Driving Simulator..The Story So Far

  • Thread starter Thread starter MrF1
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MrF1

MrF1

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Australia
Australia
Hi All,

Wanted to share my sim builds as its finally starting to take shape. Hopefully inspire some people to build there own.
Its been 18 months for me to get to this point from when i started with a $35 logitech system off of Gumtree..

RIG1:
-Custom Rig. Adjustable peddle and shifter base.
T500RS GT WHEEL/AND F1 WHEEL
T3PA Pedals
TH8A Shifter
32" LED LCD Screen
PS3/ PS4
Bride Racing Seat
Samsung HUD Dash
Astro A40Headphones

RIG2: (For Sale- Vic Australia)

-Custom Rig. Adjustable peddle base with triple screen mounts (removable) and shifter base.
-Bride Race Seat and rails.
-Logitech GT wheels/pedals.
-32" LED HD TV.
-Strip Light LED and switch RGB.
-PS3.



Ive played around with different driving positions. Ive sat in Off The Shelf driving rigs and wanted a balance between comfort and feel. Id describe this seating position as something between GT and F1. Its incredibly confortable and amazing to drive

Materials consist of Timber and steel.


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also note that the pedal mounts are adjustable and so is the seating position (for and aft).

Ive seated 6ft guys and 6year old kids in this. Which is a cresit to the versatility of it.

Should i ever sell it in the future its a rig that can suit anyone
 
Great example of what people should seriously consider doing instead of buying something "off the shelf".

The monitor mount is completely separate? It looks like you could do with lowering the screen(s) a bit, and bringing it/them much closer. At that distance, a correct field of view will be quite limiting. Getting it right though, when it all locks in to place with real world positioning, it's a beautiful thing.

Turtle Beach don't make particularly good headphones, but from what I understand their surround decoders are cheap and effective. Buying one separately, you'd be able to use any headphones with one. An Astro mixamp is a step up in both quality and price. Also, running PS3(s), you can have multi audio output (optical, hdmi, rca), so it might be fun to shove a powered sub under that seat, connected via rca leads.
 
Thanks LeMansAid.

Still lots to do and yeah still not sure if the screens are in the right spot. Playing at the moment with just the one 32" it seems ok. But after the other 32s go on things will change for sure.

The monitor mount was purchased yes. I did look at building one but then i found this at SELBYS going dirt cheap so i got that and have modified it a bit to suit my rig. This is ongoing at the moment.

As far as headphones and audio cables etc go its all new to me. I went to plug my headphones in this tv and couldnt find an AUX jack. Took a while before i realised the optical outlet was what i was after haha.
I'll have a look at what youve reccomended there.
Headphones are my primary use but id love to put a nice sound system into the seats as you mentioned and take it further..so the mix amp sounds good
 
Update.

ive dropped the screen 100mm and put a couple of blinkers in the side while i wait for the 32" screens.
I dont feel the screen needs to come closer at this stage


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Second 32" fitted. Not yet set to final location as i have to play with the frame a bit and also bring screens toward drivers seat
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Checking through the posts again, I'm not sure that you ever stated if you are switching to pc gaming, or going to run triples on PS3 x 3.

I think you'd be shocked at how close the ideal distance is for screens. Here's a video that a lot of people reference for how to do it right.....



For forethought - It appears that GT5/6 do proper rendering of all three screens. Assetto Corsa, iRacing and rFactor do on pc, but currently Project Cars and R3E do not. With "proper rendering" I'm talking about having each screen adjustable in game so that they have realistic perspective, and are not distorted. There's a trade off, because having the screens close, and the peripherals at 45 degrees is the best for the optimum experience, but the games that do not support separate rendering will look worse, perspective wise. Apparently it's on the "to do" list for PCARS though.

Anyway, all the best for the final bits.
 
LeMansAid
Checking through the posts again, I'm not sure that you ever stated if you are switching to pc gaming, or going to run triples on PS3 x 3.

I think you'd be shocked at how close the ideal distance is for screens. Here's a video that a lot of people reference for how to do it right.....



For forethought - It appears that GT5/6 do proper rendering of all three screens. Assetto Corsa, iRacing and rFactor do on pc, but currently Project Cars and R3E do not. With "proper rendering" I'm talking about having each screen adjustable in game so that they have realistic perspective, and are not distorted. There's a trade off, because having the screens close, and the peripherals at 45 degrees is the best for the optimum experience, but the games that do not support separate rendering will look worse, perspective wise. Apparently it's on the "to do" list for PCARS though.

Anyway, all the best for the final bits.
Click to expand...



Thanks mate. Will take note.
Most things are adjustable and the screens are the same. At this stage if will be running on PS3 until i can build a PC. I beleive i will need to run x3 PS3s. So will collect a few in coming weeks.

I managed to move the screens tonight. Required some timber work to the rig but got it done.
some minor adjustments to follow once i have the 3rd screen up.
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Yep, that's looking the business. See, when they are too far away, there's a tendency to still want to see a whole heap of the car's interior. Trouble is that it means people often end up setting a completely unrealistic field of view.

My eyes are at around a metre from 42 inch screens and I still have to make sacrifices I wish I didn't have to in regards to dials, mirrors n' stuff. The sacrifices are worth it though for the "being there" feeling, and the intuitive judging of distances and positioning on track.
 
