Many of us who enjoy using offline (non Vatsim) ATC have recently noticed how the new atc system in MSFS really hasn't received the same love and attention that other portions of the new sim have, so...

I was wondering if we could make this thread a sort of listing of any new ATC products that you know may be in the works and to be compatible with the new MSFS2020.

If you know of any please post about them here. I know of a product called Pilot2ATC which i used for XP but also worked with FSX & P3D. I don't know if it's being upgraded for MFSF2020 but I would certainly hope so. This particular ATC addon uses Voice recognition and phraseology for those who want atc included for both IFR and VRF flights.

Here's the link: https://pilot2atc.com/

Edited August 11, 20205 yr by hangar

My favorite option to replace the lackluster ATC is to turn it off! 😄 

I think it's still going on in the background but my co-pilot is handling it silently and I don't hear any voices or see any ATC dialogs.

"ATC?  Where we're flyin' we don't *need* ATC." -- E. Brown, PhD

Hook

I'm with you...I gave it up a long time ago, then used that Pilot2ATC for awhile which was alot of fun...then just flew without anything again.

I really don't require it, but if I get in the mood it's got to be something with voice recognition. Not because it's so perfect (its anything but that) but just because it's alot of fun sometimes, especially using it for VFR and the phraseology. But usually I do prefer to just get going and fly these days.

45 minutes ago, hangar said:

This particular ATC addon uses Voice recognition and phraseology for those who want atc included for both IFR and VRF flights.

I like that concept.  Someone told me about VOXATC once, I think that's the correct name, but I never looked into it.

It annoyed my wife enough when I was playing Silent Hunter III with full voice commands.  But I impressed the heck out of my son when I maneuvered into port and into dock using nothing but voice.  "Set course to my mark" was the most useful command, just use the mouse to look in the direction you wanted to go and say the words.

Hook

Just now, LHookins said:

It annoyed my wife enough when I was playing Silent Hunter III with full voice commands. 

"Vorne oben 5, hinten oben 10!" 😅

2 minutes ago, LHookins said:

I like that concept.  Someone told me about VOXATC once, I think that's the correct name, but I never looked into it.

It annoyed my wife enough when I was playing Silent Hunter III with full voice commands.  But I impressed the heck out of my son when I maneuvered into port and into dock using nothing but voice.  "Set course to my mark" was the most useful command, just use the mouse to look in the direction you wanted to go and say the words.

Hook

I didn't know SH3 had voice commands, was it an addon? or maybe I just dont remember, It was 2006 when I was really into that game. 

1 minute ago, reignman40 said:

I didn't know SH3 had voice commands

I used an external program that I'd set up with all the commands I used.  Many I set up with alternate phrasing so I could give commands more naturally.  Sorry, I don't remember what this was.  Game Commander maybe?

Hook

32 minutes ago, LHookins said:

I used an external program that I'd set up with all the commands I used.  Many I set up with alternate phrasing so I could give commands more naturally.  Sorry, I don't remember what this was.  Game Commander maybe?

Hook

Voice attack maybe? 😃

I use Pilot2ATC in X-Plane 11.50 beta. It's great in planning flights, dynamic approaches assignment, voice interaction etc. but it's a bit clumsy and TTS is very outdated. Voices sound unnatural and are not EQd to sound like real radio. The problem is it uses built-in Windows speech recognition (which is actually very good) and windows speech synthesizer (which is quite bad by today's standards). There is a radio noise sound that masks it a bit (that I had to find and tune myself) but still the Azure speech MSFS uses is on another level of natural sounding speech. So what we need is P2ATC quality with Azure speech.

Pilot2ATC sees real-time traffic that another plugin puts into XPlane, and it can make me go around or wait in line when it sees a problem, or advise me on traffic when close, but it's limited as it sometimes doesn't prevent me from ending up on the same gideslope with another plane and vectors me to land when runway is occupied by someone else. 

So we need a solution that has Azure TTS, see all traffic inside the sim and reacts to it (fake ATC to real-world planes for instance), can respond with varied phraseology (not the same phrase every time), responds to voice, not to button presses, so you can read back (or have AI respond and switch frequencies), can understand your requests like flight level change etc., and is closer to real life than what there is now in the preview.

