PC upgrade for RealFlight8

[Michael O'Bree]

I am looking for advice. I am looking to replace Phoenix RC with RealFlight8, and, as necessary, upgrading or replacing my old PC

Here is my old(current) PC:
Dell Desktop XPS (purchased 2013)
-running Windows 10 (in spite of Dell saying it wouldn't run on W10)
-Processor Intel Core i7-3770 3.4GHz
-NVIDIA GeForce 620
-RAM 8GB

Here is what RealFlight says:
Minimum PC Specs:
Memory:512 MB
Graphics Card:NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200
CPU:Intel Pentium 4 2.00GHz
RealFlight 8 File Size:10 GB
OS:Windows 7, 8, or 10
Recommended PC specs:
Memory:2 GB
Graphics Card:NVIDIA GeForce 7200 GS
RealFlight 8 CPU:Intel Core 2 Duo T7700
File Size:10 GB
OS:Windows 7, 8, or 10

RealFlight suggests at minimum I need to replace my graphics card with a
GeForce FX 5200.

My questions:
-am I likely to get sluggish performance on RF8 if I only upgrade graphics card to GeForce FX 5200?
-if its time to upgrade my PC, can you recommend a PC package/components that will do Realflight8 justice. Consider also that I already have sluggish performance with video editing on my current PC with PowerDirector17 which is the only other demanding software I use. (I realize I need to add a SSD drive, amoung other things, to speed up PowerDirector)
Any advice appreciated, even if it is where I might find more detailed info online.

Thanks.

[Hector]

Hi Michael,

I am not familiar on how demanding is RF8, but for sure a better and modern video card will improve performance of any game. Old video cards sacrifice video quality for performance (or vice versa).

Even if it is 5 years old the computer specifications are not bad. You should be OK with your setup.

I believe that the upgrades required to increase the performance to today standards are cheaper that buying a comparable XPS computer.

Adding an SSD will make a HUGE difference when loading applications and with video editing. The SSD It doesn’t have to be huge and/or expensive, it only must have the main operating system.

You might consider too to increase RAM to 16 Gb. Before doing this check on Dell Support website what type and amount of memory your XPS support.

PS: I just check the specs for your current video-card GeForce 620 and is superior to the RF8 requirements.

[Jdonald]

I have RF8 installed on a Toshiba with Windows 7. Installed the Horizon Hobby upgrade a few months later. This is a laptop computer. I have it connected via a VGA to HDMI adapter to a large screen tv. Works fine. No upgrades to video cards were necessary.

[Florin]

I had a hunch , so I checked your video card vs minimum recommended
Your card Geforce GT 620 is at least twice faster.

https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu_list.php

I think you'll be good for Realflight8 (unless you want to use VR)

The simulator on Steam is at competitive price. They offer refund if the playing time doesn't exceed 2 hours and couple of weeks from purchase.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/748460/RealFlight_8/

[Michael O'Bree]

Hector, John and Florin -

Thanks for your helpful feedback guys.

With the info from the graphics card performance site, Florin, I think I will just get RF8 with the Interlink Controller (it is only US$40 more than the software + wired link I would need anyway if I used my own DX9), then see how it runs on my existing setup and go from there.
I will check it out at Teds first.