Microsoft Flight Simulator

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination delivers a workable, if not spectacular, Microsoft Flight Simulator experience. The data shows a system that can handle the game at 1080p with high settings but requires careful tuning at higher resolutions. This pairing ranks 1334 out of 1795 tested combos, placing it in the lower-middle tier of the database, which aligns with its performance profile of solid 1080p playability and challenging 4K results.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 4K?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, where it achieves an average of 57.8 FPS. At Medium, the average drops to 47.1 FPS, and at High and Ultra, it falls to 34.6 FPS and 31.2 FPS respectively, which are less fluid for a flight sim.

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU/GPU pairing?

A: The data indicates 1920x1080 is the sweet spot. At this resolution, the combo achieves 100.7 FPS on Low, 76.2 FPS on Medium, and 60.2 FPS on High, providing a range of smooth experiences. At 2560x1440, performance is still playable on Medium (60.3 FPS) and High (47.9 FPS).

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 5600 compare to its closest rivals in general benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 5 5600 has an average benchmark score of 21765. It is essentially tied with the Intel Xeon D-1746TER, which scores 21635 (0.6% slower). It also sits very close to the AMD EPYC 9554P (21899, 0.6% faster) and the Intel Core i7-11700F (21957, 0.9% faster).

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER compare to its nearest competitors?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 19774. It is nearly identical in performance to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN (19706, 0.3% slower) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (19680, 0.5% slower). It holds a slight edge over the NVIDIA Quadro K5200 (19623, 0.8% slower).

Q: Is the 8 GB VRAM on the RTX 2060 SUPER sufficient for this game?

A: Yes, the 8 GB of GDDR6 memory is adequate for the settings tested. The benchmark results show playable frame rates at 2560x1440 and 1920x1080, indicating that VRAM capacity is not a limiting factor at these configurations, though Ultra settings at 4K do push the average down to 31.2 FPS.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the CPU and GPU in this combo?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 has a launch MSRP of $199, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER has a launch MSRP of 399 USD.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is the primary driver of frame rates in Microsoft Flight Simulator, particularly as resolution increases. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient for the game's texture streaming needs at the tested settings. The GPU's boost clock of 1650 MHz and its 2176 shading units are the key components processing the complex scenery and weather effects.

The benchmark data reveals a clear GPU-bound trend. At 3840x2160, the GPU is the limiting factor, with the average frame rate falling from 57.8 FPS on Low to 31.2 FPS on Ultra. This 26.6 FPS drop between the lowest and highest settings shows the significant load that the game's visual enhancements place on the graphics card. At this resolution, even the High preset (34.6 FPS) struggles to maintain a smooth experience.

Moving to 2560x1440, the GPU still has a substantial workload, but the performance becomes more manageable. The RTX 2060 SUPER delivers 80.8 FPS on Low, which drops to 42.3 FPS on Ultra. The gap between High (47.9 FPS) and Ultra (42.3 FPS) narrows to 5.6 FPS, suggesting that the additional visual fidelity from Ultra is relatively expensive for the performance gained at this resolution.

The GPU's role changes at 1920x1080, where it is better able to keep up with the CPU. Here, the 2060 SUPER provides a strong 100.7 FPS on Low, demonstrating its headroom at lower resolutions. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a drop of 44.1 FPS (to 56.6 FPS), which is the largest absolute difference across all resolutions, indicating that at 1080p, the GPU has the resources to render the more demanding settings but is still heavily taxed by the Ultra preset.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 provides a solid foundation for this flight simulator, ensuring the GPU is not starved of data. With 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, it offers strong single-thread performance, which is crucial for a game like Microsoft Flight Simulator that relies heavily on a primary simulation thread. Its boost clock of 4.40 GHz and 32 MB of shared L3 cache help maintain consistent frame pacing.

The CPU's benchmark scores indicate its capability. A Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2584 and a multi-core score of 18309 show a balanced processor that can handle both the main game thread and background tasks. The PassMark single-thread score of 3256 further confirms its strength in lightly-threaded workloads. This is important because the game's performance at lower resolutions, where the GPU is not the bottleneck, will depend on the CPU's ability to feed frames quickly.

