My Modified GT Omega Rig

Alexander McKenzie · Jan 6, 2013

I have had a GT Omega rig for about a year now and have made quite a few mods to it. It is a very good pre built rig as a base for further modification. I have kept a sort of diary about the things I have done to it and thought I might post it here for others to see. I am happy to answer any questions you may have.

So here is the start of my diary dating back to April 2012:

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I recently bought a GT Omega Racing Cockpit but I couldn't get comfortable using my G25 pedals in the default position on it. So I thought I would try and invert / reverse mount them. I am certainly not a craftsman and this was very much a ghetto mod but I am very pleased with the results.

I used scrap wood that was destined for the fire to build a backing to mount the pedals to. I cut two legs from an old table and screwed them to the pedal base of the GT Omega using the two mounting slots. As luck would have it (or perhaps the GT Omega guys designed it that way) this gave me a very nice angle.

I then screwed a rectangular piece of wood to the two table legs. From this point I attached the pedals. I also drilled a hole for each of the pedals cables to come through from behind.

Next I drilled a hole through each of the table legs and put a screw through them in order for me to tie a rope to the base which I attached to the metal frame for extra stability.

It works really well and is very solid. And very ghetto!

I plan on dissembling it all to paint the wood black so if you would like any additional photos I can take them for you.

Alexander McKenzie · Jan 6, 2013

And here is the finished product. I am very happy with the way it has turned out. Very solid and easy to slide close to the edge of the desk. Can't wait to play with them tomorrow!

Anthony Levene · Jan 7, 2013

It's great to see the evolution of your rig

Alexander McKenzie · Jan 7, 2013

Thanks. The GT Omega really is a versatile platform for modding with. I have a few more ideas I can add to it when I have more money.

Baz Cutting · Jun 9, 2013

looks awesome.great job

Tim Meuris · Jun 9, 2013

wow, a man with a passion!
about the shakers: ever heared about simvibe?
http://simxperience.com/Products/SimVibe/SimVibeSoftware.aspx
it's a program that is designed to send the data from the game as signals to your shakers
(so no more audio signals but data signals which is way more correct and precise)
haven't tried it yet but I heared it's very good and will buy it as well as some shakers in the future.
another note: the place where you install the shakers is very important as well.
If u have two, why not try to install one under your seat
and one under your pedals if possible?
just an idea,mate. if I see what you've already accomplished this should be peanuts for you...

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

Thanks guys! I should probably update this thread as I have added a few more mods since the last post.

I have heard of SimVibe. It is an awesome looking piece of software. I no longer have the bass shakers though so I can't utilize it.

Photos incoming!

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

I have just finished making my newest addition to the cockpit. A stand for my new (to me) Thrustmaster TH8RS gear stick. I used a leftover piece of the Unistrut I had from the triple monitor stand, a few brackets, some other bits and pieces I had lying about and some Di-Noc to create it. It is pretty solid. Very pleased with it.

I now have all the different types of shifter on the cockpit. H-shifter, Sequential and paddle. Racing with a H-shifter adds a whole new challenge to racing!

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

I have started a new project.

I am going to make a button box to replace the one I have currently, with one that has rotary encoders. To achieve this I am going to use a Leo Bodnar BBI-32 button box interface. The button box will have 21 buttons in total. I also plan on removing the PCB that is inside my custom sequential shifter and will hook that up to the remaining spaces on the Bodnar board. That way I can play Race 07, GTR2 etc without having to remove one of the USB devices as these older games only work with 3 devices at a time. I am going to build a box to house all the PCB's and wires as well.

I am also going to attach a cooling system to my rig to blow cool air onto me. I will be using a 120mm PC case fan wired to an AC adapter. I will use a Rip Speed aluminium cold air feed from an induction kit to channel the cold air. It is rigid enough to allow you to bend the nozzle to redirect the airflow. I will be able to turn the fan on and off with a switch and also adjust the fan speed using a potentiometer. These controls will be integrated into the button box. That is the plan anyway.

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

So I made a start on both the cooling system and the box to hold the controller PCB's.

The cooling pipe thingy is functionally working. Aesthetically it looks like a Doctor Who prop! I will have to do something to make it look better. The fan I have attached is kind of weak so I have ordered a SilverStone SST-FM121B 120mm Fan that can push about 110 CFM of air. It also comes with a fan speed controller. That saves me having to buy a potentiometer.

The box to hold the controller PCB's is almost complete too. I just need to paint it and add my faithful friend Di Noc. The gap on the side allows access to the internals. It has a cover which screws into place.

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

The Leo Bodnar controller arrived today along with the Rotary encoders I ordered from him. I was pleasantly surprised with the encoders. They are really high quality. Much better than the ones you get on eBay.

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

I managed to wire the USB cable in. Those holes are tiny! Very challenging.

All the other pads are about 4 times larger so it should be easier going forward. 4 wires down. 67 to go!

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

Not too much been happening since the last update. I have received my new fan. I think it looks quite fetching in white. It is also a lot more powerful which is nice. I love the little fan speed controller!

I also wrapped the tinfoil in electrical tape.

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

The PCB and button box boxes are finished. Just need to put buttons and wires in.

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

Busted the soldering iron out:

25%

50%

75%

100%

Wires!

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

I have wired everything up now and so far it is working as planned. Just need to attach it all to my GT Omega. I should probably stop calling it a GT Omega as it ceased to be one quite a while ago now!

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

I have finally got around to taking some photos of the new additions to my rig. It has taken a bit longer than I expected (it always does!) but I am extremely pleased with the results. First up a photo of the front of the rig:

As you can see a few new additions.

First up is the new button box:

The button box is made from MDF and uses push buttons, toggle switches and also rotary encoders. I think the rotary encoders feel fantastic. The knobs that go on the rotary encoders have caps that go on them but I decided to leave them off as I like the look of the brass nuts. As well as in game functions, I have an on / off switch for the cooling system. But more on that later.

Next up is the box I made to house all the electronics:

There are no electronic components inside either the button box or the sequential gear stick. The wires attached to both of them run into this box which houses the Leo Bodnar BBI-32 board, USB cables and other assorted cables. On the side of the box is a door that can be unscrewed for access.

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

Now on to the cooling system:

The cooling system is attached underneath the button box and is angled upwards to point at me. As previously mentioned it can be switched on and off via a toggle switch on the button box. The fan needs to be plugged into the mains to work. The fan gives a nice cool breeze which I am pretty happy about.

The speed of the fan can be adjusted via a dial that I have mounted next to the TH8RS gear stick (I also added a bit of Di Noc to the TH8RS).

I think I may be one of the first people to construct such a cooling system (happy to be proved wrong) so I am very proud of it.

Alexander McKenzie · Jun 9, 2013

Last but not least is a mount I built to attach my mobile phone to the steering wheel. The reason I wanted to do this is so that I can use DashMeterPro for pCARS. This is a fantastic piece of software that displays speed, gear, RPM etc. I also have an app to control the mouse and keyboard.

The mount is attached directly to the rim so can turn with the wheel. It is made from a piece of MDF and Di Noc. I bought a £2 phone cover from Amazon and glued it to the MDF. I can now just put my phone in and pull it out when I want to use it. The mount is attached using a single screw that goes into the centre marker screw hole. It is also attached to the spindle of the wheel using hot melt glue. The glue will pick off if I ever need to remove the mount.

These mods have definitely been the most time consuming so far. Totally worth it though! I have a couple of small modifications I still want to do but I think for now I should actually use it to play some games!