Newbie Looking For Upgrade Path (G29)

[The_MisFitz]

Hey everyone! Very new here and pretty new to sim racing! A little background; I got a Logitech G29 and Assetto Corsa to primarily learn how to drift. This is my main focus and will continue to be, however I'd really like to start a little bit of actual racing in the future as well. I've been learning to drift on various servers and with various cars/maps. I'm getting the inevitable itch to upgrade my hardware. I just have no idea what the smart way to do that is.

I intent to get a playseat challenge and a handbrake in the near future since office chair racing is getting very old. My G29 w/ shifter is completely bone stock. I'm looking to upgrade as much as I can but I'm not looking to spend tons on stuff like high-end Fanatec gear. I guess I'm trying to figure out whether or not I should sell the G29 and get a new wheel in the same price tier or if I should try and mod the wheel/shifter/pedals for now. I don't have a set budget but I don't want to spend too much since I don't need any upgrades. I think the playseat and a handbrake will make a big difference. I'd also really like to improve the pedals because throttle management is where I have the hardest time. The G29 pedals feel really squishy. I'm thinking inverting them would be a good first move to make them a bit more realistic.

According to the buying guide here on reddit, it looks like the G29 and T300 are in the same tier. Is the T300 better than the G29? It seems it has a brushless and belt-driven motor. I'm not sure what brushless means and I'm not sure if the belt-driven motor is that much more worth it over the G29. Aside from that, I've seen the TS-PC Racer and Fanatec CSL base recommended. The CSL looks awesome but the base seems to be around $360 before shipping and I'm not sure what else I would need (rim, pedals, shifter, etc.) to get a fully working setup.

Sorry for the disorganized structure and question. I'm simply new to this world and there's so much to it that I don't really know where to start. I want to get button boxes, and touchscreen panels, and buttkickers and all this stuff but I just don't know what the logical and cost-effective upgrade path would be for someone who is really new and just looking to improve skill. Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

PS: Is there any list/directory of G29 mods that I could browse through? I've googled and such but can't find anything that seems established.


EDIT: Didn't clarify that I am on PC.

 

[Greame Champion]

T300 @ 100% all the way. If on tight budget. Th8a shifter is good fun aswell. I own a playseat challenge and it is perfect. You can pack it all away.

 

[The_MisFitz]

T300 @ 100% all the way. If on tight budget. Th8a shifter is good fun aswell. I own a playseat challenge and it is perfect. You can pack it all away.

By 100% do you mean 100% FFB power?Also, what’s the benefit of the TH8A over the G29 shifter? What makes it worth it?

 

[d69morpwr]

My best advice is even if you have to wait a little bit over buy don't under buy. What I mean by that is many of us have bought multiple wheels,pedals,shifters to finally buy something really good in the end. Save yourself a lot of money if you plan on doing this for a long time and buy something good first. At least as good as you can afford. The TH8A is an ok shifter the Fanatec is miles better. The t300 is a good base and the PC-RACER is definitely better. Ive had both shifters and wheel bases. Problem is even at PC-RACER prices youre getting close to the cost of a lower end Direct Drive base which isn't even in the same league as the PC-RACER. Id do some research and get more familiar with whats available before you buy anything.

 

[The_MisFitz]

My best advice is even if you have to wait a little bit over buy don't under buy. What I mean by that is many of us have bought multiple wheels,pedals,shifters to finally buy something really good in the end. Save yourself a lot of money if you plan on doing this for a long time and buy something good first. At least as good as you can afford. The TH8A is an ok shifter the Fanatec is miles better. The t300 is a good base and the PC-RACER is definitely better. Ive had both shifters and wheel bases. Problem is even at PC-RACER prices youre getting close to the cost of a lower end Direct Drive base which isn't even in the same league as the PC-RACER. Id do some research and get more familiar with whats available before you buy anything.

I didn’t realize the PC-Racer was so expensive. I thought it was closer to $500 but Walmart seems to have it cheapest at $700. I think anything near the price of a DD wheel is too far out of my price range. Likely overkill for my skill and interest level as of right now too. I want to overbuy but I don’t think I have the ability right now. I don’t have the budget nor the space for a proper rig at the moment. What do you think would be the best intermediate hardware before getting into DD price ranges?

 

[d69morpwr]

I didn’t realize the PC-Racer was so expensive. I thought it was closer to $500 but Walmart seems to have it cheapest at $700. I think anything near the price of a DD wheel is too far out of my price range. Likely overkill for my skill and interest level as of right now too. I want to overbuy but I don’t think I have the ability right now. I don’t have the budget nor the space for a proper rig at the moment. What do you think would be the best intermediate hardware before getting into DD price ranges?

I liked my T300 and it served me well. Its a good intermediate wheel. If you ever decide to upgrade past that just get a DD. Yes they are more expensive but then you are done.

 

[deandsfsdfewsad]

my suggestion is to keep the g29 wheel and upgrade the pedals first to the fanatec csl elite lc pedals, that will give you consistency and speed and if you are still keen on the hobby after 18months or so upgrade the wheelbase and steering wheel to the clubsport v2.5 (maybe a new upgraded version will be out by then?) - that being said, only upgrade the pedals if you're mounting them if not you won't gain anything to the g29 pedals (I can personally vouch for that)

 

[Greame Champion]

Sounds like you definitely need a playseat challenge and yes 100% ffb

 

[The_MisFitz]

my suggestion is to keep the g29 wheel and upgrade the pedals first to the fanatec csl elite lc pedals, that will give you consistency and speed and if you are still keen on the hobby after 18months or so upgrade the wheelbase and steering wheel to the clubsport v2.5 (maybe a new upgraded version will be out by then?) - that being said, only upgrade the pedals if you're mounting them if not you won't gain anything to the g29 pedals (I can personally vouch for that)

Does mounting to a playseat challenge count? Ideally, I’d love to find a way to mount a pedal set inverted on the playseat.

 

[deandsfsdfewsad]

Does mounting to a playseat challenge count? Ideally, I’d love to find a way to mount a pedal set inverted on the playseat.

I guess that could work, never tried one before. If you have the budget I'd recommend the GT1 Evo by Simlab?

 

[The_MisFitz]

I guess that could work, never tried one before. If you have the budget I'd recommend the GT1 Evo by Simlab?

I’d love a GT1 Evo but it looks like it’s around $500 for just the rig. That’s a little out of my budget for the time being.

 

[The_MisFitz]

My best advice is even if you have to wait a little bit over buy don't under buy. What I mean by that is many of us have bought multiple wheels,pedals,shifters to finally buy something really good in the end. Save yourself a lot of money if you plan on doing this for a long time and buy something good first. At least as good as you can afford. The TH8A is an ok shifter the Fanatec is miles better. The t300 is a good base and the PC-RACER is definitely better. Ive had both shifters and wheel bases. Problem is even at PC-RACER prices youre getting close to the cost of a lower end Direct Drive base which isn't even in the same league as the PC-RACER. Id do some research and get more familiar with whats available before you buy anything.

I think I’ve looked into the T300 and other equipment and I’m going to take your original advice. The G29 serves me well and will do so even better with the playseat challenge. It’d be wise to continue with what I have until I can splurge $1,500 on a DD wheel and rig, then upgrade the shifter and pedals as I become able.

 

[Squared Circle]

I'm in a similar situation. As (almost) everyone who has upgraded their rig advise, I planned to upgrade the pedals first, I planned that also. Now that nothing can be bought anyway, I can do the full upgrade at once when this situation changes.

Another thought: The G29 wheel works without the pedals but not the other way round. So in my view you will have to upgrade pedals first, anyway.