Review: Clubsport Pedals (vs T500 RS)

  • Thread starter LogiForce
  • 107 comments
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LogiForce
I started this thread to post my review, as the rest was more for discussion in general it seemed at the time.
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Apologies for straying off topic LogiForce, your review of the CSP is topnotch.

sandboxgod
Btw left888 I like that cockpit. What type of cockpit is that though? Interesting you're using the GT configuration. I would like to something similar to what you are doing which would allow me to easily switch out brakes. 👍

Also, why not toss up a review in this thread with your thoughts on CSP vs T500RS? Would be very cool to read. Hold nothing back. I think Logiforce started this thread so we could all share our thoughts I plan to do the samething
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Thanks for the compliment on the cockpit sandbox. I searched the net high and low looking at various rigs such as the Playseat and Obutto and a bunch more. My research led me to Zalem, a small company in Spain. I wanted to build my own rig given the assets I had at my disposal. Perhaps you missed the thread of my build at ISR, you can check it out Here.

As you can see in the pic of my rig the pedals are mounted and they are solid, in fact the whole rig is solid and I do mean solid. There is not an inch of flex anywhere. So with the T500 pedals mounted and no flex at all I just got use to them. When I used my CSP in the rig they tend to flop around when I use them. Again I have stated several times that I like them. Look at LogiForce's time with the T500 compared to the CSP's, not much difference. So ask yourself, is the extra money worth it over the T500's?
 
No worries, straying off topic happens all the time in fora. Just remember to get back on it at some point is all I'm saying. ;)

No flex? Sounds good to me. No wonder you got used to them indeed.
I did have more hours with my T500 RS pedals though then with the CSP's. I think I got at least a full weeks worth of time in my T500 RS pedals since I bought them 2 months ago. If not more that is, since I played GT5 everyday for at least 4 hours a day minimum.
Swapping to the CSP's made all the difference for me, since I was able to just really use that extra sensitivity of the magnetic sensors right away. I guess I have sensitive feet to pull that off? lol
Only problem is that they don't work with the T500 RS on the PS3 and I just love to play GT5. So I am stuck for now with the T500 RS pedals, but will use the CSP's when I play a PC racing game.

Good to see for Thrustmaster that Thomas isn't taking all the customers away from them though. haha
 
I do have GT5 for the PS3 and Forza 1,2,3,4 for the Xbox. I have a kick ass PC for iRacing, most of the Sim Bin titles, F1, Dirt 1,2,3 and just downloaded C.A.R.S. I also have a few other PC racers as well.

I have a Fanatec GT2 wheel to go along with the CSP as well. I have two sets of Thrustmaster T500's and we have 5 HD televisions, 3 are 55" and one is a 63". We have 3 PS3 and 3 copies of GT5 so we get 3 of us racing online together at the same time. I am going to build 2 more rigs for the mancave. :)
 
Wow... you have a lot! :P

I have GT4,5,PSP and no Forza games apart from Forza 4 demo. I got a list of titles that are in the poll 'sales pitch'.
I got an old Amiga 2000 with Hard Drivin on it. Which was my first racing (sim?) game. For the PC it was Indianapolis 500: The Simulation which came with the Soundblaster Pro soundcard. That was the first game of Papyrus (the same guys now behind iRacing).

My pc that I mentioned in the poll is heavy enough for all the upcoming titles. My dad's almost the same but has an old cpu that he wants to upgrade from. And then there is another pc that is my old computer, which is now in use by my mom. (also I still live at home due to personal circumstances, so please don't hold it against me everyone that I still do at 25 years of age)
Oh, and I also have a Mac Mini (old model with nvidia graphics card 9400gt).

The consoles I own are... Gameboy Pocket, NDS, SNES, PSP, PS2, PS3, Xbox, X360.
My dad also owns a PS3 with GT5 so I can play against him :P

We have two 32inch 1080p televisions here. I have all my consoles hooked up to mine, but my dad just uses a 23inch screen for his computer and PS3.

When it comes to mounting the wheels. My dad just has it mounted to his desk, and since I use tv/audio furniture, that my late grandpa made for me by hand a year before his death after he already had a stroke, for all my computers, consoles and tv. I use my moms knitting machine table still.
Which isn't bad as it's rock solid in sideways motions (even with the T500 RS at max), but I shouldn't push or pull on the wheel cause that's not that stable. And I can have my legs freely under the table. So yeah... up till now it was ideal.

