64-bit real world live ATC at PilotEdge a winner for X-Plane 10.20 RC

[Robert McDonald 167]

A dream come true (albeit in a limited service area) so hold on before you get crazy... yes, the service area is limited in scope to southern California USA so it's not IVAO and it's not VATSIM.

 

On the other hand, here's what you --do-- get (thus far, YMMV)

• CRYSTAL CLEAR VHF COMS across ALL the frequencies for your entire flight while in the coverage area.
  
• Controllers are "ON DUTY" and available 7 days a week, 8am to 11pm (Pacific). This is HUGE. How many times have you got on VATSIM or IVAO only to find NO CONTROLLERS anywhere near your intended flight route? Many times I was forced to fly in a completely different area just to have real-world ATC
  
• Works with X-Plane 10 RC1 64-bit (requires you download the 32-bit software from Pilot Edge, then add the additional files to make it work in 64-bits. Works GREAT!
  
• DRUMROLL! You DO NOT hear the other pilots yammering on your channel at all different volume levels. No annoying people with low-grade mics or desktop mics blowing your eardrums out during your flight.
  
• You start with Clearance, Then Ground, Then Tower, Departure and so on... and as you arrive at the other end you switch from Approach to Tower, To Ground. A complete 'real-world' experience. In some cases you have different people covering the different roles, in other cases it's the same person on the different frequency.
  
• DRUMROLL! 14-day no-credit-card-required free trial. Try it first. Several different plans available, including annual which averages to about $15 a month if I remember right. I'm happy to pay 50 cents a day to have a real human being control my heavy jet flight. Team this with the Ramzzess VMAX 777 64-bits and life is NOT BAD! All in 64-bits!
  
• NO WAITING! You can do this TODAY, and wait for the world to catch up (if it ever does) with 64-bit X-Squawkbox or something similar.
  

I recommend anyone interested at least take a look at this service. You can pay monthly without an annual commitment If you want to fly out of the coverage area, it's not a lot different from VATSIM. The big difference is, if you depart KSEA for KSAN and arrive at KSAN prior to their close of business hours, you'll have ATC when you get to your destination. I can't count the times that my destination airport "had service" when I took off, and it closed shop suddenly moments after takeoff! That is NOT great! Happens a LOT on VATSIM. You're subject to catch as catch can, meal breaks, whatever. Not to "knock" Vatsim (it's free) - but no 64-bits in Vatsim means no real live ATC for me (until TODAY).

 

You can listen to daily recordings (including your own flights) on the PilotEdge website.

 

After the flight, you can see what you did graphically and pictorially:

 

[coma 6]

Thanks for the kind words, you definitely get what this is all about It's not for everyone, of course, but if having high quality ATC on a schedule is more important that a global coverage area, and you're willing to pay a little bit for it, then it's a relatively easy choice.

 

We are working hard towards having the Mac 64-bit build...there's a hold up in obtaining a 64-bit version of the voice library (short of having to have EVERYONE upgrade to a new revision of the voice library on the same day).

 

I have just updated our download page to include a link to the 64-bit files (via the forum thread), so it's a bit easier to get to than it was before.

 

Btw, Zane Guard did post a review of PilotEdge a while ago, but this is the first review which includes the reference to 64-bit, that's for sure.