Trying to decide on new wheel. Advice welcomed.

Hey guys.

Decided to start looking at new wheels to replace my G27.

I have been looking at the CSW, CSR-Elite and T500RS.

Which out of these is the best?

The CSW with the f1 wheel, Club sport pedals v2 and the Thrustmaster shifter is what I was thinking about getting but the price is fairly crazy.

Is it really worth the difference over the T500?

I can get a T500RS with the standard wheel + F1 wheel and pedals and probably a loadcell for just over half the half the price.

Also is there much difference between the CSW and CSR?

Another option would be either the CSR elite with clubsport v2 pedals and thrustmaster shifter
or CSR elite with CSR elite pedals and thrustmaster shifter

I could probably afford the T500RS set in a month or so but if I was to get the Fanatec package it would be a few months more.
Are they good enough to wait for, or will the T500RS do the job?

Any advice welcomed.

Thanks,

Mark.

 

The CSW with the f1 wheel, Club sport pedals v2 and the Thrustmaster shifter is what I was thinking about getting but the price is fairly crazy.

yes but thats the way i would go have the shifter and the csp v1 both are fantastic just wheel to go but here in Australia don't know how long it will be. using the gt2 at the moment. the reason for the new wheel is its better and has the option to up date the wheel rim in the future with others i would like and use.

 

Cheers for the reply.

I have been reading that some folks have had many bad experiences with the reliability of Fanatec products.
Is this still the case or has this been resolved? I assume that as the CSW is so new, these issues might not present themselves until a few months have passed.

I know some reviewers have had faulty prototypes of the CSW already though.

Interested to see what opinions people have here about these issues?

Another question I have is, how would the RennSport Wheel Stand V2 be for this setup?
I have been bolting my G27 to the coffee table but it would be nice to have some sort of stand for such a nice setup, and the RennSport is all I can afford and all I can fit in my room. Wanted to know if it will be strong and stable enough to support the CSW set?

 

To be honest I was tempted, more than once, by the Fanatec products as well. Especially the Clubsport Pedals, but the complaints about customer service and the overall frequency that users seem to experience the exact same problems has kept me from taking the plunge.
I've used the T500 wheel and shifter for about 10 months now and love them both. When I had a double click issue with the paddle shifters Thrustmaster was quick to ship me out a replacement. No hassles, no difficulty communicating, no lengthy wait times!
I simply love the feedback I get from this wheel playing this game. So much so that I feel I can really sense what's going on ...loss of traction, plowing etc. All that feedback makes me a better driver I think and it certainly increases the enjoyment.
I'd love to try a set of CSP v.2 pedals with my T500 but again, just so many stories. Bodin is nearly ready to release his load cell add for the T500 pedals and it requires no pedal modification (so no warranty issue) and I will definitely order that when it hits the market.

 

I have heard of the T500 having it's fair share of issues also.

 

Ok, I'll keep that in mind.
Cheers for the info.

 

I bought a CSR Elite wheel to replace my G25. Arrived today, spent 9 hours putting it through it's paces only to find it was putting me through my paces.

The wheel is amazing, it's not cheap for sure but it's so worth the money if you want a wheel that delivers unparalleled force feedback responsive and strength (it truly is in a league of its own - as it's many reviews state). I'm finding it somewhat difficult to type right now due to the pain of using this wheel compared to the g25 (but i expect it to soon ware off as i become accustom to it's strength - or so i hope).

To use the GP2 cars as a reference...

I can drive it in first gear with a ton more confidence around a corner (should i wish to). It's true that it doesn't make you a better driver as that's a skill-set that exists only within yourself. However, the equipement does feel as if it gives you the edge in terms of receiving a much truer and complete feedback from the ffb which makes your interpretation of how the car is handling better which in turn allows you to respond to most (if not all) situations much better.

No more rattling! Woo-hoooo! That's not a good enough reason alone to spend the amount it costs for a CSR Elite wheel but it was part-factor for why i looked for a replacement as it is horrific on the modern formula cars using the G25. Well, it turns out that the rattle is on the CSR Elite but as it was meant to be felt (subtle yet pronounced and with good reason - car has insanely hard suspension = bumping against track surface imperfections).

All-in-all, I am 100% satisfied with the CSR Elite wheel.