I was thinking of getting me the Apiga AP2 or something else that was more stable or cheaper and also foldable for storage. But first I want to get that CSW off of Thomas's hands. lol
 
I have been looking at These rigs. For the price they look really decent. Although they are made in the US, it's a good deal for us in North America. My gaming goes back to the 70's when my Parents brought home a used game of Pong from a party the night before. I have had pretty much every console out there since that time. :) I have a 16 year old son who races occasionally, his game is Battlefield and version 3 comes out today. We have 5 or 6 PC's, can't even remember them all :D and I prefer to race on the PC, graphics are so much better. The PS3 and Xbox are dated but still very popular with the kids.

Once again you did a very good job on your Club Sport Pedal review, you have very good writing skills. Kudos for a job well done. 👍
 
Wife just called to let me know my Clubsports has just arrived. Can't wait to get home to hook up these bad boys 👍

Those rigs do look nice. Will it mount a T500RS?
 
Oh man I would be totally begging Thomas to overnight them if that happen

tick tock just watching the clock slowly go down :ill:
 
My 1st impressions

T500RS vs Clubsport Brakes

When I got home today I thought both the tuning kit + Clubsports had arrived. Turns out the extra box was my neighbor's package from Amazon. I emphasize this has nothing to do with Fanatec which has faithfully processed my order quickly and delivered a really solid kit. Anyway after running my package over to the neighbor I had to take care of the little ones, etc. So the suspense just builds up crazy.

Finally after the little ones are taken care of I go download the drivers, etc. Everything works quickly like a charm. I also quickly grabbed the iRacing plugin for the brake vibration.

Results

My time with the Mazda MX-5 Roadster on Lime Rock was 1.02.775s. It has been this way for many weeks now. In my despair, I complained to my friends on the iRacing forum here to collect advice and to receive encouragement. Unfortunately I have felt like I had plateaued and hit a brick wall. So resorted to only attending practice sessions for Road Racing and just recently started doing Ovals.

Anyway last week I decided to order these Clubsport Brakes after seeing this thread. To get to the point, within 9 laps I had already beaten my times (1.02.271) :dopey:

I am now hitting a low 1.02s consistently. With a little more practice I am certain I can get this down to a low, consistent 1.01s. And this isn't guesswork. The iRacing 'split view' tool has optimized my laps and as long as I can maintain control around the corners I should be hitting that within the next few days

Needless to say I am very impressed with my investment and eager to see what I can do on GT5, etc once I acquire a Fanatec wheel for more testing and practice.

I wish I could put my finger on what is making the biggest difference. I do not believe it is the brake vibration which is very soft. Due to my muscle memory (I am still coming to grips with this concept), I am already easily remembering how far brake lockup occurs (I am driving without ABS). This is really nuts guys I was literally just day dreaming while naturally hitting consistent laps and cheering out loud once the 'split tool' went green and I lowered my best times.

Next up I want to try this out with C.A.R.S., rFactor, etc. Not to mention there is some other road racing cars (like the Skip Barber) that I am eager to see how much I have improved with

I am both sad and excited. I am a little heartbroken because my T500RS pedals were so precious too me. But alas, the CSPs has already stolen my heart. I actually feel like I have a shot at becoming a competent road racing driver and I will be able to attend a lot more GTP conducted racing sessions with confidence and fine control

I don't know if it is the brakes or the gas technology. It must be a mix of both obviously because driving this sim car is smooth as butter.

Anyway, one of these days I might try to do a more in depth review (similar to InsideSimRacing approach) whereas after I have broken in my new equipment. Right now I am obviously in the honeymoon phase but the iRacing telemetry data does not lie. In just a few short minutes, I have made a big improvement 👍
 
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The Demo for C.A.R.S has come out? Can anyone try it, or only people who have invested in it? I'd like a link too, just so I can try it out, see how awesome it is.
 
Only investors can get the builds. You have to be at least a junior ($14 USD). I highly recommend it. Granted, I really liked Shift 2 however CARS is just on another level. They've really stepped it up

Btw, I switched to a different car and I'm getting strong brake vibration (its the Star Mazda in iRacing). So it is definitely kicking in when I am locking up my brakes. Man these things feel so good....
 
sandboxgod
Only investors can get the builds. You have to be at least a junior ($14 USD). I highly recommend it. Granted, I really liked Shift 2 however CARS is just on another level. They've really stepped it up

Btw, I switched to a different car and I'm getting strong brake vibration (its the Star Mazda in iRacing). So it is definitely kicking in when I am locking up my brakes. Man these things feel so good....
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Congratulations on the CSP Sandbox, here's a suggestion, give them a month then go back to the T500's and see if your times are any different. :) BTW did they ship a ps2 to ps2 cable with your order?

