Xbox 360 Steering Wheel Blog

If you play racing games long enough with the same steering wheel and pedal set you inevitably come to a moment when some of the precision is lost and random, sudden movement of in-game controls is noticed. The car turns on its own, the throttle pauses for a moment before suddenly revving up, brakes locking up even if you’re being smooth, and so on. The reason for that is, although all mechanical parts wear out with time, what often suffers first are the potentiometers.

Potentiometers are the heart of your steering wheel and pedal controllers. They are small round-shaped (mostly) mechanical or optic devices, that converts and transfers the physical input from you to controller’s mainboard and thus to the system, so it can be analyzed and used by the racing game. That is done by measuring the resistance depending on how much the wheel is turned or how far a pedal has been pushed.

Unless you own one of the top wheels available out there, which come with very expensive set of potentiometers that are guranateed to last for a very long time, or if your model uses an optic pot that virtually has no wear whatsoever, the chances are you would end up with a dirty and eventually, worn out potentiometer. But not to fear because you can prolong the life of your pots by at least a double.

The importance here is to identify your potentiometer is the cause of the erratic movement, with slow then fast reactions (spikes) of the steering, throttle, braking or clutch (if you have a clutch pedal). Once you’re relatively sure the problem does not originate from your game settings or drivers, you have to figure out carefully how to open your wheel or pedal set, unless of course you haven’t done it before. It depends on the brand and model of the controller, so there are no general rules here, but it usually involves the use of a simple screwdriver to remove the bottom cover and then observe the internals until you spot the potentiometers. Remember, they look like little round knobs and are mostly connected directly to the movable part of the controller through their shafts.

The majority of pots have a little hole on their back and unless they’re completely covered, you’d be able to clean them without having to detach and open them. The idea here is to clean the track inside that does all the resistance measurement, so spray a little WD-40 or graphite-based cleaner through the hole, then move the corresponding controller a couple of times to spread the fluid. If you have to open the potentiometer to reach the track that needs cleaning, be extra careful not to detach any wires and not to break the pot’s casing. It usually has little metal legs that you need to bend a bit before you can pull it apart, then after cleaning the track (be careful not to scratch it!), you have to push them back so it’s closed up properly and put the pot back in its nest, connecting it with the movable part.

It must be said that despite the efficiency of cleaning a potentiometer to prolonging its life, the mechanical wear eventually reaches a level when it simply becomes impossible for it to function as it should. Due to the fact that the layer of material onto the track inside that provides all of the resistance measurement simply becomes too thin and doesn’t provide good contact with the shaft’s pins. But as I said, it takes a lot to reach that state, unless we’re talking about steering wheels and pedals that use cheap crappy pots.

Technorati Tags: clean potentiometer, cleaning pots, pedal pot, steering wheel pot

Despite the Playstation 2 console coming of an age it cannot be denied that it is so popular that even today’s game developers aim to make their titles compatible with it. The same goes for racing games in particular and those more involved might even notice that this tendency has increased in the genre. All of that leads to the importance of choosing a good and long-life PS2 steering wheel as to make sure that even when support cease to exist for this platform people would still be able to enjoy their favorite racing games.

There is no doubt in the mind of seasoned players that Logitech shines as the manufactorer of high quality controllers and when it comes to PS2 steering wheels they have been increasingly active during the last few years, producing remarkable products. One of those that stands out if their Driving Force Pro wheel. Despite its minor glitches like a slightly stiff resistance as you unwind it on exit of corners and that the pedal set has remained the same as the older Driving Force model, for good or bad, it provides amazing immersion as you tackle the roads in your virtual vehicle of choice.

The design is such that the feel from gripping the wheel strongly resembles the real experience and feel. The feedback is super detailed and sharp as if the controller is directed through actual linkages to the wheels, even in arcade games! A slight let down is there seems to be a lack of compatibility with some PS2 titles, but this is somewhat understandable as the wheel itself was produced in conjuction with Gran Turismo 4 and if you’re a new to this genre you can probably guess it works perfectly with that racer. As people involved probably remember there was a bit of a funny moment when the game’s release got delayed but the wheel was ready for launch. It might as well have been a marketting move, who knows, but the thing is it did so well even without Gran Turismo 4 that it was definitely the right decision at the time.

