Even acknowledging them is leaps beyond what a lot of guys would do

m'eh :) 3 years on, still a great run-down. . New to Horizons (believe that!) I'm starting to learn that the DBX is everything I dreamed a Cobra 3 would be :D and that a Stick, if not full Hotas, is probably essential.

i do this quite a bit XD

and here I am saying "Hoe Toss"

My xbox budget is sweating

How about deep core mining. Oh wait this is real life.

Road to Riches keeps on failing no matter the distance I put when I try starting from my neighbourhood! 😔🤣

A made a million from kill contracts and bounties in a few hours last night. It's tedious but it pays pretty good the more you grind and rank up.

@@wesleythoman9873 OK how do I buy real world stuff using elite dangerous credits?

same here, bought it for ED in VR, its great, i use the paddles for precise throttle controll when docking

Have a look at my Cockpit tour and guide for the details on my setup.

For some reason I read "immersion" with a Latvian accent.

Look up Obutto.

as do we all - all hail the Yamiks

Yeah, damn Yamiks, I can't think it without hearing him too!

able724 Could not agree more. Great products. My 4 ch products are from 2005 and they work like a charm in elite and every other sim I have thrown at them. What one can do with programming is mind blowing...but you don’t have to.

Yup, ditto to all the above able724! Had my Fighterstick/Pro-throttle/Pro-pedals for a long time now. Tough, no nonsense hardware with an incredibly flexible programming software GUI. I have yet to find a function that I could not replicate with the powerful, yet simple, scripting language. What I liked best is that the hardware was versatile enough and, at the same time, generic enough that I could use it for flying modern aircraft and WWII warbirds. Sadly CH Products has been somewhat quiet for a while now ... I have not seen any new products aimed at the PC gaming crowd for several years.

From what I've read about them over the years, they like making the stick but don't really like to bother with marketing and all that. These flight simulator controls are small fry for them/their parent company. Making industrial joysticks is where the real money comes from. I have a CH HOTAS and pedals and I love it. Very functional and durable. The software is very powerful too even if it looks like it was designed in the 90s. Hey, if it works, why bother messing with it.

Yeah I noticed that. I really wanted to get it but they don't make them anymore and second hand sellers bump up the price a lot :/

@@zkmarkov2984 Pro X52 still in production, afaik. Seeing local stores are all waiting new units coming next month. Or did you mean specifically the grey X52 model?

I bought an X-52 many years ago for use with FSX, I never liked it because it felt very loose compared to my Logitech 3D pro, but I never refunded it. I started playing like 2 months ago and I realized the controls in Elite look very similar to it. I hadn't used it in years, so I had to take it down from the attic. I have since ditched my Xbox controller for the X-52 and I'm glad it did. I probably wouldn't have started using a HOTAS if it wasn't modeled after the X-52, it just feels cool knowing I'm using basically the same controls as my CMDR in Elite.

@@zkmarkov2984 Logitech took over Saitek. I believe they still manufacture the X52.

FCM?

I accidentally posted my reply when I wanted a line break - hence the edit. Obviously I only have experience with the lower end of the spectrum you have tried. I should add that the weight is indeed a problem with the FCS and I am looking to sort that out but other than what I mentioned I am satisfied with the set up, more so than I was with my older series X52. Maybe in the long run I'll justify getting a Virpil set up.

still using one of these i.imgur.com/GY8tf8M.jpg (x45) because i despise twist stick yaw and it has two rotary throttles

From what I've heard, older X-52s are still going strong (or at least last a lot longer), it appears the Madcatz produced versions are the ones that started their unreliable reputation As for Logitech upgrading production, it seems they overhauled the X-56 to better standards, but since they didn't change the color during this change (I believe this change in internals occurred during the black/grey livery release. the black/blue version is definitely what was left of the Madcatz production, so stay away from those), the risk is that you are buying a Madcatz legacy product

Logitech itself has been shit for build quality for years now, so no surprise there. I love their products design-wise, but they never last very long.

