new wheel or cockpit

jimboraver · Nov 4, 2014

Hi guys and girls,
i currently have an ageing fanatec gt2 porsche wheel, i have been looking into getting a csw v2 (pushing the budget) or a thrustmaster t500rs (much more sensible money) or tonights brainwave is a proper cockpit and keep the gt2 or a cockpit and the t500rs???
hope that makes sense.........
does a cockpit really make that much difference to the experience??
thx james

Kjell Eilertsen · Nov 4, 2014

I'd buy the T300/TX instead of a T500 if I where you. Can't really comment on cockpit as I'm a desk racer too, but if I had the space for a cockpit I would go for that first and hold on to my GT3 wheel for a while longer. Now I don't have the space so I ordered the CSW v2 instead

(it'll prob rip my poor cheap **** desk to pieces, but that's a problem for then, not now xD)

Mikko Lashay · Nov 4, 2014

A comfortable chair and a stable table at the right height for your arms and legs and a monitor desk mount will do in my opinion, at a much lower price..

Michael Lowe · Nov 4, 2014

I've done chair and table, uncomfortable and (fairly) comfortable, wheelstandpro and chair, and now cockpit. Gtomega evo and t500. The latter combination wins hands down for me.

Kjell Eilertsen · Nov 4, 2014

While as I've already said I don't own a cockpit, I think you will find that a cockpit will help you a LOT more in getting safe and consistent than a new wheel will. Reason for me thinking this is because a while back I decided to try stop my chair from rolling around while driving (I had been using my left foot to hold myself stationary, but when I wanted to clutch it became an issue). So I locked my chair in place and MAN what a difference it made, all of a sudden I could brake later, hit apexes more easily and got a LOT more consistent. I've confirmed this by jumping back and forth between the two several times, the difference is huge.
Now my chair is still not in a perfect position and it can still rotate, so there's room for even more improvement.
But based on this I think having a good sitting position which is rock solid makes a huge difference, so I'd recommend a cockpit over a wheel any day. Besides the GT2 wheel is decent.

Gary Horneck · Nov 4, 2014

Cockpit that is rock solid. I used this setup in my office for quite some time. A $50 seat from a 80's 270z, some wood, monitor stand.

jimortality · Nov 5, 2014

GT Omega ART Cockpit and TX wheel, it's made a big difference to me.

Stig Bidstrup · Nov 5, 2014

Haven't tried a cockpit with 3 monitors and so on-----so I have no clue
if it makes any difference in SPEED because that's what counts..
Stig

Kjell Eilertsen · Nov 5, 2014

Stig Bidstrup said:
Haven't tried a cockpit with 3 monitors and so on-----so I have no clue
if it makes any difference in SPEED because that's what counts..
Stig

Speed is nothing without control

What a cockpit offers is a chair and mounting for your wheel and pedals that does not move or flex while you are driving, which in turn means you become a lot more confident while driving. With confidence comes speed, unless it turns into overconfidence that is

Eric Bergeron · Nov 5, 2014

buy a used car seat in a car scrap and build a good MDF support for your wheel. It will cost you almost nothing and you will be stable and comfortable. You can then change your wheel

eSEA One · Nov 5, 2014

I do not have a cockpit but a solid oak desk with a chair that goes nowhere as it is up against a wall ( office/man-cave is a 1.75 x1.75m room) The pedals are on a solid angled foot base fixed into the desk leg space. But anything with tactile inducers will give you some extra clues to how the car is handling is certainly not going to slow you down!

Stig Bidstrup · Nov 5, 2014

well my steering wheel and pedals have never moved an inch...
but a comfortable seating position in a real seat I can imagine that could give
that little extra confidence...
but the moving cockpits ( seats) would absolutely make me slower
or it would get me hospitalised with a shaken lever pretty fast with all the
sim driving I do...
Stig

Bela Valko · Nov 5, 2014

I started on table then I bought a wheel stand pro, I hated both because I have to press hard the brakes on the clubsport pedal so it slid around nomatter how I tried to fix it in position (on wooden floor).
Since then I have a wooden cockpit and that's it, just like a real car, you don't have to worry about anything.
I would rather play on a DFGT in a cockpit than with a CSWv2 on a desk+office chair.

Stig Bidstrup · Nov 5, 2014

. But anything with tactile inducers will give you some extra clues to how the car is handling is certainly not going to slow you down! [/QUOTE]

the videos with moving cockpits I have seen - I just cant recognise all that shaking going on
haven driven real karts for some years..the real feeling is a constant push to your body
of G forces ( not shaking ) and those cockpits cant simulate a constant G force...
but in RALLY there is a lot of shaking and G forces..

Stig

eSEA One · Nov 5, 2014

Stig Bidstrup said:
. But anything with tactile inducers will give you some extra clues to how the car is handling is certainly not going to slow you down!

the videos with moving cockpits I have seen - I just cant recognise all that shaking going on
haven driven real karts for some years..the real feeling is a constant push to your body
of G forces ( not shaking ) and those cockpits cant simulate a constant G force...
but in RALLY there is a lot of shaking and G forces..

Stig[/QUOTE]
I am not talking about the motion actuators only tactile transducers that give vibrations that can indicate slip and traction. There is a lot of info coming in through the steering wheel so having it come through the seat and pedals will help, especially if you have 4 transducers representing the wheels

Kjell Eilertsen · Nov 5, 2014

Besides the traction loss component is not shaking and bumping, its sliding the seat left and right.
As far as g forces goes, I think the way to go is the GS-4 seat, it's just so damn expensive

jimboraver · Nov 5, 2014

wow, thx for all the replies! Looks like a cockpit is the answer!! Now which one to buy ..........

jimortality · Nov 5, 2014

jimboraver said:
wow, thx for all the replies! Looks like a cockpit is the answer!! Now which one to buy ..........

GT Omega ART with a single monitor stand is mine. Great service and a great rig!

jimboraver · Nov 5, 2014

just had a look and looks goodall out of stock of course lol !! but back in soon will check out some others as well cheers

Gary Horneck · Nov 5, 2014

GTA model - http://www.gtrsimulator.com is where I bought mine. Nicely constructed and rock solid, but designed for a G27 wheel. With some modifications it worked well for the Fanatec wheels.