Aero Files - Texture Bundle Pack FSX

By Nigel C. Martin
2 February 2010

This is a bundle of three Aero Files texture enhancements for Microsoft FSX only.

I love FSX, and I am true convert, but I have to admit if pushed, I do miss all the add-ons that FS2004 allowed us to include. I will not name all of them, or I just may get all emotional, but please oh please, someone bring out a real world navigation map that will track our flight path in real time, at a decent scale. Guess you all know what I am referring too in FS2004? Sadly, not converted for use in FSX.

Oh, the aircraft--amazing samples from the likes of Dave Maltby and Rick Piper (and many others who provide us superb freeware and paid for aircraft scenery, etc.) are missed in FSX, with the exception of the Hawk and Jest Provost. Oh yes and the HS 748 from Rick (cannot get the Andover color scheme to work, a real pity, I love the older RAF color scheme). Come on Rick and David please get your amazing aircraft to fully function in FSX please!

Don't get me wrong. As I mentioned above, I love FSX and I am totally converted, especially now Squawkbox is fully operational, but I feel hampered by not having a good effective and easy to use navigational system that allows for European and continental flights. OK, one can log a flight plan in SQB, and in certain onboard nav systems, but there is not, to my knowledge, an interactive real time nav representation. In time I hope?

Why am I going on about this, nothing to do with the scenery review? Well actually it is. I have done a lot more VFR flights, and welcome any addition to the visible environment.

I have resisted downloading freeware offerings, especially scenery, not to say they are detrimental, they are a great and welcome addition, but the ones I have used have caused no end of issues, ridiculous frame rates, elevated buildings, system crashes, etc.. So I was intrigued to see the offering from Aero Files. Looking at the screen shots, this offering seems to meet my expectations... So without further ado, went through the usual and simple download procedure via the Pilot Shop and hew presto, all downloaded and ready to install.

What Is Included & Installation

You would be somewhat surprised I am sure, if I said scenery, water, land, sky and cloud effects. Well guys, that is exactly what is on offer.

Aero Files Texture Bundle Pack FSX is a high quality texture enhancement for Microsoft Flight Simulator FSX. It is a selection of runway textures, sky textures, tree textures as well as airport roads.

This bundle includes Texture Booster Pack FSX, Texture Booster Pro FSX and Sky Environment Ultra FSX all available, as a single item downloadable purchase too. Nice, just what the doctor ordered...

From Aero Files:

Sky Environment Ultra improves the sky for all seasons in three different sets for you to choose from. Sky Environment Ultra is easy to use and has no performance hit on your flight sim. It will improve your enjoyment of FSX whenever and wherever you choose to start your flight. As soon as you start flying you will notice more details in the sky compared to the default textures in FSX.

Product Features:

New Sky Textures
3 Sets To Choose From
2 Cloud Sets
New Sun Texture
100+ Textures
Backup Available

Texture Booster Pack improves your FSX taxiways, runways, runway lighting, aprons, taxiway markings, runway snow effects, runway and taxiway wet look, runway lights and water bump map on all worldwide oceans, rivers andl lakes; even the sun has been improved greatly.

Texture Booster Pack is easy to use and has no performance loss on your flight sim and it will improve your enjoyment of FSX wherever you choose to start your flight. A new version for buildings and other texture sets are on their way. You will even be able to see cracks in the runways (where available) with much more detail than the default FSX textures.

"This texture set is simply just breathtaking. As soon as you add it you will notice more details in the textures compared to the default textures in FSX."

"These textures will help on computers which have a problem with FPS as long as you meet the minimum standards of FSX."

Product Features:

New Taxiways
New Runways
New Runway lighting
New Aprons
New Taxiway markings
New Runway snow effects
New Runway and Taxiway Wet look
New Runway lights
New Water bump map on all worldwide oceans, rivers and lakes
New Sun Effects
Quality Sharpened Textures

Texture Booster Pro is a high quality texture enhancement for Microsoft Flight Simulator X. Texture Booster Pro features over 250+ new textures for your flight simulator which will improve your overall flightsim experience. This texture product is recommended to use with other texture products made by Aero Files to give your flight simulator a boost of a lifetime. All textures feature photoreal quality settings.

