Not used one personally, but Saitek did deliver one personally to Chris Roberts of Star Citizen, and they seemed fairly taken with it.
No idea if there's any marketing deal going on in the background there.
There's a really good review of this on Youtube..
Definitly going to order one of these very soon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EmNM-cRoTE
I'm guessing that's in the alpha forum since I cant access it![]()
Well, my one arrived.
I have had a look at it, and a quick feel. These are simply initial observations. Bear in mind I can't really use the thing 'in anger' at it doesn't work with ED as a unit at the moment.
- Joystick feels very plasticky. More so than the X52 pro
- There is no adjustable handrest
- There are no suckers underneath either unit. The holes may be 'M4' though, and there are a number of cheap 'suckers' on Amazon that have 'M4' screws so they might work.
- Both units are very light (not sure how they compare with X52 pro).
- Throttle feels good, but the MAX friction settings is comically hard to move. The least friction setting is still too hard to move for my taste. (Suckers would have been handy here...)
- The metal switches on the throttle base are toggles, which is fine, as it saves resetting them when moving between modes.
- There are no 'indents' on the throttle, unlike the X52 pro which had the 'sweet spot' mapped to the indents in full range.
- On my unit when the throttle is 'split' it works fine if each part is pushed gently forward and back. However, a small level of lateral pressure causes the two parts to meet and rub together. Not sure if this is only on this unit or in general. I probably wouldn't use split in ED so might not be an issue.
- On the joystick, when I used the supplied spring (blue or green) the stick made bizarre 'farty' noises. There was unequal force needed to move the stick in diagonals. However, this was sorted by moving to a lesser spring. Perhaps some sort of lubrication would be needed.
- The buttons on the joystick feel quite plasticky compared to the X52 pro. (Although they in turn feel plasticky compared to the Warthog)
- There is no 'two stage' primary fire.
The fact that the throttles rub against each other when a little lateral force is applied is really annoying (If you don't split the throttle this wouldn't be an issue, plus perhaps split throttle are used in less 'combaty' sims). This aside the throttle is quite nice.
The spring system in the stick is a GREAT addition. The largest spring came fitted, and it made weird 'farty' noises at first, but this seemed to go away when I took it out and put it back. To me the smallest springs seem the best (red or light green). However, on ALL springs there were centering issues. The stick would ever so slightly pitch up and rotate right. I had to set deadzones for all axis to stop the ship moving (ever so slightly) if I let go of the stick. I should point out that perhaps calibration would sort this issue out.... The stick feels different to the X52 pro. I currently prefer the X52, but that could change with use. I can't help feeling that a more expensive, non plasticky version would be great. (IE A PRO version)
To cut a long story short, this stick has the possibility to be a decent companion to ED. The throttle is pretty cool (stiffness and chaffing apart). I'm not as enamoured with the joystick (but then again, I just came from a Warthog). The spring system is cool, but the whole movement mechanism just feels a little cheap to me, and I prefer the stick on the X52 pro as mentioned above.
It'd be interesting to hear if others have the 'chaffing' and 'centreing' issues. If these were sorted (and maybe a more expensive pro version appeared) I think this would be a great HOTAS. Still, I'll have another play and see if my feelings change. The observations were made after only 30 mins. The main problem is ED won't allow me to play with the stick and throttle together. I did try mapping the throttle axis to mouse, and it did work, but only very slowly...
EDIT:
MadCatz have an FAQ regarding drifting of the joystick:
http://support.madcatz.com/Knowledgebase/List/Index/176/x-55-rhino
The also seem to address the 'Farting' issue somewhat.
I agree with many of the points BlueThunder mentioned above. Here’s a quick list I’ve put together so far.
That’s all the negatives out of the way for now. Here are some positives
- Seems very light/plasticky as Blue mentioned. I was expecting the base to be heavier and better constructed.
- I’m not really sure what they were expecting to accomplish by having holes through the base units rather than suckers. Do people really want to permanently bolt a joystick & throttle to their desk?
- Toggle switches 3 and 4 are almost completely out of reach due to the throttle being in the way without taking your hand off the unit completely & reaching around the throttle. The only time I can reach them is with the tip of my thumb when at full forward throttle (and then only to push, not to pull back on them).
- From using the stick for about 10 minutes, I get the impression the movement mechanism may not last long, especially in “heated” use. It’s quite hard to explain in text, but the spring forces the stick back into a ball & socket type setting. The edges of this are just plastic against plastic, so do look like they could wear easily.
- The pinky trigger at the back of the stick also feels very fragile. I can see it breaking very easily if pulled too hard during a heated dogfight.
- The topmost thumb hat and button are out of reach for me when my hand is resting on the hand rest. I have to make an uncomfortable manoeuvre to get to them. I don’t have particularly small hands either.
- The H.U.D. software does not see the joystick on my system at all, so I couldn’t adjust it if I wanted to… It sees the throttle ok, but neither the programming or settings windows work for the stick. I’ve tried uninstalling the drivers, rebooting etc with no results so far. The Win8 joystick test works fine, as does ED (for the stick only of course atm). Will log a support ticket when I get some more time.
I haven’t tried changing the springs yet. They are very easy to change & the unit ships in the box with the stick detached from the base. I’ll have a fiddle with the different springs once I get the stick itself working a little better.
