Have Your Say: Is Bigger Necessarily Better?

[BenCollins]

Because I don't have a steering wheel and use an Xbox controller, I simulate FFB running over curbs by farting heavily.

 

[Scarystuff]

I think VR is the single most thing that can make you better, besides a wheel of course. Even without VR there are still lots of things you can set up to make it better for you, like apps to show/tell you where the other drivers are around you or headtracking so you can look to the sides to see the other drivers. But VR has made me very consistent and I am able to race bumper to bumper now with no sweat and still feel confident enough that I won't cause any accidents. It's just so much easier to judge distance with VR. I will of couse still have a skill ceiling that I can't cross no matter how much money I throw at hardware, but as long as I can still feel small improvements over time, I am happy.
Improved hardware can also increase the immersion factor though, but not necessarily make you any faster. It will just feel better and you will enjoy racing and crusing along more.

 

[stadlereric]

Seems like a great topic, why no poll? I certainly enjoy racing more since I upgraded my G27 to a full Fanatec set. Porsche 918 and F1 Carbon rim with V2 pedals. I also have a race seat and dedicated PC to use. Jump in and go! I have gotten much faster and comfortable at the wheel in the last year or two and I attribute that to better hardware, a dedicated rig and a lot of practice! The only thing I could use is an upgrade from my 1440P 27" screen. Triple's or VR?

 

[CC]

Seems like a great topic, why no poll? I certainly enjoy racing more since I upgraded my G27 to a full Fanatec set. Porsche 918 and F1 Carbon rim with V2 pedals. I also have a race seat and dedicated PC to use. Jump in and go! I have gotten much faster and comfortable at the wheel in the last year or two and I attribute that to better hardware, a dedicated rig and a lot of practice! The only thing I could use is an upgrade from my 1440P 27" screen. Triple's or VR?

VR is the future man , forget the triple screens go for it

 

[ears]

Because I don't have a steering wheel and use an Xbox controller, I simulate FFB running over curbs by farting heavily.

Beware of sausage kerbs.

 

[Leonardo Chaves]

Yeah it does help, it won't make you the best in the world, but it helps i think, each time i upgraded i gained something.

Now the gap between a G27 and a CSW might be smaller compared to going from an entry FFB wheel to a G27, but i imagine it still helps honestly.

 

[hodge like]

I swapped out my G27 (GT brake spring mod) pedals today for CSP that I have owned a while & was notably smoother which I would image would lead to better lap time? Yes I would like a CSL or CSW V2 however my CSR wheel does everything I need with plenty of force. I do use a CS shifter & think it adds to realism & a fan of large screens so a 49" 4K works well. That said, I remember a time being happy enough racing the Xbox 360 with a pad.

 

[MarkR]

I only read the title, if this is about the female breasts and 4k TV's then yes, of course, bigger is better to a point.

The sim equipment has made little difference for me, I know I'm mostly the limiting factor. I agree with a lot that has already been said that good pedals and the depth/elevation perception of VR certainly help.

The wheel has made little difference for me, previous generation Fanatec CSR Elite to Thrustmaster TX458 to current gen Fanatec v2 hub and my times are about the same. Fanatec v2 servo base and add ons are lovely of course but I'm not sure they are faster. On games where the gamepad works (eg not pcars) I can usually match my wheel times without too much trouble, all those years of gamepad racing muscle memory come in handy.

Regardless of going faster, would I have a cockpit setup for the immersion and fun? Yes, I would. Sim racing is a bargain compared to real track time and all the related car wear and tear and inevitable upgrades.

 

[AnklaX]

Better hardware helps speed but only to a point.
I've seen an alien driving Dirt rally with DFGT so effortlessly icredibly fast that to be that good, I'll have to be born again with specially granted talent from god and start racing as a toddler and then maybe I can match that kind of driving.
So no better hardware doesn't automatically give you speed but helps with immersion and help you improve if you haven't reached your peak.
There will always be someone faster or better than you.

 

[Yapci]

Will it increase immersion? Definitely yes.
Will it make you faster? Maybe, but not necessarily.
Will it make you more consistent? Yes.
Will it make you more conscious about the car? Yes.

Can an alien be it with a g25 and stock pedals? Yes.
Could he drive for an hour a DD wheel and HE pedals? Maybe not.
Does hardware makes you know more things than before? No, but you can definitely make harder moves to a g25 than a DD wheel and during longer races, so it's kinda "cheating" even though you know how to drive (but you won't stand a real race in a fiat punto).

