Another vote for the honeycomb yoke - just upgraded and never looked back as it is so well built and stable. The elevator axis has good resistance and the Yoke turns 180 each way so that in my view makes it much more realistic. As the video says, you will still need the separate throttle quadrant until the Bravo yoke comes out later in the year. The software for the Honeycomb is also not so intuitive in my view for Prepar3d - though pretty much plug and play for Xplane. On the sims I would personally say Prepar3d for VR flying and Xplane for full screen sims...
The most bang for your buck without a doubt is the honeycomb. Also should be noted, that honeycomb is working on a throttle quadrant due this year 2020, and it does look very good and very versatile. It's funny that this video came out, because I just purchased a honeycomb yoke yesterday after five years of using the saitech yoke & throttle system. My decision was simple, because as I said before "most bang for your buck" hands down. I've been noticing real world pilots YT channels that have their flight simulations hardware displayed in the background, in some cases do not have the three major components needed to have the best overall flight simulation experience. You need (I mean need) yoke/throttle quadrant, or HOTOS system and most importantly rudder pedals. Sure you can get away without rudder pedals but the whole purpose of your flight simulation if you choose to take it seriously, you must have the rudder pedals. The need to have that coordination with your feet is paramount (in my opinion), for transitioning between flight simulation into the real world, instead of relying on a twist on the stick if you have in most HOTOS systems. That breaks the immersion and obviously is not real (unless of course your aircraft is fly by wire). As you can tell I take my flight simulation experience seriously because sim pilots such as myself cannot afford or have a medical condition that prevents one to fly for real. I just wish people would take flight simulation more seriously and get away from this stigma, that it is a entertainment platform which I totally disagree. There's work to be done, in illustrating to the masses that flight simulation is the onramp to a potential in aviation career. Whether you do a professionally or just for fun aviation represents the freedom of flight. But that's just me, One man's opinion and always welcome feedback. Cheers Dion Markgraf UA-cam: Dionm01
Yes, the throttle Honeycomb is working on is going to be VERY versatile. You will be able to change it to fly a Cessna or a 747. I'm really looking forward to the Honeycomb throttle.
@@mb2308 Now that I've had the honeycomb yoke for a week now, I guess I am still in the honeymoon phase. But the yoke is awesome and is far far far (I don't know how many far's as I can say) superior to the saitek/Logitech yoke. Even when the saitek/Logitech yoke was new, wasn't as good as the honeycomb, from what I can remember. The feel that I get with a honeycomb and my landings have been far better. I have an addon for X-Plane 11 called "Landing Rate" that rates my landings and I am starting to get consistent under 100 feet per minute landings which is awesome. Before, my landing rate were all over the place and didn't look pretty at all. As far as the throttle quadrant is concerned, I already had a USB saitek quadrant. To restore my six pack throttle quadrant, I deactivated all of the axises on the saitek yoke along with its buttons and strictly use the throttle quadrant that came with it so I can retain twin engine operation. So in effect, 2 throttle controls, 2 prop controls along with 2 mixture controls to complete twin power plant operations. I also have Cessna nose wheel for pitch trim authority. But as soon as I can afford the honeycomb throttle quadrant, I will buy that is well. So my flight simulation set up right now is wired like a Christmas tree, but functional. Cheers to you and happy flights Dion Markgraf YT: #Dionm01 PS: The only negative I can say about the honeycomb, is I wish they would have had an LED in bedded on the back side of the yoke shining a red light onto the switches. So that way at night time when I'm in a dark environment, I could see the switches clearly when activating them. But I guess overtime, muscle memory will come into play over time and I will know by feel which switch is which I'll be turning on. Cheers again
@@Dionm01 Thanks Dion for the quick response....Yep, Im getting tired of the Saitek and especially the pitch. I usually fly the 172 in Xplane and now that Vulcan has arrived I really want the best experience that I can get. I would have to purchase the USB version of the Saitek Quadrant until Honeycomb has theirs ready, too bad I couldn 't adapt their fitting to a usb adapter but thats impossible ASAIK. I guess you could purchase a small Red Led light for your night time flying and leave it on your desk...Might add to the realism...LOL Good Luck with the pandemic and Happy Flying!.....Mike
I've had the saitek yoke for over 7 years now, It was amazing, I used it since I started on flight sim 13 y/o until now already a Private Airplane and Glider Pilot. It never failed. After being away from home doing my PPL anfd comming back for this yoke I found out it was way too chunky and wide as a normal yoke more like a jet rather than for GA, and the reason im changing it now is because of the low steering it has, you will face many problems with many aircraft because the range. is way shorter, so either the plane will never turn, or will at max input, on a good note as the base is flat you can put the monitor on top or the laptop as it was my case and save tons of space and be comfy
I have Saitek Yoke Pro for a few years now ... it may not be the best (and it really isn't), but it meets my basic needs well. My recommendation is the same as that of many other users: "remove the spring and replace it", on UA-cam there are several videos on how to do it. For the slack in him is really terrible. Another thing I did was to buy an additional quadrant, keeping a total of 6 levers. Ideal for use with four engines. For example, 1-speed brake, 2 to 5 engines (1,2,34), 6-flaps.
