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mholden020

Curious about the (Asobo) Diamond DA62

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I've been looking for a twin-engine piston aircraft to make some longer GA flights in, so I obviously have to give the DA62 a shot.  I've made a handful of flights with this plane and while I really like the way it looks and how well it's equipped, but I have been struggling to come to grips with the flight model.  For whatever reason I almost always feel like it's right up on the edge of stalling:  In cruise it seems like I have to keep the throttle high to avoid a high nose-up attitude and maintain a good speed, then on approach I feel like I have to apply too much throttle at all times to overcome drag from the gear and flaps, and reducing throttle for a glideslope overshoot almost always results in a huge drop and I wind up farther below the GS than I was above it.  The only phase where I feel like I'm fully in control is takeoff an initial climb, then I start losing confidence in it quickly.

I'm curious if anybody else has ever felt this way, or if this plane just has very unique characteristics.  It just feels like it's way low on power, and so far is the only plane I've tried that felt this way.  I've also flown the Baron a few times and didn't feel like it was unstable or struggling to maintain speed.  I've been eyeing the Cessna 310 with its high reviews and may just go that way, but this feeling in the Diamond still sticks in the back of my head as odd.  It could just be some self-imposed mental games, but I'm really curious what others think about it.  Take care everyone!

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I've flown the DA62 a fair bit, and this doesn't mirror my experiences at all. Among other things, I recreated a factory ferry flight across the North Atlantic, and the DA62 was more than up to the job -- a joy to handfly, good altitude capability, and definitely not underpowered.

Here are some thoughts:

  • My suspicion is that something else in your community folder may be interfering with the DA62. Have you tried disabling all the addons in the community folder and seeing if the problem persists?
  • My next suspicion would be that a rogue control assignment, maybe to a mixture axis, is causing the DA62 to develop less than full engine power.
  • Failing that, can you post a video showing the problems you're having? That might help pinpoint what the issue is.

By the way, are you using the excellent DA62X improvement mod? If you are, make sure you have the latest version. If not, go out and get it -- it's a must have.

Hang on in there -- once you've overcome whatever the problem is, you'll find the DA62 is an absolute blast. It's a great go-places airplane and just beautiful to look at, both inside and out.

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The da62 is a bit of an oddball in real life with a FADEC/ECU  system controlling the mixture and prop pitch and the pilot only has the throttle to work with. 

The two most highly recommended light twins in game at present are the c310 and the c414, you will not go wrong with either of them. Both are Steam gauge with some glass. They are both excellent addons.

The default Baron is glass and is pretty good for an Asobo plane but you need the premium/Deluxe pack to get it.

There area few other light twins about at cheaper prices including the Twin Navion and the Carenado Seneca and Carenado Seminole but you are actually best grabbing either the c310 or the c414.

( If you are not restricting yourself to light twins there is a huge choice, Beech 18, Twin otter, Islander, Boeing 247D, Grumman Goose, Grumman Widgeon, Electra, DC3 .. the list goes on. )

 

 

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Lets not forget the Black Square Analog mod for the default Kingair...fliy's nicely and is a really nice systems/panel upgrade from default. Although not sure how "light" you'd consider it... but it is GA.

As far as the DA62...I never had a flight issue with it either, as a few others have already indicated. Must be something on your end affecting it somehow.

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I always found the DA62 to be a fun default twin, i spent a lot of time in it early in MSFS.  A good reminder that I haven’t flown it in a while…

Edited by regis9
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Dave

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8 hours ago, mholden020 said:

I've been looking for a twin-engine piston aircraft to make some longer GA flights in, so I obviously have to give the DA62 a shot.  I've made a handful of flights with this plane and while I really like the way it looks and how well it's equipped, but I have been struggling to come to grips with the flight model.  For whatever reason I almost always feel like it's right up on the edge of stalling:  In cruise it seems like I have to keep the throttle high to avoid a high nose-up attitude and maintain a good speed, then on approach I feel like I have to apply too much throttle at all times to overcome drag from the gear and flaps, and reducing throttle for a glideslope overshoot almost always results in a huge drop and I wind up farther below the GS than I was above it.  The only phase where I feel like I'm fully in control is takeoff an initial climb, then I start losing confidence in it quickly.

I'm curious if anybody else has ever felt this way, or if this plane just has very unique characteristics.  It just feels like it's way low on power, and so far is the only plane I've tried that felt this way.  I've also flown the Baron a few times and didn't feel like it was unstable or struggling to maintain speed.  I've been eyeing the Cessna 310 with its high reviews and may just go that way, but this feeling in the Diamond still sticks in the back of my head as odd.  It could just be some self-imposed mental games, but I'm really curious what others think about it.  Take care everyone!

By the way, if you're already using the da-62x mod then it sounds like you might have some engine damage causing your apparent power loss, as this mod is expected to simulate this (make sure to read about it in the mod's pdf file included in the download).

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7 hours ago, martinboehme said:

Here are some thoughts:

  • My suspicion is that something else in your community folder may be interfering with the DA62. Have you tried disabling all the addons in the community folder and seeing if the problem persists?
  • My next suspicion would be that a rogue control assignment, maybe to a mixture axis, is causing the DA62 to develop less than full engine power.
  • Failing that, can you post a video showing the problems you're having? That might help pinpoint what the issue is.

Wow, thanks for the responses everyone!!  

  • I actually tried the DA62 immediately after installing MSFS on the computer I just built when nothing was in the Community folder and it was completely fresh and I was still having the same issues.
  • I actually don't have a mixture axis programmed to my controls specifically because I have bumped a mixture control in the past and killed an engine.  Ever since then I leave it unassigned so I have to deliberately (and consciously) change the mixture.  I just noticed Glenn mentioned the pitch and mixture are automatically controlled, but is it possible I've still overlooked something in the cockpit that could be affecting the engines?
  • I can try, but if you just imagine the plane going everywhere wide open all the time that could fill the gap until I can get a video done!  😅  I joke, of course, I'll see what I can capture that can show what's going on.

 

Quote

By the way, are you using the excellent DA62X improvement mod? If you are, make sure you have the latest version. If not, go out and get it -- it's a must have.

Hang on in there -- once you've overcome whatever the problem is, you'll find the DA62 is an absolute blast. It's a great go-places airplane and just beautiful to look at, both inside and out.

I was completely unaware there was a mod for the DA62, but I'm more than willing to try it.  Thanks!!

 

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12 hours ago, mholden020 said:

I've been looking for a twin-engine piston aircraft to make some longer GA flights in, so I obviously have to give the DA62 a shot.

I find the cockpit very confining, because of the big A-pillars.  The C414 has a much more comfortable cockpit IMHO.. 😉

Even the G36 Bonanza is much nicer and also free..

Edited by Bert Pieke
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Bert

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