I invested in C.A.R.S. last night as a "team member", I am liking it so far. Mind you it is only "Alpha" with a long ways to go.
 
sandboxgod
Only investors can get the builds. You have to be at least a junior ($14 USD). I highly recommend it. Granted, I really liked Shift 2 however CARS is just on another level. They've really stepped it up

Btw, I switched to a different car and I'm getting strong brake vibration (its the Star Mazda in iRacing). So it is definitely kicking in when I am locking up my brakes. Man these things feel so good....
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How would one compare it towards iRacing?

Also how long do we have before they stop doing the builds? I'm wondering this because I may have to add this to my wish list, along with iRacing.
 
scoddee
Yes it does.

Scotty
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I figured that out recently as well. Forgot to update the review.:ouch:


sandboxgod
My 1st impressions

T500RS vs Clubsport Brakes

When I got home today I thought both the tuning kit + Clubsports had arrived. Turns out the extra box was my neighbor's package from Amazon. I emphasize this has nothing to do with Fanatec which has faithfully processed my order quickly and delivered a really solid kit. Anyway after running my package over to the neighbor I had to take care of the little ones, etc. So the suspense just builds up crazy.

Finally after the little ones are taken care of I go download the drivers, etc. Everything works quickly like a charm. I also quickly grabbed the iRacing plugin for the brake vibration.

Results

My time with the Mazda MX-5 Roadster on Lime Rock was 1.02.775s. It has been this way for many weeks now. In my despair, I complained to my friends on the iRacing forum here to collect advice and to receive encouragement. Unfortunately I have felt like I had plateaued and hit a brick wall. So resorted to only attending practice sessions for Road Racing and just recently started doing Ovals.

Anyway last week I decided to order these Clubsport Brakes after seeing this thread. To get to the point, within 9 laps I had already beaten my times (1.02.271) :dopey:

I am now hitting a low 1.02s consistently. With a little more practice I am certain I can get this down to a low, consistent 1.01s. And this isn't guesswork. The iRacing 'split view' tool has optimized my laps and as long as I can maintain control around the corners I should be hitting that within the next few days

Needless to say I am very impressed with my investment and eager to see what I can do on GT5, etc once I acquire a Fanatec wheel for more testing and practice.

I wish I could put my finger on what is making the biggest difference. I do not believe it is the brake vibration which is very soft. Due to my muscle memory (I am still coming to grips with this concept), I am already easily remembering how far brake lockup occurs (I am driving without ABS). This is really nuts guys I was literally just day dreaming while naturally hitting consistent laps and cheering out loud once the 'split tool' went green and I lowered my best times.

Next up I want to try this out with C.A.R.S., rFactor, etc. Not to mention there is some other road racing cars (like the Skip Barber) that I am eager to see how much I have improved with

I am both sad and excited. I am a little heartbroken because my T500RS pedals were so precious too me. But alas, the CSPs has already stolen my heart. I actually feel like I have a shot at becoming a competent road racing driver and I will be able to attend a lot more GTP conducted racing sessions with confidence and fine control

I don't know if it is the brakes or the gas technology. It must be a mix of both obviously because driving this sim car is smooth as butter.

Anyway, one of these days I might try to do a more in depth review (similar to InsideSimRacing approach) whereas after I have broken in my new equipment. Right now I am obviously in the honeymoon phase but the iRacing telemetry data does not lie. In just a few short minutes, I have made a big improvement 👍
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Totally missed your first impressions. But a wonderful read!
I am glad I haven't given you bad impressions of them as you seem to come to more or less the same conclusions I have.
Also well done on improving your times. I also felt like you did about my T500 RS pedals. When I switched back I felt the lack in gas control very much even though different games were used. Have you switched back to the T500 RS pedals just for comparison?

I will be eager to see and hear more of your impressions in the future. ^_^

Again congrats on the purchase and times. I hope the Tuning Kit arrives soon as well.
 
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Later tonight I plan to switch back to the T500RS pedals and compare some more.

Congratulations on the CSP Sandbox, here's a suggestion, give them a month then go back to the T500's and see if your times are any different. BTW did they ship a ps2 to ps2 cable with your order?

I invested in C.A.R.S. last night as a "team member", I am liking it so far. Mind you it is only "Alpha" with a long ways to go.
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Yep they shipped all my cables it appear, etc. I'll make sure to spend more time comparing it to my T500RS pedals.

How would one compare it towards iRacing?

Also how long do we have before they stop doing the builds? I'm wondering this because I may have to add this to my wish list, along with iRacing.
Click to expand...

