The Best Joystick for Descent 2 ?
Cort Stowe
Descent 2, I felt I should ask all those experience Descent players out there
(since I only got the game like three days ago..). The wingman extreme is out fo
the question, because the trigger button breaks too easily....I think I'll end
up getting the Sidewinder, but I'm not sure....any suggestions are greatly
appreciated, please keep in mind I only want to spend around 80 bucks....thanks
Hope to see you on kali, my nick is usually, Group
----------------------------------------------------------------
"Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; baptise them
in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And know
that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time."
Matthew 28:19-20
----------------------------------------------------------------
Cort Stowe
E-mail: cst...@radix.net
----------------------------------------------------------------
Greg Bohn
csh...@lava.net (Cy K Shinkawa) wrote:
>>
>Screw the cost and get the Thrustmaster FLCS. You're gonna need a solid stick
>with a very tough hat, because you will use the hat to slide. Program one of
>the other hats to control the rolls and throttle.
>
>Cy
>
I use two sticks. An 'Interact PC Flight force' for the left hand
(forward/reverse & slide Left/Right) and a Thrustmaster FLCS for the
right hand (so you can have hats for 'spin', weapon cycle, etc.
within easy reach).
I used to use only the FLCS, but I found using two sticks 'unloads'
the right hand from being quite so busy...
-Greg Bohn
Dilly
Descent,D2 and Wing Commander. During intense net-play I have broken
the hat on several occasions. This IS a major flaw. AFter trying
several other Joysticks I decide to live with it. No other Joystick
feels as good. When it breaks I just take it back. Almost anystore
will accept them.
By the way Logitech has a statement about the 'easily-broken' extreme.
Hopefully they'll produce one with a better hat. In the mean time....My
roommate and I both have to take ours back this week.
Jon
>In <315019...@bga.com> Dilly <Har...@bga.com> writes:
>>
>>The Wingman Extreme (in my opinion) is by far the best joystick for
>>Descent,D2 and Wing Commander. During intense net-play I have broken
>>the hat on several occasions. This IS a major flaw. AFter trying
>>several other Joysticks I decide to live with it. No other Joystick
>>feels as good. When it breaks I just take it back. Almost anystore
>>will accept them.
>I second all of this, there is a group of us that play(have been
>playing) Descent/Descent2 for a year, we all settled on the wingman,
>except one guy, he uses the thrustmater. Guess what - he goes through
>as many hat sticks as we do. Logitech fixed the early trigger problems,
>but has not had much luck with the hatstick. I just changed my setup
>to include a CH Throttle in my left hand. I made and adapter 'Y' cable
>to shift the throttle to the X2 axis, this gives me the Wingman as it
>always was, and then a throttle with 12 programable buttons.
Gees, I didn't know there was such a problem. I've had my Wingman
Extreme for almost 1 year now and have never had anything break on it.
I play descent alot, and I think I pretty badass, using the hat
intensely to strafe. Perhaps I use it gently for some reason. Don't
know.
Jon--
Life is grand, don't mess it up..
Existence is meaningless, buck up!
----------
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Mark Smith
could possibly ever want to use with DESCENT 2 (and the original
DESCENT). 4 buttons and 4 hats allow for 20 unique programmable
commands. The trigger is even 2 position so squeeze it halfway for
primary weapon or squeeze it fully to unleash your secondary weapon.
I have one hat setup for thrust forward and reverse and rolls -
another is setup for sliding and vertical movement - another cycles
weapons; activates headlight and transfers energy to shields and the
4th drops bombs, cycles Guidebot commands and drops bombs. The 4
buttons activate the map, shoot flares, turbo boost and launches
missiles.
This is a great stick - not just for this game but for most any sim
out there. If you look at most sim games now they all come with
config files for the ThrustMaster. D2 does (although I thought it
needed a bit of modification).
You won't be sorry - I guarantee it!!!
Kevin Murphy
>
>The Wingman Extreme (in my opinion) is by far the best joystick for
>Descent,D2 and Wing Commander. During intense net-play I have broken
>the hat on several occasions. This IS a major flaw. AFter trying
>several other Joysticks I decide to live with it. No other Joystick
>feels as good. When it breaks I just take it back. Almost anystore
>will accept them.
