LukasMcNeal Posted February 13, 2013 Report Share Posted February 13, 2013 Looking at getting a new joystick with force feedback because my current sidewinder 2's z axis is playing up which means it keeps randomly flicking the rudder out when I'm playing flight sim which is rather annoying. Anyone use a good one that they can recommend? <£85 aswell! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny00135 Posted February 13, 2013 Report Share Posted February 13, 2013 Am I dirtier minded today? All the topics made seem sexual :/ (Sorry for giving you an answer not worth giving..) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukasMcNeal Posted February 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 13, 2013 Sorry I'll call it a flight control device! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamKidney Posted February 13, 2013 Report Share Posted February 13, 2013 Non force feedback, but my Logitek Extreme 3D pro has been faultless. Rudder control, as well as your elevator and ailerons (obviously). Top hat toggle allows you to move your "view" around the cockpit without need of the mouse/keyboard. Your Sidewinder may feature this, but Im not hugely familiar with them. Worth a shot if you can't find any decent force feedback options, but will feel weird with no resistance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukasMcNeal Posted February 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 13, 2013 Yeah I got a hat switch! I can't imagine playing without FF now I've used it, flying in real life has the resistance so it's kinda necessary IMO, apart from some fly by wire systems that is Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blake Posted February 14, 2013 Report Share Posted February 14, 2013 Non force feedback, but my Logitek Extreme 3D pro has been faultless. Rudder control, as well as your elevator and ailerons (obviously). Top hat toggle allows you to move your "view" around the cockpit without need of the mouse/keyboard. Your Sidewinder may feature this, but Im not hugely familiar with them. Worth a shot if you can't find any decent force feedback options, but will feel weird with no resistance HAHAHAHA, I had no idea you have a joystick! x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forteh Posted February 14, 2013 Report Share Posted February 14, 2013 I've got a warthog hotas and RCS rudders and you can keep your FF A little out of your 85 quid budget though, I got hotas second hand for double that! If you can live without FF then the saitek x52 or x52pro are both highly recommended for programmability and ergonomics, not going to top a 300 quid metal stick that weight 9kg though If youre looking for a hotas and insisting on FF then the logitech G940 is about your only choice I think, much expense though and for the cost I would rather go for the warthog and save for some additional rudder pedals later on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukasMcNeal Posted February 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2013 I've got a warthog hotas and RCS rudders and you can keep your FF A little out of your 85 quid budget though, I got hotas second hand for double that! If you can live without FF then the saitek x52 or x52pro are both highly recommended for programmability and ergonomics, not going to top a 300 quid metal stick that weight 9kg though If youre looking for a hotas and insisting on FF then the logitech G940 is about your only choice I think, much expense though and for the cost I would rather go for the warthog and save for some additional rudder pedals later on. Whats the HOTAS like? Because in real a/c the stick hardly moves and its the force on the stick, is it the same with that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forteh Posted February 14, 2013 Report Share Posted February 14, 2013 The stick in the A10 is full range movement unlike the force sensing fly by wire in the F16 which hardly moves. The warthog hotas is pretty stiff, almost on par with my old MS sidewinder FF stick on maximum, however the movement is super slick, zero slop and no oddities in gimbal* movement as it crosses the XY axis. The old thrustmaster cougar (F16 replica stick) was also full range movement until some clever sod engineered a force sensing mod that replaced the sloppy OE gimbals and turned it into a true fly by wire stick - added another 500 quid onto a 400 quid joystick though! * odd that as it doesnt have gimbals! