Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator is a notoriously demanding title, and the pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600G with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D produces a fascinating bottleneck dynamic. The data shows a system where the GPU is overwhelmingly powerful, but the processor's older architecture holds back performance in specific scenarios. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and settings, explaining exactly where the limits lie and how this combo stacks up against 2,995 other tested configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic pattern of a CPU-bound system at lower resolutions transitioning to a GPU-bound one at 4K. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combo averages 136 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 Ultra, the average drops to 114 FPS, and at 3840x2160 Ultra, it falls further to 84 FPS. This represents a 38% drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings, which is a relatively shallow curve for a game like this.

The shallow curve at Ultra settings indicates that the CPU is the primary limiter even at 1080p. The RTX 5090 D is capable of far more, but the Ryzen 5 5600G's six cores are maxing out the frame generation pipeline. As resolution increases, the GPU takes on more work, but the CPU is already at its ceiling, so the frame rate doesn't plummet as much as it would in a purely GPU-bound scenario. The data shows that at High settings, the gap is even smaller: 138 FPS at 1080p, 120 FPS at 1440p, and 88 FPS at 4K, a 36% drop.

However, the Low settings preset tells a different story. At 1920x1080 Low, the combo hits 168 FPS. At 2560x1440 Low, it reaches 156 FPS, and at 3840x2160 Low, it maintains 141 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 4K here is only 16%. This is a clear sign that at Low settings, the game is almost entirely CPU-limited at all resolutions. The GPU is so far ahead that even at 4K, it's not the bottleneck. The 5600G is the wall, and the FPS stays relatively flat regardless of resolution when the graphics load is reduced.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a monster of a graphics card, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process. It boasts 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock is rated at 2407 MHz, and it sports 21,760 shading units. In raw compute, it delivers 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. With these specifications, it sits in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 77,712.

In this specific game, however, its role is diminished. The measured FPS figures show that the 5090 D is rarely the limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the 168 FPS average is likely close to what the CPU can feed. The GPU's massive memory bandwidth and 32 GB of VRAM are overkill for Microsoft Flight Simulator's current requirements, but they provide headroom for high-resolution textures and future updates. The GPU's 1.79 TB/s bandwidth and 512-bit bus ensure that texture streaming is never a problem, even at 4K Ultra.

The GPU's benchmark scores confirm its position near the top of the hierarchy, but its nearest rivals are interesting. It is only 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT, and 1.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT in average score. This seems anomalous for a card of this class, but it highlights how benchmark averages can be skewed by different test suites. In practice, the 5090 D's 104.8 TFLOPS of compute power is what allows it to maintain high frame rates at 4K, but the 5600G's limits prevent it from ever being fully utilized.

FAQ

Q: Why does the FPS not drop much between 1080p and 4K on Low settings?

A: At Low settings, the game is heavily CPU-bound. The Ryzen 5 5600G's maximum frame output is around 168 FPS, and even at 4K, the RTX 5090 D can render frames fast enough to keep up. The 16% drop from 1080p to 4K is due to the GPU finally starting to work harder, but the processor remains the primary bottleneck.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 D being held back by the Ryzen 5 5600G?

A: Yes, the data strongly suggests this. The 5600G is a Zen 3 processor with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz and 16 MB of L3 cache. While it's capable, it lacks the single-thread performance and core count of newer CPUs. The shallow FPS scaling curve indicates the GPU is not being fully utilized at 1080p and 1440p.

Q: What is the best settings preset for this combo at 4K?

A: The data shows the Ultra preset at 3840x2160 yields an average of 84 FPS, while High yields 88 FPS. Medium yields 118 FPS. If you prioritize smoothness, Medium at 4K offers a significant 40% improvement over Ultra while still looking good. Ultra is playable, but Medium provides a much higher frame rate.

Q: How does the 5600G compare to its nearest rival CPUs in terms of raw performance?

