xplane vs MSFS for IFR procedures

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tigerowner

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Tigerowner
I'm looking for something to support chair flying at home for prep and general familiarity with specific approaches. I'm not concerned about simulation of specific planes or scenery, rather just want something that will help me get a mental picture of a procedure and then walk through it. Which of these would be better suited for this?
 
I have xplane with a subscription to Navigraph so I can use real-world plates with the sim. Actually use it in VR with a couple of free add-ons and the realism is pretty impressive. The ability to get the ATIS, set the altimeter, load the approach in the simulated 430 (which is pretty good in xplane... not perfect, but pretty good), then pull the plate and brief the approach on a virtual tablet is pretty cool. Honestly, I do this more for the fun of it when I can't fly the real plane, but I guess it could be used to practice an approach before actually flying it.
 
tigerowner said:
I'm looking for something to support chair flying at home for prep and general familiarity with specific approaches. I'm not concerned about simulation of specific planes or scenery, rather just want something that will help me get a mental picture of a procedure and then walk through it. Which of these would be better suited for this?
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Thanks for posting this thread - I'm in exactly the same place. I need to get up to speed on pulling the pate, briefing, loading the GTN, etc.
 
tigerowner said:
I'm looking for something to support chair flying at home for prep and general familiarity with specific approaches. I'm not concerned about simulation of specific planes or scenery, rather just want something that will help me get a mental picture of a procedure and then walk through it. Which of these would be better suited for this?
Click to expand...

Xplane is better. I have the Garmin 430 addon from RealityXP that is very good. I can also customize the panel to make it look like my real airplane (that's quite a bit of work, but it can still be done).
MSFS is great for the outside visuals, but as far as I know, there aren't many add-ons, and you can't design your own panel to match your real airplane.
 
Deelee said:
I have xplane with a subscription to Navigraph so I can use real-world plates with the sim. Actually use it in VR with a couple of free add-ons and the realism is pretty impressive. The ability to get the ATIS, set the altimeter, load the approach in the simulated 430 (which is pretty good in xplane... not perfect, but pretty good), then pull the plate and brief the approach on a virtual tablet is pretty cool. Honestly, I do this more for the fun of it when I can't fly the real plane, but I guess it could be used to practice an approach before actually flying it.
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Explain more please. I have ForeFlight on my I Pad. Could I just use that? Does X Plane allow you to manually load an approach on its simulated 430? What does Navigraph give you besides plates, which I already have in F Flight?
 
sarangan said:
Xplane is better. I have the Garmin 430 addon from RealityXP that is very good. I can also customize the panel to make it look like my real airplane (that's quite a bit of work, but it can still be done).
MSFS is great for the outside visuals, but as far as I know, there aren't many add-ons, and you can't design your own panel to match your real airplane.
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Can you get a 650 add on?
 
sarangan said:
It looks like thay have that too.
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Yes, I have the RealityXP 650. It doesn't sit in the 3d panel for my add-on planes (it "floats" as a separate window). But that's fine - I just park it where it would be in my normal scan.
 
1F278CA6-888A-4E54-9B18-23A27BC4B62F.jpeg We have both pieces of software, and have abandoned MSFS.

We have the Reality XP gtn 650/750 add-ons for XP and have taught a couple friends the buttonology for their new-to-them rw units...down the basement. We use a small touchscreen, although software is also available to 'port' the screen to an ipad. XP and Foreflight talk to each other seamlessly...easy peasy.

Jim
 
X-Plane with Foreflight. X-Plane can tell Foreflight where it is, so you can use the iPad you fly with and the plates you use to fly with for sim. You see your position with X-Plane on Foreflight fake-georeferenced just like you were flying. I have 2 G5s, and I have the X-Plane G5 addons. I have a 530, and X-Plane has a 530 built in. My sim is very close to my panel, and it works great.
 
Jim Rosenow said:
View attachment 98736 We have both pieces of software, and have abandoned MSFS.

