Buying advice please - Next Level v3 Motion Platform

[MarkR]

I'm looking for some advice and thoughts of other owners or people with good knowledge of the product, please.

I always said I'd buy myself a motion simulator if I could afford one and had the room available. Well, that day may have arrived. I'm impressed by what I've seen of the Next Level v3 Motion Platform

This seems to meet all my criteria:

+ Limited space requirements, I don't have room for a huge sim rig but this seems compact enough to work.
+ Works with Oculus Rift VR, that fixed head position setting solution is impressive
+ Great support and regular updates from the developers
+ Available in the UK
+ Works with my current Thrustmaster wheel and accessories.
+ Sub £3k for the full setup, I'm not a pro racer I'm not looking for a practice simulator this is just for fun so the cost/fun balance has to be right.

So help me do the man maths! Is it worth it?

Is there another similar product I should also look at? It would need to be reasonably compact, work with VR, available in the UK without too much hassle and in the same £3-5K price range.

Is there anywhere I can try one or even better several of the systems in the UK?

 

[Spinelli]

Those seats will certainly do the trick if you can attach them OK - the lighter the better..!
I can't believe those prices!

Do you know if I need any of the mounts, brackets, sliders, etc. I posted or can I just get away with the seat and it's holes in the bottom? I don't know anything about seats so I apologize for the annoying questions but I'm so eager to get this thing up and running.

 

[anton_Chez]

It depends on the hole pattern on the seat. We've had to extend the holes on the platform to fit some of our seats. Only way to know is to sit the seat on top of the platform and see if they line up and if not, by how much are they missing. You may need a slider depending on your need to move the seat and if you have movement in other areas to compensate for not having one. I used to use one and I've since removed it on the new chassis. Don't really need it now.

 

[Spinelli]

Great. Thank you. What about the following? If the seat already has holes, which it does, then what are the point of these?? I can't figure it out.

https://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/555/70225/10002/-1

God I'm stupid when it comes to thus stuff.

P.S. I bought a Buttkicker Gamer 2 to go with the NLRM v3. The NLRM v3 comes with a Buttkicker mount so I had buy one to complete the missing piece. Can't have an empty, unused mount sitting there begging to be used now can we?
It'll be my first time with, both, motion and tactile transducers.

 

[Jeremy Ford]

The seat mounting hole width distance on the NLV3 platform is 355mm. That doesn't match any normal seat, it's 10mm out. Only the the Next Level seat fits this arrangement. Look online and you'll find bottom mounting seat bolt holes are 345mm apart. It's not a disaster as you can file open the holes (5mm each side) to bridge that gap.

 

[Mascot]

The seat mounting hole width distance on the NLV3 platform is 355mm. That doesn't match any normal seat, it's 10mm out. Only the the Next Level seat fits this arrangement. Look online and you'll find bottom mounting seat bolt holes are 345mm apart. It's not a disaster as you can file open the holes (5mm each side) to bridge that gap.

Yep, like this (zoom in on the last image to see the positioning/orientation):

 

[anton_Chez]

Check out the pics that @Mascot posted, it shows how he opened the holes with a simple round barrel file. Takes a little while but it's nice and clean.

DO NOT look at my pics, they, well, are not

LOL beat me to it by a second....

 

[Mascot]

Check out the pics that @Mascot posted, it shows how he opened the holes with a simple round barrel file. Takes a little while but it's nice and clean.

DO NOT look at my pics, they, well, are not

LOL beat me to it by a second....

Make sure to bag/seal with tape the rest of the NLV3 when filing - you do NOT want any filings getting into ball joints or internals of the unit, unless you like the sound of grinding metal and cash registers.
Plop the whole thing in a bin bag with just the bits you want exposed, and tape that baby up like a hostage, wrapping the ball joints like you own a masking tape factory. Then hoover the lot before unwrapping/debagging.

 

[Spinelli]

[delete]

 

[Spinelli]

1) If I don't want to drill into the NLM, should I buy these and then drill/extend the correct holes into them instead of the NLM? I would have loved to just bolt the seat directly without using anymore hardware (more parts, more complexity, more weight) but if I have to, should I buy these???
https://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/555/70225/10002/-1

2) Also, most pics I see have the seat bolted to the NLM using not only the bottom holes, but also side holes...I don't know if my seat has side holes or even how to do that. Is this a must or are the 4 bolts on the bottom of the seat good enough?


