Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator is notoriously demanding, and the data for the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER combo shows a system that is clearly capable of delivering a smooth experience, but with distinct performance ceilings depending on resolution and settings. The benchmark results indicate that this pairing is a strong performer, placing in the top percentile of tested combinations, yet it also reveals a clear shift in bottleneck from the CPU at lower resolutions to the GPU at 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a predictable and steep decline as resolution increases, but the rate of that decline is highly informative. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 177.3 FPS. Moving to 1440p at the same settings drops the average to 143.8 FPS, a reduction of roughly 19%. The jump to 4K at Low settings further reduces the average to 104.4 FPS, another significant drop of about 27% from the 1440p figure.

This pattern becomes even more pronounced at higher graphical presets. At Ultra settings, the system delivers 100.2 FPS at 1080p, 81 FPS at 1440p, and 60.8 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is about 19%, and from 1440p to 4K is about 25%. The scaling suggests that at 1080p, particularly on lower settings, the CPU is the limiting factor, as the GPU has headroom to render more frames but is held back by the processor's ability to feed it data. However, the steep drop-offs at 4K, especially the slide from 104.4 FPS at Low to 64 FPS at High, indicate that the GPU's rendering load is the primary constraint at that resolution. The 12 GB of VRAM on the RTX 4070 SUPER is sufficient for these settings, but the raw compute power required at 4K is what causes the FPS to plummet.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 105.6. This indicates a smooth experience for most monitors, though it falls short of the 144 FPS mark that high-refresh-rate displays can utilize.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, but with compromises. The benchmark shows 4K averages ranging from 104.4 FPS on Low settings to 60.8 FPS on Ultra. While the Ultra preset is playable, it is right at the edge of the 60 FPS threshold, and the High preset at 64 FPS offers a slightly better margin.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 SUPER's 12 GB of VRAM enough for this game?

A: The data shows that at 4K with Ultra settings, the system still achieves an average of 60.8 FPS, so the 12 GB frame buffer does not appear to be a limiting factor at these measured settings. No VRAM-related performance anomalies are present in the results.

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 5700X perform in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The CPU scores 22,620 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3,193 in single-core. It also achieves a 3DMark max-threads score of 6,850, putting it in the 83rd percentile of all tested CPUs.

Q: What is the best resolution for high-refresh-rate gaming?

A: At 1440p with Medium settings, the system averages 115.9 FPS, which is well-suited for a 120Hz display. For 144Hz, the 1080p Medium preset delivers 144 FPS exactly, while the Low preset reaches 177.3 FPS.

Q: How does this CPU compare to its nearest rival in average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X has an average benchmark score of 26,214. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i9-11900KF, scores 26,196, a negligible delta of 0.1%. The AMD Ryzen 5 7600X is slightly ahead with a score of 26,272, a delta of -0.2% from the 5700X's perspective.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, the Medium preset appears to be the sweet spot. At 1440p, it delivers an average of 115.9 FPS, which is a significant jump from the High preset's 84.7 FPS. The visual difference between Medium and High in a flight simulator is often less impactful than in fast-paced action games, making the performance gain worthwhile. At 4K, the Medium preset's 80.7 FPS is a much more comfortable margin above the 60 FPS target than the High preset's 64 FPS or Ultra's 60.8 FPS.

If a user prioritizes maximum visual quality and has a 60Hz display, the Ultra preset at 4K is viable, as it hits 60.8 FPS on average. However, the data suggests that the High preset at 4K is not a worthwhile compromise, as it only offers a marginal 3.2 FPS improvement over Ultra while likely reducing visual quality. The Low preset is only recommended for competitive or high-refresh-rate scenarios where frame rate is paramount, such as achieving 177.3 FPS at 1080p. For most users, Medium at 1440p provides the most fluid and visually pleasing experience.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER ranks 306th out of 1,795 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the top 17% of all systems tested, which is a strong result for a mainstream mid-to-high-end pairing. The ranking reflects a system that is well-balanced for this title, with neither component being a severe weak link. The data indicates that while it is not a top-tier enthusiast setup, it outperforms the vast majority of configurations, making it a very capable choice for this simulation. The 83rd percentile ranking of the CPU and 84th percentile ranking of the GPU individually align with the combo's strong overall position.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is the primary driver of performance at higher resolutions. Its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s, which is sufficient for the texture loads at 4K Ultra. The GPU's boost clock of 2475 MHz and its 7,168 shading units allow it to handle the complex rendering of terrain and aircraft models. The benchmark results show its influence clearly: at 4K, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 43.6 FPS (from 104.4 down to 60.8), demonstrating how much headroom the GPU has at lower settings and how quickly it becomes saturated as graphical demands increase.

In synthetic tests, the GPU scores 29,995 in Passmark G3D and 19,2684 in Geekbench OpenCL, placing it in the 84th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA RTX A6000, scores 42,653 in the average benchmark, a delta of -0.2%, showing the 4070 SUPER is essentially performance-equivalent in general compute tasks. However, the measured game FPS shows that its capabilities are well-matched to the Ryzen 7 5700X, as the system doesn't appear to be heavily bottlenecked by either component at the tested settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The full dataset reveals a consistent hierarchy of performance across all settings and resolutions.

At 1080p, the system performs exceptionally well. The Low preset achieves 177.3 FPS, while Medium drops to 144 FPS. High and Ultra presets are closer together, with 105.6 FPS and 100.2 FPS respectively. The gap between Medium and High is 38.4 FPS, highlighting a significant performance cost for that visual upgrade.

At 1440p, the results scale as expected. Low settings yield 143.8 FPS, which is still very high. Medium delivers 115.9 FPS, providing a solid high-refresh-rate experience. The High preset drops to 84.7 FPS, and Ultra brings the average down to 81 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra is a mere 3.7 FPS, suggesting the Ultra preset is not particularly more demanding than High at this resolution.

At 4K, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. Low settings still manage a respectable 104.4 FPS. Medium drops to 80.7 FPS, which is still very playable. High and Ultra presets are nearly identical in performance, with averages of 64 FPS and 60.8 FPS respectively. This narrow 3.2 FPS gap suggests that at 4K, the game's performance is heavily constrained by the GPU's raw throughput rather than the specific settings, as both presets push the hardware to its limit.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X, with its 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, provides a solid foundation for the simulation's physics and AI calculations. Its boost clock of 4.60 GHz is crucial for single-threaded performance, which is often a bottleneck in this genre. The benchmark data supports this, showing that at 1080p with Low settings, the FPS reaches 177.3, a figure that is likely near the CPU's maximum frame generation limit for this game. The fact that the FPS drops significantly when moving to 1440p at the same Low settings (from 177.3 to 143.8) indicates that the CPU is no longer the limiting factor at the higher resolution.

The CPU's synthetic scores, such as 22,620 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3,193 in single-core, demonstrate its strong processing power. Its average benchmark score of 26,214 places it in the 83rd percentile, and its nearest rival, the Intel Core i9-11900KF, is virtually identical in performance with a delta of just 0.1%. The data suggests that the Ryzen 7 5700X provides more than enough headroom for the RTX 4070 SUPER to operate effectively, ensuring that the system's performance scales well with graphical settings until the GPU's limits are reached.