Well..... CARS is really great so far but it is missing online play atm. That's the main thing iRacing excels at. One never has to practice alone. I feel much more connected to my car in iRacing as one might expect. This is due to being able to see my wheel perfectly match up to the in game wheel. I am going to upgrade to "team member" and make sure I make them aware of that. edit- you dont have to be a higher status to communicate bugs, etc btw. I just want the latest build. I'm a build or 2 behind already

To get to the point, iRacing is still superior due to the maturity and realism. CARS gets the nod for better graphics. However, the suspension in CARS feels much more alive and vibrant. In comparison, the cars in iRacing is not there. Sounds in CARS, like in Shift 2, is great already. iRacing & rFactor (but Rfactor varies from mod to mod) are inferior too me. I dont even bother going surround sound with iRacing. But CARS- to play it right you turn it up. Like Shift 2, it has all the immersion in place.

They will be redoing the wheel handling to eliminate 'input lag'. This is the disconnect most of us feel. But unlike the pc sims in CARS I can use my wheel to traverse the menus. I know it sounds trivial but I adore this feature.

Right now its just not possible to fully compare it to iRacing due to the Alpha state.
 
left888
Don't get me wrong, I like the CSP and if you can tweak them just right they should be fine. Or perhaps the $50 pedal kit might make the difference. It might be that I used the T500 pedals for awhile before the CSP arrived and just got more comfortable with them, I have them reverse mounted in my custom rig. The CSP tend to flop around because they are not secured.

It has been awhile since I have been at the iRacing forum, but there was a thread where folks were complaining about Fanatecs poor service and a few others who had T500 pedals said the same thing as I did, "we are faster with the T500'S".

pedals.jpg
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What is the name of that cockpit? I so hate these cockpits with a steelbar between the legs, I already have a bar sticking out between my legs since I was born.
 
Simmpa
What is the name of that cockpit? I so hate these cockpits with a steelbar between the legs, I already have a bar sticking out between my legs since I was born.
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Look at the first post of page 4 by left888, Simmpa. ;)
 
Simmpa
What is the name of that cockpit? I so hate these cockpits with a steelbar between the legs, I already have a bar sticking out between my legs since I was born.
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Ya, as LogiForce mentioned it is custom made, I made it. I too do not like the rigs with bars in the middle.
 
Yeah, to me driving with a bar in between my legs would feel like driving with a steering lock attached. You know, the ones that hook to the wheel and the braking pedal (or was it the gas pedal... oh well).

like this...
Steering-Wheel-to-Pedal-Lock-OKL6020-.jpg
 
So tonight I decided to go back to my T500RS pedals cause I miss their big, bulky metal feeling (plus I have them inverted which is what I'm used to in real life)

iRacing - Riley Mkxx Daytona Prototype (my times on this week's course was Daytona and admit I am still new to this car by far)

CSPs - bout 1.48
T500RS pedals - 1.47

Jury is still out for me. The CSPs are more advanced for sure however their 'base' where I rest my feet is actually small too me. T500rs has a larger base. atm my feet rest more comfortable on it. Has anyone extended this small 'foot rest' section on the CSPs?

Pretty tough to compare these two great pedals. CSPs has the brake vibration though which is a great learning tool during practice on road courses. Will take me more time to compare....
 
sandboxgod
So tonight I decided to go back to my T500RS pedals cause I miss their big, bulky metal feeling (plus I have them inverted which is what I'm used to in real life)

iRacing - Riley Mkxx Daytona Prototype (my times on this week's course was Daytona and admit I am still new to this car by far)

CSPs - bout 1.48
T500RS pedals - 1.47

Jury is still out for me. The CSPs are more advanced for sure however their 'base' where I rest my feet is actually small too me. T500rs has a larger base. atm my feet rest more comfortable on it. Has anyone extended this small 'foot rest' section on the CSPs?

Pretty tough to compare these two great pedals. CSPs has the brake vibration though which is a great learning tool during practice on road courses. Will take me more time to compare....
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I totally approve of your testing and will be doing the same with the CSRE / CSP. Its one thing to consider hardware or technical specs between products and base a decision on which is best from that viewpoint.

In real playtesting however more comes into it, the feel/comfort you get with each may differ and I think that comfort brings confidence or helps, however its always subjective to each individiual.

What your saying is your not getting the advantage with the "Load Cell" that people tend to assume is just better or in "ISR" previous reports deemed a big advantage?

Keep at the testing, its interesting to read though I think part of what your experiencing is familularity of one over the other and maybe more time with the CSP will reap better results.
 
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sandboxgod
Jury is still out for me. The CSPs are more advanced for sure however their 'base' where I rest my feet is actually small too me.
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This is why I felt it imperative to hard mount both pedal sets and reverse mount them, otherwise they rock all over the place.
 