Yesterday returned the Logitech and today got the Honeycomb. Wow!!! what a difference. Real solid and great feel. Worth the extra $ for sure. Thanks for the review and the comments below for leading me to this.
Best comment from the Video "Microsoft is releasing a new flight sim later this year but that's up in the air at the moment" :D Great video. I've recently upgraded from the saitek yoke to the honeycomb and the difference is unreal, less dead zone and far more feel. I also connect my saitek yoke so I can use the throttle quadrant and connect my Thrustmaster T300rs steering wheel so I can use the brake and accelerator as rudder pedals, which work surprisingly well. This is in Xplane 11 btw. I've recently sold my Thrustmaster rudder pedals, I absolutely hated them and could not keep on the runway :)) Subscribed :)
Really good advice for grounded pilots. Some skills can be kept sharp when out of the cockpit. A gaming PC with the right perefrials allow your ability you perceive things and certain cognate skills to stay sharp.
Not sure I would agree about crosswind training. I learned a lot from crosswind landings in a Simulator and it transferred straight to real life. Of course you will need a set of rudder pedals. My 1997 Christmas present was CH Pro Pedals with the new USB connector and I am still using them 22 years later.
@@sportyspilotshop I m rocking recommended and that is not enough for most custom scenery or a lot of study level 3rd Party airplanes. But fine enough most of the time. Thank you for the Video.
I can't speak for the redbird alloy, but of the first 3 the CH is still my favourite. 20 years strong. It might not be the most accurate in feedback (jitters and stuff), but the feel is consistent and it's rock solid. I hate the Saitek, and I was severely disappointed with the Alpha (the inconsistency in feel and range of motion is jarring and uncomfortable)
Upgrading to the ch yoke to the ALPHA yoke the difference is apples to oranges.Ch Yoke does not feel like I'm flying due to the cheap inferior build.If I were suggesting a yoke for 2020 nothing less than a honeycomb yoke
they were never intended for a home setup, those FAA certified sim setups are designed for flightschools...and are great for instrument practice, and for practicing things that are too dangerous to do in the aircraft
The one thing that you did not address is dead zone. This is very important in my opinion to deliver a realistic response. I personally find the dead zone in the Saitec very annoying. Yes there are plenty of youtube adventures out there to mitigate the dead zone but why should I have to spend more money and time doing the mod? To be clear, and logitec has confirmed to me by email from tech support that the Saitec yolk has +/- 5 degree dead zone on the roll. It also has about a 5 mm dead zone on the pitch. This means that you could develop a poor control technique subconsciously which if transfers to the real world could be a very frustrating experience. It manufacturers has addressed that.
GreenGuyDIY I have the Saitek yoke since 2014 for practice and fly a couple of different real C172’s since 2014 too. Yes the dead zone is a bit annoying but the real airplane also has some ‘dead zone’ into the controls. It’s all chains, sprockets, springs and levers with some tolerances you know. I always set my dead zones to 1 in flight sims (mostly fsx with a decent aircraft model for realism, x-plane is less realistic in terms of ground friction, wind and overal steam gauge response). Personally that Saitek yoke has helped me in my training and I still use it today. Of course I prefer the real flying instead of sim flying 🙂
@@tellyjoossens4186 I have been flying for over 40 years and the reality is that dead zone or no when you feel back pressure on the yolk it is having an effect on the attitude. So it is a matter of design. Don't know about other sim yolk behavior but the Saitek will cease updates of the yolk position over USB in the dead zone. The board that many UA-cam videos shows fixing the problem does not do that.
The best rudder pedals out there for the money IMO is the MFG Crosswind. I know they are not going to show them here because they don't carry them. Check them out if you are looking for a good set of rudder pedals.
