Compare FreeMeshX and Orbx prices, roles and P3D v4 support, with installation, scenery-order and elevation-conflict advice.
For Prepar3D v4, use FreeMeshX Global as the no-cost worldwide mesh where coverage is available, adding FreeMeshX USA LOD12 for finer United States terrain. Orbx Global Base and Global Vector are separate paid scenery products for textures and vector features; neither includes terrain mesh, so they complement rather than replace FreeMeshX.
Do Orbx Global Base and Vector include terrain mesh?
Neither Orbx product supplies the detailed worldwide elevation mesh that shapes mountains, valleys and ridges. Each part of the scenery system has a different job:
| Product or layer | What it changes | What it does not provide |
|---|---|---|
| Orbx Global Base Pack | Replacement ground textures and associated global visual assets | Detailed terrain elevation mesh |
| Orbx Global Vector | Roads, railways, rivers, lakes, coastlines and airport elevation corrections | Detailed worldwide terrain mesh or replacement ground textures |
| FreeMeshX | Elevation data defining the shape and height of the ground | Textures, roads, coastlines, landclass or airports |
Mesh reshapes the surface beneath the Orbx textures and vector features. Installing it will not make the textures sharper or correct the horizontal position of a road or shoreline.
FreeMeshX and Orbx Prepar3D v4 prices
On 18 October 2026, FreeMeshX remained freeware, while the Prepar3D v4-compatible Orbx Global Base Pack and Global Vector were separate paid legacy products.
| Choice | Extra purchase cost | What you receive |
|---|---|---|
| Prepar3D v4 default mesh | £0 / US$0 / A$0 beyond the simulator | The elevation data supplied with Prepar3D |
| FreeMeshX Global only | Freeware | Improved elevation across its available global coverage |
| FreeMeshX Global plus USA LOD12 | Freeware | Global coverage plus finer elevation data over the United States |
| Orbx Global Base Pack | Paid separately; listed for new purchase on the check date | Replacement textures, but no terrain mesh |
| Orbx Global Vector | Paid separately; listed for new purchase on the check date | Vector features and elevation-correction tools, but no terrain mesh |
The relevant Orbx products are the legacy FSX/Prepar3D listings whose compatibility information explicitly includes Prepar3D v4. Do not buy a similarly named edition for another simulator and assume it will work in v4.
Orbx displays paid prices according to currency, tax location and account region, so a single converted figure can be misleading. Check the live amount and v4 compatibility on the official product listing presented through Orbx Central before paying. Sale prices and the availability of legacy products can change.
These costs are cumulative. Buying Base does not include Vector, buying Vector does not include Base, and owning either or both does not include terrain mesh. If elevation detail is all you want, FreeMeshX does not require an Orbx purchase.
Which FreeMeshX package should you install?
FreeMeshX Global is the sensible freeware starting point for broad coverage, while USA LOD12 is useful when most of your flying is in the United States.
- Worldwide flying: install FreeMeshX Global Terrain Mesh 2.0 and keep Prepar3D's default terrain beneath it for uncovered areas.
- United States flying: use Global for general coverage and add USA LOD12 for its finer regional data. Our comparison of USA terrain-mesh choices and their trade-offs helps when storage and regional detail matter.
- Existing regional mesh: retain it when it has better source resolution and is known to work in Prepar3D v4. Installing a coarser global package over it adds no terrain detail.
- Small installation or limited storage: stay with the default Prepar3D mesh. It costs nothing extra and avoids another large scenery package, although mountainous areas will generally be less defined.
Search for the exact package names in our freeware downloads library. Preserve the supplied directory structure and documentation; a collection of loose BGL files is much harder to disable or diagnose later.
Can FreeMeshX Global and USA LOD12 run together?
Yes. Prepar3D normally uses the finest available elevation data at a location, allowing USA LOD12 to supply regional detail while Global covers other areas.
LOD12 represents nominal sampling of roughly 10 metres, although the accuracy still depends on the source data. Set Prepar3D's mesh-resolution control to 10 metres or finer to expose that detail. Selecting 1 metre cannot create information that is absent from the files.