 

i have the gt2 and csp from fanatec... i think after every thing i have read its still the best fanatec wheel out there.

 

I have a CSR with standard pedals ( upgrading soon to clubsport). However: Standard pedals do the job admirably. The ability to change settings on the fly is great when testing. 5 individual settings available upon on-wheel-display. ALWAYS: Set FF to 100% on wheel, and adjust FF in game not the other way around. This is to make sure that all the forces are enabled on the wheel. In all, this is a brilliant wheel. Only one downer so far...the top rim is plastic and not covered, however, I shall be buying a wheel rim cover soon and cannabalising it to fit over the plastic section.This is a minor cosmetic issue and does not impact upon the wheel usage. It is also silent in use apart from the fan noise which is not loud by any means, and once one is racing cannot be heard at all. All the parameters on the display of the wheel, can be adjusted from manic to smooth... it also has a drift mode from zero to 5, which allows the tyres - at the highest setting to break traction - you can feel it through the wheel, and works great in GT cars. It's expensive, yes, but in my opinion, worth every penny. Just be sure you hard-mount it. It comes with a template, and the wheel has 4 bolt holes provided... I have only used two, and the wheel is solid as a rock.... Oh, and the shift paddles are large and made of metal, they are the best I've ever known on a wheel.... Good luck with your choice.

 

CSR is the best bang for buck out there, I have given mine dogs abuse for months now and it just keeps on giving, on saying that I am looking to upgrade, and for me it is down to the Elite, and the T500. Swing from one to the other in equal measure...The Elite has the slight edge because of my experience with the CSR, but I have read and seen good things about the T500...No help at all to the OP LOL

 

I've just broken the plastic desk screw on my DFGT through over tightening and I am now looking to up grade my wheel/ pedals.

I was set on the T500RS from thrust master as I have their Warthog setup but I just can't get my head around the fact that the shifter pedals are base mounted! Why?....

So I'm probably going to go for the CSR value pack with pedals included for around 200 quid. I can afford either one but not really the elite stuff.

Am I mad or should I get the T500?

I hope they are both better than my current wheel, it needs to be desk mounted too.......

Any thoughts?

Cheers

Dan.

 

Right now I am running with a T500 RS with the standard rim & pedals, and the old shifter from my G25 with an adapter. This is an upgrade from when I used this wheel with CSP's. I have experience with Fanatec customer support and Thrustmaster customer support too.

At first when I got the CSP's it was to replace the spiking pedals with my old G25 wheel. I ran the G25 and CSP's for several months. The CSP's where problematic almost from the day I got them. In a year of use (after a year they were no longer usable) I had to completely take them apart 2 times, and partially disassemble every few weeks. Yes the load cell brake was good to have but I lost several races directly as a result of problems with the gas, brake and clutch pedals. I had contact customer support 6 times for 4 separate issues with the pedals, Fanatec refused to replace the pedals. The shortest I waited for a response to an issue was a week and a half. The longest was almost 3 weeks, and I had to send them several emails that time.

Last Xmas I got the T500 RS. For about 2 months I used it with the CSP's with the T500, but eventually I got sick and tired of the CSP issues and the lack of customer support. So I hooked p the T500 pedals. I have been surprised at how good these pedals are. the CSP's have greater gas pedal throw, but the brake is not any better, even if it is a load cell brake. I am using the included brake pedal stiffness mod. I even tried to hook up the load cell itself to these pedals to try my own load cell mod and it worked but was not necessary because this brake is that good. I ran like that for a month or so, but went back to the standard brake as the added complexity wasn't worth it.

This past Spring I had a problem with my right paddle double shifting. Customer service suggested a few troubleshooting steps and answered the support question within 1 week. Within 2 weeks I had a new shifter unit in my home shipped to me for free. The problem has not returned. After 1 year of use, this wheel is rock solid, I have never had to take apart the pedals and I could not be more satisfied with my purchase.

 

Thanks guy, Ive just purchased the T500 integral F1 wheel. I mostly do open wheelers so I thought this would suit me better. I'll have it Monday, I think you helped sway my decision.

Cheers

Dan.

 

This review could be helpful:

http://simhqmotorsports.com/articles/motorsports_190a.html

It's SimHQ Community Review on Fanatec CSW and V2 pedals.