(Part 2) Best products from r/EliteDangerous

Everybody is providing info on the listing so if I may, mind if I question your choice?

If you have the money a dual stick and rudder pedals setup will give you much better freedom of movement IMO compared to one stick and a throttle and it makes controlling the ship with FA Off much easier if you ever decide to explore that option. Just make sure, if you consider my suggestion, that you get a set of pedals with toe brakes and set those for throttle/reverse.

It is very easy to coordinate if you're used to driving a car and having two sticks will give you analog control of pitch/roll as well as translational thrusters. It's very easy to match speed with a Sidewinder or Hauler in my Eagle while still keeping my nose (and guns) pointed up at his cargo hatch but after a while it almost becomes like a whole extra level of freedom in flight control.

My personal setup consists of 2x Thrustmaster T16000M flight sticks (which are incredibly precise and well built for the cost), CH Pro rudder pedals and Track IR and I think it's awesome. I also use Voice Attack for some functions like lights, hardpoints and cargo scoop as well as power distribution so I don't need to move my hands off the controls. Just some food for thought, links below.

Sticks: http://www.amazon.com/Hercules-2960706-Thrustmaster-T-16000M-Flight/dp/B001S0RTU0

Pedals: http://www.amazon.com/CH-Products-Pedals-Simulator-300-111/dp/B0000512IE/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1420480922&sr=1-1

TrackIR: http://www.amazon.com/TrackIr-Premium-Head-Tracking-Gaming-Pc/dp/B0029M6VKA/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1420480970&sr=1-1&keywords=TrackIR

It's possibly more investment than you're ready for but if you end up with the HOTAS and feel like you need more control just keep it in mind. While you can't use that particular stick without having the throttle I don't see why you couldn't set it aside and place another stick down if you wanted to go that route. Personally I ended up replacing my old stick with 2 new ones but I also have someone to hand my old stick down to. (I got my brother Elite for Christmas so we could play together) ;)

Whatever you decide, I wish you luck and fly safe Commander!

First thing I will tell you off the bat, get something that's in your budget.

Second... let's talk about what type of setup you want...


HANDS ON THROTTLE AND STICK
-
HOTAS
-

You have multiple options, starting with the Thrustmaster HOTAS-X.


At around $50, it gives a satisfying first hotas experience.

Moving up the ladder, you get to the T16000M and it's FCS pack.

If you are lucky, you can get this pack on sale for as low as $89.99 on Amazon, and it offers a great package with plenty of toggles and buttons to fully accommodate E:D's controls. You can even add pedals later on down the line, or pick them up as part of one big package.

Further up the price ladder is the X52 suite of controls. Two options are available, in the flavors of the X52 FCS at around $150 and the X52 PRO at around $200. The differences between the two are less pronounced than the jump from the HOTAS-X to the T16000, but it has some "nice" features for scripting and supposedly higher quality components.

Granted, even after Logitech purchased Saitek, the build quality on these former Saitek sticks is ... so-so.


Another great option is CH's products.

Throttle.

Stick.

CH PRO PEDALS

Despite other offerings in the HOTAS world between the X52 Pro, and CH offerings and higher caliber offerings - ignore them.

The X-55 and X-56 are MESSES when it comes to build quality, and it's a crapshoot if you get one that will last.

Your next HOTAS offering is going to be the Thrustmaster Warthog - but you will absolutely need pedals. Which means you're looking at offerings from CH, like the CH PRO PEDALS.

And if you get the warthog, I HIGHLY recommend you use Aussiedroid's scripts and bindings. They are intuitive and utilize the entirety of the throttle and stick.

If it's in your budget, I recommend getting MFG Crosswinds.

Also, VKB makes some T-rudder design pedals that work well.

VKB T-Rudders

However, before anyone tells you differently, or says pedals are shit for yaw. I AGREE, DON'T USE THEM TO YAW. Put yaw on your stick left and right, pitch up and down, and ROLL on your pedals. Right pedal forward, roll right, and left pedal forward roll left. Anyone who does it differently is crippling themselves, especially in PVP. This is a space sim, we don't have to fly space ships like we do aircraft. ROLL ON PEDALS, I'LL SAY IT AGAIN.