In my opinion, if you are doing your IFR training, just buy a simple joy stick. I did my instrument in 1992 with MS flight with a simple computer. It's all about procedures using your approach plate. This will save you $$$$!
Have to disagree when it comes to flight sims not being good for steep turns. As you said, flight sims are good for instrument scans; so flight sims are good for the instrument scan portion of steep turns, as well as the instrument scan of any maneuver. My scan when performing a steep turn: speed, bank, altitude, vertical speed, heading then look outside the cockpit - repeat until maneuver completed. True the sim won't give you the same feel or sound but it really helps improve instrument scans.
Great video! I have been a flight summer for years and have now logged 4 hours in the cockpit working towards PPL. I would say flight sim has helped. Also, can you do a video on rudder pedals similar to this one on yokes?
If P3D was allowed to sell to Joe Public as a hobby level sim due to licensing reasons with MS. You basically have to fake your way into being allowed to buy P3D
Not sure, I know they changed their requirements from years ago. I know there was a whole forum of people trying to work together to get licenses for each other. At that point I just couldn't be bothered, seemed like too much of a hassle.
Sometimes I wonder if the people that design sim equipment have actually ever been in an airplane. Maybe all they have to go on is one of those Sportys cockpit posters my kid has in his room. The one issue currently with controls is the throttle. The throttle quadrant that comes with the Saitek is pretty junky, and the Redbird is outrageously priced. I’m mystified as to why someone can’t come up with a Cessna-style carb-throttle-prop-mixture-flaps unit for a reasonable price ($100-200?). Personally, I wouldn’t care about split avionics switches like on the honeycomb-while it’s realistic, you don’t fly the plane with those. Besides, if Honeycomb really wanted to be realistic, then why did they put the mags on the right? Saitek’s trim wheel has vanished from the market, and that should be an option as well because not all planes have electronic trim. That would make it easier to fly with these spring-loaded yokes. Trimming must be part of every change of attitude in a real plane. And speaking of springs, I followed the advice of opening my Saitek and removing one of the springs. Much better feel. You really do need pedals, at least with a prop aircraft: In a prop aircraft in X plane, there is so much left-turning tendency that you won’t stay on the runway, even at the beginning of the roll. Lastly, I’ve found a simulator to really shine for learning units like the 430 and G1000/GFC 700. X Plane has really stepped up and improved these with 11. Too bad the hardware hasn’t kept up.
Honeycomb is supposed to eventually come out with a twin engine throttle quadrant but they keep putting it off. I have seen and tried the prototype and, in my opinion, it's much better than the Saitek.
Redbird is not marketed at the average user, and it is used mainly in the Aviation Training Device(ATD) and are used at flight schools and the like. They are also self contained meaning that everything you need is included. As for the CH and Saitek yokes, I can admit that maybe they just looked at pictures, but the Honeycomb yoke is made by people in the know. It feels very good in your hands and it doesn't snap back hard like the CH and Saitek yokes. There is a slight centering but it's not that noticeable.
The trim wheel was licenced by Cessna, and for what ever reason, the licensing stopped, so they had to stop selling it. Maybe it was a limited time licensing and they didn't renew? Maybe there was a falling out? But it is also the reason you can't get the -90º+90º yoke anymore either and all you can buy is the -45°+45°.
I’ve been using the CH yoke for thirteen years. I fly for a living and it has been with me from piston twins to turboprops to Boeing equipment. It’s always been an excellent tool to practice my manual flying skills and still looks and feels like new. I do like the look of the Honeycomb, and wait to see how their throttle quadrant will fair.
I have the CH Yoke as well, and I can tell you, after getting my hands on the Honeycomb Alpha yoke at Sun n' Fun last year, it is light years ahead and feels way more realistic than the CH Yoke. Trust me, get one and toss the CH, you won't regret it.
You are killing the Brunner force-feedback. By the time you've gotten to the ~$900 yoke you are within reach of the Brunner. For controls for the Honycomb, there's the bravo.
There is one thing simmers are looking for: Zero deadzone. The CH and saitek have a huge deadzone. The Honeycomb and Redbird have a small deadzone but it’s still there. The Yoko and Brunner have no deadzone. But the problem is they are both $1100.
For the ~$800 price, the YOKO Yoke by Virtual Fly is absolutely worthwhile. Just read the reviews online. Unanimously positive. Not FFB but requires pitch force be trimmed away. Does not have a center point. Roll is also very realistic. The Yoko was designed for a Virtual Fly customer operating a 4 Ton UAS. Highly recommended. Virtual Fly also makes the full scale 6DOF simulators. They know their stuff. My CFI/CFII gave my rig an 8+ out of 10, mostly downgraded as no G Forces on your body. No surprise there. So for a home sim, the YOKO is an outstanding choice if your budget permits.
