rec.autos.simulators

I used to use a Logitech Extreme Digital stick.  I have
noticed that with the wheel, I can't hold the car on
the apron line at Talladega.  I am forever correcting,
and on the replay it looks like the car is tacking
back and forth (port, starboard, port, starboard).

With the digital stick I could hold it right to the line.
Previously I wasn't using DXTweak or CTFJ.  Now I am using
DXTweak and have the deadzone set at 1 with the wheel.
(Admittedly I haven't tried messing with the deadzone much,
but the original value of 5 was way too much deadzone.)

My question is: does a digital controller have a wider
input range (e.g. 0 to 65535) while my R100 wheel is limited
to something smaller (e.g. 0 to 255)?

Do the higher-end wheels have a wider range, even though
they are still analog?  Are digital USB wheels coming soon?

What is responsible for the range?  Can I buy a better
potentiometer and install it in the R100, thereby making it
smoother?

Thanks for any advice, or pointers to FAQs.

--
Doug Appleyard

"Got us a Dirt Track Date, demolition derby figure 8"
   -- Southern Culture On The Skids

Sent via Deja.com http://www.racesimcentral.net/
Before you buy.

Replying to my own message:  From the README for DXTweak
at www.wingmanteam.com, I think I will try a deadzone
of 2 or 3, but I am still curious why the digital stick
was more precise.  Does it report something larger than
0 to 655, or does the Saitek wheel report something smaller
than 0 to 655?  I wasn't using DXTweak with the digital stick.
So who knows what the deadzone was.

What range is reported by controllers such as the Logitech
wheel, or the Microsoft wheel, or the ACT Labs wheel?

thanks for any help

--
Doug Appleyard

"Got us a Dirt Track Date, demolition derby figure 8"
   -- Southern Culture On The Skids

Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.

--
Slot

Tweaks & Reviews
www.slottweak.com

Thanks for the info.  I tested out my Saitek R100 wheel and
the Logitech USB Extreme digital stick last night with DXTweak.
The wheel seems to have a reporting range of around
0 to 327, half of the digital stick's, which is 0 to 655.

The wheel is connected through my Soundblaster Live Value
game port.  I noticed that when holding the wheel steady,
the input value displayed in DXTweak still jumps around a bit.

While holding the digital stick steady, the input value
stays on a single value.  No wonder it's smoother at Nascar 3
Talledega.

By moving the deadzone to 3, I was able to turn pretty
smoothly with the wheel at N3 Tally, temp. 40 degrees.
The AI was set at 110% and I could keep up with them pretty
well; even won a short race.  But still not as steady as with
the stick-- ran too far down on apron a few times,
occasionally resulting in wrecks when I tried to recover.

When I get a real wheel one day, I will keep your advice
in mind.  I'll get a USB wheel with a large reporting
range and not worry so much about analog vs. digital.

--
Doug Appleyard

"Got us a Dirt Track Date, demolition derby figure 8"
   -- Southern Culture On The Skids

Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.