brettt777

Yeah, right after I posted this, I watched yet another YT post about the MIP setup. In this one, the guy mentioned the camera setup in SimAppPro in passing like he didn't know what it was for. I sure did. I went to mine and set it for one camera instead of three and no more fold lines.

Yes, they show up like normal monitors and you can adjust the position and orientation. But you have to be a bit careful where you put them. I put mine below my main display and then my task bar would come up on the MFD's so I moved it to the top so it comes up at the top of my main display. I'm just not sure exactly how they should be set up for DCS to work properly.

My main display is a single 32" QHD. I have a second UHD display besides that, then the three Winwing MFD's. In the Display Link, I had the three MFD's positioned below the second display as was recommended to me. So then in DCS, my display resolution would always want to be like, 4097x2048 or some such thing. If I left it like this, the MFD's work, but the main display has folds in it like it wants to be on triple monitors. I messed around with different resolutions but as long as I had it setup for the Winwing system, I had those fold lines in the main display. So this morning I tried positioning the MFD's below the main display. This gave me a resolution of 2560 X 2048. I thought this would fix the folds issue but it did not. The folds are still there even though it's supposedly looking at one monitor width wise. If I set the resolution to regular QHD, 2560x1440, then the MFD's no longer show up and I still have the fold lines. The only way I've found to get a normal display is to disable the Winwing stuff completely, which is obviously not the preferred option. So, what am I missing here? Why does my main display have folds lines in it whenever the Winwing is enabled, regardless of what resolution I set it to? I have the MFD's setup properly in SimAppPro, and they are set to portrait in Display Link, and they are positioned below the main display. What am I doing wrong? Why does my system think it's got three monitors even when I tell it one? What should my resolution be and where should the MFD's be positioned in relation to the main display?

I've seen stations showing frequencies from mid to high VHF and up well into the UHF range. I thought that with those frequencies, that they must be some kind of homing signal for ADF. I mean, back in the day before TACAN and VOR, ADF was just about all they had. I figured it was probably as simple as dialing in the specified frequency on a receiver of some kind and it comes up on the HSI. Back in my early US Navy days, we had an actual separate ADF system with its own receiver and antenna. It didn't use any of the UHF radios. Many locations overseas didn't have TACAN and our planes didn't have nav receivers, and this was years before GPS, so sometimes ADF was all they had.

Yeah, there's also a thing called a forum where you can ask like minded folks about stuff. Get to know others that share your passion for all things aviation. Like I said, I spent most of the last four decades as an aviation maintenance technician specializing in avionics. I am quite sure I could have figured it out on my own. While ADF isn't used much these days in modern avionics, I did see it a lot back in my Naval Air days.

I got me a very cool Winwing MIP with the UFC and HUD controls. Most of the controls for the HUD are obvious. But there are a few I'm not clear on. What do the W/B-VID-OFF, BLACK LEVEL, and BALANCE controls do?

So as we all know, there are many locations on DCS terrain that do not have a TACAN to navigate with, but they do have DF frequencies. Now that I have the very cool Winwing MIP, I wanna use everything on it. Now, as a retired avionics tech that worked on military and civilian aircraft, I could probably figure out how to do it myself eventually. But I thought I'd just ask instead. So... how do I get the ADF to work?

I found a YT video where the guy explains how to make a UIMask that gets applied to the MFD's only and from what I saw on his video, it really makes a big difference.

If we already own the F-5E, is this update for that aircraft automatic or do we still have to pay for it?

- Okay, I'll look into this reshading. I don't understand why this would even be a thing. I mean... this system was basically built for DCS. You would think they would make it work properly. I wonder if other brands like the Thrustmaster Cougar MFD's have this same issue. I am also wondering if I need to plug more power into the auxiliary DC input of each display...? - My DCS settings ARE set to Winwing. That's when I have the issue. If it isn't set to Winwing, the MFD's don't work at all. The MFD's work fine in that they display MFD data and all the buttons work. But my main display has these fold lines and if you zoom out, you can literally see the graphics change direction at these fold lines, like it's looking for two more monitors. My settings, after I apply the MFD settings from SimAppPro, are 4868 x 2104. Obviously looking for a three monitor setup. Do I need to put a custom resolution in there? Funny thing is, when I do the SimAppPro thing, it does not set DCS to "Winwing". I leaves it on one monitor. What am I missing here?

So I finally took the plunge and got the entire three MFD UFC/HUD system. I finally got the time to get it all connected and setup today. I got it working and it's great, but I have a couple issues... - My MFD's seem kinda dim. I have brightness and contrast maxed out but while they are visible, they aren't great. Is that normal? All the videos I have seen of these, they definitely look brighter than what I am seeing with my set. Could it be a power issue? I have the entire system running off a 7 output Attola 3.0 powered USB hub that's rated at 5vdc @ 4 amps total. Maybe I need to go to a more powerful hub? - When I have DCS set to the supposed correct resolution and I have the monitor selection on Winwing, my MFD's are working, but the display on my main monitor looks very weird. It seems like it's trying to use a very wide screen (like 27:9 or something) aspect ratio on a single monitor. There are, for lack of a better term, fold lines on the right and left like it's wanting to display DCS on a triple monitor setup. I am looking at doing that pretty soon but right now I only have a single, normal 16:9 32" flat QHD monitor. So why am I getting this weird display? If I change it back to 2560 x 1440, it still looks that way. And if I change that or the monitor type (set it to single monitor) I can get the main display to look normal but then of course, the MFD's don't work at all. What am I missing here? It is very disconcerting to see my DCS world warping and bending like that when I look around. I don't recall ever hearing of anyone else having this issue.

