Any Flight Simmers ?

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J4CKO

Original Poster:

41,284 posts

199 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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Have dabbled in the past but am useless, have recently got a new PC that will handle recent games so got FSX Steam Edition for £7.99 as couldnt find my disk from the last two goes.

Seems pretty good fun and keep going back to it, few questions though

What controllers do you use, I am using an old Sidewinder Joystick, works ok but the feedback comes on and off as you hold and release it, seems a bit clunky, also looking round the 3D cockpit to find controls can be frustrating, what combos do you use to control it effectively, I sort of know what I want to do but have crashed/stalled or whatever before I manage to zoom in, find the control, have it not work the first few presses etc.

Is FSX the best, XPlane 11 is due out, are there any others, FSX looks ok and does the job but seems a bit old fashioned, before I get to into it, is it worth changing to something else ?

How accurate is the Autopilot say on the 737 compared to the real thing, it doesnt simulate the Flight Management computer, would like to learn it properly.

Any other tips ?

Determined not to just do my usual of trying to loop 747s etc.



SpamCan

5,026 posts

217 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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You will find a lot of opinions of FSX, vs X-Plane. FSX is old 32 bit software, the only reason I have stuck with it is because I have spent a lot in add-ons over the years and they don’t transfer to X-Plane. If you have no Add ons and your PC can handle it give X-Plane 11 a try and see what you think. I am tempted by X-Plane 11 as looks great and it makes huge improvements over X Plane 10; but despite spending £1800 on a PC over three years ago I'd have to spend £1800+ again on a new hardware to run X-Plane 11 in full detail and to be frank I'd much rather put that in my flying clubs bank account and stooge around in a C150/172 tongue out

My other reason for not moving away from FSX is the A2A Accusim aircraft, they are superb, they simulate practically everything that can be simulated, from worn brakes, through clogged filters to losing compression in individual cylinders, on multi engine aircraft each engine is its own unit too, the B17 has different rates of oil consumption for example and has a co-pilot and crew to reduce your load as a ‘captain’. Parts failures due to general wear and tear (has a maintenance hangar so you can make repairs and check the aircraft out, change oil and spark plug types etc.) not just mishandling as most simulated aircraft do.

I have a Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog throttle and stick combination. It is not cheap, but it is a solid bit of kit and the electronics are very good, way better than any Saitek offering I have had. That being said I use a set of Saitek combat rudder pedals and so far they have stood the test of time, I also use a Saitek ‘Cessna’ (branded rather than out of one) trim wheel for the pitch trim, though the warthog has enough switches and hats that you don’t need to buy that if you don’t think you’ll need it. You get used to the VC fairly quickly when you get familiar with the aircraft, you can get all sorts of switch panels and gizmos that plug into the USB ports to replicate switches on the aircraft - depends how deep your pockets are.

I fly a myriad of aircraft in FSX, from the usual light aircraft through WW2 fighters and bombers all the way to fast jets so the stick makes far more sense for me. If you intend to stick with airliners for the most part then I think the CH products Yoke is a good bet, but much like the Warthog you will need rudder pedals (I think it has a built in trim wheel). One thing I implore you to avoid is the Saitek yoke, it has a dead zone that is built into the firmware (the only way to remove it is to replace the control board with an aftermarket one) which means making precise control inputs on an ILS approach or flying anything fast or twitchy is highly frustrating.

The Stock 737 and other airliners in FSX are very basic, I don’t think the FMS works at all, then again I’m not a big airliner pilot on FSX, other than using one to get somewhere (I prefer to fly to new places rather than just use the go-to function) if you want to go full system simulation then you need one of the aftermarket airliners for the simulator that.

X-Plane 10 did not have air traffic control outside of the missions, and though FSX has ATC I don’t use it for anything other than the ATIS when I am using real world weather as it is nothing like real life ATC (certainly not in UK airspace) and I just find it irritating.

surveyor

17,768 posts

183 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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Dovetail who now own FSX are launching a new flight sim next year. MS also sold non-entertainment rights of FSX to Lockhead, who have updated and produced P3d. It's getting a bit of a mess.

I use a Saitek yoke, pedal and throttle quadrant.

Add on aircraft are available to boost realism. At the top of the tree is PMDG who make a 737, 777 and shortly to release an updated 747. These really are modelled well to include the FMC, flight management system, failure logic etc. Not cheap at £80 a shot though.

Have a browse around youtube....

Fastdruid

8,623 posts

151 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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Not strictly speaking for flight sims (for Elite Dangerous) but I have a Saitek X52-Pro and I wouldn't particularly recommend it.

