Any way to set deadzone at bottom end of "Forward Only" throttle?

Alec Turner

Alec Turner
For some reason my HOTAS throttle has stopped zeroing properly when it's pulled all the way back (I use the Forward Only setting). So even when it's held all the way back against it's rear stop it still produces small forward inputs which mean I can't fully stop the ship now.

Does anyone know if there's a way to set a deadzone at the back end of the throttle movement? I use the Joystick Curves utility to map response curves but that seems to mirror it's curve for forwards and backwards movement and therefore caters for deadzones in the middle of a stick's movement but not just at the back end.

I've tried the in-game deadzone but I suspect that's also intended for the middle of the movement rather than just at the bottom end.

Alternatively, is there any way to calibrate a Thrustmaster T.Flight Hotas 4 in software?
 

Nick Sticks

Nick Sticks
Yes, you can calibrate the joystick within Windows.
For Win7 it's:
Devices and Printers / Right Click on the Joystick Icon / Select Game Controller Settings / Properties / Settings Tab / Calibrate.
Can't remember where it is for Win10 but must be similar.
 

Alec Turner

Alec Turner
Nick Sticks said:
Yes, you can calibrate the joystick within Windows.
For Win7 it's:
Devices and Printers / Right Click on the Joystick Icon / Select Game Controller Settings / Properties / Settings Tab / Calibrate.
Can't remember where it is for Win10 but must be similar.
Click to expand...
Alas there's a problem for the Hotas 4 - in joystick properties there's only the test tab which shows all the inputs. The settings tab with the calibration options is missing.
 

Nick Sticks

Nick Sticks
Alec Turner said:
Alas there's a problem for the Hotas 4 - in joystick properties there's only the test tab which shows all the inputs. The settings tab with the calibration options is missing.
Click to expand...
That's a shame. I wonder why it's different from the T-Flight Hotas X and the T.1600M.
 

Nick Sticks

Nick Sticks
@Alec Turner
This chap might have the answer:
forums.flightsimulator.com

Thrustmaster hotas X calibration issue solved

I bought an Hotas X about 2 weeks before MSFS 2020 was released. I was going to get a Yoke and pedal setup but couldn’t find any on sale for love nor money 🙂 I installed the thrustmaster software that came with it and fired it up and all seemed ok. When FS 2020 was finally started for the...
forums.flightsimulator.com forums.flightsimulator.com

Uninstall the Thrustmaster software, restart the PC and the calibration option is restored.
 

Alec Turner

Alec Turner
[VR] Jay Le Chardon said:
For stuff that doent work properly there is manufacturer provided software, for everything else, there's "joystick curves"...
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqzoJPCZM0w
Click to expand...
Yeah, I use Joystick Curves - the problem is that the curves you define seem to be mirrored for the forwards and backwards parts of the stick's movement so any deadzone you create at the start of the curve is in the middle of the throttle position whereas I want one just at the start of the throttle's movement.
 
Last edited:

Alec Turner

Alec Turner
Nick Sticks said:
@Alec Turner
This chap might have the answer:
forums.flightsimulator.com

Thrustmaster hotas X calibration issue solved

I bought an Hotas X about 2 weeks before MSFS 2020 was released. I was going to get a Yoke and pedal setup but couldn’t find any on sale for love nor money 🙂 I installed the thrustmaster software that came with it and fired it up and all seemed ok. When FS 2020 was finally started for the...
forums.flightsimulator.com forums.flightsimulator.com

Uninstall the Thrustmaster software, restart the PC and the calibration option is restored.
Click to expand...

I sorta tried that - it was rather unsatisfactory. The Hotas 4 needs drivers to work on the PC and the throttle in particular didn't seem to do anything in that calibration tool with the Thrustmaster software uninstalled,
 

Para Handy

Para Handy
Alec Turner said:
Alas there's a problem for the Hotas 4 - in joystick properties there's only the test tab which shows all the inputs. The settings tab with the calibration options is missing.
Click to expand...
Alec Turner said:
I believe I have the latest. The download link at the official Thrustmaster site you've posted there doesn't work (or it doesn't for me - give it a try and let me know if it works for you) but I found drivers and firmware elsewhere.
Click to expand...

Try uninstalling the drivers and then calibrating in Windows Game Controller Properties. I never use drivers or "control software" if I can get away with it it is probably your drivers that are removing the calibrate facility in windows. (Or is it your "joystick curves"?) On my secondary PC I have a T-Flight X - no drivers - windows calibrated - works a treat.
 

AkenBosch

AkenBosch
Alec Turner said:
Alternatively, is there any way to calibrate a Thrustmaster T.Flight Hotas 4 in software?
Click to expand...

There's a tiny as well as obscure Thrustmaster software that does just that, used it to recalibrate my T.16000 yaw after it went off center by several degrees due to cleaning. No link to resource now but I'll update you on that.

Nick Sticks said:
Yes, you can calibrate the joystick within Windows.
For Win7 it's:
Devices and Printers / Right Click on the Joystick Icon / Select Game Controller Settings / Properties / Settings Tab / Calibrate.
Can't remember where it is for Win10 but must be similar.
Click to expand...

Sadly, that calibration is all but useless most of the time, it just seems to recenter on the values it expects to find from the device firmware, not by reading where the pot reading actually starts and ends. That's why I needed the Thrustmaster software to do it.
 

VR Jay Le Chardon

VR Jay Le Chardon
Alec Turner said:
Yeah, I use Joystick Curves - the problem is that the curves you define seem to be mirrored for the forwards and backwards parts of the stick's movement so any deadzone you create at the start of the curve is in the middle of the throttle position whereas I want one just at the start of the throttle's movement.
Click to expand...
You are right, I'm sorry for the bad info, I forgot about the built-in mirror function, there are other similar programs out there, ie software that reads a real joystick output, applies a user-defined map to it and parses the output to vJoy, perhaps one of those might be a better fit for this application? The two main ones I can think of are Joystick Gremlin and Universal Controller Remapper.
 

Momatty

Momatty
The pots on the tflight sticks are also terrible. I have to take mine apart once in a while to get the rz axis working properly. I use a cleaner I got off Amazon.
 

Alec Turner

Alec Turner
Para Handy said:
Try uninstalling the drivers and then calibrating in Windows Game Controller Properties. I never use drivers or "control software" if I can get away with it it is probably your drivers that are removing the calibrate facility in windows. (Or is it your "joystick curves"?) On my secondary PC I have a T-Flight X - no drivers - windows calibrated - works a treat.
Click to expand...
I think that's the thing we've been talking about a bit. Unfortunately the driver you need to make the T.Flight Hotas 4 work also removes the tab with the calibration options on it ...

1606668080459.png
 

Alec Turner

Alec Turner
Momatty said:
The pots on the tflight sticks are also terrible. I have to take mine apart once in a while to get the rz axis working properly. I use a cleaner I got off Amazon.
Click to expand...
I think this is the main takeaway - I wish I'd never bought this useless flippin' stick, let alone the 5 preceding it. Talk about throwing good money after bad. I'll take it up with Thrustmaster, see if I can get a replacement (this one's only a couple of months old) but I'm never buying another one of these pieces of crap ever again.

Oh, and can I just say ... this forum is awesome, and thanks to everyone for all their excellent suggestions!
 
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