Fanatec or Thrustmaster

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by MARLINLEG, Jul 15, 2018.

  1. MARLINLEG

    MARLINLEG Registered

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2017
    Messages:
    15
    Likes Received:
    7
    Hi to one all . And thank you in anticipation

    I am 70 year old racing sim enthusiast, and I would like advice my pc spec


    intel i7 sky lake 6700k 4Ghz cpu

    Z170-hd 3p motherboard gigabyte z170

    NVidia

    Nvidia gtx1080 ddr 5 8gb

    Samsung 1TB SSD 850 EVO Series

    Windows 10 Operating System 64 Bit

    3 X27in screens

    I am looking to purchase

    Fanatec

    Cls Elite Racing Wheel

    Csl Elite Pedals OR CSL Elite Pedals LC

    I am able not to worry on cost ( worked for 50 yrs)

    reliability is important

    ADVICE PLEASE ON THIS or Thrustmaster. I am not sure of Thrustmaster equivalent advice again please


    Kind regards
     
  2. Magus

    Magus Registered

    Joined:
    Jun 27, 2012
    Messages:
    863
    Likes Received:
    556
    I would whole heartedly recommend a Fanatec CSW v2.5 if money is not an issue. A very sturdy wheel base with a nice choice of rims, pedals, & shifter.
     
    Ernie, F1Aussie, bwana and 1 other person like this.
  3. TOCA2FREAK

    TOCA2FREAK Registered

    Joined:
    Apr 6, 2011
    Messages:
    936
    Likes Received:
    125
    I agree if money is no object then the Fanatec CSW v2.5 would be the better choice. I have the CSW V2 and have been very happy with it.
    Or you could pre-purchase the new Fanatec Podium series which will be released in December 2018.
     
  4. JimmyT

    JimmyT Registered

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2012
    Messages:
    924
    Likes Received:
    578
    Wow 70 and still gaming, great to hear. :cool: I'm almost 60 and have the Fanatec CSW V2 with the Fanatec Club Sport Pedals V2. I'm very happy with their performance and can recommend them.
    My friend has a Thrustmaster TX with Fanatec CSL pedals (load cell) and is happy with the combination.
    I strongly recommend the load cell, I used to have Logitech G25 wheel/pedals no LC. The load cell makes a huge difference to braking repeatability in my opinion.
    I suppose it comes down to your preference. I watched quite a few review videos before I purchased, it helped with my decision.
    Also try looking at this thread, similar enquiry https://forum.studio-397.com/index.php?threads/advice-to-buy-new-race-wheel-pedals.60624/

    @TOCA2FREAK That Podium looks great, not sure about the cost benefit ratio ATM. Will keep an eye on reviews on that product though.
     
    Last edited: Jul 16, 2018
  5. Marcel Offermans

    Marcel Offermans Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2010
    Messages:
    647
    Likes Received:
    2,934
    First of all, welcome to the simracing community! I certainly hope that I will still be simracing when I'm 70!! Also, let me state that my advice below is my personal advice and not an "official Studio 397 recommendation".

    Let's start with the PC. For rFactor 2, when designing a PC, there are a couple of things that are important that are a bit special when compared to a "normal" gaming PC:

    First of all the CPU. Because of our highly detailed physics, a CPU is needed that has fast cores. It's not as important to have many of them (although most CPUs nowadays come with at least 4 cores anyway) but the ones you have need to be fast. I usually recommend people to look specifically at this benchmark when picking one: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/singleThread.html Your choice for a i7 6700K is a reasonable one, but I would certainly consider the i7 8700K as it's even faster and not that much more expensive (of course you need a motherboard and memory to match that). Your choice of SSD and operating system is absolutely fine.

    Second of all the GPU. You are going for a triple screen setup, with 3x27" screens and an nVidia card. Triple screens are the most demanding configuration for a video card so right off the bat I would consider the 1080Ti as the video card. You don't go into detail about the actual screens, but here I would recommend ones which support "GSync". I'm not sure if you're familiar with that, but that technology basically allows the monitors to display an image as soon as the GPU has rendered it, instead of relying on a fixed refresh frequency (like 60, 90 or 120 Hz). This might not sound too important, but it keeps the latency to a minimum and makes drawing frames very smooth, even when the actual framerate differs a bit (which it will, depending on tracks and cars that you are driving). I would personally choose 24" 1080p screens with GSync over 27" 1440p screens without it any day.

