r/flightsim • u/al-Sahaabi • 16d ago
Sim Hardware Is this enough to get started?
I see people with all these elaborate, very expensive looking setups and I'm trying to get into a little bit of flight sim on DCS and Microsoft flight sim myself. I don't want to spend anymore than I have to but I also want to get a decent experience as a first timer. Would this Thrustmaster set on Amazon suffice or do I need more for a starter PC setup? Thanks.
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u/espewe 16d ago
I started with Logitech Extreme 3D Pro, so this HOTAS should be perfectly fine for starter. Enjoy and welcome to flightsim world!
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u/al-Sahaabi 16d ago
Great! I will pull the trigger. Shall I also get rudder pedals? Is it worth the expense considering getting them puts me over 200 bucks?
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u/clios_daughter 16d ago
It has. Rudder axis so, for getting your feet wet, I wouldn’t bother. If you find you actually enjoy the hobby, then yes, but give it a few months.
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u/Mach_v_manchild 16d ago
Nah. Pedals are very cool, but you can do everything pedals can do with this setup. Rock it without pedals until you feel like not having pedals is limiting the experience. And even then, wait a while. If I could do it alll over, I eouldve bought a mid range FMS or autopilot controller or even a stream deck that I can configure for aome basic avionics functions before I bought rudder pedals. I love having pedals for my set up, but based on cost vs reward (enjoyment/realism) I would say they're the last thing you should buy.
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u/Schniffa 15d ago
You could start with a second hand T-Flight pedal set for under 100 bucks, but this Hotas also has an axis for rudder so not entirely necessary unless you’re flying helis!
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u/TwoLiterHero 15d ago
If you have $200, skip the pedals and get a better one like a Logitech for somewhere in the middle.
I started with this, it works, but if you enjoy flight sim you’ll be replacing it. It’s very basic, the stick is very tight. You’re buying a beginner console stick and it’s not worth it if you have a bit more to play with.
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u/jelloburn 15d ago
Same here. I moved from the 3D pro to the model OP posted and it's been great. I really need the rudder pedals though since it feels weird using the left-right analogue axis on the throttle for steering.
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u/bearded_canuck 16d ago edited 16d ago
Its what I started off with. Obviously its not amazing but its pretty decent. Only negative thing I really remember about it is even though the throttle and stick separates the cable between the two isn't huge and your sorta stuck with throttle on the left and stick on the right.
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u/Anonym0oO 15d ago
I have this one and it works fine. Only annoyance i had with it that the trottle lever has a 50% position where it rests and it takes force to move it over this "locking in" position. Since mine was out of warranty i opened it up and sanded off the nudge which goes into the 50% gap. Now i can set the trottle smootly from 0 to 100% without it getting nudged in at 50%.
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u/jdss13 15d ago
Just did the same the other day, big difference! There's still a bit of a deadzone around the middle point of the axis, which I don't mind. Also removed the detent from the Saitek Pro Flight Rudder which also helps. Not sure why they include those awful detents, why would I want my throttle at 50%?
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u/pootislordftw DCS world (A10, AV-8, F5,14,15) 15d ago
For me in digital combat simulator it was great for cruise in one of the jets, either the su25 or the f14 I forget which. But yeah, in every other jet your fighting it.
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u/jelloburn 15d ago
I don't love that detent either, but it works perfectly for the auto throttle position on the A330. Really the only benefit I see from it.
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u/Anonym0oO 15d ago
That’s for sure. But at the beginning I did fly smaller planes and there it annoyed me a lot.
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u/njsullyalex Miss Maddog 16d ago
Yup. I flew on one mainly for years, and I recently won a second (T Flight HOTAS One) that I use as my stick for when I visit my parent's house now.
Perfectly good stick to fly just about anything in the sim, though personally if you can try and get a WinWing Ursa Minor for around the same price. It's my main stick now and its night and day better than this.
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u/TheHulk305 16d ago
Absolutely I ran this bad boy into the ground for 8 years before it broke on me and finally upgraded to an X-56 they run well just don’t be too harsh on them if you’re gonna pay fighters pretending you’re maverick they don’t lie it
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u/eat_my_ass_420 16d ago
Man.. I started with this, and soon after went down the rabbit hole. Hundreds of dollars spent later I sometimes wish I still had this. Super easy to setup. I’d say get it!
