I’ve been using the Logitech Pro Yoke and Throttle for the last 18-24 months or so after deciding I’d like to replicate the cockpits of the aeroplanes I seem to fly the most. It’s served me well for what I wanted, essentially a low risk entry point to see if I’d be happy and at a bit over £100 it was exactly that.
However, now I’m really noticing it’s limitations. I’ve adjusted sensitivity settings for all of my regular aircraft and this has helped immensely but I’m still aware of annoying little issues. It tends to roll to the left a lot and, without doing stuff in the reg edit*, you can’t calibrate it properly.
I’m a GA flyer only, certainly at this point, and so the Turtle Beach Velocity One with its trim wheel and Vernier controls appeals. As does the fact it’s virtually half the price of the Honeycomb package (yoke and quadrant,) which may suit the facts that I’m upgrading from what is commonly called the lowest entry point in yokes, I’m not a long term and experienced flight simmer and budget is always something that rears it’s head.
Would this be considered a worthy and worthwhile upgrade considering my needs and restrictions, are there other options I’ve overlooked?
- I did the reg edit to get the calibration tool up and that helped but I had to do a clean install of Windows after a long period of not being able to load the Sim and I’d rather not mess around too much as I use the PC for work which is more important than Sim time…heresy I hear you say!
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ive had the logitech yoke for years.
only issue i had was deadzone and sensitivity
i fitted the leo bodnar mod. it upped the sensitivity from 1200 to 4096 possible points
no more lag or deadzone problems. plus space to add extra switches if you want.
costs £24.50 from leobodnar. com.
the BU8036A with pin headers is best at £27.50 cos it comes with connectors. installation is simple. it collects its usb power from the yoke hub.
calibrated in windows. then calibrated in msfs and xplane. no more problems.
i have the pdf install instuctions if anyone interested.
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The biggest problem with the Logitech yoke is that it doesn’t rotate 180 degrees in both directions, so the turning rate is normal for a while but then has an acceleration. I used the Saitek yoke for a decade. When you try the Alpha you’ll realize what you’ve been missing.
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IRL, wich plane have a yoke rotating 180° in both directions ?
Anyway, if you set a linear curve there is no acceleration.
Displacement will be the same in the 10 first degrees than in the last 10 degrees.
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It’s a typo. Honeycomb yoke has 90 degree roll either way, Logitech is like half of that. Worth also adding that neither Turtle Beach nor Honeycomb considerably increases the pitch travel of the yoke compared to the Logitech even if they do increase the roll, for that you’d need e.g. Thrustmaster, Virtual Fly or Fulcrum yoke which have circa 20-21cm travel along the pitch axis.
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I own two airplanes and both of them.
If you’re going to argue about my 180 mistake (rather than saying 90), I’m not interested. The planes are a Cherokee 180 and a Cessna 150.
VF1 has terrible build quality, go for Honeycomb although they have Terri customer service
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The Turtle beach is not a good yoke. It draws some in with its apparent features but it’s a poor yoke for the money. Have the best of both worlds and get yourself a Fulcrum yoke. It has the longest pitch travel there is, is an all metal design, uses high res contactless sensors and they have great customer service to boot. Yes it’s more expensive but in this instance you get what you pay for. It’s simply stunning to use. It’s like most things, you think something is good until you’ve experienced better. If you are beginning to get serious with this hobby save the pennies and get the quality gear. You’ll end up spending the same if not more upgrading and replacing those inferior products.
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I have used a CH Eclipse Yoke for years. The big plus for me are the rudder paddles. I have bad ankles which make using normal pedals difficult. It has lots of programmable controls including throttle and prop controls.
Pat
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Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and opinions, I’m sorry I haven’t replied sooner - a work trip has kept me busy since the weekend.
I’ve been given a link to a calibration tool that works with the Logitech, so between that and the information about the Leo Bodnar mod I think I’ll look at trying to extend its life while I look a bit further into other options.
I don’t know anything about the high end options so it’s been useful to look into the Fulcrum and their website. Being a long time Elite Dangerous player I’ve gone from an ancient old MS Sidewinder joystick, through the Saitek X55 and 56 before paying out for some Virpil gear which is excellent (and what I was using for MSFS initially.) I’m certainly aware of the benefits of that level of quality and can see the long term saving in following a similar route with a yoke/quadrant for flight simming.
If anyone has information or names of other ‘high-end’ kit I’d be grateful to hear them - I think some further research is needed.
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if you decide to try the bodnar mod i have the install instructions in pdf and word format.
So sorry @ThreeWalnut8516 - I travel internationally for work often and so can fail to keep up to date with threads, replies and so on.
Thanks for your offer. Currently I’m finding that adjusting my settings per aircraft has had an extremely positive affect. I’m hoping that this will continue to be enough.
Hi all! I am considering the springs mod for pitch on my logitech yoke.
I have researched a little but I cannot find comments regarding the yoke returning to its “idle” position.
So, my question is, after the springs mod is applied, does the yoke return to its central position once released? Thanks
if your taking apart the yoke to do the springs,
consider the leo bodnar mod too. see below.
ive had the logitech yoke for years.
only issue i had was deadzone and sensitivity
i fitted the leo bodnar mod. it upped the sensitivity from 1200 to 4096 possible points
no more lag or deadzone problems. plus space to add extra switches if you want.
costs £24.50 from leobodnar. com.
the BU8036A with pin headers is best at £27.50 cos it comes with connectors. installation is simple. it collects its usb power from the yoke hub.
calibrated in windows. then calibrated in msfs and xplane. no more problems.
i have the pdf install instructions if anyone is interested. or just type ‘leo bodnar flight’ into youtube
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Thanks! I have very little experience with electronics and the videos looked a bit scary, but if it easy enough I might give it a go. Could you provide the pdf instructions so I can check if the mod is under my capabilities 
?
if you get the kit with the connectors its easy.
no soldering or electronic knowledge required. just cut and join the connector wires to the existing saitek ones. and drill a hole and feed the usb cable from the bodnar board thru the hole andplug into the yoke usb port.
then you see the bodnar board in the windows calibration list. you set pitch and roll to the bodnar. disable the saitek pitch and roll assignment. all other yoke and throttle assignments are unaffected. the yoke becomes so much more sensitive. theres no more lag and the slightest movement is detected so theres no deadzone. and you can add extra switches with the spare pins on the bodnar board too if wanted.
ill dig out the pdf and try to post it here.
if it wont post then i can email you the pdf.
i printed it off and followed the instructions rather than use the video on youtube.
ill post it tomorrow. leos website is
leobodnar. com
unfortunatly it wont let me upload the pdf for the bodnar mod.
if you still fancy having it ,ill have to email it to you.
my email is eng3410@yahoo.co.uk. if you send me an email ill forward the pdf.
or , you can watch the youtube video link How to fix Saitek Pro Flight Yoke Dead Zone with a Leo Bodnar BU0836A 12-bit controller - YouTube.
ignore the soldering. just cut the wires half way along and join the wires from the potentiometer to the new wires supplied with the mod. (just bare the wires, twist them together and insulate them. thats all i did.) then plug the connectors into the bodnar board as shown.
note that the centre wire on the pot goes to the centre wire of the connector plug
the other 2 dont matter cos if they are wrong the control will be reversed. all you then do is unlug connector from. bodnar board and plug it in the other way. round.
the vid shows the improvement and why its worth doing.