Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator is an exceptionally demanding title, and the data for the Intel Core i7-12700K + AMD Radeon RX 580 combination illustrates this clearly. The measured frames per second (FPS) across all resolutions and settings presets place this pairing firmly in the lower tier of tested configurations, with a combo rank of 1656 out of 1795 tested combos. This places it in the bottom 8% of all tested systems, indicating that while the hardware is functional, it is not suited for a high-fidelity flight experience. The benchmark results tell a story of a system where the graphics card is the primary constraint, but the CPU’s high core count ensures that frame pacing remains consistent even when the renderer is overwhelmed.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a steep drop as resolution increases, which is a classic sign of GPU limitation. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 52.7 FPS. Moving to 1440p at the same Low preset drops this to 44.9 FPS, a reduction of 7.8 FPS (approximately 15%). The jump to 4K at Low settings yields 30.5 FPS, which is a further 14.4 FPS drop from 1440p and over 42% lower than the 1080p result. This scaling pattern indicates that the RX 580’s pixel throughput is the bottleneck; as the resolution increases, the GPU must process significantly more fragments, and its 42.88 GPixel/s pixel rate is quickly overwhelmed.

The trend is consistent across all settings presets. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 32.5 at 1080p to 25.2 at 1440p, and then to 16.4 at 4K. The gap between 1440p and 4K becomes more pronounced at higher quality settings, with a 35% reduction in FPS. This suggests that the combination of higher resolution and more complex shading calculations (like those in the High preset) places an exponential load on the GPU. The data indicates that 1080p is the only viable resolution for this combo if aiming for playable frame rates, as even 1440p Low dips below the 45 FPS mark, which is often considered the threshold for smooth simulation gameplay.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580 with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is sufficient for the texture loads at 1080p, but the benchmark results show it struggles under the higher fidelity demands of Microsoft Flight Simulator. The GPU’s boost clock of 1340 MHz and its 2304 shading units deliver a raw FP32 performance of 6.175 TFLOPS. However, the measured FPS across all 4K presets (ranging from 16.4 FPS on High to 30.5 FPS on Low) suggests that the card’s compute capacity is insufficient for the game’s rendering engine at that resolution.

The GPU’s percentile ranking against all GPUs is 53, indicating it sits in the middle of the pack historically, but its nearest rivals in the database are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 and GTX 950, with delta percentages of 0% and 0.1% respectively. This proximity to much older hardware highlights that the RX 580 is at the bottom end of modern gaming capability for this specific simulation. The 8 GB VRAM is not the limiting factor at 1080p Low, where the card achieves 52.7 FPS, but the 42.88 GPixel/s pixel rate and 193.0 GTexel/s texture rate become the wall at higher settings. The data shows that the GPU’s role is the dominant performance limiter, as evidenced by the significant FPS gains when lowering settings from Ultra to Low at the same resolution (e.g., 18.9 to 30.5 FPS at 4K).

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the best experience for this combo is achieved at 1080p with the Low preset. This yields an average FPS of 52.7, which is the only configuration that breaks the 50 FPS threshold. The data shows a clear hierarchy at 1080p: Low (52.7 FPS) > Medium (43.5 FPS) > High (32.5 FPS) > Ultra (31 FPS). The jump from Low to Medium costs 9.2 FPS (17.5% performance loss), which is substantial, but the visual fidelity improvement in a flight simulator might be worth it for some users. However, the drop from Medium to High is even steeper at 11 FPS, pushing the average below 33 FPS, which is generally considered marginal for a game that requires precise control.

