My CSW V2 is now coming up to 3yrs old, it is noisy when the steering turns but other than that faultless.
It's awesome DD wheels are finally a thing with the big manufacturers, though I'm not holding my breath for Fanatec being the ones to get the prices dropping. Between this and the upcoming T700 ( if that is indeed DD ) it's going to be a good time to be a simracer.
This will be over priced just like the rest of there products,they have made some bold statements in that article,and given how fanatec handle complaints and support,I see a cluster f happening.
Will be interesting comparison between the fanatec dd wheel and the accuforce v2. I'd assume the price point is going to be similar.
"In terms of compatibility, Fanatec has confirmed that it will be fully compatible with ALL of the Clubsport steering rims, but it will also support a new line of rims. Fanatec is planning on releasing a “Hardcore Line” of peripherals, including rims, shifters, pedals, and so on."
I think if Fanatec has the volume of sales, this could very well be the trigger to make DD, servo type, at lower cost. I find sim FBB wheel , its motor and wheel manufacturer software and game software, fascinating. I like 3 axis gimbals for camera and it uses the same concept of very accurate directional control of a motor and what restrictive counter force the motor must produce in respect to movement/swing inertia of the camera. The gimbal motor must be able to do it butter smooth, to produce a smooth video scene. However, sim FBB wheel is much more challenging technically. Positioning encoder or some other form of super accurate motor positioning device...is a must have, without it, wheel can not be accurate. Once there is no positioning accuracy, I think the overall experience would be ruined. Leo Simv2 is 1000 counts per 360 degrees, or 0.36 degrees per count. New camera gimbals also use encorder, to make sure they are not slipping. They have IMU ( inertial measuring unit ) on all 3 axis too, but sim steering does not need IMU. What I find fascinating about sim steering is this : *This I am sure is very game software and sim steering manufacturer software dependent too - Driver turn the wheel/motor, directing the digital car to go X direction. - Motor must produce resistance according to game and whatever force feed back the game physic and the car physic pumps out, plus all the effects a different road surfaces bring. Think about it, a motor AS AN OUTPUT DEVICE has only two directions of work, clockwise or counterclockwise and 1 more output it can do, resistance aka braking via electromagnetic force. If I turn my steering wheel to turn my digital car tire and rim say 30 degrees clockwise , I am also turning my motor the same degree count and now the motor is AN INPUT DEVICE. At the same time any FFB triggered by the game and translated by FFB wheel software...can only be either shaky-shaky clockwise and c-clockwise and/or steering resistance which is that electromagnetic braking. What else can the motor do ? So if I do a 30 degree per second clockwise turn, the motor ( via FFB wheel manufacturer software ) must "read" my intention to do 30 degrees, at the same time the game physic will be pumping signals to the motor to do micro twitching ( via FFB wheel manufacturer software ) aka vibration at X frequency, to deliver "angle disruption or slip " at a few degrees clockwise and c-clockwise to mimic road surface or bumps or whatever. Doesn't this mean the motor is actually being made on purpose to "slip" due to FFB to be transmitted to the driver ?... while at the same time the motor must still maintain rotational accuracy as intended by the driver. How else will FFB physic of the game be able to deliver digital reality to the motor ( steering wheel ), unless it does some kind of resistance and some "roughness" and shaky-shaky sensation, which all these FFB actions is no other than "disrupting" the motor's intended 30 degrees rotation the driver actually intended ? It is fair to call it "angle disruption or slip " ? Say I do a linear 30 degrees a second wheel turn, where at 0.5 seconds my wheel/motor will be at 15 degrees. Then the FFB trigger a signal to the wheel/motor a shaky shaky signal say at 300hz, so the motor is then doing -2 and +2 degree for 10 times while my steering is at 15 degrees. If I am at 15 degrees, and FFB delivered sensation to my hand at -2 and +2 degrees, that is a "slip", because that very moment in time for some micro seconds, my wheel/motor becomes 13 to 17 degrees....but, the game must register my wheel at 15 degrees. I find it fascinating, really. A motor becomes an input device, at the same time an output device, while doing the work. I am no expert, I am just thinking thru logic, how this works.
I have an OSW. Once you assemble it all it becomes clearer. The rotary encoder at the back of the motor reads where you have turned the shaft with your wheel. It is the sender of the wheel turn data to the sim, just like a non ffb wheel. The motor delivers the ffb torque to that same shaft. One shaft, two inputs, your hands and the servo motor.
Direct Drive simwheels aren't rocket science. You have ONE input device (The Encoder), One output device (The motor). You have a man-in-the-loop feedback loop with a typical lag of 3-5 ms introduced by the simwheel alone (Encoder+Motor+Motor Driver+ Software motor driver).