- I like the throttle movement & tension adjustments. I have it on the lightest setting right now, but can see the value in having it adjustable. I imaging it will loosen up a bit with use.
- The toggle switches are very solid & seem like they will be good to use rather than hard switches.
- Lots of hats & switches all over. Though most of them are on the throttle & I can see myself having to get used to multiple movements with my left hand, which I’m really not good with.
- Cables are very long. Though for me this is a slight downside as I plug them into the back of my keyboard, rather than under my desk.
Mine seems perfectly centered out of the box (so far), with no tweaking of deadzones. The ship doesn’t move at all when I let go of the stick.
It certainly has a lot of potential to be a great stick to play the game with. For me it will take a lot of getting used to, coming from an Xbox360 gamepad, which I am currently finding to be very comfortable and easy to use.
try not to fall about laughing when you look at the images!
I posted my feelings on the X55 above. Either I have a dud, or the mechanism is too sticky, offering too much resistance against small, tiny moves. When I apply pressure it can stick a little then jolt in the direction I want to move. Not nice.
Anyway, I got wondering about mods. I decided to try two : One involving no springs, but simply elastic bands, and another which involves using rubber/foam below the spring to allow a bit of give.
I tried the first, and whilst it looks hilarious it feels amazing! There is very little resistence to tiny moves, but the more you move the greater the resistance, which is totally different to the way my X55 feels out of the box. On the plus side, there is zero sticking and movement is smooooooth in all directions.
I literally tied 4 elastic bounds round the hole in the corner, and looped it over the stick. I then added more underneath and over to my taste. I found forward and back were great, but side to side didn't offer enough resistance. Solution? Whack some more bands on from the sidesIt may have been beginners luck, but the stick auto centres perfectly.
This is obviously a temporary solution, but I think something similar involving some sort of hooks in the holes which are connected to extension springs that connect to the grey part under the stick would work a treat!
Those with X55s and a lot of rubber bands - give it a go, you may like it. Mine is now the smoothest stick I have EVER used!![]()
http://bayimg.com/GaKJMAAff
http://bayimg.com/DAKJKAAFf
Now I have the stick working in-game, I think this is my main gripe with it. When the stick is "seated" in the central position, it takes quite a bit of effort to get it to make the initial movement. Once it does move, it just "jumps" out rather than a smooth movement.
Not sure if it's likely to loosen up with use, or if it will just stay that way. To be quite honest, if it remains like this I think I might have to return it. Whilst your elastic band method may make it feel better to use, it's not an acceptable workaround having spent so much on it... (IMO)
Yeah, I agree. I'm kind of glad that someone feels the same way too. I thought that perhaps I was just being picky regarding the 'stuttering' movement when a small force is applied to get it going.
I tried a small amount of silicone lubricant spray around the rim, applied with a small cloth. It worked for a bit. When I first noticed the issue I checked the FAQ at Saitek/MadCatz and it seemed to suggest the issue was caused by gimbal lube getting on the underside of the black plastic part the spring sits on. I cleaned this part, to no effect.
As mentioned above, I made a spring system (rather than rubber band) which worked great for a bit, until the wire holding the springs in place came a bit loose.
If I could find a reasonable looking, parctical solution for the stick I'd keep the setup. There was a CH fighterstick on eBay for about £20, but the lack of twist put me off.
Any engineering types who can apply there brains to this issue? A sort of foam/spring mattress above the gimbal area and below the plastic cover would be ideal, but I have no idea how to go about it.
Edit: I've gone back to an x52 pro. Just opened up the box, unpacked it, and was surprised to see how identical the mechanisms are.... With the exception that the black plastic spring platform and stick is actually metal on the X52 pro, and it has two springs. I'm certain these changes are what made the difference. Looks like I'm waiting for the X55 pro!
I've seen some interesting information in a different forum:
http://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/3289-new-saitek-x-55-rhino-hotas/?p=94320
These two posts suggest that the sticking problem is solved by using Teflon or Graphite dry powder. Would anyone be willing to give this a try and report back? I would do, but my one has gone...
This would be the best stick available for ED IMO if the joystick issue was sorted out.( I tried to get hold of the X65f to test it out, but it is no longer available it seems. If anyone is looking to sell theirs.....)
I've seen threads where other people use Turtle wax or fabric softener on the rim. Might be worth a tiny amount. Should be easy enough to clean off afterwards.
I just popped out to Maplin to pick up some graphite lock lube. Works a treat! Stopped the farting noises completely and the stick feels very smooth when coming out of the central position, even with the toughest spring. I've dropped back to the second-softest for now though, as it feels just about right.
Good find!
Oh, yes, it does make a proper mess though if you're not careful. I used a microfiber cloth to wipe up the over-spray quickly, before it dried out too much. The lock lube is alcohol based I think, so dries very quickly, leaving just the graphite powder behind.
I ordered one too and i was wonder if the x55 work in ED ? (both throttle and stick).
Anyone got one of these and using it with elite dangerous? Some impressions would be good
Thanks
I do have one on pre-order so don't slag it off too hard![]()
We have one here and it's working, it should work in Alpha 3.x but might need a custom set up.
Michael