>
>
>Hopefully they'll produce one with a better hat. In the mean
time....My
>roommate and I both have to take ours back this week.
I second all of this, there is a group of us that play(have been
Matt
Tell your buddy to give us a call at: (503)639-3200 x.3133, and ask for
one of the new Polycarb hat switches for his FCS. That will end his
hat breakage problem for good!
Matt
ThrustMaster, Inc.
Clint Fisher
Cort> I'm getting a new joystick this Friday, and since the main
Cort> game I play now is Descent 2, I felt I should ask all those
Cort> experience Descent players out there (since I only got the
Cort> game like three days ago..). The wingman extreme is out fo the
Cort> question, because the trigger button breaks too easily....I
Cort> think I'll end up getting the Sidewinder, but I'm not
Cort> sure....any suggestions are greatly appreciated, please keep
Cort> in mind I only want to spend around 80 bucks....thanks
I went out and bought (and I still dislike Microsoft) a Sidewinder Pro
with the twistable stick. Using the CH Flightstick setting and
configuring it so I can get both roll & yaw (from the twist) is the
way to go.
The hat sucks though. It's far to slippery to be useful. I tried
putting a "trackstick" eraser tip on it instead of the plastic cup,
and that worked ok. My current solution though was to take a carbide
tipped pen and rough-up the cup of the stock hat and it seems to work
allright. There are some dead spots in the hat though that can be
lethal in a dogfight.
All in all though, I like it. I carry it around like golfers
carry their clubs with them wherever they go.
-Clint
--
-----
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speeds. A sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. -- Clive James
-----
1024/4A483FAD 1994/11/14 2B 0E 6F D8 9F 78 A4 DD 41 24 E2 30 42 51 B8 A0
Frank Beaney
general-purpose use). I'm currently using a standard Flightstick which
is great but does not have all the features that these games require
(the way I play 'em!).
If anyone has actually used any of the following sticks (especially
the Suncom) and can supply any information (particularly any problems)
I'd be much obliged.
Also any other recommendations would be appreciated.
So far I've looked at:
Flightstick Pro
I love my Flightstick, and this is a real contender. However, I've
heard that you can't fire and use the hat at the same time. Depending
on the setup, this could be inconvenient (and fatal!).
MS Sidewinder
The twist action is a great idea, especially in Descent, but I'm
not sure it would be practical or that I could get used to it. Also,
the hat appears flimsy, the top of the stick looks crowded, and the
third and fourth buttons are strangely sited.
Logitech Wingman Extreme
Nice design but it doesn't look very robust, and I prefer a longer
throw.
Thrustmaster FLCS
Yes please, but not at that price (not on my salary!)
Suncom F15-E Raptor (sometimes called Talon?)
Top end of my price range, and ugly as sin! However, it feels good
and has a wealth of controls. Four fire buttons and two hats should
make my left hand (currently doing eleven things) a lot less busy!
Currently, top of my list.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Sometime again, from
___
/_ _ _ _ /_ Email: fr...@beaney.demon.co.uk
/ / /_| / / / \ FidoNet: 2:250/125.2
..."Bother!" said Pooh, as Christopher Robin shut the washing machine door!
Matt Moore
uttered:
>I'm currently trying to choose a stick for Descent 1 and 2 (and
>general-purpose use). I'm currently using a standard Flightstick which
>is great but does not have all the features that these games require
>(the way I play 'em!).
>If anyone has actually used any of the following sticks (especially
>the Suncom) and can supply any information (particularly any problems)
>I'd be much obliged.
>So far I've looked at:
[other sticks deleted...]
>Suncom F15-E Raptor (sometimes called Talon?)
> Top end of my price range, and ugly as sin! However, it feels good
>and has a wealth of controls. Four fire buttons and two hats should
>make my left hand (currently doing eleven things) a lot less busy!
>Currently, top of my list.
I've had a Suncom Raptor for eight months or so now, and I've been very
happy with it. It tracks very accurately, and is pretty much
indestructible. It helps to have big hands, though, as the stick itself is
pretty huge compared to most others.
