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690B CommanderPublisher: CarenadoReview Author: Sean McLeodSuggested Price: $37.95/images/fsc/wbicons/store-buy-now-button.png /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_3.jpgWelcome to another X-Plane productreview, by me. I've written a few, now, and this will be my thirdCarenado aircraft review(CT210M,F33A).I've had the opportunity to experience other Carenado aircraft inX-Plane, and have become accustomed to the consistent quality of aCarenado aircraft package. I asked Dominic specifically if I could review the 690B Commanderfor a variety of reasons. One, the Twin Commander aircraft line has afamous association with the legendary Robert A. "Bob" Hoover (If youdon't know about Bob Hoover, just Google him and his Shrike Commander'nuff said). A second reason is that it's a fast turboprop in thesame cabin class as the Mitsubishi MU-2 (which I've had theopportunity to fly in my career). The biggest reason I wanted theopportunity to review this aircraft for X-Plane is that the AeroCommander line of aircraft design was created by an engineering teamled by Ted R. Smith. /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_18.jpg /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_20.jpgYou may not be familiar with Mr. Smith, but you are familiar withhis work. Ted Smith's last aircraft design to see production was theTed Smith Aerostar. His history in aviation includes designing theDouglas A-20 Havoc and A-26 Invader light bombers during WW2, andstarting the Aero Commander company after the war which produced thefirst all metal small twin engine business aircraft. The AeroCommander company was acquired by Rockwell in the mid 1950s, andcontinued to evolve the Aero Commander design with Smith. Thisaircraft model, the 690B, was first flown in 1976. Smith died the sameyear due to a heart attack and stroke; he was 70 years old. So, you're reading this to learn about the Carenado 690B Commander?Here's all you need to know: get it. Haha! Seriously though, if youlove flying turboprops and you love going fast then this aircraft isfor you. Yes, X-Plane 11 comes with a King Air 200, that's alright ifyou're a fan of the big twin Beech. You're missing out, though, on allthe PBR and cockpit manipulator goodness that is to be discovered inthe Carenado 690B Commander. /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_24.jpg /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_26.jpgHere is the boiler-plate summary of information and features fromthe Carenado web site: Special FeaturesVersion 1.0Only for X-Plane 11State-of-the-art configurable FPS-friendly logic systemFully VR compatibleFull PBR (Superb material shines and reflections)FeaturesSpecially designed engine dynamics for XP11.Flight physics optimized for XP11 standards.Ground handling adapted for XP11 ground physics.Physically Based Rendering materials and textures throughout.PBR materials authored with industry-standard software used by the film and gaming industries.X-Plane GNS530 (FPS friendly)Support for RealityXP's GTN750* (integrated into 3D cockpit, when available).Goodway Compatible.Realistic behavior compared to the real airplane. Realistic weight and balance. Tested by several pilots for maximum accuracy.*RealityXP GTN 750 is sold separately /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_68.jpg /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_72.jpgIncluded In The Package5 HD liveries.1 HD blank texture.690B Normal and Emergency Procedures PDF.690B Performance tables PDF.690B Quick reference table PDF.690B System Reference Guide PDF.Recommended Settings XPLANE 11 PDF.Recommended System RequirementsWindows XP - Vista - 7 - 10 or MAC OS 10.10 (or higher) or LinuxX-Plane 11CPU: Intel Core i5 6600K at 3.5 GHz or faster.Memory: 16-24 GB RAM or more.Video Card: a DirectX 12-capable video card from NVIDIA, AMD or Intel with at least 4 GB VRAM (GeForce GTX 1070 or better or similar from AMD)525 MB available hard disk spaceInternet connection is required for installing this product. /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_28.jpg /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_78.jpgHere we go! All new Carenado aircraft leverage the physics-basedrendering (PBR) capabilities of X-Plane 11, which means you will enjoythe shine of chrome propellor spinners and sheen of painted metalsurfaces revealing a patina of an aircraft that was built and hasflown for around forty years. The engine modelling captures the uniqueness of the GarrettAirResearch TPE331 turboprop engines, with the propellor start-lockfeature front and center. You need to follow the procedure found inthe Normal checklist.pdf for getting the props off the start-locks oryou won't be going anywhere fast. I have yet to experience the RealityXP product but on a cursorylook, I think they would certainly enhance the whole experience