Joystick recommendations

User Support Hub Hardware & Peripherals
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With regard to left or right handed in real life it varies both from aircraft to aircraft and what seat you are in. Sure your generic old school Warrior/Cessna/Beech and most older airliners had the throttle vernier/quadrant in the centre and as Pilot in Command you flew with your left hand on the yoke or stick but if you were a second officer or instructor in one of these aircraft you were suddenly flying with your right hand on the yoke or stick instead.

Note that the Second Officer in the Right Seat will often do most of the actual flying in many airliners, the Captain has more important stuff to do like make announcements to the passengers and order lunch.

These days those positions may even get reversed. The Jabiru for example has a central shared stick and dual outside throttles so in this case the PIC has right hand on stick and left on throttle and the occupant of the left hand seat is reversed.

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If my late uncle Bert is to believed then that is not far off the truth … according to him as a long haul Captain he occupied more time at the bar than he ever did in the left seat … Needless to say this was a very long time ago :grinning:

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lol … I do like Greta she may have weird ideas but at least she stands up for what she believes in.

But more seriously, the Captain does not always fly that much it is not their primary role, they are in charge of the flight. Clearly in a tricky, dangerous or unusual situation they will fly being the more experienced pilot, but cruising in the flight levels, not necessarily.

Back on topic … what I actually fly with in game is a Fulcrum Yoke …

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Got the Gladiator. Amazing! Thanks all! Now to work out how to control the LEDs.

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67

I also received mine today :+1: Replacing one year old Thrustmaster T.16000M. For throttle I will use Logitech throttle quadrant until VKB releases their own throttle. Now fun begins. Need to do some smart key mapping now.

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Was watching this yesterday. I am also looking at the Gladiator nxt.

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I orderd my gladiator today. When i received and tested it, I will make review and a comparison with a couple of other joysticks i flew with.

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I bought the joysticks myself and Iam not paid or asked to promote these items in any way or by anybody.

Tested in MSFS, DCS and Condor 2

Its not a direct comparison between the joysticks, because there is a clear difference in price, quality and functionality of all these items. Therefore I choose to rate the comparable things with +’s and made a list with pros and cons to review the rest.

I choose these particular three because they have all X,Y and Z axis and a throttle wheel.

Encountered issues/problems may not be represented in other ones.

Rating: += poor, ++= below average, +++= average, ++++= good, +++++= excellent

LOGITECH EXTREME 3D PRO

Plug and play: yes

X,Y,Z axis and Throttle wheel: yes

Number of buttons: 12 and one 8-way hatswitch

Ambidextrous: no

Precision: +++

Comfort: +++

Stability on the table: +++++

Price/quality: ++++

Durablility: +++++

Pros:

  • Cheap
  • Easy to use
  • Very stable
  • Very durable (it took me over 15 years to get the first broken)

Cons:

  • Not ambidextrous (right hand only)
  • Big deadzone (solvable via in game setup)
  • No magnetic sensors, so long/intensive flighttime may cause fatigue in the wrist/hands.

Conclusion: great beginner and advanced level joystick. It does what it should do and many hours of guaranteed flightfun. Despite the deadzones that can be adjusted, no problems with precision landings. Not my first choice for long and intensive flying.

THRUSTMASTER TCA SIDESTICK AIRBUS EDITION

Plug and play: yes

X,Y,Z axis and Throttle wheel: yes

Number of buttons: 17 and 1, 8-way hatswitch

Ambidextrous: yes

Precision: ++++

Comfort: ++++

Stability on the table: ++++

Price/quality: +++ (if there are no wire or axis related issues)

Durablility: +

Pros:

  • Lots of programable buttons
  • Adjustable joystickbuttons for ambidextrous setting
  • Immersive experience for the A320 because of looks
  • Braille style buttons, ideal for example in VR flights

Cons:

  • “trustreverser” button on the throttle axis is almost not noticeable
  • Rudder axis broke after 150+ hours
  • Poor solding and insulation of wires inside joystick that caused issues with . After removing excessive plastic and resolding wires, issues were solved

Conclusion: A nice beginner and advanced level joystick. Easy to use and if you get (hopefully) a better example than I got delivered, it should be a great friend during all varieties of flights. The wire issues and broken axis, that I had are a common problem (according many reviews and forums) that hopefully will be solved soon with some extra qualitychecks. The rewiring/solding cost me about 20 minutes. There are many youtube tutorials that explain how to do this.

Ideal for a bit more immersion when flying the A320 and an easy adjustable button configuration on the joystickhead.