By the way, there are actually four classes of joystick from Suncom - the
Hawk, Raptor, Talon, and Eagle (in increasing order of price and features).
The Talon and Eagle are both software programmable, but I've heard reports
of them occasionally flipping out (reversing axes, etc) in Descent. The
Raptor has four buttons, a (Flightstick Pro compatible) hat, and a second
hat which functions as joystick 2 (but isn't very useful). The Hawk has
just the four buttons - the hats are mounted on the stick, but don't work.
All things considered, I'd recommend the Raptor.
Matt
----
mm0...@goodnet.com
ma...@asu.edu
Ronald Kessing
playing Indycar2). I set the Joystick config to Thrustmaster and use the
pedals for throttle. Check yes for reverse direction. The calibration
asks for the second joystick. First depress the right pedal and then the
left.
Forward Right Pedal
Reverse Left Pedal
Pitch Joystick
Turn Joystick ...gives accurate, but slower turns
Slide Up/Dn Castle hatswitch (Program)
Slide L/R Castle hatswithc (program)
Turn Hatswitch (program) this gives quicker turns
Throttle Hatswitch (program) gives fast fore/aft movements
That leaves the trigger and three buttons to use as you wish.
Love the F15 Eagle. Had a Wingman Extreme about a week. It fit great
and was comfortable. It developed a dead spot in the center and started
to get loose. I looked at display models in the store and the tightest
ones were the Suncom. I bought one based on that. It is still tight
after two weeks of intense use (got D2 the same time as the stick) I
like the programmability. Guarantees it will work whether there is
specific joystick support or not. Can program macros (cheats, weapon
sequencing etc )
Jean-Etienne Lavallee
> I'm currently trying to choose a stick for Descent 1 and 2 (and
> general-purpose use). I'm currently using a standard Flightstick which
> is great but does not have all the features that these games require
> (the way I play 'em!).
I just changed from my original Flightstick too to a Wingman
Extreme and I'm pretty satisfied with the results.
> Flightstick Pro
A friend of mine has this and my (and his) biggest complaint was
that the button/hat layout of the stick aren't very ergonomical. Getting
to the one button on the right side of the hat is neither comfortable or
fast to do.
> Logitech Wingman Extreme
> Nice design but it doesn't look very robust, and I prefer a longer
> throw.
Well, if you don't give a crap about the warranty (like myself),
you can give it more throw, just remove the rubber booty at the botom of
the stick and then cut the openning up the stick gimbal to be larger. It
won't hurt anything since the x-y pots have a mile of over-throw.
The WMX also has some problems with plastic fatigue in the
primary trigger and the hat. I used the advice of Jon Hylands and put a
reenforcement shim in the handle behind the trigger to fix that problem
(see his hpage: http://ftn.net/~jon/descnet.html). The other problem is
in the hat's control stick getting cycled and breaking off. I fixed this
by replacing the plastic part with a thin screw and washer screwed
together and built into the hat mechanism where the plastic stick had
been.
I'm also working on moving the 3rd thumb button down to the
handle so that I can activate it with my pinky or ring finger. Makes a
great flare shooter.
The base of the WMX is very heavy on account of the 1/8" thick
steel plate they use as a bottom plate. This makes the stick very stable
somethign that I also was frustrated with in my FlightStick.
When I get the time, I'm going to through directions for all of
these mods on my hpage with diagrams and photos. Just have no time right
now.
l8r,
Etienne LaVallee
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Grim
>I'm getting a new joystick this Friday, and since the main game I play now is
>Descent 2, I felt I should ask all those experience Descent players out there
>(since I only got the game like three days ago..). The wingman extreme is out fo
>the question, because the trigger button breaks too easily....I think I'll end
>up getting the Sidewinder, but I'm not sure....any suggestions are greatly
>appreciated, please keep in mind I only want to spend around 80 bucks....thanks
>Hope to see you on kali, my nick is usually, Group
>----------------------------------------------------------------
>"Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; baptise them
>in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
>and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And know
>that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time."