So, since I have now invested in a Winwing MIP set, primarily for DCS, I am considering a multiple monitor setup. The question is, how many monitors can DCS support? I was thinking that depended mostly on whether I have a system that will run that many monitors, which I do. What I had in mind was three curved monitors side by side, then possibly a fourth monitor ABOVE the center unit. The reason I am wanting to do this is because with the Winwing MIP but without any head tracking, I can set the display so it looks only at the HUD and windscreen. This fits nicely with the MIP below it. Obviously the issue with this is that without head tracking, your vision is limited to directly in front of the aircraft which is not the best scenario for any kind of flying, especially dog fighting. I am hoping a four monitor setup might alleviate some of that problem.

Well, like I said, I have a VR set and my system runs it fine. I do fly it when I can. Unfortunately, health issues can make it extremely uncomfortable sometimes. If all I ever did was VR, then I would just get the VR version of the Winwing MIP. It has all the buttons and knobs but no MFD displays.

Okay so since you have an MFD setup, maybe you can answer more specific questions. The problem is have with VR is like you said, there are documents and such that like to reference when I'm flying. I have a second small mo itor on my system at the moment and what I do is put a controls list up for whatever I'm flying. I have a Winwing Orion 2 HOTAS that has over a hundred switch positions between the throttle and stick. And I fly so many different planes that it's not possible (for me, anyway) to remember all of them. So I like tp be able to reference that. That's kind of why, even though VR is obviously much more immersive, i was tossing around the idea of a triple monitor setup. Here's my dilemma. Say I have the Winwing MIP setup and I got my three MFD's and UFC, ect. I found a way the other night to get the monitor to show only the HUD and windscreen, which would match up to the MIP set very nicely. Only problem is, with a single monitor setup looking only at the HUD, you have no head tracking and you can't see anything but right in front of you. If you turn on the TrackIR, then you can't get the HUD only view. And with head tracking on, as you look around, you're looking outside to the left and right and up. Then if you look down, you're looking at another set of MFD's, which kinda defeats the idea of the Winwing MIP set. I guess what I'm after is a setup that would match the desktop MIP with the virtual HUD, while still being able to look up and to the sides. Does that make sense? I was wondering if a three(or four...?) monitor setup gives you enough viewable real estate, with two more 32" monitors on the sides and maybe one above. I will still fly VR, of course. No amount of monitors can bring the immersion that VR can. I was in the US Navy for twelve years on carriers. I got to sit in some pretty high end aircraft. The first time I got in an F-14 in VR, I literally almost cried, cuz it looked so real. But VR isn't something I want to do all the time. Health issues can make my Quest 2 get very uncomfortable.

I have played DCS in VR many times, but I have never tried it with the triple monitor setup. I am wondering if all of you that maybe have tried both have a preference and why? My problem is this; I am wanting to invest in the Winwing triple MFD/HUD/UFC setup to go with my Winwing HOTAS. But I am concerned about how to do the display/s with that particular setup. Any ideas, comments, snide remarks?

So, I went into DCS last night wanting to see what the new upgrades were to the AH-64D radar. Only, there was no radar at all. None of the supposed available models had the radar dome. What is up with that? Why did I go backwards to when the first release didn't have the radar yet? I have done every update, but this is where I'm at; no radar on any of the Apache helicopters. Am I missing something here?

A couple things actually... - I get airborne and I jump back to the WSO seat and I set the radar up the way I want it; usually something like a 25 mile PPI just for navigating. All is well. It stay that way like it should. I jump back in the pilot seat and the radar display is correct (25 mile PPI) for about 2 seconds, then it switches back to a 50 mile B scope. No matter what I set the radar to in the WSO seat, a second or two after going back to the pilot seat, the radar switches back to a 50 mile B scope. Any idea why it does that? is there some setting somewhere that makes the 50 mile B scope a default setting whenever you're in the pilot seat? The only time I can get it to change and stay that way is by selecting a heat missile and Auto Acq. Then it goes down to a 5 mile display. So, what am I missing here? _ Second thing... there are Jester commands to change the scan angle and elevation of the radar. Even the mode (standby, on, etc.). But there is no Jester command I saw where I can get him to change the range. Really? What is up with that? Anyway, just a couple things. I'm a retired avionics tech from both military and civilian so I love a good radar simulation.

