Stitz, these are comments on a variety of wheels taken from a thread on NoGrip.
Makes for some 'interesting' hands on comparitive thoughts.
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Assessment of the Logitech MOMO FFB wheel:
My experience: I've had this wheel for over two years and put over 100,000
miles on it in TDU. It has never given me any problem whatsoever. I use the
paddles to shift in both TDU and RACE ON (RO). The wheel does feel a little
loose in its housing, but it in no way degrades from the driving experience.
I set the Profiler settings very low, 25% to 33%, with Combined Pedals and
Enable Centering Spring unchecked. Then I set the FFB in the game I'm playing
to my desired preferences. TDU does not have good FFB settings, so I set that
a little below middle, and I set RO to 100% on everything. I do experience a
loss of FFB in RO every now and then, which is fixed (for some reason) by a
trip to Control Settings>FFB while ingame and then exit back to the race
track. It only seems to occur when turning hard to enter the pit exit lane,
never while I'm on the track. Turning the wheel first and then accelerating to
exit seems to work.
Pros: Well, with over 100,000 miles in TDU and a few thousand in RO/07/GTREVO
(I've been playing R07 since September), I guess it's a pretty strong wheel.
I like the 6 buttons on the wheel and use every one of them. I also use the
shift knob as my pit menu and confirm buttons.
I've heard that the paddles are weak and prone to breaking/wearing out but
mine are still solid as a rock.
Cons: Weak feel in the pedals. I have to drive barefoot just to get any feel
from them!
Wheel is kinda' small.
The rubber coating on the wheel can be a bother after a few hours (we've been
known to do 6 hour+ cruises in TDU, LOL), so I've resorted to using cheap golf
gloves with the fingertips cut off - instant driving gloves!
Bottom line: I really like this wheel and it's held up well. I'll be getting a
G27 come February (tax refund, yay!), but if I don't like it, I know I can
sell it and get another MOMO. Why would I do that? I've read in a few places
where people are having trouble getting the G27 to work with RO, although I
read an interview of a SimBin developer who said he used the G27 to help
develope RO!
Also, I'm kinda' worried about the clutch pedal. Besides wondering if it feels
like a real RACING clutch (not something from, say, like a Honda Accord), but
also the fact that I drive two-footed - right foot: gas, left foot: brake. I
know I would only use the H-gate shifter on the muscle cars, etc., but I
wonder if the clutch pedal will get in the way of my left-foot braking.
We'll see!
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Actlabs's discontinued steering wheel and pedal system featuring force
feedback steering wheel, gas brake and clutch peddles and an 8 slot "H"
pattern shifter.
My experience with it: I have owned this beast since its release date back in
1998? (dont quote me on that). I've used it several hours a week for years and
years and it has "until recently" held up strong with no problems.
I got it on a frosty Christmas morning many moons ago and almost pulled a back
muscle sliding it out from underneath the tree. The weight of this thing took
me by surprise and its build quality was impressive. The leather wrapped
steering wheel has 6 buttons that can be easily reached by your thumbs without
taking your hands off the wheel. Very convenient for driver head movement,
headlights, horn, starter, and ignition in games like GT Legends. It also has
shifter paddles, a "D" pad, a button on the lower part of the wheel (which I
have never used) and 2 buttons behind the wheel on the "dashboard" for a total
of 11 buttons + the "D" pad. The force feedback is fairly strong and precise.
It gives you a real feel for the car when your drifting around corners in your
69 mustang.
The pedal system features metal gas, brake, and clutch peddles that have
different stiffness to give it that real car feel. The brake peddle gets
progressively stiffer as you push it in. The gas and brake peddles are close
enough together to allow experienced drivers to heel/toe, a nice feature for
those of us who really know how to race.
The shifter features an 8 slot "H" pattern with 4, 5, and 6 speed metal plates
that can be screwed in to block off the remaining slots. I find it very
inconvenient to have to screw in the plate every time I want to change it so I
just leave the 6 speed plate on at all times.
Pros:
-very durable system
-button placement on steering wheel was well thought out
-peddle placement is great
-strong force feedback
-features an "H" pattern shifter
-steering wheel is covered in leather
Cons:
-cost
-plastic tightening knobs (what were they thinking?)
-to many wires
Durability: What can I say? Its served me problem free for many years. A few
problems have came up in the last year though. The gas and brake pedals are
starting to wear out. They only give me around 90% throttle and brake. The
shifter no longer recognizes first and second gear. Good thing it has 8 slots.
lastly the force feedback is becoming noticeably weaker.
But again... what can I say. With the tens of thousands of gaming hours I got
out of this thing problem free, I think its earned the right to start wearing
out.
Bottom Line: A superb racing system and well worth the money!
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Logitech Formula Force EX.
Well, where should I start. Currently I'm using the second of this type of
wheel, and for the price it's pretty good. You might think nah bollocks, there
is no good at a low price point... and yes there are naturally some drawbacks
if you don't want to sell one of your organs to by a wheel that is able to
cope with simracing.
