[Godzilla]

Originally Posted by Electromotive

Sim Racing: At the edge of reality

Dear BHPians,

Let me update you on the current state of sim racing technology. Over the past 5 years sim racing has been growing in leaps and bounds and jumpin' around.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Thanks a ton! Really appreciate your post. I am exploring to buy a basic set up.

Here is another nice video I found for people exploring sim racing for the first time.

https://youtu.be/XjcW3qzWTyE

[starke]

Originally Posted by Electromotive

Sim Racing: At the edge of reality

Dear BHPians,

Let me update you on the current state of sim racing technology.

Great write-up Hope this enlight more people to race in the virtual world than our real roads.

I've had a G29 setup with logi's H shifter and 3 pedals, but later sold since I was about to move. I have huge plans to setup my dream setup once I'm settled at new place

How real we can go? watch the below video and his other videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRGWtDiMsF8

[DicKy]

Originally Posted by Electromotive

Sim Racing: At the edge of reality
Dear BHPians,.....Let me update you on the current state of sim racing technology. Over the past 5 years sim racing has been growing in leaps and bounds and jumpin' around. Sim racing hardware and software is now so advanced, it will make you hate your car, curse the roads and middle finger the service-due indicator.
That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Thanks for sharing!!!

Last time I looked at sim racing was in the early 2000s. The times when turning the steering wheel a bit hard would lead to the spring breaking, and the pedals used to be plasticky bits. Then a looongg break ( decades ), until I played a couple of the latest Need for Speed games, made me realise how far arcade games have come, that it got me excited for sim racing ones.

Tried out a sim racing setup in the play area of a mall last month. With the whole hydraulic setup and all. Was blown away by it!!! Was expecting some arcade game kind of thing, but was surprised. I could even feel the wheelspins and pebbles hitting the underbody when flooring it from start. Ofcourse, graphics are still not dream level realistic, and it can't really simulate the G forces and raw feedback that a real life car gives. But it was fun nevertheless. Actually, these are a source of relief for me. In a plausible dystopian future, where the nanny state may grow stringer and cars will become autonomous transportation blobs, these will help us relive the past.

[n33rav]

Good to see such posts and know there are some sim lovers in India too! Impossible to find on lobby.

Been playing Asseto Corsa and Euro/American Truck Simulators with Logitech G29 for few years now. I wouldn't recommend it to any car enthusiast (esp. Asseto Corsa) as it can and will kill your career and relations.

[Nair.V8]

Great to see a thread on this topic! Looking forward to see this thread grow over time. Sharing a few pics here of my basic setup:

Components:
Console: Playstation4 Pro
Racing Wheel: Logitech G29
Manual gearbox: Logitech manual shifter
Display: Samsung C32JG52 32inch WQHD gaming monitor
Desk: Ikea Fredde gaming desk





The Logitech G29 is a great wheel for beginners, and offers a commendable experience within a light budget. The manual shifter though not great, also adds to the level of involvement. I've yet to try any of the hardcore SIM racing games like Assetto Corsa or Project Cars. So far it has mostly been Gran Turismo Sport, this again being a great game for beginner level SIM racing, thoroughly enjoyable without being too hardcore.

Have been using this setup for over 2 years now. Planning to get a dedicated racing wheel stand/mount for better ergonomics.

[Mr.Ogre]

Originally Posted by Nair.V8

Great to see a thread on this topic! Looking forward to see this thread grow over time. Sharing a few pics here of my basic setup:

That's cool man. What would you advice if I want a similar setup for my XBOX 360. I have just started gaming, and I always drooled over these setups.

[aditya9567]

Originally Posted by Electromotive

Want to drink, drive and relax? Race a Caterham 420R through Donington Park and leave a mark
Want to bend some fender? Crash a F1 car on Suzuka circuit, with your evening tea and biscuit
Crotch spawns causing crotch pain? Take a Porsche 911 GT for a spin in the rain
Wife nagging too much? Also causing crotch pain (!)? Floor a Ferrari on the Nordschleife again and again

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Thanks for the informative post. I recently did all this research and set up a rig at my house about 6 months ago. This is my current setup.







