Current consensus - Active Sky vs Default Weather

[ark4diusz 328]

Had longer brake for Flight Sim. I have noticed that Active Sky pushed few updates since the release. What is general consensus between Active Sky vs Default weather? Which one to choose?

[Bobsk8 13,244]

I love active Sky, use it on every flight. T storms coming into Atlanta yesterday, same as happening outside my home.

[F737MAX 6,044]

10 minutes ago, ark4diusz said:

Which one to choose?

Do you like Coca-Cola or Pepsi? Apple or Android smartphones? Ferrari or McLaren?

You'll receive many subjective opinions (mine included) and many of these won't match what your own preferences are.

As I see it:

Active Sky benefits: More cloud layers, more diverse cloud layer types, more likely to experience thunderstorms, air is more dynamic, ability to offset the MSFS 'feature' of halving windspeed at ground level.

Default weather benefits: Free, ability to see and approach/fly through/past distant fronts, no transitions (even gradual ones) whatsoever, 'genuine' global weather rather than continually updating adapted presets.

 

Edited July 10 by F737MAX

[MarcG 3,312]

ActiveSky hands down for me (low & slow VFR stylee!) default live weather pales in comparison.

[sloppysmusic 533]

Since ASFS was released I've used non stop, part of my pre-flight routine, load flight plan/check takeoff/landing winds (could never get even the wind forecast for the smaller airports using default).

The biggest compliment I could give it over default is that I don't even notice the weather anymore. It's just THERE. No longer do I look at clouds and think "was the bomb finally dropped?". When it IS dramatic it feels realistic enough to make me feel nervous flying in it. I have a take-off on YT with me umm cussing with shock whenever lightning struck near the plane. 

Also if the weather IRL is ...'boring' that's what you get. No fake looking gamy cloud systems. Last night KSEZ to KTEX not a cloud in sky until descent then the wisps started to appear subtly. Plus mild turbulence. Just FELT real, not shocking, like IRL.

 

[Sonosusto 747]

Yeah, I use AS all the time now. The transitions I barely notice at all.

[filou 2,819]

I can't fly without Active Sky, this gives me the expected live weather diversity. MSFS live weather is always the same in the respective contexts, no surprises, no risk of not reaching your destination. Child's play.

[BWBriscoe 150]

How much of a performance killer is AS?

[blueshark747 1,966]

I don't see any real performance loss at all and I'm in VR where the performance tax straw can break the camel's back.

[Bobsk8 13,244]

38 minutes ago, BWBriscoe said:

How much of a performance killer is AS?

None

 

[Sethos 4,845]

Transitions immediately kills the immersion with Active Sky and the lack of proper distant weathers, always has in every single flight sim they released for. 

[Sticky 297]

So I really like what Active Sky adds to the atmospere.  The default weather seems to just always be the same shaped puffy clouds.  While Active Sky adds humidity effects (I think) and many different cloud shapes and sizes.

The only catch...is yes...it basically shows one weather sitiuation at a time.  Yes that is a big hit.  Despite that, I use Active Sky nearly all the time because its just nice to see a different sky.

[Bobsk8 13,244]

Just now, Sticky said:

So I really like what Active Sky adds to the atmospere.  The default weather seems to just always be the same shaped puffy clouds.  While Active Sky adds humidity effects (I think) and many different cloud shapes and sizes.

The only catch...is yes...it basically shows one weather sitiuation at a time.  Yes that is a big hit.  Despite that, I use Active Sky nearly all the time because its just nice to see a different sky.

Yeah, I got tired of no T-storms and lightning and only CU clouds. Boring. 

[TomCYYZ 222]

3 hours ago, ark4diusz said:

Had longer brake for Flight Sim. I have noticed that Active Sky pushed few updates since the release. What is general consensus between Active Sky vs Default weather? Which one to choose?

Looks like it’s AS 😉

[eslader 1,870]

I generally like AS. I'm hopeful they turn up the dial a little bit: I find the effects to be somewhat... Muted. Flying around Houston as the hurricane was coming ashore, the clouds looked like a regular low-grade thunderstorm. Certainly didn't look hurricane-ish, but it looked better than the plastic clouds the default engine was spitting out. Some of that could have been that I was flying in from the north in a jet, and it didn't have time to load in the local weather before I landed.

 

 

It'd be great if they'd give AS access so they could do the dynamic weather the default renderer can do, but I doubt that will ever happen.