Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator is a uniquely demanding title, and the measured data for the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER reveals a system that is consistently bound by the graphics card at higher resolutions, while demonstrating strong CPU headroom at lower settings. The dataset shows a clear progression of frame rates that shifts from a CPU-friendly environment at 1080p Low to a GPU-bound scenario at 4K Ultra, providing a clear picture of where the bottleneck lies for this specific combination.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all quality presets, indicating that the GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is the primary limiting factor as pixel count increases. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 112.2 FPS at 1920x1080 to 90.3 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of roughly 21 FPS, and then plummets further to 64.5 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 42.5% decrease in performance from 1080p to 4K at the lowest preset, showing that even when the workload is light, the GPU struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K resolution.

Moving to the Ultra preset, the scaling pattern is similar but with lower absolute numbers. The average frame rate starts at 64.3 FPS at 1080p, drops to 49.6 FPS at 1440p, and bottoms out at 33.6 FPS at 4K. This 47.8% performance hit from 1080p to 4K under maximum load confirms that the RTX 2070 SUPER's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient to handle the high-resolution textures and complex rendering of Microsoft Flight Simulator at Ultra settings. The gap between 1080p and 4K at Ultra is 30.7 FPS, which is nearly identical to the 47.7 FPS gap seen at Low settings, suggesting that the GPU's compute throughput, rather than memory capacity, is the dominant constraint.

The data also reveals that the CPU is not the bottleneck at higher resolutions. The Ryzen 5 7600X, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, shows its strength in the 1080p Low scenario where the frame rate reaches 112.2 FPS. This high score indicates that the processor has enough headroom to feed the GPU at lower resolutions, but as the resolution increases, the GPU's workload expands and the frame rate becomes the limiting factor. The difference between 1080p High (64.6 FPS) and 4K High (39.6 FPS) is a 38.7% reduction, which is a typical pattern for a mid-range GPU paired with a modern high-end CPU in a flight simulator that relies heavily on draw calls and terrain streaming.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average frame rate at 2560x1440 with High settings is 52.6 FPS. This is a playable level for most users, but it is noticeably lower than the 64.6 FPS achieved at 1080p High, indicating that the RTX 2070 SUPER is being pushed harder at this resolution.

Q: How does the CPU's core count affect performance in this game?

A: The Ryzen 5 7600X has 6 cores and 12 threads, which is sufficient to handle the game's simulation logic. The benchmark results show that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 112.2 FPS, suggesting that the CPU is not the limiting factor even in less demanding scenarios. The CPU's boost clock of 5.30 GHz and 32 MB of L3 cache help maintain smooth performance in a game that is known for its heavy single-threaded workloads.

Q: Is the RTX 2070 SUPER capable of running the game at 4K Ultra?

A: The data shows an average of 33.6 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. This is below the 60 FPS threshold that most users consider smooth, and it indicates that the GPU is the bottleneck. While the game is technically playable, the frame rate is not ideal for a fluid experience at this resolution and quality level.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the average frame rate drops from 112.2 FPS on Low to 64.3 FPS on Ultra, a difference of 47.9 FPS. This is a substantial reduction that highlights how much the graphical settings impact the GPU workload, even at a resolution where the CPU has more headroom.

Q: How does this combo rank among other tested configurations?

A: The combination of the Ryzen 5 7600X and RTX 2070 SUPER ranks 1093 out of 1795 tested combos for this game. This places it in the lower-middle portion of the ranking, which is consistent with the GPU's 65th percentile ranking among all GPUs and the CPU's 83rd percentile ranking among all CPUs.

Q: What is the frame rate at 4K with Medium settings?