For my taste in yokes I would prefer that the fore and aft draw would be longer and would not have spring return centering. I would also like a yoke that turns at least 90 or slightly more degrees left and right. I realize a desktop yoke is not going to have a long fore and aft draw but a little more than they do now would be better realism. I expect I will get back into flight sim in retirement. Nice video.
That’s funny I’m standing here looking at my CH throttle quadrant add-onUSB plug with six sliding handles 6 foot buttons on the side I don’t see what model it is but it sure works good for me. Oh yeah and it’s ROHS compliant. Product number 300 133 thanks it is a good review
it's good for seeing what it's like however what you don't feel is getting tossed around. you can't really feel the plane getting moved around in a sim,
Fsx, xlplane, etc... none of them produce realistic stalls or crosswind landings. They are only good to reproduce 0 kts wind conditions as far wind goes. Stalling is a big laugh in x-plane if you have flight experience in real aircrafts (and then we didn’t talk about the forces you feel on your body when practicing a stall) 🤣
@@tellyjoossens4186 You can't compare FSX to X-Plane 11... And yes, you don't feel the forces, but the physics are pretty darn realistic for a computer simulator.
If you want the most realistic GA planes you should be flying A2A aircraft in FSX or P3D. They blow the doors off anything in XPlane. This is coming from a Part 65 certified mechanic, and Part 147 instructor. You won't find systems modeling better anywhere else.
had the saitek one for a while. The ergonomics were great but it was really unusable for precision hand approaches. They built in a huge deadzone into the thing wich cannot be solved with software. i ended up modifying it to use a bodnar board but in the end i bought a cheaper CH and it has been flawless.
I have just AMD Ryzen 5 2400G, 24GB DDR4 3200MHz RAM and AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (Integrated Graphics). I have constant 60FPS on lowest Settings. If you look Flight Simulator 2020 is one of the best optimized games ever (Optimization Score is 9.7 out of 10)
The saitek yoke has a massive hardware dead zone that means a whole inch and a half of travel in any direction does absolutely nothing. This disastrous design flaw makes this yoke unuseable for anyone who wants proper control. You can only eliminate the dead zone by replacing components with custom chips. Saitek have been made aware of this for many years but conitnue to ignore their customers and still produced this flawed yoke. The redbird yoke is a complete rip off (you can buy a decent used whole car for the same price).
Got the Logitech (Saitec) yoke today. Ran it for about an hour and the "Dead Zone" at about 5 degrees left irritating as heck. Read all kinds of mods to correct it BUT this seems to have been an issue for years and still not fixed? If peeps can mod it to fix it WHY hasn't logitech done it? So its now back in the box and going back tomorrow.Too bad because otherwise it seems ok. Honeycomb will be next purchase I think ... after doing some good research. Any comments appreciated
No, their bias is clear when they said that XPlane was the best way to go, when there are much better aircraft made by A2A Simulations(who make the software for the the Redbird) and they are made for FSX and P3D. There is no GA airplane in XPlane 11 that even comes close to an A2A product, and I know systems as I am a Part 65 certified A&P and Part 147 instructor, as well as a Part 107 UAS operator.
@@sergeihitstuff7834 What??? You don't have a clue do you, x-plane has Electric, Carb, injection, many different turbine engines, rocket. You do get addons for some aircrafts similar to Accusim that A2A uses.
X-plane does have some addons but the realism is just not good enough compared to fsx or p3d. Ok-ish for larger jets but for the smaller GA stuff like a c172, x-plane is pure crap. The a2a addon is the most decent but still lacks a lot of physics ant thus realism. Have tried almost every c172 addon and still isn’t the same like a simple carenado c172 addon for fsx (which really feels about the same as the real thing).
@@Topper_Harley68 None of the planes in XPlane 11 come close to the realism of A2A planes in P3D. I am a Part 65 certified A&P, and I can tell you, the systems in every A2A aircraft handle and preform just like the real thing.
@@tellyjoossens4186 None of the planes in XPlane 11 come close to the realism of A2A planes in P3D. I am a Part 65 certified A&P, and I can tell you, the systems in every A2A aircraft handle and preform just like the real thing. None of what you said really made sense though.