The bigger the better? To a certain extent yes. Don't think you need the hardware in the photo (it doesn't even look nice to me), but there are certain must that I would love to have:
- DD drive wheel
- Pro level pedals
- A good shifter
- Triples or VR to see apexes.
- Cockpit (this I have yuju!)
- Simvibe

More than that I think won't increase feelings that much, but all is a plus obviously.

 

[G2Jason]

G29 on an Ironing board is all I need. It's adjustable and easy to out away.

40" TV screen does the job, and a comfy armchair means I don't need any other fancy equipment to enjoy myself and race for fun.

Genius!! . . I wish I would have known this prior to purchasing my Wheel Stand Pro!

 

[Jimlaad43]

Genius!! . . I wish I would have known this prior to purchasing my Wheel Stand Pro!

I have only @Rui F. Martins to thank. His avatar was my inspiration!

 

[Rui F. Martins]

I have only @Rui F. Martins to thank. His avatar was my inspiration!

It's the best budget wheel stand i can think of
The only thing i recomend is to be carefull with the choice of chair, if you use a wheel like a Driving force GT a chair with wheels will be ok, with a G29 every time you brake harder you will move the chair backwards instead of braking
Nothing that taking the wheels off won't solve

 

[SimdriveVXR]

Personally i dont think hardware makes much of a difference at all once your used to your setup, case in point is Barnacles Nerdgasm from youtube, triples, load cell brakes etc and he is terrible.. all the gear no idea. Whereas i have a friend who used to sim race up until quite recently who was bloody fast with a standard DFGT bolted to a hacked up bed side table with a fiat coupe turbo seat attached to it.

Obviously you may improve due to the technical restraints of your current set up but spending more money doesn't make you a better/faster driver

 

[Durge Driven]

Anyone seen a driver on a Black Momo drive around the outside of someone with CSW / CSP
happens all the time

Just take real life, look how many own supercars that could not drive to save themselves

 

[General Stoner]

I just upgraded from a G27 to a Fanatec v2.5 forza bundle. Initially i was a little slower especially on the shifting but after a week or so and after a few adjustments to the pedals i would have to say i am a little quicker and a lot more consistent. I found the biggest improvement for me was seating position. My times dropped a lot when i got a proper cockpit. i also just replaced the seat that came with the GT ART GT1 and the adjustment sliders were garbage and only one side locked in so seat would move a little bit backward on one side when i was braking. since replacing seat with a good seat that does not move at all my times have dropped a little more. Some people the seat may not bother but i found it very distracting

 

[randMracer]

I think that if someone buy's high end hardware, with in mind, he will be faster as soon as he will plug it and will beat the aliens, he's mistaken and expose himself to big disapointment. Everytime i changed my hardware, it took me a while to readapt my reflex : a one step behind in my progression.

It's a fact that performance is not laying in the hardware itself, but in gift and work : just take a look on RSR Live Timing best laps where you can have the description of the hardware aliens use and you will see. So not having top notch hardware ain't no valuable excuse not to practise.

That said, it doesn' t mean that hardware is to be neglected ; the first and and most important thing is that it must be reliable ; the second, is, that depending on the stage of your progression, you might need a hardware change.

If i was given the opportunity to jump back in time and start it all over again, this is how i would proceed :

- beginning with something like g27/g29 wheel pedal shifter combo is ok and can now be found at reasonable rates (at the moment where i'm writing, i just googled and saw a second hand at 150 € in the first results)

- instead, i would focus on a good screen, minimum size 27" for a single screen setup, because you won't go very far if you don't set a correct FOV. Even better if you can afford to setup a triple screen or VR from the start. I personaly commit the mistake to ignore this point and use a 24" far from my eyes with a too wide FOV, and had to relearn almost everything when i realized my mistake

Beginning with this, you have what you need to focus properly on the right racing line while beeing able to stay aware of what is going on on the track (btw, please don't forget to switch virtual mirror on)

- when you'll reach the stage where you want to improve your braking technique, you might feel the need to upgrade your pedals, especially if like me, you're driving real car in real world , as Ghoul already pointed that out in that thread : some say there are ok with pots, lucky they, and i would recommend you to stick to them if you're ok with it, because you wil save a big amount of money and time (as you will see if you're patient enough to read this post till the end).

