324 replies to this topic

[Silent]

Damocles, on 02 February 2012 - 09:14 PM, said:

Edit: also plan on playing Sturmovik Cliffs of Dover with it

I wouldn't bother with Cliffs of Dover for another year or so. It had a horrible release and is still trying to claw its way out of the hole the developers dug and threw it into.

Get IL2: 1946 from Good Old Games and/or Rise of Flight (which is free)

Edited by Silent, 03 February 2012 - 07:30 AM.

[Damocles]

Silent, on 03 February 2012 - 07:30 AM, said:

I wouldn't bother with Cliffs of Dover for another year or so. It had a horrible release and is still trying to claw its way out of the hole the developers dug and threw it into.

Get IL2: 1946 from Good Old Games and/or Rise of Flight (which is free)

This is true and is why I bought CoD for $15 on steam last xmas sale. Bugs should be good by the time i have a hotas for it and MWO
and I do own 46! ;D Cheers

[Hartsblade]

Damocles, on 02 February 2012 - 09:14 PM, said:

Saving up for the G940 myself, would love to hear more opinions from any owners about it.

Edit: also plan on playing Sturmovik Cliffs of Dover with it

/Damo

I love the G940 so far. It's been a long time since I had a full set of flight controls, and I plan on putting the peddles to work.I love the G940 so far. It's been a long time since I had a full set of flight controls, and I plan on putting the peddles to work.

Silent, on 03 February 2012 - 07:30 AM, said:

I wouldn't bother with Cliffs of Dover for another year or so. It had a horrible release and is still trying to claw its way out of the hole the developers dug and threw it into.

Get IL2: 1946 from Good Old Games and/or Rise of Flight (which is free)

Rise of Flight is the way to go, great flight sim. Would live to see these guys do a WW2 filght sim in the future.

[Cur]

Logitech Extreme 3D = not too good.


I miss the hell outa this one... was perfect in every way, had a massive rudder turntable too!




I face the additional problem of being a small person... with midgethands.

before finding the sidewinder i got some other joystick, which i couldent reach all the buttons on the top + the trigger button at the same time >.<

Logitech one works, but some reach issues with the thumb button, and the way the base of the joystick is shaped is like its punishment for right-handed people. The base of the stick, has a piece of plastic which veers off to the right in some artistic attempt? that sticks out into you're wrist/arm >.<



p.s If the swarm is coming to MWO ima cry



p.p.s - If we have any hardware mod god's here - i'd donate my firstborn child for a walkthru on how to refurbish the old Sidewinder.... as in convert it to USB plug and ensure windows will still pick it up/use it as per normal.

Edited by Cur, 11 February 2012 - 12:14 PM.

[Caballo]

Cur, on 11 February 2012 - 12:07 PM, said:

Logitech Extreme 3D = not too good.


I miss the hell outa this one... was perfect in every way, had a massive rudder turntable too!



p.s If the swarm is coming to MWO ima cry



p.p.s - If we have any hardware mod god's here - i'd donate my firstborn child for a walkthru on how to refurbish the old Sidewinder.... as in convert it to USB plug and ensure windows will still pick it up/use it as per normal.

Welcome to the world of old joysticks (you can't imagine where you got into...). There are some specialized passive Gameport to USB adapters for the sidewinder series. They are cheap at Ebay. If it doesn't work, you can try a Manhattan/Rockfire active adapter, almost everything works with those. They got a 4 way switch to pick what kind of analog joy you're using,

EDIT: Take in account that the output of the active adapters is RAW, i mean: 2 axis 8 button, 4 axis 4 buttons, etc...

In both cases, you'll probably need the original drivers from the device, maybe you'll need to install them from true Dos, and maybe the device doesn't work at all, but for the price of the adapters, it's worth a shot.

I'm telling because right now i'm into that business with a CH Pro Throttle with gameport interface, i tried everything and more, and the final solution i'm going through is adapting a 5€ 20 button/2 axis USB gamepad board to the case and switches of the throttle control.

The other solution (simpler) is buying an USB device and leave that sidewinder on the desk with a plate saying "My beloved joystick". I have a Logitech Xtreme 3d, that way. (1998 and it's still working )

Edited by Caballo, 11 February 2012 - 12:48 PM.

[Caballo]

If it can help, reading this , I think you can make it work with an active Rockfire/Manhattan setting it to mode 2 (CH flightstick emulation), but not sure.

Here's the link, if you want to give it a try.

[Cur]

Over the moon!

The one you linked had a clause saying not compatable with the microsoft sidewinder joysticks.

The one i saw that looked like it was specificly made for the sidewinder also isnt compatable (able to find the part number for the 3D pro, it's
63545)

http://www.ebay.com....=item2ea43b9965

^ was the one i was hopefull about, then the one you linked till i saw the fineprint ^






This one here specifiy's that its not compatable with the MS Sidewinder FORCE FB only.... which makes me hopefull, but im left wandering on the quality/if the product will work regardless :S

http://www.ebay.com....=item27b6e164fb

any further thoughts? im tempted to go for the last adapter because im realy hoping it'll work

Edited by Cur, 11 February 2012 - 08:14 PM.

[Caballo]

well, for the price, it's worth the try. don't forget to tell me how it went.

Another option i've been thinking about is this: if you have a wingman xtreme 3d, you can dismantle it and use the PCB instead the one in your M$. My Xtreme digital 3d works flawlessly in W7, just with the usb adapter which came with it... both have the same number of axis, and the same number of buttons... you'll just need a soldering iron and some patience.

Edited by Caballo, 11 February 2012 - 09:06 PM.

