Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator is notoriously demanding, and the combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 produces a fascinating dataset. The pairing of a 6-core, 12-thread Zen 3 processor with NVIDIA's flagship Blackwell GPU creates a system where the bottleneck shifts dramatically depending on resolution and settings. The measured results reveal a configuration that is capable of excellent frame rates, but the data shows distinct scaling behaviors that are critical for understanding how to optimize the experience.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial, but the pattern is not uniform across all settings. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 122 FPS at 1920x1080 to 112 FPS at 2560x1440, and then to 83 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 32% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the load is increasingly shifting to the GPU. The RTX 5090 is clearly being tasked harder as the pixel count rises, but the CPU is still holding its own at 1440p, where the drop from 1080p is only about 8%.

At Low settings, the scaling is less severe in absolute terms but still notable. The average FPS goes from 148 at 1080p to 138 at 1440p, and then to 125 at 4K. The 4K figure is only 15% lower than the 1080p figure, which suggests that at Low settings, the CPU is more of a limiting factor, preventing the GPU from stretching its legs even at lower resolutions. The gap between Low and High at 1080p is 26 FPS, while at 4K it narrows to 42 FPS, showing that the GPU has more headroom at lower resolutions.

The Medium settings show a similar trend to High. The average FPS at 1080p is 135, which drops to 126 at 1440p and then to 110 at 4K. The minimum FPS at 4K Medium is 94, which is a solid floor for a flight simulator where smoothness matters. The most significant jump is from 1440p to 4K, where the frame rate drops by 16 FPS, underscoring that 4K is where the RTX 5090's raw power is fully utilized. At 1080p and 1440p, the scaling is more gradual, implying that the Ryzen 5 5600F is keeping pace with the GPU's output.

Ultra settings present the most interesting case. The average FPS is 120 at 1080p, 107 at 1440p, and 79 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K is 34%, which is the largest relative decline of any preset. This indicates that the Ultra preset introduces effects that are heavily dependent on both CPU and GPU resources. The 41 FPS difference between 1080p and 4K Ultra shows that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at the highest resolution, but the relatively small 13 FPS drop from 1080p to 1440p suggests that the CPU is still contributing meaningfully to the performance ceiling at lower resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, with a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz. It has 32 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory with a dual-channel bus. In the context of this game, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and simulation data. Flight simulators are known for their heavy single-threaded workloads, and the 5600F's single-thread score of 2872 in Passmark places it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs.

The data shows that the CPU is not a major bottleneck at 1080p, where the average FPS is 148 at Low settings. However, the difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is only 28 FPS, which is a smaller gap than at 4K, where the difference is 46 FPS. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is able to keep up with the GPU's demands, but the GPU is not fully saturated. The 5600F's multi-thread score of 19236 and its performance in Passmark physics (1043) indicate that it can handle the complex physics calculations required by the simulator.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the Intel Core Ultra 5 225, which scores nearly identically (36938 vs 36945 average), and the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D, which is 0.2% slower. This places the 5600F in a competitive position for its class. The 12 threads are adequate for a flight simulator, which typically uses a few cores heavily and others for auxiliary tasks. The fact that the CPU is not holding back the RTX 5090 significantly at 4K confirms its efficiency, but the 125 FPS at 4K Low versus 148 FPS at 1080p Low shows that the CPU is still a limiting factor at lower resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Ryzen 5 5600F and RTX 5090 achieves a combo rank of 237 out of 2996 tested combinations. This places it in the top 8% of all combos, which is a strong showing given the CPU's mid-range positioning. The high ranking is largely due to the RTX 5090's immense power, but the 5600F does not drag the overall score down as much as one might expect.

The combo rank reflects the system's ability to deliver high frame rates across various resolutions. With an average FPS of 120 at 1080p Ultra and 83 at 4K High, this combination outperforms the vast majority of tested systems. The rank of 237 suggests that there are 236 combinations that produce higher average frame rates, likely featuring more powerful CPUs like the Ryzen 7 or Core i9 series, but the 5600F's performance is sufficient to keep the overall score competitive.