Absolutely terrible drivers.
Does *not* play nicely with USB3. If you have USB3 in use at all, walk away now.
The first one died (replaced) and the second one broke the half-throttle indent (removed as it was just annoying anyway).
The cable between throttle and stick sticks out massively at the front and is very easy to dislodge (which then causes flickering lights and non-responsive buttons).
The "mouse" nipple is very subject to drift.

klmhcp

247 posts

91 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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J4CKO said:
How accurate is the Autopilot say on the 737
Love that not only do flight sims have autopilots, but you're interested in their accuracy.

J4CKO

Original Poster:

41,284 posts

199 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
quotequote all
klmhcp said:
J4CKO said:
How accurate is the Autopilot say on the 737
Love that not only do flight sims have autopilots, but you're interested in their accuracy.
Well, its a "simulation", planes, and airliners I find fascinating, would be interesting to get an idea of how they are actually flown, they are fantastically complex machines.

bennyboydurham

1,617 posts

173 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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I'm a simmer. In fact I run a company just for people like you:

www.airline2sim.com

Our first program for the Crash 8 Q400 was taught by a PHer. In truly ironic PH style he turned up to record it in a 330d!

We are now in the middle of release showing people how to fly the 777, taught by Captain from United Airlines and it's been a big hit. Lockheed Martin Prepar3D is where the smart simmers are going now. All is revealed in the programs themselves.

Holler if can help.




kowalski655

14,599 posts

142 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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Used to love FSX but havent played for a while, just never enough time,its not a game you can dip into for 30 minutes if thats all you have

I have a basic Saitek stick,has enough buttons to do the job.
I use FSX as I have loads(literally hundreds) of add on planes & scenery,I had to buy a 3 terrabyte drive just for it! Probably X Plane & P3D are better these days but for sheer variety I think FSX has it
Also 3rd party devs like A2A & PDMG are really stretching what the old engine can do(and if I had the internet needed, some of Megascenery's photo real stuff would be great too, like flying over the real hting!)

I mainly fly warbirds so am not sure of how accurate the base 737 AP is but the add on aircraft will have much better ones. I really want the new A2A Connie with their active crew-looks awesome, but probably too old for the OP smile

i may need to get back into this in time for this years round the world air race(if there is one)

Jamp

199 posts

135 months

Wednesday 4th January 2017
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As someone above I built my PC with FSX in mind some years ago but find it's now not good enough for X-Plane 11. I'm trying to resist rectifying that. I get into flight simming every now and then, usually flying airliners where I'm planning to go (just so I know the route in case both pilots have the fish!) or I enjoy the missions (e.g. airliner runs out of fuel - can you make it onto the short runway on the island) though there aren't many of those and I've not managed to find add-on missions. Many of the add on aircraft I find unrealistic e.g. far too powerful, so I must make an effort to seek the more realistically modelled ones. It's worthwhile getting a joystick with twist for rudder and twin throttles to help taxying airliners, though I imagine pedals would be better still. I've got a Saitek Cyborg which has been fine. The hat on the joystick is very useful for looking about the cockpit but I often revert to old-style cockpit view for ease in operating the autopilot or similar.

Edited by Jamp on Wednesday 4th January 21:04

Brigand

2,544 posts

168 months

Thursday 5th January 2017
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I've dabbled with sims for many years now, dipping into and out of them throughout the year normally. I have FSX with some addons including the particularly good Orbx UK graphics updates, but also another sim called Aerofly FS. Very good looking but only really focussed on Switzerland and a handful of small aircraft, but I see on Steam they have released Aerofly FS 2 Flight Simulator which seems more typical in that it has commercial aircraft, worldwide setting etc. I don't know how this stacks up against longer established sims like FSX and X-Plane (I remember buying the original sometime in 2001!) though. If you fancy the combat side of things then DCS is the one you want - that's very sim heavy but in combat jets, helicopters etc, and is free to play. You can download the full game for free and play, but you only get access to the Su-25 - to access the other aircraft you need to buy the addons or specially created models.

Wobbegong

15,077 posts

168 months

Thursday 5th January 2017
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I mainly use light aircraft in FSX with a few add-ons (the C42 from airsim720 is very good). Also use the UK ORBX scenery which is a huge improvement over the standard Mediterranean look they give the UK.

I use the Thrustmaster T-flight HOTAS which is adequate for my needs (although I am tempted to get rudder pedals)

red_slr

17,122 posts

188 months

Thursday 5th January 2017
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I am a regular on P3D.

Flown a lot of Fsims over the years, everything from A320 airbus on the Amiga upto the more recent FSX and now P3D.

LH P3D is basically a clone of FSX but with much better optimisation for newer hardware. I run with everything on max at c.40fps and that's on a stock 970 + 4Gen i7.

I use a few add ons.
For textures I use REX - soft clouds plus ground textures.
Aircraft wise I am only on PMDG 737 for now. Its taken me a number of years to get to the point of actually being able to set up the FMC with all the correct config.. and I still don't get it 100% right. I am considering investing in the 777 but not sure I have the time.

