Tis a good reminder, the play and charge kits only charge the controller, as the play bit is still connecting via wireless to the xbox, so won't work with a PC to play with.
What type of controller will you be using for Elite Dangerous
- Thread starter fikuserectus
- Start date
Tis a good reminder, the play and charge kits only charge the controller, as the play bit is still connecting via wireless to the xbox, so won't work with a PC to play with.
Have a look at Amazon for joysticks. It doesnt matter if its US or UK and read some of the reviews of possible purchases. Also have a look at this forum http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/forums/243/1/Controllers.html
The Saitek X-65 looks like a very good stick and is one of those non-moving pressure sensing sticks as opposed to a more traditional one like the Thrustmaster Warthog. Both are around £300 though so they might be something you would like to try before you buy regardless of the reviews you see on SimHQ and elsewhere.
I would try the CH Products Flightstick Pro and the Pro Throttle. I had the original (non usb) Flightstick, best quality joystick I had. Unfortunately got married, children etc so don't have the budget. I use a Sidewinder precision pro/mouse, strategic commander (throttle and keyboard mappings etc), PS3 eye camera FacetrackNOIR as a cheaper alternative control set. You can pick them all up on eBay quite cheaply. It is a compelling solution the only thing I use apart from that is a PS dual shock controller and x360ce for footy games...
ah cheers mate for an honest assessment, think you may have pushed me back to the X52 then, will mull it over and read a little more reviews on both. Agree money wise there is a big difference but as i am planning to play for a serious long time it may be a good investment......thanks again.
Hmmm My Friend had a Saitek X-50 setup they were not as robust as CH Products and Thrustmaster...
EDIT
Can't remember if it was X-50 but it was around mid 2000s
Last edited:
That would have been the Saitek X-45 flight system. The forerunner of the X-52 (which I have). Then came the X-52 PRO. Now its the X-65. They still make the X-52, X-52 PRO and of course the X-65. You can even still buy the X-45 on eBay and a few other sites. The difference between the 3 are the X-52 has plastic knobs, butttons, switches and shaft. The X-52 PRO has metal and the X-65 is pressure sensitive. It does not actually move and it has metal buttons, shaft, etc. Hope that helps.
The difference between the 3 are the X-52 has plastic knobs, butttons, switches and shaft. The X-52 PRO has metal and the X-65 is pressure sensitive. It does not actually move and it has metal buttons, shaft, etc. Hope that helps. 
Ah the Extreme 3D! My first joystick. (Never been a flight sim guy, at least not until recently.) It ended up dying after about a year, so be careful with it! Mine just plain wore out. It was repairable, but not without some welding, so I just got the T16000.
As for buttons, well, as an example, here are a list of personal commands for when I'm flying a modern flight sim.
Button 1 - Fire.
Button 2 - Fire secondary weapons
Button 3 - Radar Mode toggle
Button 4 - Radar Range toggle
Button 5 - Zoom toggle
Button 6 - ECM
Button 7 - Chaff
Button 8 - Flares
Button 9 - Jettison External Fuel Tank
Button 10 - Eject
Button 11 - Switch targets (hostile)
Button 12 - Target Nearest
Button 13 - Cycle Selected Air to Ground Weapons
Button 14 - Cycle Selected Air to Air weapons
Button 15 - Landing Gear
Button 16 - Air brakes
That is my standard configuration for flying my F16 Fighting Falcon sims. Obviously my keyboard has dozens of more commands, but you get the idea. All 16 buttons on my joystick are used, and alot of the more complex functions (like bomb ripple) are on the keyboard. Buttons are useful, and can really help in the middle of a dog-fight. I expect to use a similair setup in Elite Dangerous.
I broke out an ole Wingman Joystick from my Mech Warrior days......still works with the old Elite. We'll have to see how touchy the new game is. I'm hoping it'll work I really loved the ability to pivot the upper torso to fire on the run. Not sure how or what functions will be available.
Yes, the sensitivity of the game will be a factor I am sure. But I am pretty clueless on such things. How responsive the game will be in relation to the input controls.
That list of buttons really makes me hungry for the game. Something about a list like that makes you think of what it would be like. I am a geek.
That list of buttons really makes me hungry for the game. Something about a list like that makes you think of what it would be like. I am a geek.
I think anyone who is interested in Elite is a geek. I'm so darn excited about this game even if I'm not particularly good at computer games.
I would love the Saitek-52 Pro. Sounds like the controller to have but is too darn expensive. £200.
So I'm looking at this controller.
£35-£40 for the T-Flight Hotas
What are the cons of this controller please?? The thrust part of the joystick is dodgy? docking is hard enough without a dodgy thrust
I haven't bought a joystick for a computer since KICK-OFF 2 and I'm a bit overwhelmed by the choices.
I saw that people are wondering how many buttons we shall need during a dogfight (16)? is that relevant?
Can we have keys allocated on both the joystick and the keyboard?
(I guess all will be clearer during the alpha/beta testing)
I would love the Saitek-52 Pro. Sounds like the controller to have but is too darn expensive. £200.
So I'm looking at this controller.
£35-£40 for the T-Flight Hotas
What are the cons of this controller please?? The thrust part of the joystick is dodgy? docking is hard enough without a dodgy thrust
I haven't bought a joystick for a computer since KICK-OFF 2 and I'm a bit overwhelmed by the choices.
I saw that people are wondering how many buttons we shall need during a dogfight (16)? is that relevant?
Can we have keys allocated on both the joystick and the keyboard?
(I guess all will be clearer during the alpha/beta testing)
I think anyone who is interested in Elite is a geek. I'm so darn excited about this game even if I'm not particularly good at computer games.
I would love the Saitek-52 Pro. Sounds like the controller to have but is too darn expensive. £200.
So I'm looking at this controller.
£35-£40 for the T-Flight Hotas
What are the cons of this controller please?? The thrust part of the joystick is dodgy? docking is hard enough without a dodgy thrust
I haven't bought a joystick for a computer since KICK-OFF 2 and I'm a bit overwhelmed by the choices.
I saw that people are wondering how many buttons we shall need during a dogfight (16)? is that relevant?
Can we have keys allocated on both the joystick and the keyboard?
(I guess all will be clearer during the alpha/beta testing)
Yeah the one downside to that joystick is the flimsy throttle. You may be able to hack the hardware though to improve that aspect.
As for your questions you shouldn't need that many buttons to hand in a dogfight otherwise we've done something wrong. Also you'll be able to bind keyboard and joystick and whatever other input devices you have at once if desired. You can even double up and have two inputs handle the same command if that floats your boat.
Thank you for your reply Mike.
Apologies for being an idiot but when you say "hack the hardware"? What do you mean? WD-40? (I'm not joking)
Hurrah! So I can putter around with the XB360 controller but switch straight to mouse / keyb as the situation demands, without faff in settings panels? Excellent news.
I mean take it apart and see if you can stiffen it up somehow
oh ok, the opposite. I thought the thrust was too sticky / too hard.
Ok great. Thanks for all the info, will consider the cheaper option.
I picked up a nearly-new X52 Pro on ebay for less than £100, so there are savings to be had. But if you're doing this, check the pictures carefully. When I was searching for mine I noticed at least one joystick listed as X52 Pro when it was obviously the X52. You can tell the difference by the colour of the lights, X52 has blue LEDs, X52 Pro has red LEDs.
You can change the colour of the LED's on the X52 Pro - red green amber - but not the MFD bit which stays green.
Brian
Also all the HAT switches are different from each other on the pro version where as they're all the same design on the non-pro.
Do what I did to the pedals on my Logitech Steering Wheel and replace the springs with squash balls.:smilie:
