And me too.
The Joystick/Controller discussion thread
And me too.
Everytime I see one of these thread show up I feel compelled to mention the Thrustmaster Flight X HOTAS, about 30/40 quids, because it's the one I use and I'm having a blast with it.
I bought it thinking it was the cheapest and best way to try if I would enjoy the game with a HOTAS before wasting silly money on a Warthog. Now I don't even see the point into changing it. Sure whenever it breaks (and I know it will) I will go for a better one, but something tells me I might as well go for the same one again.
No brainer for that price.
EDIT: people will say it has limited buttons, but in all honesty I can't remember last time I reached for the keyboard apart from typing messages to other cmdr
I bought it thinking it was the cheapest and best way to try if I would enjoy the game with a HOTAS before wasting silly money on a Warthog. Now I don't even see the point into changing it. Sure whenever it breaks (and I know it will) I will go for a better one, but something tells me I might as well go for the same one again.
No brainer for that price.
EDIT: people will say it has limited buttons, but in all honesty I can't remember last time I reached for the keyboard apart from typing messages to other cmdr
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For me...this.
Now roughly 350 ED hours.
Its still precise. No button issues. A bit plasticky maybe. Great value.
I have a Logitech Extreme 3D pro, but it's at least 10 years old (I forget exactly when I bought it), and has just been sitting collecting crud for the last 4 or 5 years. When I plugged it back in, a couple of the buttons didn't work, and the yaw axis was offset to the left about 15 degrees, and several other problems. It used to work great, but it needed replacing.
So I was looking at replacements, and the Thrustmaster HOTAS was only 10 bucks more than a new 3D pro, so I got one of those for US$50. So far it's working fine. I'm still tweaking the control layout.
OTH, I was looking at other things too, and a Logitech PC gamepad was also US$50. Seems like a lot, but that's just the one that was there in the store, there may be cheaper ones around.
Its a shame that almost any joystick has cheap plastic x/y/z bearings and you can feel it. Joystick from the 80s had nice metal bearings and had proven indestructible even after many man years in arcades. If you want a realy good stick there is no other way than buying a cheap plastic stick and replace the mechanics with somthing from APEM (makes industrial hall effect joysticks). These sticks alone costs well over 120€ but will last a lifetime of gaming.
extreme 3d pro FTW. buttons will eventually fail with constant use but they're cheap enough that purchasing one once a year isn't a big deal.
Another vote from me for the Thrustmaster Tflight HOTAS X. £45 in UK, not sure how much they cost in Oz, though.
Plenty of buttons, seperate throttle and option to use rudder control on throttle or stick.
Plenty of buttons, seperate throttle and option to use rudder control on throttle or stick.
Though you can probably find a better joystick in the same price range, I recommend the HOTAS X which I'm currently using, because it comes with a throttle, which is very nice for both functionality and immersion. Despite its price, the build quality is very good (I've had mine for years and it still looks new), and it has a decent number of buttons. With the money you save over a more expensive stick, you can even buy a speedpad to complement it and entirely avoid using the keyboard (expect for text chat, obviously).
Extreme 3d Pro here. One or two little niggles but I'm pretty happy with it. The only thing I'd really like is if there was another button on the stick itself that I could use for a secondary fire button. The second fire button takes the thumb, so I can't use that for the hat, and I use the hat for left / right up / down thrusters (switching to headlook at the press of a button). A bit more playing around with mappings might get me somewhere though.
The quoted is just what I use, about $30 (so less than my mice) and is a world of difference from a mouse even at that price!
Edit: Ooops forgot to quote there, this is a reply to the peeps who said they had a Speedlink Black Widow...
I bought one of those just over a year ago. A really good stick - much better than my old Cyborg Evo - and worked perfectly until it suddenly started slewing right when the throttle was put in certain positions. This happened one week after the warranty expired so I coughed up and bought a T- Fight HOTAS X which is even better than the Black Widow. Very nice feel. Cross fingers it has better longevity.
Hope yours lasts longer than mine did.
I bought one of those just over a year ago. A really good stick - much better than my old Cyborg Evo - and worked perfectly until it suddenly started slewing right when the throttle was put in certain positions. This happened one week after the warranty expired so I coughed up and bought a T- Fight HOTAS X which is even better than the Black Widow. Very nice feel. Cross fingers it has better longevity.
Hope yours lasts longer than mine did.
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This. This is by far the most accurate joystick you can buy for under $100. It's not even close.
If I didn't have a Warthog, I'd buy two of these and try out the dual-stick piloting style.
The HOTAS X is a fine budget joystick. If you are even stingier, I recommend the Thrustmaster T16000M, which uses more advanced magnetic sensors instead of potentiometers. The only downside is that the T16000M doesn't come in a HOTAS configuration.
Button 3 (the left hand stick button) falls naturally under the thumb and I use that for secondary fire, okay it's not a trigger as such but it feels very natural in use.
Indeed, I would even say I prefer this stick over the over priced x52 sticks.