Past this point you have offerings from VirPil and VKB, both of which make the best of the best products. They both have better gimbal designs, and stick designs, and come in around $400 for a stick. However, there is no throttle currently, as of this moment, produced by either.


Alternative Setups
------------------
HANDS ON STICK AND STICK
-
HOSAS
-

One way of side stepping the pedals situation is running dual-sticks, or hands on stick and stick. This has a slightly higher initial cost than most of the cheaper HOTAS options, but also negates the needs for pedals. The caveat being you need sticks that can be used in both left and right hands.


But thankfully, Thrustmaster has you covered. They offer the T16000M in a dual-stick package. Or you can purchase them separately.


You can also buy two separate Warthog sticks, at around $200 each, and get Okona (/u/cavortingwebeasties) over at dualsticks.com to convert one over.

VirPil's Mongoose can be setup for ambi use, and VKB will be announcing a left handed Gunfighter grip at SOME point. VKB Gunfighter can be found here.

• • • • • 
          
          
          Here's my setup, for good measure.
          

It's a self-promotion post, but it also would be a helpful information for you.

​

Do you have to use your regular desk and office chair when you play a video game?

If yes, PEIN's Pedal Mount is recommended for you, To fix all of your gaming pedals issues.

​

PEIN's Pedal Mount is a device that is meant to keep your pedals at a set distance from your chair as well as tilt the pedals to a more comfortable angle that suits you.

​

We are sure PEIN's Pedal Mount will solve problems you've struggled with ever since you bought your pedals. With Pedal Mount the pedals perform the way they were meant to, they don't move and they don't tip over. And then you can push the pedals as hard as you like and they will stay put.

​

Pedal Mount works exactly as described and it is very sturdy when assembled. Once the chair is in the U-profile the pedals will not move, neither forwards, backwards nor sideways. The angle adjustment works just as it's supposed to and while perhaps making your pedal use slightly less realistic it can help a lot with comfort after long hours of play, depending on pedal type and game of course. The mount works just as well without the angle adjustment.

​

Assembling the mount is easy and adjusting it for your taste is straight forward. There aren't any quick latches or similar, just standard bolts that you fasten with the included allen key.

​

Pedal Mount will fit almost all pedals on the market. The cross-rails for mounting pedal are very configurable and can be put in almost any position.

​

Pedal Mount doesn't take up a lot of space. The extension frames connecting to the chair can be folded up which reduces the footprint considerably when stowed. When fully disassembled it's extremely compact.

​

The Pedal Mount also can be configured to equip various additional options.

• Height upping add-on (now purchasable on this on-line mall)
  
• Reverse kit add-on (design completed, now on progress of producing prototypes)
  
• Center-stick mount for flight sim game (completed 60% design of the center-stick mount and now on progress of producing extension pole prototypes for center-stick)
  
• Additional brackets or add-on with user's requests
  
  You also can do DIY easily with extra screw taps and bolt holes in various parts of products.
  
  ​
  
  You can find more information and pictures in the purchase page.
  
  Purchase in US
  
  Basic edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07N2F9YQN?ref=myi_title_dp
  
  Height up Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PRRPV8V?ref=myi_title_dp
  
  ​
  
  Purchase in other countries
  
  https://www.peingear.com/shop

Hello, CMDR! I was considering the wireless version but it was not in stock and I didn't want to wait. I'm not a big fan of cables but in this case, I don't even regret rushing my purchase because the EDTracker just works as expected. Really great stuff.

As for the headphones, these are Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro (studio) 80 Ohm. What are good headphones is a very personal, subjective thing. I like closed backs because they are isolating well from the external sounds and they provide deep, meaty sound. Comfort is also my top priority requirement because I often wear my headphones 10+ hours per day. My budget was up to £200. Previously I had couple Adio Technica, including 990 and 550. These are by far the most comfortable and best sounding headphones I've ever had. If you ever have a need/chance definitely give them a try. Here they are on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0016MNAAI/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Insight tracking is excellent, and I quite enjoy the Passthrough+ feature.

The blind spots are anywhere directly behind your body that the cameras don't have straight line vision to (I've spent the last half hour actually testing this with the floor mirror in Beat Saber). Where they do have vision to, I actually think tracking feels better than my CV1 4-sensor setup (which were spaced quite far apart) just because the headset cameras, being on your face, have much better resolution to the controllers at all times.

