rec.autos.simulators

My guess is that reviews of the older MSSFF model apply, but without the FF
effects...but one never knows.

Should I go for the FF over the non-FF MS Wheel, (about $45.00 more in my
local stores)?

Can't say that I'm e***d about FF, and I am concerned about all those
little parts breaking down after a few thousand miles.

The Logitech FF looks good too, but all the reviews mention that the pedals
don't have enough travel, what about the MS Wheels?

Just trolling I guess...

For myself, I wouldn't go back to a non-FF for GPL, N3, and NASCAR Legends.
When I turn the force off for N3, it feels pretty much like N2/N99 to me.
With the force, it feels like it has a 'nearly' new physics engine, giving
me a much better sense of the wheel travel, oversteer/understeer, limit of
adhesion, ..

If I were to buy again, I would probably go with the Logitech FF and change
the springs of the pedals (or wire in some other pedals).  BTW, my gas pedal
spring on the MSFF broke (it wasn't completely returning to the top
position) - I replaced it with a spring made from a coat hangar.

Brian

I guess I'm a bit behind the times, was force feedback added to a second
version of GPL or is that in a patch?  I really like the look of the
Logitech as well, just those pedals....

Aloha

PassedYa

However, the MS Precision Pro Wheel is _nothing_ like the MSFFW wheel.

There are two things about this wheel that really disturb me.  First, the
wheel is all plastic with NO padding at all.

Second, and more importantly, this wheel has the strongest and most
noticable center 'notch' I've ever felt in a wheel.  I can't stand it, or I
would have bought one to replace my MSFFW (Force-Feedback is falling out of
favor with me).

On the good side, the pedals are the same (so it seems) as the MSFFW and it
is USB, which the MSFFW should have been all along but apparantly never will
be :(

If you want the best pedals, get the MS wheel.  If you want a better wheel,
get the non-ff Logitech.

There is one other issue.  The new MS wheel's SideWinder Software 4.0
(which, for odd reasons, isn't available to other Sidewinder users) is
apparantly not compatible with DirectX 7 (which I have abandoned for now for
many other reasons).  That's kind of ironic, when you think about it :)

One other problem, if you shop retail and want the Logitech wheel, could be
availability.  It appears to me that Microsoft is making a *** push in
the hardware controller market at major resellers.  I have been to several
CompUSA's and Best Buys, and stocks of everything _except_ Microsoft
products are dismal.  Usually only display units were present.  Hardly any
Logitech wheels or joysticks were available, and it wasn't just Logitech.
It was the other manufacturers, too.  Ditto for the mouse sections.

Who knows what kind of 'special' deals may have been made that are causing
this shortage of non-MS products.

-Larry