Thrustmaster’s TX steering wheel will transform your Forza experience

It's wheely immersive.

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wthnospam@gmail.com[/url]":2fw0gum4]How long is the USB cable? Also, I have never purchased a wheel for my console before, do you just place the wheel in your lap or does it have to be mounted on something?

My XBox One is in the home theater and sits about 10 feet from the couch that I play on.

Seems kind of strange that it isn't wireless unless it's because of power requirements for the force feedback.

As Dr. Jon said, the USB cable is maybe 6 or 7 feet. I use a decent quality USB extension with mine to no apparent ill effects.

As for setting it on your lap... The previous poster was also correct in that for accurate feel, you need something solid for it to push against.. But once you see the way force feedback snaps that wheel around, you'll quickly realize you don't want any part of that thing kicking around on your lap.

And as for cables, my older TX wheel has a proprietary AC power port built in, and a included a cable for it. I've heard rumors that new wheels use a 24 volt external adapter in addition to the cabled USB.

 

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Morhyn[/url]":2yzqusbf]The excuse that the 360 Fanatec wheels can't be used on the Xbox One due to the new force feedback protocol is pure hogwash. Evidence:

http://controllermax.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142407

Using one of these -- http://controllermax.com/products/cronusmax/

So, you can keep the Thrusmaster garbage. I look forward to using my CSR Elite wheel and pedals again, soon.

Well, as I understand it, and as seemed to be detailed there, there is really no force feedback enabled. Only the wheel's built-in auto-center, plus some rumble. Plus, even with "simulation" steering options in Forza 5, I don't think there's any way built in the game to disable the input scaling unless it detects an actual wheel...?

I have to believe this would be a very sub-optimal experience. Of course, if I had a Fanatec wheel, I'm sure I'd give it a try, as heck, nothing to lose.

 

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Morhyn[/url]":177nycak]
It looks to me like the user contributed script that I linked aggregates the four individual feedback signals of the XBone protocol into the traditional feedback of the 360. So, while it might not be full "force feedback," it is still something. And really, it just shows that an interface _could_ be released to make the old accessories compatible with hardly any effort.

But yeah, I remain skeptical as to just how good it will be until I actually receive the device (in the next couple weeks, hopefully). I know it won't show up to Forza as a wheel, but as a controller. Still, turning a wheel is a helluva lot better than trying to be precise with a thumbstick. And triggers as "pedals"? That shit doesn't work; the tension is _way_ too low.

Yeah, exactly what I got from it, as well. Only those four XB1 channels aren't Force Feedback, they're the four rumble channels. There is no real force feedback to bridge in, as none is present, because no wheel is detected.

And you're going to get the "corrections" applied to thumbsticks while holding a wheel. It'll unfortunately reduce some very nice Fanatec kit into a mode that makes it worse than the cheapo non-FFB Thrustmaster Spider.

 

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Morhyn[/url]":9mwmort6]
It's on topic, and offers a potential solution for the "many gamers annoyed at the prospect of having their expensive racing wheel setups for the Xbox 360 rendered obsolete."

Is a hack that allows a non-force feedback method to trick the xbox into thinking an old wheel is really a controller actually a "potential solution"? I'm sure you could trick the XB1 into letting you drive with a fighting stick, too. Doesn't mean it's a good idea. I'm just curious... Have you ever driven a sim with a non-FFB wheel?

I look at the pictures of the reviewed wheel and I see a whole bunch of plastic. It looks chintzy, and it certainly doesn't look worth the cost (in terms of materials and design).

The actual build quality of the TX is better than the pictures look. But why they licensed Ferrari, instead of spending 1/4th that on making a decent looking generic rim out of reasonable materials is beyond me.

I don't care about it being a rival product. I care about it _not_ being a rival product simply because MS doesn't want to allow older wheels to work. There's no technical reason why these shouldn't be rival products. Let us, the people who are paying for products, decide if we think the new fangled rumble is worth the cost of a wheel "upgrade." But don't artificially limit compatibility and then push overpriced replacements on us.

Well, there are a lot of technical reasons why the TX and Fanatec can't be competing products. I suspect the reason Fanatec didn't release an interface like this is because it would work so poorly that they'd get even more bad press than just claiming their old wheel was fundamentally incompatible.

Now, if you want to bash on Microsoft a bit for continuing to rely on proprietary protocols... I'd agree with you... And be my guest. But you'll probably have to take a number, because there's still people lined up to beat that dead horse.

 

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haar[/url]":3b6wte4g]how do you prevent the pedals from slipping?... bolt them to the floor?.

(or use duck/packing tape to tie the pedals to the table and the table to the couch... quite a hassle to set up/tear down)

Typically you'd use a wheel like this with a dedicated wheel stand. Jon's RennSport is a good example.

Then you'd bolt the pedals to the wheelstand and run all the cables along the support, just leaving power and USB that need to be messed with at setup and teardown.

Personally, I use the WheelStand Pro v2, but it's very similar. Tear down is unplug USB, unplug power, pull one release lever, fold, pick up and set in closet.

This system draws a minimal of eye rolling from the wife, unlike the people with dedicated cockpits.

 

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Dr Gitlin[/url]":12iqrs89]

Abulia[/url]":12iqrs89]This article does a poor job of explaining why this wheel is so good and how it improves the Forza experience. For example, I'd like to read about your driving times with and without the wheel. How it changes the way you enter/exit curves, etc. The article tells me the wheel is awesome and changes the Forza experience but doesn't tell me how. That's the part I want to know before I slap down cash for it.

Also, the lack of detail surrounding the necessity of needing a stand--and the additional cost that comes with it--seems to handwaving another barrier to entry.

Every wheel will need a stand. Or a cockpit.

Am I faster with the wheel? I've not empirically compared, but I'd say yes. Why? Much easier to make small adjustments. For example, you can control your steering input so you're asking the front tires to do less turning which means they have more grip for going forward. The biggest thing really is subjective though - it is so much more immersive. You feel every tooth on every rumble strip you drive over, you feel the front wheels lock up and the steering go light when you ask too much of them and overwhelm the available grip. That kind of thing. It doesn't change the lines you take around the track (nor should it) but it does let you be more precise, and you gain more enjoyment.

For the most part, I'd say if you're buying a wheel to be quicker... You're likely to be sorely disappointed. I will still play a quick 15 minute sitting of Forza without my wheel now and then. And I will often tinker with a setup on both wheel and stick. So I'm pretty good on both wheel and stick.

According to the empirical lap time data, my fast lap is typically slightly faster on the stick than the wheel. (Negligible difference, really, but often 2-4 tenths of a second, on an average 2 minute lap.) Lap averages I haven't computed, but would probably work out pretty even, or possibly slightly in favor of the wheel. This is because with the wheel, my consistency is better, and my precision is way better. On the wheel, I feel confident running my line out to only leaving a couple inches to that wall.

Whereas with the stick, my recovery skills are much better. I think this is probably due to the game engine making corrections to your stick inputs to make driving with a stick not an impossibly frustrating experience. But it has the side effect of allowing me to move the brake points further toward the corners on entry and push the throttle harder on exit. This can lead to a better good lap, and, obviously, a much worse bad lap than likely with the wheel.

But, like I started with, buying a wheel for the lap times is going to leave you disappointed. It is the immersion and pure fun factor of the wheel that are off the charts better than the stick.

The TX is truly uncanny in it's ability to communicate the road and what the car is doing. I'm not exaggerating when I say it translates the feel of the road better than my every day commuter GM recallbox.