The data indicates that this combo is not just a one-trick pony. It delivers playable frame rates at every resolution and settings preset tested, from 79 FPS at 4K Ultra to 148 FPS at 1080p Low. The rank of 237 out of 2996 is a strong endorsement for builders who want a high-end GPU without necessarily pairing it with a top-tier CPU. The 5600F's 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs further reinforces that it is a capable partner for the RTX 5090 in this workload.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS ranges from 148 at Low settings to 120 at Ultra settings. The Medium preset produces an average of 135 FPS with a minimum of 115 FPS and a maximum of 155 FPS. The High preset yields 122 FPS average. The spread between Low and Ultra is 28 FPS, which is a moderate range. At 1080p, even the most demanding preset stays above 120 FPS, ensuring a smooth experience on high-refresh-rate monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS figures are 138 for Low, 126 for Medium, 112 for High, and 107 for Ultra. The Medium preset again shows a minimum of 107 FPS and a maximum of 145 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across presets, ranging from a 7% reduction at Low to an 11% reduction at Ultra. This resolution is the sweet spot for this combo, as it balances visual fidelity with high frame rates, with all presets staying above 100 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the average FPS figures are 125 for Low, 110 for Medium, 83 for High, and 79 for Ultra. The Medium preset's minimum is 94 FPS, which is still a playable frame rate for most users. The drop from 1440p to 4K is significant, with the High preset losing 29 FPS and the Ultra preset losing 28 FPS. The Low preset is the only one that stays above 120 FPS at 4K, highlighting the GPU's capability but also the increasing load on the system.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is a monster of a GPU, with 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. Its boost clock is 2407 MHz, and it has 21760 shading units and 170 RT cores. The GPU's Passmark G3D score is 39650, placing it in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs. This is the dominant component in this combo, and the measured FPS data reflects its strength.

The GPU's role is clearly evident in the resolution scaling. At 1080p, the RTX 5090 is not fully utilized, as the average FPS at Ultra is 120, which is likely limited by the CPU. As the resolution increases to 4K, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, with the average FPS dropping to 79 at Ultra. The 32 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for Microsoft Flight Simulator, even at 4K with Ultra settings, ensuring there are no texture loading issues.

The RTX 5090's performance in the database shows it is closely matched with the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB, which has a 0.3% higher average score, and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, which is 1.1% slower. Despite being a desktop card, the RTX 5090's benchmark scores are comparable to data center and mobile parts, demonstrating its sheer compute power. The GPU's 1.79 TB/s bandwidth is critical for feeding the 512-bit memory bus, which helps maintain high frame rates at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience, the data suggests that the Medium preset offers the most balanced performance across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium delivers 135 FPS average with a minimum of 115 FPS, which is smooth and visually acceptable. At 1440p, Medium produces 126 FPS average with a minimum of 107 FPS, providing a great balance between quality and speed. At 4K, Medium yields 110 FPS average with a minimum of 94 FPS, which is still well above the 60 FPS target for most monitors.

If the goal is maximum visual fidelity, the Ultra preset is viable but requires a resolution compromise. At 1080p, Ultra achieves 120 FPS, which is excellent. At 1440p, it drops to 107 FPS, which is still good. However, at 4K, Ultra falls to 79 FPS, which might be acceptable for a flight simulator where the pace is slower, but it is not ideal for fast-paced maneuvers. The High preset is a middle ground, offering 122 FPS at 1080p, 112 FPS at 1440p, and 83 FPS at 4K.

For users with a 60 Hz monitor, the Ultra preset at 4K is perfectly playable, as the 79 FPS average exceeds the refresh rate. For those with high-refresh-rate displays, the Medium preset at 1440p is the best choice, as it stays above 120 FPS. The Low preset is only recommended for competitive play or if the user prioritizes frame rate above all else, but it sacrifices too much visual detail for a flight simulator. The data clearly shows that Medium is the sweet spot for this combo, offering the best balance of frame rate and visual quality across all tested resolutions.