Tribute Cockpit

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volley

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Finally made some progress on a tribute cockpit I was planning on for friend who died suddenly. Sold both of our playseat evolutions and G25s to build something hopefully better. Here is the result...

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I have it paired up with a 50" Panasonic 3D Plasma. Looking to add the tactile transducers next. Anyone use the Sonic Immersion VT200 IBEAM Transducer? I currently used Aura bass shakers but am looking for some higher frequency as GT5 doesn't have much bass in the engine noise. Still trying to figure out the full audio hookups. Want to do 7.1 with maybe triple bass shakers. Don't know yet about placement and any attachment to the frame/seat. Taking my time to try and do it right.

Was contemplating getting the red edging to go into the frame of the 80/20 to mirror the red fabric of the backrest. Will probably change the bottom middle seat cushion to a red one as well. The kids want red glow wire in the frame...hmm...might have to dissapoint them on that...will see. Let me know any honest opinions on the project please! Really would like to make this as good as I can.
 
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sorry to hear about your friend volley, but nice you have something of huge sentimental value and something in memory of him.

so far it looks awesome! bit more red in it would look nice too imo, can you post a few more pics from various angles to we get a good look at it?

and you defo wanna stick some neon glow red around the bottom 👍 lol j/k
 
Will take some more tomorrow. Couple angles for you that I already took. What do you think about speaker placement?

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This was from a game night back in November...had another chair going on the big screen in the theater to the right. Good times. But as you can see we had mounted the surrounds directly to the chair which was nice for transporting them. This one will stay put.

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Yep, some minor updates. Got the dual Buttkicker Mini LFEs in off of the multi-out of the PS3 into a separate old amp. Trying to figure out what to do about some of the higher level reverb from attaching them to the aluminum frame instead of directly to the seat. They are mounted onto the frame below the seat as seen here with the backplate removed...

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The stereo effect is another level above the single thump of an LFE channel. Adds to the realism of the sim very well. Does well with the actual game but with music in the menus and during playback it buzzes on some of the higher tones. Might call for some simplistic EQ to get rid of the higher freqs or placement elsewhere than the metal frame.

Also missing some of the direct thump my old seat had so I am going to mount an LFE channel Aura Bass Shaker Pro to the seat :scared: Mr. Latte said drilling was easy and has not produced any cracks in his testing yet. Still scared but think it really needs the direct oomph being attached to the seat. Will continue to play around with the placement.

I want to get the tactile done before I tackle the final audio. Thinking about a set of Mirage Nanosat speakers for the surround to match up to the AR-1s that are giong to be the final L/C/R speakers. Center channel is already in as you can see in the pic.

Love the plasma though. It is fantastic and makes driving in cockpit view very real for me. 50" is definitely not too big. :dopey:

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Nice work on the "Mini LFE" installation.
Liking that nice Plasma too mate, looks perfect size/distance for full peripheral.

Glad your finding the recommendations are good so far.
Haa, this tactile stuff is starting to catch on.👍

On my own setup Im going to try some rubber/sponge type material to help with the tactile thats direct on metal, similar issue to what your also finding.

Ive seen nice ipad/laptop covers made of that type of material in £1 discount stores here in the UK. So Im sure you guys in USA/Canada and anywhere else have similar discount stores and items.

Had planned cutting one of those and try it to absorb the tactile and minimise the reverb.
Worth a try and if no use then will revert to getting more rubber isolators, although rubber doorstoppers may even be suitable.

For drilling start with a small bit and then use a bigger one. A wood bit will be fine.
My seat was very easy to drill requiring very little effort and just a bit of care when doing it.
 
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Thanks for all the help Mr. Latte!

Actually decided to change it up a bit. The Mini ButtKickers fit perfectly into the 80/20 15 series frame. They do seem more accurate than the Aura Bass Shakers.

However with my setup and personal tastes :dunce: I just like the Aura Pros better directly on the sides and back of the seat. Drilled them last night. So 3 Aura Pro's right now. All chair mounted. Left bolster, center back, and right bolster. Nice low profile too so they are noticeable, but don't really stick out and make it look poorly designed. I want to keep it fairly streamlined.