Visually yes, but practically the X52 has far fewer buttons than functions in E:D

I can confirm the plastic they use is exactly the same, and weak AF. A simple move forward the other day and by right side throttle just fell off. Tip to anyone with an X56, if you don't use both throttles, tape them together. The force puts far too much stress on the right stick because of that silly little lock, it adds a slight twist that weakens the crappy plastic they use.

@@branjosnow6244 OR you could move both at the same time and not try to yank the throttle from the end

@@DiggitySlice It's a design flaw dude, the catching pin to lock them together, is off center by design, it only goes into the left stick a few mm's, so it pushes the right stick with a slight twist motion as it does it. I've always had it on the mildest friction and been careful with it. But after the grease settles, it adds friction for the first use again. And you can feel the slight twist, as they both do not lock tightly enough to negate the separate movement. It needs to go right into the center of the the right stick not to cause stress on the plastic. It's been used everyday for about 7 months though. Although the backside buttons of the throttle flicker the connection after about a few weeks, the swivel buttons are terrible, and finding the central notch is impossible during game play. The slider switch refuses to bind to anything in Elite so I've never used it Stick is rock solid though, hasn't skipped a beat. Bad hat switch placement but can't complain about it's build quality. I thought it would be the first to go, not the throttle. The X56 looks good, feels good, but is not good. One would assume "1.5mm plastic" would not be used as the throttle supports? A small metal bar would have protected it better. Granted I was mega pissed when I made that comment, it had just broken when I had sat down for a game of Elite with my cousin on the other side of the planet. I lifted the ship, retracted gear and inched forward towards the mailslot, and the right throtlle just fell off into my hand lol. Been playing the night before and it was fine. I later fixed it, and how I know the small twist killed it? Without any glue I positioned it back onto the clean brake, and then duct taped that sucker to the left throttle along the join line of the two throttles, front and back. The pressure was now uniform, and it moves both sliders without issue. So if you don't really ever use both throttles as I didn't, it would add to the lifespan if you prevented any movement at all between the throttles, by just a small strip of strong tape. The whole Logitech RMA process is a frustrating mess, so I'm going to just have to eat the $250 I payed for it. But I'm eyeing up a Warthog setup, not a lot of complaints about those, but they are pricey AF. I'd give the X56 a decent 6/10 before it broke, but after seeing how it's made, I couldn't honestly recommend it to anyone.

First I'm curious if you've owned/had every one of these to test for a few weeks like I did? Of course your opinion and nope, there was nothing 'wrong' with the 16000 I had, I just didn't care for it at all. The button layout on the stick is terrible (12 buttons on the base that are impossible to use if you have your left hand on the throttle) with only a single hat and the button layout on the throttle, save for the analog stick for thrusters was really uncomfortable for me. While I didn't grease the throttle, so fair enough, I couldn't get past how cheap and thin the base and plastics were for it. Again all taste - but realize when I compare these to things like the Warthog they are all HOTAS and I made it very clear you need pedals with the Warthog (which I'd run regardless as I WANT pedals). As I said it's all subjective - you'll find someone that loves one and hates another for every one - but as I said in the video for my money I'd get the X52 (specifically the Pro) every single time over the 16000M.

fair enough - I have had them all except the new logitech x56 for quite some time for obvious reasons - I have an "Arcade" room I put together a few years back complete with virtual pinball, mame machines and 2 VR racing / flight cabinets so my stuff gets tested by friends and family pretty often... I agree with you about the buttons on the base of the 16000m being awkward but I never use them as when possible I use a "shift" function if the game allows it which elite does in spades, so you have the 2 buttons on the throttle and the "click" of the analog on the throttle which can easily be used as "shift keys" so for example the hat on the stick can perform 16 different actions alone depending on which button you are holding on the throttle but I don't even need to get that extreme, I have the push on the analog I use along with the buttons on the stick and the 2x 4 ways on the throttle and I am not even really near capacity of that. The one you mention the x52 I did like about the same feel wise but after 3 of them having QC issues I gave up on it and like you I did not want to knock any so I did not mention that one.

CMDR Exigeous Had T16000M FCS for months and absolutely LOVE it. And I treat it pretty rough during combat. No complaints. Just my 2 cents worth...