The wheel wobbles a bit in the centre, and while the FFB effects and general
feedback is good it does it's work a bit loud. If you wan't to ask what the
biggest con on this wheel, I must say it must be the pedals. Well... they are
just barely copeing with the work they've ment to do. Although the pedals at
least have different "stiffness"... and that's in quotation marks for a
reason, since even the brake is pretty light compared to what you would call
normal in a real car, and the relative short travel does not help the case
either.
To say something positive about the pedals, I'm rather ashtonished how much
abuse they can take. My driving style is pretty heavy on the pots, since I
usually go pa-pa-pa-pa on the throttle in a corner, and still the pedals
lasted two and a half years under my feet, despite the abuse and the fact they
were on the carpet collecting dust.
So... what can I say to sum it all up, lets see. If you're getting in to
simracing and you don't wan't to take it too seriously, or you just don't want
to spend much money, or you can't afford the more expensive stuff, this wheel
isn't a bad choice. Being made by Logitech the drivers and the support are
pretty solid, also the construction and finish of the wheel is decent. With
all it's pros and cons, if you wan't to have good fun for not too much money
keep and eye out for this at that price segment.
Description:
Entry-level FFB wheel, at a low price point. With a decent feature set.
Pros:
+ Good FFB.
+ Loads of configurable buttons on the wheel, including a DPAD (or FOV).
+ Durable construction.
+ Logitech Support.
+ Comfortable feel, with nice rubber grips on the sides.
+ The price, it is CHEAP.
Cons:
- Pedals are a bit too flimsy, and lack feel a bit.
- Noisy FFB mechanics under quick movements (ie. correction counter steering,
etc.)
- Wheel is a bit small in diameter.
- Low degree of rotation.
- General precision (it's okay, but could be better imho.)
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Logitech driving force GT
Well i picked up one of these wheels today at Dick Smiths here in Australia
for $98.
I have been using a G25 for two years now...Bah i hear you say why the hell
would you want to buy a DFGT then?
This wheel at this price is an absolute bargain, the wheel itself is not all
that far away from the feel of the G25 (although a leather rim would be
nice!), and in terms of force feedback effects it is on the money and IT HAS
HEAPS OF BUTTONS!! 17 all up i think (ok i forgot where i started counting)
and a nice red dial thing which is ideal to use as a brake bias knob in pc
sims.
Ok so what are the pedals like i hear you say? Well I cant tell ya,cos i
havent tried them yet but i have heard that they are no improvement over the
old DFP/MOMO/etcetera examples which is why i still have my G25 plugged in and
am using the pedals from that..nice huh?
See the thing is with the G25 i had to build a dash (based on leos button
board
http://www.leobodnar.com/products/BU0836/ ) in order to have enough
buttons for car controls,chat commands and stuff, but with the DFGT the amount
of buttons on the wheel itself i dont need my dashboard anymore.
OK so the DFGT is a good wheel with every button you will need and good force
feedback but no H shifter (although it does have a knock shifter ala the DFP)
and average pedals and cost me $98.......
While the G25 has a good reputation, a slightly better feeling wheel (with few
buttons) an average H (or sequential) shifter and pretty darn good pedals and
costs roughly three to four times as much here in OZ,,
So what it boils down to is, if you have got into sim racing and are looking
for a decent wheel at a bargain price to start off you CANT GO WRONG with the
Logitech Driving Force GT
Oh and by the way the DFGT can be used on PS3 or PC (with the latest logi 5.04
drivers)
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Thrustmaster F430
I've recently had my interest in Sim Racing re-ignited by the decent but
flawed Race Pro on the 360. I've played a bit of GTR2 / rFactor / LFS
intermittently over the years but Race Pro prompted me to get hold of GTR
Evolution and I am completely hooked!
I've owned a couple of wheels but had gotten rid of them for different
reasons; the first was a Logitech MOMO which I liked but wasn't really using
it much so got rid of it to make room for a MS 360 Wireless wheel in
anticipation of the release of Forza 2 and also on the premise that it would
work with PC games. Big mistake as the wheel, Forza 2 and the FFB-less PC
drivers were all complete turkeys so this wheel also went on eBay.
Having initially been playing Evo with an Xbox controller and getting on OK, I
came to the conclusion that I needed a wheel. Having considered another MOMO
and the ever popular, increasingly expensive G25 I went for the F430 based
partly on the price but also on the review (advertorial) on Inside Sim Racing
Tonight. There doesn't seem to be much love for Thrustmaster based on previous
problems and a lot of people seem to be dismissing this wheel despite having
any real reason to so I though I would post a review:
Features
The F430 features an 11" ergonomic rubber wheel which feels great, metal
'flappy paddle' gear shifters and a whole plethora of easy to reach,
assignable buttons. There are 6 simple push to make switches on the front, 2
on the back near the gear paddles, a further two on the body of the unit, an 8
way POV switch and the 5 position, back lit, Manettino switch which is a very
attractive 5 way toggle with a push switch meaning that 5 different on/off
settings can be assigned. All in all this gives 23 assignable buttons!!
