Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator is a demanding title, and this particular pairing of an AMD Ryzen 9 5900X with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 produces a specific set of performance characteristics. The benchmark data for this combo places it at rank 2912 out of 3714 tested combinations, meaning it sits in the lower third of all measured systems. This is a configuration that prioritizes a very capable processor while relying on a mid-range graphics card, a balance that has direct consequences for frame rates across different resolutions and presets. The results indicate that this system is more suited to 1080p and 1440p gaming than to 4K, and that the RTX 2060 is the primary factor limiting overall performance in this flight simulator.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2912 out of 3714 total tested combinations places this system in the 22nd percentile of all tested combos, meaning roughly 78% of tested pairings deliver higher average frame rates in this game. This ranking is a reflection of the GPU's positioning within the overall market, as the RTX 2060 sits in the 58th percentile among all tested GPUs. The CPU, by contrast, is a far more robust component, holding the 87th percentile among all tested CPUs. This discrepancy is the central theme of the performance data: the processor has substantial headroom, but the graphics card is the component that ultimately decides how many frames are rendered.

To contextualize the GPU's standing, its average benchmark score of 15290 places it in close competition with several other cards. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 is essentially a direct match, with a delta of 0 percent. The AMD Radeon 680M sits just behind at a 0.1 percent difference. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM is 0.6 percent slower, and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 is 0.8 percent slower, meaning the RTX 2060 is slightly ahead of those two. This clustering of results shows that the RTX 2060 is in a tightly contested performance tier, and its position within this group predicts how it will handle the more demanding presets and higher resolutions in Microsoft Flight Simulator.

On the CPU side, the Ryzen 9 5900X has an average benchmark score of 41376, which places it in a different league from the GPU. Its nearest rivals, the Intel Core Ultra 7 366H and Intel Core Ultra 7 356H, are within 0.3 and 0.4 percent of its score, while the AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 440 is also 0.4 percent behind. The Intel Core i7-14650HX is 0.5 percent faster. These deltas are all minimal, showing that the 5900X is competitive with modern high-end mobile and desktop chips in general benchmarks. However, this CPU strength does not translate into high frame rates in this game because the RTX 2060 is the bottleneck, and therefore the combo rank comes in low.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data clearly shows that the Ultra preset is not viable for this combo at any resolution. At 4K Ultra, the average frame rate drops to 30 FPS, which is borderline for playable but below the 60 FPS target that many simmers prefer. At 1440p Ultra, the average is 41 FPS, and at 1080p Ultra it is 51 FPS. These numbers, while playable for a flight simulator, are far from a smooth experience, especially when cockpit instruments or dense scenery are on screen. The High preset is also not ideal, as it never reaches 60 FPS at any resolution, with 32 FPS at 4K, 43 FPS at 1440p, and 54 FPS at 1080p.

The best experience per the measured data comes from the Medium preset. At 1080p Medium, the average frame rate is 71 FPS, with a minimum of 61 and a maximum of 82, which provides a solid, stable experience. At 1440p Medium, the average is 58 FPS, with a minimum of 49 and a maximum of 66, which dips below 60 at times but remains smooth enough for a sim. The Medium preset at 4K yields 42 FPS on average, which is acceptable but not ideal. The Low preset offers the highest FPS, with 92 FPS at 1080p, 74 FPS at 1440p, and 55 FPS at 4K, but the lower visual quality is a steep trade-off. Therefore, Medium at 1080p is the sweet spot for this configuration, balancing playable frame rates with reasonable visual fidelity.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the GPU-bound nature of this combo. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 54 at 1080p to 43 at 1440p and then to 32 at 4K. This represents a 20 percent reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a further 25% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The pattern is similar for the Medium preset, with averages of 71 at 1080p, 58 at 1440p, and 42 at 4K. The Low preset sees averages of 92 at 1080p, 74 at 1440p, and 55 at 4K. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, shows 51 FPS at 1080p, 41 FPS at 1440p, and 30 FPS at 4K.

These drops are steep and consistent, which points directly at the RTX 2060 as the limiting component. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect a more linear scaling across resolutions, but the data shows a clear and substantial loss of performance as pixel count increases. The 4K resolution is particularly punishing for this GPU, with all presets failing to reach 60 FPS. Even at Low, the 4K average is only 55 FPS, which is below the target. This means that for 4K displays, the RTX 2060 simply does not have enough shader and memory bandwidth to maintain high frame rates in Microsoft Flight Simulator, regardless of the CPU's capability.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 4K?

A: The data shows it can, but only at lower settings. At Low, the average 4K FPS is 55, at Medium it is 42, at High it is 32, and at Ultra it is 30. Only the Low preset approaches a playable frame rate, but it is still below 60 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or the GPU the main bottleneck in this setup?

