Wanting to buy a new HOTAS. Thought Thrustmaster was the gold standard.

Amazon reviews and others vary WILDLY. Some people love it; others say their HOTAS are imprecise, user friendless, and highly prone to break down due to fragile pots.

PLEASE GIVE YOUR TWO CENTS those of you who own or have used one!

Thanks,

d.

PS Another post raised this question, but would you go anywhere near force-feedback (not on Thrustmaster of course). Also, I'm generally on the hardcore/realist side of our silly hobby.

You can search this very forum and find a multitude of threads on this topic.

The TM Cougar is not very good out of the box. If you're willing to invest alot of money for after market upgrades the Cougar can definitely deliver and is the most realistic looking hardware. Many here love it.

For long lasting quality hardware that works out the box then CH is the only way to go IMO.

Saitek HOTAS is also good and much cheaper than CH.

Over the years I've owned flight sim orientated controllers and HOTAS setups from everyone mentioned above (going as far back as the old TM F4 grip style controls) my personal favorite is CH in terms of ease of use and quality construction and design.

See below...

I will be buying the Logitech product as soon as it hits the market.

Checking it out and thanks!

If you've ever had to solder in two new pots in two months as I did a couple years ago (on a Saitek), you know why I'm careful here!

I saw that post about the Logitech HOTAS on these boards a minute ago, but for some reason can't track it down again. Can you name the specific product?

d.

Logitech G940 HOTAS.

http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/2735912/HOTAS_Logitech_G940.html#Post2735912

THANKS KRAMER

I love my Cougar, but there's a key difference with it:

I purchased it used and already modded with the original FCC.

I had a CH Products Fighterstick and Pro Pedals, both USB. (Never had or even touched the Pro Throttle, though.) Fine products, but I sold them. Why? The ergonomics aren't as good as the Cougar's, though they do have a big edge in programability. The Fighterstick kind of dug into my palm, and the Pro Pedals are spaced a bit too closely together.

That said, I want a G940-not to replace my Cougar, but to complement it. The stiff FCC feel doesn't really work well for IL-2 and other prop sims, and the split-throttle would be very useful for twin-engine aircraft.

My Cougar is still stock. I have to say, it is a lovely piece of kit, especially with regards to programming, but... I guess when you over-engineer some parts of a joystick, other parts and design decisions tend to get a little forgotten, and that is the case with the Cougar. Oh, and don't drop it on your foot. The G940 does appear to be the way forward.

The G940 is the way forward BECAUSE it is the only FFB HOTAS. The twin Engine throttle, matching rudder pedals, and single USB connection are sweet bonuses.