At 1440p, the only preset that remains above 30 FPS is Low, with 44.9 FPS. Medium at 1440p drops to 34.9 FPS, which is playable but borderline. The data suggests that for a stable experience, users should stick to 1080p Low or Medium. The 4K presets are effectively unplayable, with the best result being 30.5 FPS on Low, which is still below the 30 FPS minimum for many users. The analysis indicates that the "sweet spot" is 1080p Medium, offering 43.5 FPS, which balances the visual load on the CPU (which has headroom) with the GPU’s limitations. Pushing to Ultra at any resolution is not recommended, as it yields only 31 FPS at 1080p and 18.9 FPS at 4K, making it a poor trade-off for the performance hit.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 1656 out of 1795 tested combinations, placing it in the 8th percentile of all systems. This is a low ranking, indicating that the pairing of a high-end 12-core CPU with a mid-range 2017 GPU creates a significant imbalance for this particular game. The CPU is in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU is only in the 53rd percentile, highlighting the mismatch. The data shows that this combo is not competitive for high-resolution or high-detail flight simulation. The rank suggests that the majority of tested systems (over 92%) achieve better performance, likely due to having more modern GPUs that can handle the game’s volumetric clouds and terrain rendering.

The performance gap is evident when comparing the average FPS across all settings. For instance, at 1080p Ultra, this combo achieves 31 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target that many other combos likely reach. The ranking is not a reflection of the CPU’s capability but rather the GPU’s inability to keep up with the simulation’s demands at higher settings. The data indicates that if a user already owns this CPU, they would need a significantly more powerful GPU to move up the rankings. The combo’s low rank is a direct consequence of the RX 580’s age and its performance ceiling, which is firmly at 1080p with lower presets.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K features 12 cores (8 performance and 4 efficiency) and 20 threads, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This is a powerful processor, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 29241 and single-core score of 4128. However, in Microsoft Flight Simulator, the CPU’s role is to manage the complex simulation logic, physics, and draw calls. The benchmark data suggests that the CPU is not the primary bottleneck in this combo, as the FPS scales almost linearly with resolution, which is a GPU-bound characteristic.

The CPU’s 25 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4/DDR5 memory (dual-channel) provide ample bandwidth for feeding the GPU. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the CPU can push the frame rate to 52.7 FPS, which is likely near the limit of what the GPU can render. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar FPS across different resolutions, but instead we see a clear drop from 1080p to 4K. The CPU’s high single-thread performance (415 in Cinebench R15 single-core) is crucial for the game’s main thread, but the measured results indicate that even with this strong CPU, the GPU cannot translate it into high FPS. The CPU’s role here is to prevent frame drops and stutters, which it does successfully, but it cannot overcome the GPU’s 6.175 TFLOPS limit.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU+GPU combo in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo achieves playable frame rates above 30 FPS across most presets. At 1080p Low, it hits 52.7 FPS, while 1440p Low drops to 44.9 FPS, and 4K Low falls to 30.5 FPS.

Q: Can this combo run the game at Ultra settings?

A: Technically yes, but the performance is poor. At 1080p Ultra, the average FPS is 31, which is just above 30. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 23.8 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it is 18.9 FPS. The data suggests that Ultra settings are not viable for a smooth experience.

Q: How does the RX 580 compare to its nearest rivals in the database?

A: The RX 580 has an average benchmark score of 13559. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 with a score of 13564, showing a delta of 0%. The GTX 950 is also close with a score of 13549, a delta of 0.1%. This indicates the RX 580 is performatively equivalent to those older cards.

Q: Is the i7-12700K holding back the RX 580 in this game?

A: The data indicates no. The CPU has a high Cinebench R23 multicore score of 29241 and a 89th percentile ranking. The FPS drops significantly with resolution (from 52.7 at 1080p Low to 30.5 at 4K Low), which is a classic sign of GPU limitation, not CPU bottleneck.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Medium settings at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, the Low preset achieves 44.9 FPS, while the Medium preset achieves 34.9 FPS. This is a difference of 10 FPS, representing a 22% performance loss when moving from Low to Medium.

Q: What is the combo’s overall rank among all tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 1656 out of 1795 tested combinations. This places it in the bottom 8% of all systems, indicating that it is a low-performing configuration for this specific game.