Microsoft Flight Simulator

FAQ

Q: How does the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X compare to its closest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 7 5800X posts an average benchmark score of 27606, which places it 0.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800 (avgScore 27535) and 0.4% behind the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE (avgScore 27708). It also trails the Intel Core i7-13700H by 0.4% and the Intel Core i5-12600KF by 0.8%.

Q: What is the performance percentile of the RTX 2060 among all GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 sits at the 58th percentile versus all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 16074. Its closest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 7600S, scores 15996 (0.5% lower), while the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and Pro 5700 both score 16351 (1.7% higher).

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combo achieves an average of 49.8 FPS. Dropping to High settings raises this to 56.6 FPS, while Medium yields 70.4 FPS and Low reaches 93 FPS.

Q: Is this CPU or GPU more likely to bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: The data shows the GPU becomes the limiting factor at 3840x2160. At Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 30.4, and at High it is 30.9. Even at Low settings, 4K only reaches 54.6 FPS, which is below the 1080p Low result of 93 FPS, indicating the GPU's 6 GB VRAM and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are stressed at higher resolutions.

Q: How does the combo rank overall in this game?

A: This CPU and GPU pairing ranks 1457 out of 1795 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator. That places it in the lower-middle portion of the database, meaning many alternative pairings deliver higher average frame rates.

Q: What is the memory configuration of the Ryzen 7 5800X?

A: The CPU supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. It has 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination ranks 1457 out of 1795 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the 19th percentile of all tested pairings, meaning roughly 338 combos perform worse and about 1456 perform better. The rank reflects the RTX 2060's modest standing in the GPU hierarchy—58th percentile—paired with a CPU that ranks in the 84th percentile.

The gap between CPU and GPU percentiles explains the mid-pack ranking. The Ryzen 7 5800X has ample headroom for this flight simulator, but the RTX 2060's 6 GB VRAM and 192-bit memory bus cap the achievable frame rates. In practical terms, this combo delivers playable but not exceptional results: it hits 93 FPS at 1080p Low, but falls to 49.8 FPS at 1080p Ultra and 30.4 FPS at 4K Ultra. The data indicates that upgrading the GPU would yield a larger performance gain than upgrading the CPU for this specific title.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X provides 8 cores and 16 threads, built on the Zen 3 architecture with a 7 nm process. Its base clock is 3.80 GHz, boosting to 4.70 GHz, with 32 MB of L3 cache. In synthetic tests, the CPU scores 9899 in Cinebench R20 multicore and 1397 in single-core, with a Geekbench multicore score of 10220 and single-core score of 2194. The Passmark multithread score is 27732, and the single-thread score is 3445.

For Microsoft Flight Simulator, the CPU's single-thread performance is particularly relevant. The game's simulation logic and terrain rendering often rely on a few heavily loaded threads. The 5800X's single-core score of 943 in 3DMark single-thread and 3327 in Cinebench R23 single-core suggests it can handle the game's primary simulation thread without becoming a bottleneck. The 84th percentile ranking versus all CPUs confirms it is a strong processor for this workload.

The CPU's 16 threads also help with background tasks like scenery loading and AI traffic, but the measured FPS data shows that this is not where the combo struggles. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 93 FPS, which is well above playable thresholds. The fact that lowering settings from Ultra to Low at 1080p improves FPS from 49.8 to 93 (an 87% increase) indicates the CPU is not the primary constraint—otherwise, the improvement would be smaller.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four settings levels each, providing a clear picture of how this combo scales.

At 1920x1080, the results are:

• Low: 93 FPS
• Medium: 70.4 FPS
• High: 56.6 FPS
• Ultra: 49.8 FPS

This resolution offers the widest range, from a very smooth 93 FPS at Low to a playable 49.8 FPS at Ultra. The step from Low to Medium costs 22.6 FPS, while High to Ultra costs only 6.8 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns at the top end.

At 2560x1440, the numbers drop:

• Low: 73.1 FPS
• Medium: 59.7 FPS
• High: 40.9 FPS
• Ultra: 44.2 FPS

Interestingly, Ultra (44.2 FPS) performs slightly better than High (40.9 FPS) at this resolution, which is an anomaly in the data. The 1440p Low result of 73.1 FPS remains strong, but High and Ultra dip below the 60 FPS threshold.

At 3840x2160, performance becomes marginal:

• Low: 54.6 FPS
• Medium: 40 FPS
• High: 30.9 FPS
• Ultra: 30.4 FPS

Only the Low preset achieves a playable average at 4K. Medium, High, and Ultra all fall below 40 FPS, with Ultra nearly identical to High—a sign that the GPU is fully saturated and additional settings changes have minimal impact.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 features 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1365 MHz with a boost of 1680 MHz, and it has 1920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The GPU supports DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4, which are relevant for modern flight simulators.

The RTX 2060 ranks at the 58th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 16074. In Passmark G3D, it scores 14111, and in Geekbench OpenCL it scores 71278. These numbers position it as a mid-range card, and the 6 GB VRAM is a limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings in Microsoft Flight Simulator, which is known for high-resolution textures.

The measured FPS data confirms this. At 1080p, the GPU can push 93 FPS at Low settings, but at 4K Ultra it drops to 30.4 FPS. The bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s is insufficient for 4K texture streaming at high detail. The GPU's 58th percentile ranking, combined with the CPU's 84th percentile, indicates that the RTX 2060 is the weaker link in this pairing. Upgrading to a GPU with more VRAM and higher bandwidth would directly improve the 1440p and 4K results.

Settings Recommendations

For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers 49.8 FPS, which is playable for a flight simulator where precise controls matter more than twitch reflexes. However, the High preset at 56.6 FPS provides a better balance, with only a 6.8 FPS loss from High to Ultra. If you prefer smoother visuals, Medium at 70.4 FPS is a solid choice, and Low at 93 FPS is excellent for competitive or recording purposes.

At 2560x1440, the data shows a clear sweet spot at Medium (59.7 FPS). This is the only 1440p setting that stays above 60 FPS, and it does so with a comfortable margin. High (40.9 FPS) and Ultra (44.2 FPS) are usable but will feel less smooth, especially during dense scenery or weather effects. Low at 73.1 FPS is the best option if you prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity.

For 3840x2160, the Low preset at 54.6 FPS is the only viable option for a consistently smooth experience. Medium (40 FPS) and above drop below 60 FPS, and High (30.9 FPS) and Ultra (30.4 FPS) are borderline for a simulation that requires precise control. If you must run 4K, stick to Low settings; otherwise, consider dropping to 1440p to use Medium or High.

Overall, the best experience per the measured rows is 2560x1440 with Medium settings, offering 59.7 FPS with a reasonable balance of visual quality and smoothness. For 1080p users, High settings at 56.6 FPS is the recommended preset, as it avoids the steep drop from Medium to Low while staying above 50 FPS. Avoid 4K Ultra unless you are willing to accept 30 FPS, as the GPU's 6 GB VRAM cannot handle the texture loads at that resolution.