Keep the USA package as a separate scenery area and place it above the broad global mesh for predictable troubleshooting. Avoid stacking several mesh products of equal resolution over the same region; duplicate coverage often creates confusion without improving the ground shape.
How should Orbx and FreeMeshX be installed in Prepar3D v4?
Install the verified Orbx v4 editions through Orbx Central, but use the manual scenery-registration method supplied with FreeMeshX.
Installing Orbx Base and Vector
- Select Prepar3D v4 in Orbx Central. Confirm that the product compatibility panel explicitly names v4 before installing.
- Choose the offered installation location. An Orbx library outside the simulator can simplify maintenance, but the location must remain available whenever Prepar3D starts.
- Allow Orbx Central to manage its entries. Do not combine a modern Central installation with files copied from an old wrapper or backup.
- Run the supplied Vector configuration tools when needed. These control features such as airport elevation corrections; they do not install terrain mesh.
- Synchronise the simulator configuration. If scenery entries disappear after a configuration change, use Orbx Central's scenery synchronisation or verification function rather than adding individual Orbx folders manually.
Installing FreeMeshX manually
- Extract the entire archive to a dedicated location outside Prepar3D's protected core folders.
- Check the folder structure. The scenery area should lead to the supplied
sceneryfolder containing the BGL files. Do not register the archive's outer wrapper folder by mistake. - Register each area once. Use Prepar3D's Scenery Library for a traditional FreeMeshX installation, or the add-on package method only when the package supplies or documents it. Do not activate the same files through both systems.
- Keep Global and USA separate. Independent entries let you disable the regional package without losing worldwide coverage.
- Restart Prepar3D and allow it to rebuild the scenery index after activation.
Our Prepar3D terrain-mesh installation guide covers manual registration and the display settings that determine whether the new data appears.
Where should mesh sit in the scenery order?
Broad terrain mesh belongs at low priority, beneath airports and detailed regional scenery but above the simulator's default terrain.
- Higher priority: add-on airports, local city scenery and detailed regional packages
- Middle: photoreal, landclass and vector layers in the positions required by their installers
- Lower priority: FreeMeshX USA LOD12, followed by FreeMeshX Global
- Lowest: default Prepar3D terrain
In Prepar3D's Scenery Library, higher-priority entries appear nearer the top. Let Orbx Central manage the internal order of Orbx entries and move the broad FreeMeshX areas instead. For a fuller layer-by-layer example, see our recommended add-on scenery order.
Does Prepar3D v4 still support these products?
Prepar3D v4 is an older simulator branch, so compatibility must be checked product by product rather than inferred from the name or file format.
Conventional terrain-mesh BGL files avoid the 32-bit DLL and gauge problems associated with some old aircraft, but that does not guarantee correct installation or support. Use a FreeMeshX package documented for FSX or Prepar3D, and verify that every commercial listing explicitly includes Prepar3D v4 or v4.5.
A licence or installer for Prepar3D v5, v6 or Microsoft Flight Simulator is not automatically a v4 product. Legacy freeware may also have only community support, so retain the original archive and instructions after installation.
How do you fix mesh and Orbx elevation conflicts?
Most apparent conflicts come from airport flattens, duplicate scenery or Vector elevation corrections rather than Orbx Global Base.
- Sunken or raised airport: open the Vector configuration or airport-elevation controls and disable the correction for that airport when an add-on airport supplies its own flatten. Restart Prepar3D afterwards.
- Plateau around an airport: check for two airport packages, an obsolete elevation-correction file or scenery built for a different simulator version before blaming the regional mesh.
- Terrain spikes or vertical walls: disable the newest regional mesh entry first. If the fault disappears, check for damaged extraction, duplicate BGLs or overlapping products.
- No visible improvement: confirm that the scenery area is active, that its BGL files sit in the expected
sceneryfolder and that the mesh-resolution setting is not coarser than the installed data. Flat terrain may show little obvious change. - Roads or coastlines displaced: mesh controls vertical shape, not horizontal alignment. Vector data and elevation data may come from different surveys, so changing scenery priority may not correct the mismatch.
- Orbx textures look unchanged: this is normal. Mesh changes the shape under the texture; it does not increase texture resolution.