I would say comfort is on-par with the original rift. There are tradeoffs that pretty much wash out the experience for me. Namely, the foam/velvet padding lining the halo portion is pretty dang nice. It's not memory foam level, but it's high quality. There's an under-button that adjusts how far the goggle frame sits from your face, so you can adjust it so that it's suspended nicely in front of you, instead of pressed against your face leading to what I like to call "Rift Raccoon Face". So these are all nice, but SPECIFICALLY FOR SEATED EXPERIENCES LIKE ELITE DANGEROUS, having the hard plastic halo means you can't lean back your head against your gaming chair anymore. (I have a gaming chair.) I haven't sat down yet with Elite for the evening, but this WILL be an issue for me. That's the comfort negative.

Everything else? Pure upgrade. Visuals are a big upgrade, it's also huge for me that I don't have wires snaked all over my apartment. Out of the box, hooked up to the PC, and playing a game took less than 5 minutes. Not even exaggerating. Another big issue for me is that my computer desk is at the "corner" of my VR space, so I would have to redraw or disable Guardian lines every single time switching from Elite Dangerous to standing/roomscale experiences (if I went to go sit at my desk in VR, the guardian lines would be always up). The process of redrawing guardian lines now takes less than 30 seconds, and it's an enjoyable experience. Again, Passthrough+ is really cool.

Also, preemptively, I think all Rift S owners need these until Oculus comes up with a 1st party solution:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0755N6CSR

Those are literally the CV1 headphones which Oculus repurposed/packaged for the CV1. Ergo, identical audio experience (I've verified this this throughout the past day). It's not a clean solution by any means, but for me the headphones are lightweight and fit neatly over my head then the Rift S right on top of it, and I quite liked the CV1 aural experience for what it was.

Google Cardboard is a pretty sick tech demo, but its not something I want to use for as long as I want to play ED haha. That link actually details setup for ED specifically, and it most certainly includes headtracking! Although mine slowly drifts to the left, which is pretty annoying. You can actually use the application to stream anything, and it can do "fake 3d" so you can take any random media file and play it on a virtualized big screen.

If you're interested in VR and have a decent phone, check it out. You can get a variety of headsets that accomplish the same thing, or make your own out of cardboard! They have some nice ones that have headstraps and everything though. Well worth a couple bucks to get a taste of VR. I'm so very tempted to get a rift, but I'm trying to wait for the consumer version. The app is free to try it out, but it'll stop after 10 minutes unless you pay for the full version ($6 and change... worth it again.) I'll warn you though, text is basically unreadable and I haven't quite gotten the aspect ratio right, but these things are correctable. I'm using a nexus 4 with it, but I'm sure its better on newer phones with higher resolutions.

I've found some print-outs (like this one), but I'm a fan of tailoring it to my own needs. I may take a look for ideas though.

It is hard to describe but on a monitor the scale is judged more relatively to other objects so your mind works to estimate the size of the object based on the information given. With a Vive the combination of head rotation and position tracking, 3d stereo imaging and having a full 360 wrap around display allows you to perceive scale naturally like you do in the real world.

This does wonders for immersion. The first thing you will notice is how amazing the cockpit is. It is in 1:1 scale, you can rotate and bob your head looking around it, and it gives you the illusion you are in it. Being able to look around quickly and freely is great for battles and tracking objects that aren't directly in front of you.

Objects in the distance tend to be a bit pixelated due to limitations with the resolution but once you get up to planets, stars, and stations you can sense its vastness as you look out at it from a tiny cockpit.

I never had a problem with FOV as another mentioned. It looks similar to wearing ski googles. When I am immersed it doesn't really bother me. I did get the 6mm replacement foam and noticed a slight improvement. I'd still recommend it as it is also easier to clean but it's a bit expensive. https://www.amazon.com/Vive-Memory-Foam-Replacement-Better/dp/B01HM4QB0Y/

Yeah, got two of those under my chair. They are a bit overkill, one should have done. They are not actually that small, they are obviously smaller than a sub woofer base bin, but they are like 3 inches wide including the fixtures and they can make a sofa bounce (read reviews, one odd one about it melting, but dont understand that at all lol).

