Saitek X52 acting strange

[DmdFiat]

Hi. I got a new x52 and have been using it for a while. I love all the functions but for the life of me I can't seem to make it being jumpy.

1) When I close in a plane I can't keep the nose still ..and I'm very light on it.
2) Lately every sortie or so I have to recalibrate the thing otherwise it won't hold even the autopilot.

I haven't changed any setting on it lately with the exception of not using 'scaling'.
I've been using AH for years so I tried scaling, damping, deadband and giving also a "curved" look to the graph instead of a straight line.

Any suggestion??

Thanks.

[WarpigNJ]

Great news. I was going to buy this setup on the way home from work today.

Does anyone else experience this?

[Auger]

While I don't use the X52, I sometimes have the same nose bounce problems.  How to correct it:

• Auto-trim - I don't recommend it for general combat, but it works wonders for smoothing out the nose when you're closing in on a non-maneuvering target.  Also very handy for dive-bombing.
• Stick scaling - My pitch scaling is set at the very low end of the 10% slider, perhaps 5 or 10%.  It goes up in increasing amounts until it is about 90-95% on the 90% slider.
• Damping - This puts some delay in stick movement.  Play with different amounts until you find the sweet spot.
• Dead band - some sticks can be quite sensitive near the center position.  The dead band slider controls how much the stick has to move from the center position before it accepts the input.  Don't use too much or you'll have serious control problems.

Combining these should make any stick work better, unless there is a driver or mechanical issue.

[WarpigNJ]

Thanks Auger. If I have any issues tonight, I'll definitely put that info to good use.

[Krusty]

Check the "stutters" thread in the tech support forum. There's a new DX patch out that solves a lot of problems for DirectX itself. Might help, if this is a recent problem.

[DmdFiat]

I wanted to add to my original post.

During combat I constantly lose calibrations and not just a liittle. Can't even keep autopilot on. Some1 told me to "calibrate from windows" but since I installed teh SST software that option is gone in the control panel/game controls.

Any idea what can cause the loss of calibration so often?

[SKBG Seadog]

DamFiat,

           I had your problem. I found the rudder on the stick was shorting and sent it back to Saitek. There's been a problem with the rudder it seems. To find out go to your Windows Saitek setup and check calibration and see if the rudder is spiking.

[DmdFiat]

I looked at that yesterday and none of the axis is spiking. I wanted to calibrate form window but as mentioned after installing SST the calibration section desappeared in the control panel.
I'm starting to think it has something to do with my mapping of the zoom on the 'precision' slider. I'll take that out and see.
I'll look at it again.

Any idea where the calibration control went from the windows control panel/ game controllers ?

Thanks for the imput

[SKBG Seadog]

It's still there. But don't use the SST program when you do it. Also after you calibrate wait 5mins to see if it will spike. As time went on the worse it got for me. I thought it was the SST too. It was very suttle at first.

[OddCAF]

A common problem with sticks like the Saitek X52 is an inability to
draw sufficient power via the USB port. This can result in intermittent problems of all kinds.
  A cheap fix to this is to purchase a -powerd- USB hub. I had a Saitek X45 a couple of years back and this little item squared things right away.
 These days many items which used to be connected to the computer by way of special connectors now just use a USB cable. Thus, these and the addition of the Saitek may just be pulling more overall power than the USB power supply can provide.
  Hope this helps.

Regards, Odd

Originally posted by DmdFiat
Hi. I got a new x52 and have been using it for a while. I love all the functions but for the life of me I can't seem to make it being jumpy.

1) When I close in a plane I can't keep the nose still ..and I'm very light on it.
2) Lately every sortie or so I have to recalibrate the thing otherwise it won't hold even the autopilot.

I haven't changed any setting on it lately with the exception of not using 'scaling'.
I've been using AH for years so I tried scaling, damping, deadband and giving also a "curved" look to the graph instead of a straight line.

Any suggestion??

Thanks.

[DmdFiat]

Seadog, maybe I'm drunk as usual. Can you tell me where u find in your pc the calibration area in the control panel / game controllers / .... and which tab?
I'm looking at all the tabs of the saitek property, in the advanced and all but don't see the "calibrate" anymore.

Thanks!

[Eagler]

what OddCAF said .. I too promote a powered usb hub to insure adequate voltage to all of my usb devices

You should have a windows calibration window under control panel even if you have the saitek software installed.
You may want to try and uninstall the saitek software and see if you can find your windows game controller calibration window under control panel and go from there.

[SKBG Seadog]

That  is what I did. I reintalled the Saitek software without the STT from the Saitek web sight.  I just got my X52 back from Saitek. They sent me a new one.
About USB power. I run mine right from the comp. That should be enough power.

[38ruk]

Another thing to make sure of is , Open device manager , then find the usb hub that the X-52 is on , then click the power management tab and uncheck " Allow computer to turn off this device to save power " That might help the situation .

[OddCAF]

Hi guys,
   I'm off to grab a powered USB hub later today as mine is now
acting a bit squirrely. I know from firsthand experience with an X45 in the past that this is probably going to fix it, so I'm not sweating it.

  Eagler, I did try the USB power management within the Device Manager. Didn't know that option was in there. Thank you.

  Hey, I've also ordered a TrackIR setup. I've heard from several pilots in the MA and also read posts here in the forums which say it's a wonderful addition. I'm very much looking forward to giving it a whirl.

Be well, and good hunting.


Regards, Oddball