Your parting words strike a big chord and are some of the main reasons I decided to go ahead with sim racing. While driving in Dubai isn't as stressful as in India, sim racing offers the chance to experience track driving in a risk free relatively inexpensive way. Obviously, the real track experience is far better but is that much more expensive and difficult to access. Here, I can just pop in, in the evening with a cold beer and just have fun without worrying about damaging my engine, suspension, brakes or worse, my whole car. It also helps hone driving skills and gives a new found respect for racing drivers and the skill required. It takes me hours of practice on any track to come within a few seconds of pro driver timings.

I don't have a lot of components in my setup, just a tv, console, wheel, pedals and seat. However, I decided to splurge on the wheel and pedals as that would future proof it. The equipment I have is,

1) Fanatec CSL Elite Racing wheel base with an F1 steering wheel
Fanatec is the most well known for making premium sim racing equipment for beginners and intermediates. After a lot of research, decided to go with this wheel base as it is one of the best belt driven bases with the highest torque in the category offering unto 6Nm which is marginally more than the CSL DD without the boost kit. Mine was one of the last units sold, after which they replaced the CSL elite with the CSL DD. Thrustmaster is the other good option, although their wheel bases offer lesser torque and the materials used aren't as premium.



The quality of the base, steering wheel and pedals is fantastic. There are ample reviews online for these as it was quite popular. The wheel base is plastic but has a nice carbon fibre look with Fanatec decals on the side and a brushed aluminium front face. The F1 wheel has dark matte metal in the centre and side grips are covered in Alcantara. While these feel good, the wear on them is more than I like as it gets dirty quite quickly. Buttons are tactile and have a nice click to them. Paddle shifters are really satisfying to operate. Overall quality of the equipment is excellent and in my view, worth the premium over Thrustmaster and Logitech.

2) CSL Elite pedals with the load cell kit
The base pedals come with the accelerator and brake pedals that use potentiometers for assessing the acceleration and braking level. The pedal quality again is excellent, with a matte black coating. The positioning of the three pedals can be set according to preference, i.e. can be set up as a formula style with accelerator and brake pedal on opposite sides or close by if you want to do heel and toe. The pedals have a rubber pad that can be removed.
The brake pedal has a sponge that simulates brake pressure in a car. A load cell kit utilizes actual brake force applied as the indicator. It also comes with customizable washers that allow you to change the load for full force from 45kg to 90kg. The load cell is an expensive upgrade but it allows for better brake control and more consistency while braking by building better muscle memory. It especially helps in trail braking. Again, I decided to splurge and get the good stuff in one go.



Fanatec don't sell products in the UAE or India. I had to therefore ship it from the US. US prices are lower than Europe prices. The numerical value in both currencies is the same, i.e. the wheel base costed $350 in US and EUR 350 in Europe. So if anyone plans to import it, buy it from the US website, also have a look at Japanese and Australian prices and the cost to ship the items from there. Shipping costs can be significant as the equipment can weigh well over 10kgs depending on what is bought.

3) Next level F-GT
I decided to go ahead with the Next Level FGT as it was reasonably priced and was available for purchase in the UAE. Shipping this from outside was not feasible as the box weighed 45kg. The rig comes all broken and has to be built. It can be done at home with a little bit of patience. It took me a couple of days to set everything. I like the rig because it has good rigidity, has a lot of customization and has fore and aft movement on the seats. Another great feature is that the rig can be converted to a formula style (sit low, with legs on the same level as the upper body) or GT style which is more normal car like in comparison. Changing between the layouts will probably take an hour and I haven't tried it out yet out of sheer laziness. The rig can easily accommodate belt driven wheels and some of the lower torque DD wheels.

The TV is a fairly standard 40 inch QLED Samsung. I did not have room for an ultra wide monitor or the more engaging three monitor setup (which would have been useless anyway as it will require upgrading to a PC from my PS4).

It is extremely entertaining to spend time sim racing. The fanatec base, wheels and pedals, for my needs are more than sufficient. While the fanatec stuff do improve the experience, you can have as much fun just sim racing with more basic wheels. I would highly recommend considering it if you have the time, budget and space. There are other rig options that can fold and don't take up as much room when not used. As I had mentioned, there are several reviews for individual equipment online that will help make the purchase decision, a little research is all that is required.

Happy to help with any queries.