I like the FCS, too, but it's way too light for desk use as shipped. It's nice that the slider runs metal-on-metal, but the extremely lightweight base makes the whole thing feel cheap.

Jimmy DaSquid not saying you're wrong at all, that's great you're loving it. But I would be curious what you'd think had you been able to fly them all for a few weeks like I did - that's where I put the T16000M last. The great thing is none of them are crap, these are just my opinions and by definition they are subjective. I did try to be as objective as possible however.

word of warning, vkb does not use the same connection types as the warthog or virpil stick. you can get an adapter i think, but i'm not sure. if you're looking at a cheaper desktop stick, vkb just released a stick called the nxt, which is about $150 or so. seems to be well received on r/hotas. also, be careful about inflated prices. demand is high and supply is low because of covid, and also flight simulator just came out.

The t16000 has ridiculously few buttons it, and reaching for the base buttons is a pain

Also a member, only in the stick z- axis though, throttle is fine. I upgraded to the warthog way sooner than I would have because of it.

I've had the twist problem with mine, but I was able to fix it by opening the handle as much as I could without removing the trigger. Sprayed it with canned air to be safe and put in back together. I've had to do it a couple times but I haven't had any more issues so far

I know this is an old comment, but since it comes up with the Top Comments now, it is worth mentioning there are a couple very cheap fixes for the Z-axis issue.... by replacing the stock sensor with a Hall sensor, either with or without using 3D printed parts. Also, if you were to get the Hotas slider upgrades too, it totally transforms the whole setup to feel more high-end & makes it much better value for the total money.

Yeah, damn it - sorry I misspoke there - I updated the description to correct for my mistake.

I own CH products and love them. however since the sticks have no twist you would need pedals for full control. ch stuff is expensive but to me it is worth it. Also there is a used market where you can save a few bucks.

Not the most expensive thing you can get, but definitely not entry level either. They are supposed to be very durable so you don't have to buy replacements in a very long while and if you buy used, it's more likely to be in decent condition as well.

I have owned a full CH Products setup (Flightsim Yoke, Fighterstick, Pro Throttle & Pro Pedals) for a few years now ... I really love their products and highly recommend them. They work really well and are made to last. PS: I used to have a Saitek X52 Pro ... urgh! ... I got so fed up with it's lack of precision, I threw it out the window one day in a fit of rage. I now stay away from ANYTHING with the name Saitek on it ... they only build cheap junk.

I completely agree on the CH Products. Their being made to last was why I purchased them. In my opinion, they're probably the best bang for your buck due to their longevity. I have the Fighterstick, Pro Throttle, and Pro Pedals for almost 4 years now. They've survived 4 moves as well as a stint in storage and they are still working well and as precise as the day I got them. I definitely recommend getting the pedals for YAW input. They also add 2 more axis's that can be used on top of YAW. Point being, if you want something to last and are fairly durable, they are your best bet from my experience so far. They may be plastic, but they are definitely a solid design and will last a long time.

Not at all saying your wrong but realize the price is almost double for the CH stuff so that's why I recommend the X52 when factoring in everything.

Yeah, they are pricey. I managed to find a sweet deal on ebay where they were basically half price. Otherwise I would have had a hard time justifying the cost. You're right that it looks a bit old fashioned too. Also, the throttle is really designed for people with large hands. But the build quality is amazing and the included software is pretty useful too.

Saitek stuff is junk and money thrown down the drain ... save your money and buy a good product once (ie: CH Products).

they actually gave me a free replacement potentiometer for my pedals even though they were 3 years past warranty a thrustmaster took 3 months and a lawsuit threat to fix a issue that emerged 3 months after purchase ( buttons went out due to a missoldered wire) amyway best company in my mind

This is what I've heard repeatedly about the Saiteks. It sounds like a real crapshoot, where you don't know what you're going to get when you open the box.

This is actually a fairly recent development. Saiteks used to be very high quality until Mad Catz bought them out. Then their quality control hit rock bottom. Now we can only hope Logitech's acquisition can rectify this... but there's still lots of Mad Catz Saitek gear out in the wild.