Post got huge so TL;DR: A Basic purchase list of bits and rudimentary instructions.

Heres my setup with UK Amazon links (sorry not sure where you are in the verse Cmdr):

1. Amp: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00SATAEEA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   
   
2. Body Shakers (two of them), they look small on the screen, but they are 3 inches is diameter. NOTE: if anyone reading this decides to go for it (highly recommend) make sure you put some washers between the body shaker and chair. I didnt do that at first and it actually stops the device from rumbling, I put about 5mm clearance and BOOM your butts being kicked :) Two of them on a standard office chair is overkill but I always want MORE POWER hehe :) https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002LQAHPE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   
   
3. Subwoofer filter (crossover), removes the high's and mids from the sound. Got this about 2 weeks after as I could hear alarms starport announcements which were on the higher audio frequencies: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000L9D0ZW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1.
   
   Wire them in parallel, (wiring aint my strong suit but took 2 mins of watching a youtube vid to understand). The last thing to mention is getting sound to be outputted from two sources. You could go for 2 soundcards, but luckly I have the realtek soundcard which can have a "virtual" card using one of the MANY sound outputs on it. This then allows you to feed a different sound feed to a different audio jack. I then used a free program called voicemeeter (has two e's) and this allows you to feed the same signal to two different outputs. Which is handy, alternatively you could splice the standard audio jack cable to support 2 feeds. Problem with that for me is I use USB audio, so voicemeeter solved that problem, have USB headphones with baseshakers which is standard phono.
   
   Hope the above helps, give me a shout if you want pictures or anything else. Good luck with your build Cmdr.
   

My HP Pavilion from 2016, costing me $650 at time of purchase, plays E:D at high settings just fine. i5 quadcore at 2.2ghz, 8GB RAM, Geforce 960M. As long as your specs are at least equal to that, then you can run the game and enjoy it at 60 FPS on medium/high.

You could probably get a laptop in the range of $600-800 with better specs nowadays. Anything with a 1050 or better is good enough.

Don't listen to anyone who tells you to "get a desktop". Laptops are entirely capable of playing video games. Also don't listen to anyone who tells you to spend more than 1 grand on a high-spec "gaming laptop". Mid-range laptops are also entirely capable of playing video games.

Here's a more modern version of my laptop, priced at $750 on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/HP-i7-7700HQ-Processor-solid-state-15-cb079nr/dp/B07DQKZLNN?th=1

Make sure you pick up an m.2 SSD too; you'll need it.

Poor gamers like my self interested in force feedback / buttkicker should look into this:

http://www.amazon.com/Dayton-Audio-TT25-8-Tactile-Transducer/dp/B009RGJ47S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407543753&sr=8-1&keywords=tactile+transducer

as well as an amplfier like this: http://www.amazon.com/LP-2020A-Lepai-Tripath-Class-T-Amplifier/dp/B0049P6OTI/ref=pd_bxgy_e_img_y

For ~30$ it does essentially the same thing as the buttkicker. No, not as good. It's basically comparing FaceTrackNoIR with a standard webcam to the official facetrack. But in both sitautions, it's 30$~ compared to 150$

I recommend people check these out! I know the idea of adding force or sound to my chair was a bit silly when I first heard it, but I can't live without it now. It's amazing. Feeling every rumble of your ship, feeling the engines speed up, feeling the force behind every bullet you fire. Even movies are awesome, I watched the recent battle episode of Game of Thrones in my chair and it's just amazing. You "feel" the arrows hit people, you absolutely feel each step the giants and mammoths take. It's just awesome! And for so cheap.

I use the exact 2 above albeit I use 2 tactile transducers. Got one at first because I was skeptical. Did not take long for me to order a second which is 100% perfect for my chair.

> I'm a lefty as well. I'd like to use main control with my left hand if possible. Are sticks designed to be for right hand use at all or are they amibidextrous tools?

Hello fellow lefty. As I am sure you already know the gaming industry always has, and always will, hate us. The best we can typically hope for are ambidextrous tools, though I hear one of the Thrustmasters is reversible.

The stick I use is very basic but suits all of my needs, and is also plug-n-play which is a bonus for me because I just lost usage of my favorite usb gamepad after over 10 years of faithful service due to abandoned driver support.

