MarkL94

So I'll add my $.02 to a question no one is asking anymore, but since you mentioned primarily flying helos, I'll chime in I've been using an X52 pro for a bunch of years and just picked up a Warthog HOTAS. The Warthog is hands down better in every way than the Saitek, but I actually prefer the X52 for helicopters. With a zip tie on the spring, the force is nice and light, and there's no sensation differentiation between pitch and roll axis, so cyclic movements are easy and intuitive. Plus, you can Velcro/zip-tie the throttle to the side of your office chair and have a convincing budget collective.

Hey, I guess it's probably a little too late, but I just found this thread. If you were sill contemplating DIY, instead of trying to source all the individual components, you could just start with another joystick to canibalize. I see you have a Logictech 3D pro. You could get another one new for $35 or used for probably $15. Take it apart and you've got 4 pots, a bunch of buttons, an 8 way hat, the controller board, and no programming required.

Regarding the throttle, I've never set it up for reversing, so I'm not 100% sure. The null zone in the fsx setting is basically just a small dead zone, I'm guessing to make up for slack or play in a control, or maybe a dirty potentiometer that gives erratic readings. I don't believe you can use that null zone for a reverser. I do believe that you can use FSUIPC to set zones in the throttle to do such a thing. Again, I've never actually done this. But in the FSUIPC axis calibration menu, you can set the range of the throttle, so basically have it set to zero when the x52 throttle is above the lower detent, then assign the area below the detent to thrust reversing.

Regarding the joystick: i have an x52 pro and it works pretty well for me. First off, set the null zones to zero. I set my sensitivity to full, but that's personal preference. Second, do the magnet mod. There's a ton of YouTube vids and forum links on how to do it. No surgery required, its super easy. Open the bottom cover and literally just snap additional 10mm magnets onto the existing magnets for the Hall sensors. It improves response and precision immensely. The one other thing I did to mine- there was a little play in the pitch axis. There was a little physical space between the metal joystick tube and the oval slot in the plastic pitch rocker. All I did was wrap two layers of regular 3M satin tape around the stick tube, and that took up the slack. if you open the bottom of the joystick, you'll see what I'm talking about.

Doesn't confuse the decision at all! Thanks for the great advice. I'll be starting from scratch with P3D, but I'll look through my old fsx files to see if there's anything I can't live without. With the amount I'm ready to drop on peripherals and computer upgrades, the price of admission is a drop in the bucket. So I missed the sale on the i5, but now the i7 on sale for just a few bucks more. But I bet if I wait just a --little-- longer and spend just a --little-- more, I could get an i9 Roswell/Groom Lake processor. Where does it end?? Oops- apparently the "K" on the processor is another hundred bills. Anyone wanna buy a motorcycle or two?

Hi, sorry to bring back an old thread, but I just (re)joined the party! I fly RC as well, but it's been a few years-- all of my helicopters have flybars. I even built a 450 size Chinook (seach YouTube for Twinrex in the hangar). I haven't used P3d yet, but I used to fly a lot in FS8/9/X. What I did for collective was use the throttle from my Saitek X52 zip tied to the left arm rest of my chair. I reversed the throttle axis, so it functioned pull up to go up. It's no real collective lever, but was free, and worked a lot better than the little throttle lever on an all-in-one joystick. I'm glad to find other RC-ers on here as well!

Well, I would consider fsx because I already own it. Plus $$ in addons, gigs of awesome freeware, and hours and hours of tweaking and modding. I still have all my mods and files backed up on a portable HD. Most importantly, since I haven't experienced modern sims yet, I won't know what I'm missing! I'm mostly wondering if my computer is up to the task of running P3D in most of its glory, or if I'll get better performance from FSX.

And my second question, is that i3 going to be a big bottleneck to the system? I'm contemplating upgrading to an i5-7600k, on this computer that I haven't even plugged in yet.

So... after an eight year hiatus from flight sims, I just got great deal on a new (to me) computer. Much to my old-tech surprise, it doesn't have a CD/DVD drive. My original intent was so start cheap by using my old FSX and adding discs. But since I'd have to buy a DVD drive, would it make more sense to just pony up and start from scratch on P3D, since I will end up there anyway? I used to get satisfactory performance with FSX on my gateway P7811FX laptop (core 2 duo 2.26GHz, GTX 9800m 512MB). This computer obviously blows my old laptop out of the water, so fsx should be awesome. Then I read in the forums that P3D runs smoother with better frame rates than FSX. But I also see people with much higher spec computers than mine struggling to get good performance from either sim. So while I wait for my bargain monitor to show up (Asus p278Q, 1080p), I have time to debate the pros and cons of each sim. i3-7100 Gigabite 170n gaming 5 mobo Corsair Vengeance 16GB DDR4 EVGA GTX 1070sc2 Crucial 256GB SSD

Hi! New old member here. I used to visit occasionally, back prior to, say, 2009. But the site seems to be new, and my old profile doesn't exist anymore, so hi again! im just (trying) to get back into simming after a hiatus, and now I have to catch up on all the new technology. :eek