OSW settings sharing and feedback thread

[RobertR1]

As OSW's become more common place, I thought it might help if we used a single thread to share feedback and our findings for different games.

One of the things I've started is doing a control experiment where I run the same car at the same track with the stock setup while making adjustments to Simucube, ini's and in game settings. Then I run laps and write down the difference. I think a spec format followed by an overall impressions could work so people can easily go down the thread and pick out things that work for them.

Game: Assetto Corsa
Track: Nordschleife
MiGe Motor size: 20nm
Settings Version: 1.0
Car: Porsche 911 RSR
Setup changes: Stock
Laptime range: 6:43 - 6:46
Assetto Corsa ini changes:
Location: ....mydocuments\assettocorsa\ff_post_process.ini
[HEADER]
VERSION=1
TYPE=GAMMA
ENABLED=0

[GAMMA]
VALUE=1

[LUT]
CURVE=crazy1.lut

location: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\assettocorsa\system\cfg\assetto_corsa.ini
[FORCE_FEEDBACK]
FF_SKIP_STEPS=0

[FF_EXPERIMENTAL]
ENABLE_GYRO=1
DAMPER_MIN_LEVEL=0
DAMPER_GAIN=0.0

Simucube:

Assetto Corsa In-Game settings:

Impressions:
So far I've found this to setup to give a great sense of the car, the road and the intensity of driving a high performance car at a demanding track. As my primary goal is immersion and track substitution, the feedback aspects are something I prioritize over outright laptimes. I expect the laptimes to improve as a byproduct of experience but getting the right motion cues and building up the muscle memory appropriately (within the limitations of a game world) are my first priority. I found this setup to work great with anything from a MX5 to a F2004. For AC atleast, I feel that I can stop tinkering and just enjoy the game.

 

[Deleted member 197115]

Some of the recent videos that covers why clipping with OSW is thing in the past, which makes FFBClip essentially obsolete Starting at around 8:00

 

[T W]

That is helpful

 

[Ceolmor]

The man who developed FFBClip once told me it was not needed for DD wheels.

Also, as I understand it, Wheelcheck and LUT is not relevant to DD wheels.

@T W As for settings for AC, try those in the OP. See below. You need the Overall Strength in SimuCUBE at 100%, but the Gain in AC at about 38% and start with FFB at 100 for individual cars.

Set Effects in AC to personal taste. Like salt and pepper. I like them. Many others keep them at 0.

Assetto Corsa ini changes:
Location: ....mydocuments\assettocorsa\ff_post_process.ini
[HEADER]
VERSION=1
TYPE=GAMMA
ENABLED=0

[GAMMA]
VALUE=1

[LUT]
CURVE=crazy1.lut

location: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\assettocorsa\system\cfg\assetto_corsa.ini
[FORCE_FEEDBACK]
FF_SKIP_STEPS=0

[FF_EXPERIMENTAL]
ENABLE_GYRO=1
DAMPER_MIN_LEVEL=0
DAMPER_GAIN=0.0

Simucube:
View attachment 264821

Assetto Corsa In-Game settings:
View attachment 264820

 

[Deleted member 197115]

LUT is for fixing wheel non-linearity and OSW response is linear. Neither you need min force as there is no dead zone on these wheels.

 

[T W]

LUT is for fixing wheel non-linearity and OSW response is linear. Neither you need min force as there is no dead zone on these wheels.

I just took a look at the stock LUT, and it definitely has a curve to it. Does this mean the whole lut section from ff_post_process.ini should be removed? or?

 

[Ceolmor]

I just took a look at the stock LUT, and it definitely has a curve to it. Does this mean the whole lut section from ff_post_process.ini should be removed? or?

AC is not using the LUT file because by default TYPE=GAMMA in the ff_post_process.ini file. You would have to change it to TYPE=LUT to have any effect. As below. Don't think it is needed/recommended.

ff_post_process.ini
[HEADER]
VERSION=1
TYPE=LUT
ENABLED=1

[GAMMA]
VALUE=1

[LUT]
CURVE=myLUT.lut

 

[Deleted member 197115]

Just set ENABLED to 0 and never touch that file. Stock LUT is just an example, reason it's called crazyLUT

 

[T W]

Thanks everyone.

I put in the OP settings. It's working well. I think things went wrong between different updates. Moving from MMOS to SimuCUBE, Updating Firmware, Gyro off, something set to -10000, no change this. etc etc. I keep comments in the ini files when something is changed, so I can undo at a later date if necessary. I missed something, somewhere previously and then wandered down the wrong rabbit hole.

 

[RobertR1]

Thanks everyone.

