r/hotas

Hey all,

I’m looking to get my first HOTAS setup primarily for Star Citizen and could use some guidance. I’m brand new to flight sticks, so I’ve been trying to find something that’s a good entry point without overspending.

Right now I’m considering the Logitech X56. It seems to check a lot of boxes for me:

• Dual throttle
• Plenty of buttons/hat switches
• Twist + analog inputs for 6DOF

From what I understand, it should be enough to handle full 6DOF without needing pedals right away, which is a big plus for me.

That said, I’ve seen pretty mixed opinions—some people recommend it as a solid starter, while others suggest skipping it entirely for something like VKB or Virpil gear.

What I’m trying to figure out:

• Is the X56 still a good first buy, or outdated for the price?
• Are there better alternatives in the ~$200–$300 range?
• Would I regret not going HOSAS instead for Star Citizen?
• Any common issues (QC, durability, etc.) I should know about?

I don’t mind upgrading later, but I’d like to avoid buying something I’ll want to replace immediately.

Appreciate any insight.

I’ve started playing DCS and have problems with ghost inputs on H3 button where I have my refueling probe binded, the probe goes up and down all the time so I’ve tried some stuff to solve it.

I tried to remove the tobii 5 from the powered usb hub and that did nothing

I tried to switch usb ports in the usb hub and that did nothing.

I tried to plug the throttle into the computer and the stick in the usb hub (the stick is the only device in the usb hub now) and that worked.

Now I wonder if the usb hub is the problem or if my motherboard is the problem.

I want to have everything plugged into the usb hub behind my monitors so I can easily unblug and put away my hotas when I don’t use it.

After watching literally every single youtube video (in multiple languages), and reading every single reddit thread about the Sol-R1, took a very long time, here's my view:

The SOL-R1 is 'OK', as in really nice build, software, buttons, etc. the only downside which almost everyone seems to say is that it has 'ball and cup' gimbal, which isn't really THAT bad! I swear, everywhere i go, reddit, youtube, online reviews, instagram, etc --- they all complain Solely on the 'BALL & CUP' Gimbal, like Why ?! I've traversed more than 10 "O" in Google, and have yet to find ONE reddit post glorifying the SOL-R1.

Anyway, i decided to Actually go to my local Walmart (which had the Sol-R1 & vkb gladiator), and i bought them BOTH and tried them for 1week (i had to return at least one within 2 weeks, since i don't really need 2 joysticks), and the only difference.....vkb required less force to move the stick, while SOL-R1 had a little more friction, that's it! To be fair, i didn't use the vkb for longer so i can't really comment, BUT, for some reason whenever i twisted the vkb too aggressively, a spring would just fall out, not sure why, but it only happened twice. Anyway, SOl-R1 works for me, i just play DCS and it's able to work, and i'm able to fly -- and i don't regret buying it.

I do wish the tension on the Sol-R1 was just a little bit lighter, since on the vkb it was, not exactly more smoother, but just required less force to push the stick around the centre which made it a little bit more easier for air-refuelling and landing on carriers. But they are both like 80%ish the same.

Which one would u buy?

https://preview.redd.it/skkavnxgtkxg1.jpg?width=1000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bc9168571c9d6654852e8dd6f593cf2464659827

https://preview.redd.it/nnh1loxgtkxg1.jpg?width=1000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=043b86304726af70aa747a7a7bf73dfa34dc06e1

Hiya everybody

I've got a Thrustmaster MFD Cougar setup with small displays mounted behind each bezel for DCS. Love the look, hate the cable situation.

Current setup per MFD:

1x HDMI (video signal, straight to GPU)

1x USB-A (MFD button inputs)

1x USB-C (display power)

So 6 cables total snaking back to my PC. It works, but it looks like a rats nest and I want to clean it up properly.

Anyone has an idea how to solve this efficently ?

Thanks in advance!!

The first thing that surprised me was how the stick is really wobbly. I don't think it's defective, it is 24 years old but never used. As if it's a design choice? I tried a 6mm ring spacer and it goes TING at the edge of the axes. Should I try a 5 or perhaps 4mm?

And my thrustmaster throttle is modded. I got it despite this because it was cheap. It doesn't feel the same as other throttles, have you ever used a manual credit card authorization form? It moves a lot like that, it's very "slidey" with no pushback. Such as the x52 throttle, the TM hotas ones... it feels odd and like a downgrade, not a mod that someone would want.

I'm buying a Throttle control after Winctrl couldn't ship one for the past 3 months, I'm thinking about a Virpil Mongoos T-50CM3 throttle (376€ tax and shipping included w/20% discount) or a VKB STECS Throttle System Max (Mk.I) (363€ tax and shipping included). I'm more inclined towards VKB because I need buttons.

I have an x56 i'm using with warthunder and i'm trying to setup the rotary dials to do different things with different mode selects, I.e. mode 1 is zoom, mode 2 is radiator control, mode 3 is fuel mixture. I've figured out how to set it up as a band control, but i'm wanting it to work more like a directional axis. Problem is setting it as an axis directly in warthunder, it doesnt recognize the mode switch so the dials will do the same function as mode 1 even if in other modes.

It'd be nice if I could setup 3 different "axis" for the same dials and then just select that axis in game, i.e. mode 1 = axis x, mode 2 = axis y, mode 3 = axis z. But same physical dial but i'm not sure how to program it like that?

Any help is appreciated.

I'm new to all this and wondering what the best space combat games are to play with a HOTAS setup. I'm not interested in any games with MMO aspects like elite or star citizen, I'm looking at House of the Dying Sun and Star Wars Squadrons, but I'm wondering if there's any other titles I should be aware of?

So, in MCG-U description, it says that if i add a comment to the order, it can be sent with a B connector for Gladiator Pro, though on the mcg pro page, it also mentions B connector but doesn't gladiator

So my questions are: 1. Is MCG Pro's B connector compatible with Gladiator pro. 2 is gladiator pro just an older version of nxt evo and will mcg work in it?

I know i explained it very, ehh, weird but I did my best...

Thanks in advance

Hello,

Few days ago I posted about the app that can be used to map HID to volume mixer in Windows. Today I have released the second version of the app, which lets you map your HID to the keyboard and mouse:

https://github.com/alexunder18/HIDFader

Note: if you already mapped your HID with the first version, you must move xml config from %appdata%/HIDFader to %appdata%/HIDMate

Enjoy!