I have the 414 and was considering the Baron or the Aerostar. To me the Baron was to similar to the 414 and had no state persistence, even if it seemed like its system depth was better than the 414 and with its three frames (NA, Turbo, Pressurized Turbo) was more versatile.

I went with the Aerostar.

However I will say its like like a finicky sports car vs a reliable sedan in the fact that it can be a PITA to keep cool (no cowl flaps), can be really restrictive in winter (no wing/tail anti ice) and may not be as "comfortable" on long trips because of its lack of pressurization.

But as Uncle Enzo said "I don't care if the door gaps are straight. When the driver steps on the gas I want him to word not allowed his pants." 

Edited January 4Jan 4 by ANCRM114

9 hours ago, MayuyuYukirin said:

Hello everyone!

 

I currently have the following aircraft in my fleet:

• A2A Comanche
• BBS Cessna 310R
• Flysimware Cessna 414AW
• Just Flight PA-28
• SWS Kodiak100

I'd like to treat myself to a New Year's gift and am trying to decide between:

• Black Square's Duke Bundle
• Black Square's Baron/Bonanza Bundle
• Black Square's The Starship
• A2A's Aerostar 600

My budget is limited, so I can only purchase one.

Which would you recommend?

You don’t have enough turboprops. And that’s a problem 😎

IMHO, it’s best to go for what’s MOST different. 

in this case, that points straight to the Starship. 

Otherwise you could hedge your bet with the Dukes. Great in their own right, but not as interesting as the Starship 

It really depends on how "adventurous" you want to be..  IMHO, if you are looking for airplanes that you might fly often, the Bonanza / Baron combo provides just that.  I mainly fly the Bonanza, But today, I thought I would give the Baron a whirl.. Lovely aircraft, more roomy in the cockpit than the Duke.

Edited January 4Jan 4 by Bert Pieke

Price probably shouldn’t be the only reason food buying a plane but it’s maybe worth mentioning that the Starship and the turbine and piston Dukes are all the current Just Flight sale with the Starship and the combo pack of BOTH duke version for the same price of £29.99 (the individual Duke are only slightly cheaper than the pack at £27.19 each)

Edited January 4Jan 4 by Matchstick

Thank you all! Considering the uniqueness and distinctiveness of the aircraft, I've decided to go with the Starship. I'll save the pressurized turboprop for my next purchase.

Bit late to this party but for future I would highly recommend BKSQ's Baron/Bonanza bundle or Dukes - the best GA aircraft in the market. A2A's Aerostar is also highly recommended but unless you have interest in Aerostar itself, I would recommend BSQK ones as mentioned. 

In R/L I have flown the Dukes, Baron & the C414 (also the C310 - which nobody has really mentioned)- in R/L I prefered the C414 to fly (actually the C421 was my favorite) that was my favorite before the Scarostar came out - but for the sim I prefer the Scarostar - I just find it's flight model easier? (trying to find the right word) - it's easier to trim & get your speeds right & responds realistically to control inputs - I found the rudder very realistic as well - I do a lot of hand flying the ILS's in the sim - just enjoy proving that I still have the skills to pull off a reasonable one - having said that for the turbo props I found the Starship the most pleasant of all to fly & I could also pull off a reasonable ILS approach in it - (would love a Turbo Commander AC 690B/G1000 - spent a heap of time in those as well) - just my 2cents worth😁

3 hours ago, Rattso said:

n R/L I have flown the Dukes, Baron & the C414 (also the C310 - which nobody has really mentioned)

Actually, several of us have specifically mentioned the 310.  See: https://www.avsim.com/forums/topic/687083-duke，aerostar-600，baronbonanza-or-starship/#findComment-5659751

 

3 hours ago, Rattso said:

I do a lot of hand flying the ILS's in the sim - just enjoy proving that I still have the skills to pull off a reasonable one - having said that for the turbo props I found the Starship the most pleasant of all to fly & I could also pull off a reasonable ILS approach in it

Completely agree about the satisfaction (and challenge) of hand-flying approaches.  As Steveo would say - can't let the airplane have all the fun.  That said, I often hand fly approaches in the Black Square Dukes, Baron and Bonanza and find them all a pleasure for doing so.

 

Scott

Ill also add with the engines farther back and the overhead windows the Aerostar has great visibility out of the cockpit.