A: The measured average frame rate at 3840x2160 with Medium settings is 50.9 FPS. This is a significant improvement over the 33.6 FPS seen at Ultra, showing that reducing settings can make 4K more playable on this hardware.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7600X, built on the Zen 4 architecture and codenamed Raphael, is a 6-core, 12-thread processor with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. This configuration is well-suited for Microsoft Flight Simulator, a title that traditionally relies on strong single-core performance for flight dynamics and AI calculations. The CPU's benchmark scores support this, with a 3dmark single-thread score of 1060 and a cinebench r23 single-core score of 3406, indicating robust per-core capability.

In the measured data, the CPU's influence is most evident at 1080p Low, where the average frame rate of 112.2 FPS suggests that the processor can comfortably push the GPU to its limits. However, the CPU's role diminishes as the resolution increases, as the GPU becomes the bottleneck. The Ryzen 5 7600X's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s help ensure that the system can handle the game's streaming and terrain data, but the benchmark results clearly show that the RTX 2070 SUPER is the component that limits performance in most scenarios.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 83rd among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 26272, puts it ahead of rivals like the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U and AMD Ryzen 7 5700X, which have similar average scores. However, in this game, the CPU's performance headroom is not fully utilized at higher resolutions, as the GPU's 65th percentile ranking and average benchmark score of 22206 demonstrate that it is the weaker link in this pairing.

How This Combo Ranks

The measured performance of this specific combination places it at rank 1093 out of 1795 tested combos for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This ranking, which represents the 60.9th percentile of all tested configurations, reflects the balance between a strong CPU and a mid-range GPU. The Ryzen 5 7600X is a high-performing processor, but the RTX 2070 SUPER, while capable, is not a top-tier graphics card, as evidenced by its 65th percentile ranking among all GPUs.

The data indicates that this combo performs better at lower resolutions and settings, where the CPU's power can be fully leveraged. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 112.2 FPS, which is a strong result that would likely place it higher in the ranking if that were the only metric. However, at 4K Ultra, the average frame rate of 33.6 FPS drags down the overall ranking, as the GPU struggles to maintain playable performance. The gap between the CPU's 83rd percentile and the GPU's 65th percentile is a clear indicator of the bottleneck, and it explains why this combo sits in the lower-middle portion of the overall ranking.

When compared to other tested combos, this system is not an outlier in either direction. It delivers solid performance for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but it does not have the graphical horsepower to excel at 4K. The ranking of 1093 out of 1795 suggests that there are many configurations that offer better overall performance in this specific game, but there are also many that are worse, making this a balanced but not exceptional pairing.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest performance, with an average of 112.2 FPS on Low settings. This drops to 85.3 FPS on Medium, 64.6 FPS on High, and 64.3 FPS on Ultra. The minimal difference between High and Ultra at this resolution—just 0.3 FPS—suggests that the GPU is already near its limit, and the Ultra preset does not add a significant extra load that the CPU can help compensate for.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down proportionally. Low settings yield an average of 90.3 FPS, which is still smooth, but Medium drops to 68.7 FPS, High to 52.6 FPS, and Ultra to 49.6 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra at this resolution is 3.0 FPS, which is more noticeable than at 1080p, indicating that the higher resolution puts additional pressure on the GPU's compute resources.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles to maintain high frame rates. Low settings produce an average of 64.5 FPS, which is playable, but Medium drops to 50.9 FPS, High to 39.6 FPS, and Ultra to 33.6 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 30.9 FPS, highlighting the significant impact of graphical settings at this resolution. The RTX 2070 SUPER's 8 GB of VRAM is likely a limiting factor at 4K, especially with High and Ultra textures, which can exceed the available memory and cause stuttering or reduced frame rates.

The overall pattern across all resolutions and settings shows a system that is well-balanced for 1080p gaming, capable of handling 1440p with adjusted settings, and limited at 4K. The Ryzen 5 7600X provides ample CPU performance, but the RTX 2070 SUPER's age and mid-range positioning are evident in the 4K results. For users targeting 1080p or 1440p, this combo offers a solid experience, but for 4K gaming, it requires significant setting compromises to achieve playable frame rates.