I am amazed at all the new technology that has come out to build a full size home cockpit. When I first started building in 2003 you had to hand make so much it was a huge and costly project. Now with so much that can be 3D printed, bought prebuilt, or even in kit form it’s possible to build a full cockpit for less than $1000 and you don’t have to be an engineer to do it. Now with the introduction of VR into the sim world you don’t even need a full cockpit to experience an awesome flight.
I would like to hear some discussion in this home built cockpit forum on what you think about full size builds vs VR builds. I personal am building for both. A full size PA-28 and Cessna 172 cockpit that I also fly with in VR. Reaching for an item in VR and actually touching it makes for a great flying experience.
Once we have the multi-view ability in MSFS the decision on which to have will be even tougher (as long as it’s done right). I am also looking forward to the augmented reality/mixed reality feature to come into the sim world at an affordable cost.
Let’s hear what everyone thinks about these two ways to build a home cockpit for this incredible flight simulator product from Asobo and Microsoft.
I spent over 10 years building a home cockpit, between 1996 and 2010. It was a total blast, but in hindsight I must admit the building was more fun than flying. The whole setup got very complicated and it of course simulated one plane only (the B737-700).
With FS2020 we have VR, and since I got into that my „real“ cockpit is gathering dust. VR simply offers a different level of immersion, much better imo than what a physical cockpit setup can deliver. Plus, I can now fly everything, from the CRJ to the Hawk or the TR Solo. It‘s a bit like owning all these planes, and I just pick the one that suits my mood.
My cockpit will go on sale, or I donate it to a museum (if they are interested).
The VR thing is not without dangers: the latest and greatest HMD, various controllers for different plane types, a new pilot seat - that‘s the new rabbit hole that swallowed me lately…
I do both. For the hardcore experience I fly with my home built GA cockpit (and trackir of course). I like the feel of turning a real knob. To me fiddling with the mouse in VR isn’t optimal, it brakes the VR immersion.
Actually, I think the best flight experience in VR on a PC is IL2 Sturmovik. Those ww2 planes had less buttons and knobs, and you can actually map everything to a good hotas setup. Pure VR flying without any mouse or keyboard. But that is just me.
The only thing holding me back from getting a vr Headset for msfs is that I would have to go back to mouse clicking/scrolling instead of knobs and Switches etc.. nooo never
I fly exclusively in VR and never touch my mouse or keyboard. But I only fly 2 GA aircraft so the panel builds were easy.
No problem finding buttons an knobs? You have it built according to ingame panel?
Exactly as I see it in VR. Check it out on the Post for the build. I’m in the beginning process of building a full 172 panel for the steam gauge version and these panels will be interchangeable depending on what I want to fly. Each panel cost less than $250 to build. They will share the same yoke and pedals when it’s all done. The PA-28 is a final demo/prof of concept build and works perfect for VR.
A physical cockpit with multiple screens seems like the ideal training tool. However, for the best gaming experience, I would think a physical cockpit with a VR headset would be the way to go. So it depends what you want to do with it.
You can’t get the in cockpit lighting right using screens, or match all the windows. So you’ll always feel like you’re in a theater.
The VR setup would be significantly cheaper too as you don’t need any additional screens for the avionics, and all the windows.
I always wondered about getting a “for parts” scrapped plane, or a partially built kit project that was abandoned, and then converting it for a VR build. An old Cessna or a cub most likely. Put it in the garage, and then recreate the interior of that garage as in game scenery to be your starting “hangar”. You’d climb into a real plane, put your headset on, and then it would be like turning the real world directly into the virtual one.
I absolutely know Im going to get shot down from all angles but how about a customisable in sim cockpit in which you can place your virtual controls to match the layout of your physical cockpit regardless of what aircraft you are in … Obviously this cuts a big hole in realism but I can think of nothing worse for immersion than scrabbling around for a knob or button that you can’t actually see.
modular home cockpit? Go from an F18 to a 737 in 10 minute? You’d make a lot of money there buddy…
I was thinking more flying a dreamliner from a cessna cockpit but yeah you get the idea. By customisable I mean guages and instruments could still be placed in their familiar positions (within reason) but the actual controls, switches and buttons to hand would always be the same. Colour schemes etc. could match the aircraft you’re flying. Just create a profile for every new aircraft.