Good morning excuse me, friend, the ch products yoke, it works, in the new microsoft fs 2020, to a friend, he did not recognize it, in his simulator ... thanks for responding.
Ok let me ask a dumb question, which one is the best for just goofing around with the sim.. I am not a pilot but I enjoy flying so to speak, Which one is good for X-plane and the Big Boys Jets aka commercial. I already own X-plane and have a Logi-tech Joy stick..
Ironically, I practiced short field/soft field landings and turns around a point in X-Plane 11 the day before my checkride since I felt unconfident and weather cancelled my last review flight. I feel as if it is the reason I did not exceed ACS Standards on those maneuvers since it helped my confidence. To learn how to do maneuvers, sims are terrible for. But to review the procedures of them, they honestly work great. Now I'm using XP11 a lot to practice holding patterns and approaches and it definitely has helped a ton.
You may not be a combat pilot in the real world. But in the Sim world, you will want to become a combat pilot. Take a look at the DCS World software. Watch some of the videos on UA-cam about it.
P3D is recommended. FSX is old and CPU Driven with lots of computer performance limiters in Frame Rate and Pools. If you use a powerful computer with a GPU P3D and Xplane 11 is the best choice for now. The Microsoft Flight Simulator coming to release will be best used on a Xbox Series X and I wonder if yokes will be supported. The Xbox Power is superior 11teraflops of a new RDNA2.0 Tech and by that this simulator will need a PC with 12-16core CPUs and a RTX 2080ti.
I feel this video fails to inform the viewer how bad the first two options are in comparison to the Honeycomb. Both the Saitek and CH yokes are very poor .. they tend to stick and then suddenly release for both roll and pitch - which makes for a very frustrating experience. Additionally, the throttle options provided by those companies are dreadful - just plastic toys essentially. The Honeycomb yoke is much more representative of the feel of a real aircraft. Their throttle offering (currently in final development) is also vastly superior to those demonstrated here. I tried this last year at FS Expo - it features a modular approach for multiple permutations (GA, airliner etc) and is light years ahead of the CH and Saitek options.
i've got the logitech yoke, pedals, throttle quadrant, and the badass A10 warthog hotas setup and i can't really stand taking it down and setting it back up... does anyone make some kind of a nano yoke and pedals that doesn't take up all the closet space?
why not made own trottle, inside have only 3 potentiometer and wired usb hid board, arcade game controller board.and plywood have easy build frame lot more realistic.
Logitech yoke and throttle are fine. But to expand beyond that with their multi or switch panel is pointless. They dont work without their software and the software often doesnt work and support is non existent.
Those maneuvers are as much, or more, about what you feel in the seat of your pants, what the yoke is telling you, and what you're hearing, as what's on the panel. You can practice the maneuvers until you nail them every time on a sim but doing it in real life is still vastly different.
I need an advice.I was planning to buy thd logitech yoke for 150$ because that's my budget but i heard thag honeycomb is better but it's out of my budget.Is it worth adding more money and buying the honeycomb yoke without the throttle or the logitech yoke for 150$ including the throttle?
Looking at jumping in to the casual home sim with MFS2020. Are there some good forums to share info on adding things like yokes, pedals etc. I don't want to rush into something and regret the accessories I bought. thx
"Microsoft Flight Simulator is supposedly coming out with a new edition later this year, but that's up in the air." - - pun intended? Lol 🤣
That was a very disingenuous statement. What do you expect, he is a salesman. "Supposedly" as if it is just a rumor. He must sell copies of X-Plane.
It coming out August 18
He's pushing XPLANE? ?
@@normand5847 as XPLANE is about to BOMB big time. .
It’s out
Another vote for the honeycomb yoke - just upgraded and never looked back as it is so well built and stable. The elevator axis has good resistance and the Yoke turns 180 each way so that in my view makes it much more realistic. As the video says, you will still need the separate throttle quadrant until the Bravo yoke comes out later in the year. The software for the Honeycomb is also not so intuitive in my view for Prepar3d - though pretty much plug and play for Xplane. On the sims I would personally say Prepar3d for VR flying and Xplane for full screen sims...
The most bang for your buck without a doubt is the honeycomb. Also should be noted, that honeycomb is working on a throttle quadrant due this year 2020, and it does look very good and very versatile.
It's funny that this video came out, because I just purchased a honeycomb yoke yesterday after five years of using the saitech yoke & throttle system. My decision was simple, because as I said before "most bang for your buck" hands down.
