Is RC4 any better than Proflight Emulator Delux?

[Flamin_Squirrel 71]

I recently bought PFED and quite frankly I'm extremely disappointed. Confused by STARs, rubbish ground handling, occasional failure to recognise radios being correctly tuned, and sometimes refusal to work altogether are just some of the negative experiences I've had with it.Ranting any further isn't going to get my money back so I'll stop there. Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone had tried both PFED and RC4, and if RC4 is any better?Thanks.

[jimh 23]

I recently bought PFED and quite frankly I'm extremely disappointed. Confused by STARs, rubbish ground handling, occasional failure to recognise radios being correctly tuned, and sometimes refusal to work altogether are just some of the negative experiences I've had with it.Ranting any further isn't going to get my money back so I'll stop there. Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone had tried both PFED and RC4, and if RC4 is any better?Thanks.

I have both. RC4 is a terrific in depth program, I've used it for years. It's well worth while learning the procedures thoroughly, or the RC4 controllers will be on to you. :( I find PFE nags you less, if that's a good idea, and on my system it does what it's supposed to. Groundhandling to the runway works well for me ( the program closes soon after leaving the runway on landing), so I have FS Commander help me with parking. In PFE I let the copilot handle all the comms, and he hasn't failed me yet.I think both are very good, but quite a bit different.Jim

[psolk 3,037]

Hmmm, Went back to June over at the PFE forums and funnily enough I don't see a single post under your user name. What user name do you go by over at thel PFE support forums? (which happen to be excellent btw) I use PFE on every flight and have none of the problems you are talking about. http://www.ocs-support.co.uk/forums-Paul

[jd 57]

I recently bought PFED and quite frankly I'm extremely disappointed. Confused by STARs, rubbish ground handling, occasional failure to recognise radios being correctly tuned, and sometimes refusal to work altogether are just some of the negative experiences I've had with it.Ranting any further isn't going to get my money back so I'll stop there. Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone had tried both PFED and RC4, and if RC4 is any better?Thanks.

let me propose a deal. send me an email at jd@jdtllc.com, and i'll send you the download link information, and you can try rc. if you like it, purchase it through the normal channels, and report back here your findings.if it's not what you were expecting, uninstall it, and report back here your findings.jd

[psolk 3,037]

let me propose a deal. send me an email at jd@jdtllc.com, and i'll send you the download link information, and you can try rc. if you like it, purchase it through the normal channels, and report back here your findings.if it's not what you were expecting, uninstall it, and report back here your findings.jd

Talk about an offer...Nice job JD,-P

[Flamin_Squirrel 71]

Hmmm, Went back to June over at the PFE forums and funnily enough I don't see a single post under your user name. What user name do you go by over at thel PFE support forums? (which happen to be excellent btw) I use PFE on every flight and have none of the problems you are talking about. http://www.ocs-support.co.uk/forums-Paul

I've not bothered with the PFE forums. If it was one problem then I'd be trying to get it sorted, but quite frankly I generally find it to be an awful program - not something you can fix.Like earlier I was flying into a busy international airport:I got ######ed at for being off course while flying the STAR, which it obviously didn't recognise.On approach it; gave me decent until 9,000, then gave up clearing me to a lower alt. Then told me to expect a visual approach, but it only gave me a single vector that didn't bring me anywhere near into visual range of the airport.Never handed me over to tower.It doesn't even do the simple stuff like tell you to line up and wait after a departing aircraft - even FSX default ATC does that.

let me propose a deal. send me an email at jd@jdtllc.com, and i'll send you the download link information, and you can try rc. if you like it, purchase it through the normal channels, and report back here your findings.if it's not what you were expecting, uninstall it, and report back here your findings.jd

That's very kind, I'll do that.Thank you!

[Drumcode 1,892]

Radar Contact = The best investment in my flight simulation experience, EVER.

[Tim_Capps 474]

I dont' always fly with canned ATC, but when I do, it's Radar Contact. Three greens, my friends.

