Microsoft Flight Simulator

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination ranks 1223rd out of 1795 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator, placing it in the lower-middle tier of the database. This position reflects a pairing where neither component is a standout performer for this particular title, and the data suggests a system that will require careful settings management to achieve a smooth experience. The rank implies that a substantial portion of tested hardware configurations deliver higher average frame rates, yet this combo is far from the bottom, indicating it remains a viable option for flight enthusiasts who prioritize other system attributes.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1223 out of 1795 places it in the 32nd percentile of all tested combinations, meaning roughly 68% of configurations outperform it in this game. This is a middling result, but the underlying data reveals that the bottleneck is not uniform across resolutions. The CPU’s percentileVsAllCpus of 79 indicates it is a reasonably capable processor relative to the broader market, while the GPU’s percentileVsAllGpus of 63 shows it sits slightly above average but not in the upper echelon. The deltaPct values from the nearest rivals are telling: the CPU is nearly identical in average benchmark score to the Intel Core i5-12500 (deltaPct -0.1), the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 4655GE (deltaPct -0.1), and the AMD EPYC 7J13 (deltaPct 0.1), which highlights that the 5500 is essentially a performance dead heat with these alternatives. For the GPU, the RTX 2060 SUPER is 0.5% ahead of the RTX 2070 and 0.3% behind the GTX TITAN, reinforcing that this graphics card is in a tightly contested performance band. The combination of a mid-tier CPU and a mid-tier GPU yields a system that is adequate for 1080p and 1440p play but struggles at 4K, as the measured FPS will show.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER brings 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1470 MHz, boosting to 1650 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). In Microsoft Flight Simulator, which is known for streaming vast terrain and scenery data, the 8 GB VRAM capacity is a critical factor. At 4K resolution with High settings, the combo averages 33.4 FPS, and at Ultra it drops slightly to 34.1 FPS, suggesting the GPU is hitting a memory bandwidth or capacity ceiling. The 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is substantial, but the game’s demand for texture streaming at high resolutions likely saturates it. The GPU’s 2176 shading units and 64 ROPs provide a texture rate of 224.4 GTexel/s, which is adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but the data shows a steep performance cliff as resolution increases. The fact that the RTX 2060 SUPER scores 16462 in passmark_g3d and 6721 in passmark_gpu_compute indicates solid raw compute, yet the game’s engine appears to be more sensitive to memory bandwidth and capacity than to raw shader throughput.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy for optimizing the experience. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 100.1 FPS, which is exceptionally smooth, while Medium drops to 79 FPS and High to 59.9 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 58.9 FPS, which is nearly identical to High. This suggests that for 1080p users, High is the sweet spot—it offers a 1 FPS gain over Ultra while reducing visual load, and it is a 20 FPS improvement over Medium, making it the best balance of fidelity and fluidity. At 2560x1440, Low produces 80.4 FPS, Medium drops to 65.7 FPS, and High falls to 46.9 FPS. Here, Medium is the recommended preset because it maintains a playable frame rate above 60 FPS while High dips below that threshold. For 4K, the situation changes: Low yields 56.4 FPS, Medium 45.9 FPS, High 33.4 FPS, and Ultra 34.1 FPS. At this resolution, Low is the only preset that approaches playable territory, and even then, it is marginal. The data suggests that 4K gaming on this combo requires significant compromises, and users should either stick to Low or consider lowering resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers an average of 100.1 FPS on Low, 79 FPS on Medium, 59.9 FPS on High, and 58.9 FPS on Ultra. The jump from Low to Medium is a 21.1 FPS drop, while High to Ultra is only a 1 FPS difference, indicating that the Ultra preset adds little overhead over High. At 2560x1440, the averages are 80.4 FPS (Low), 65.7 FPS (Medium), 46.9 FPS (High), and 47.3 FPS (Ultra). Interestingly, Ultra at 1440p is 0.4 FPS faster than High, which is within noise but suggests the two presets are nearly identical in load. At 3840x2160, the averages are 56.4 FPS (Low), 45.9 FPS (Medium), 33.4 FPS (High), and 34.1 FPS (Ultra). The 4K data shows a peculiar pattern where High is slower than Ultra by 0.7 FPS, which likely reflects the game’s dynamic scene complexity rather than a preset quirk. Across all resolutions, the delta between Low and Ultra is consistent: 41.2 FPS at 1080p, 33.1 FPS at 1440p, and 22.3 FPS at 4K. This diminishing gap suggests that as resolution increases, the CPU becomes less of a factor and the GPU’s limits dominate.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 with Low settings delivers 100.1 FPS, while 2560x1440 with Low drops to 80.4 FPS. For a balance of quality and performance, 1080p High at 59.9 FPS is the most playable high-fidelity option, whereas 1440p Medium at 65.7 FPS is also viable.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER compare to its nearest rival in benchmark scores?

