Study Level Payware Aircraft

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102

I knew better, but after installing it the first thing I did was load up on the runway and firewall the throttles, just to see what she was like. In hindsight, I almost blew the engines apart.

Rob mentions in several that he’ll dive more into something in an advanced tutorial; they’re not out yet, but still in the cards. Apparently they’re mostly finished, Rob just needs to find time to do the editing and voice over work, but PMDG seems to like to work all eggs in one basket so I wouldn’t expect them until the upcoming 737(s) are out the door and they turn back to the DC-6 with some fixes, adds, and tweaks. It’s been said as the plan, but no date or estimate.

Before you get too far with it, I should also point this out. Also @NixonRedgrave in case you weren’t aware. There’s something between the sim and the plane where adjusting the altimeter doesn’t adjust the “one” the gyropilot is going by, so turning altitude hold on can sometimes cause it to spaz and grab an altitude a few hundred feet up or down of your current one. There’s a simple fix changing one line in a .cfg file, linked there. I’ve been running it since that post and couldn’t be happier until it’s formally fixed.

If either of you are interested in trying out flying her together ala the YourControls mod, hit me up in a PM and we’ll set something up.

EDIT: and I recently found this. For my first VATSIM Friday Night Ops I took the DC-6 out. I was the first off the line in KDAL since I wanted to get a parking spot before it got crazy (and get a head start), and if I hadn’t had some engine issues I’d have been first off the runway too. Took me the entire event to go the distance while everyone was streaming overhead and KPHX signed off as I was on final :rofl::rofl::rofl:

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103

I think this is the required first step. Well, second. First, whenever I buy a new plane, I need to make sure the doors and windows open! :joy:

Old habits die hard.

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104

Oh it already does. Look how ridiculous the graphics quality of real simulators for airplanes and trains look like, and in the meantime you can get photorealism with an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive in Flight Sim 20 :wink:
And some YouTubers already said about the Fenix Airbus that is has more systems simulated, and also more detailed systems accuracy than their real Airbus simulators in flight schools. So true greatness awaits.

It should better be marketed as “The Matrix” instead of a “Flight Sim” because flight simulators as we know them in schools and pilot training centers are no longer as real and accurate and visually awesome and physically correct as Flight Sim 20 has become. (but before it can really do so and go the next step some visual overhauls of the always criticized and often downgraded clouds and some raytracing might be necessary *gg otherwise FS20 screenshots can still sometimes be distinguished from real aviation photos)

105

I finally got my Bravo!!!

Amazing gear. Better than I ever imagined.

A real pain to learn to program… but that’s part of the fun. I mean, it makes sense but you have to think in four dimensions.

Anyway, two days in and I am still on complex, 2 engine GA aircraft, working on a default profile to make the other profiles. I almost have it… but I am still dealing with NOOB issues and whatnot and until I get good configurations for simpler GA and jets, I will not be ready to get this configured for the DC6 (which waits in my hangar as I learn).

But, OMG! This is good hardware!

Anyway, I am busy figuring this whiole quadrant out… and there’s a guy on YouTube who shows five configurations in less than 20 minutes. I’m still on my first. Which leaves me in my hangar, the King Air, and the… wait for it… Twotter. :joy:

Yeah, your favorite plane is getting a LOT of use and OMG it really is a godsend for this. Imagine doing quick fly around touch and goes in a King Air!

So… you and I may disagree about the usefulness of the Twotter… but I am catching up to you and will be configuring for the DC6 as soon as I have (default) configurations for all the other planes. I have to learn this gear before I turn to PMDG with it. Give me a week or two. I do want to fly together. But this gear just made simple planes new again. I need to get over the annoying hump of the Dunning-Kruger Effect first, before I can join you in the air with the DC6.

I also might need some help getting this all working.

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106

You’re allowed to like the Twin Otter :joy::joy::joy: I just find its poor quality (compared to their first release and even that is starting to show cracks) combined with their “customers should be paying and not heard” mentality, it’s hard to recommend them as a developer.

Ain’t nothing wrong with Carenado planes if that’s the complexity level you’re into, but at least they make pretty models with decent sound packages.

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107

What I am realizing here is my hardware has a say in what I like to fly most.

Last week, I didn’t have enough buttons and throttles for more complex planes, and touching the mouse and keyboard while flying can feel like… losing. It certainly can break immersion.

Also, I think the folks who already have worked their way up from a 152 to a 747 would want more content than me. In a sense, those folks had already, “Won” the vanilla game before they even got their hands on it.

I remember it with cars. It was Forza Motorsport 2 and I just got hooked. I learned the tracks, the car classes, how to build and tune, FWD, RWD and AWD… and how they impact speed and handling. Forza 2 was barely a sim and yet it taught me the fundamentals I needed to learn to get into the hobby. I sank hundreds of hours into it, if not a thousand.

I have played FAR, far better racing sims since… but none of them really taught me all the basics. So Forza 2 still stands out as the game that taught me all I needed to learn to get me into car sims.

MSFS is my Forza 2 of flight sims. Decades of flying sims before this. I had even invested in some gear back in the day, but I never really spent the time to learn, so the vanilla planes and Carenado quality add ons have been perfect for me this time around. Not too complex to hold me back, but complex enough to study and feel like I am making progress through the GA aircraft and working towards the commercial stuff.

Frankly, the DC6 while undeniably amazing (you just need a minute with it to recognize it is special) was too complex to really enjoy with my old setup. Too much time spent mousing around the cockpit. And that really breaks my immersion. Soon, I will give it another go. It was not the right plane for my old setup.