3)

Yep, like this (zoom in on the last image to see the positioning/orientation):

Did you do that by hand or some sort of drill?

 

[Jeremy Ford]

1) Yes you can use a bracket to bridge the 10mm gap with a bottom mount seat.

2) Depends on the seat. Car seats with tilt adjustable backs are bottom mounted. Fixed back racing seats are usually side mounted. Do you not have the seat in your possession?

3) He used a needle hand file.

 

[Mascot]

3) yep, an 8mm diameter round file, done by hand. Easy and quick, the steel is relatively soft.

 

[Mascot]

If you do file, be careful not to bash the main body of the NLV3 below. There's not a huge amount of clearance, and if the unit is bagged and taped it can be difficult to gauge. Short sharp strokes is the order of the day, and put some cardboard or foam protection underneath if you can.

 

[Spinelli]

I unpacked the NLMv3 and, wow, heavier than expected.

I tried the diagnostics to make sure the unit is hitting the correct acceleration and top speeds it's supposed to on all axes and directions but I wasn't able to figure it out. Anyone know how I can do this? It looks like it's possible in the NLMv3 software but I can't figure it out.

Also, I just read that the NLMv3 has vibration motors inside as well...is that true or false? It's not advertised or mentioned anywhere on NLR's site, software, nor documentation...

 

[Mascot]

I unpacked the NLMv3 and, wow, heavier than expected.

I tried the diagnostics to make sure the unit is hitting the correct acceleration and top speeds it's supposed to on all axes and directions but I wasn't able to figure it out. Anyone know how I can do this? It looks like it's possible in the NLMv3 software but I can't figure it out.

Also, I just read that the NLMv3 has vibration motors inside as well...is that true or false? It's not advertised or mentioned anywhere on NLR's site, software, nor documentation...

Nope, no vibration motors. Where did you read that? Vibrations are created by the motion of the actuators, not by separate vibration motors.

Measure your seat holes carefully before amending your mounting points on the NLV3..!

 

[anton_Chez]

I think it does have vibration built in, but it's very soft especially if you are used to tactile units. I don't think there is a setting for it, however, they just work.

 

[Jeremy Ford]

I pulled some details from the official datasheet and it does mention built-in vibrations a few times. Copy and pasted the pertinent bits. But I don't think we're talking transducer vibrations, the NLV3 motors are pretty quick and it's the motors creating the sensation through rapid movement.

Tactile Feedback – Vibration features simulating road bumps, road texture, engine vibrations, gear changes, collisions, rubs & bumps. We use in game telemetry data delivering true and accurate feedback

• Vibrations for frequencies up to 50hz

Tactile Feedback

• True in game feedback based on car telemetry information
• Two side/points vibration capabilities
• Simulates road bumps, road texture, vibrations, gear changes, collisions, horizontal rubs & bumps

 

[Mascot]

My understanding has always been that vibration effects can be created by the actuators, but that there are no separate dedicated vibration motors in there.

In fact I'm sure of it.

I'll eat my Sparco on YouTube if wrong.

 

[Spinelli]

I tested using some sims and different cars (slow, soft cars to modern day f1 cars) and the unit seems to be working good. I'm getting 20 degrees / second speeds and 10 degrees movements in moving both ways for both axes so seems to be working accordingly to it's marketed specs for those. I can't get accleration speeds higher than around 200 though; it's marketed at up to 360 though. Maybe it's just my current settings (all default) or game.

I can't wait to get my seat and Buttkicker this week!

 

[anton_Chez]

Try turning the gain setting up in post processing tab in one of the profiles. Be careful though as even a little bit will make it a lot more wild than the stock 1.00. This may give you the increased speed you are looking to reconcile with the specs.

 

[blanes]

Wow great thread which I did not know even existed and happy to find there are more than a few new NLM V3 owners here ! It is such a great compact system for the money and I had one of the first V2 units which I loved then upgraded to the V3 when it arrived. It is quieter and the motion delivery is more refined & precise.

I've been away from racing for couple of long periods this past year due to life & other stuff and just started getting back into it again enjoying the Le Mans pC2 dlc Interesting to see how you guys modified the mounting to fit other seats, made me wonder why that is not done at the factory as it seems logical. The platform software has also come along hugely and is great how you can now modifythe post processing effects and drive a buttkicker without needing simvibe.