We have the Reality XP gtn 650/750 add-ons for XP and have taught a couple friends the buttonology for their new-to-them rw units...down the basement. We use a small touchscreen, although software is also available to 'port' the screen to an ipad. XP and Foreflight talk to each other seamlessly...easy peasy.

Jim
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Where can I find the software that allows the screen to port to an I Pad? Sounds like it would be enable me to use the touch screen of the I Pad to work the 650.
 
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I can't answer about the 650/750, but I using X-Plane I can see myself on Foreflight's moving map on my iPad. My position is on the maps, and on the plates if one is up. It's built into X-Plane. You have to activate it on FF, and then the GPS source (i.e. your computer and X-Plane) shows up in the attached devices section.
 
WDD said:
You run a 650 simulator on an I Pad that interacts with X Plane? And/or you can see yourself on the moving map on ForeFlight with the chart overlaid? Where is this software?
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First question...no.

2nd question....yes. XP talks to the moving map on Foreflight on your ipad. No difference from real-world...The ipad uses the Foreflight charts internal to itself. Our charts are up-to-date, so I don't know it reacts if the XP and FF charts are different.

3rd question...In both cases the sim software running is XP and the RealityXP GTN add-on for XP. The RXP software brings up a window inside the sim, which you can drag to any monitor (logically touchscreen) attached to the PC.

There is software available to allow one to use an ipad as an additional monitor for Windows PCs...not XP-related. I haven't used it, but XP forum folks use it to drag the RXP pop-up to their ipad, giving them full buttonology....Same as an attached touchscreen.

Whew!

Jim
 
Thanks

I’ll get the Reality XP 650 add in, and see about connecting F Flight to simulate bringing up plates, etc.

Then use my work touchscreen laptop as a second monitor, so I can put the XP 650 add on on that screen in order to work it via touch vs mouse.

Much to learn.
 
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I play MS2020 with a VR headset on and have a blast, it's really cool.

If I want to do some advanced chair flying I use Xplane and have particular views set up to support that. It's much less about flying and more about just pressing buttons. I use one of the Aerobask Jets that have panels that are similar to my G3X's along with a 650. I used Pilot Edge for a bit but got bored with that pretty quick, I've never had an issue talking to ATC so not worried.
 
1) If you are practicing IR, you don't need high-end resolution -> no need for high-end, powerful computer
2) Latest versions of both MSFS and XPlane (v 11) require high-end, powerfule computer
3) MSFS only works on Windows
4) XPlane works on Windows and Mac
5) Find an older version of XPlane (v 9 or 10), it's cheaper and you don't need a high-end computer. I'm running v9 on an older HP under Win7 with no problems
6) You can get add-ons for each for the specific airplane(s) you'll be flying, if the ones provided aren't on your list
7) Don't let the simmers influence your choice - practicing IR and simming are two different environments.
 
In my case, my PC doesn’t even have a graphics card- it currently has a graphics card function built into the mother board.

Plan is to plug in that new card, a new power supply and my 3 year old PC should be good to run it. I don’t have a need for a lot of scenery.
 
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WDD said:
Explain more please. I have ForeFlight on my I Pad. Could I just use that? Does X Plane allow you to manually load an approach on its simulated 430? What does Navigraph give you besides plates, which I already have in F Flight?
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Probably a different scenario for me, but here is how I use it:
VR setup - Rift CV1 with honeycomb yoke, thrustmaster tm16000 throttle (turned around backwards on my right side), some rudder pedals... logitech, maybe but what are rudder pedals for anyway amirite?
Software - xplane of course. Since I have an Arrow, I have a payware Arrow for the sim - the VFlyteAir Arrow has an Aspen and a 430 which is what I have in the real aero-plane. Since I use all this in VR, I can't use ForeFlight (well... you can but it is an incredible PITA to get your iPad cast to your monitor then have that window brought in to the sim...), so I have a Navigraph subscription. I forget what it costs, but you get worldwide Jepp charts... same ones as you get with a Jepp sub, but they are stamped with Not For Use In Real World Navigation! on them. So.... In Vr I use something called AviTab which is a virtual tablet I can move around the virtual Arrow cockpit. This tablet lets me display the Jepp charts which are also georeferenced so you get a little aero-plane on the moving map. Pretty slick.