VKB GLADIATOR NXT PERMIUM

Plug and play: no

X,Y,Z axis and Throttle wheel: yes

Number of buttons: 6 , 3 hat switches with center push, 1fast trigger, one 2 stage trigger, 2 rotary knobs, one 8-way ministick with center push

Ambidextrous: yes (option with purchase)

Precision: +++++

Comfort: +++++

Stability on the table: ++++

Price/quality: ++++

Durablility: T.B.D.

Pros:

  • Fully programmable and adjustable joystick
  • Great comfort
  • Great precision
  • Great looks

Cons:

  • pushbuttons have a cheap plastic feel
  • not plug and play
  • not a lot of buttons

Conclusion: Excellent advanced and pro level joystick. If it had a full metal finish and a couple of more buttons it would be an all-time favorite for me. Despite its quite expensive, its worth every penny with a great price-quality ratio. Its not plug and play, but setting up takes only 5-10 minutes and is easy to achieve with the manual and/or youtube tutorial. I only have this one for a couple of weeks and tested it quite intensive (almost 40 hours) so I cant tell anything about the durability but it looks good so far. If you are looking for a precise, adjustable and comfortable joystick: stop looking further.

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71

Thank you!! Very comprehensive :smile:

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With the NXT I went ahead and threw the light springs in it, feels much better.

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How did you like your Logitech Extreme Pro 3D? I’m new to MSFS2020 and have only been playing with a keyboard NUMPAD. I’ll probably eventually get a VKB Gladiator NXT, but I’m hesitant to spend $200 (shipping is $$$ on these) for my first stick.

I’m debating between the Logitech and the Thrustmaster 16000M as a first stick. I’m reading the TM is more precise than the Logitech, but that the rudder/twist frequently fails on these. Is the Logitech a good entry choice if all you’re used to is a keyboard NUMPAD? It’s only $35, so I don’t feel bad if I put $200 to the VKB later. I could let my son use the Logitech when he sims.

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Hi, how are you

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Does anyone here use the Velocity One by Turtle Beach?
Is it worth it for a complete beginner?

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78

Gladiator NXT all the way. Best joystick I have ever owned. Extra bonus - I have flown a A320 full cockpit sim with a real airbus sidestick. The feel is almost identical to the Gladiator. The forces required and soft dampening are very similar. Off course the shape and layout are different but that’s a secondary concern. The way the Gladiator moves is close to perfection.

The main thing I like about it is the linear feel and how it slowly returns to center when you let it go, instead of jumping right into it and wobbling around. Additionally, the sensors are super precise and there is no dead zone or noise.

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79

Yes, I have it. I really like it as it’s packed.

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Yokes/Sticks
My primary yoke is a 21 year old CH and it works great for me. Huh, I just realized it’s old enough to purchase alcohol here in the States.

I recently purchased a Virpil Mongoose CM3 and a WarBRD grip with the 200mm extension for bush/center stick flying. It is fantastic. Unfortunately my current simventures aren’t hitting a lot of bush flying. I’ll have to rectify that soon :wink:.

I still have my CH Fighterstick USB if I need all the buttonology for flying HOTAS-equipped fighters.

I also have a Logitech gamepad for manipulating the drone view.

Throttles
I have three Logitech/Saitek quadrants. Two on the right side for standard single or twin ops, one on the left if I’m doing warbird or single/tandem seat flying (like Cubs, etc).

I added a Cessna-style vernier push-pull TPM from FlightSimStuff, which is absolutely great for immersion.

Also have a CH pro throttle for HOTAS-ops, which is rare these days.

Rudders
I just ditched my old CH for a Tutle Beach Velocity One, which I love so far.

SPAD.next is absolutely crucial for switching between the throttle configurations, but I do the yoke switching in the sim itself for now.

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81

Second the X52 pro. Not the best you can get but gets the job done and is quite above average. After almost two years of several hours of Sims still feels quite good with no serious issues except the occasional need to plug/unplug (which happens with a lot of devices).

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82

Oh yeah I have the Turtle Beach Velocity One pedals also and like them.

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83

I have the X52 which was noisy out of the box, but is over 20 years old now.

The thing I like about the "“X” series of Logitech joysticks is the proliferation of buttons and control axes.  This lets me control a lot of things like trim and propeller pitch w/o having to take my hands of the controller.

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Agree with this, I have had a few different flight sticks and this one gives the best overall experience for control and has enough buttons and axes to suit most options.

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