Microsoft Flight Simulator

# Microsoft Flight Simulator — Intel Core i7-13700K + NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER

This combination pairs a high-end 16-core desktop processor from Intel's Raptor Lake family with an end-of-life Turing-generation GPU that was released in late 2019. The data shows a system that is heavily unbalanced for this flight simulator: the CPU is capable of far more than the GPU can deliver, and the measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings reflect that bottleneck clearly. The i7-13700K sits in the 89th percentile of all CPUs tested, while the GTX 1660 SUPER sits in the 53rd percentile of all GPUs, a gap that foreshadows most of the performance characteristics seen in the measured rows.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-13700K is a 16-core, 24-thread processor built on Intel's 10 nm Raptor Lake-S architecture. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 30 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory on a dual-channel bus, and it includes UHD Graphics 770 integrated graphics, though the dedicated GTX 1660 SUPER handles all rendering here.

In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU produces a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 30745 and a single-core score of 2116. The Geekbench multicore score is 19429, and the single-core score is 2529. Its average benchmark score of 46881 places it just 0.2% below the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 (score 46971) and 0.3% below the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 (score 47022). It is 0.5% above both the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX and the Intel Xeon w3-2535, each with scores of 46654 and 46653 respectively. These near-identical scores suggest that the i7-13700K is at parity with its closest rivals in general compute, not ahead or behind by any meaningful margin.

For Microsoft Flight Simulator, the CPU's role is significant because flight simulation workloads involve complex physics, flight model calculations, and world-generation logic that are heavily single-threaded in nature. The single-thread performance here is strong — the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2116 and the 3DMark single-thread score of 1136 indicate headroom that the game can use. However, the measured FPS data reveals that this CPU headroom is not being exercised to its limit in most settings. At 1080p Low, the system produces 78 FPS average, which is the highest frame rate in the entire dataset. That is a respectable result, but it is far from the limits this CPU could reach if paired with a stronger GPU. The fact that the 1080p Low result is only 78 FPS, rather than well over 100, suggests the GPU is already limiting even at the lowest settings tested.

The 16-core, 24-thread configuration matters for this game in a specific way: Microsoft Flight Simulator can use multiple threads for various subsystems, but it does not scale linearly with core count. The i7-13700K's 3DMark max-threads score of 12412 and 16-thread score of 10717 show strong multi-threaded capability, yet the game's frame rates remain modest. This is not a CPU deficiency — the Cinebench R20 multicore score of 16292 and Passmark multithread score of 45887 are both high — but rather an indication that the GPU cannot keep pace with the CPU's output. In short, the CPU is not the limiting component at any resolution or setting in this dataset.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is built on the TU116 chip using TSMC's 12 nm process, with 6,600 million transistors on a 284 mm² die. It has 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The base clock is 1530 MHz with a boost clock of 1785 MHz, and memory runs at 1750 MHz or 14 Gbps effective. The GPU has 1408 shading units, 88 texture mapping units, and 48 render output units. Its FP32 performance is 5.027 TFLOPS, and the texture rate is 157.1 GTexel/s.

In synthetic benchmarks, the GTX 1660 SUPER scores 12699 in Passmark G3D and 5076 in Passmark GPU compute. Its average benchmark score of 12986 places it 0.4% above the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (score 12940) and 0.4% above the AMD Radeon RX 580 (score 12928). It is 0.7% below the NVIDIA Tesla M2090 (score 13075) and 0.9% above the AMD Radeon 740M (score 12870). The GPU's percentile rank of 53 means it sits near the middle of all tested GPUs, which is consistent with a card that was mid-range at launch and is now several generations old.

In this game, the GPU's limitations are evident in the measured FPS. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 26, which is below playable thresholds for most users. At 4K High, the average is 27 FPS — barely different. The 6 GB VRAM capacity is a likely contributor to these low results, as Microsoft Flight Simulator at high resolutions and detail settings can exceed that allocation. The memory bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s is also modest by modern standards, which matters for streaming large textures and terrain data. The GPU's 12 nm process node and 125 W TDP are not performance metrics per se, but they contextualize why this card struggles: it was designed for 1080p gaming in 2019, and the data confirms that it delivers its best results at that resolution.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of degradation as resolution increases, but the rate of that degradation tells an important story. At Low settings, the average FPS goes from 78 at 1080p to 63 at 1440p to 46 at 4K. That is a drop of 19% from 1080p to 1440p and a further drop of 27% from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is roughly proportional to the increase in pixel count, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. If the CPU were the limit, frame rates would stay flat across resolutions because the CPU workload would not change with pixel count.

At Medium settings, the average FPS goes from 60 at 1080p to 49 at 1440p to 36 at 4K. The 1080p Medium result includes a minimum of 51 FPS and a maximum of 69 FPS, while the 1440p Medium result has a minimum of 41 and maximum of 56. At 4K Medium, the minimum is 31 and maximum is 41. These ranges show that even the minimum frame rates scale down with resolution, further confirming that the GPU is the binding constraint.

At High settings, the average FPS goes from 45 at 1080p to 37 at 1440p to 27 at 4K. At Ultra settings, the average FPS goes from 43 at 1080p to 35 at 1440p to 26 at 4K. The gap between High and Ultra is small — only 2 FPS at 1080p and 1 FPS at both 1440p and 4K — which suggests that the game's Ultra preset adds graphical features that this GPU cannot render efficiently, but the additional load does not translate into a proportionally larger FPS hit because the GPU is already saturated.