I recently had to change some drives around... installed an M.2 SSD for the OS, then two more SSD drives, one for DCS and on for other high end sims... P3D, Star Citizen, etc. Then two 3tb HDD's for storage. The drive with DCS on it stayed the same in that I didn't change anything on the drive. But it changed it's drive letter. I used to have the OS on that same drive, so all the associated directories and files that DCS used were all on that drive. Now the OS is on a different drive (Also went from Windows 11 back to Windows 10). DCS works fine now... except all the control configurations I had for my Winwing HOTAS don't show up. Now, I could reenter them as I did write them all down. But I would prefer not to have to punch all that in again for two dozen jets and helicopters and planes, oh my. So my question is... where exactly is/are the configuration files stored for DCS controls? I haven't yet deleted all the OS files on the DCS SSD so I'm guessing they should still be wherever they were. Anyone have an idea where that might be?

Has anyone come up with a definitive, 100% guaranteed, never happen again cure for the ghost inputs on the Logitech X56 HOTAS? I have tried all the usual remedies that you hear everywhere; put the system on a powered USB hub, make sure it's plugged into a port that is directly on the MB, make sure it's on a 3.X port, make sure it's on a 2.X port, put the throttle on one port and the stick on another port, i.e. no hub, use it without the Logitech software, use it only with the Logitech software, etc. I've tried them all. And while one or two of them may have cut the frequency of the ghost inputs down some, none of them cured it completely. Now, I have since upgraded to a fantastic Winwing Orion 2 HOTAS which I love. But I still have my X56 and I am wondering if there may still be hope for it or should I just try to get rid of it cheap. Very cheap. So, who's got a sure fire remedy for the X56?

I'll give it a try. Interesting... I tried the M-2000C this morning at the same altitude and location. I got up to M2.23 and had to slow down because apparently I was overspeeding the airframe. Guess I gotta go higher for less IAS.

Weather conditions couldn't be any better. Clear skies, no wind, 36,000 feet. As for the throttle..... I'll get back to you on that. I know AB was on but not 100% sure on the 100%.

I’m a retired avionics tech that spent most of the last four decades in both military and civilian cockpits, not to mention about a decade doing marine electronics in Alaska. So I have a pretty good grasp on how a radar works. That being said, I’m a bit confused by some differences I’m seeing in various radars in DCS in the A/G mode. I first noticed it when I purchased the F-1 Mirage not long ago and now I see the same thing in the newly released F-15E. When the aircraft is at altitude, the scan area only has a relatively narrow (depending on altitude, range and antenna elevation) band of ground returns showing on it. This obviously can be moved in or out with the antenna angle. I started looking at a couple other planes and saw that besides the F-1 and F-15E, the M-2000 Mirage and the AJS-37 Viggen all seem to work that way. But, other jets don’t have that issue. The FA-18, F-16, and JF-17 seem to show ground returns throughout the entire scan area (except for right in front of the aircraft) and altitude and range have little effect on it (obviously if it’s low enough a mountain range will block it). You can change the strength of the returns by adjusting the antenna elevation up and down, but for the most part, there’s no narrow band of returns. I was in a Hornet last night flying over the Straight of Hormuz at 36,000 feet and I had returns for most of the 160 mile range I was on. So with all that being said, the obvious question is… are they suppose to work this way that I’m seeing? Are the radars in the FA-18, F-16 and JF-17 that much better? Or is there a flaw in the way they’re modeled? The jet I worked on in the US Navy had a somewhat basic search radar with a range of around 150 miles. Unfortunately I never got to see it work airborne. I mean, the F-16 is about the same age as the F-15. But the F-16 appears to have a better A/G radar, at least in this way. So, is it suppose to be this way? Maybe the F-15E radar is this way to allow it to do the HRM…? I dunno. Thoughts? Edit: Here's a few screen shots of the aircraft I have tested.

So, last night I was bored so I decided to go on a series of high speed runs. And to my dismay, I found that all the aircraft I tested underperformed. I took a number of high speed Mach two capable aircraft, stripped them down of all weapons, drop tanks and even pylons, loaded them with half a tank of fuel and set it for unlimited fuel cuz half a tank wouldn’t be enough for this flight, then climbed to about 36,000 feet and set the altitude hold with maximum thrust. I flew north across the Persian Gulf for about 150 miles. Clear skies, no winds to speak of. Here’s what I got: F-14B, top speed M2.34…… I got up to M1.94 F-16C, top speed M2.05…… I got up to M1.93 F-15E, top speed M2.5+…… I got up to M1.93 FA-18C, top speed M1.8…… I got up to M1.72 I even tried the F-5E, top speed M1.6….. I got up to M0.95 Again, 36,000 feet, no stores at all, half fuel, and full afterburner for about 150 miles. Now, I worked in the aviation community for most of the last four decades both military and civilian so I know that to reach these speeds the conditions have to be absolutely perfect. Well I got them as close I could. And I mean, the F-15E Strike Eagle, arguably one of the fastest modern fighter jets, and I couldn’t even get Mach 2??? What’s up with that?

Sure would be nice to have a non-N/A version of the Harrier so we could get the APG-65 radar in it.