Although originally designed as a PS2 steering wheel the fact that it has a USB connector directly means you can use it on your PC just as easy. Another strong and versatile feature that pleased especially the hardcore simracers is the huge 900 degree turn lock range which is also very customizeable to fit your needs and is a very necessary thing to do when playing more of an arcade racing game. The buttons are positioned in a non-intrusive way as to not distract you or make you push them by mistake while into the heat of action which was also an improvement over the older non-Pro version of the model.

If you are looking for a good PS2 steering wheel either because you are not satisfied by your current wheel or you are just beginning to explore the racing games for that console, believe me - you are not late yet. In fact, it seems to be getting better and better as the console gets older and now more than ever there are a huge number of high quality racing game titles out there for you to try. And what better way to do that with the excellently balanced and rich featured Logitech Driving Force Pro!

Technorati Tags: logitech, logitech steering wheel, playstation 2 steering wheel, playstation racing, ps2 racing games, ps2 steering wheel, ps2 wheel

Not joking with this one. Among all PC steering wheel controls my 10 year old Microsoft Force Feedback wheel is still working well enough to be usable. The only thing that ever really broke in it was the throttle pedal and that was easily fixed with a small metal plate connecting back the plastic parts. It’s actually even better now with it.

I’m definitely not the most gentle driver and the wheel and pedals tend to suffer a lot, but the MSFF handled that brilliantly. The wheel uses an optic potentiometer that literally means it never wears out — there’s simply no friction or anything. The pedals use normal mechanical potentiometers and I had to change those once… after 7 years! I don’t see that happening again any soon and I can’t say the same for the other controllers.

My biggest trouble is with the paddles behind the wheel. It’s not that they’re worse than any other part on it, but they simply sink in after a million or so times your press them repeatedly, daily. I couldn’t find a way to open up the wheel itself and try to fix them, so I had no choice but to switch to using the buttons on the front of the steering wheel.

They are not meant for serious use as the paddles though and thus can’t carry the amount of gear shifts. The situation is not too bad, but I am definitely trying consciously to be more careful so they last longer. Sometimes the buttons sink a tad longer and that changes 2-3 gears instead of 1, depending on the game.

The force feedback is amazing. It’s not any as precise as the systems on newer wheels and you can’t set it too stiff or the wheel disconnects completely, but overall the FF is the same as it has been in the beginning. With a bit of tweaking it works just fine in most modern racing games. Now because the wheel is so old that it’s connected via a classic Gameport it has no genuine drivers — one has to use the default ones that come with the operating system.

That just about does the job with the exception of a few racing games that don’t provide enough functionality and you either suffer from terrible FF or odd deadzone and turning ranges. But that’s quite rare really.

The leather cover on the wheel is like a pealed orange now. The area around the thumbs is all torn apart and it’s not a pretty sight, but once you start driving you don’t really pay attention to that.

Anyway, I’m quite humbled and impressed by the way the whole unit is built and how it just keeps on going through the years and handling regular abuse without a problem. I wish they build modern wheels like that…

If you happen to come around a preserved MSFF and want a wheel that would probably outlast your passion for racing games, don’t hesitate. There are USB models too so you don’t have to suffer needlessly with a Gameport version and with the regular drivers there is enough customization and functionality available. I think MSFF pedals are still one of the best in that price range and the optic potentiometer of the wheel instantly puts it among the best. The design is clean and effective, the feeling of the FF is not bad at all.

I can see the G25 finally putting the MSFF to rest but I’m no convinced it can last as long through the years if it’s used as often. Time will tell…

Technorati Tags: microsoft wheel, msff, pc steering wheel, racing games