Ok guys, I've had this thing a while now and have somewhat adjusted to it. Her's my evaluation of some of the pros and cons:
Negatives:
a) No two position trigger like the X52. I miss that feature, especially when flying a plane with limited cannon rounds.
b) Throttle has too much resistance, even with the tensioner loosened fully. This seems to be getting better with use.
c) I still sometimes get that "don't move your controls so rapidly" or whatever during saddle-ups when I'm really moving the controls to keep the six. this is frustrating as h3ll. HELP...anyone have suggestions? I could understand it if I were stick stirring but thats not the case. Maybe Skuzzy can help...HE knows everything
This is the most significant issue I've had with the stick.
d) Stick ergonomics are less than ideal. My hands are reasonably large but it still took time to adjust. It's a bit of a stretch to the 8 way hat switch. I wouldn't let this influence a buy/no buy decision though. You'll get accustomed to it.
Positives:
a) Plenty of hat switches and buttons. It's truly a HOTAS stick. I still have switches left that need programming.
b) This is a GV'ers dream stick (and thats an understatement). Shot precision and placement are so much better than with my old X52! It was very apparent from the first GV sortie that the long range zoom in shots are no longer a product of luck. If you like to GV, you won't be disappointed. This holds true for air to air shooting also. It won't make you a deadeye marksman (I know cuz my marksmanship sux) but it will improve your shooting too a degree.
c) Force setting is adjustable in flight. I experimented with it at first but I now keep mine on F3 which is second adjustment up from lightest. You can also set y axis and x axis separately in the Saitek software.
d) Overall quality of the stick appears very good. I calibrate it occasionally but it really doesn't need it. It never jumps calibration like my X52 did.
One other obvious quality I'd comment on is the fact that the stick doesnt move. I wouldn't classify that as positive or negative but it will take a bit of time to re-learn how much force is required to yield a given control surface deflection. There's no tactile feedback like you get with a conventional stick.
In summary, my old X52 is sitting in a box in a closet and that's where it's going to stay. I'm liking the way this stick handles more every day!
Dan