For that extra bit of immersion (and laughs, at times), I use xPilot to connect to vatsim which lets me file flight plans and have kids who want to be controllers give me vectors to final etc.... lol actually they are pretty good. xPilot has its own set of VR windows you can bring in to help change freqs and stuff like that. All in all it is pretty cool and immersive. And it puts a bit of pressure on you to actually follow procedures. Example - when a certain distance away on your flight plan, they'll hand you off or tell you to expect the ILS whatever approach. So you can grab the atis (oh, I use something called ActiveSkyXP which brings in real world weather conditions to the sim - cloud/wind layers, baro pressure, etc), and set up your altimeter. Then you can load the approach in the virtual 430w just like in real life. At that point, pull up the approach plate on the VR tablet and brief it. Then you start getting vectored around or give clearance to a fix for RNAV approaches. Then just fly the approach like you would in real life. It's pretty cool and, like I said, I really just do it for fun anymore. Not totally realistic since the feeling of being in IMC on an approach or getting kicked around by up/downdrafts flying through cumulus can't really be simulated by xplane like in real life. But still pretty fun.
 
sarangan said:
Xplane is better. I have the Garmin 430 addon from RealityXP that is very good. I can also customize the panel to make it look like my real airplane (that's quite a bit of work, but it can still be done).
MSFS is great for the outside visuals, but as far as I know, there aren't many add-ons, and you can't design your own panel to match your real airplane.
Click to expand...
Also, for outside visuals in X-Plane, you can install the free OpenStreetMap-based scenery from simHeaven and find your street and house just like in MSFS: https://simheaven.com/simdownloads/x-america/
 
Jim Rosenow said:
2nd question....yes. XP talks to the moving map on Foreflight on your ipad. No difference from real-world...The ipad uses the Foreflight charts internal to itself. Our charts are up-to-date, so I don't know it reacts if the XP and FF charts are different.
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Probably the same as Garmin Pilot or FltPlan Go (both of which I've used) -- they just show the chart and a little airplane icon based on your current lat/lon. The rest is up to you. But as others have mentioned, if you're doing a lot of training, best subscribe to Navigraph so that you always have the latest nav data.

3rd question...In both cases the sim software running is XP and the RealityXP GTN add-on for XP. The RXP software brings up a window inside the sim, which you can drag to any monitor (logically touchscreen) attached to the PC.
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I run X-Plane in Linux (where the RealityXP add-on doesn't work), but from what I've heard, the add-on can only take info from X-Plane, it can't send GPSS data back to drive an autopilot -- please correct if I've heard incorrectly. I have a GTN 650, but I just use the GNS 430W in X-Plane, and then open up a VirtualBox and use the Windows Garmin PC Trainer for specific GTN practice, because coupling to the A/P is a big part of IFR practice.
 
David Megginson said:
Probably the same as Garmin Pilot or FltPlan Go (both of which I've used) -- they just show the chart and a little airplane icon based on your current lat/lon. The rest is up to you. But as others have mentioned, if you're doing a lot of training, best subscribe to Navigraph so that you always have the latest nav data.

I run X-Plane in Linux (where the RealityXP add-on doesn't work), but from what I've heard, the add-on can only take info from X-Plane, it can't send GPSS data back to drive an autopilot -- please correct if I've heard incorrectly. I have a GTN 650, but I just use the GNS 430W in X-Plane, and then open up a VirtualBox and use the Windows Garmin PC Trainer for specific GTN practice, because coupling to the A/P is a big part of IFR practice.
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I may not be understanding your question, David (aka fellow linux geek....Our master XP computer is Windows, the other 2 r Linux Mint.) I built a switch panel that talks to the Win computer. Either the buttons on the RXP pop-up screen or my switch panel buttons will control full AP functionality in XP.

Foreflight will not sync flight plans or load data into XP, thru either the std XP or RXP avionics. Flight plans loaded into the RXP units themselves control the XP AP 100%.

