I purchased the Mad Dog 2010 Pro edition last night, and WOW. It's really, really good. True, the virtual cockpit looks a little dated (thought not much more so than the PMDG MD-11) but running Word Not Allowed's Nvidia Inspector tweaks it actually looks quite good. Just about every switch and button has it's own sound, which I love (makes it SO much more immersive.) You get a built in fuel planner and load manager, performance options, several included liveries... there's just so much stuff it comes with. You can even speak with your cabin crew to begin boarding and such, and they will actually bring you a load sheet with all the weights listed, CG, etc.

 

One thing I will say is the exterior/engine sounds were low quality by today's standards, so I got the TSS MD-80 soundpack which is a million times better:

 

 

I am totally in love with this plane :wub:

Great sounds, is that the Leonardo model previewed in the video? Do you know how it compares to the Flight1- Coolsky md-80?

Great sounds, is that the Leonardo model previewed in the video? Do you know how it compares to the Flight1- Coolsky md-80?

 

The model in the video is the Coolsky one. I don't know how they compare as far as systems modelling etc, but I can say for sure that the Coolsky VC is mostly flat, meaning most switches and buttons are 2d textures, but everything in the Leonardo is 3d and clickable.

 

On the other hand, the Coolsky version has McPhat liveries available for it which are super nice. The included Leonardo ones look quite dated in comparison (although they still look fine to me, especially since I do most of my flying from *inside* the plane )

I've been looking for something to push me off one side of the fence, either for a purchase of the Leonardo version or the Coolsky Version.

 

From the looks of it, the Mcphat liverys are supberb, not enough to make me say "Ok that's the model I want".

 

The integrated cockpit training system for coolsky does look good though. Whatever one I go with, i'll have to check the TSS sounds out.

You should definitely go for the Leonardo one. Its absolutely ace when it comes to system realism, fde realism and features.

if you run the VC textures through the DXTbmp utility, it really speeds up the loading of the VC

 

i really like the maddog but i don't fly it solely for the reason that when i pause the aircraft, it still burns fuel.

 

the developer support sucks but a lot of issues are resolved by helpful people in the forum.

What VC models are available in the Leo? Some options are only available in 2d, or are all of them? Can we get the Canadian Marconi and the Pms in the VC, or is that only in 2D?

 

I'm asking because I've read of a bug in VNAV SPD on the Honeywell panel that will obviously never be fixed because the plane is no longer supported, but other than that, there might be a slot for this plane in my collection if I could work around some things like that.

Only the Honeywell / full EFIS version has a VC. The other models only have (excellent) 2d panels

Only the Honeywell / full EFIS version has a VC. The other models only have (excellent) 2d panels

 

Oh No!. VNAV is broken in that model, but that is the only model that can be used in Virtual? And the developers haven't been heard from for years, so it is permanent. Great. I'm glad you answered my question when you did, because my mouse was hovering over the buy now button at Simmarket. I think it is time for me to purchase something like the Lancair and end this madness with the dc9s entirely :p0129:

I agree with the OP, she still deserves some attention due to the great package value. Planning tools, adjustable VC lighting, multicrew, the great system depth, weather radar, terrain display, various config options and so on. The dated optics are the only downside.

 

I don't see any other plane offering that setup. So, if one can live with the old-ish model detail, this one still is a winner.