I just can't get consistent with pots braking. If you can't afford high end pedals, load cell mods can be a good compromise for you ; to be true, i didn't find it full satisfying, because it tends to reduce pedal travel, and once again, interfered with my real world driving experience, where you use both travel and force. So i did the jump to load cell pedals (i used Fanatec CSP v1, had to go back to Thrustmaster T3PA, and did the jump to Fanatec CSL Elite LC a few month ago) That move implied further moves :

- As LC pedals implies using more force to achieve full braking, you'll need to set up an environment where
the pedal set won't move away from you everytime you have to brake hard
- i tried to use wheelstand with a classic chair, it just didn't do the job, so i lost a 100 € here, and what i recommend is just to forget about it
- having no more money to spend, i began to be a little more imaginative, and drew a few holes in the floor of my house to : secure my chair to the floor with the help of brackets (yeah, i defenetly ruined the chair's design) and secure the pedal set to the floor ; the wheel was secure to the desk (that was drilled to use the mounting holes, so i also ruined the desk design)

I used this configuration for a little more than a year before the chairback began to feel like having its own life away from the seat. That made me considered for a real automotive chair : unless you plan to use it on a motion system (where you will need to secure a harness), try to find a basic one that doesn't need the so expensive FIA homologation, and i spent a 100 € there.

With this new chair came the need of having a cockpit and beeiing short of money (as usual), i used my skills and the machine tools i already own to build one from unused wooden pieces and that's where i'm standing now.

As the moment, i'm thinking about further moves :

- i now realize that i would like to have the ability to fine tune my position in my cockpit (wheel height, seat inclination), wich is not possible unless i rebuild most of it : due to the amount of work needed, i think it's a better solution to start it all over again from scratch using 80/20 profiles to make it fit my needs perfectly ; as a first estimation, it will cost me about 300 euros and 4 full days of work to do that. I'm aware that 80/20 solutions already exist on the market, but it's at least 600 euros here (including screen standing), and still not allowing me to fine tune my position from my seat (as you would do it in a real car)

- a little flash back on the LC pedals : though i'm using Fanatec CSL Elite LC pedals, i really hesitate to recommend buying them. It 's true that the feeling out of the box is more than ok for me and that i didn't find anything that can compare at this range of price (about 250 €). However, after a short period of usage, some malfunctions appeared (like the gas pedal whobbling randomly when releasing it), and even if that can be worked around using manual configuration, i'm not sure it won't get worse in the future, hope it won't be too soon. As i can't afford the 1 000 € euros more high end pedals like Heusinkveld or others, i think there is still a niche in the market for affordable and reliable LC Pedals, Mr Thrustmaster if you read me .

I don't feel like buying a DD wheel in a soon future. First have to focus on having a perfect driving position for me that will allow long race and training sessions without getting distracted from little aches here and there and improve my heel and toe technique, and that will take me a while cause i ain't no alien. But i don't doubt a time will come when i'll feel that i'll have to pay more attention to FFB to improve my driving, and maybe then i will consider doing the jump and probably have to sollicitate your generosity to do so

As a conclusion : don't be a fashion victim, focus on consistently improving your driving technique (go to the academy here, that is no doubt the best initiative i've ever seen since years, and it's a pitty i can't participate due to my weird job schedule), only upgrade when you feel it will help (i think a good sign is when you achieve a technique but find hard to do it consistently along a whole lap, even after hours of practising) and choose proven reliable hardware. As in all life activities, be attentive to your real needs, take time to think by yourself to find what best suits you (the market won't help you there), adn share with others.

Happy track everybody. Best Regards.

Freddo

When does your book come out?

 

[HoiHman]

Yeah it does help, it won't make you the best in the world, but it helps i think, each time i upgraded i gained something.

Now the gap between a G27 and a CSW might be smaller compared to going from an entry FFB wheel to a G27, but i imagine it still helps honestly.

Sorry to break it to you mate but the G27 is an entry FFB wheel.

 

[VFX Pro]

Seems like a great topic, why no poll? I certainly enjoy racing more since I upgraded my G27 to a full Fanatec set. Porsche 918 and F1 Carbon rim with V2 pedals. I also have a race seat and dedicated PC to use. Jump in and go! I have gotten much faster and comfortable at the wheel in the last year or two and I attribute that to better hardware, a dedicated rig and a lot of practice! The only thing I could use is an upgrade from my 1440P 27" screen. Triple's or VR?

High rez triple (10 or 12K) is way better then mega low rez Rift and Vive. I tried them both and immediately abandoned and went back to my triple Acer Predator. Get 100hz at 10K, no VR can come close to the highly realistic details and resolution.

 

[Shadowoff]

My logitech driving force gt did pretty good. Atleast have I been able to claim some track records in pCars. Now I swapped to the G29 and there was no real difference in terms of lap times.