that’s fair. I mean generally speaking as long as you got a fuel indicator, a speed indicator a heading indicator and a map. There isn’t much else you need to fly a plane. However, i would think it be more immersion breaking to have a c152 cockpit but you’re actually flying a 787. It would be like flying a 777 but it has 747 systems and flight mechanics…
True but no one is saying you can’t use the default either. Building an actual 787 home cockpit might be a bit more of a challenge though.
i mean that’s what i’m saying? You could have a physical panel you place on your desk or other mountable and there are like mix and match slots so where you could unscrew 4 screws, take out a glass MFD and replace it with like a prepackaged 5-pack set. Yknow how like some of the throttle quadrants you can take apart and replace say the spoilers and flaps knobs with throttle knobs so you can control a 747 or a340 or whatever. That, but with MFDs, steam gauges, radio stacks etc. Have it be fairly easy to make universal so you can open the door to different manufacturers making different style insertables. So say Company A will make a generic MCP, MFD, Steam guages etc, Company B could make packs for boeing and airbus planes and Company C could make ones for GA props and some military planes idk. Or one could do cursed cockpit setups and have an F18 throttle with an Airbus CDU and Cessna hybrid glass cockpit/steam guage panel
You are flying in VR, you don’t really need to have steam gauges when flying a 787, obviously setting AP etc is going to be a challenge but nothing says you can’t include a keyboard in your layout. Or can’t still include a popout MCAS etc but of course that’s then back to scrabbling.
I mean VR is the future and if I was a serious developer I’d probably be thinking this is exactly what VR simming is missing … a home cockpit for everyone.
I only started simming in February and got a Reverb G2 in March so I’m new and don’t have a lot of previous investment in home cockpit building. I can’t even fly in 2D from inside the plane so I fly pretty much 100% in VR.
My current setup looks like this:
I also have a Honeycomb Bravo but I no longer use that. I don’t care that much that the controllers feel exactly like what I see in the cockpit so long as I see them move correctly when I move my throttle etc. With my current setup I don’t have to swap out any controllers to change aircraft or helicopters.
To me reduction of use of mouse is a goal though I don’t mind clicking switches, it is the knobs that I can’t work very well with the mouse. With these Virpil controls I can use the 5 position rotary knob to multiply the number of switches and rotary encoders on the throttle panel. I can use 2 switches in combination to multiply the 3 encoders on the top panel and I think that gives me enough knobs to map though I’m still learning and experimenting.
Since I have to feel for the controllers and buttons and can’t see them, having a consistent set makes it easier for me to memorize where things are and is more important to me than having my physical controls feel like they match what I see. I do of course use multiple profiles with the controllers and also use spad.next for some more complex things like reversers but it is all working really well for me.
Being inside the plane in 3d I have what seems like very real cockpits. I don’t care if my hand goes to a different place to grab the knob for com or nav radio or altitude pressure or heading bug so long as I see the correct things change when I turn the kobs.
I’m still working out how to map things for the auto pilot and g1000nx partly because I’m still learning how to use them.
I’d love to have more rotary encoder knobs so I wouldn’t have to use switches in conjunction with the knobs.
Until now some things are not as easy to read in the cockpit with the G2, but I ordered and Aero that should be here tomorrow and hoping that is going to make it much easier to read the buttons and switches especially for the autopilot.
I know this won’t convince people who have invested a lot in extra screens and making cockpits that look like a real (if specific) aircraft, but to me MSFS is the killer app for VR and it feels so realistic to me like I’m really flying aircraft. I’m glad to be alive at the time when this became possible to experience.
I am building my cockpit for VR but that means favoring consistent controls so I can have muscle memory to grab what I want more so than trying to make my controls match a specific aircraft physically.
Have you tried VTOL VR? It will take you 15 mins to get used to the virtual joystick, after that it is outstanding. The immersion is on another level. It adds so much to be reaching to different areas of the cockpit to flip switches etc , rather than simply pressing the same flaps button on your HOTAS for every single plane. I wish msfs would use the exact same controller mechanics as VTOL.
yeah that’s the biggest downside is you can’t see the buttons in front of you anyway. At that point it comes down to muscle memory, peaking through the corner of the nose or waiting until they get vr controllers a bit better
I’m building my cockpit panel to be modular. Swap out certain section to go between two of three GA aircraft just for VR