the T.1600M HOTAS is very underwhelming, as the stick itself lacks sufficient hats... the new high end HOTAS might as well be based on and being presented for DCS F/A-18C which unfortunately has even less buttons / functionality than Warthog; X56 will probably still be the most complete HOTAS in term of functionality for many years to come.
Hardware & Technical New Saitek HOTAS incoming, the X-56
- Thread starter CMDR MAIN SEQUENCE
- Start date
Got mine today. Had similar issues as other folks with driver, but eventually driver and software both installed, as well as Elite: Dangerous profile (X55 version).
Sadly, the game does not autodetect the new set up like he did my X52- pretty much unusable until ED has official support for it. :/
Sadly, the game does not autodetect the new set up like he did my X52- pretty much unusable until ED has official support for it. :/
Not sure how it's "pretty much unusable". You just need to go into the control binding screen (is "Generic Joystick" available?), use the keyboard or mouse to select a binding i.e. Pitch Axis and then move the stick. So long as Windows is registering the device then the game should. When you click Apply it should create a new profile called Custom. Use one of the training missions to test it and fine tune.
It's just a matter of time before FD add a profile - we know they have an X-56 as David Braben tweeted it a couple of months ago. Us players could actually create one ourselves - it's just an xml file.
Throttle is completely undetected, even when using "Generic Joystick."
Does the Windows Game Controller Settings dialogue box register the movement of the HOTAS axis? Going from memory I think at least one X-56 owner has got it working in ED but don't hold me to that. EDIT: yeah both stephen_usher and 49rTbird in this thread have it working.
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I'm more of a "enjoy it working" than a "get it working" kind of guy. My X52 will suffice for now.
Does it actually show up as a controller?
It's possible that the device driver didn't install fully and so the throttle isn't seen at all.
I had that with both the devices when I first installed them. I had to ask Windows to find the correct drivers using the Device Manager.
Hey Stephen! I follow you on Twitter and saw your progress, thanks for sharing!
Yea, I did need to rejigger the drivers, via the same method youre described. The HOTAS registers with the software just fine, just not in game.
- Daniel
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I got it working! It turns out (as you may or may not know) that when you are setting custom keybinds, the ED UI doesn't differentiate between the stick and the throttle, even though the keybinds you set are working! For example, if you set Heat Sinks to Button 1 on the stick, and SCB's to Button 1 on the throttle, they will work as intended, but the UI will show both as JOY 1. This, plus using the Generic Joystick preset, confounded me enough to think I had tested functionality thoroughly. Thanks to stephen_usher and Main Sequence for the advice and encouragement.
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How did you change the deadzone for the small thumbsticks?
Also isn't it a problem for you when holding the stick firmly your thumb is to pushing the thumbstick a little bit to the left?
I don't have very thick thumbs but still I can't firmly grip the stick (really needed when yawing/rolling/pitching at the same time) without also pushing the thumb stick a bit.
I used the functionality within the control options of the game.
Still, the thumb stick on the joystick is practically useless due to its position and the thumb pushing it out of the way.
It's an X-55 with a couple of new controls, the same crummy internal wiring and quality-control problems as the X-55. The whole kit, including the box feels like it weighs about a pound and a half.
After about 12 hours of play with the X56, I have to say no to the "Space" Rhino.
Stiff throttle? Nope, got used to that.
But fancy color LEDs! Mine has little dynamic color range, its like one color is stuck on. Green looked orange. No, I'm not color blind.
MINI ANALOG THUMB STICKS!! Yes, my next hotas needs these, but with better placement, which brings me to the primary reason for sending it back. The mini stick on the stick is right where need to grip your thumb in order to yaw twist, and the yaw on the x56 has issues. It's way too stiff with a mushy response. I don't know about you, but I yaw all the time. My hand was stuff after the first full night of play with this stick. My hands or wrists were never stiff with the x52.
I also prefer the stick here on the X52. All the buttons, and the look of the throttle X56 will be missed, but I can't justify the discomfort for the cost.
Here's to the NEXT new HOTAS!
Stiff throttle? Nope, got used to that.
But fancy color LEDs! Mine has little dynamic color range, its like one color is stuck on. Green looked orange. No, I'm not color blind.
MINI ANALOG THUMB STICKS!! Yes, my next hotas needs these, but with better placement, which brings me to the primary reason for sending it back. The mini stick on the stick is right where need to grip your thumb in order to yaw twist, and the yaw on the x56 has issues. It's way too stiff with a mushy response. I don't know about you, but I yaw all the time. My hand was stuff after the first full night of play with this stick. My hands or wrists were never stiff with the x52.
I also prefer the stick here on the X52. All the buttons, and the look of the throttle X56 will be missed, but I can't justify the discomfort for the cost.
Here's to the NEXT new HOTAS!
I totally agree with all your comments, plus phantom button presses. So, I'm back with the X52 Pro.
Have you looked at thread Saitek X52 Pro on USB3.0 (Intel Z97 chipset)
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php/106045-Saitek-X52-Pro-on-USB3-0-(Intel-Z97-chipset)
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Is anyone else having a problem with ZOOMING within ED? When I'm accessing the maps, it always zooms all the way out and won't zoom in. This happens no matter what I have zoom assigned to. I use the mouse wheel, but I've tried various other wheels on the throttle to control zoom and get the same result... always zooms out as far as it can and won't zoom in. This is particularly annoying with the universe map as "zoomed all the way out" makes it unusable. The very clunky work-around I'm using, continuously scroll the wheel to get somewhat zoomed in. Keep clicking the mouse until i can set a bookmark. Then use the bookmark to plot a route... very annoying. I've also tried other USB ports, reloaded the X56 driver, and disabled the Saitek software from loading on startup. Nothing seems to work.
