Looking for New HOTAS advice
- Thread starter michalfoc
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I also used the T16000 HOTAS for a while until the potentiometer issue finally ruined what is otherwise a very good (for the price) stick.
Went with the VKB Gunfighter. Totally different quality, terrific stick and I still use the Thrustmaster throttle which I like very much with all the hats. The Gunfighter isn't cheap, but it's highly adaptable and comes with a bunch of different cams and springs that will allow you to configure it to your personal taste / feel.
Went with the VKB Gunfighter. Totally different quality, terrific stick and I still use the Thrustmaster throttle which I like very much with all the hats. The Gunfighter isn't cheap, but it's highly adaptable and comes with a bunch of different cams and springs that will allow you to configure it to your personal taste / feel.
CHPro Fightersick and Throttle here - love them, built like brick dunnies.
Hmm. A friend of mine has the Warthog. I don't really liked it, when i tried it. (He's more of a DCS player, though. So i guess for him it's the right thing, but when trying it in ED, it felt wrong to me. )
And yes, the old Saitek sticks had massive quality issues. Which i found too bad, as the actual layout of the device is great.
The only two things i personally would change on the stick would be to switch the position of the two right side 8-ways on the stick and the position of the button on the right side of the stick. For the 8-ways it's unfortunate that the lower one has the high rim, so you have to reach over it to use the flatter one above it. Would the more flat 8-way be on the lower position, the upper one could be reached more easily, making the stick a bit more comfortable. And the button on the right side of the stick is just a bit too high up, my index finger is not that bendy. So whenever i want to press that button, i have to move my hand position. I compensate for that by using it for less important things, but that kind of defeats the point of having it on the stick first of all.
That being said, i still find it much easier to logically distribute the functions of ED on the X56 and on the Warthog. Which in the end is not that surprising, considering that ED was build based on the X52 (so the X56 is basically more of it), while the Warthog is modeled after a real plane and with a different control concept in mind.
If you want the X-55 or X-56 then buy the logitech one, it has blue lines on it, the older one from madcatz(grey lines I think) is pants(cheap parts)
If you want Yaw then X-56, else Warthog.
You mixed up the colors. My older MadCats X56 had the blue lines. My current, Logitech built, X56 has the grey print.
That being said, i also can confirm that Logitech seems to have sorted out the most frequent issues. I mean, i started on a X55, it broke down after a year. As the X55 was not in production any more, i was allowed to get a refund and buy a X56 instead. Then i after a while had a broken joystick twist center spring. Then the throttle had a broken button two-way toggle, which permanently delivered the feedback that it was pressed forward. (When pulling it back it deliverd the info that it was in forward and backward position at the same time. )
To my huge luck, the stuff always broke on time before the warranty ran out, so i was able to return it and get a new one. (Which thanks to how amazon tracks deliveries allowed me to use the newer date when returning it the next time it broke. ) So as long as i had Saitek build X56es, i went through one ever year or so.
My Logitech one now already is in use for several years. And the only issue by now is one kind of sticky button. And i can't blame Logitech for my wife throwing a plush pet in my direction and a soda bottle spilling over the joystick.
Edit: Just the last days, after owning the device for three years and four months, I now ran into the first problem. A cable broke off right behind where it was soldered to a switch. So while this device lasted much longer than any of its predecessors, i still consider it somewhat disappointing for how much it costs.
The only thing which is not fully resolved is ghost butttons. The stick still is power hungry and you want to operate it on a powered USB hub. Without that, you are likely to have problems. Also, it seems to have compatibility issues with some USB chipsets. I last year replaced my old computer. Despite being on a powered USB hub (and even when borrowing my wifes powered USB hub to have each device on its own hub) i experienced ghost presses on the new hardware.
Considering that the HOTAS and HUB worked together fine enough on the old hardware, i suspected some problems with the new hardware. I then bought a cheap USB card and installed that one. It worked like a charm, it completely eliminated the problems again. So while the most frequently mentioned fix for ghostpresses is the powered USB hub, there might be another reason for it.
Edit:
At least it doesn't break down every year, but took over three years to run into the first problem. And luckily it in this case was a problem which i was easily able to fix by re-soldering the cable. Time will tell, when the next problems arise.
If you have 'large' hands the X56 is no problem - mine being slightly more 'delicate' makes using the secondary fire and top hat switch on the joystick quite challenging... just something to consider
I don't use that one as fire button. My secondary fire is actually one direction on the thumb-stick. (I bound several functions to different directions there, as i didn't need yet another analog input axis in the cockpit. Works well enough for me, although i have to admit that it took a little time to get used to it. )
The secondary fire button on top of the stick is my weapon arm switch instead. Means, i use it to deploy and store weapons and i have switched the auto-deploying of weapons off. So it's kind of my "press this if you mean serious business" button and it works great for that.