Product Features:

Cloud Sets:

New Cirrus Cloud Set
New Cumulus Cloud Set

Ocean:

New Ocean Height

Sky Sets:

Sky Afternoon
Sky Dawn
Sky Midnight
Sky Morning
Sky Noon
Sky Postdawn
Sky Presunset
Sky Sunset

Tree Sets:

All New Photo real Tree Sets (114 total) covering the entire globe.
All textures are reduced to improve performance without reducing the quality.

There you have it, some list! Installation was a breeze, and no issues encountered.

In Use

Well, I selected a known area, so I may compare pre and post installation this I did (note post install pictures in review). When I first started the program I was not that taken back with the additional scenery on offer, and the massive drop in frame rates.

I had fallen into the classic trap of not obtaining the latest drivers for the computer graphics card, etc. This done and installed, and WOW what a difference, Oh yes, use a good disk defrag, registry cleaner program as well, some very good freeware options available.

I hit the start button, eager to get into the air and see the additional effects. I will not cover all of the additional elements or I will be here post doomsday, but I will cover the obvious ones. Before I do so, please 'crank-up' the graphic settings as high as they will go, only this way will you be able to appreciate the full range of additions on offer.

Where do we start? Well seeing as I love trees (well not that much, but they are pretty amazing things!) we start there. You will notice an array of different species now on offer, actually treated with great care and attention. They have a realistic form and look well, real, all 114 new tree sets in all!

I selected a winter scene, and the snow 'hung' on the branches again looked very effective. My computer took a few seconds to comprehensively 'treat' the ground, i.e., cover it in snow, but well worth the wait--superb. On the ground, I noticed additional effect of the snow being 'blown' behind my aircraft on the take-off roll. The snow laying on the tarmac caught in the rearward thrust from the engine, a nice addition.

Runway textures, lighting, taxiways are noticeably improved, and the graphics, i.e., taxi lines and parameter markings looked crisper. The same level of attention and improvement applies to the sea.

There we go, brings me nicely to the water. I seemed to get a sense of depth to the water, i.e., a decent swell, and an all round improvement in the water textures, and the colors seemed to be more accurate. Yup, a real and tangible effect.

The sky sets have been improved and boy have they! A really fine job, a vast improvement. I took a shot of the dusk sky and boy it looks impressive.

Conclusion

For the price this set represents a superb addition. I love them. I really have seen a difference post install, and may I also add, no installation issues at all.

A word of caution, not based on any scientific evidence, you will have to 'ratchet-up' the graphics settings to get the best of the effects, and yes to do that, you will need a fairly quick machine.

With my machine spec I got a lack of memory message and the machine closed down. I do not have a myriad of programs running in the background, but I have to admit my settings were set to near max. A slight downward adjustment did the trick.

Yup, a great program, guys, and for those who have FS2004, they are about to launch a version for you as well.

System Requirements:

System Requirements: (Sky Environment Ultra FSX)
Download File Size - 14 MB
Hard Drive Space: 11 MB
Video Card: 128 MB (256 MB recommended)
DirectX 9.0 or later
Processor: 1.5 GHz (2.4 GHz recommended)
Windows: 2000/XP 128 MB RAM (Vista will work too)
98/ME 64 MB RAM (1.5 GB RAM recommended)

System Requirements: (Texture Booster Pack FSX)
FS Version - FSX
Includes a fix for the halo.bmp error
File Size - 9.95 MB
Hard Drive Space: 27 MB
Video Card: 128 MB (256 MB recommended)
DirectX 9.0 or later
Processor: 1.5 GHz (2.4 GHz recommended)
Windows: 2000/XP 128 MB RAM (Vista will work too)
98/ME 64 MB RAM (1.5 GB RAM recommended)

System Requirements: (Texture Booster Pro FSX)
FS Version - FSX
Download File Size - 5.4 MB
Hard Drive Space: 22 MB
Video Card: 256 MB (512 MB recommended)
DirectX 9.0 or later
Processor: 1.500 MHz (2.400 MHz recommended)
Windows: 2000/XP 128 MB RAM (Vista will work too)
98/ME 64 MB RAM (1.5 GB RAM recommended)