Very nice rig. I like it a lot.

I agree with getting the screen/screens as close as possible. I have a 28" 4K monitor and it is mounted just touching the back of my wheel.
 
was late time i finished this bit tonight and had a quick few laps on GT6. Having brought the screen closer i found myself under braking and missing my brake points on a track i know very well. so will need to re adjust my perspectives.

i think after watching the above video i could bring them closer still. so may play with it again this week.
 
MrF1
was late time i finished this bit tonight and had a quick few laps on GT6. Having brought the screen closer i found myself under braking and missing my brake points on a track i know very well. so will need to re adjust my perspectives.

i think after watching the above video i could bring them closer still. so may play with it again this week.
Click to expand...
In GT6 it is possible to activate triple screen mode even when not using three screens. Doing that, there should be a whole heap of changeable values to get the FOV right, and the virtual eye position aligning with your real one. Otherwise your stuck hoping that the default one does the trick. It will still feel as little strange, A) because you're not used to it, and B) because you'll only have one screen. Can't remember if it's possible to remove virtual hands and wheel or not in GT, but I certainly do that on the sims I run on pc.

Little things become all the more crucial too. Personally, once I have the real steering wheel feeling locked in as part of the virtual car, I hate having anything aside from extremely minimal movement of the car independent of the wheel (and scenery). It's very distracting if the car is bobbing up and down over curbs while my wheel is dead still (ie. it should be the scenery moving down rather than the car moving up). A sim like Assetto Corsa with it's sliders for how car movement works has glorious possibilities in this department.

You will have a killer set up in the end.
 
Hey Guys n Gals,

its time to rock out on a PC and take my gaming to the next level.
Besides owning a lap top for work and play i have a basic understanding of PCs. But i learn quickly. Ive YouTubed and searched.
What i want to know is:
What will i need as a MINIMUM to build a gaming PC?. Must run my 3 screens and be the next level gaming system since i won't invest in a PS4 if i build this.
Case
Power Supply
Cooling
Memory
Processor
graphics

Whats what and what should i be getting ad a minimum.
 
People are generally fairly giving of their time and advice down in the Computers And Technology section of this forum. It may be worth starting a thread there.
 
thanks LeMansAid. Your a very helpful chap.

I did do a search but couldnt turn anything up..

might browse through again before i start a new topic.
 
got these bad boys last night.. what a dream to play with. My experience just went from 60 to 100.

who else uses Astro A40s?
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If you missed it in your pc build thread though...... A lot of motherboards are Dolby Digital Live capable (what you need for a mixamp), but have it locked by default. Without a hacked driver, your pc may only create virtual surround from 2 rather than 6 channels of audio.

I have a couple of Astro mixamps (the old and the new ones both have their pros and cons), but not the headset. I run Audio Technica AD900X headphones instead, and have a standalone mic added.
 
That seat is awesome. What model is it and where did you get it?
 
Hahahaha, I was hoping it was a knock off, no such luck.

Thanks guys.
 
Hey MrF1

Super nice, simple design and tidy. The seat looks mega and bet its comfy, congrats really classy. Im a sucker for the black and red stitching look too.;)

Recommend you check out the "Phillips Hue" range for advanced control of lighting if you like that ambiance. Lots of 3rd party apps give great control over the "Hue LED or Bulb" ranges. Well I found them to be much better than previous LED cheapo light kits I had before.
 
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I found the light better when actually not seeing the LED's themselves, just their illumination reflect onto other surfaces. Below is an example of 1 Hue LED light-strip working with the Ambilight of the TV with PS4 dashboard.

Feel free to ask or PM if you have other questions.




Some of the Android apps are:
Hue (phillips own)
Huey
Hue Magic
Hue Disco
Ambieye
 
you cant see the LED from the driving position


your rig looks familiar to mine in those pics.
Have u upgraded the brake with a load cell?
 
MrF1
you cant see the LED from the driving position


your rig looks familiar to mine in those pics.
Have u upgraded the brake with a load cell?
Click to expand...


Ahhh okay...

The pedals are standard with just different pedal plates. I have a lot more to do to my build yet too. Its a WIP and a bit experimental. If I had the funds now, I would go with these as they work on PC and Console.

Short term I am for modding the pedals removing them from their surround and will build a whole new base and mounts for them to operate better with tactile. I may even do away with the clutch as never really use it.

What happened your triple monitors?
 
Mr Latte
Ahhh okay...

The pedals are standard with just different pedal plates. I have a lot more to do to my build yet too. Its a WIP and a bit experimental. If I had the funds now, I would go with these as they work on PC and Console.

Short term I am for modding the pedals removing them from their surround and will build a whole new base and mounts for them to operate better with tactile. I may even do away with the clutch as never really use it.

What happened your triple monitors?
Click to expand...


i have 2 rigs. both near identical.

The other one had the screen stand to take the triple screens.
Im making some changes to that rig. Its in the shed in pieces.

As far as 'running' triples..
Its too hard. i cant commit to buying a PC when i really only play 2 or 3 games.
Maybe later in the future. I have some friends with hotted up PCs who have said theyd sell to me in a year or 2 two when they upgrade.
so we will see..

(pic of both rigs running GT6 online)

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