Unfortunately when it comes to throttles I have yet to find any that are ambi, so I use another usb peripheral for my right hand that is also plug-n-play. Like some one else suggested you could use two sticks, but I find that limiting actually.

The officially licensed books are all standalone, so you can read them in any order you like.

If you're looking for recommendations, my top three are:

• Elite: Reclamation - Features political wheeling-and-dealing on a grand scale, between Federation and Imperial diplomats, vying for control of a system rich in tantalum - vital to the production of the newest generation of FSDs. If you're interested in discovering the dark sides of the Federation and the Empire in a 3300's edition of the Odyssey, here's your book.
  
  
• Elite: And Here the Wheel - Looking for a fast-paced story told from the perspective of an Ex-Fed Robin Hood, who gets caught up in a mess between the Federation, Imperial, Alliance, and... other... intelligence operatives looking to crack crowns and dig up alien treasure? Look no further!
  
  
• Elite: Out of the Darkness - Set in 3275, this action packed tale offers you the greatest canonical exposé on the Thargoids. It features a butt-kicking Thargoid-hating female detective and her tinfoil-hat hacker pal, as they try to get to the bottom of several mysteries that threaten to upset the fate of humanity.
  
  Anyway, hopefully those little blurbs help you prioritize your reading list.

Every bit of advertising for ED is aimed at convincing potential customers they have a rich and immersive game world to play in. Of course it's a quality they are trying to push.

Simulations are about immersion. You can easily find hundreds of posts from players who speak specifically about 'immersion' -- you're trying to dissect the word it when it's meant to be applied generically in the sense of how rich the game universe feels.

It also drives design decisions that developers make. Finding the balance is tricky, as evidenced by this entire ship transfer debate. Every person does have different ideas/feelings about what they find immersive, but collectively most people can agree on where some boundaries should be. There likely is not a market for a hard sci-fi simulation game; I don't dispute that our time as players is a precious resource. I will not be upset if they offer instant ship transfer.

The lore accommodates FTL via the ED novels.

The Thrustmaster 16000M, either by itself, as a hotas, or as a hosas is regarded as a good entry level stick by many.

edit: best way to make credits in-game by far is mining, either surface mining for painite or core mining for void opals. Easily 100m/hr or more if you know what you're doing, and/or follow one of the many guides on youtube. I can't personally advise though as I've been actively avoiding it. I don't want to be rich so quick I have no idea what to do with it.

Yeah, I am thinking that way as well. Gonna go for dual sticks, however. The way I figure - throttle is the same as an additional stick, just gives you one less axis. I figure I can use the left stick as a throttle in a pinch.

Besides, dual stick setup should work amazingly well for flying helicopters, which I adore. I've spent a thousand hours in GTA5 flying those things, just because of how awesomely it is implemented there. I expect to stick with helicopters in the future and that setup should work nicely.

I have also already ordered an Orbweaver, – I am planning on mounting that instead of the left joystick when not using it (gonna attach everything with VELCRO strips, so I don't have to mess around with bolts). It should work for everything not needing a second stick.

When I used that joystick, I ended up ignoring all the base stuff (including the throttle) and keeping my left hand on the keyboard. I'd use W and S for throttle control. There's many more buttons available that way. Something to consider. A pad such as a Razer Orbweaver (which is on sale right now https://www.amazon.com/Razer-Orbweaver-Chroma-Mechanical-Adjustable/dp/B013P0HW7K) would be a good left-hand choice too.

Though personally, switching my 3D Pro for a Saitek x52 Pro was the best move I've made for the game.

Anyway, if you want to set this up again, I'd just customize your controls from this image then you can send your bindings file to your friend.

You might want to re-read my previous reply. edit: seems you did.

Here's another vid with elite dangerous:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XKcNJo3e6E

Keep in mind, there are multiple apps for the mobile device as well as other software for your pc involved. Some work better than others, as do certain mobiles too.

Still it won't be perfect, but will certainly be good enough for most things.

I for one have purchased something like (feel it's important to have adjustable lenses):
http://www.amazon.com/Cardboard-Plastic-Version-Complete-Experience/dp/B00MHSPNH8/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1420493428&sr=8-5&keywords=cardboard

Once I receive it and set it up (which will likely take weeks as I don't have much free time lately) I'll be using this with my Track IR until I get the consumer version of Oculus (so my mobile device will only be streaming).