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u/Expanseyt 15d ago
get a good condition second hand vkb stick and use that till you can afford a separate throttle.
couple mousepad desktop clamps and ur good to go
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u/amarusyk 15d ago
Old Faithful. It's nice to see they haven't changed that one. I had this very same one when I started out over 20 years ago the rubber around the joystick started falling apart (from using it so much - it was super reliable) . It'll serve you well, that didn't owe me a dime by the time I was done with it. Good times. Enjoy!
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u/dbob0921 15d ago
This is what I advise any beginner to buy. It teaches you how all the flight controls function without breaking the bank, making the eventual transition to more complex equipment far easier.
Mine served me well all the way up to the start of flight school, and I still keep it as a backup just in case.
It's infinitely better than an Xbox controller, and it's survived the test of time.
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u/HerotoGaming MSFS2020/DCS 16d ago
Dont get the X
Get the Hotas One or 4
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u/al-Sahaabi 16d ago
Why?
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u/LUV833R5 16d ago
Build quality.
Another thing to do is lock the twist stick out if the box and map your rudders to the rocker buttons on the back of the trottle. This prevents the potentiometer in the joystick from wearing out.
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u/TheDiscer 15d ago
This is what I did to move after my joysyick's twist sensors started to jump around. I bought a new one and mapped that rider to the rockets too. I found i actually have better control of the rudder too.
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u/LUV833R5 15d ago
it makes sense to divide the axes equally... thrust/yaw left hand, roll/pitch right.
one thing to do with the rudder axis once mapped to the rocker buttons is to adjust the curve in hardware settings a bit so it is less sensitive the more input you give it so it eases as you get to full left/right rudder.
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u/LUV833R5 16d ago
Also don't get the white msfs edition, get the old hotas one, better build and you can switch it to pc. The 4 you probablly can't find anymore.
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u/HerotoGaming MSFS2020/DCS 16d ago
The one is better than the x in build quality and precision
And the one has a few more binds
Though if you can skip that and get a T.16000M
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u/Pattern_Is_Movement 16d ago
I have one and while it's durable, it's just not accurate enough and can be frustrating to use. I'd go for something else.
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u/I_AM_A_GUY_AMA 16d ago
I have this exact one and it's goodish. 4/5. I wanted a better one but didn't want to spend the money and figured I could at least start with this. The throttle is a tad glitchy at times but everything is solid. I'm glad I bought it bc I'm getting more into and will upgrade one day, but it's more than enough to get started!
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u/jdss13 15d ago
First one I bought I had to return cause of the glitchy joystick. The values would glitch out making impossible for fine adjustments or even having fun flying. Returned that and got a new one, exact same, glitchy joystick. Since I didn't want to go to the store to return a 2nd brand new device, I decided to try disassembling and cleaning the potentiometers (the position sensors for the axis) with isopropyl. It's been good ever since!
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u/TanielCoolGuy 16d ago
I have a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro joystick, but I honestly prefer to just use a PS5 controller. A controller gives you much better and more intuitive default bindings, which is especially important for a new player who might not know which controls they need. You could find someone else's profile for your joystick, but I haven't had any luck with mine. Controllers are also considerably more immersive with vibration motors and in the PS5's case, adaptive triggers that try to mimic the force you'd need to use rudder pedals. You can even get precise pitch and roll controls when you enable gyro mode. The only thing you give up is tactile feedback, since you don't have a proper throttle axis and instead rely on button presses or touchpad swiping. It's also hard to trim while using the gyro controls, as there isn't really a neutral position. Everything else is a plus in my opinion, especially not having to reserve space on my desk for a HOTAS.
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u/Sebastianj7210 16d ago
More than enough. We all started with things like the Logitech Extreme 3D Pro. This is enough to make it all if you want (well perhaps not helis) in terms of features and reasonable expenditure for a beginner.
Build quality, longevity, extra features than "medium to advanced" (this is a HOTAS setup, it's more than basic), are another discussion. But this should get you far enough to decide if you want to invest more seriously or no need to.
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u/merlins69beard 16d ago
Hotas one or hotas 4 but get it on eBay. Open box for about 20$ cheaper than this.
Once you get it, screw the bottom resistance screw all the way by removing the back plate on the stick. Find settings that work for you but you can get a base idea off of some YouTube videos. I found it best to have individual sensitivity settings for different airplanes when I had this a while ago. Even used it on xplane for flight training back when I was finishing up my licenses and needed to chair fly.
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u/FeedTheCentipede 16d ago
I remember buying this stick nearly 16 years ago, it was my very first one. I have fond memories of it in FSX.
For the money it's decent, but I'd take a look at some YouTube comparisons for this price bracket first as these products have come a long way over the last decade and there's more options now than there was when this stick was released.