ofoperating this aircraft model. I set up a flight around southernVancouver Island, starting from CYYJ Victoria International Airport. Iprogrammed the flight plan into the stock Garmin 530, which quicklygrew tedious as I was inputting five different waypoints;CYYJ-CYAZ-CYBL-CYCD-CYYJ. I flew the routing initially at 6500' toTofino, then 7500' to get over the highest mountain tops along theroute of flight and finally 3500' along the coast from CYBL CampbellRiver back home to CYYJ Victoria Int'l. I will need to explore theGoodway flight planning support and add an addendum to the review inthe comments section. At the altitudes I was flying, it was easy tocruise at nearly at Vne, considering this aircraft's certified serviceceiling is FL310; I set the condition levers at 96%, and the powerlevers to ~550 HP. Once underway, and after sorting out how to engagethe autopilot, it was time to explore the cabin. /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_44.jpg /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_49.jpgI took particular note of the features of the aircraft model beyondthe usual doors, windows and flight controls. Of course that's allgravy; the cockpit vent windows open, all the switches actuate with asatisfying click, the levers all slide nicely, the arm rests rotateout of the way and of course you can make the control yokes vanish tohave a better view of the instrument panel. What caught my attentionon this aircraft model were the pilots map reading lights; in earlierX-Plane models they could be turned on, but they were at a fixedazimuth and couldn't be moved about to direct the light elsewhere. Ihaven't noticed this in other aircraft sim models but in thisparticular rendering, the map lights can moved around! Move the mousecursor over the light in the ceiling and a four-way cross appears;click and then drag the light around to your desired position!Voila! Moving to the passenger cabin via the ©amera menu on the leftside of the screen, I found it relatively luxurious viewing theaircraft interior. Each passenger seat is equipped with a readinglight, just like the pilots' map lights, and operates in the samemanner. The seating configuration of the cabin is 'club', with fullyanimated fold-out desks for each side of the cabin. /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_32.jpg /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_29.jpgBack in the cockpit, pilots Bob, Tom and "George" were doing a finejob navigating the route. George is of course an antiquated referenceto the auto-pilot, used by RAF pilots in WW2 referring to theiraircraft guided by early gyro autopilot equipment. As with manyX-Plane aircraft models, the creators include some virtual people toliven up their creations. Some virtual human models are even animated,with the animations tied to the movement of the flight controls. Inthe case of the 690B sim model, there are two middle to older agedgentlemen in the pilot seats when the aircraft is viewed from theoutside. If you spend enough time viewing the aircraft exterior, fromtime to time you will see the pilot figures make some life-likemovements! I performed the flight in day VFR conditions, with some lower tomid altitude scattered clouds, and I saw frame rates in the low 20sfor the majority of the trip. I ran the simulator on my 2015 MacBookPro, so it doesn't necessarily meet the recommended tech specs but itseems to manage alright with graphics settings set to thoserecommended by Carenado with the only exception being I keep the'reflections' set to minimal. Even with the reflections set so low, the3D model looks beautiful, particularly during sunrise or sundown. Atnight, the aircraft lighting also looks amazing both inside andoutside. /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_47.jpg /images/reviews/carecomm/t/car_690b_turbocommander_50.jpgIn conclusion, my experience with the Carenado 690B Commander modelhas been overall a happy one. The only gripe I have hasn't anything todo with the aircraft model itself; I now need to think about saving upfor a newer computer so I can ramp up the graphics settings on thesimulator program. That said, I suppose one could say I do have acomplaint about the aircraft model - that it's computer resourcehungry. With that in mind, buyer beware! You should really examine therecommended system requirements to get the best experience from flyingthis model in X-Plane. You can make compromises by reducing thereflections settings like I have, or reducing the number of objectsdrawn in the sim environment, or reducing the other graphicssettings...but then what's the point if you can't make it lookpretty? All that said, if you can manage it I would say the Carenado 690BCommander is a splendid addition to any X-Plane hangar. /images/reviews/carecomm/carenado-690b.jpgHappy X-Planning! Sean McLeod Purchase Carenado - 690B Turbo Commander Shop other Carenado products