Oculus touch bundle, very good value. You even get Robo Recall for free, which is a pretty decent VR shooter

In case you ever wanna switch to the dark side, I've posted a breakdown of the current hotas situation on the vive subreddit before, lemme see if I can find it.

Found it.

The cheap end would be the T-Flight Hotas X ($50).

On the cheaper mid range side, either the Saitek x52 ($140), or the Saitek x52 Pro ($180)

On the more pricey side of the mid range I can suggest the Saitek x55/x56 ($250)

Top of the Line would be the Thrustmaster Warthog ($400)

Since then thrustmaster also released the T.16000M ($130) which as far as I know was made in communication with Frontier so it should be a pretty good fit for Elite.

Were you trying to buy direct? It's only $135 on amazon. I have the pro clip as well, but I never use it. It's kinda junk. Hat clip works just as well.

alternately I know you can just buy the pro clip, and use it somehow with FTNIR and a PS3 Eye webcam which are like, $10-$13 but offer 60FPS recording - which helps a lot with the tracking.

The DK2 is trash, and is not worth the $90 you'd spend on it.

If you're looking for a cheaper headset, they aren't quite as solid IMO as the Vive or Oculus CV, but the windows mixed reality headsets are a MUCH better experience than the DK2 will give. A DK2 is going to be less good of a VR experience than using a cellphone VR setup, and might turn you off of VR entirely if you think it's going to be representative of the final experience. That said, given your GPU I'd hold off, upgrade your GPU and then see about getting a headset, otherwise you're not going to run things too well.

Final version Oculus is currently on sale for $350. https://www.amazon.com/Oculus-Touch-Virtual-Reality-System-pc/dp/B073X8N1YW/

sure, this are the bass shakers that i got,
https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B002LQAHPE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and this was the amplifier https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00OJX08YW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


this where the chepests parts i could get from amazon on EU, for what i gather there are superior bass shakers like this one https://www.amazon.de/Dayton-Audio-TT25-16-Tactile-Transducer/dp/B0045W10VW/ref=sr_1_27?ie=UTF8&qid=1499762203&sr=8-27&keywords=bass+shakers
but i didn't want to overpay for something i dindt know if i was gona use/enjoy.


Couple of tips, that amplifier works very well, since its not for music even if if you get some distortion but its underpower for the supposed max wattage from the shakers (its 2x40W + 68W) and the shakers are 100W. At this point i normaly dont push the amp to the maximum since the chairs starts to make noices and shakes all the time, so i belive i dont need a more powerfull one.

Also get some proper audio cables, and a power suply, i cant find a laptop style unit that gives 12V +7A so i went for a normal ATX power supply.

At this point i just need a extra bass shaker to put on the rudder pedals, since its kind of a immersion breaker that my feet are "grounded" from the vibration.

Do yourself a favor and buy a cheap stick or low-end HOTAS setup.

I started with a Saitek Cyborg and KBD, worked well. It has a good helping of buttons, Z-Axis (twist the stick for YAW) and an integrated analog throttle which is a must have IMO.

Personally I moved up to a HOTAS Watrhog which is a $450 set. My buddy is running on This stick and This Throttle and has just about as much functionality as me. More if you take into account the Warthog doesn't have a Z axis on the stick!

What information are you looking for? I run four of these hooked up to this. I'm getting ready to hit the sack but if you can provide me with specific questions I can try my best to answer in the morning!

When I'm playing Elite I don't sit at my desk, I don't find it comfortable to use my hotas setup from a desk position, especially the pedals. This is my current flight setup to give you an idea of why a keyboard doesn't work so well: https://imgur.com/4z8nWRV Without a reference position for the keyboard, its not a reliable input method for me.

Of course I still use a keyboard for text input, but there are other issues with using keyboard buttons as shortcuts. The main difference between my controller and a keyboard is that Elite treats these inputs very differently. Any text box can steal focus on a keyboard key. If you're trying to perform an action and look at a text box while performing that action, there's a good chance you'll just start typing into that text box instead. That was one of the first changes I made, switching the cherry mx keys on the controller from "keyboard" to "joystick" inputs so that I don't have this issue any more. Of course since every key is programmable you could set them individually as joystick or keyboard keys, or as a macro key.