[Paul J 349]

And another three greens here. PFE sits "somewhere" on on of my "FSX backup" disks... somewhere... I found it to be the most confusing addon ever written, and now use RC4 all the time. You da MAN, JD! :(

[mwilk 1,104]

I've been a Radar Contact user from the start, but sometimes I get bored with the the voices. I had been doing research on PFE and decided to try it. Set up is not that big of a deal once you get used to it. I really like the variety of voices you get and the fact that you get the accents for the region you are flying in. Everything is pretty good until you get to the approach phase. Where RC gives you descent instructions at about 150-160 miles out, PFE will start you down much later. It's really based on what your flightplan calls for. I know I can manually adjust it. I was on approach last night to DCA. My initial vector was to runway 15. Pretty short for an A319. I don't believe there is any way to request a runway change. On I go placing the autobrake on maximum and planning to peal my face off of the windshield. I am then told that there is a runway change and now it will be runway 33. Three minutes later it changes again to runway 1, which is what I would have preferred in the first place. Now I'm lined up and configured for landing, when a Delta 757 approaches the end of the runway. I keep going thinking, don't do it.He does it, he taxis onto runway 1. PFE doesn't give me any instructions to abort my landing, so I land anyhow, right over the top of the 757. As I said, there are some aspects of PFE I really like, but for fidelity to the ATC process, I don't think anyone beats Radar Contact. I almost wish there was a way to merge the two programs.

[Drumcode 1,892]

I've been a Radar Contact user from the start, but sometimes I get bored with the the voices.

I believe once JD is ready for the voice recording phase in the development of RCv5, he will announce it publically asking the willing to participate in the project. I believe RC customer base must be rather large at this point and I can guarantee there will be plenty of people willing to participate, including myself. I just wish that in version 5, the controllers would change automatically once you cross a certain geographical region, which would make this add-on superior to anything else out there, well it already is imo. I'm not sure how time consuming the recording process will be, but I sure am in the coalition of the willing. If rather large amount of people will participate, version 5 will be the sweetest thing available for FSX.

[Benjamin J 751]

Yeah, I was planning to ask much the same question: I'm getting entirely fed up with default ATC, because I want to fly SIDs and STARs, but obviously, default ATC doesn't give you that. So, I have been looking around for some trime, and usually, it's RC4 that people recommend. I also know that v5 is on the radar, and now I'm not sure what to do: buy v4 now, or simply wait for v5...

[Drumcode 1,892]

I also know that v5 is on the radar, and now I'm not sure what to do: buy v4 now, or simply wait for v5...

I don't think it's anywhere close to be released yet, like I said earlier the voices are not even being recorded yet. So go get v4 and you'll most likely get a discount on v5, check with RC forum first regarding it.

[psolk 3,037]

I've not bothered with the PFE forums. If it was one problem then I'd be trying to get it sorted, but quite frankly I generally find it to be an awful program - not something you can fix.Like earlier I was flying into a busy international airport:I got ######ed at for being off course while flying the STAR, which it obviously didn't recognise.On approach it; gave me decent until 9,000, then gave up clearing me to a lower alt. Then told me to expect a visual approach, but it only gave me a single vector that didn't bring me anywhere near into visual range of the airport.Never handed me over to tower.It doesn't even do the simple stuff like tell you to line up and wait after a departing aircraft - even FSX default ATC does that.That's very kind, I'll do that.Thank you!

Quite frankly I find your assessment of it to be way off the mark and I put that on user error, not the "awful program" Obviously, you don't get it and if you aren't willing to put any effort into even going to a forum where the developer himself is ALWAYS ready and willing to help then you have no one to blame but yourself, not the program... BTW, once you are cleared for the STAR you are supposed to fly the vectors yourself... That is why it is an Approach procedure... :( Once established depending on your co-pilot mode he will automatically contact tower for you. Yes, it does do line up and wait, it even regionalizes it to position and hold or line up and wait with a regional accent based on where you are flying along with a lot of other things. :( To compare it to default ATC just goes to show how little time or effort you put into PFE. To me it seems like a big fat case of RTFM but to each their own and I wish you the best with RC4. Just don't come and bash a program when you clearly aren't interested in getting help or even understanding your problems... -P

[Dougal 165]

Quite frankly I find your assessment of it to be way off the mark and I put that on user error, not the "awful program" Obviously, you don't get it and if you aren't willing to put any effort into even going to a forum where the developer himself is ALWAYS ready and willing to help then you have no one to blame but yourself, not the program... BTW, once you are cleared for the STAR you are supposed to fly the vectors yourself... That is why it is an Approach procedure... :( Once established depending on your co-pilot mode he will automatically contact tower for you. Yes, it does do line up and wait, it even regionalizes it to position and hold or line up and wait with a regional accent based on where you are flying along with a lot of other things. :( To compare it to default ATC just goes to show how little time or effort you put into PFE. To me it seems like a big fat case of RTFM but to each their own and I wish you the best with RC4. Just don't come and bash a program when you clearly aren't interested in getting help or even understanding your problems... -P

Here here. Couldn't agree more. PURE user error.I have both, and enjoy them both.