Well like I said - some are going to say you're crazy and some will say I'm crazy, I could only go off what I felt having them each for a few weeks. To my hands the quality difference between the X52 and T16000M wasn't even close, didn't even feel in the same product category - and remember as a Warthog fan I love Thrustmaster (and have one of their wheel bases and multiple wheels too). For me I also really disliked the button placement on the FCS, the buttons on the stick base are unusable during flight (have to take your hand off to use them) and the layout and slider throttle to my hands were pretty terrible. The good thing is none of them are shit, it's a good time to be a HOTAS customer for sure (and thanks for the polite strong disagreement :D)

@@Exigeous - You really aren't qualified to make a video like this if you think picking the best HOTAS just means which one feels the best in your hands. There's so much more to it than that and your recommendations are embarrassing.

@@Exigeous I mean, I have to disqualify you on this one. I think you've been led by the touch and feeling and forgot that the t1600m has the same sensor as the Warthog, a top of the line hotas by the way, and the most important part, it has an analog joystick on the thruster that is basically a MUST have for any space sim that uses thrusters, the x52 dosn't have one. I do agree that the x52 looks and probably feels more premium, I personally would love to exchange my t1600m for an x52, but truth be told I won't because it's more expensive and it delivers less, plus the whole quality control problems and nightmare stories we hear about them. So yeah, I feel that this review lacked some objectivity and impartiality.

You're totally right - I just couldn't get into that level of detail for every stick as the video already went super long, especially for my content.

@@Exigeous 11 minutes, super long? Wow! The attention span of today is down in hell.

Disagree. The t16000 on my desk got sloppy after the first serious fight and is almost useless for ED right now unless I set a huge dead zone. Will never get near to them anymore.

The HAL's are ok but the rest of the joystick in my case was thrashed after the first battle in Elite after using the twist in anger. I'm now buying the Warthog as it is made of steel and has HAL's as well on the latest version. All this tech is pretty useless when the stick is dangling over to one side as mine is now. TBF I talking about the original "green" version. Don't know if the Orange one is any better but since no updates were mentioned about the internals I doubt it is.

OK, update after 4 months of solid almost-daily gaming on ED, the yaw control in the T16000M stick crapped out on me a few days ago. Another victim of its poor quality potentiometer. Would be happy yo spend more on that Warthog if only it has yaw control too.

That's pretty funny - but somehow I doubt that. ;-)

Would love to see you using a mouse while enduring the g-forces during a turn =D

Easy-peasey with my robot arm

I I had a ship I would actually ouse a combined setup. HOTAS for the flight controls, and M/KB for all the navigational stuff like menues, oh, and lots of stuff with touch.

@@salmasrac3351 touchè

have an old x55, and its LITTERED with problems. the software is highly dated, the drivers have issues recognizing both throttle and stick at once..... and lets get to the fun part. saitek/madcatz are now owned by logitech. there will be no support or profile releases for anything new in the foreseeable future even though i purchased it just a year or two earlier. they will happily drain you of your money, come out with something new, then stop supporting your product. if you think this is isolated? think again. i've owned an array of logitech over the years and they are pleased that their products fail after warranty. mouse, 3 years, kb 2yrs, speakers 2.5 yrs, and the list goes on to now include an x55 that is unusable. tldr? don't buy anything logitech makes, you're going to regret it.

By twist do you mean turning the ship left/right on the Z axis right? If so it only has lateral movement? I'm just curious I'm not too familiar with this stuff but I am interested

Yes. The warthog only has lateral movement. No twist.

@@Kurkess I see, after seeing a few yt videos and some more research, and being left handed I'm likely just gonna settle for something low-mid-range with twist and learn to fly right handed :/

@@goofball1_134 being a lefty myself, you'll love the x52

@@Boba_Brett13 yeah I ended up going duel stick with x52 and tm1600. The throttle for the x52 while nice, I couldn't get a good feeling for using a button swap to make the throttle go in reverse. I would have to add peddles or go hosas. and since hosas was cheaper I went for it and I love it!