A: The GPU is 0.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 in average benchmark score, and it sits 0.3% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN. This places it in a tight performance cluster where differences are negligible.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 5500 a limiting factor at 4K?

A: The CPU’s percentileVsAllCpus of 79 suggests it is capable, but the 4K results show a steep drop to 33.4 FPS on High. The fact that Low at 4K yields 56.4 FPS indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as lowering settings improves frame rates dramatically.

Q: Why is there almost no difference between High and Ultra settings?

A: At 1920x1080, High yields 59.9 FPS and Ultra 58.9 FPS, a difference of only 1 FPS. At 2560x1440, Ultra is 0.4 FPS faster than High, and at 4K, Ultra is 0.7 FPS faster. This suggests the Ultra preset adds minimal computational load in this game for this hardware.

Q: What is the combo’s rank relative to all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 1223rd out of 1795 tested combos, placing it in the lower third of the database. This means most tested systems outperform it, but it is not at the bottom.

Q: Does the CPU’s benchmark score align with its gaming performance?

A: The CPU’s avgBenchmarkScore is 20875, with a percentileVsAllCpus of 79. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12500, has a deltaPct of -0.1, meaning they are statistically identical in average score, yet in this game, the combo’s rank suggests the CPU is not the sole determinant of FPS.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on Zen 3 architecture (Cezanne), with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.20 GHz. Its 16 MB L3 cache and 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth are modest by modern standards, but its benchmark scores are respectable: a cinebench_r23_multicore score of 16429 and a single-thread score of 2319. In Microsoft Flight Simulator, which is heavily reliant on single-thread performance for simulation logic, the 5500’s single-thread score of 836 in 3dmark_single_thread suggests it can handle the game’s core calculations. However, the game also benefits from multiple threads for scenery loading and AI traffic, and the 5500’s 3dmark_max_threads score of 5411 shows it scales reasonably. The CPU’s percentileVsAllCpus of 79 indicates it outperforms most processors on the market, yet the combo’s low rank implies that the GPU is the dominant constraint. The nearest rival data reinforces this: the Intel Core i5-12500 has a deltaPct of -0.1, meaning the 5500 is effectively tied in average performance, so any FPS differences come from the GPU or game optimization.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS reveals a clear pattern of diminishing returns as resolution increases. From 1080p to 1440p on Low settings, the average FPS drops from 100.1 to 80.4, a 19.7% reduction. From 1440p to 4K on Low, it drops from 80.4 to 56.4, a 29.9% reduction. The same trend holds for High settings: 1080p yields 59.9 FPS, 1440p 46.9 FPS (a 21.7% drop), and 4K 33.4 FPS (a 28.8% drop from 1440p). This scaling behavior indicates that the GPU is the limiting component, as the frame rate drops proportionally with pixel count. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the FPS to remain relatively flat from 1080p to 4K, but the data shows a consistent decline, confirming that the RTX 2060 SUPER’s 8 GB VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are being saturated at higher resolutions. The fact that Ultra settings at 1440p (47.3 FPS) and 4K (34.1 FPS) are barely slower than High suggests that the GPU’s memory subsystem is the primary constraint, not the shading units. The 4K Low result of 56.4 FPS is notable because it shows that even at the lowest settings, the GPU cannot maintain 60 FPS at 4K, which firmly places this combo in the 1080p and 1440p territory for smooth gameplay.