[Cur]

I also stumbled across this

But i'll tell you know i do not have the nimbleness/dexterity/steady hand to pull anything like this off.

http://grendel.koolbear.com/3dpro.htm

I'm seeing if i have any closet modder friends tho


Edit: More searching and it appears the Koolbear guy is taking orders and making them. Have popped him a mail expressing my interest. YAY! HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY!

http://descentbb.net...pic.php?t=12217

Edited by Cur, 11 February 2012 - 09:41 PM.

[CyBerkut]

Another option is to install a Game Port. If you look around, you can probably still find a sound card that has a Game Port on it.

This Google search got about 13.5 million hits, so you might just be in luck:
https://www.google.c...w=1891&bih=1014

Of course, you'll want to make sure you get one that is compatible with your computer (probably a PCI card).
----------------------

On the small hands concern... there are some sticks that have adjustable grips. For instance, the stick in the Saitek X-52 HOTAS has an adjustable hand rest plate. My hand size is probably average for an adult male. There are at least 2 more slots for that hand rest plate above the one I use, which could allow it to rise at least 5/8" higher. If that wasn't quite enough, you could add something to the top of the hand rest to gain some addition height. ( 2 part epoxy putty could be added and then molded to get a perfect fit for your palm/grip, for instance). If you added a lot of epoxy to the hand rest, you might not be able to hit the pinkie switch... but you then could look at epoxying a vertical extension to that switch to regain access to it.

[Caballo]

CyBerkut, on 12 February 2012 - 10:28 AM, said:

Another option is to install a Game Port. If you look around, you can probably still find a sound card that has a Game Port on it.

This Google search got about 13.5 million hits, so you might just be in luck:
https://www.google.c...w=1891&bih=1014

Of course, you'll want to make sure you get one that is compatible with your computer (probably a PCI card).

Agree on that. If you're on XP that solution works pretty well. Pity that M$ stopped supporting gameports after that.

Another one (and my favourite up to this point, i gotta say) is one of this beauties. If i had found it two weeks before, i wouldn't had gone the hard way with the joypad...

[CyBerkut]

Oh yeah... Leo Bodnar makes good stuff. Check out the BU0836X version, too. It's bigger (so it's harder to retro fit in original joystick enclosures) but it saves you having to mess with adding diodes and soldering. Bodnar's boards are especially nice for a 'start from scratch' type of build. For retro-fitting, there is typically a need to modify circuit boards that were already built into the controller grips, etc.

[firefox117]

Im picking up the Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog myself, not just for MW:O but for my flight sims as well. Im stuck now on trying to pick out what rudder setup I want.

[Zakatak]

I have a Saitek X52, works great for Wings of Prey and Rise 'O Flight! Needs a few more functions to work with DCS A-10C, but considering that is the most complicated sim ever made (Falcon 4 almostwithstanding) with 1500+ commands. But Mechwarrior, compared to that, is a 1-button shooter. It'll do.

Do you HOTAS + Pedal guys use the pedals for turning or torso? I could see how the latter might be disorienting.

Edited by Zakatak, 13 February 2012 - 10:35 PM.

[Zakatak]

*deleted*

Edited by Zakatak, 13 February 2012 - 10:49 PM.

[Paul Inouye]

Moving this to hardware and merging with the huge thread about joysticks and controls.

[Seth Deathstalker]

Paul Inouye, on 13 February 2012 - 10:47 PM, said:

Moving this to hardware and merging with the huge thread about joysticks and controls.

The Chief himself. *awe*
He was faster than Mason Grimm in his Marauder.

[Catamount]

Cur, if it absolutely doesn't work, why not just get a newer Sidewinder stick?

They may all be used, but you can get Precision 2's and Forcefeedback 2's for only the price of a fairly cheap stick ($40-$50 for FF2). I just got one (courtesy of Ilithi Dragon), but I don't even use the force feedback; I use it because it's a great stick, and one of the best I've ever used outside of HOTAS setups that cost four times as much. It's got a heavy base (good for stable lap or table use), it's precise, and they literally last forever (my last one lasted through 12 years of heavy use).

Alternatively, in the same price range, you could try a Thrustmaster T16000M. It's not much more than the Logitech Extreme 3D, but people apparently like them quite a bit.

[firefox117]

Zakatak, on 13 February 2012 - 10:32 PM, said:

Do you HOTAS + Pedal guys use the pedals for turning or torso? I could see how the latter might be disorienting.

How do you figure it would be disorienting? Left pedal turns left, right turns right. Im use to it as it is, from flying in real life to using it on games. I thiko it adds more realism as well. Id figure that in a real mech, it would use pedals to turn the torso as it is, and not the joystick as that could cause problems. (Same reason aircraft dont use the joystick to control their rudders.) Hopefully with the HOTAS Warthog, Ill be able to map all fuctions to the joystick as well, and eliminate the use the the keyboard all together.

[Orayn]

Zakatak, on 13 February 2012 - 10:32 PM, said:

Do you HOTAS + Pedal guys use the pedals for turning or torso? I could see how the latter might be disorienting.

firefox117, on 14 February 2012 - 10:02 AM, said:

How do you figure it would be disorienting? Left pedal turns left, right turns right. Im use to it as it is, from flying in real life to using it on games. I thiko it adds more realism as well. Id figure that in a real mech, it would use pedals to turn the torso as it is, and not the joystick as that could cause problems. (Same reason aircraft dont use the joystick to control their rudders.) Hopefully with the HOTAS Warthog, Ill be able to map all fuctions to the joystick as well, and eliminate the use the the keyboard all together.

You're both right. BattleTech: Firestorm is the most realistic cockpit simulation out there, and it gives you the option to turn the torso and legs with either the joystick or pedals. I think turning the torso with pedals is a little more natural, but I'll try both of them once I get a set of pedals for myself.