Once a long time ago I owned CH products, but can't find them anymore here in Sweden. I had a throttle, stick and rudder pedals. This was the age before USB was invented, and we had to use gameports on the soundcard or PC.. And then a couple of years later, got my first Thrustmaster stick. The TopGun. Damn, that was a great stick! I even modified my own T1600m. Whilst doing it, I started to understand more and more about how it works. Most sticks use potentiometers to "measure" where you are. This stick actually use a magnet and a sensor. And it is so good, the throttle is a bit plastic.. But yes. It IS plastic. However, getting an extra X & Y mini stick is great.. Added an extra button and LED lights. Trying to get the throttle to "follow" the led lights, ranging from white, orange, red and green. Yeah the Saitek is a no-go. I have friends and read a lot of negative stuff about it. One is a someone who bought the Pro version and actually it started to malfunction within 2 weeks. He changed it 3 times total. After that he did as the rest, got something else.. Seems that Logi/Sai had some issues with the spring system. But the VIRPIL.. Something I really do want to have!

My first ever joystick was a Saitek, way back in 93ish and was USB1.0 or something, beat the crap out of all the opposition at that time. Such a shame that poor management led them down the road to ruins. And I am no fan of Logitech right now as my G920 wheel has not worked since I got it 5 weeks ago and Logi support lost, yes LOST 4 weeks of emails and correspondence, piss poor imo

I really loved my 16000M. If it had an extra hat and a thumb slide or hat, and a pinky trigger it would be perfect. 16000M Pro? Thrustmaster is so close to a perfect cheapish type controller. I sent it back for a x56 Logitech update model. Hopefully that one is OK!

So do I, first negative impression on 16000, I'm in love, it only needs at least 3 more buttons in joystick to be perfect

@@leynadIX Do you use the "twist" function and if so how is it holding up? Apparently the longevity of this feature is chronically poor on the 16000. Curious as to your experience so far?

I suppose that works for me - I used to be a pretty big FPS player too back in the Counter Strike 1.6 and Quake III days. I play a bit now (Overwatch, Battlefield 1/V) but really only love sim games - hence my setup.

Makes sense. I play shooters if I want to be competitive (rarely) but if I’m stressed out and want to unwind I always go to elite dangerous.

And at that price it certainly makes it a better deal but I still would choose the X52 every time as for a PC gamer that's not a huge difference for something you're going to use for many hundreds or even thousands of hours. I'm sure many are very happy with the T16000M but those also have never used all the sticks in the review which is where my opinion comes from.

@@Exigeous - Then you're a fool because the X52 is garbage inside and no where near as accurate as the T16000m.

@@Exigeous can u stop riding the x52's nuts. i own one and had had to go out and buy a t16000m because the x52 is so inaccurate it was almost unusable.

They're a very 'if it ain't broke' company. They know what they're good at and they never stray outside that comfort zone. For better or worse.

I bet it still works and is as accurate as it was fresh out of the box, too.

That one thumb button on the very bottom is a little awkward to reach, yeah.

Exactly, and in 16 more they'll still be working. I think I got mine in 2009, there aren't even wear marks from close to daily usage. It's a shame to think someone would pass on them because they don't have gaudy racing stripes and other flashy non-sense, or because "plastic". They make all their gaming peripherals using the same industrial materials that go into the various controls they build for heavy machinery operation. If I recall, I believe CH will replace them if they ever fail, or maybe I'm thinking about how they would convert a set to usb for free if you sent it to them. Though, I do wish there were some toggle switches built in, lol.

@@a10miletooth Only reason I passed on the CH set was that they didn't have enough controls for my liking. For me, the less I have to use the keyboard, the more immersed I am in the game.

@@ChozoSR388 you can set them up using the software where every button can have up to 3 functions. That's 45 buttons each not including the 8-way hats. What could you be doing that requires more than that?! In games like E:D where a combination key press can be mapped it isn't necessary to use the software at all. Were you not aware of the software or just prefer having more physical things to put your fingers on? Totally understandable if that's the case, I've considered getting a button box (or two) for that very reason.

Yes every hat on the Ch system is basically 4 buttons. The amount of buttons is ridiculous and you can control elite dangerous completely in vr without keyboard or voice commands.

