HOTAS Information

[[TWB]Sauerkraut-]

Back in Christmas, when I decided to get serious about flight sims, I decided to buy myself a proper HOTAS. I decided a cheaper, more entry level HOTAS would be more than adequate for someone with such little experience, and I wouldn't be making that big of an investment in case I got cold feet and decided it wasn't for me.

 

I went with the Thrustmaster HOTTAS 4, (over the HOTAS X mainly because it had a connector for the rudder pedals I bought with it) it seemed like the ideal fit for me.

 

The HOTAS 4 has a decent number of buttons for the price, but I'm finding it increasingly inadequate over time. The design of the HOTAS 4 is, IMO, fantastic. It's a bit... "edgy",  but it is very comfortable. The large handrest on the bottom right of the stick is probably one of my favorite features that I don't seem to find on most higher quality HOTAS systems, which tend to feature handrests that are quite a bit smaller.

 

My one MAJOR problem with this stick is the resistance. It has a nob which allows you to alter the resistance on a smooth curve instead of having defined preset resistances, which is nice. But I'm talking about the actual "feel" of the stick here. If I had to make a chart of the resistance curve it would look something like this:

R |                  _____________

E |                 /

S |                 |

I  |                /

S |-------------

T |________________________

                 Deflection

 

It's not ideal, at all. As a result, I've had to turn down the resistance to almost nothing, because the abrupt change is very uncomfortable. Since this is the only HOTAS, or even flight stick, that I have ever owned/used, I don't know if this is common or not. My intuition is that is isn't, because I can't imagine why anyone would like that, but I don't know for sure. I don't really want to continue flying with the stick the way it is, as the with the resistance this low I have almost no feedback from the stick itself. Also, as mentioned before, the lack of buttons is beginning to become an issue.

 

Anyway, I've been thinking about upgrading to the T.16000M FCS, as it seems to be a very popular HOTAS for people who want a good HOTAS, but aren't willing to drop 400 bucks on it. Is the resistance on the T.16000M similar to my experience with the HOTAS 4? Would you recommend buying the T.16000M FCS? What are some of the issues that you experience with it that you may not have been expecting?

Edited April 12, 2018 by itsthatguy

[Raban]

I've had the exact same issue with the Thrustmaster HOTAS X. As I had never tried another stick,  I thought for a year that I was just bad at shooting, since I kept wobbling around my target when aiming. 

I upgraded to the T.16000M recently, and the difference is huge.