I've been noticing real world pilots YT channels that have their flight simulations hardware displayed in the background, in some cases do not have the three major components needed to have the best overall flight simulation experience. You need (I mean need) yoke/throttle quadrant, or HOTOS system and most importantly rudder pedals. Sure you can get away without rudder pedals but the whole purpose of your flight simulation if you choose to take it seriously, you must have the rudder pedals. The need to have that coordination with your feet is paramount (in my opinion), for transitioning between flight simulation into the real world, instead of relying on a twist on the stick if you have in most HOTOS systems. That breaks the immersion and obviously is not real (unless of course your aircraft is fly by wire).
As you can tell I take my flight simulation experience seriously because sim pilots such as myself cannot afford or have a medical condition that prevents one to fly for real. I just wish people would take flight simulation more seriously and get away from this stigma, that it is a entertainment platform which I totally disagree. There's work to be done, in illustrating to the masses that flight simulation is the onramp to a potential in aviation career. Whether you do a professionally or just for fun aviation represents the freedom of flight.
But that's just me, One man's opinion and always welcome feedback. Cheers Dion Markgraf UA-cam: Dionm01
Yes, the throttle Honeycomb is working on is going to be VERY versatile. You will be able to change it to fly a Cessna or a 747. I'm really looking forward to the Honeycomb throttle.
May 29th release date according to Amazon.
How are you liking the Honeycomb compared to the Saitek? What are you using for throttle quadrant? Thanks...
@@mb2308 Now that I've had the honeycomb yoke for a week now, I guess I am still in the honeymoon phase. But the yoke is awesome and is far far far (I don't know how many far's as I can say) superior to the saitek/Logitech yoke. Even when the saitek/Logitech yoke was new, wasn't as good as the honeycomb, from what I can remember. The feel that I get with a honeycomb and my landings have been far better. I have an addon for X-Plane 11 called "Landing Rate" that rates my landings and I am starting to get consistent under 100 feet per minute landings which is awesome. Before, my landing rate were all over the place and didn't look pretty at all.
As far as the throttle quadrant is concerned, I already had a USB saitek quadrant. To restore my six pack throttle quadrant, I deactivated all of the axises on the saitek yoke along with its buttons and strictly use the throttle quadrant that came with it so I can retain twin engine operation. So in effect, 2 throttle controls, 2 prop controls along with 2 mixture controls to complete twin power plant operations. I also have Cessna nose wheel for pitch trim authority. But as soon as I can afford the honeycomb throttle quadrant, I will buy that is well. So my flight simulation set up right now is wired like a Christmas tree, but functional. Cheers to you and happy flights Dion Markgraf YT: #Dionm01
PS: The only negative I can say about the honeycomb, is I wish they would have had an LED in bedded on the back side of the yoke shining a red light onto the switches. So that way at night time when I'm in a dark environment, I could see the switches clearly when activating them. But I guess overtime, muscle memory will come into play over time and I will know by feel which switch is which I'll be turning on. Cheers again
@@Dionm01 Thanks Dion for the quick response....Yep, Im getting tired of the Saitek and especially the pitch. I usually fly the 172 in Xplane and now that Vulcan has arrived I really want the best experience that I can get.
I would have to purchase the USB version of the Saitek Quadrant until Honeycomb has theirs ready, too bad I couldn 't adapt their fitting to a usb adapter but thats impossible ASAIK.
I guess you could purchase a small Red Led light for your night time flying and leave it on your desk...Might add to the realism...LOL
Good Luck with the pandemic and Happy Flying!.....Mike
I've had the saitek yoke for over 7 years now, It was amazing, I used it since I started on flight sim 13 y/o until now already a Private Airplane and Glider Pilot.
It never failed.
After being away from home doing my PPL anfd comming back for this yoke I found out it was way too chunky and wide as a normal yoke more like a jet rather than for GA, and the reason im changing it now is because of the low steering it has, you will face many problems with many aircraft because the range. is way shorter, so either the plane will never turn, or will at max input, on a good note as the base is flat you can put the monitor on top or the laptop as it was my case and save tons of space and be comfy
The CH Pro my dad had for 7 years and still works so I am glad he handed it down to me.
I have Saitek Yoke Pro for a few years now ... it may not be the best (and it really isn't), but it meets my basic needs well. My recommendation is the same as that of many other users: "remove the spring and replace it", on UA-cam there are several videos on how to do it. For the slack in him is really terrible. Another thing I did was to buy an additional quadrant, keeping a total of 6 levers. Ideal for use with four engines. For example, 1-speed brake, 2 to 5 engines (1,2,34), 6-flaps.