The F430 features 270 Deg of rotation compared to the 900 Deg offered by some
of the more upmarket competition.
The pedal unit features a metal faced brake and throttle with no clutch. The
unit itself is pretty heavy and the pedals have a decent level of resistance,
particularly the brake which uses magnetic technology.
In action
Setup was easy and I was racing in Evo within seconds using the generic
Thrustmaster FFB wheel profile.
The feel of the wheel is exceptionally smooth and the operation is near silent
(unlike the budget Fanatec wheel also featured on Sim Racing Tonight)! The FFB
is pretty firm out of the box and gives a good sense of 'realism'.
The pedals are great, even without tethering they stay put and the control of
throttle and brake you can achieve immediately is superb.
Pros
General quality of the thing, particuarly the feel of the wheel itself.
The number / quality of the buttons.
The sexy manettino switch - turning it really makes you feel like an F1
driver.
The pedals which are light years ahead of the MOMO
The lack of grinding sound which seems to affect a lot of other wheels
The flappy paddles are incredibly solid with a reassuring click as you shift
The price - £65 from Novatech.
Cons
The superficial finish on the metal isn't perfect
Not that keen on the clamp - its well made enough but doesnt match the 3 point
logitech system. The unit does have 2x 6 millimeter holes for inclusion in a
cockpit.
For some the rotation, the lack of clutch and shifter will be a deal breaker
but if like me you are relatively inexperienced or don't need these features
then IMO this is the wheel for you and I would definitely recommend it over a
MOMO.
Given than its little more than a third of the price of a G25 it represents a
bargain.
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Thrustmaster Ferrari FFB (made by Guillemot)
Description
Quite an old design but has been updated a number of times over the years and
is still sold by thrustmaster to this day, with some minor changes.
My version of this wheel (V1) has F1 paddles, dual analogue paddles behind the
wheel, sequential shifter, 4way pad, 8way hat switch + a couple of buttons.
My 1st generation (v1) wheel is so old it has a soundcard game port plug, "NOW
with USB!"
(incase you have one of those high tech, expensive, top of the line pc's that
come with a usb port (/sarcasm) )
Pedals connected by PS2 cable, so using a mouse extension was great for
routing cables over and behind the desk. all versions since do not use a PS2
cable anymore though.
2x true analogue F1 style paddles behind the wheel for finger tip analogue
throttle/brake when pedal unit is unplugged. great for those who have limited
use of their legs.
One single large FFB motor, running "immersion co." ffb. but the FFB is
actually very good in this wheel (feels better than my G25, imho)
Dual silver pedals with pre-drilled holes, head of the pedal pivots
independant to the actual motion for added comfort.
Pro
F1 paddles + sequential shifter.
2 additional analogue paddles behind the wheel (below F1 digital paddles)
become active when pedals are unplugged. great for those who have limited use
of their legs.
2 buttons, 4way pad, 8 way hat switch.
Dual pivot pedals with pre-drilled metal look instead of just black plastic.
FFB is very good in this wheel.
Rubber coated steering wheel for added comfort.
I actually prefer the FFB on the guillemot/thrustmaster wheel to that of my
G25.
if you have limited use of your legs or are just darn lazy you can unplug the
pedals PS2 plug from the unit and the true analogue paddles behind the wheel
(seperate to, and beneath the F1 digital paddles) become active so you can get
true analogue thr/brake control at your finger tips.
Con
F1 paddles work great but dont have any clicky microswitch feel and when they
activate it feels a little soft (no hard back stops) which may cause some
rough users to damage the paddles due to excessively hard paddle squeezing.
Weak points
shifter does get a little slop in it if you beat the shifter around but this
takes quite some time to wear. Does not cause any problems other than the
slop/play, and this can easily be fixed with a simple mod using about 1/4 of a
block shaped pencil eraser to take up the slack.
No hard stop or clicky feel to F1 paddles may lead to abuse of the paddles.
Durability
very good. but dont abuse the sequential shifter.
Mine (and also a friends) is still working great after about 10 years of use
due to some simple common sense + care.
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Fanatec Porsche GT3 Clubsport
Description
Top-of-the-line steering wheel, comparable to the Porsche 911 Turbo Wheel.
Includes aluminium clubsport pedals.
Pro
Durable wheel, excellent force feedback, three pedals including clutch, H-
shifter and sequential shifter, plenty of buttons on the wheel.
The clubsport pedals offer very durable full-metal construction. superb
flexibility to adjust them to your liking, pressure-sensitive brake pedal and
a vibration feedback motor in the brake pedal that can be used through a
plugin to indicate when, for example, the wheels lock in the game.
Con
Separate shifter units for H-shifter and sequential shifter so some (dis)
assembly work is required when switching between the two.
Standard mounting of the shifters is not very rigid, though this can be solved
by buying the additional table clamp.
Weak points
Not known yet.
Durability
The first batch of wheels had some issues in the "quality control" area that
could result in performance problems of the wheel but that are relatively
easily fixed.
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