Is it the same model that's shown in the video? I'm looking at my first hotas to get ready for SW Squadrons, Star Citizen, and getting back into ED, and it seems CH comes highly recommended but I want to make sure I get the right one.

Agreed, the music was way too loud

Tel Fer he also got it wrong about the buttons. The three buttons are mode buttons that can alternately just be used as single function buttons.

Exactly that. I have the CH hotas too and the joystick on the throttle is amazing. Was one of the reasons I bought it. Unfortunately the control software does not work for me under Windows 10 anymore. Makros and mode switches were awesome in the software. Edit ok got it to work. Just open the windows store when the buttons are greyed out

X52 is my favourite cause of the layout and design... Quality is bad tho. Especially on potentiometers. Using electrical cleaner helps, but it shouldn't be like that.

@@clarion-z2929 I'm in the market, so it's your experience to go with thrustmaster verses x 52 ?

@@ronaldwatson1951 personally, x52 is my choice. Even with the poor build quality. It's more about your preference. :) There is no right stick for everyone

@@clarion-z2929 thanks for your response and candor.

This video is bad. From the format to the misleading info.

Yep, as I said it's a very subjective thing to try to review - and to be clear my main issues with the T16000M were the throttle (flimsy, terrible button layout, hated the slide mechanism) and the placement of the buttons on the base of the stick, which are basically unusable. I was a fan of the T.Flight for the money for sure.

Ye, the T16000m is basically down to comfort for me :) The setup is far from great. the x56 was disappointing tho. As for everything that relates to ergonomics, it’s down preference. You can recommend a e.g. a mouse for tech, value and functions, but it doesn’t matter if it don’t fit your hand :) thanks for great content!

You're most welcome, thanks for the kind words and debate. I do totally agree on the X56 and comfort/ergonomics - I liked how many inputs it had, especially the throttle, but found it possibly the last comfortable and the second cheapest feeling. No question to my hands the X52 was the most comfortable with the Warthog being a very very close second.

The t16000m was originally built as a stand alone ambidextrous stick, in which case the symetrical button layout makes a lot of sense, the throttle, i like it, but the one button that i use for reverse is hard to reach, the paddles i find seem to really suit navigating the in ship panels but serve no other purpose in elite.

@@davidpritchard7802 i use the paddles to thrust forward and backward when im docking or dogfighting, its analogue so its great for small trotle inputs

Wing Commander 8> You know about Star Citizen?

@@surject I do. I had an account for the past few years but never got into it. When I first started there was little to do and I didn't have a HOTAS. So I had removed the game. But for me, Elite in VR is what is the killer app for me. I don't know if Star Citizen supports VR but VR is what made me buy Elite Dangerous.

@@SavageVR Fair enough. SC is getting better and better (again) but still a long way to go ;) There's no official VR support yet but it works. Same with Track IR ...the initial support has been dropped years ago because stuff changes all the time. Upcoming patch will bring the new flight model, looking forward to it because I didnt' have much fun in combat either (with hotas) since 2.6.

Wow, really, that surprises me given how much combat you do - I'm telling ya man get on it and get yourself some real pedals. I promise you that you'll be glad you did as I couldn't imagine not having them. If you're on a budget the older Thrustmasters are okay, those new ones look great but for $500 are they kidding? For less you can get the MFG Crosswinds or the "Slaw Device" pedals which both rock. I love my T.Rudders but would probably get one of the others if I was buying now.

First I had some ghost button issues with my old X52. Shortly followed by some broken cables inside the throttle. To change the cables was not an option, because the inside of the throttle is full of grease and once you start with one cable you have to do them all, which would be a nightmare. So, I bought the X56 with the hope that Logitech improved the quality. Now, I have what they call a tennis arm because of the very resistant z-axis of the stick. Besides, the throttle of the X56 is also much harder to slide, much propable because Logitech increased the resistance in order to prevent the cables to be bend to fast. I like the design, the buttons are all at the right places and I was hoping that the X56 will turn the trick. But I cannot really recommend it to anyone and might have to grasp the nettle and buy rudders.

