Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator presents an unusual scaling challenge for the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination. The measured frame rates across resolutions reveal a system that is heavily GPU-bound at lower settings but becomes increasingly balanced as visual fidelity and pixel count rise. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 224.2 FPS, but this drops to 143.5 FPS at High and 136.3 FPS at Ultra. Moving to 1440p, the same settings yield 190.9 FPS (Low), 112.3 FPS (High), and 105.4 FPS (Ultra). At 4K, the numbers compress further: 138.5 FPS (Low), 107.3 FPS (Medium), 79.3 FPS (High), and 76.3 FPS (Ultra).

The scaling pattern from 1080p to 4K at High settings shows a 44.7% reduction in frame rate (from 143.5 to 79.3 FPS), which is less severe than the 61.7% drop observed when going from 1080p Low (224.2 FPS) to 4K Low (138.5 FPS). This indicates that at Low settings, the GPU is the primary limiter even at 1080p, as the raw throughput of the RTX 5090 is being saturated by the simulator’s draw calls. However, at Ultra settings, the scaling is gentler: 136.3 FPS at 1080p falls to 105.4 FPS at 1440p and then 76.3 FPS at 4K, a total reduction of 44.0%. The fact that Ultra settings produce only a 10.4% drop from 1440p to 4K (from 105.4 to 76.3 FPS) suggests that the CPU begins to assert more influence at these higher quality presets, as the gap between resolutions narrows.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of 1,795 tested combinations for Microsoft Flight Simulator, this specific pairing of the Ryzen 9 7900X with the RTX 5090 achieves a rank of 14. This places it in the top 0.8% of all tested configurations, which is consistent with the individual component percentiles: the CPU sits at the 93rd percentile among all processors, while the GPU ranks at the 94th percentile among all graphics cards. The combination’s high rank is notable because Flight Simulator is known for its demanding CPU workload, particularly for terrain and traffic simulation, yet this setup still lands near the top.

The rank of 14 out of 1,795 is not surprising given the raw performance of both parts. The CPU’s average benchmark score of 50,556 is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 5 235, which scores 50,598 (a delta of -0.1%). Similarly, the GPU’s average score of 84,306 is within 0.1% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D (84,241). This suggests that the combo’s performance is not solely dependent on one component but rather on the synergy between the 12-core Zen 4 processor and the Blackwell 2.0 GPU. The fact that this combo ranks 14th overall indicates that there are only 13 other pairings in the database that produce higher frame rates in this specific title, likely involving even more powerful CPUs or specialized configurations.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications explain the measured frame rates. With 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, the card offers a memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s, which is critical for Flight Simulator’s streaming of high-resolution terrain textures. The GPU’s boost clock of 2407 MHz and base clock of 2017 MHz are relatively modest for a flagship, but the sheer number of shading units (21,760) and texture mapping units (680) provide massive parallel throughput. This is reflected in the 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, which allows the card to handle the complex shader work required for volumetric clouds and lighting.

The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at lower resolutions and settings. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 224.2 FPS, but this is still below what the CPU could theoretically deliver, suggesting that the GPU’s geometry processing is the limiting factor. However, at 4K Ultra, the frame rate drops to 76.3 FPS, which is a 66.0% reduction from 1080p Low. This is expected given the 4x increase in pixel count, but the fact that the 4K Ultra score is only 45.9% lower than 4K Low (138.5 FPS) indicates that the GPU is being utilized more efficiently at higher settings. The RTX 5090’s 176 ROPs and 423.6 GPixel/s pixel rate are sufficient to feed the display at 4K, but the simulator’s draw call overhead at Ultra settings begins to tax the CPU, preventing the GPU from reaching its full potential.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 224.2 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo’s rank in this game compare to its component percentiles?

A: The combo ranks 14th out of 1,795 tested combinations, while the CPU is in the 93rd percentile and the GPU is in the 94th percentile among their respective categories.

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p Ultra and 4K Ultra?

A: At 1080p Ultra, the combo achieves 136.3 FPS, while at 4K Ultra it drops to 76.3 FPS, representing a 44.0% reduction in frame rate.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance more at 4K Low settings?

A: At 4K Low, the combo produces 138.5 FPS, which is significantly lower than the 224.2 FPS at 1080p Low, indicating that the GPU is the primary limiter even at low settings due to the pixel count.

Q: How does the RTX 5090’s memory bandwidth affect gameplay?

A: The 1.79 TB/s bandwidth on the 512-bit bus is essential for streaming high-resolution terrain data, which likely contributes to the consistent frame rates observed across settings.

Q: What is the closest rival to this CPU in terms of average benchmark score?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 has an average score of 50,598, which is only 0.1% higher than the Ryzen 9 7900X’s 50,556.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X plays a crucial role in this combo, particularly at higher settings where the GPU is less stressed. With 12 cores and 24 threads based on the Zen 4 architecture, the CPU operates at a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its 64 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support (83.2 GB/s bandwidth) provide the data throughput needed for Flight Simulator’s complex world simulation. The CPU’s single-thread performance is strong, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6,168 and 3DMark single-thread score of 1,093.

The measured FPS data reveals that the CPU becomes more influential at Ultra settings. At 1080p Ultra, the combo achieves 136.3 FPS, which is only 5.0% lower than the 143.5 FPS at High settings. This small gap suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck at 1080p, as the GPU still has headroom. However, at 4K Ultra, the frame rate drops to 76.3 FPS, and the difference between High and Ultra at 4K is only 3.8% (79.3 vs. 76.3 FPS). This compression indicates that the CPU’s ability to feed draw calls is becoming the limiting factor, as the GPU is capable of rendering more frames but is starved of instructions. The CPU’s multi-threaded performance, shown by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 43,695 and PassMark multi-thread score of 51,406, is adequate for the simulator’s background tasks, but the game’s main thread still relies on single-core speed, which is excellent for this processor.

The CPU’s 93rd percentile ranking among all processors, combined with its nearest rivals all being within 0.8% of its average score, confirms that it is not the weak link in this pairing. The Intel Core i9-13980HX, for instance, is only 0.8% faster in average benchmark score, yet the combo still ranks 14th overall. This suggests that the Ryzen 9 7900X’s 12 cores are well-utilized by Flight Simulator, and the 5.60 GHz boost clock provides the single-thread responsiveness needed for smooth frame pacing at high settings.