Moved the Mini's to the front by the wheel support so I feel them in my feet and through the wheel. Currently they just match the side Bass shakers with L/R stereo. It may lead to more of Mr. Latte's design of having a 5.1 or 7.1 tactile surround. It's just too addictive! You keep on adding a little bit more realism at each step...:drool: Plus Parts Express is just a 30 minute drive during lunch. 👍

Will get some more photos tonight if I can.

FYI, the seat was a knock-off seat that I got through Sonic Motors cheap! Still getting the fabric swapped out to red for the seat cushion and designing a custom logo for it. Will have to get a good pic without flash to really show the seat colors well.
 
Excellent, your doing the right thing by trying different things and positions.
Try one of your tactile on the CENTRE channel at the back of the T500 pedals and feel how it also further adds to the immersion.

Glad your finding it's not a crazy thing to do but as you put it rather addictive. One of the issues is keeping the whole lot under control and well balanced with various games. Cars in GT5 vary lots but I'd recommend the Nissan GTR as a good one to test with.
Look forward to your latest images.
 
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Mr Latte
Excellent, your doing the right thing by trying different things and positions.
Try one of your tactile on the CENTRE channel at the back of the T500 pedals and feel how it also further adds to the immersion.

Glad your finding it's not a crazy thing to do but as you put it rather addictive. One of the issues is keeping the whole lot under control and well balanced with various games. Cars in GT5 vary lots but I'd recommend the Nissan GTR as a good one to test with.
Look forward to your latest images.
Click to expand...

Funny you say that, just ran the GTR last night. That one was fun. 👍 Combine that with the Special Stage tracks hitting the expansion joints :crazy:

Really struggled getting everything balanced as I am running the L/R off of the multi-out and have complete separate controls but the LFE as part of the main receiver and therefore changes depending on the volume of the audio. But overall running off of the multi-out L/R really added a lot instead of just going off of the LFE track like I always had. Highly recomment this as an upgrade to just a single bass shaker. Even if you just want to stop at L/R. I just wanted to get more of a whole cockpit impact which is why I added something to the back.

Think I am good now with the levels but can see this as an issue switching between games. GT5 just kind of stinks with its limited use of an LFE track. I pumped up the subwoofer level on the receiver, turned down the gain on the subwoofer itself, and turned down the other speaker channels on the receiver. This way I am always over powering the bass shaker and can control it directly. This thing really shakes the heck out of you when you hit the wall! :ouch: But you can still very readily tell which direction it came from as it is hitting the sides of your legs too.

Here is the current Aura Pro's. Couldn't get a clear shot of the Buttkickers as they are down by my feet.

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My rig is built out of 80/20 as well. Did you paint yours? I thought of painting mine but sadly I would scratch it up because I move mine everytime I'm not using it.

I do have a couple of questions though how high up do your pedals sit from the area your feet rest and what angle is the plate in which your pedals are mounted to?
 
trk29
My rig is built out of 80/20 as well. Did you paint yours? I thought of painting mine but sadly I would scratch it up because I move mine everytime I'm not using it.

I do have a couple of questions though how high up do your pedals sit from the area your feet rest and what angle is the plate in which your pedals are mounted to?
Click to expand...

Yep, I used 80/20 15 series pieces. Did an aluminum primer and then a Rustoleum Pro black paint and it turned out fantastic. Very smooth and actually very scratch resistant. You could also have the manufacturer annodize it black, but that would also significantly increase the price.

The seat base is 3" higher than the pedal plate plus the brackets for the seat itself. The pedals are the stock inverted T500 pedals sitting flat on the pedal plate. No additional angle in the support at all and the pedal plate has a neoprene rubber strip that holds the pedals in place through friction alone. This was they pedals can move forward when my kids drive. I found it a very comfortable and a natural seating position. I was surprised with how deep the seat is. I know that is what they called it, but you do really site back and down into it.
 

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