I'm going to switch from the current setup to a custom built solution using one of those cheap "racing car seats" on amazon so its easier to adjust recline and seat position: https://www.amazon.com/Reclinable-Type-7-Racing-Adjustable-Slider/dp/B0116D7DCW/ref=sr_1_49?keywords=racing+car+seat&qid=1567091518&s=gateway&sr=8-49


They sell full kits for hundreds of dollars more but I don't have any problem with building my own frame besides being busy with other stuff.

Very good now get yourself some of these and enjoy your chair felling like an actual Ship http://www.amazon.com/Dayton-Audio-TT25-8-Tactile-Transducer/dp/B009RGJ47S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417499778&sr=8-1&keywords=tactile+puck

Sure, VR keyboard would be nice. Huge waste of dev resourcing though I think. Just get a wireless keyboard and put it on a floating arm of your chair. Add some adhesive backed pads to select keys if the built in nubs aren't large enough for you to identify where you are placing your fingers by feel alone. You can get the pads for a couple dollars at any hardware store.

These are what I have attached to my ED chair. Simple, cheap, wireless mini keyboard mouse combo and a floating adjustable arm. Works perfectly.

keyboard

floating arm

ED chair with floating keyboard

I also ordered these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HM4QB0Y/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

They're supposed to be more resistant to soaking up sweat and are easily washable. They are thinner than the stock foam so supposedly get your eyes closer to the lenses. I actually did a quick test by just using my vive with the bare velcro. While it was super uncomfortable (of course) it indeed appears that getting closer to the lenses eliminates the edge blur. So I think these pads should improve things. I'll check back when I give them a try.

CH Products makes the most durable and reliable stuff based on my own experience and user reviews, but they're kinda ugly and expensive. If you're not down with the price of the CH stuff, the T-Flight by Thrustmaster is a really good value with decent functionality. The only thing that I didn't like about it was the annoying USB cable that ran between the throttle and joy stick when you separate the base. Saitek seems to have quality control issues, so I'd consider that a gamble at $250.

A few questions as a TrackIR user, entertaining the possibility of getting a rift.

I have an i7 cpu and geforce 1070 card.

A) Will it work out of box to get above frame rate features? or is there special stuff I have to install and configure?

B) In the past I heard about fuzziness, crap resolution. Is this resolved? Can I use default settings in "ultra" or are there must have settings that won't be enabled by default ?

Bb) Also I've customized the FOV a little for my 27" monitor, is this something I need to set back to default ?

c) I have a HOTAS setup + keyboard ... I can obviously feel my way around the stick and throttle without using my eyes, but I often have to glance down at my keyboard for a few keys I have bound for special things... Is this basically impossible with VR? I'm not sure I can bind everything I need to the buttons on my HOTAS set-up.

d) will the base $399 system be enough? or do I need to buy a sensor accessory for head tracking?
e.g. https://www.amazon.com/Oculus-Touch-Virtual-Reality-System-pc/dp/B073X8N1YW/

Orbweaver is a mini keyboard. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013P0HW7K

It has 30 programmable keys, plus a four-day thumb stick and two thumb buttons. I prefer it to a full keyboard because I can easily move my hand from the throttle to the Orbweaver without having to fumble for the right position.

This is the x56 Rhino I was looking at.

The Logitech X56 seems like the safer choice though.

TrackIR 5 This includes a clip that attaches to a hat that will use reflectors that track your head.

TrackIR 5 w/ TrackClip Pro This one includes the Trackclip pro which unlike the hat clip attaches to a headset and uses active IR LEDs as opposed to reflected light, it is slightly more accurate than the hat clip

X55 Rhino $200

X52 Pro $130

T-Flight HOTAS-X $50

HOTAS Warthog REALLY Expensive ~$400, one of the best sticks on the market, but you would also need to buy a set of Rudder pedals as this stick does not twist.

I have saitek a joystick that can be use with left hand, you can combine it with throttle from other joystic (i.e. x52)


http://www.amazon.com/Saitek-102989-Cyborg-Evo-Joystick/dp/B0000AW9P1

You can go old school and try to find a cyborg evo. It's a stick with an throttle built in and quite adjustable.

