I currently have a Thrustmaster T-Flight Hotas One which I use for MSFS on my pc. As the festive and gifting season is approaching I’m thinking about an upgrade, and wondered what other users who have similarly upgraded might recommend?
The Thrustmaster is OK but it is a little plasticky and imprecise, and I struggle to get all of the controls I want mapped onto it in logical and memorable places, so I end up using the keyboard and mouse quite a bit in flight which can be distracting. Ideally I’d prefer something with a few more buttons and switches so I guess the X56 is the obvious candidate but I’ve read a few poor reviews of it’s build and reliability so any input from users would be appreciated.
I work from the same pc, and space on the desk won’t really allow for a yoke and rudder pedals, plus I have got used to the hotas style so any thoughts on a stick upgrade would be appreciated. Ideally one that’s easily available in the UK and not crazy money.
Plumbglue has nailed it. The best value joystick on the market right now is the VKB Gkadiator NXT.
Well designed, well made with contactless sensors throughout. (no cheap potentiometer’s to fail)
It’s the only joystick at this tier to feature quality components.
It might be a little more expensive but to be honest probably not as expensive as replacing it’s nearest competitor when that inevitably fails on you.
Further up the food chain are the Virpil and VKB Stick/Gimbal systems. I made the move to these a couple of years ago now and have never looked back.
All metal gimbal mechanism, highly accurate contactless sensors, high quality components. The difference is night and day.
(But the Gladiator NXT strikes a happy balance so is well worth a look)
Thanks for all the responses, the Gladiator NXT looks like just the ticket.
One further question though; can I use one of the trim wheels (or another control) to allow for variable braking? With the current Thrustmaster hotas I only have one rocker which I use for trim, so the brakes are relegated to a button and therefore not as controllable as they could be.