Cheers

[Siddarth_Ramani]

Cool thread. I was also planning on getting a basic setup last year. Will wait for 2 years to let the VR world catch up. By the time I'll be done with my studies and can buy with my own money. Have played on G29, It is great at that price point. People planning to build a new rig for this do checkout AMD Ryzen processors. They are budget friendly and deliver great GPU performance. I really wonder what will be the level of immersion 5 years down the line.

[Nair.V8]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ogre

That's cool man. What would you advice if I want a similar setup for my XBOX 360. I have just started gaming, and I always drooled over these setups.

Hey there! If I remember correctly, the older Logitech G27 used to work with the XBOX 360. You'll have to check if any of the current offerings from Logitech/Thrustmaster is compatible with your console. Considering you'll keep the gaming wheel over the long term, its preferable to buy something that might work with your next console. If its possible, I would suggest shifting to a new PS/XBOX as well.

With regards to the racing wheel stand/mount there are a few decent options from Next-level-racing, INRacing to chinese brands & many of these are available on amazon too. Alternatively, there might be some local dealers of gaming accessories who can hook you up with this.

[Electromotive]

Originally Posted by aditya9567

...

Nice setup. You should definitely consider moving to PC to unleash the full potential of your setup. Get some bass shakers and a VR headset for full immersion. Or wait for the PS VR 2 to launch. I have been trying out my oculus quest setup with AC and it has been mind blowing.

Originally Posted by aditya9567

Your parting words strike a big chord and are some of the main reasons I decided to go ahead with sim racing. ...I can just pop in, in the evening with a cold beer and just have fun without worrying about damaging my engine, suspension, brakes or worse, my whole car.

I strongly believe in getting the maximum value out of money spent. And getting into sim racing was well worth it. I always advocate against buying the top trims or expensive cars (>25L) in India because of the egregious taxes, inability to enjoy the car to its fullest and the inevitable scratches and dents on our crowded roads. The money saved is better utilized in capital investments and on a sim racing setup.

[Mr.Ogre]

Originally Posted by Nair.V8

Hey there! If I remember correctly, the older Logitech G27 used to work with the XBOX 360. You'll have to check if any of the .

Sorry for the wrong information. I have XBOX series S. I just got it a month ago.

[NirDiwakar]

Originally Posted by starke

… I've had a G29 setup with logi's H shifter and 3 pedals …

How real does this setup feel? In terms of the steering feedback.
This seems like the only force feedback steering wheel available at a reasonable price in India.

I have a Rift S already, tbh playing games like Dirt 2 on it have a lot of motion sickness.

[Nair.V8]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ogre

Sorry for the wrong information. I have XBOX series S. I just got it a month ago.

In which case you must go for the recently launched Logitech G923, it has some minor improvements over the previous gen G920/G29. With this you'll be sorted for the next few years.

[GrandTourer]

Originally Posted by NirDiwakar

How real does this setup feel? In terms of the steering feedback.
This seems like the only force feedback steering wheel available at a reasonable price in India.

I have a Rift S already, tbh playing games like Dirt 2 on it have a lot of motion sickness.

I have been using the G29 with H shifter for close to 2 years now. This is the best FFB wheel you'll get at a reasonable price in India with close to real FFB. It's a bit noisy because of it being a gear drive wheel, but other than that, it should be the perfect sim wheel for beginners. Torque is around ~2Nm for G29 and slightly higher for the new updated one.

As a beginner, I can say this thing is pretty awesome, as I had participated in VW Virtual Polo cup last year & I was just 3 secs off the qualifying pace in Assetto Corsa at Monza in some of the practice laps.

I've tried Assetto Corsa, Dirt Rally 2.0, Mud Runner, F1 2020, Forza Horizon 4, ETS 2 and some other games with this. I can assure you, you'll not be wanting for more as a beginner.

[starke]

Originally Posted by NirDiwakar

How real does this setup feel? In terms of the steering feedback.
This seems like the only force feedback steering wheel available at a reasonable price in India.

I have a Rift S already, tbh playing games like Dirt 2 on it have a lot of motion sickness.

I'm inline with GrandTourer here,

Originally Posted by GrandTourer

This is the best FFB wheel you'll get at a reasonable price in India with close to real FFB.

As a beginner, I can say this thing is pretty awesome

Best to start with and even if you plan to keep it as a fun time hobby, G29 is sufficient.