> Matthew 28:19-20
Opinions vary on which stick is best, and in mine, the Thrustmaster
FLCS is it. Most programmable, sturdy, and diverse enough to be
customized for any game. Throw in a TQS for your throttle control,
and you've got another three switches to configure, along with two
radio knobs and a mouse controller. Totally out of your price range,
but you can't go wrong. Great product support, too.
Jeremy Black
>
> cst...@radix.net (Cort Stowe) wrote:
>
> >I'm getting a new joystick this Friday, and since the main game I play now is
> >Descent 2, I felt I should ask all those experience Descent players out there
> >(since I only got the game like three days ago..). The wingman extreme is out fo
> >the question, because the trigger button breaks too easily....I think I'll end
> >up getting the Sidewinder, but I'm not sure....any suggestions are greatly
> >appreciated, please keep in mind I only want to spend around 80 bucks....thanks
>
> >Hope to see you on kali, my nick is usually, Group
I bought a Wingman extreme and was fairly happy with it... for a day or two. I
returned it and bought a Sidewinder 3d for $50 (same as the wingman) and LOVE it.
Takes 10 minutes to get used to, and then just kicks ass! Plus when the D2 patch
comes out, the 3d Pro will be officially supported.
True story: playing 2 player with the Wingman, I usually came out slightly ahead in
the kills after 2 weeks of playing with it.
Against the same person with the Sidewinder I was at about 2 or 3 to 1 on the
kill-board after only 3 or 4 hours of single play with it! Previously on the keyboard
I was in between the two...
VTAMAnyNet
Agree. Bought a MS Sidewinder 3D Pro about 3 weeks ago. Excellent
product. Have used it pretty hard. No problems ever. Looks and feels
like quality stuff went into it.
It has my recommendation.
Good luck,
Bill
Michael Sullivan
>
> cst...@radix.net (Cort Stowe) wrote:
>
> >I'm getting a new joystick this Friday, and since the main game I play now is
> >Descent 2, I felt I should ask all those experience Descent players out there
> >(since I only got the game like three days ago..). The wingman extreme is out fo
> >the question, because the trigger button breaks too easily....I think I'll end
> >up getting the Sidewinder, but I'm not sure....any suggestions are greatly
> >appreciated, please keep in mind I only want to spend around 80 bucks....thanks
>
> >Hope to see you on kali, my nick is usually, Group
>
>
> >"Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; baptise them
> >in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
> >and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And know
> >that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time."
>
> > Matthew 28:19-20
>
> Opinions vary on which stick is best, and in mine, the Thrustmaster
> FLCS is it. Most programmable, sturdy, and diverse enough to be
> customized for any game. Throw in a TQS for your throttle control,
> and you've got another three switches to configure, along with two
> radio knobs and a mouse controller. Totally out of your price range,
> but you can't go wrong. Great product support, too.
Hi,
I like my Sidewinder Pro so much I made a home page for it
http://web.wt.net/sidewind.htm
1HungLO - "in the Kali mines"
http://www.koolbear.com
Kevin K.
months now. The quality of these two products is unsurpassed. I wasn't crazy
about the Talon at first due to the size of this joystick, but once I got
used to it realized that the Suncom's are the most solidly built sticks
around (IMHO). The Pro throttle is programmable, not just key presses, but
strings as well. The Pro Throttle can also program the Talon as well. I now
have a total of 6 hats and 8 buttons that I can program with ANY key press
or any string I want. I never have to touch the keyboard while I play now. If
you get a chance put these sticks in your hand and see what I mean.
Kutt
Alexander Sanda
Kevin K. <Ku...@iag.net> wrote:
> I have had a F-15 Talon (Suncom), and a Pro Throttle (CH Products)for a few
> months now. The quality of these two products is unsurpassed. I wasn't crazy
> about the Talon at first due to the size of this joystick, but once I got
> used to it realized that the Suncom's are the most solidly built sticks
> around (IMHO).
Agree. I'am using the F-15 Raptor by suncom, and it feels solid as
hell. I think, you can't break it (except by throwing out of the window
:-) ). The stick has a very cool-looking design (looks exactly like a
real F15 stick). The only disadvantage is IMHO: If you have small
hands, you won't be able to reach the lowest button.
