How is it?

[Guest Pilot533]

How is the ultimate airliners md-80 compared with level d or pmdg? Are the systems and gauges accurate? Is the ons as i believe it is called simulated well? Are the sounds right, such as engines packs etc.? Are all of the systems functional, if not which one are not? How is the system logic, will the gear and flaps extend or retract with low hyd psi, will the engine start without sufficent air pressure, can the engies be damaged by ice, is hot start simulated, does the egt drop realistically or does it drop instantly when the engines are turned off, will the flight controls move just as fast even without hyd psi? How are the flight dynamics? As you can see I am looking for a very realistic md-80, I have mdmax but their support is poor, there is no vc, and the flight dynamics are questionable so I am looking for something better. Also is the cockpit layout realistic for airliners still flying today, such as aa's md-80s? And finally how is the lighting, proper lighting is often neglected in fs addons, are the lights tied to their switches, is the nose wheel dim function simulated?Yeah I know its long... but if anyone can answer some of these questions I would appreciate it.

[I132 0]

If you want a great MD-80, check out Cool Sky's. It can be found at Flight 1. Very nice plane and even comes with a built in tutorial system. Trust me... there is plenty to keep you busy learning to operate this jet. It is one of the more technically challenging aircraft as far as learning curve. You should love it... I know I do. Happy Flying. Scott

[Egbert Drenth 250]

Hi,I've got 3 MD80: - the Ultimate Airliners- MDMAX- LAGO MD80I have flown the UA about a month but put it aside because I don't like the flightmodel.The LAGO MD80 is still the best MD80 imho. System wise very good, as well as graphics and flight model.Nevertheless if you wait a couple of weeks, the developers of the LAGO MD80 will release a new version under their own name.I'm realy looking forward to this release:http://www.flythemaddog.com/

[Guest]

This looks like a very nice aircraft. Where should I look for the developer who will be releasing this?ThanksRick

[Guest Pilot533]

I am waiting for maddog 2006 but they wont be releasing it with a vc, it will come later in the year, thats a real bummer. Other than that it looks good. About the coolsky, strange about the flight model, i thought that was one of the better parts. And after reading the manual there are not many things that say not simulated, but how many of those things that are simulated are dummy switches?

[I132 0]

Very few dummy switches, if any as far as i can tell. This of all 3rd party planes I own was the most difficult to get right from start up to shut down. The best part about the Coolsky Jet from Flight 1 is if you don't care for it or it doesn't run well on your machine you can get a refund. I first bought the plane when it first came out and my old computer didn't handle it well. So... I returned it no questions asked. Later on when I upgraded equipment I purchased it again. It is comparable to the LDS 767, pmdg 737s, and F1/Dreamfleet ATR as far as systems. It is a nice break from the Boeing FMS and autopilot. Scott

[Guest Pilot533]

Thanks for the replys, I am an ultra realism freak as you can see. My last worries are about the flight dynamics and the ons. I like to simulate real world procedures as much as possible and there are no aircraft flying with ons's anymore aa has upgraded to fmc's in 2003 i believe. But once I get over that I might purchase it. I also fly vatsim and the ons would make it very challenging if atc needed me to make a route change, and I guess all rnav sid's and stars are out, back to good ole vor navigation.

[timers15 11]

>It is a nice break from the Boeing FMS and autopilot. >>Scott :)That's what I think too! I'd say the Flight 1 MD80 is not quite on the level of PMDG and Level D but it certainly is in the club.

[Guest j_merv]

The Flight1 MD80 is up there with the LDS and PMDG stuff. Just because there is no fancy FMS or cool digital displays doesn't make it in ANY way inferior.The flight dynamics are SUPERB (I have numerous friends who fly these things for a living, 2 of whom have flown it from my computer).Some might say it's not up to par with other addons... those are the ones who don't want to take the time to learn.Buy it.

[Bob Scott 7,718]

There are some quirks with the Flight1 MD-80 that kept me away, most significant of which is that if you put the sim in pause, it keeps burning fuel.The Maddog marketed by LAGO is very well done from a systems perspective...I fly it merged with the JetCity MD-8x models and consider it a peer to the Level D or PMDG birds.And it shows good sense for them to be dumping LAGO as their publisher...that outfit is a disaster. Buying a quality product like the Maddog from LAGO is like having a sirloin steak dinner served up on the lid of a dirty diaper pail.RegardsBob ScottATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VSantiago de Chile

[AWACS 12]

>>I fly it merged with the JetCity MD-8x models and consider it a peer to the Level D or PMDG birds.80 is the best I can get like 70FPS in the VC with that thing. Also Espen is talking about making an FMC for it.Jeff

[Bob Scott 7,718]

>>>I fly it merged with the JetCity MD-8x models and consider>it a peer to the Level D or PMDG birds.<<>>Then you are missing out on some great VC's. Well, anyway, I>like both the Lago version and Coolsky's, but the Lago VC has>serious performance problems, even on my Core2Duo and there>are very few repaints for it. Of course it comes with>JetCity's models, but you get no VC, and they make you buy>repaints. Definitely Coolsky's MD-80 is the best I can get>like 70FPS in the VC with that thing. Also Espen is talking>about making an FMC for it.>>JeffNo, not missing anything, I'm just really not into VCs. They look like poorly animated cartoons to me...marginally useful for things like a quick look over the shoulder for a base turn or for general enroute sightseeing.The LAGO Maddog does not come with the JetCity models...they must be purchased separately, and there's no VC with a Maddog/JCA merge. JCA does not charge for repaints...a wide variety of repaints of the various JCA MD models (MD-80,-81,-82,-83, -87, -88, -90, are available for free download from their site. I use their very nice DC-9 models (a full range of nines from -10 through -51) merged with Stellan Hilmersby's DC-9 panel as well.RegardsBob ScottATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VSantiago de Chile

[AWACS 12]

That's nice Bob, I was talking to the original poster who mentioned something about VCs. So it is important for him to know which models have which features. The LAGO maddog that I purchased did infact come with two models, the LAGO version which had a VC, and it also came with Jet City models, I purchased it a few years ago, so things may have changed since then. At the time, you could not download extra liveries for the JCA model, because they wanted you to buy them.Jeff

[Bob Scott 7,718]

OK, Jeff, but the text you quoted was from my post, so it sure looked like the comment was directed to me.Current (1.51E) Maddog comes with its own model, and a merge kit for the JCA birds.RegardsBob ScottATP IMEL Gulfstream II-II-IV-VSantiago de Chile