Please help.
Please help.
As my old X-55 broke just a few weeks before the warranty ran out, I returned it last week and got the X-56 now.
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My first impressions are mixed. I had no problems downloading the drivers or installing the software. Of course, ED completely deleting the profile for the X-55 resulted in a bit of extra work to set everything up, but i couldn't fault the joystick for that.
.
That being said, a random collection of thoughts:
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- Just like the X-55 when it was new, the throttle is very stiff. But as that fixed itself on my old X-55 within two weeks, i expect the same to happen here.
.
- Accuracy of the throttle and the sliders seems to be a little lower than on my old X-55. Without setting a deadzone, i couldn't get my ship to completely stop, it always stayed at 2 meters/second. When adding my slider 2 for thrust override (which allows to go into positive and negative and thus i find useful in some situation) that added "drift". Adding a really tiny deadzone fixed this problem, but my old X-55 was so accurate that i did not need a deadzone at all.
.
- The new plastic gives me mixed feelings. Indeed the stick feels more smooth than the old rubbery surface and should also be easier to clean, but the X-55 material felt like it had a bit more grip.
.
- The thumbstick on the throttle is nice, it's much better than the mouse nipple on the X-55. The only tiny drawback is that the only way to bind it properly in ED disallows me to use rotary 1 any more as vertical thruster trim, which was helpful in flight assist off maneuvers in gravitation. If somebody knows of a reasonable way of multiplexing the thumbstick and the rotary, please let me know.
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- The button on the tumbstick on the joystick requires some force and thus is a little unpractical.
.
- As all thrust overrides are already uses on a rotary and the thumbstick of the throttle, i at the moment see no way of binding the sticks thumbstick to something useful in ED. If somebody has a good idea on how to use that, please let me know.
.
- Similarily, i am still looking for good use for rotary 1,3 and 4. (For 3 and 4 i also did not have any use on the X-55) If somebody has an idea on how to give them good use, i am interested.
.
.
After all this bunch of random thoughts, i am currently not unhappy with the X-56, my only doubt is how surviveable it is. The X-55 had quality issues, which my recently deceased X-55 also has proven, and i can't tell how things turn out for my X-56. As long as it doesn't break down, i am quite happy with it, despite it still having a few functions which are actually not in use yet.
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I had this effect only twice, when I still had my X-55. In my case, it was connected to having bound the "zoom" to the wheel on the left side of the throttle, and that having stopped in a bad position. Moving it just for a millimeter fixed the problem at that time.
.
No idea if you have the same thing, though.
.
My first impressions are mixed. I had no problems downloading the drivers or installing the software. Of course, ED completely deleting the profile for the X-55 resulted in a bit of extra work to set everything up, but i couldn't fault the joystick for that.
.
That being said, a random collection of thoughts:
.
- Just like the X-55 when it was new, the throttle is very stiff. But as that fixed itself on my old X-55 within two weeks, i expect the same to happen here.
.
- Accuracy of the throttle and the sliders seems to be a little lower than on my old X-55. Without setting a deadzone, i couldn't get my ship to completely stop, it always stayed at 2 meters/second. When adding my slider 2 for thrust override (which allows to go into positive and negative and thus i find useful in some situation) that added "drift". Adding a really tiny deadzone fixed this problem, but my old X-55 was so accurate that i did not need a deadzone at all.
.
- The new plastic gives me mixed feelings. Indeed the stick feels more smooth than the old rubbery surface and should also be easier to clean, but the X-55 material felt like it had a bit more grip.
.
- The thumbstick on the throttle is nice, it's much better than the mouse nipple on the X-55. The only tiny drawback is that the only way to bind it properly in ED disallows me to use rotary 1 any more as vertical thruster trim, which was helpful in flight assist off maneuvers in gravitation. If somebody knows of a reasonable way of multiplexing the thumbstick and the rotary, please let me know.
.
- The button on the tumbstick on the joystick requires some force and thus is a little unpractical.
.
- As all thrust overrides are already uses on a rotary and the thumbstick of the throttle, i at the moment see no way of binding the sticks thumbstick to something useful in ED. If somebody has a good idea on how to use that, please let me know.
.
- Similarily, i am still looking for good use for rotary 1,3 and 4. (For 3 and 4 i also did not have any use on the X-55) If somebody has an idea on how to give them good use, i am interested.
.
.
After all this bunch of random thoughts, i am currently not unhappy with the X-56, my only doubt is how surviveable it is. The X-55 had quality issues, which my recently deceased X-55 also has proven, and i can't tell how things turn out for my X-56. As long as it doesn't break down, i am quite happy with it, despite it still having a few functions which are actually not in use yet.
- - - - - Additional Content Posted / Auto Merge - - - - -
.
I had this effect only twice, when I still had my X-55. In my case, it was connected to having bound the "zoom" to the wheel on the left side of the throttle, and that having stopped in a bad position. Moving it just for a millimeter fixed the problem at that time.
.
No idea if you have the same thing, though.