The resolution scaling data indicates that the i7-13700K is not a factor in these drops. The CPU has the single-thread and multi-thread capability to feed the GPU at any resolution, but the GTX 1660 SUPER simply cannot produce higher frame rates. The 1080p Low result of 78 FPS is the only point where the system approaches a smooth experience, and even that is not a high frame rate by modern standards.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combo rank for this specific pairing in Microsoft Flight Simulator is 3143 out of 3714 tested combinations. That places it in the bottom 15% of all tested combos, which is a poor showing for a system that includes a top-tier CPU. The rank is driven almost entirely by the GPU's performance, as the CPU is in the 89th percentile of all CPUs while the GPU is only in the 53rd percentile.

To contextualize this rank, consider that the i7-13700K's average benchmark score of 46881 is statistically tied with its nearest rivals, with deltas of -0.2%, -0.3%, +0.5%, and +0.5% against the AMD Ryzen 9 5900, AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375, AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX, and Intel Xeon w3-2535 respectively. If the same GPU were paired with any of those CPUs, the combo rank would likely be nearly identical because the GPU is the constraint. The data shows that this combo ranks poorly not because of the CPU, but because the GPU is mismatched with the CPU's capabilities.

The GTX 1660 SUPER's nearest rivals — the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, RX 580, Tesla M2090, and Radeon 740M — all have average scores within 0.9% of the 1660 SUPER. This means that swapping the GPU for any of those cards would produce a similar combo rank in this game, assuming the CPU remains the same. The rank of 3143 out of 3714 is a reflection of the GPU's mid-range placement, not a commentary on the CPU's performance. In practical terms, this combo is ranked in the bottom 15% of tested systems for Microsoft Flight Simulator, and the measured FPS data supports that ranking: no resolution and settings combination achieves an average above 78 FPS, and most fall below 60 FPS.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo is at 1080p with the Low preset. The average FPS of 78 is the highest of any measured row, and it is the only row that approaches a smooth, responsive experience for a flight simulator. The 1080p Medium preset delivers an average of 60 FPS with a minimum of 51 FPS, which is also playable but leaves less headroom for complex scenes with dense scenery or weather effects. The 1080p High preset drops to 45 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 43 FPS, both of which are below the 60 FPS threshold that most users would consider ideal.

At 1440p, the Low preset averages 63 FPS, which is playable but not as smooth as the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset at 1440p averages 49 FPS, and High and Ultra average 37 and 35 FPS respectively. None of these 1440p results are ideal for a flight simulator, where smooth frame pacing matters for precise control inputs. At 4K, even the Low preset only averages 46 FPS, and all other presets fall below 40 FPS. The 4K results are not recommended for this combo.

The data suggests a clear trade-off: if the user prioritizes visual quality, the 1080p Medium preset at 60 FPS average is the best balance, as it provides a 60 FPS average with a minimum of 51 FPS. If the user prioritizes frame rate above all, the 1080p Low preset at 78 FPS is the best choice. The Ultra preset at any resolution is not recommended, as it provides less than 1-2 FPS improvement over High at the same resolution, indicating that the GPU cannot leverage the additional visual features without a significant performance cost. The 1080p Medium preset is the recommended default because it offers a 60 FPS average, which is a common target, and it maintains a minimum above 50 FPS.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this CPU and GPU?

A: The 1080p Medium preset delivers a 60 FPS average with a 51 FPS minimum, making it the most balanced option. The 1080p Low preset delivers 78 FPS average for maximum smoothness, but with lower visual quality.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-13700K or the GTX 1660 SUPER the limiting factor in this game?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER is the limiting factor. The CPU has a 89th percentile rank among all CPUs, while the GPU has a 53rd percentile rank. Frame rates scale down consistently with resolution, which is a GPU-bound pattern.

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

A: This combo ranks 3143 out of 3714 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 15% of all tested systems for this game.

Q: Can this system play at 4K in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: At 4K, the Low preset averages 46 FPS, Medium averages 36 FPS, High averages 27 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. None of these are ideal, and the higher presets are not recommended at 4K.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its nearest rival GPUs?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 12986, which is 0.4% above the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile and RX 580, 0.7% below the Tesla M2090, and 0.9% above the Radeon 740M.

Q: What is the difference between High and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, High averages 45 FPS and Ultra averages 43 FPS, a difference of only 2 FPS. The Ultra preset adds visual features that the GPU cannot render efficiently, so the FPS gain from dropping to High is minimal.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the system produces its best results. The Low preset averages 78 FPS, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. The Medium preset averages 60 FPS with a minimum of 51 FPS and a maximum of 69 FPS. The High preset averages 45 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 43 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 35 FPS, showing that the GPU has limited headroom for visual enhancements at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, all presets drop noticeably. The Low preset averages 63 FPS, which is a 15 FPS drop from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset averages 49 FPS with a minimum of 41 FPS and a maximum of 56 FPS. The High preset averages 37 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 35 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p ranges from 19% at Low to 18% at High, indicating consistent scaling with pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles across all presets. The Low preset averages 46 FPS, which is the only 4K result above 40 FPS. The Medium preset averages 36 FPS with a minimum of 31 FPS and a maximum of 41 FPS. The High preset averages 27 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 26 FPS. The drop from 1440p to 4K ranges from 27% at Low to 26% at High, again consistent with GPU-bound scaling. The 4K Ultra result of 26 FPS is the lowest measured value in the entire dataset, and no 4K preset achieves an average of 50 FPS or higher.

Across all resolutions, the Low preset consistently provides the highest average FPS, and the Ultra preset consistently provides the lowest. The gap between High and Ultra is small at every resolution — 2 FPS at 1080p, 2 FPS at 1440p, and 1 FPS at 4K — which suggests that the Ultra preset's additional features are not worth the visual cost for this GPU. The Medium preset provides the only 60 FPS average in the dataset at 1080p, making it the single most useful data point for users seeking a playable experience.