    If money is not an object, for my wheel and pedals I would certainly recommend the SimSteering direct drive system with their GT3 wheel and a set of Heusinkveld Pro (or Ultimate) pedals. I've used both for years myself now and they always work, require no fiddling around and absolutely provide the best experience I've had so far in terms of accuracy and feedback. A word of warning, this really is not the cheapest combination out there by a long shot, so I would only recommend this hardware if you're fairly sure you're going to be simracing a lot.

    That said, Fanatec, Thrustmaster, Logitech and a lot of other, smaller wheel makers all offer very interesting pieces of hardware that will fit just about any budget. If you have friends that simrace relatively close to you, visit them and try their setups. In the end one could argue that the actual money you spend on hardware is less relevant, given that last year Rudy van Buren was the fastest simracer in the highly competitive "World's Fastest Gamer" competition by McLaren where he beat everybody with his relatively old and simple Logitech G25 wheel and pedals.
     
    Alex72, muzikant, JimmyT and 3 others like this.
  6. Lazza

    Lazza Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2010
    Messages:
    12,346
    Likes Received:
    6,572
    @Marcel Offermans Well, yeah, but if buying better equipment made us faster we'd all be doing it - it just makes going slow more enjoyable :D
     
    Ernie, JimmyT, Carlos Santos and 7 others like this.
  7. Ari Antero

    Ari Antero Registered

    Joined:
    Jul 27, 2012
    Messages:
    1,882
    Likes Received:
    829
    I have bad experience with Fanatec wheels and I would buy Thrustmaster TS-PC base which does 7Nm, with GT, F1 rim and standalone pedals.
     
  8. MARLINLEG

    MARLINLEG Registered

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2017
    Messages:
    15
    Likes Received:
    7
    Thanks guys. A note to Marcel Offerman (staff member) I have had my PC since mid October 2016 , it was purchased for my flight siming , but thank you for your advice I’ll keep it in mind , it’s time To update an old wheel I have an old Logitech GT that was purchased for a PS 3 . 10 yrs ago, so time for a change . Looking forward to a new wheel
     
    Marcel Offermans likes this.
  9. mesfigas

    mesfigas Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 15, 2015
    Messages:
    1,722
    Likes Received:
    830
    i used to play for 3 years with a Logitech steering wheel that i bought back in 2004
    this game is amazing even with old wheels
     
  10. Booth_doberman

    Booth_doberman Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2015
    Messages:
    187
    Likes Received:
    84
    I'm 66 and race offline in VR. I've only been doing it for about six years and the highest level I can set AI to is 90% without qualifying and finishing dead last. I keep thinking something better than a G27 might improve my driving, but it's a lot of money to spend just to find out that I may just stink. At least now I have an excuse, right?
     
    muzikant, Bozoman500 and JimmyT like this.
  11. Marcel Offermans

    Marcel Offermans Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2010
    Messages:
    647
    Likes Received:
    2,934
    I'm not even sure if there is consensus on this, but in my experience better hardware doesn't necessarily make me faster, but I did get a lot more consistent as the better feedback allowed me to feel the car more clearly, so I can catch sliders earlier and brake more consistently. And of course, like @Lazza said, it makes going slow more enjoyable. :)
     
