Should I upgrage my steering wheel and pedals or just my pedals?

[John Kerry]

Hi all, I am currently using a Logitech Driving Force GT wheel and pedals and was curious if I could just upgrage my pedals instead of both the wheel and pedals. I don't have much of a budget and I was not looking to upgrade past say a Thrustmaster T300 (second hand).

Any advice will be appreciated and any reasonable suggestions please. Thank you in advance.

 

[AccAkut]

Hi all, I am currently using a Logitech Driving Force GT wheel and pedals and was curious if I could just upgrage my pedals instead of both the wheel and pedals. I don't have much of a budget and I was not looking to upgrade past say a Thrustmaster T300 (second hand).

Any advice will be appreciated and any reasonable suggestions please. Thank you in advance.

I currently still run a DFGT wheel with DIY modded G25 pedals (made bigger, new potis, loadcell brake), and looking back it was a good idea. Just having a clutch pedal changes so much about the driving mechanics and control.

 

[Speckle]

This is a tricky one on a limited budget. If I were in your position, I think I would begin my upgrade path with a T300 which should be a significant upgrade from the Logitech, and then look at loadcell pedals at some point in the future when your finances allow.

 

[gecco]

While the DFGT might not be top of the line, it still is a decent wheel, however its pedals are lacking both the clutch and the load cell brake, both of which add loads and loads of immersion to your driving. I would look into a set of Fanatec elite pedals with the load cell brake addon.
Clutch pedal, it must be said, is not really neccessary these days, unless you are into older cars.
Also, for the clutch to make real sense, a H-pattern shifted would be required as well.
But in any case the load cell brake adds more to the experience then the best of wheels could do.
So my suggestion is to upgrade pedal with load cell first, wheel later

 

[manc0ntr0]

I will go first for a new pedals if I was on your skin

 

[Cote Dazur]

Load cell pedals

 

[John Kerry]

Thanks guys for the responses. So if I was to buy pedals what would work with my wheel and do they have to be load cell pedals?

 

[gnoshme]

A significant change I found when going to load cell (Fanatec CSR to Fanatec CSL) was with the default setting I had to push harder on the brake. It's more realistic, but as a side effect the pedals need to be mounted better. If you're currently just using your pedals on the floor it's worth knowing in advance that going to load cell will mean working out some way to keep them in place. Plenty of threads on that.

 

[manc0ntr0]

Agree with that. Load cell brake needs to be well mounted in a fixed position.

If you are on PC, you can connect them via USB as a new device.

 

[Emery]

So if I was to buy pedals what would work with my wheel and do they have to be load cell pedals?

All brands & models of pedals should work for you via USB. They won't be connecting to your wheel.

@gnoshme's note about keeping the pedals in place is important.

Fanatec ClubSport Elite pedals with the Load Cell Brake kit is ideal for someone on a budget desiring higher end pedals. Among other things, they offer more options for mounting.

 

[John Kerry]

Thanks guys that's great advice. I never thought about how the pedals need to be mounted. I need to think about this.

 

[maelstrom]

All brands & models of pedals should work for you via USB.

Yes and no. Thrustmaster pedals need a special USB adapter (available separately) if you're not using a Thrustmaster wheel.

 

[John Kerry]

This is a tricky one on a limited budget. If I were in your position, I think I would begin my upgrade path with a T300 which should be a significant upgrade from the Logitech, and then look at loadcell pedals at some point in the future when your finances allow.

Hi Maelstrom and others. I wanted to update and thank you.
I did end up taking your advice and getting a used T300RS GT which has the T3PA pedals. I think I got it for a very fair price. After taking a while to calibrate it and set it up I got it working and it has made a big difference. What a transfomation, I never thought the difference would be that much.

Thank you very much.

 

[dud]

I strongly feel that pedals are the more important upgrade. For me going better pedals made a much bigger difference than going Thrustmaster 300 to Accuforce 2.

 

[John Kerry]

I strongly feel that pedals are the more important upgrade. For me going better pedals made a much bigger difference than going Thrustmaster 300 to Accuforce 2.

Hey dud (ha ha). You are right the pedals are a big improvement, even the accelerator pedal has made a improvement but at least in AMS the wheel upgrade from the Driving Force GT to the T300 has made alot of difference as well. Hopefully next upgrade will be to loadcell pedals.

 

[Speckle]

I strongly feel that pedals are the more important upgrade. For me going better pedals made a much bigger difference than going Thrustmaster 300 to Accuforce 2.

Yes, a pedal upgrade to a loadcell solution offering the ability to modulate braking will make the biggest difference to laptimes. But, laptimes are not the be all end all of the sim racing experience. From the OPs point of view, I felt that the move to a T300 would feel like a bigger upgrade overall.

When I upgraded to loadcell pedals, my laptimes improved but, the experience of driving felt almost the same. When I upgraded to a DD wheel, I couldn't stop grinning for days

 

[John Kerry]

Yes, a pedal upgrade to a loadcell solution offering the ability to modulate braking will make the biggest difference to laptimes. But, laptimes are not the be all end all of the sim racing experience. From the OPs point of view, I felt that the move to a T300 would feel like a bigger upgrade overall.

When I upgraded to loadcell pedals, my laptimes improved but, the experience of driving felt almost the same. When I upgraded to a DD wheel, I couldn't stop grinning for days

Hey Speckle. Thanks for making me jealous...lol.

 

[Speckle]

Ah, sorry, not my intention - I was extremely happy with my T300 for a lot of years! It really is an excellent wheel and way better value for money than any DD solution!

 

[John Kerry]

Ah, sorry, not my intention - I was extremely happy with my T300 for a lot of years! It really is an excellent wheel and way better value for money than any DD solution!

That does make me feel better. Thanks

 

[Mark Oates]

I'll never understand how pedals are more important than a wheel. We watch the screen, add infomation (brakes turning etc), feel the feedback, watch, adjust...etc. it's a loop. So anyone saying pedals matter more, I don't see it exactly the same way. Yes good pedals can make your braking input more consistent, but it won't make the feedback from the system any better....and some of us never had a problem with even super cheapo brakes...but a good wheel can give you tons of information to respond to imho. Cuz what does it matter if your brakes are nice but you don't feel the subtle changes in car balance as your using them?

That said, the T300 was an AMAZING upgrade from me and even with the 2 pedal plastic brakes.....it's was great. Feedback was a LARGE improvement. I now use a csw2.5 but the T300 is a great wheel imho.