4 hours ago, tttocs said:

Actually, several of us have specifically mentioned the 310.  See: https://www.avsim.com/forums/topic/687083-duke，aerostar-600，baronbonanza-or-starship/#findComment-5659751

 

Completely agree about the satisfaction (and challenge) of hand-flying approaches.  As Steveo would say - can't let the airplane have all the fun.  That said, I often hand fly approaches in the Black Square Dukes, Baron and Bonanza and find them all a pleasure for doing so.

 

Scott

 

7 hours ago, Rattso said:

The BBS 310 was devs by the same guy who just released the SR-71(!). 

I think he was under a lot of pressure to get the SR done after so many years (and simulators!). 

BBS nee MilViz, as a publisher, have never been great about keeping their addons updated for new simulator versions. 

Which is to say that their current fleet of v2020 addons is minimally compatible with v2024. 

This is constructive criticism because I actually keep giving them money because I like their planes 🤙

IDK how they finance the dev of each addon, but they clearly leave money on the table

which is a looong way of saying the 310 needs some dev love before anyone buys it for v2024. 
 

all that said, there’s almost nothing I like better than hand flying an ILS! And it doesn’t matter the type of aircraft, either. 😎

and for those of you who do, too, go grab the free DCS A-4E Skyhawk and plunk it down in the free Marianas map in the free DCS World. Flying the needles in THAT scenario is almost as much fun as anything else. 😁🤙

Edited January 7Jan 7 by UrgentSiesta

The Milviz 310 was actually one of the first twins I think in msfs 2020 that did wear and tear and state saving.  It has an awesome flight model (imo) - it's just quite dated visually and the panel was kinda basic imo.

I think the TDS GTNxi works in there but now I can't remember.  I had some disagreements with them when I used to beta test for them.  Nothing too heated hehe but I think it was mostly about the TDS vs PMS integration.

Still would recommend that Blackbirdsim C310!  It also has an excellent sound pack!

32 minutes ago, ryanbatc said:

I think the TDS GTNxi works in there but now I can't remember.  I had some disagreements with them when I used to beta test for them.  Nothing too heated hehe but I think it was mostly about the TDS vs PMS integration.

Still would recommend that Blackbirdsim C310!  It also has an excellent sound pack!

Yes, the TDS GTNxi is supported and in a dual 750 configuration, which is great.  However, I've never been able to get the second GTN to drive the CDI properly - and, no I've never brought it up with Milvis/Blackbird as they're notoriously prickly about "providing support for 3rd party stuff".  BTDT a long time ago.

I'd agree the sound is good, but not as good as the Baron Pro or the Duke.  Little things like the engine sounds going directly from not running to running normally on startup (no real "startup" sounds) keep it from being top-tier to me.  And yes, it's visually getting a bit dated. 

The flight model is absolutely solid, it's been a great GA plane and as mentioned earlier, I've been a long-time fan of the line over several sims.  It has been my go-to light twin for just about forever... until the Baron Pro package was released.  Now it sits in the hangar.  Not saying I'll never fly it again, but it's way down in the pecking order these days. 

Time marches on, and the bar keeps getting raised.

 

Scott

1 minute ago, tttocs said:

 

The flight model is absolutely solid, it's been a great GA plane and as mentioned earlier, I've been a long-time fan of the line over several sims.  It has been my go-to light twin for just about forever... until the Baron Pro package was released.  Now it sits in the hangar.  Not saying I'll never fly it again, but it's way down in the pecking order these days. 

 

Now we just need a black square C310 LOL.  Who's going to make a golden eagle though?  (A2A??)  That's probably my 2nd favorite piston twin behind the Duke!

2 hours ago, ryanbatc said:

Now we just need a black square C310 LOL.

We could start a whole new topic on what we wish Black Square would tackle next, but of course his plate seems pretty full what with the Commander 114, the Caravan Professional - and is he re-doing the King Air in a Professional version as well?  Can't remember.

Off topic aside...

Speaking of the Commander, there was a time when I was seriously looking at the 114TC for purchase IRL.  I think it's a plane you had to actually climb into to appreciate, as it's the roomiest piston single I've ever personally experienced - big and wide with entry doors on each side.  No bumping elbows with your right seater, no feeling like you're squashed into a sardine can - none of that.  Unfortunately, the tradeoff for that was performance due to the wide body.  The TC has respectable speed if you're willing to climb high to get it, otherwise you're burning a fair bit of fuel to go only moderately fast.  I ended up passing on it.  Of course, in the sim virtual fuel is free!

But if Black Square is producing it - I'm probably interested in it!

Apologies for the bit of off-topic.

 

Scott