Widescreen Gaming Forum

Hi people, just wondering if any of you know much about racing wheels for the PC?
I'm considering the Driving force GT or the Thrustmaster F430 Force feedback wheel. Both are about the same price and both have good reviews. I think the Thrustmaster is slightly better in most reviews but my concern would be how up to date the drivers are and possible compatibility with newer games?

My budget is upto £100. Anybody have any suggestions or thoughts?

Hmmm for £100, not really sure.
I know that the logitech G27? is very popular, but pricey too, however having used one myself on a friends pc, i would LOVE to have one.

Sadly I have some hunk of junk that I got for just £25-30 from GAME in a sales.
A "Thustmaster Ferrari GT Experience 3in1" PS2/PS3/PC compatible, wheel + pedals, vibration instead of force feedback... understandable then why I would love to get the G27, as I dont really recommend this thusmaster wheel I have, but it does the job. ;)

The Best racing wheel would be either Logitech G27 or Thrustmaster T500!

but they're over 100£

The x360 wheel is about a hundred bucks, and works for PC. Racing wheels are a specialized thing , and you really get what you pay for...

Do you mean the madcatz x360 wheel?

I'm still pretty convinced by the look of the driving force gt... it's supposed to be similar feel as the g27... but without the clutch, lights and manual shift.

for the money you have a choice of 4 wheels
its the thustmaster 458 italia racing wheel
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005K1SI8A/ref=asc_df_B005K1SI8A6636774?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=hydra0b-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B005K1SI8A

or the f430 wheel
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Thrustmaster-FERRARI-Force-Feedback-Racing/dp/B001LDJF9W

or the rally wheel
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001W0Y4R2/ref=asc_df_B001W0Y4R26636774?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B001W0Y4R2

logitechdriving force gt
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0018E281Q/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_3?pf_rd_p=103612307&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B001IWR9JY&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=1T294JBTW4KJ2Q4SC366


you can find video reviews for all 4 wheels on insidesimracings youtube channel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGVo9otfU4M

Will the thrust master ones be as compatible with newer games as logitech? I just imagine better driver support from logitech.

Also the 458 italia looks nice but no force feedback :-(

ps: the drivingforce gt the video review is old and the drivers now fully support it
and dont recognise it as a driveng force pro


pps: the logitech suports 900 degrees of turn the others support about 270 (dont know if thats important to you)

I really like my Driving Force GT. I like the sequential gear shifter because in rally games, I can use the steering wheel mounted paddle shifters for gear changes and then use the sequential gear shifter as a handbrake, so you pull it for handbrake like in real rally cars. It's the small things that keep me happy.

I have a H shifter, but I suck at using it keep stalling the car

Driving Force GT is a awesome wheel,and in my opinion better then the G27,the G27 has a dead zone in the center,where the DFGT has no deadzone,and you could always upgrade to a better set of pedals in the future,what game are you using the wheel for ???

Yeah I must admit I find my G27 too mechanical in the steering, like I am turning a full set of gears. I prefer the Driving Force GT's steering wheel, but the G27 pedals are far superior, without question. The pedals feel so real, each has a unique feel like the real cars I drive.

ya i use the G27 pedals with a perfect pedal mod and a bodnar cable,plus i use a G27 shifter with the bodnar box,with my DFGT

I use Logitech Momo wheels on the simulators that I rent out.
They can be had for as little as 30 USD on craigslist, I don't always recommend used gear, these wheels are an exception because of their durability, I have purchased four used wheels all in perfect condition
The pedals grip carpet perfectly
The wheels use an optical sensor instead of an analogue potentiometer which means you get very precise output that does not degrade or loose calibration with use/time
They have 240 degree rotation, this small number is something that some consider too low I disagree, many race cars have very low numbers as well and this allows you to keep your hands on the wheel the whole time
They work on the latest games without problems. On recent games that have settings and profiles for specific wheels this wheel is not included, but this has not caused me any problems
They work with many games on the PS3
The force feedback is powerful
You can position the shifter on either side of the wheel

I'm a big fan of Logitech peripherals in general. I've owned a number of their joysticks, wheels, and mice in the past 15 years and they've all been solid. I upgraded from the Logitech Momo Force to a G27 and have been pleased with both. The G27 may be more expensive than you'd like, but I wouldn't hesitate to pick up a used Momo Force off eBay for $50-$75. That's what I did, anyway, and the Momo Force is still going strong on my secondary rig.

Top two picks for me are the Logitech G27 and the Fanatec 911 wheels.

They had a Turbo S that I really was considering but the G27 was on sale so that is what I ultimately got.

Before I got the "big boy toy" G27 I had the Logitech Momo that I got uber cheap on ebay. It was really high quality and worked well so I was super excited to get the G27. I wanted pedals with a clutch and a H shifter.

Well I sold the Momo and got the G27 and I ended up dissapointed and wish I had saved my money and kept the momo, or perhaps spent the money and got the 911 Turbo S.


Here are my reasons and all of them are big problems for me.

First is the dual gears that drive the G27 vs the single gear of the Momo. It has 2 motors and one is responsible for the force feedback on the left side of center and the other for the feedback on right side of center. But what happens in a game like Dirt 2 (my fav game) where your constantly micro correcting steering and hitting turbulance? The wheel sounds like its going to die with loud clicking noises as each motor gains and releases feedback as your steer left/right.

Then in a game like Burnout Paradise (my other fav) things that used to feel super real like running over rail road tracks now I dont feel the feedback because I am in center steering. The G27 is very much for sim racers to give strong and accurate feedback on track like settings but not good for arcade games and I do not like the dual gear driven setup. The Fanatec on the other hand uses a belt driven system so the feedback is silent and not distracting like the G27 but its a bit less "accurate" since its not directly gear driven.


The other thing is setup. I had just 2 cables to get the Momo up and going (usb and power) and then then it clamped firm to my desk with its 3 clamp system. Any time I wanted to play a racer I would break out my wheel and play and it felt great.

Now with the G27 its a major task to hook up, there are 4 cables (shifter, pedals, power, usb) and they are not connected on the back of the wheel like the Momo but UNDER it and routed through grooves making it even harder to hook up. Plus worst yet is it uses a 2 clamp system instead of 3. This means you have to tighten it down very very good (and it wont work well on thin desks) and hope it stays well but it still wants to tilt up/down. the Momo's 3rd clamp was on the back of the wheel to keep it not just from going left/right but to prevent up/down tilt. It was much more secure than the G27 and I cant tell you how many times I had the G27 come loose in a race. I feel like I am going to break the gimmicky clamps on the G27 with how they are made. I do not remember feeling like that with the momo.

As a result of this I almost never hook up my wheel now, I would be more prone to use a 360 controller to play.

The mounting and setup issue can be circumvented by having it permanently setup in a dedicated setup. It has holes to mount it down with bolts. So again it seems tailored to a sim player who is very serious about the setup and not a casual user.

The pedals are great, the h-shifter kinda sucks and also suffers the same poor clamps as the wheel so it comes loose a lot and its prone to tilting and that sucks as you are pulling back/forward on it thus inducing tilt.

The Fanatec wheels work with the G27 pedals so I may upgrade my wheel one day but I doubt I will put that kind of money into it when I do not play racing games too often.