I am in the fortunate position to own both an old style LWFF and an Act Labs
Force RS plus Shifter. The LWFF was my first FF wheel and I used it for
about 6 months. I then bought a Force RS, primarily because of the Shifter.
I have had the wheel for a year now. In that time I have hardly used the
LWFF at all. I love the Force RS and now that GPL and N4 have full free
shift support (either official or hacked) I love it even more.
The Force RS has a larger lock to lock turn (270 degrees) compared with the
LWFF.
The LWFF wheel is probably the more comfortable to race with, certainly if
you want to use the paddle shifters and until you get used to the Force RS.
The Force RS wheel has an unusual design which does take some getting used
to. Once you are used to it though it is more precise.
The LWFF is usable straight out of the box and remains pretty much the same
with continuous use. The Force RS is slightly different. It uses a tight
belt linkage to the motor which requires a couple of weeks of use before it
is broken in. This often means that reviews describe the Force RS as being
notchy or tight. My wheel after a year of use is still running with no
problem. I find the force effects to be far better from the Force RS.
The pedals for both wheels are poor in my opinion. In fact I hardly used
either set. Initially I bought some CH Pedals to replace the LWFF pedals.
When I got the Force RS I continued to use them. In the last 2 months my CH
Pedals broke so I bought some BRD F1 Sim Pedals instead which are a
different class in quality over any other pedal set. They were of course
pretty expensive but you get what you pay for.
The paddle shifters on the LWFF are better than the Force RS. I found them
to be easier and more comfortable to use. Of course that is somewhat
academic since I use the Shifter 99% of the time.
The Force RS has no profiling software, unlike the LWFF. You have to use
the third party RBJoy utility to map buttons to key presses.
In terms of reliability I have had no real problems with the LWFF although I
haven;t used it anywhere near as much as the Force RS. I have had two
broken parts in my Force RS. First a plastic linkage in the pedals broke.
Second once of the spring contacts in the Shifter fatigue failed. In both
instances Act Labs sent me a replacement part free of charge. Both parts
were very easy to fit. This is in stark contrast to what I have heard about
Logitech. Their supply of replacement parts is non-existant.
Cheers
Phil Lee
Legends Central Admin
http://www.legendscentral.com
When you say "pretty expensive", what are we talking, and can you point me
to a UK supplier, please?
Not taking issue, but in my own case I bought a LWFF about 2 years ago. The
serial/USB connector wasn't in the box as it should have been. I e-mailed
Logi who sent me one at no cost. It arrived with me, (UK), about 5 days
later - came from mainland Europe somewhere. I have to say I was pleasantly
surprised, although this may not have been everyone's experience of course.
I got them from the manufacturers, Ball Racing at
http://www.interactiveracing.com
They are professional simulator builders who also make PC controllers. The
pedals normally have to have a wheel attached to them but Ball Racing made
me a special adapter so that I could plug a joystick in instead and use the
pedals together with my Force RS. The pedals cost me just on 90 including
a spare set of springs. They take some getting used too since they have 3
inches of travel but they are so smooth and precise that they are a joy to
use.
Cheers
Phil Lee
Legends Central Admin
http://www.legendscentral.com
Sorry - forgot the pronoun, like a dullard. Looking into _them_ right now!