  12. D.Painter

    D.Painter Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2010
    Messages:
    1,039
    Likes Received:
    2,341
    I'm no great alien racer but I went from a G25 Logitech to a Thrustmaster 300 RS with the Ferrari 30mm rim and T3PA-PRO peddles and use the brake mod that came with them. I've never regretted it. I got the shifter as well which can be used H pattern or sequential or just use it for brake bias if you use the GT style shifter at the back of the wheel. The wheel has a button box that gives you 6 buttons, 1 rotating that has a push button as well and the D control like the PlayStation hand controller. This has 9! 4 straight up and down. 4 diagonally though these are hard to get right without hitting the straight ones. Plus a center push button. Good for setting your pit strategy on the fly if you find the one you've set in the garage want work for you.
    Must say though, as for cost. Thrustmaster would be the cheaper option but Fanatec would be technically the better. Either option would make mince meat out of the G27 for feed back and comfort to drive with. I did buy my setup as individual components, Not a box set so I got what I wanted. I think it worked out a little more by doing it that way but I got what I wanted and didn't have to buy something I wasn't really happy with just to replace it latter.
    It is hard to finally just bite the bullet and go get it.
    Best of luck with that. Haha...
     
  13. David O'Reilly

    David O'Reilly Registered

    Joined:
    Jun 12, 2012
    Messages:
    1,050
    Likes Received:
    756
    Nicely put.
    There are guys thrashing me in races with cheap wheels but the immersion factor of a good one is great.
    I run an OSW 20nm with Fanatec Formula Rim, with that wheel and real head motion plugin, stuff just feels and looks real, maybe that's why I can't go as fast?
     
    JimmyT and AMillward like this.
  14. AMillward

    AMillward Registered

    Joined:
    Apr 4, 2017
    Messages:
    1,879
    Likes Received:
    1,837
    Wasn't there a guy in FSR a few years back winning with an xBox controller?

    I use Thrustmaster currently. It's made me more consistent but speed is still something you've got to work on yourself.

    It's like dropping 5 grand on John Mayer's new signature guitar and expecting to be able to play like John Mayer. I'm never going to reach that level. Hate him. Too talented.

    Sorry but this has brought up some stuff!
     
    David O'Reilly and mesfigas like this.
  15. mesfigas

    mesfigas Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 15, 2015
    Messages:
    1,722
    Likes Received:
    830
    I play better than john mayer but i suck as a driver
    2.13 at Bathurst :(:(:(: aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
    why why why why.............................
     
    JimmyT and AMillward like this.
  16. AMillward

    AMillward Registered

    Joined:
    Apr 4, 2017
    Messages:
    1,879
    Likes Received:
    1,837
    Bathurst is bravery and balls more than anything else.
     
    JimmyT and mesfigas like this.
  17. Seven Smiles

    Seven Smiles Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2010
    Messages:
    1,099
    Likes Received:
    1,152
    So you’re saying he’s a coward with tiny testicles? :D
     
    JimmyT and AMillward like this.
  18. GTClub_wajdi

    GTClub_wajdi Registered

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2012
    Messages:
    3,238
    Likes Received:
    572
    I think a better brake pedal makes you going faster, couldn’t say the same about a better steering wheel. I have the HE pro pedals and they are simply amazing. VR can make you go faster and make less driving mistakes to.
     
  19. Rhino_WJB

    Rhino_WJB Registered

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2014
    Messages:
    18
    Likes Received:
    9
    Evidence please..... :D

    For the OP, I can say I'm currently running the Thrustmaster T-GT with TH-8A and enjoy the set-up very much. Thrustmaster panel is easy to use, the equipment feels quality and the sheer number of buttons on the T-GT rim negates the need for any other button box. It's not perfect: there is some notching in the wheel feel occasionally and the pedals are not load-cell, but overall the package is decent value, especially if you play any GT Sport on PlayStation.

    That said, if you can get Fanatec for equivalent cost, the load-cell brake alone probably sways it. I managed to get the T-GT for a good price on eBay, but up to that point I was about to buy new from Fanatec. Have had Fanatec gear in the past, and can vouch for their customer service :)
     
    mesfigas likes this.
  20. mesfigas

    mesfigas Registered

    Joined:
    Oct 15, 2015
    Messages:
    1,722
    Likes Received:
    830
    I manage to do 2.10 with Porsche gte car on bathurst and can go faster and yes i play better than john mayer :)

    here is me playing some chords and doing some solos very ols video with my band i dont play this song anymore since alliens introduce me to the racing world :)
     
    JimmyT, AMillward and Rhino_WJB like this.

Share This Page