If your going the yoke route, do yourself a favour, don’t get the saitek yoke but rather spend a bit more and get the H/C, difference is night and day. H/C isn’t plastic junk, so much smoother and nicer to manipulate IMO! 

Saitek/Logitech are like toys compared to the Honeycomb options. 

I considered the Saitek pedals but for some reason, sellers believe that they rise faster than inflation. The price gap between the Saitek and Honeycomb should be a lot wider and once was a lot wider, until demand pushed the prices up. At least in my region.

3 hours ago, tup61 said:

Totally OT but out of interest/curiosity: what exactly does drift and noisy mean in this regard? In other words: what would I experience if my controller would drift and get noisy?

Simply put, a noisy control does not always provide electrical inputs that correctly corresponds to the physical setting ( e.g., position of a shaft) of the control. So, for example, moving the control a small amount may not change the electrical signal at all, and then if you move it again, the signal suddenly "jumps" to a new, and perhaps incorrect, value. So if can be difficult to make precise changes.

Drift implies an electrical signal changes a small amount on its own, that is, without the user actually moving the control.

Controllers like the Saitek units use potentiometers (pots -- think of a typical volume control with a shaft you can turn) which are resistive devices. When the potentiometer shaft turns (such as when pushing on a rudder pedal or moving a throttle lever) a metal wiper rubs along a carbon surface and as a result the resistance of the device changes which in turn changes an electrical signal. Over time the contact between the metal wiper and the carbon surface becomes less reliable because of dirt, or 1000s of uses which can wear out the carbon surface, etc., and the pot is said to be noisy. The better the quality of the pot, the longer it should last without becoming noisy.

Hall senors are magnetic devices that unlike pots, operate without any actual physical contact between its signal determining internal components, and so do not suffer the same type of "contact" problems as described above. 

Al

Edited January 4, 20224 yr by ark

23 minutes ago, ark said:

Simply put, a noisy control does not always provide electrical inputs that correctly corresponds to the physical setting ( e.g., position of a shaft) of the control. So, for example, moving the control a small amount may not change the electrical signal at all, and then if you move it again, the signal suddenly "jumps" to a new, and perhaps incorrect, value. So if can be difficult to make precise changes.

Drift implies an electrical signal changes a small amount on its own, that is, without the user actually moving the control.

Controllers like the Saitek units use potentiometers (pots -- think of a typical volume control with a shaft you can turn) which are resistive devices. When the potentiometer shaft turns (such as when pushing on a rudder pedal or moving a throttle lever) a metal wiper rubs along a carbon surface and as a result the resistance of the device changes which in turn changes an electrical signal. Over time the contact between the metal wiper and the carbon surface becomes less reliable because of dirt, or 1000s of uses which can wear out the carbon surface, etc., and the pot is said to be noisy. The better the quality of the pot, the longer it should last without becoming noisy.

Hall senors are magnetic devices that unlike pots, operate without any actual physical contact between its signal determining internal components, and so do not suffer the same type of "contact" problems as described above. 

Al

Excellent post and as an electronics instructor for over 30 years, it is totally correct. In today's world. replacing carbon pots with hall ICs is the only way to go, It is moving from an analog device to a digital device.  

 

Just my opinion: The Logitech pedals are good for the money, Their yokes are not very good.
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(Man this is good quality at a cheap price): TM T.1600 flight pack $260. Stick, Throttle, and Pedals. These been out of stock or way over priced ever since MSFS came out. I think this bargain won't last long, maybe a couple hours maybe a couple days. There are better controllers but way more expensive).

https://www.amazon.com/Thrustmaster-T16000M-FCS-Flight-Pack/dp/

 

 

I use the Hotas Warthog stick and will be replacing Saitek stuff this year.

Anyone tried out the new Thrustmaster Boeing edition?

Michael Moe

Edited January 4, 20224 yr by Michael Moe

A few different Yokes - in order of quality and price -

1. CH/Saitek/Logtech -  throwaway basic yokes - plastic, these can get unreliable and have limited ( 3" ??) in-out movement and only turn 45 degrees left right but the price is good
2. Honeycomb - prosumer level - better quality, though still plastic, these come in at twice the price of the basic yokes above but have much better build and full 90 degree movement left/right (180 total), still a bit limited on the in-out axis (presumably to keep the desktop footprint small), for people that like that sort of stuff has some switchgear on the yoke though can be tricky to get the switches working correctly in MSFS, good quality unit at a fair price for what you get
3. Fulcrum - professional level - all metal construction, slightly dearer again than the Honeycomb, removable yoke handle, full 90 degree left right and great 8" in-out action, competitive price for a professional yoke, really solid, these are excellent and will last a lifetime. Most affordable of the good professional yokes. Only Yoke under several thousand dollars to offer full 8" in-out and 90 degree each way left/right.
4. Virtual Fly Yoko - professional level - all metal construction, twice the price of the Honeycomb, only 45 degrees left right but around 6" in and out, very high quality unit that, like the Fulcrum, will last a lifetime
5. Brunner - full enterprise level - common in flying schools, have versions approved all the way up to use with FAA approved level D simulators, full Force Feedback with prices start at about 4 times a Honeycomb for a basic one and going up from there.  Some top of the line Brunner gear costs almost as much as a 2nd hand real aircraft.

Edited January 4, 20224 yr by Glenn Fitzpatrick