is it in FSX? I'm looking at eyefinity but it seems to be that nVidia > ATI for FSX. Maybe nVidia's equivalent product will be of use? Although one has to use SLI for nVidia 3D surround.

[luckyman 0]

He he, I'm in Ontario - would it be acceptable practice to leave my PC outside in a waterproof jacket in the winter when it's -20degC outside!!@FSP532 Welcome to the party... glad we could be of help, at least there's some info about the core i3 and FSX on the interwebs. Have you got the 5850 yet? If so, how is it in FSX? I'm looking at eyefinity but it seems to be that nVidia > ATI for FSX. Maybe nVidia's equivalent product will be of use? Although one has to use SLI for nVidia 3D surround.

:P Depends if you have a power outlet outside?? And you **should** get a GTX 460 or 470, 480 if you can afford it. Eyefinitiy would be amazing but would proably be tough on frames?