A: The Ryzen 5 5600G has an average benchmark score of 21,088. This is essentially identical to the Intel Core i3-1220P, which scores 21,066 (0.1% slower). It is also just 0.1% behind the Intel Core Ultra 7 256V and 0.2% behind the AMD Ryzen 5 7530U. The 5600G is a solid mid-range performer, but it is not a high-end chip.

Q: Does the 32 GB of VRAM on the RTX 5090 D matter for this game?

A: The data indicates that 32 GB of GDDR7 memory is more than enough for Microsoft Flight Simulator at any resolution tested. The 1.79 TB/s bandwidth ensures textures load quickly, but the game's performance is not VRAM-limited. The bottleneck is the CPU, not the memory capacity.

Q: What does the combo's rank of 117 out of 2996 mean?

A: It places this specific CPU-GPU pairing in the top 4% of all tested combos in the database. While the CPU is a limiting factor, the sheer power of the RTX 5090 D ensures that this configuration still outperforms the vast majority of systems in this game.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600G and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks 117th out of 2,996 tested combinations for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This is an excellent ranking, placing it in the top 4% of all systems tested. It shows that despite the CPU bottleneck, the GPU's raw power is enough to push this pairing to a very high level of performance.

The ranking confirms the RTX 5090 D's dominance. Even with a relatively modest processor, the GPU's 104.8 TFLOPS of compute power and 32 GB of VRAM are enough to achieve high frame rates in a demanding simulation. The 117th rank is not a reflection of the CPU's strength, but rather the GPU's ability to overcome a weak link. If the 5600G were replaced with a newer, higher-performing CPU, this combo would likely rank much higher.

The fact that this combination achieves a top-4% rank despite the CPU's age highlights how GPU-bound Microsoft Flight Simulator can be at higher settings. The 84 FPS average at 4K Ultra is a playable result, and the 136 FPS at 1080p Ultra is excellent. The rank confirms that for users who have this CPU and are looking to upgrade their GPU, the RTX 5090 D is a viable, if not perfectly balanced, choice.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600G is a 7 nm Zen 3 processor with 6 cores and 12 threads. It has a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It features 16 MB of L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. It sits in the 74th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 21,088. Its nearest rivals are all within 0.4% of its performance, showing it's a solid but not exceptional processor.

In this game, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and simulation data. Microsoft Flight Simulator is known for being CPU-intensive, especially at lower resolutions and settings. The 5600G's 6 cores and 12 threads are adequate, but its 16 MB of L3 cache and Zen 3 architecture are older. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the FPS is capped at 168, which is a clear indication of the CPU's limit. This is not a high frame rate cap, and it prevents the RTX 5090 D from stretching its legs.

The CPU's benchmark scores show it is a capable mid-range chip, but it is not in the same league as the GPU. The 5600G's single-thread performance, as shown by a 3dmark single-thread score of 872, is decent but not top-tier. In a game like Microsoft Flight Simulator, which relies heavily on single-threaded performance for its simulation logic, this becomes a bottleneck. The data suggests that the CPU is the limiting factor in this combo, and upgrading it would yield significant performance gains.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. With Low settings, the average is 168 FPS. Medium settings see a drop to 153 FPS, with a minimum of 130 FPS and a maximum of 176 FPS. High settings average 138 FPS, and Ultra settings average 136 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra is only 2 FPS, indicating that the CPU is the limiting factor at these settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong. Low settings average 156 FPS, while Medium settings drop to 143 FPS, with a minimum of 121 FPS and a maximum of 164 FPS. High settings average 120 FPS, and Ultra settings average 114 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is modest, ranging from 7% at Low to 16% at Ultra. This again points to the CPU being the primary constraint.

At 3840x2160, the GPU starts to take on more of the load. Low settings still yield a high average of 141 FPS. Medium settings average 118 FPS, with a minimum of 100 FPS and a maximum of 135 FPS. High settings average 88 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 84 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra at 4K is only 4 FPS, which is negligible. For the smoothest experience, Medium settings at 4K provide 118 FPS, which is 40% higher than Ultra. The data shows that this combo is best utilized at 1440p or 4K with Medium settings, where the GPU can offer a high frame rate without being completely held back by the CPU.