I may be having an overly-dense day?!

Jim
 
Jim Rosenow said:
I may not be understanding your question, David (aka fellow linux geek....Our master XP computer is Windows, the other 2 r Linux Mint.) I built a switch panel that talks to the Win computer. Either the buttons on the RXP pop-up screen or my switch panel buttons will control full AP functionality in XP.
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Any denseness is my fault. My question is whether the Garmin GTN trainer running inside the RealityXP add-on can send steering instructions back to the XP autopilot (so that XP will follow the magenta line).
 
Yup! :)

I was too brief.... follow the line, capture the vnav on an approch, and follow the 'missed'...100 percent, which makes sense running the Trainer for source...
 
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I use xplane, use a free included plane with a six pack and 430 (cessna 172 in xplane) which is what I use in the grumman I fly. Xplane connects with my ipad and the EFB goes into simulation mode and shows the little plane on the screen as if georeferenced while flying it for real. Pretty good for working procedures and practicing approaches to unfamiliar airports.
I use Xplane 10 on a 7 year old windows laptop.
FlyQ EFB on ipad mini.
 
OK X Plane experts, I need your suggestions. I bought a GForce 3060 graphics card yesterday so I can finally get X Plane. BUT of course the Nivida driver won't install because I have Windows 10 PRO, and not Windows 10 Home.

Any advice? Get rid of Pro and run 10 Home? New hard drive that only has 10 Home?
 
WDD said:
OK X Plane experts, I need your suggestions. I bought a GForce 3060 graphics card yesterday so I can finally get X Plane. BUT of course the Nivida driver won't install because I have Windows 10 PRO, and not Windows 10 Home.

Any advice? Get rid of Pro and run 10 Home? New hard drive that only has 10 Home?
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Linux? ;)
 
Fixed it. Got it running on Win 10 Pro - gads, this is complicated.
 
I am a 3/4 way done IFR student.

I have been using X-Plane and Garmin Pilot exclusively. I subscribe to Navigraph. I’m on Linux.

The only add-on you are missing is PilotEdge.

All together it is a fantastic tool.
 
X-Plane on Linux (AMD Ryzen 5-2600, 16GB ram and an older Nvidia GeForce GTX 960 at 1080p); Avare on a $90 Walmart 10 inch ONN tablet (which also works with the Stratux ADSB-in). My point is that one doesn't need a really high end computer unless one wants to add on scenery and complex third party planes and utilities. I'm happy with it for IFR practice.
 
With the advice and help from this place, I'm finally up and running. Re-read the post about I Pad/ForeFlight, and have that hooked in as well. Got Realty GTN 650 per a post here as well. What will really help me is how I have the Realty GTN working. I dug out an old Amazon Kindle tablet, got a free screen extension app, and now I also have a touch screen pad for the Reality GTN 650 that is almost the identical size to the real thing.

IMG_3355.jpg
IMG_3356.jpg
 
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Trogdor said:
The only add-on you are missing is PilotEdge.

All together it is a fantastic tool.
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*in unison* "It's a fantastic tool."

And I'm glad you like it :)

To the OP, FS2020 will drive you _nuts_ with its lack of system and avionics fidelity for a long time to come. XP11 is a great way to go. I've been using it since v5 and it just keeps getting better.

I ran a webinar on using PC's for flight training, it's available here (no subscription/login required): https://www.pilotedge.net/workshops/flight-simulation-for-primary-and-instrument-training. Some of it's obvious, some of it not so much. I hope it'll help you out.
 
My reality GTN 650 won’t activate the x plane Glide slope. Suggestions ?
 
murphey said:
No guarantees about Xplane on Linux. Check the XPlane website and support blogs.
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XP11 works well with Nvidia graphics cards in Linux. As with MacOS, some add-ons don't work in Linux because they're hard-coded for Windows, but many do. And for some reason, XP doesn't work with Radeon (AMD) graphics cards in Linux — no idea why they made that choice.
 
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