FSSB R3 force sensing stick

[JG27_PapaFly]

Hi folks,

I use a simulation setup with a seat which is reclined 45 degrees, in combination with a force feedback Sidestick (msffb2), warthog throttles and mfg crosswind pedals. I'm thinking of switching to the FSSB R3 force sensing stick.

 

http://realsimulator.com/html/fssb_r3_lighting.html

 

There are four reasons:

 

1) Even after using my inclined simulation rig for six years, I still haven't found the perfect support for my underarm. This is easier with center sticks, where one can rest the arm on ones thighs. A stick that doesn't move at all is a logical step, as in the F-16.

 

2) The manufacturer promises unprecedented accuracy with the force sensing setup. They sell a new base for the warthog stick, which includes the force sensors for two axes.

 

3) Even a state of the art regular joystick has severe limitations due to the short travel of the gimbal. This would be a thing of the past with force sensing technology.

 

4) The warthog grip is in a different league compared to my MSFFB2 stick. More buttons, better ability to customize, and great look and feel. I absolutely love my warthog throttles. Better still would be a Virpil grip, but I read in their forum that the latest grips are not supported yet.

 

 

So, does anyone have experience with this product? Do you know whether the force necessary for a given pitch up scales with air speed?

[Ala12Rv-Tundra]

Does your setup have an armrest for your right arm? F-16 cockpit does.

Bear in mind the whole actual cockpit setup was designed with that particular(no movement) joy being the point where anything else revolves.

So it must be tricky for sure to replicate with a domestic pit.

 

For example desk mounted is very unconfortable because your arms are pointing upwards, opposite to the neutral natural resting position.

Mounts are high recommended, also to clamp the joy, otherwise you might end up moving the whole system instead of applying force against a sensor.

 

Those are a few things I can tell you, I own no Realsimulator stuff, but a friend of mine does from mid 2000s. We together built a monstertech-like desk mount last autumn and he states it´s like night and day.

He also concurs a normal joy by the right side leads to very awkward wrist movements, as you pointed.

[Supmua]

FSSB R3L is a joystick base, not a whole package so you will still need a compatible joystick. Force sensitivity can be adjusted on the fly via software. I’m quite familiar with it as I’m a beta tester. It is not just great with DCS, I’ve used it with MS Flightsim alpha, MechWarrior 5, etc with great results. More info on Realsim’s own forum or PM me if you are interested.

Edited January 9, 2020 by Supmua

[dimebug]

FSSB R3 is a perfect force sensing base, but you have to keep in mind that force sensing controls are designed for Fly by Wire aircraft...

 

On F-16, it's great, on a Helo or a WWII plane, it's quite tiring and not really adapted. it will work but will not be as comfortable as a standard gimbal system. Think about what kind of addon you're going to use. that's the key for the choice.

 

FSSB R3 is top qualité and accuracy, you can't be disappointed, but don't expect something as good when you use it to control something it was not designed for. If you are aware and OK with that, go for it !

[Habu_69]

I have been using RealSimulator FSSB R2 retrofit in my Cougar stick for 10 years and have been extremely satisfied. Regarding your arm fatigue, my "flying" chair is a common office chair with the left arm rest removed. My cougar is mounted as a side stick and my right arm rests comfortably on the single arm rest.

[Wicked.-]

I’ve been very happy with my FSSBR3 and F-16SGRH. It’s the only way to fly the Viper. It will takes some time adjusting to it just be patient for the first couple days. Once you’ve grown accustomed to it, your control of the aircraft will be much more precise than with using a traditional deflection style stick.

 

[JG27_PapaFly]

Thanks for your replies guys. I'm torn between waiting until eventually someone develops a new ffb stick, switching to a Virpil stick, and switching to FSSB...

[Flamin_Squirrel]

FSSB R3 is a perfect force sensing base, but you have to keep in mind that force sensing controls are designed for Fly by Wire aircraft...

 

On F-16, it's great, on a Helo or a WWII plane, it's quite tiring and not really adapted. it will work but will not be as comfortable as a standard gimbal system. Think about what kind of addon you're going to use. that's the key for the choice.

 

FSSB R3 is top qualité and accuracy, you can't be disappointed, but don't expect something as good when you use it to control something it was not designed for. If you are aware and OK with that, go for it !

 

Totally agree with this. If the Viper is your main ride, get it.

[Ranma13]

I'll echo what others have said, it works best for FBW aircraft, but not so much for others. Its main advantage is that it's extremely accurate, particularly around the center point, and you can adjust the sensitivity on the fly to make things like A2A refueling significantly easier. You also don't have to deal with any stiction or extensions, and the software has a lot of settings and is quite flexible.

 

The downside is that it's force-based, not displacement-based, so in order to hold a particular position, you have to apply a physical force on the stick and hold that force. Because we can't hold our hands completely still and due to the accuracy of the stick, you will naturally "jitter" as you try to hold the stick in a certain position. This is fine on FBW aircraft that smooths out your inputs, but for WWII aircraft it will throw off your aim. Holding the stick for a long time also gets really tiring; using the default pitch force I found that I really didn't want to exceed 5 G's for too long due to how much force I had to put on the stick.

 

Also be aware that although it has the TM Warthog mounting pattern, realistically you can only use the TM Warthog stick and RealSimulator's F16SGRH stick with it. The plastic shell on the Virpil sticks will noticeably start to separate when you start applying force on it, and will likely crack over time.