Microsoft Flight Simulator

The data for Microsoft Flight Simulator with the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER shows a system that scales predictably with resolution and settings, with the GPU acting as the primary performance limiter in most scenarios. The measured frame rates across three resolutions and four quality presets provide a clear picture of where this combo excels and where its performance becomes constrained, particularly at the highest visual fidelity settings.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K reveals a consistent scaling pattern that points directly at the graphics card as the bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo delivers 183.3 FPS, which drops to 147.7 FPS at 1440p and further to 107.8 FPS at 4K. This represents a 41% reduction in frame rate when moving from 1080p to 4K at the lowest settings, a scaling pattern that indicates the GPU is being pushed harder as pixel count increases.

The scaling becomes more pronounced at higher quality settings. With Ultra settings, the frame rate falls from 99.4 FPS at 1080p to 80.6 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 60.8 FPS at 4K. This is a 39% drop from 1080p to 4K, but the absolute numbers tell a different story. At 1440p Ultra, the system maintains 80.6 FPS, which is still comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold, while at 4K Ultra it lands exactly at 60.8 FPS. The data suggests that 4K Ultra is the boundary case for this hardware, while 1440p Ultra remains well within comfortable performance territory.

Interestingly, the gap between Low and Ultra settings narrows as resolution increases. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 83.9 FPS, but at 4K this gap shrinks to 47 FPS. This compression at higher resolutions is a classic sign of GPU-bound performance; at 4K, the rendering workload dominates regardless of quality preset, reducing the relative impact of settings changes. The CPU, with its 10 cores and 16 threads, appears to have sufficient headroom to avoid becoming the limiting factor even at lower resolutions where frame rates exceed 180 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the benchmark database of 1795 tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Core i5-14400F and RTX 4070 SUPER holds the 276th position in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the top 15.4% of all tested combos, which is a strong showing for a mid-range CPU paired with an upper-mid-range GPU. The ranking reflects the game's tendency to favor GPU performance, which benefits this combination given the RTX 4070 SUPER's capabilities.

The CPU itself sits at the 88th percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 32508. Its nearest rivals in synthetic testing include the Intel Core i7-12800H with a delta of 0%, the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 with a delta of 0.2%, and the AMD Ryzen 7 250 with a delta of -0.2%. These nearly identical scores indicate that the i5-14400F is performing at a level consistent with its class, providing no significant bottleneck in this flight simulator.

The GPU ranks at the 84th percentile among all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 42576. Its closest competitors include the NVIDIA RTX A6000 with a delta of -0.2%, the AMD Radeon RX 7650 GRE with a delta of -0.3%, and the AMD Radeon Pro 580X with a delta of 1.4%. The RTX 4070 SUPER's position in the 84th percentile for GPUs, combined with the CPU's 88th percentile ranking, suggests a well-balanced pairing where neither component dramatically underperforms relative to the other.

Settings Recommendations

For users targeting a 60 FPS experience, the data shows that 4K Ultra delivers exactly 60.8 FPS, which meets this threshold but leaves minimal margin for demanding scenes or weather effects. The High preset at 4K matches this same 60.8 FPS figure, suggesting that the Ultra and High presets converge at this resolution due to GPU limitations. For a smoother experience at 4K, the Medium preset at 81.7 FPS provides a 34% improvement over Ultra while still maintaining high visual quality.

At 1440p, the situation is more comfortable. The Ultra preset delivers 80.6 FPS, which exceeds the 60 FPS target with substantial headroom. The High preset at 87.7 FPS and Medium at 117.1 FPS offer even more margin. For users with high-refresh-rate displays, the Low preset at 147.7 FPS at 1440p approaches the 144Hz range, making it viable for competitive or high-frame-rate play, though this sacrifices visual quality.

At 1080p, all presets exceed 99 FPS, with Low reaching 183.3 FPS. This resolution is clearly CPU-friendly territory where the GPU has ample headroom. The Medium preset at 142.4 FPS represents a good balance for 144Hz displays, while Ultra at 99.4 FPS remains playable. The data suggests that 1080p users can comfortably use Ultra settings, while 1440p users should choose between High and Ultra based on their frame rate preference, and 4K users will need to use Medium for consistent performance above 60 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured frame rates across all settings show the strongest performance. Low settings produce 183.3 FPS, Medium produces 142.4 FPS, High produces 110.1 FPS, and Ultra produces 99.4 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 46% reduction in frame rate, reflecting the increasing rendering demands of higher quality presets. The gap between Medium and High is 32.3 FPS, while the gap between High and Ultra is only 10.7 FPS, indicating diminishing returns at the highest preset.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are 147.7 FPS for Low, 117.1 FPS for Medium, 87.7 FPS for High, and 80.6 FPS for Ultra. The percentage drop from Low to Ultra is 45%, similar to 1080p. The difference between High and Ultra narrows further to 7.1 FPS, suggesting that the Ultra preset at 1440p is approaching the GPU's performance ceiling.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates drop to 107.8 FPS for Low, 81.7 FPS for Medium, and 60.8 FPS for both High and Ultra. The identical frame rates for High and Ultra at 4K indicate that the GPU is fully saturated at this resolution, and the quality settings no longer have a meaningful impact on performance. This is the clearest evidence of GPU-bound behavior in the entire dataset.

GPU Role

The RTX 4070 SUPER's specifications directly influence the measured results. With 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth, the card has sufficient memory capacity for Microsoft Flight Simulator's detailed scenery. The GPU's boost clock of 2475 MHz, based on a base clock of 1980 MHz, gives it the compute throughput needed to handle the game's complex rendering tasks.

The GPU's memory configuration, with a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s, becomes increasingly important at higher resolutions where texture streaming demands more data. The 12 GB capacity is adequate for the game's requirements at 4K Ultra, as evidenced by the 60.8 FPS result. The Ada Lovelace architecture, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC, provides the efficiency that allows this card to maintain competitive frame rates across all tested configurations.

The GPU's 7168 shading units and 80 ROPs contribute to its pixel throughput of 198.0 GPixel/s, which is directly relevant to the resolution scaling observed. At 4K, the pixel count quadruples from 1080p, and the GPU's ability to maintain 60.8 FPS at Ultra settings demonstrates that its rasterization performance is well-matched to this game's demands. The texture rate of 554.4 GTexel/s supports the detailed terrain and aircraft textures that Flight Simulator renders continuously.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain at least 60 FPS with Ultra settings?

A: The data shows that 1440p Ultra delivers 80.6 FPS, while 4K Ultra delivers exactly 60.8 FPS. Both resolutions meet the 60 FPS target, but 1440p provides more headroom.

Q: Does the Ultra preset provide any measurable benefit over High at 4K?

A: No. At 3840x2160, both High and Ultra settings produce identical frame rates of 60.8 FPS, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor at this resolution regardless of the preset.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: It ranks 276th out of 1795 tested combinations, placing it in the top 15.4% of all systems tested for this game.

Q: What is the highest frame rate achieved by this combo?

A: The maximum measured frame rate is 183.3 FPS, achieved at 1080p with Low settings.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary limiter. The frame rates compress at higher resolutions, and the CPU's benchmark scores place it at the 88th percentile, well above the GPU's 84th percentile.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 4K Medium, it achieves 81.7 FPS, while at 4K Ultra it drops to 60.8 FPS. Users who want higher frame rates at 4K should use Medium settings.