Well I just tested some more with the CSPs tonight and hit 1.44s in an online practice session (Riley Mkxx on Daytona still). This is a big improvement over the 1.47s I was hitting last night with the T500rs pedals. However, I am finding it hard to gather conclusive data due to my skills as a Road driver rapidly increasing as I learn this track and the limits of this car more & more.

I have now adjusted to just keeping my left foot hovering over the brake. Perhaps I should've just done this all along. The T500rs pedals were so big they allowed me to be lazy and just rest them near by

Ergonomically, I still would give the T500rs pedals the nod. I always took it for granted how comfortable they are. Plus, it includes lots of gadgets to tweak the stiffness of the brakes. Additionally, it is bloody easy to invert w/o the need of additional tools.

However they are edged out by the CSPs. The brake vibration is just simply brilliant and is almost like cheating. In just a few short days of use I feel I have been properly trained to fully comprehend driving without ABS. The CSPs brakes are just more precise too when they are plugged in directly via USB (looking at the calibration data in iRacing the step values are extremely precise). Lastly, all of these pedals just feel so light and smooth. While driving my sim car I just feel much more immersed and engaged.

I never could quite vibe right with the T500rs pedals w/o ABS personally. But with these CSPs it just makes driving without it very easy and trivial

I still think these T500rs pedals are worth bout $100+ brand new however these CSPs are just in another class, being worth every penny

When I go to do a Qualify event, etc these are the pedals I want to bring with me because I feel much more confident. And if I lose concentration and press the brakes a little too far the brake vibration kicks in as well. But honestly after a bit of practice I find myself needing it less and less

This was the best $200 I could've spent by a long mile I am thinking. For any other Thurstmaster owner that primarily plays on PC I would highly recommend getting these bad boys 👍
 
sandboxgod
Well I just tested some more with the CSPs tonight and hit 1.44s in an online practice session (Riley Mkxx on Daytona still). This is a big improvement over the 1.47s I was hitting last night with the T500rs pedals. However, I am finding it hard to gather conclusive data due to my skills as a Road driver rapidly increasing as I learn this track and the limits of this car more & more.

I have now adjusted to just keeping my left foot hovering over the brake. Perhaps I should've just done this all along. The T500rs pedals were so big they allowed me to be lazy and just rest them near by

Ergonomically, I still would give the T500rs pedals the nod. I always took it for granted how comfortable they are. Plus, it includes lots of gadgets to tweak the stiffness of the brakes. Additionally, it is bloody easy to invert w/o the need of additional tools.

However they are edged out by the CSPs. The brake vibration is just simply brilliant and is almost like cheating. In just a few short days of use I feel I have been properly trained to fully comprehend driving without ABS. The CSPs brakes are just more precise too when they are plugged in directly via USB (looking at the calibration data in iRacing the step values are extremely precise). Lastly, all of these pedals just feel so light and smooth. While driving my sim car I just feel much more immersed and engaged.

I never could quite vibe right with the T500rs pedals w/o ABS personally. But with these CSPs it just makes driving without it very easy and trivial

I still think these T500rs pedals are worth bout $100+ brand new however these CSPs are just in another class, being worth every penny

When I go to do a Qualify event, etc these are the pedals I want to bring with me because I feel much more confident. And if I lose concentration and press the brakes a little too far the brake vibration kicks in as well. But honestly after a bit of practice I find myself needing it less and less

This was the best $200 I could've spent by a long mile I am thinking. For any other Thurstmaster owner that primarily plays on PC I would highly recommend getting these bad boys 👍
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Wow. Nice write up of your experience!
I wonder if you would be able to hit those times being not so lazy with the left foot on the brakes of the T500 pedals.
I am glad I wasn't talking out of my behind when reviewing and recommending these.
I am also happy to see another guy happy with these knowing I pulled him across the line. Ghehe

Congrats with the pedals and huge improvement. I'll try the vibration thing in iRacing tomorrow as well.

👍
 
Not sure how to word it properly but my belief is that the T500rs pedals can be used to acquire fast laps. However, the CSPs can get someone to their goal with much less ramp up. The extra precision (when plugged in via USB), brake vibration, load cells, etc all combine to make sim car driving a fluid experience. I actually feel like I'm using professional simulator equipment full force now. Before I was slightly missing that full experience.

These CSPs for sure stole their way into my heart. :dopey:

* Like yourself, I am puzzled why Thrustmaster choose to go with pots. But in every other area these pedals are still very sweet. They just simply come in second to the CSPs. We just have to conclude their research budget went into the wheel rather than the brakes. The brakes are more than "good enough" for average use though.
 

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