Have Your Say – What's Your Favourite Piece of Sim Gear Right Now?

P. Winkler Simracing Rig.JPG
This week’s “Have Your Say’ article focuses on sim hardware; share your current favourite piece of sim racing gear in the comments below.

Sim racing can be an expensive hobby. It’s easy to pour a lot of your hard-earned money into new hardware. Sometimes those investments can be a let-down, while other times the product is all we’d hoped and more. We want to hear your stories from the latter case.

The right piece of gear can significantly enhance your enjoyment of sim racing. That enjoyment can be based on added immersion, more comfort while driving, or even something as simple as replacing a defective unit that was overdue for replacement. A favourite piece of sim gear doesn’t need to be expensive, of course. It could be something that you worked hard to be able to afford, something you inherited or received as a gift, or even something you found used.

Added immersion might be the most obvious reason to name something as your favourite piece of gear. This could be your first wheel, which meant a major step forward from a controller. Or a VR headset, which allows you to step into an alternate world where you’re piloting your favourite racecar. Or maybe a motion setup that allows you to feel every bump, curb, dip and crest.

Comfort is another great reason to love a sim hardware. Being hunched over a desk for endurance racing can be uncomfortable bordering on painful. And perhaps that new wheelstand or cockpit has opened up new possibilities in the world of sim racing for you.

Whatever it is, tell us in the comments below. Let us know which piece of sim hardware you love most, and why you love it.
About author
Mike Smith
I have been obsessed with sim racing and racing games since the 1980's. My first taste of live auto racing was in 1988, and I couldn't get enough ever since. Lead writer for RaceDepartment, and owner of SimRacing604 and its YouTube channel. Favourite sims include Assetto Corsa Competizione, Assetto Corsa, rFactor 2, Automobilista 2, DiRT Rally 2 - On Twitter as @simracing604

Comments

My Geko Systems GS-105 (G-Seat) is my number one piece. Being able to feel the corning, braking and acceleration forces along with feeling the forces from when I trade paint is simply awesome
Very interesting gear! never seen this G-Seat before. How much does it cost you? can't seem to find the price on their website.
 
Haven't got a fancy rig, it's just some wooden one I knocked up to race on lol, just bought a thrustmaster tmx Pro as my g27 broke and I quite like it to be fair, just need to get used to the new pedals.
 
I too, would have to say my WMR headset.
Though I haven't used it in almost a year since selling my GTX1080Ti, it still is the thing which transformed simracing most for me.
I am hoping at some point, I can find a decent enough card to start using it again.
 
Joystick. I grew up in the 80's and that is how i control cars in games. It is just hard to find them in the low range price. I feel the more expensive a item it is the harder it is on maintenance and trouble shooting issues. I have a Xbox 360 game-pad as a backup device but it hurts the joints in my thumbs and i cant endure long events.
 
I have taken a bit of a break from sim racing for a while. But I just had a jump back into the reverb g2, no matter how many times I take a break, the first session back in vr is somewhat magical. Every single time, it makes me smile.
 
Premium
I recently switched from the T3PA pro pedals to the T-LCM's and what a difference. Picking up huge amounts of time with them so these are definitely my favourite piece of sim hardware.
 
Normally I would say my DD1 rig, but in times of semiconductor shortage and crypto mining I'm so happy to own a RTX 3090 for flawless VR racing. It was realy hard to get one below twice the msrp.
 
Joystick. I grew up in the 80's and that is how i control cars in games. It is just hard to find them in the low range price. I feel the more expensive a item it is the harder it is on maintenance and trouble shooting issues. I have a Xbox 360 game-pad as a backup device but it hurts the joints in my thumbs and i cant endure long events.
That VKB NXT Premium I posted about earlier has arrived and it's indeed worth the hype. Look into it if you want a high-mid end product for a fairly decent price. The Standard one should run only 125-130USD in the states and 140EUR~ in Europe.

I know it's more expensive than the other joysticks in a low price range, but I feel like it won't keep breaking like the cheaper joysticks do, and the sensors are great. Beware that there are different VKB stores for different regions and shipping might be substantial depending where you are.

The nice bonus is that you can then also use it for flight or space games. Just beware it is *PC only* and will NOT work on consoles from what I can tell.

Do a lot of research because you might not like some parts of it for racing use. The new ones are very heavily grease damped which might be good or bad for you.
 
VR is the reason for all the rest of the stuff i own i guess. It's made racing more thrilling than anything gone before from a sensory pov, the only thing that'd complete the experience of feeling like your ramming around in a real motor is a motion rig.

The G2 does it for me, it's reached the point of monitor clarity when you ss it up to 3k per eye resolution. There's more incredible tech incoming soon though, it'll only get better.
 
Well now, due to budget issues my hardware hasn't changed in a number of years, so the most important hardware to me is my well used Logitech G27 wheel and shifter. My favorite software would definitely be Crew Chief v4. Love them both!
 
Very interesting gear! never seen this G-Seat before. How much does it cost you? can't seem to find the price on their website.
It was around $1800 USD (5 years ago) and the price will depend on the exchange rate with the zloty.
 
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My trusted Logitech G29 that I got for free from a buddy...
I mean, I don't really have any other sim gear.

Maybe the bodnar-cable for the G27 pedals so I don't have to use the G29 pedals due to me sitting in an office chair with wheels. The G29 pedals needs a bit more force, so I would probably push myself to the other side of the room or something.
This made me laugh - I have velcro straps that hold my office chair to my pedals (well wheelstand actually)!

They're Fanatec (CSL Elite I think) LC pedals with the adjustable resistance set to maybe 2-3 out of 10 for my non gym-junkie legs!
 
I have a PIEN Pedal Mount which is metal frame that connects my casters of my chair to my pedals. Its a great solution for those people who don't have enough room for even a folding sim chair.
 
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