BTW I also programmed interactive voice-activated checklists with VoiceMacro and my "first officer" responsd to me saying "Before taxy checklist" and reads items, waiting for "check" or "brake set" or "continue checklist" commands to proceed with the next items. It works really well in VR. I also programmed pushback commands and much more so I just say the command and VoiceMacro will press keys for me etc. This should work the same in MSFS.

Another thing I did is I get real-life streams from real ATC for the actual centers and airports from my flight programmed into VLC player, and have VoiceMacro switch to correct stream during appropriate checklists, i.e. after saying "cruise checklist complete" the macro switches to approach stream, and after "after landing" checklist - to ground. And so on. 

They have all the technology, they just need to put it all together in the sim.

Sure, I support that, @romandesign. And I hope it is coming down the line. Asobo/MS have certainly showed they are not afraid of innovation and 3rd party collaboration, and since Azure voice recognition is basically an inhouse asset, I would think it is a high chance it might be coming to MSFS. 

For offline ATC, I use Pilot2ATC, but ... I would think with today's technology we could have better talkback.   The speech recognition is all right at least.   I actually think this is something Asobo will not do, and instead some 3rd party will take it up.  I think that, because Asobo have already made their ATC system...I'd look for tweaks of that system but not an entirely new module from them.  Maybe they'll surprise me.

Oops, I just used the word "tweaks" in this subforum.  That's almost as verboten as Farm Sim 2020.

By the way, in regards to the ATC and what I find most annoying with it:

• The radio frequencies are changed for me automatically. It should be done manually so you actually have to use your radio panel. Sure, have a newbi-friendly alternative where they are changed for you, but it shouldn't be default for all simmers. That leaves me in control of being on the same channel as ATC if I want to, or go to a different channel like 122.800 if I want to be left alone. 
• Have different kinds of voices so it's not the same voice for both atc and pilots over and over. It is just annoying and breaks immersion.
• Instead of a windowed menu why dont Asobo try something like Opie in World of Warcraft or the middle mousebutton menu in Chaseplane? Basically have a ring menu populating around the mouse when you click the hotkey. Or maybe something totally different, but in any case the ui for atc just looks really old fashioned and doesn't rhyme with the rest of the sim. Sticks out like a sore thumb.
• Remove anything that has to do with pushback from the atc menu. Shift P could open a seperate pushback menu. 

Edited August 11, 20205 yr by Andreas Stangenes

18 minutes ago, Andreas Stangenes said:

The radio frequencies are changed for me automatically.

I haven't messed with the radio, but I notice the frequencies change.  Is this something you've set up the copilot to do?  Once I got things set up the way I wanted I never looked at any of those menus again.

Hook

3 minutes ago, LHookins said:

I haven't messed with the radio, but I notice the frequencies change.  Is this something you've set up the copilot to do?  Once I got things set up the way I wanted I never looked at any of those menus again.

Hook

I worded my list badly, because one could easily mistake me for a tester - which I'm not. Im just referring to what I've seen on youtube. I never see anyone actually dialing in the frequencies in the radio panel. I only see them click the corresponding menu item and the frequency change happens automatically. 

Its funny that all the 'ground to cockpit' radio stuff feels OK in x-plane/better pushback but having pushback in the atc menu seems weird in MFS. Probably because better pushback is just one side of the conversation .. and that its Ty and jonfly's voices helps too... .. butI would say, i see the logic of how it is now in MFS, even though it seems weird in practice.  Maybe a second way to do it wouldnt hurt. 

 

I dont really have an issue with the MFS ATC as a whole.. its integrated with the AI and live traffic and seems overall competent.. phraseology is not extremely important to me since i know what the correct phraseology should be. i just need reasonably competent traffic controlling. i could never find a 3rd party addon offline solution for ATC that i liked with my current sim.  and  that lead me to pilotedge and vatsim. Which are both great.. and i will  still use those for online... but for offline flights i think im going to give the built in ATC a generous try first before going back to being my own atc .  I feel like high level issues will get fixed so i'll hold tight.

Edited August 12, 20205 yr by Wewk584