CFS-3 w. OFF compared to FSX?

[DaveKDEN]

Hi all,
Posted this in the FSX forum and was wondering whether any of you might have any feedback....

"I was wondering if some of you are using CFS-3 in addition to FSX? I bought CFS-3 when it first came out, but it was completely unplayable on my old machine, I ended up selling it, so no longer have a copy. However, with my new system, I was thinking it might be worth picking up again, if maybe only for the "OFF" add-ons. So, just wondering what kind of performance those of you who fly both get out of CFS-3 vs. FSX?

Intel Q6600 @3GHz, 4GB RAM, 768MB GeForce 8800 GTX"

 

[hispeed]

Apples and oranges...i like to kill (virtually speaking), so I pick CFS3 with addons like OFF any day

 

[Zommoz]

I run OFF and FSX on the same machine and OFF runs better... I reckon because CFS3 is so much older than FSX. FPS in OFF is higher and more consistent than in FSX and the stock FSX scenery can't hold a candle to the beautiful vistas in OFF... but of course, I freely admit to being a big OFF fanboi :Banane40: and haven't really gone whole hog on FSX tweaking

My rig: Asus Striker Extreme, Intel Core 2 Quad QX6700 and an EVGA 8800 GT

 

[DaveKDEN]

I run OFF and FSX on the same machine and OFF runs better... I reckon because CFS3 is so much older than FSX. FPS in OFF is higher and more consistent than in FSX and the stock FSX scenery can't hold a candle to the beautiful vistas in OFF... but of course, I freely admit to being a big OFF fanboi :Banane40: and haven't really gone whole hog on FSX tweaking

My rig: Asus Striker Extreme, Intel Core 2 Quad QX6700 and an EVGA 8800 GT

THANKYOU! Great feedback!

 

[gimpyguy]

Agreed FSX can't hold a candle, to OFF as far as scenery is concerned, but it's only fair to point out, you can download and install many different aircraft in FSX. Like my Stearman, Waco, and Bleriot

FLAPS are for Sissy's :bananalama:

 

[griphos]

I fly both OFF and FSX. In fact, those are the only two flight sims I fly. I've got FPS lock set to 30 in FSX, so I don't know how high it will go otherwise. I want it to be drawing scenery above 30 FPS. But I do have everything set very high. PM me if you want exact specs.

I actually think FSX runs smoother than OFF. I don't get nearly as many stutters in FSX. I may not have my settings tweaked well in OFF yet. I usually get very high FPS in OFF even with high settings - 5 5 4 4 5 4 - (I imagine I average mid-40s and get 60s when I'm just up there flying along admiring the scenery), but when planes close on me, at least initially, I get the stutters for a little while.

I have an E8400 dual core at 3 ghz, nVidia 9800GT with 512, and 4 gb on Vista 32. I run the nVidia with 8x and 8x (anti-alias and anisotropic) settings.

I've installed UTX North America and Europe and Scenery Tech landclass for both as well in FSX. I think it's pretty darn nice looking. I flew a freebie Flight Design sport plane in the crater of Mt. St. Helens in the winter at sunset the other day and that was pretty stunning, actually. And the RealAir Citabria and SF260 have AMAZING flight models and gorgeous graphics.

Still, turning on to an Albatross with the sun shining off its wings and then watching the debris fly off as you pump shells into her....that's pretty darned impressive also.

So, I think a machine that will handle one well will handle the other well also. Your system should handle both fine.

 

[Dimus]

Like hispeed says, apples and oranges. They are both my favorite offline sims. FSX is a monster to tweak but once you find that sweet spot, it is a dream. Furthermore, the stock FSX has little to offer imho and it is good payware addons that make it look great. I have UTX Europe and Real Environment Extreme (REX), as well as Carenado's Cessna 152 (my real life mount) and Real air Spitfire. The REX package is to me the best thing one can buy as the weather and water themes and textures are beyond belief. Combine that with the downloadable real weather and what you will see in the sky and on the water surface is amazing. My performance in real training flights has actually increased considerably after I've started rehersing them in FSX with these addons.

On the other hand you have OFF, which is a complete package and tweaking it is quite straightforward. As far as western Europe scenery and weather and clouds, it is a dream, but it is the campaign engine that is its heart and soul. No extra addons to buy also. And you get a complete WW1 history book too.

