Hi all, I'd be interested to know, what the actual time gain from better hardware is. As I had to return my broken T300RS, I am currently sitting here with my backup T150 and T3PA pro pedals. I see people driving insane quick laptimes and sometimes I wonder if hardware could also be a factor here. (I know that I am certainly 2-3 seconds of the pace). So what are your experiences - is there an actual gain, when for instance using Fanatec pedals with FFB, or a Fanatec wheel or even a racing seat? Or is the gain not to be measured in lap times, but in a whole lot better immersive feeling? I am curious for your opinions
From my experience, in general, you won't gain much time just by upgrading your hardware (at this level). Every time I changed a wheel or pedals, I actually lost some time. But it came back once I got used to new peripherals. If I ever improved my times by a noticeable amount, it was usually just because I was driving more, since I was enjoying my new toys.
If there was any, I'd be unbeatable if I ever switched to a wheel. Seriously, I second Tom, I don't think the hardware is the most important aspect in being fast and a "better" wheel certainly won't make you 2 or 3 seconds faster just by being better. It might lead to you improving your driving because of the increased immersion you already mentioned, but there are super-fast people using a DFGT or even cheaper peripherals.
Thanks Tom and Christian, that is what I expected. Coming from the PS4, I started driving Raceroom with my old Thrustmaster RGT wheel. Times did improve when using the T300, but my impression was, this was based simply on the fact that I felt more comfortable driving the cars with the newer hardware. Those Fanatec pedals still are tempting though
I think there are guys that search in the setting of the software , as I look back at the replay of the Audi TT, which you can adjust little, then I see the fast guys go 2sec faster than the rest?
Well, I'm all for immersion and fun, so if you feel the new pedals could improve your racing enjoyment, I say go for it! Just don't expect the lap times to go magically down a lot. I was playing sims for almost 20 years, but on a rather casual level, so my lap times were always off the pace by several seconds (5+) from the best guys. I was always wondering what is wrong, if it could be my wheel or if I just plain suck. Some time ago, I've done a little experiment. For 6 months straight, I was practicing in iRacing in average 1-2 hours every day. At the end I was able to make lap times, which were in top 10-15% of the "seasonal leaderboard" - usually 1-2 sec behind the best. So yea, no surprise here, if you want to get better in anything, just practice. And if you think you can't get any better - practice more.
You mean something like the bug in pCars, where - iirc - disabling the Turbo on AMD cpus caused people to start earlier and have considerably faster lap times?
Yes, I know practise is everything. For instance, after attending last weekends 24h race at Spa, I started driving the GT3s again in Raceroom. I already worked my way up from a horrible 2:25 to a high 2:21 and I know with a few hours more I can reach high 2:19 laptimes. The top entry for a Ruf on the leaderboard is a 2:15 however, so still another almost 5 seconds faster. I have no clue how to get there with the limited setup possibilities and driving line alone :/
Well, what can I say I only see that you can change the control software , and if you make some time in it , you may feel a different.
If serious – you have to practice, practice and keep practicing. Chasing faster ghost times also very useful, so you could learn the best line to drive and get in touch with braking points.
Yes, that's what I do. I was just curious about the experiences of users when upgrading to better hardware
When I replaced my Logitech MOMO on Logitech DFGT - I was experiencing the same as Tom Shane typed above. For the beginning it was worse than before, but when I got used to DFGT it became better, much better!
Just to throw my two cents into the pool..... Better hardware won't make you faster, but.....it will probably make you more consistent. Switching to quality pedals for example, will make it easier to find the correct brake-pressure every time. The body has an easier time learning muscle-memory as opposed to positional memory. Or at least that's what I tell myself every time I look at those Fanatec V3s. One final thing to keep in mind. Sim-racing is a sport (well, sorta) and as with any other sport, there are some who will naturally be better at it than others. Practice will get you a long way, but there is such a thing as talent. It also depends on how much you're willing to invest in it. I usually race against the same group of people over at RD, and I'm somewhere between one and three seconds off the pace depending on the car/track combo. And I'm fine with it. I could practice for hours on end and probably have a sporting chance of a podium, but I honestly don't take it seriously enough to bother. To me it's much more of a social thing than anything else. Besides, mid-pack is usually where the fun is.
Switching from T500RS to Fanatec CSW V2 base and V3 pedals made me up to a few seconds faster (after some hours getting used to the new feeling). Most (if not all) the gained time came from braking. I had the MrBasher brake mod installed on the TM pedals, which was an improvement, but the difference between this combo and the V3 pedal (with extra dampener) is huge. It is much easier to keep braking at the exact same point, without blocking the wheels (I rarely use ABS) with this more resistant pedal. I don't think the wheelbase/steering wheel gained me much time, but it sure is a lot nicer in the hands. On the other hand: yesterday I found out that using the Formula Carbon wheel in the Ferrari 488 GT3 let me gain over a second compared to the Porsche 918 RSR rim (race at Mugello). No doubt because the base identifies the wheel and automatically adjusts steering angle. (Just got the Formula rim back from repair - one grip broke - and it was the first time I used it for the Ferrari.
Thanks guys for all the input, it was very helpful. Bottomline for me is, I will get myself a set of CSW V3 pedals and stay with a new T300. The saved money then rather goes into a racing seat with triple screens (somewhen in the winter)
While I second people's points that you do not have to spend money to be fast, I still noticed a positive change in my virtual driving after migrating from G27 to CSW V2. With Fanatec, I can recover car better when things go bad. Probably, because wheel communicates forces more precisely/wider dynamic range. And, not a time improvement, but CSP adds immersion while braking for sure. Though there's still room for improvement - I still dream of Fanatec come up with a mechanism in pedals to simulate ABS
After 16.000 km.. only now I realize I could use the ghost times to guide me trough a better line.. Welp.
A small update on the subject - these beaties arrived yesterday and I cannot wait to try them out next sunday