VPC Control Panel - #2

[Panzerlang]

I ordered it on Sunday, expecting it to be a few weeks (back order thing) but it was dispatched yesterday by Fed Ex and is due on the 14th July. And I guess that'll be it for my cockpit, I don't foresee a need for more buttons etc than that'll add to my setup.

[Panzerlang]

It arrived today. I'm seriously impressed with the quality of it. Everything is big, so it's excellent for blind touchy-feely button/switch fumbling.

I wish I hadn't bothered paying extra for the landing-gear lever though. It has three positions, up, off and down. Up and down are both "B29". Genius.

The three rotaries don't work in IL2, but I'd already read about that deficiency in IL2's coding/mapping so it wasn't unexpected.

The two red left/right flip-switches don't activate as two separate commands, which is a shame. To get them to do anything you have to flip them both ways (pretty much a double button press). Waste of space, might as well have put regular buttons there.

All in all a worthwhile purchase (I've been able to map a bunch of useful stuff for which the Warthog base was difficult due to placement of switches and their weird logic).

I've ordered the Virpil M50 base, WBrd grip and bent extension off the back of this button box, going full professional Luftwaffe Ace wannabe. ?

[VilsonFarias]

Is this base programmable as a warthog one? Using the warthog software I was able to reprogram the buttons in a way that IL-2 recognized it. Does Virpil has something similar? I was thinking of buying a full Virpil kit including this base but reading your review sounds like a deal-breaker for me. 

[Panzerlang]

2 hours ago, VilsonFarias said:

Is this base programmable as a warthog one? Using the warthog software I was able to reprogram the buttons in a way that IL-2 recognized it. Does Virpil has something similar? I was thinking of buying a full Virpil kit including this base but reading your review sounds like a deal-breaker for me. 

It has configuration software but I don't see anything in it that allows TARGET type programming.

[JimmySolarium_VR]

19 hours ago, Hetzer-JG51 said:

The two red left/right flip-switches don't activate as two separate commands, which is a shame. To get them to do anything you have to flip them both ways (pretty much a double button press). Waste of space, might as well have put regular buttons there.

 

Hi, in order to get around this, locate the physical buttons in the VPC Configuration Tool and set the Mode to "Switch".

[AKA_Hollywood]

I have a control panel 1 and the new throttle.  Both work 100% perfectly in Great Battles 
 

Like Jimmy said, use the VPC set up

 

you will need to install firmware update. 
 

my rotaries work just fine 

 

 

Congrats on the new peripheral. 

[VilsonFarias]

3 hours ago, AH_Hollywood said:

...my rotaries work just fine 

Congrats on the new peripheral. 

That's great, thanks for letting us know. 

[dburne]

Main thing to keep in mind with IL-2 and these devices is that IL-2 has a limit of 64 buttons per device.

So if you have any logical button numbers higher than 64 then IL-2 will not recognize them.

The physical button is what the device sees, the logical button is what is sent to Windows.

 

I added buttons to the micro stick on my CM3 throttle, and used logical button numbers greater than 64 - IL-2 will not recognize those button presses.

[Sokol1]

Quote

I wish I hadn't bothered paying extra for the landing-gear lever though. It has three positions, up, off and down. Up and down are both "B29". Genius.

 

Although apparently onveniente for "gear" command, in practice only one button press (B29) in both directions is not desirable, hve the inconveniente that can end with landing hear down and control switch (in VPC Control Panel) up. Now game allow set a button for raise and another for lower landing gear:

 

gear_up,                                          joy0_b5,                                          0| // Gear up
gear_dn,                                          joy0_b8,                                          0| // Gear down

 

Probable with VirPil software can change this (B29) for two different button press - the controller allow up to 120. But keep up to 64, game limit.

 

 

Edited July 14, 2021 by Sokol1

[AKA_Hollywood]

On 7/13/2021 at 1:23 PM, Hetzer-JG51 said:

The two red left/right flip-switches don't activate as two separate commands,

panel 1 is the same.
same as the lever for gear. 
I agree maybe not the greatest.  
 

but… plenty to work with along with a warthog or warBrd Stick. 

 

All those extra buttons are just in time for fuel management that’s coming this summer
 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 15, 2021 by AH_Hollywood

[Panzerlang]

5 hours ago, dburne said:

Main thing to keep in mind with IL-2 and these devices is that IL-2 has a limit of 64 buttons per device.

So if you have any logical button numbers higher than 64 then IL-2 will not recognize them.

The physical button is what the device sees, the logical button is what is sent to Windows.

 

I added buttons to the micro stick on my CM3 throttle, and used logical button numbers greater than 64 - IL-2 will not recognize those button presses.

I think this has 36 as there are no 'mode modifier' selectors. If the three rotaries are seen as two-way button presses it has 39.
The gear lever in the config software is seen as three numbers so I don't know why IL2 sees two of its positions as "B29". Odd. But six of the buttons are almost identical to the Fw190's flaps and gear layout anyway, so no biggie. Lol. The unit has more buttons than I've been able to find a use for, embarrassingly. ?

[AKA_Hollywood]

58 minutes ago, Hetzer-JG51 said:

The unit has more buttons than I've been able to find a use for, embarrassingly. ?

better to have more then not enough. 

there always something else you can throw on a button or start flying the Jug. 
engine mgmt alone will give you plenty of buttons to tie up. 
 

 

[ericandi]

On 7/13/2021 at 4:23 PM, Hetzer-JG51 said:

I wish I hadn't bothered paying extra for the landing-gear lever though. It has three positions, up, off and down. Up and down are both "B29". Genius.

The three rotaries don't work in IL2, but I'd already read about that deficiency in IL2's coding/mapping so it wasn't unexpected.

The two red left/right flip-switches don't activate as two separate commands, which is a shame. To get them to do anything you have to flip them both ways (pretty much a double button press). Waste of space, might as well have put regular buttons there.
 

You can easily fix both of these issues in the Virpil software. All of the switches that came by default as single button presses for one switch direction and nothing for the other switch direction, can be changed so they activate one button press when the switches are flipped up and they activate another button press when the switches are flipped down. You can also change the gear lever to activate multiple button presses. You can even change axis levers so they activate multiple button presses throughout the range of the axis. For example, the flap lever on the CM3 throttle is an axis, but in DCS flaps can only controlled by button presses, not an Axis. I used the Virpil software so that the 0-20% range of the axis activates a button for 0% flaps, the 40-60% range of the axis activates half flaps, and the 80 to 100% range of the axis activates full flaps.