@@noamc8417 "To change the cables was not an option, because the inside of the throttle is full of grease *and once you start with one cable you have to do them all, which would be a nightmare* " ...I did on my X-55 throttle which started failing after about 250 hours of use, and I had no intention to do it again after I found another axis failing again after 3 months Luckily Virpil came out with their new throttle at that time, so had a good excuse to upgrade my HOTAS, now only to replace my combat rudders, where one of the brakepedal pots already failed after never using it

My story is almost the same. Got an x56, returned it 3 weeks later as the twist axis wouldn't return to center, 2 buttons on the stick and 3 on the throttle never worked. Terrible build quality. Got the warthog instead. Been using it 2 years without any issues.

How long would you say your T.1600M lasted?

@@ForgeofAule I would say ~11 months or so until I started having the yaw problems. I managed to take it apart and fix it, but that was a pain the butt, and there's no guarantee it won't happen again. It's sitting in the corner as my backup stick for now. The saddest part is that the stick actually works great until it breaks. If Thrustmaster would just make a minor tweak to the way those wires wrap around the pot, it would be the no-brainer budget stick for me.

There are 3rd party plates/bearings available that allow multiple magnetic detents in your choice of locations plus use bearing upgrades to make the throttle buttery smooth through its travel range at fairly reasonable prices and installation is not all that difficult either. Actually makes the TWCS throttle one of the best options available at a somewhat budget price range.

Remember somewhere you'll read someone telling you every one of these are total pieces of shit and to avoid, etc. Personally I've only owned the Warthog (and a 52 many many years back) so I could only go on what they felt like in my hands for the 2 weeks or so I had them. None of them are junk at all and while each one could fail in days, weeks, months or years that's very hard for me to say - I can only say what they felt like in my hands which is where my comments come from.

Agreed. I'm using a x45 for ED and I was lucky enough to find a set on eBay for about $20-25 and hardly ever used (as far as I can tell, anyway). Only downside was I spent the better part of 2.5 hours configuring every single button from scratch due to no preset keybinds, but it's cool. I got my set-up the way I like it and the x45 is a definite improvement over the xbox controller I was using. The only other drawback I can think of with the x45 is that it won't work with windows10 (at least, that's what i googled, anyway). No issue for myself since I'm still using win7

@@bystandah9626 actually it works just fine for me in Windows 10. Plugged it in and it was instantly recognized. Only thing that doesn't work is the Saitek configuration software, but I doubt that works in Win 7 either.

You're right about the software not working that great in Win7, lol. Mine closes up instantly if I even try to use any of the options. Good thing Joystick Gremlin works nicely with adjusting curves in my stick. But it's good to know the x45 works with Win10.

Jason D I totally agree. With voice attack and VR E:D is amazing.

I have used my CH Stick, Throttle and pedals for about 8 years now, and this setup still works as smooth and reliable as the first day i plugged them in. Computers, screen, mouse and keyboards have come and gone but CH prevails over time and use.

They got bought my logitech over a year ago

I agree. I bought an X52 a few months ago and have never been able to get it to work. When I plug it in, the mouse pointer rises to the top of the screen and stays there. On the few occasions that the mouse behaved, the stick would suddenly reverse it's pitch programming - makes flying a helicopter pretty tough. It may be a software problem. I can't tell. But out the door it goes - pure junk. Now it's hard to know what to buy. $500 is a lot for a game controller.

Have had my Saitek X52 Pro for at least five years. Purchased two; one for me and one for a housemate, as he didn't have money to burn. He had a switch problem within two weeks (although I never checked whether he was trying to unsuccessfully reassign the "i" button, which I also have never been able to use for anything). Mine still works perfectly.

I have seen on Gumtree the CH products fighterstick for really low price, is it worth it?

Taphosthewarlock It sounded fine for me.

Courtney Hawkins Dude I bought a T.Flight Thrustmaster 4 and that shit broke on me after 3 days! It was brand new. The stick is straightened out but no matter what flying game I play, the ship or aircraft just banks hard to the left. Even after playing with deadzones it does this. And when I move the stick all the way to the right it barely turns right at all. I had it in a clean environment and never abused it in those 3 days. I’m disappointed

Thanks my friend and yeah, the Warthog really is something special isn't it?