I love my Honeycomb yoke! I’ve had it for 3 months now and love it so much
Hey, where did you buy it? And how much did you get it for? I'm looking to buy a honeycomb.
Yesterday returned the Logitech and today got the Honeycomb. Wow!!! what a difference. Real solid and great feel. Worth the extra $ for sure.
Thanks for the review and the comments below for leading me to this.
Best comment from the Video
"Microsoft is releasing a new flight sim later this year but that's up in the air at the moment" :D
Great video.
I've recently upgraded from the saitek yoke to the honeycomb and the difference is unreal, less dead zone and far more feel.
I also connect my saitek yoke so I can use the throttle quadrant and connect my Thrustmaster T300rs steering wheel so I can use the brake and accelerator as rudder pedals, which work surprisingly well. This is in Xplane 11 btw.
I've recently sold my Thrustmaster rudder pedals, I absolutely hated them and could not keep on the runway :))
Subscribed :)
Honeycomb all the way and their throttle quadrant is going to be incredible.
Agreed!
Yep anyone saying ch yoke or saitek is better is probably mad they don't own the honeycomb yoke
Chris Kirkman isn’t it really expensive tho?
GT-AVIATOR exactly, a saitek yoke is cheaper and the fact it includes the throttle is the thing that pushes people to buy it
And 🍯 comb is coming out with a throttle.
Really good advice for grounded pilots. Some skills can be kept sharp when out of the cockpit. A gaming PC with the right perefrials allow your ability you perceive things and certain cognate skills to stay sharp.
Not sure I would agree about crosswind training. I learned a lot from crosswind landings in a Simulator and it transferred straight to real life. Of course you will need a set of rudder pedals. My 1997 Christmas present was CH Pro Pedals with the new USB connector and I am still using them 22 years later.
The only thing you forgot is a good pc, otherwise you're gonna have 3 fps and a shitty looking scenery.
Yes, although at least with X-Plane the system requirements aren't crazy. www.x-plane.com/kb/x-plane-11-system-requirements/
@@sportyspilotshop I m rocking recommended and that is not enough for most custom scenery or a lot of study level 3rd Party airplanes. But fine enough most of the time. Thank you for the Video.
@Bill Pii The Recommended isnt even that high. but that accounts only for Standard Stuff. no custom scenery or planes.
@Je teamleider Hey sorry maar ik kan vandaag en morgen niet komen wegens corona, is dat oke?
@@sportyspilotshop well, you should at least have a decent gaming PC, most people don't have that.
I can't speak for the redbird alloy, but of the first 3 the CH is still my favourite. 20 years strong. It might not be the most accurate in feedback (jitters and stuff), but the feel is consistent and it's rock solid. I hate the Saitek, and I was severely disappointed with the Alpha (the inconsistency in feel and range of motion is jarring and uncomfortable)
Upgrading to the ch yoke to the ALPHA yoke the difference is apples to oranges.Ch Yoke does not feel like I'm flying due to the cheap inferior build.If I were suggesting a yoke for 2020 nothing less than a honeycomb yoke
I don't like how it isn't able to rotate 180 degrees hence why I rather have the slight inconsistency.)
I prefer the honeycomb
1:15 - did he say for about $8,000 ... yeah ... okay homie...
$8k could cover the complete cost of instructor, plane rental, fuel, and tests to get your PPL. Not sure why'd anyone spend it first on a simulator.
they were never intended for a home setup, those FAA certified sim setups are designed for flightschools...and are great for instrument practice, and for practicing things that are too dangerous to do in the aircraft
@@inigma_ITC I used to work with an organization that used it for training multiple pilots
@@JaridMitchell That would make it more cost effective. :D
He said 800.00
The one thing that you did not address is dead zone. This is very important in my opinion to deliver a realistic response. I personally find the dead zone in the Saitec very annoying. Yes there are plenty of youtube adventures out there to mitigate the dead zone but why should I have to spend more money and time doing the mod? To be clear, and logitec has confirmed to me by email from tech support that the Saitec yolk has +/- 5 degree dead zone on the roll. It also has about a 5 mm dead zone on the pitch. This means that you could develop a poor control technique subconsciously which if transfers to the real world could be a very frustrating experience. It manufacturers has addressed that.
