HOTAS Pros, Cons & Recommendations

I bought, in December 2018, and am still using the Thrustmaster 16k stick and throttle. I did pull apart my stick and had to remove a clump of hot glue that seemed to be causing me yaw problems. Since then I have had no problems with it. About 1700 hours on them.

Wow! I'm at 450 hours on mine and seeing a little bit of the downward pitch drift folks are talking about. You getting that? You may just take better care of yours than I do though lol
 
I bought, in December 2018, and am still using the Thrustmaster 16k stick and throttle. I did pull apart my stick and had to remove a clump of hot glue that seemed to be causing me yaw problems. Since then I have had no problems with it. About 1700 hours on them.


If I did that there's no way the thing would get back together let alone work properly. :D
 
my x52-pro is going on 6 years old now. It's always had a couple tiny quirks. Nothing that really keeps it from being fully usable.

it's a shame hotas are so niche. even the expensive options tend to be hit or miss with quality control problems. Also good to note, most in-store stock is old. These things dont move so check the dates. It could have been sitting on the shelf for years.
 
I have two workstations with dual T.16000 joysticks. Good quality at a reasonable price point. The X and Y axis are Hall sensors and very good. The units are on the light side, but not an issue. They have threaded holes on the bottom so they can be screwed down. The twist axis is the weak link, I’ve had one replaced under warranty due to spurious twist axis output. That said, my original dual set is seven years old and still going strong.

It’s a great twist stick for HOSAS setups with its included throttle axis. I use it with a custom T.A.R.G.E.T script that effectively doubles number of top stick buttons with the short/long button press protocol. I haven’t found any other twist stick that matches it’s accuracy, utility and price. I keep a spare, just in case.
 
I've used a Cougar for 18 years :)

They don't make them any more, and they really need modded gimbals and pots. The stock ones were substandard. They are out there and while I don't expect anyone will hunt one down I can still recommend it as a great stick. 18 years now and no reason to think I can't get another 18 out of them

I have two, one modded with Evenstrain titanium gimbals and one with the Uber NXT mod. Both use Hall sensors.
 
I'm thinking of a Thrustmaster T1600 fcs because it's a reasonably priced HOTAS.

I moved up to a X56 from the T1600 after the fourth one died on me within 18 months in total. The throttle of the X56 is MUCH better than the T16000, the T16000 stick is actually quite good for as long as it lasts. If your throttle is still working I'd consider just the T16000 if budget is a major concern. If the throttle doesnt work either I'd suggest the X56. I also tried the T-flight HOTAS and Edge 3d pro. Not worth it.
 
Unfortunately I have to agree with the two posters who mention the yaw failure (it's primarily down to a cheap potentiometer) on the T16000 stick.

On the plus side it's a really accurate stick for the price, and the throttle is excellent IMO, loads of hats, buttons and paddles as well as an analogue stick - I still use the throttle.

But the stick? I went through three of them in as many years. To be fair, Thrustmaster did replace two of them, but I simply lost confidence in it. I did manage to repair one, it was fiddly, and only lasted a few months before it started yawing by itself again, so end of last year I gave up and went for a VKB Gunfighter stick. Somewhat pricey (possibly eye-wateringly so), but a whole different level of quality.

So, beware the T16000 stick. They are cheap, and if you treat it as a consumable that might last a year or so, then you'll be happy, otherwise I have to say steer clear of it. Again, the throttle is great and I'm still using the original one.
The key words for any discussion of any HOTAS: "accurate stick for the price". Bottom line is, ya get what ya pay for.
 
Since a lot of people mentioned the RZ potentiometer, I want to point out to anyone who still has the stick: it’s fixable. The fix I applied has lasted for over a year with weekly use. There’s some plastic parts that seem designed to hold it in place but the weight of use presses them down on the potentiometer and causes the RZ erratics. Open it up, clip the plastic back a little and it’s good as new.
 
Since a lot of people mentioned the RZ potentiometer, I want to point out to anyone who still has the stick: it’s fixable. The fix I applied has lasted for over a year with weekly use. There’s some plastic parts that seem designed to hold it in place but the weight of use presses them down on the potentiometer and causes the RZ erratics. Open it up, clip the plastic back a little and it’s good as new.

I've tried adjusting plastic that rotate potentiometer. Many times actually, removing very tiny fragment at time to make sure I wont make it loose.
Failed.
It kept getting crazy. I still have hope with cmdr Sanderling suggestion to replace Z axis potentiometer with hall sensor, apparently some ppl on reddit done it with success.

Additional thought on t16000 stick - its quite stiff. Little bit too stiff for space flight imo. But thats up to preferences i guess.

The key words for any discussion of any HOTAS: "accurate stick for the price". Bottom line is, ya get what ya pay for.
Dont let companies convince you that 160-200$ (or whatever current price for t16000) is fair price for piece of plastic and few hall sensors/potentiometers that wont last more than few months.
 
I used an X52 (which I still have but its sloppy now) then switched to a t16000 which I destroyed in a year and am now on x56 which I am finding quite good.(but it does need fixing down as it comes with no suckers)
 
Dont let companies convince you that 160-200$ (or whatever current price for t16000) is fair price for piece of plastic and few hall sensors/potentiometers that wont last more than few months.

T.16000 currently $69.99 on Amazon. Got mine for less. I’m using four in my two workstations, and except for the one replaced under warranty, they are holding up well.
 
I moved up to a X56 from the T1600 after the fourth one died on me within 18 months in total. The throttle of the X56 is MUCH better than the T16000, the T16000 stick is actually quite good for as long as it lasts. If your throttle is still working I'd consider just the T16000 if budget is a major concern. If the throttle doesnt work either I'd suggest the X56. I also tried the T-flight HOTAS and Edge 3d pro. Not worth it.

The T16000 throttle is actually really good if you lubricate the rails. I know people who use the T16000 throttle with the X56 stick because of the accuracy and placement of the finger joystick for thrusters.

The T16000 sticks are garbage however. It's really worth the extra money for something better. It's just not worth the stress or hassle of either repairing one, adjusting dead zones every time you play, or waiting for yet another replacement from Amazon.
 
I had a Saitek X52 pro which had enough wires die to make it useless in about 2 years. Now have the Grey X56, which I think is a great stick / throttle, I just wish my fingers and hand width was another 25mm each...
 
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I had the same dilemma recently, and after looking at all of them, got another X-52, it's familiar, works well, and I just expect it to last about 2000-2500 game hours before needing to be replaced. I can't remember which, but one of the more expensive ones has no twist-to-yaw, it needs pedals as well.

I'm just factoring replacing X-52's every couple of years as a running cost at this point (I'm on the third one, always the joystick that breaks).

Edit: I mean X-52 Pro
 
T.16000 currently $69.99 on Amazon. Got mine for less. I’m using four in my two workstations, and except for the one replaced under warranty, they are holding up well.
I quickly checked prices on amazon, price 160$ was for new hotas (stick and throttle), i guess you are refering to price of stick alone. Althought i was buying my hotas for 120$ i think, so i was suprised with new prices.
 
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