While the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K, the CPU's role becomes more pronounced at 1080p. The fact that the combo achieves 100.7 FPS on Low at 1080p suggests that the Ryzen 5 5600 is capable of driving high frame rates. However, as settings increase, the frame rate drops, which could be a combination of increased GPU load and the CPU's limits in handling the game's complex simulation logic at higher visual detail. The CPU's 65 W TDP and 7 nm process node indicate it is an efficient part of the system.

The Ryzen 5 5600's position in the broader market is competitive. Its average benchmark score of 21765 places it in the 79th percentile of all CPUs, and it trades blows with the Intel Core i7-11700F, which is only 0.9% faster in aggregate benchmarks. This indicates that the CPU is well-matched for the RTX 2060 SUPER, providing enough processing power to avoid creating a significant bottleneck in most scenarios.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 1334 out of 1795 combos for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the 26th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that it performs better than roughly a quarter of the configurations in the database.

This ranking is a direct reflection of the measured FPS data. The combo's performance is strongest at 1080p, where it can achieve high frame rates on lower settings, but it falls behind many other combinations at 4K, where the RTX 2060 SUPER's limitations are exposed. The rank of 1334 suggests that while this is a functional setup for the game, there are many more powerful combos that will provide higher frame rates, especially at higher resolutions and settings.

The data shows that this combination is more capable than the low rank might initially suggest for a specific use case. For a user targeting 1920x1080, this combo ranks far higher in practical usability, as it can handle High settings at 60.2 FPS. The overall rank is dragged down by its sub-60 FPS performance at 2560x1440 on Ultra and its inability to maintain playable frame rates at 4K on anything above Low settings. The ranking is a holistic measure, but the component-specific strengths are clear in the resolution-based data.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and smooth gameplay, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 is the recommended starting point. This setting yields an average of 76.2 FPS, providing a fluid experience with a significant visual upgrade over Low. If a higher frame rate is preferred, the Low preset at 1080p offers 100.7 FPS, but with a noticeable reduction in visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset is again the most practical choice. It delivers 60.3 FPS, which is perfectly playable for a flight simulator. The High preset at 47.9 FPS is also viable for those who prioritize visuals over a perfectly smooth frame rate, but the drop below 60 FPS may be noticeable to some users. The Ultra preset at 42.3 FPS is less recommended due to the increased performance cost.

For 3840x2160, the Low preset is the only setting that provides a consistently smooth experience, averaging 57.8 FPS. The Medium preset at 47.1 FPS is playable but may have occasional stutters, while High and Ultra presets are not recommended for serious play due to their low average frame rates of 34.6 FPS and 31.2 FPS, respectively. Users with 4K displays should either stick to Low settings or consider lowering the resolution to 2560x1440.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured performance data provides a comprehensive view of this combo's capabilities across different resolutions and settings.

3840x2160 (4K): Performance is heavily constrained. The average frame rates are 57.8 FPS on Low, 47.1 FPS on Medium, 34.6 FPS on High, and 31.2 FPS on Ultra. This shows a clear progression of decreasing performance with increasing visual demand, with a 26.6 FPS difference between Low and Ultra.

2560x1440 (1440p): This resolution offers a more balanced experience. The combo averages 80.8 FPS on Low, 60.3 FPS on Medium, 47.9 FPS on High, and 42.3 FPS on Ultra. The performance gap between Low and Ultra is 38.5 FPS, indicating that the GPU is still the limiting factor but has more headroom here than at 4K.

1920x1080 (1080p): This is where the combo shows its best performance. The average frame rates are 100.7 FPS on Low, 76.2 FPS on Medium, 60.2 FPS on High, and 56.6 FPS on Ultra. The difference between Low and Ultra is 44.1 FPS, the largest absolute drop, which suggests that while the GPU can handle high frame rates, the Ultra preset imposes a significant load.

The data indicates that the RTX 2060 SUPER is the primary performance limiter, especially at higher resolutions. The CPU's strong single-thread performance allows for high frame rates at 1080p on lower settings, but the GPU's 8 GB VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are not enough to maintain high frame rates at 4K with high visual settings. The recommended settings above reflect a balance between these measured results and the playability requirements of a flight simulator.