Edit: sidenote: This button actually is the one with the soda damage. So when i want to trigger it by now the first time a day, i have to press it extra hard, to break "sugar glue"holding it in position. Which kind of even enforces the "serious business" factor. I might be a simple mind, but pressing that button to deploy weapons still, after all these years of playing, gives me a good feeling.
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What Iiked the most about the T16000 was that each piece is sold separatly, so if the throttle or the joystick (or the pedals, although I never had them) break we don't have to buy the entire set again, like with my current X-56. Each individual piece was cheap (around 50 €), making it easy to replace parts.
Virpil. WarBRD base and Constellation Delta (symmetric) or Alpha (new, asymmetric, more expensive) grip. I use dual Deltas (Alpha came out a few months after I bought them.
Hmm. For me Vipril is an unconfirmed rumour. At some time, when my X56 broke down yet again, i was considering to not replace it but ask for a refound and go for a Vipril set. After all, the forum kept praising it to the heavens. Unfortunately i was unable to get one. Any online shop listed them to be out of stock and on Viprils website there was a note along the line "order now, we hope to have some again in a quarter of a year".
So yea, i can believe that it's good, but at least at that time when i tried to get one the wait time was above and beyond acceptable parameters.
Yes, I replaced the stick four times!! Still using the original throttle.
If it weren't for the useless potentiometer the stick would be great value, very accurate and it got me into using fixed weapons. That said, the Gunfighter is a totally different beast, again very accurate, really solid build, configurable (as I said above), two extra hats, plenty of buttons very intuitively laid out. I didn't buy it on a whim, it's expensive, but I've not regretted the purchase since I opened the box.
I’ve had the grey X-56 for some time and am quite happy with it. Plenty of buttons and setups and really pretty good. My only concern is the twist to yaw on the stick. As yet no problems but the X-55 I had previously just snapped one day leaving me with no yaw and I always have in the back of my mind that it’s going to happen on the X-56. This may be unfair as it is, the grey one at least, an improvement on the X-55 but the creaking and squeaking was enough for me to order a Virpil Constellation Alpha.
Virpil have recently started taking pre orders which is a huge improvement on the refresh page lottery they had previously.
Virpil have recently started taking pre orders which is a huge improvement on the refresh page lottery they had previously.
X-56 Logitech version (grey as stated). But good luck finding one. They've been sold out on their website for months. I've used the 56 sense it came out. Yes I've had 3 of the Madcatz and they are faulty. But you won't find others that offer the number of control options that the X-56 has. As for the stiff throttle, I don't use it. Instead I use the lower scroll hat on the throttle for the that purpose. It makes for very precise control without having to move your entire arm.
Another +1 for the VKB Gladiator and Kosmosima grip. I like the all-in-one stick with throttle, and play with one hand on the base and another on the stick. Love this thing, and it's awesome for VR.
Same here. Very good value for money.
Another vote here for the Virpil/VKB route. I have two Virpil throttles, a Virpil warbird base with constellation alpha grip and a VKB Kosmosima grip on gunfighter base, and all are exceptionally nice.
I upgraded to those bts after my X52 pro finally gave it up after a decade of use, and damn...the upgrade is like night and day.
I upgraded to those bts after my X52 pro finally gave it up after a decade of use, and damn...the upgrade is like night and day.
I have both Virpils and a VKG gunfighter, both are amazing but for me Virpil is the true king. Same goes for their throttles. Unsurpassed build quality. Have tried several of the Virpil sticks over the last few years. If you can handle the wait on the Virpil order time, then get stuck in. V pricey, but more than worth it.
Get something with twist yaw.
I have a Warthog, but I would never use it for Elite.
And get pedals - pedals are a game changer. The more axes of control you have the better pilot you will be.
I have a Warthog, but I would never use it for Elite.
And get pedals - pedals are a game changer. The more axes of control you have the better pilot you will be.
Yeah I use pedals also (MFG Crosswind). Pretty amazing in Elite, feels like you’re properly piloting a spaceship.
You will like the X-56 gray. The controls totally match the design of the bindings in Elite Dangerous as if it was made for the game. Other than installing drivers the provided editing software is not needed. It is also great flying airliners in X-Plane 11. The thumb fire control on the joystick is also an analog thumbstick which is great for fore/aft thrusters.
Flying the X-56 gray since it was released my issue is the yaw doesn't like to center on release st 50%. A little ED deadzone yaw takes care of this. The base of the joystick can squeak and cause jitters when moving it around but some light vaseline on the moving parts makes it very smooth and quiet. The throttle is stiff at first but setting it to the lightest resistance and a week of breaking it in makes it a light throw.
Keeping the throttle a player can later go with a VKB, Virpil or Warthog if desired. Being made of metal the Warthog is always cold. I felt like I needed a glove to use it.