It has a z_rotation as well so you can do pitch, yaw, and roll all from the stick.

Plus you can use the software to program all of the functions you'd need to play.

The links if ur interested :)

[MSI GS60](MSI GS60 Ghost-242 15.6" SLIM GAMING LAPTOP NOTEBOOK GTX 965M i7-6700HQ 16GB 128GB SSD + 1TB WINDOWS 10 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AC40PL2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_3T.jyb0DR6B8D)

It's the same one that i have but $500 less
Got it from a local store :/

[cooling pad](Cooler Master NotePal X3 - Gaming Laptop Cooling Pad with 200mm Blue LED Fan https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0079T2KHG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_CZ.jyb2BDHDYB)



[Mictchz gaming mouse ](Mictchz 4800 DPI Optical USB Wired Professional Gaming Mouse Programmable 10 Buttons RGB Breathing LED Mice for mac PC (White) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EY13AXY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_h0.jybVTZ2XFG)


[Saitek x-56 rhino ](Saitek Pro X-56 Rhino H.O.T.A.S. Video Game Flight Controller for PC (SCB432210002/01/1) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CZTSS3O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_a1.jyb8486DM0)


[the x-56 is currently unavailable here's the x-55 ](Saitek Pro Flight X-55 Rhino H.O.T.A.S. (Hands on Throttle and Stick) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HHAIY72/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_K4.jybDDNTB75)

I do believe they're the same except the look

I just switched from a Saitek Cyborg EVO to the (Mad Katz) Saitek X-55 HOTAS and I cannot even begin to explain how amazing it is. It's pricey, but I plan on using it with Star Citizen (and also probably Xplane or FSX) in the future, so I considered it a $100 per game.

Its on Amazon

HOTAS mounts:

https://www.monstertech.de/en/product/joystick-hotas-table-mount/

On the cap is the reflectors for TrackIR5:

https://smile.amazon.com/TrackIr-5-Premium-Head-Tracking-Gaming/dp/B0029M6VKA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1492567143&sr=8-1&keywords=track+ir5+pro

If I was to upgrade from my x52 pro I would get the x-56

Rift incl Touch Controllers are 450€ in Germany
Oculus Rift + Touch Bundle https://www.amazon.de/dp/B073X8N1YW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_.siMzbA8MAHM1

http://www.amazon.com/TrackIr-Premium-Head-Tracking-Gaming-Pc/dp/B0029M6VKA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412263667&sr=8-1&keywords=trackir+pro

Welcome to Elite: Dangerous and the PC master race.

Button Mapping and Joystick configurations vary a lot between different commanders, but some things stay constant. Let's start with weapons and firing. You have two options for weapons (fire groups 1 and 2), and have the option to cycle firing modes to have different combinations of weapons and utilities. Example: I run cannons (fire group 2) and lasers (fire group 1) on my first grouping. Second grouping is my discovery scanner and FSD interdicter, etc. Primary fire is set to the trigger with my secondary being bound to (on your joystick F2. F3. or F4). I use the hat switch on the top for my directional thrusters (up, down, left, right).

In your case, you don't have too many buttons to work with so it's imperative you maximize your space and get as many things in the same place as possible. Even though the joystick I use has more buttons than yours, I still have to use my keyboard for various things that I don't use often or simply don't have room for. (http://www.amazon.com/Saitek-102989-Cyborg-Evo-Joystick/dp/B0000AW9P1/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1427377482&sr=1-1&keywords=saitek+cyborg+evo)

As far as the four buttons on the bottom of your stick goes, I would probably assign those to 'Deploy Hardpoints', Thruster Boost, Cargo Scoop, Frameshift Drive in whichever order suits you best.

For anything that I don't want to be bothered with using a button, I utilize a program called Voice Attack that converts voice commands to pre-defined button presses and mappings. For example, I can say 'max engines' and VA will automatically send 4 pips to engines. I like to use this format for many different commands because it does two things for me. If I need to focus on a dogfight and can't take my hands off the stick, I can make changes without losing focus. It also works well for functions you don't use often and, in my case, can't seem to remember the button for.

If you sent me some pictures of your setup I could possibly help you a little more, but I think everything previously mentioned should get you started.