A: The benchmark data indicates the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the primary bottleneck. The GPU holds the 58th percentile among all GPUs, while the CPU holds the 87th percentile. The FPS drops significantly with higher resolutions, which is a classic sign of a GPU that cannot keep up with the rendering load.

Q: What is the best resolution and preset combination for this system?

A: Based on the measured FPS, 1080p with the Medium preset gives the best experience, with an average of 71 FPS and a minimum of 61 FPS. This is the only combination that stays above 60 FPS without using the Low preset.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in this game?

A: The data shows the RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 15290. It is essentially tied with the GTX 580, and it is 0.1% faster than the AMD Radeon 680M, 0.6% faster than the RTX 3050 OEM, and 0.8% faster than the AMD Radeon RX 7600.

Q: Is the Ultra preset ever playable with this combo?

A: The Ultra preset yields averages of 51 FPS at 1080p, 41 FPS at 1440p, and 30 FPS at 4K. While 1080p Ultra is technically playable, it does not meet the 60 FPS target, and at 4K it is below the playable threshold.

Q: How much CPU performance does this system have?

A: The Ryzen 9 5900X is a strong performer, with an average benchmark score of 10276 and a percentile rank of 87 among all CPUs. Its nearest rivals, the Intel Core Ultra 7 366H and 356H, are within 0.3 and 0.4 percent of its score, showing it is competitive.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the key component that limits the frame rates in Microsoft Flight Simulator for this combo. Its 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s, which is a moderate figure for a mid-range card. The GPU itself has 1920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 render output units, which are the building blocks of its rendering capabilities. Its base clock is 1365 MHz, and it boosts to 1680 MHz. The card is built on the 12 nm process with the TU106 chip, which has 10,800 million transistors.

These specifications translate into a measured performance that places it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15290. In the context of this game, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck because the frame rates scale heavily with resolution. The pixel rate is 80.64 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 201.6 GTexel/s, but when rendering at 4K, the GPU's ability to fill the screen with detailed terrain and weather effects is overwhelmed. The 6 GB of VRAM is also a consideration, as Microsoft Flight Simulator is known to use a lot of memory for textures, and at higher settings the 6 GB capacity may be at its limit.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X is a high-end desktop processor that provides more than enough compute for this game. With 12 cores and 24 threads, it has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz. Its cache is substantial, with 64 MB of L3 cache, and it supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. The architecture is Zen 3, built on a 7 nm process with 8,300 million transistors. The processor's benchmark scores are impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 16262 and a single-core score of 1527. Geekbench scores are 14118 for multicore and 2083 for single-core.

The CPU's percentile rank of 87 against all CPUs means it is in the top 13% of processors tested. Its nearest rivals in the benchmark database are the Intel Core Ultra 7 366H, which is 0.3% faster, and the Intel Core Ultra 7 356H, which is 0.4% faster, while the Intel Core i7-14650HX is 0.5% faster. Despite this strong performance, the CPU is not the limiting factor in Microsoft Flight Simulator. The data shows that as resolution increases, the FPS drops sharply, which is a GPU-bound behavior. Therefore, the CPU has plenty of headroom to handle the simulation's physics, AI, and scenery calculations without being a cause of frame rate drops.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) and three resolutions (1080p, 1440p, 4K). The following is a breakdown of the average frame rates, with minimum and maximum values where available.

At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 92 FPS. The Medium preset has an average of 71 FPS, with a minimum of 61 and a maximum of 82. The High preset has an average of 54 FPS, and the Ultra preset has an average of 51 FPS. This resolution is the only one where the system can push above 60 FPS on Medium and Low, making it the most playable setting.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 74 FPS, which is still above 60. The Medium preset has an average of 58 FPS, with a minimum of 49 and a maximum of 66, meaning it dips below 60 at times. The High preset has an average of 43 FPS, and the Ultra preset has an average of 41 FPS. This resolution is a good middle ground, but it is not as fluid as 1080p.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 55 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target. The Medium preset has an average of 42 FPS, with a minimum of 36 and a maximum of 49. The High preset has an average of 32 FPS, and the Ultra preset has an average of 30 FPS. The 4K data shows that this GPU cannot sustain playable frame rates at 4K, even on Low, and the Ultra preset is effectively unplayable.

These numbers also show the GPU scaling. From the Low to Ultra preset at 1080p, the FPS goes from 92 to 51, a drop of 44.6%. At 1440p, the drop from Low to Ultra is from 74 to 41, a 44.6% reduction. At 4K, the drop is from 55 to 30, a 45.5% reduction. This consistency indicates that the GPU's compute resources are the determining factor for frame rate, regardless of resolution. The CPU's contribution is constant across all settings, so the variance is due to the GPU's workload.