I think that both will reside in your HD nicely and you will enjoy both, depending on your mood.

Some interesting comparisons for you:

 

[mike5ta]

Dimus for someone that flys in the real world like you do both sims must be good you know more than most of us what it is like flying for real. Nice pictures thanks mate.

 

[Dimus]

Thank you Mike but I'm really just a student, trying desperately to get enough hours to get that PPL. There are people in this forum with a real vast flying experience, like cpirrmann, WF2 and Speedski, to name just a few that spring to mind. There are others over at the CFS and FSX forum too. I have just observed that these sims, if flown with precision are a very good way to keep you current between flights, as real flights cost a lot and you may not have enough time to do them very often. And of course, you can always refly and learn from your mistakes.

 

[UK_Widowmaker]

I run OFF and FSX on the same machine and OFF runs better... I reckon because CFS3 is so much older than FSX. FPS in OFF is higher and more consistent than in FSX and the stock FSX scenery can't hold a candle to the beautiful vistas in OFF... but of course, I freely admit to being a big OFF fanboi :Banane40: and haven't really gone whole hog on FSX tweaking

My rig: Asus Striker Extreme, Intel Core 2 Quad QX6700 and an EVGA 8800 GT

Ditto!

 

[Baywing]

I've found CFS3 and OFF to perform better than FSX on my mid-range system. According to your specs, you should do very well with CFS3/OFF.
Dell E521 (upgraded), Dual AMD 5600+ (2.8), 8600GT, 4gb ram on Win XP.

 

[scoutII]

Totally agree with Dimus - CFS3 w/ ETO,MAW,PTO,and FirePower are GREAT!!
CFS3 w/ OFF AWESOME!! FSX IS BEAUTIFUL w/ addon's , but all require tweaking...and no computer works the same for each even if they have the same spec's - You have to tweak till they suit you . Saying some have a huge system and still have trouble and some with mid range run great also.....

 

[Rooster89]

Thank you Mike but I'm really just a student, trying desperately to get enough hours to get that PPL. There are people in this forum with a real vast flying experience, like cpirrmann, WF2 and Speedski, to name just a few that spring to mind. There are others over at the CFS and FSX forum too. I have just observed that these sims, if flown with precision are a very good way to keep you current between flights, as real flights cost a lot and you may not have enough time to do them very often. And of course, you can always refly and learn from your mistakes.

I bought FSX just for that reason. For me its like a $50 training program, and when you accidentally crash it doesnt hurt. lol. I'll be going for some training this summer and Im pretty confident that FSX helped me hone some skills this winter.

-Rooster

 

[Dimus]

I bought FSX just for that reason. For me its like a $50 training program, and when you accidentally crash it doesnt hurt. lol. I'll be going for some training this summer and Im pretty confident that FSX helped me hone some skills this winter.

-Rooster

It certainly has Rooster. I can't forget my instructor's face when we first did some tight banking turns and stalls as well as my first landing, which I performed flawlessly and he said: "Hey, have you done this before?" I did not answer anything about flightsims, as most of these people do not really know the level of detail that flightsims have reached these days and they are sceptical or even negative against them. I keep it to myself and just amaze him each time I do a real flight. The key to make it work for you is to be strict and do everything in the sim according to the real checklist.

 

[duck]

In RL I fly a Piper Cherokee 180 so I bought the Carenado Cherokee 180 for FSX. In my opinion it's much harder to land it in FSX than real life. Visibility is of course much better in RL and the real airplane seems less responsive/ more stable than the virtual airplane (maybe I can tweak the game joystick controls). I used the FSX Cherokee last weekend to refamiliarize myself (due to work & weather, I hadn't flown since last November). I did a mental walkaround, went thru the prestart checklist, did the run up check and then flew a bunch of touch and goes in the virtual world before going up in my Cherokee yesterday. The result was smooth RL flight by the book and a decent landing. FSX or FS2004 are great training/ refresher tools.
Having said that, I noticed when I went back to OFF that, surprisingly, the graphics & scenery seemed much nicer in OFF than FSX (my FSX is stock so I should take the advice above). Now if I could just get those mean OFF people to stop shooting at me when I'm sightseeing, I'd be a happy camper...