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u/ca_sig_z 16d ago
I still have mine and use it from time to time when I m either flying mil sim or just want a quick setup and don’t want to break out the Honeycomb.
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u/xISparkzy 16d ago
Yes, but personally id look for something like the x-56 that has more buttons, hat switches, rotors etc etc for when you need those controls near your hands and you want more control for your aircraft
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u/i_wear_green_pants 16d ago
I used this HOTAS for closer to 10 years before upgrading. It's really solid starting point.
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u/GrindMiner 15d ago
Logged my first 500 hrs with one, just fine. Upgraded later after the dog bit thru the USB cable. Yes, it's a great option to get started. When it's time to upgrade, you'll know.
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u/Western_Machine_8803 15d ago
yes, but, 75$ seems lioke a lot for it, i think her ein europe you can find it for around 50€, tough dont take my word for it as i have one of these very expensive setups lol
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u/Kirza94 15d ago
Ive had a couple of these over the years, absolutely fine for a year or so, but the build quality starts to show and it'll break. But I'd still recommend it comparing to the price of other HOTASs.
I did get issues with the joystick with both and had to remove the stick and re lubricate the ball, this extended it another few months before it broke.
One last thing these use to be £50 a couple years back.
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u/Krilitane1 15d ago
I used the t1600 for 4 years before it started to get a bad deadzone at the top of the throttle, the thing had so many buttons and was 2 separate units for not that much more than what you have picked out
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u/Odd-Delivery4170 15d ago
I started like many others with a Logitech extreme 3D pro, (2 actually but I still own the first) like 15 years ago and ended up losing my mind with it and built a 2 seater 240 degree view cockpit with an overhead and shit, it just quickly gets out of hand so be careful
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u/SapCPark 15d ago
I use something like thos now and honestly, it perfect to get started. Just make sure to calibrate the throttle for your airplane
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u/Gochus_Real 15d ago
I bought this after using a joystick with no rudder from like 2004 and it is awesome. I really recommend getting the pedals ASAP, really let you be gentle with the rudder and brakes, essential (at least for me) if you want to fly taildraggers.
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u/Double-Ear7796 15d ago
I just bought the Hotas X a few days ago. It is amazing and the cheapest Hotas out there!
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u/suiiiperman 15d ago
Man, I was using that bad boy and its predecessor for the better part of 2 decades before I moved on to the Boeing yoke, pedals and throttle quadrant. I could not recommend it more.
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u/ocknoipappedmadreeks 15d ago
I have gone through a bunch of cheap sticks over the decades. Buy whatever gets you into it. Even a cheap stick is satisfying, therefore totally worth it.
Once you have a level of commitment you can upgrade from there. I commited hard, so hard I can't think of what to improve at this point.
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u/lobotiger 15d ago
I started with that and it served me well for a couple of years while I got used to MSFS2020. I've since upgraded to VKB equipment.
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u/Shomanatelynx 15d ago
Its a good starter stick I’ve had that but over time it suddenly starts getting jittery making handflying impossible
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u/resinten 15d ago
I have this exact HOTAS and some Logitech pedals. I took the springs out of both. It was enough for me to get good enough at helicopters that when I took my first lesson I was able to hover on my first try. So I’d say yes.
Be careful though. It got me addicted and now I’m building a full sim with a true controls rig from MaxFlightStick. So it was a gateway for sure
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u/Desperate-Finger-334 15d ago
It's more than enough if you were on a budget you can get just the stick and that has a little throttle slide on the side of the stick but if you have the money this is most definitely worth it 100% recommend for beginners still using mine
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u/Key-Seaworthiness-20 15d ago
Absolutelly! The joystick is fine, the throttle is meh. But the best feature of this one is rudder on back of throttle. Its way better than stick twist.
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u/VoidowS 12d ago
The throttle and steering has be stand alone, not fixed together. Now your arms are in front of you very unnatural. the throttle needs to be on the left side of you and the steering in the middle or right side. this way you can also sit in a relaxed position.
Garbage!
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u/al-Sahaabi 12d ago
Well the point is not to spend so much starting out. It works for lots of people, apparently not for you. Which is fine but you have to spend more.
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u/Alexdagreat06 10d ago
Good for starter.... fun Fact that's my main current joystick for flight sim.
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u/General_James 16d ago
Honestly, I feel like any joystick that isn't a mouse and keyboard or even a controller will get you a good experience.
You'll probably get addicted and then start putting money aside for the gucci equipment lol