> The Pro throttle is programmable, not just key presses, but
> strings as well. The Pro Throttle can also program the Talon as well. I now
> have a total of 6 hats and 8 buttons that I can program with ANY key press
> or any string I want. I never have to touch the keyboard while I play now. If
> you get a chance put these sticks in your hand and see what I mean.
CH products are also made of high quality. I'am still using a CH Flightstick
Pro sometimes, and it still rules (about 4 years old).
My good old Thrustmaster FLCS is also still working. On the other side,
I broke my Wingman extreme within 2 weeks of hard DOOMING :-(
--
A. Sanda
Vienna, Austria
email: al...@darkstar.ping.at powered by Linux
------------------------------------------------------------------
Quentin T. Cook
steve tassio
try thrustmaster f-16 with an acm game card. the joystick is completely
programmable so you can make any of the 8 or 9 buttons do what you want.
the acm card by thrustmaster is faster rsponding than game ports on
most sound cards.
>
> Re: The Best Joystick for Descent 2 ?
>
> qc...@tricon.net (Quentin T. Cook)
> Thu, 25 Apr 1996 12:29:00 -0400
> Tri-Cities Connection
>
> Newsgroups:
> alt.games.descent
> References:
> <4il69e$v...@news1.radix.net> <4l0cup$c...@vista.hevanet.com>
<317612...@wt.net> <317A2D...@iag.net>
> <4lgk01$8...@darkstar.my.lan>
>
> I am quite fond of my Gravis Firebird. Seems to work well
steve tassio
sta...@usa.net
Guillaume Pare
On Wed, 20 Mar 1996, Dilly wrote:
> The Wingman Extreme (in my opinion) is by far the best joystick for
> Descent,D2 and Wing Commander. During intense net-play I have broken
> the hat on several occasions. This IS a major flaw. AFter trying
> several other Joysticks I decide to live with it. No other Joystick
> feels as good. When it breaks I just take it back. Almost anystore
> will accept them.
>
> By the way Logitech has a statement about the 'easily-broken' extreme.
>
> Hopefully they'll produce one with a better hat. In the mean time....My
> roommate and I both have to take ours back this week.
>
>
I'd like to know what do you think of the CH flighstick pro. This is the
joystick I use and I'm verry satisfied. The only problem is that you
can't use more than one botton at a time. But even if it look archaic,
the feeling is very good and no broken switchs until now.
Andrew Edgerton
Joaquin Tall
So strange. I was searching for this very subject today. I have a Windows 10 PC and I love using it on my Descent I and II games. I am currently using a Logitech G-512 keyboard w/a G-502 Hero mouse. The mouse works great, but there are functions that I don't understand how to program the mouse for DESCENT games. I bought a NIB Thrustmaster USB stick for $25.00. No matter how I adjusted it, I could not get it to track accurately. If I were shooting at an alien robot in the mines that was at my left, I would swing it to the left. When I went to shoot on the right-hand side, pulling the stick to the right, there was quite a bit of lag [slack?] in it moving to the right. The sensitivity settings had no effect. So, I am still looking for a Windows 10 stick that will work with DESCENT I & II
Do_Checkor
> Andrew et.al,
>
> So strange. I was searching for this very subject today. I have a Windows 10 PC and I love using it on my Descent I and II games. I am currently using a Logitech G-512 keyboard w/a G-502 Hero mouse. The mouse works great, but there are functions that I don't understand how to program the mouse for DESCENT games. I bought a NIB Thrustmaster USB stick for $25.00. No matter how I adjusted it, I could not get it to track accurately. If I were shooting at an alien robot in the mines that was at my left, I would swing it to the left. When I went to shoot on the right-hand side, pulling the stick to the right, there was quite a bit of lag [slack?] in it moving to the right. The sensitivity settings had no effect. So, I am still looking for a Windows 10 stick that will work with DESCENT I & II
Joaquin Tall
I can't make hide nor hair out of the registering part of "descentbb". Asking me which of the items in Column A are NOT in the DESCENT games. I have searched all of my guides and cannot come out with the right combination to grant me access. Can you give me a hint, please? Many thanks!