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukasMcNeal Posted February 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2013 * odd that as it doesnt have gimbals! I dont understand sticks that arent ff, I need to feel a few I think. I cant imagine them feeling nice to use as they just like spring back dont they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forteh Posted February 14, 2013 Report Share Posted February 14, 2013 It doesn't just spring back, it's so heavy that it returns to centre with so much authority and precision, that sounds weird but it's hard to describe; almost so heavy that you have to force it back to centre against the damping. I know that seems a bit contradictory but no other joystick feels quite like it, imagine gripping an inch diameter steel bar in your hand and waving it about with an out stretched arm, feels a bit like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukasMcNeal Posted February 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2013 It doesn't just spring back, it's so heavy that it returns to centre with so much authority and precision, that sounds weird but it's hard to describe; almost so heavy that you have to force it back to centre against the damping. I know that seems a bit contradictory but no other joystick feels quite like it, imagine gripping an inch diameter steel bar in your hand and waving it about with an out stretched arm, feels a bit like that Is that with cheaper sticks too? I cant afford a £300 odd one but say for £85ish is it gonna feel cheap or actually decent? Im such a noob at this compared to my flying skills Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forteh Posted February 15, 2013 Report Share Posted February 15, 2013 It feels completely different to cheap sticks, the fact its all metal adds to the weight and feel of it. Cheaper sticks don't tend to be so heavily sprung or damped so will rebound over centre if you let go of them from the end of travel. My old MS sidewinder was terrible and had at least 2-3° of slop in the centre, was virtually impossible to hold a steady course or make slight off central stick adjustments, the warthog doesn't even have a noticeable switch from the X to Y axis and the centre is rock solid and 100% repeated. I reckon you wouldn't go far wrong with the saitek x52 pro, they get very good reviews and whilst not authentic and perhaps a little bit chavvy looking, they do work well and I believe can be programmed pretty easily. If you've not used a full programmed Hotas setup before then you might find it to be something of a revelation. Have you got head tracking? If not, that's another gadget that is essential once you've tried it. I use freetrack with a PS2 eyetoy camera and a USB powered IR led clip attached to my headphones, works a treat and gives 6DoF movement around the cockpit (look up, down, left, right, slide up, down, left, right and zoom with forward head movement), amazing for looking at dials/controls without using snap views. Mine cost me less than a tenner for the parts, a bit tricky to set up but cheaper than the 120 quid trackIR offering Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukasMcNeal Posted February 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2013 It feels completely different to cheap sticks, the fact its all metal adds to the weight and feel of it. Cheaper sticks don't tend to be so heavily sprung or damped so will rebound over centre if you let go of them from the end of travel. My old MS sidewinder was terrible and had at least 2-3° of slop in the centre, was virtually impossible to hold a steady course or make slight off central stick adjustments, the warthog doesn't even have a noticeable switch from the X to Y axis and the centre is rock solid and 100% repeated. I reckon you wouldn't go far wrong with the saitek x52 pro, they get very good reviews and whilst not authentic and perhaps a little bit chavvy looking, they do work well and I believe can be programmed pretty easily. If you've not used a full programmed Hotas setup before then you might find it to be something of a revelation. Have you got head tracking? If not, that's another gadget that is essential once you've tried it. I use freetrack with a PS2 eyetoy camera and a USB powered IR led clip attached to my headphones, works a treat and gives 6DoF movement around the cockpit (look up, down, left, right, slide up, down, left, right and zoom with forward head movement), amazing for looking at dials/controls without using snap views. Mine cost me less than a tenner for the parts, a bit tricky to set up but cheaper than the 120 quid trackIR offering Okay I might go take a look at a few in a shop and get a free for them, think thats best! Might try and fix my sidewinder, its not too bad but the rudder twitches badly intermittently any idea what it could be?, its rather annoying when your on a t/o roll and all of a sudden it veers one way or youre on approach stabilised and it throws you out especially in crosswinds! Ive never really used many of the buttons on my stick, I have the trigger as a brake and the hat to look around, one button to switch views, and the two other main buttons for positive and negative trim as they need to be quick to hand. I've seen the head tracking but i'm not sure whether Id like it! Im happy just a stick and throttle at the moment, I fancy some rudder pedals too actually. I nearly got a yoke a while ago but decided against it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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