I also notice VR fans love different planes because they favor a VR setup.

Skill level and setup play a huge role in what planes are most enjoyable.

I imagine that F18 is a favorite plane for someone with an XBOX and a gamepad flying from their couch!

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108

For a six axis setup you should be great with one for props, four for throttles, and one for flaps. I thought about getting a Bravo but settled on the Thrustmaster Boeing set with the yoke and 2x quadrants. WOW.

109

Nine axis! I still have my three lever Saitek. It will be fun to repurpose that once I get the basic Bravo templates set up and working. That first template is always a doozy. Everything has to work as desired before using it to make new templates, or every other template will need to be debugged after they have been made. And that would take even more time.

That Boeing set looks stellar. I did have a choice, and went with the Alpha/Bravo because it is more of a GA yoke and throttle system. So I will always wonder if I should have gone with the Boeing instead! I think for my skill level, I made the right choice. It is very good for GA and it opens the door for complex commercial jets.

110

It is worth noting that Fulcrum are working on a Throttle. I have their yoke and it is exceptional.

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111

I only didn’t end up with the Alpha and Bravo set because I already have a Velocity One yoke from TB that’s amazing, I just felt the four axes was limiting (hah!).

And the six axes should do you fine in the DC-6. The mixture and carb heat don’t easily bind to axes, so I have a small stack of those Logitechs laying around for when I thought I would need 12 axes for engine control :joy::sweat_smile: plus they’re not your typical mixture axis, but three position switches.

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112

I cannot wait to get to the DC6 now, although it may take me a good week or two to configure for and fly everything else before I get around to it!

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113

Last night made for some great flying!

I had encountered an issue that kept me from assigning buttons to my quadrant but found a work around which allowed me to make fast progress.

Got the quadrant configured for complex GA single engines, and 2 & 4 engine jets. Then made a basic DC6 configuration.

Everything appears to be working in all configurations. And the DC6 is a true joy to fly now that I can control it like a pilot. Still gotta learn the beast… but now I can.

Still, will probably spend a bunch of time in other planes, testing and configuring.

The JF Piper Arrows are also really coming to life.

When it works, this sim is unbeatable.

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114

Preach, brother, preach!

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115

This isn’t MSFS, but thought I’d share an example of “study level” using an aircraft that I can only HOPE comes to MSFS. And in this video, it’s only the fuel system that is being described.

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116

I finally found my sweet spot.

For now, the Kodiak 100 is the perfect plane for me, my hardware, and my skill level.

I’ve already spent a ridiculous amount of hours flying her.

And here is the thing. I want to study flying this plane.

Meanwhile, the gorgeous DC6 sits in my hangar and I spend a couple hours a week learning her systems and whatnot… but studying her still feels like work.

Or…

I can take the Kodiak out and learn as I fly.

This has as much to do with my throttle quadrant as anything. It is a shiny new toy and I am still smitten with finally being able to fly without ever touching a mouse and keyboard once the plane has started up.

So, the DC6 still waits in my hangar for me to decide I want to spend the required time to learn how to start and manage those four radials. I will get around to it eventually. It isn’t like it is TOO advanced for me… I am just blissed out right now flying another plane so I see no need to learn it yet.

And the Kodiak has won my heart for now.

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117

Finally got the DC6 started and in the air. It was a dumb, binding issue with my yoke all along.

What an amazing experience. I will need more time with her but I really am enjoying this. Even if it took over a month to get her started and flying!

118

I’m going to come off like a prick here but really REALLY a month to learn how to enjoy a digital airplanes yes it for some people but let me make it clear I don’t care for this this at all. A small segment of this market act like this is point of this game(simulator) of which it isn’t a major factor of immersion or FUN. Scalable interaction and subjective fun when there a barrier of entry who are you selling this to :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: :thinking: $60 for a for a plane to learn how to fly it it like paying $250 in star citizen to a feature less ship just my final opinion.

119

I’ve been quietly reading this forum’s interesting topic and would like to share what I landed on as “study level” aircraft in the sim (I’ve only 50 hours in the sim). Due to my hardware choices that limits me to GA aircraft at the moment, what became study level was the JPL Logistics C-152 mod and the C-172 AS1000 improvement mod. Both of these basic aircraft have had me consulting several handbooks, checklists and studying the G1000 in of itself has contributed many hours in focus and enjoyment. So far I have spent $0.00 on any payware but reading your posts, I’ve also shortlisted the Kodiac-100 and the DC-6. However, that’s for the future.

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120

Simple answer: Don’t buy them, and don’t fly them. Enjoy the game the way you want to enjoy it!
I will do the same.

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121

Ok that is interesting to know. If there is zero interest in aviation, navigation, cockpit systems there are so many more hobbies available from hiking to swimming, mountain biking with e-Bikes, playing videogames, reading books.
Even becoming the most hated person on the planet like Dragonlord is possible if you like to do so after buying a 10€ webcam :smiley: only the sky is the limit about what can be done with life. Joining a cult and living a fully restricted masochistic lifestyle where everything is forbidden except handing out every cent to the cult leader can be fulfilling too…
No need to torture oneself with these disgusting overcomplicated cockpits full of boring TFT screens and confusing switches.

(Psst by the way - if you have absolute zero knowledge of airplanes and navigation and ILS and cockpits like I had before getting the Fenix Airbus, it takes about 1-2 intense YouTube tutorial weeks and writing down some notes till having learned all navigation, programing the flight management computer.
But don´t tell anyone :wink: )