I am moving away from "sim" flying though now I have a Vive headset. I like to just set the time to dusk or dawn, select a small field out in the Midwest and do some aerobatics for half an hour. Then feel sick and go back to shooting people in Onward biggrin


sanguinary

1,344 posts

210 months

Friday 6th January 2017
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J4CKO said:
, I am using an old Sidewinder Joystick, works ok but the feedback comes on and off as you hold and release it,
My trusty sidewinder still does the job for me, although I don't play as often as I used to.

You can sort the force feedback release issue with a little bit of insulation tape to cover the light sensors on the handle.

J4CKO

Original Poster:

41,284 posts

199 months

Friday 6th January 2017
quotequote all
Was trying to land a 747 in a monsoon last night, didnt go well, three times but its making me learn to crash in style and how bloody hard flying must be in those conditions, the whole situation awareness thing is probably worse without any gravity but can see how you can end up at odd angles with no point of reference.

My problem is currently knowing what to do but not being able to do it quickly enough, like the flap setting needing coaxing if you use the mouse, so learning the keyboard commands.

Watched a few videos, setting up the flight management computer etc.

Got another monitor so now have a 24 inch and 2 19's either side, got it spanned across but really would rather be able to put dials and stuff on there without them being at silly resolutions.

Think I will buy Xplane, FSX is ok but does look and feel ancient.

Fastdruid

8,623 posts

151 months

Friday 6th January 2017
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sanguinary said:
My trusty sidewinder still does the job for me, although I don't play as often as I used to.

You can sort the force feedback release issue with a little bit of insulation tape to cover the light sensors on the handle.
Interestingly you can even use the old MS Sidewinder Force Feedback Pro (which is so old now it's not even supported on XP!!) with a little dongle to both convert the FFB as well as convert the 15pin to USB.

Works really quite well for "civilian" flight sims but suffers from the lack of buttons (and is none HOTAS) for the military/space sims/games.

red_slr

17,122 posts

188 months

Friday 6th January 2017
quotequote all
J4CKO said:
Was trying to land a 747 in a monsoon last night, didnt go well, three times but its making me learn to crash in style and how bloody hard flying must be in those conditions, the whole situation awareness thing is probably worse without any gravity but can see how you can end up at odd angles with no point of reference.

My problem is currently knowing what to do but not being able to do it quickly enough, like the flap setting needing coaxing if you use the mouse, so learning the keyboard commands.

Watched a few videos, setting up the flight management computer etc.

Got another monitor so now have a 24 inch and 2 19's either side, got it spanned across but really would rather be able to put dials and stuff on there without them being at silly resolutions.

Think I will buy Xplane, FSX is ok but does look and feel ancient.
Take a look at P3D as well. Its FSX but nicer.
Does need some add ons though. You can spend 300-400 easily... ouch.
Resisting the 777 at the mo.

surveyor

17,768 posts

183 months

Friday 6th January 2017
quotequote all
red_slr said:
J4CKO said:
Was trying to land a 747 in a monsoon last night, didnt go well, three times but its making me learn to crash in style and how bloody hard flying must be in those conditions, the whole situation awareness thing is probably worse without any gravity but can see how you can end up at odd angles with no point of reference.

My problem is currently knowing what to do but not being able to do it quickly enough, like the flap setting needing coaxing if you use the mouse, so learning the keyboard commands.

Watched a few videos, setting up the flight management computer etc.

Got another monitor so now have a 24 inch and 2 19's either side, got it spanned across but really would rather be able to put dials and stuff on there without them being at silly resolutions.

Think I will buy Xplane, FSX is ok but does look and feel ancient.
Take a look at P3D as well. Its FSX but nicer.
Does need some add ons though. You can spend 300-400 easily... ouch.
Resisting the 777 at the mo.
You should not resist, unless your waiting for the 747 v3...

It's very good.



red_slr

17,122 posts

188 months

Friday 6th January 2017
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lalalalalalalaaa.... fingers in ears..... lalalalalala

Rob P

5,769 posts

263 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
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Just got myself the iFly 747. Christ it is difficult, only manage to start the bloody thing 25% of the time. Don't get me started on FMC.

I love it!

Orbx scenery, active sky next and the 747 just about melt my system, really struggle to justify a new PC though and increasingly feel I should just put it towards a PPL....

surveyor

17,768 posts

183 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
quotequote all
Rob P said:
Just got myself the iFly 747. Christ it is difficult, only manage to start the bloody thing 25% of the time. Don't get me started on FMC.

I love it!

Orbx scenery, active sky next and the 747 just about melt my system, really struggle to justify a new PC though and increasingly feel I should just put it towards a PPL....
APU on.
Packs off.
Cross bleeds on.
Engine start pull
Fuel - on at 15 N1 or something.
Repeat - 3.-4.
Cross bleeds off.
Packs on.
APU off.

Or something like that...