I put in the OP settings. It's working well. I think things went wrong between different updates. Moving from MMOS to SimuCUBE, Updating Firmware, Gyro off, something set to -10000, no change this. etc etc. I keep comments in the ini files when something is changed, so I can undo at a later date if necessary. I missed something, somewhere previously and then wandered down the wrong rabbit hole.

If you want my full .ini files for piece of mind, let me know and I’ll upload them.

 

[anton_Chez]

Definitely asking for trouble running all that stuff for a DD wheel. I run my Simucube at 100%, AC at around 30% gain and then tune the car to my liking or expected feel. The beauty of a DD wheel is that you need none of that stuff to get accurate wheel activity. Hardware clipping is non existent and as Andrew said all the other stuff is for making up for deficiencies in consumer wheels such as dead zones, etc.

Vibration coming from the wheel is not the same as electro-magnetic interference or electrical noise coming from the motor. You are most likely getting feedback from road effects, curb, or rumble strip pattern which is completely normal and very prominent in a wheel of this caliber.

 

[RobertR1]

I'm trying to use content manager but tweak settings so it doesn't keep messing up my ini files.

What is "center boost range" it's defaulted to 10% but I don't know what it does.

I have "enable FFB post processing" disabled so it this still in effect?

 

[anton_Chez]

For any DD wheel owner you want to disable as many options as you can in the sim. You don't need a clipping tool, you don't need to account for non linear FFB, deadzones, boost low signal FFB, enhanced center range, nothing. These are all options available to counter the inherent flaws in consumer grade wheels. Meaning, anything from the Fanatec CSW V2.5 and DOWN in price range. Even when I had my V2.5 I left most of that stuff off. It's a very good consumer grade wheel that gave a very linear reponse to FFB, the center had virtually no deadzone, and all you needed to do was not run any given sim at above 70% FFB gain to actually avoid clipping in normal driving circumstances. Turn everything OFF, run your Simucube at 100% and then tune the sim to the strength of your liking.

For Simucube settings there is a Youtube channel that I have used to help with the various sims. The best way is to try and get as raw a signal out as possible, but with some sims you may need the reconstruction filter a little higher to just help with getting a nicer feeling.

These are the settings I use for rFactor2, possibly the sim with the most realistic and unfiltered FFB available (don't @ me...). Notice how reconstruction filter is at '1', meaning software is basically doing NOTHING to the signal between sim and hardware. Different sims will need slight tweaking here and nearly nowhere else. It's when you get to titles like the Dirt series, maybe something like ETS and ATS and things like that where you might need to add damping and other minor things to just get the wheel to feel a little better.

The only real way to know is to try different filter values yourself but your hardware should NOT be adulterated by such canned effects and boosting signals from the sim.

 

[T W]

For any DD wheel owner you want to disable as many options as you can in the sim. You don't need a clipping tool, you don't need to account for non linear FFB, deadzones, boost low signal FFB, enhanced center range, nothing. These are all options available to counter the inherent flaws in consumer grade wheels. Meaning, anything from the Fanatec CSW V2.5 and DOWN in price range. Even when I had my V2.5 I left most of that stuff off. It's a very good consumer grade wheel that gave a very linear reponse to FFB, the center had virtually no deadzone, and all you needed to do was not run any given sim at above 70% FFB gain to actually avoid clipping in normal driving circumstances. Turn everything OFF, run your Simucube at 100% and then tune the sim to the strength of your liking.

For Simucube settings there is a Youtube channel that I have used to help with the various sims. The best way is to try and get as raw a signal out as possible, but with some sims you may need the reconstruction filter a little higher to just help with getting a nicer feeling.

View attachment 267865

These are the settings I use for rFactor2, possibly the sim with the most realistic and unfiltered FFB available (don't @ me...). Notice how reconstruction filter is at '1', meaning software is basically doing NOTHING to the signal between sim and hardware. Different sims will need slight tweaking here and nearly nowhere else. It's when you get to titles like the Dirt series, maybe something like ETS and ATS and things like that where you might need to add damping and other minor things to just get the wheel to feel a little better.

The only real way to know is to try different filter values yourself but your hardware should NOT be adulterated by such canned effects and boosting signals from the sim.

Good info. This is part of why I wanted to post in this thread. I know there are lots of DD's out there, but I've been struggling to find a collective resource of knowledge about them. Every review tells you to do something else. People will post settings, but they get mixed and changed between versions. This is becoming more of a how and why, so anyone can make good choices.

 

[anton_Chez]

My opinion is, try first with the least amount of things enabled. Treat any sim as if it was AMS, or, to a lesser extent, iRacing. They have only one slider for FFB gain and everything else is handled by the sim, the way it should be. Then if something doesn't feel right, adjust your Simucube settings to achieve something satisfying. Chances are if the title doesn't feel good like this, then it's not a sim with proper FFB (see the earlier Dirt games, 1, 2 & 3 need sliders enabled in software to get the wheel weight and self aligning to feel correct).

There are slider settings in titles like Dirt Rally and Raceroom that admittedly you cannot just ignore and leave off (lateral forces, self aligning torque, etc) but these are more trial and error and generally you can tell if something should be 100, 50, or 0% just by feel. Raceroom was tricky for me but I have it not too bad now. It was tricky, why? Because I have 5 canned effects, 4 FFB effects and a steering rack vs tires feel slider. On top of the gain, and inverted FFB option. Too many.

I'd like to see a time where developers reduce the amount of sliders and options for FFB and maybe implement a DD wheel user checkbox. This would disable all canned effects and give you a nM slider to match the strength of your wheel. This is the way it should be and I feel we might be seeing that given the advancement in hardware and the amount of homes it finds itself in this generation of sim racing.

 

[RobertR1]

Will the OSW work without the emergency stop connected?

I’ve never had a wheel go “rogue” so now I’m wondering how much of a concern this really is? 2 less cables would be welcomed.

 

[RaceNut]

Will the OSW work without the emergency stop connected?

I’ve never had a wheel go “rogue” so now I’m wondering how much of a concern this really is? 2 less cables would be welcomed.

It's not only the wheel-controller malfunctions that can cause "rogue" events but, I've had it occur with certain titles where it can be triggered in various ways. I've had it happen when a title crashes or freezes and the FFB signal is not immediately killed. Some titles can also cause events where the wheel may be abruptly pulled to one side or another and jam against the soft bump-stop and stay there.

While it's certainly less likely to cause injury with low force levels such as those of mainstream wheels and below 8nm or so, it becomes a very real hazard with high-torque / Hi-speed setups. I've very rarely needed to use the E-stop but, there is a good reason to have one, especially around 10nm and up.

 

[anton_Chez]

I've used it a couple of time, exactly what RaceNut was saying. If a title has a heart attack somewhere you really want to be able to kill that wheel spinning or smashing against the bump stop. I reckon even at lower torque levels the wheel can be a hazard. The sheer speed it rotates when something goes wrong, or you lose it while driving, is astounding. I have mine down by my left leg on the inside of the upright on my rig. I don't even need to put my hands anywhere to push it.

To answer the question, I am not sure if it physically works or not, but I'd have it connected regardless. I hate extra cables and devices that I don't need, too. But it's proven its worth especially in titles like the earlier Dirt games and such, where direct drive is not really a thing and can behave erratically.

 

[RobertR1]

It's not only the wheel-controller malfunctions that can cause "rogue" events but, I've had it occur with certain titles where it can be triggered in various ways. I've had it happen when a title crashes or freezes and the FFB signal is not immediately killed. Some titles can also cause events where the wheel may be abruptly pulled to one side or another and jam against the soft bump-stop and stay there.

While it's certainly less likely to cause injury with low force levels such as those of mainstream wheels and below 8nm or so, it becomes a very real hazard with high-torque / Hi-speed setups. I've very rarely needed to use the E-stop but, there is a good reason to have one, especially around 10nm and up.

I ended up switching my brain back on and just connected it. Good points.

 

[anton_Chez]

If you've never seen your wheel spaz out or have had a big crash, you're a better man (and driver) than me. The first time it wants to take your wrists from your forearm, you'll thank us. People talk about the strength of the direct drive wheels but until you actually have your hand caught in it while it spins mercilessly you won't know the half of it.

 

[RaceNut]

If you've never seen your wheel spaz out or have had a big crash, you're a better man (and driver) than me. The first time it wants to take your wrists from your forearm, you'll thank us. People talk about the strength of the direct drive wheels but until you actually have your hand caught in it while it spins mercilessly you won't know the half of it.

Good point, we often think that it's our fingers / thumbs as being most at risk but, powerful wheels can also affect the wrists and even shoulders if things go wrong.

I recommend starting out with lower force settings until one has the experience, and has developed some racing habits used by RL drivers to protect the thumbs (don't wrap them) and beyond by knowing when to let go of the wheel (when crashing is imminent).

Clipping is generally something to avoid with FFB-wheels but, in the case of high-torque DD-wheels, clipping during contact with a wall or other structures can serve as a safety measure albeit, one that is vulnerable to inconsistency by nature.