GreenGuyDIY I have the Saitek yoke since 2014 for practice and fly a couple of different real C172’s since 2014 too. Yes the dead zone is a bit annoying but the real airplane also has some ‘dead zone’ into the controls. It’s all chains, sprockets, springs and levers with some tolerances you know. I always set my dead zones to 1 in flight sims (mostly fsx with a decent aircraft model for realism, x-plane is less realistic in terms of ground friction, wind and overal steam gauge response). Personally that Saitek yoke has helped me in my training and I still use it today. Of course I prefer the real flying instead of sim flying 🙂
@@tellyjoossens4186 I have been flying for over 40 years and the reality is that dead zone or no when you feel back pressure on the yolk it is having an effect on the attitude. So it is a matter of design. Don't know about other sim yolk behavior but the Saitek will cease updates of the yolk position over USB in the dead zone. The board that many UA-cam videos shows fixing the problem does not do that.
Just ordered my honeycomb from you guys. I can't wait to give it a try.
The best rudder pedals out there for the money IMO is the MFG Crosswind. I know they are not going to show them here because they don't carry them. Check them out if you are looking for a good set of rudder pedals.
The Honeycomb is fantastic. The price is incredible for what you get.
Uploaded on my birthday :). Thanks for this!!
In my opinion, if you are doing your IFR training, just buy a simple joy stick. I did my instrument in 1992 with MS flight with a simple computer. It's all about procedures using your approach plate. This will save you $$$$!
You're yoking.
Have to disagree when it comes to flight sims not being good for steep turns. As you said, flight sims are good for instrument scans; so flight sims are good for the instrument scan portion of steep turns, as well as the instrument scan of any maneuver. My scan when performing a steep turn: speed, bank, altitude, vertical speed, heading then look outside the cockpit - repeat until maneuver completed. True the sim won't give you the same feel or sound but it really helps improve instrument scans.
Great video! I have been a flight summer for years and have now logged 4 hours in the cockpit working towards PPL. I would say flight sim has helped.
Also, can you do a video on rudder pedals similar to this one on yokes?
If P3D is good enough for the Dept. of Defense to train pilots with, it's good enough for me. XP is NOT the only thing out there.
If P3D was allowed to sell to Joe Public as a hobby level sim due to licensing reasons with MS.
You basically have to fake your way into being allowed to buy P3D
@@ColinRichardson How do you fake it?
Not sure, I know they changed their requirements from years ago. I know there was a whole forum of people trying to work together to get licenses for each other. At that point I just couldn't be bothered, seemed like too much of a hassle.
but it is INSANELY expensive to make it realistic
Sometimes I wonder if the people that design sim equipment have actually ever been in an airplane. Maybe all they have to go on is one of those Sportys cockpit posters my kid has in his room.
The one issue currently with controls is the throttle. The throttle quadrant that comes with the Saitek is pretty junky, and the Redbird is outrageously priced. I’m mystified as to why someone can’t come up with a Cessna-style carb-throttle-prop-mixture-flaps unit for a reasonable price ($100-200?). Personally, I wouldn’t care about split avionics switches like on the honeycomb-while it’s realistic, you don’t fly the plane with those. Besides, if Honeycomb really wanted to be realistic, then why did they put the mags on the right?
Saitek’s trim wheel has vanished from the market, and that should be an option as well because not all planes have electronic trim. That would make it easier to fly with these spring-loaded yokes. Trimming must be part of every change of attitude in a real plane. And speaking of springs, I followed the advice of opening my Saitek and removing one of the springs. Much better feel.
You really do need pedals, at least with a prop aircraft: In a prop aircraft in X plane, there is so much left-turning tendency that you won’t stay on the runway, even at the beginning of the roll. Lastly, I’ve found a simulator to really shine for learning units like the 430 and G1000/GFC 700. X Plane has really stepped up and improved these with 11. Too bad the hardware hasn’t kept up.
Honeycomb is supposed to eventually come out with a twin engine throttle quadrant but they keep putting it off. I have seen and tried the prototype and, in my opinion, it's much better than the Saitek.
Saitek used to offer this: www.saitek.com/uk/prod/tpm.html. It seems to be discontinued now though.
Redbird is not marketed at the average user, and it is used mainly in the Aviation Training Device(ATD) and are used at flight schools and the like. They are also self contained meaning that everything you need is included. As for the CH and Saitek yokes, I can admit that maybe they just looked at pictures, but the Honeycomb yoke is made by people in the know. It feels very good in your hands and it doesn't snap back hard like the CH and Saitek yokes. There is a slight centering but it's not that noticeable.
Totally with you. I would give anything for someone to make a yoke with force feedback for an affordable price.
The trim wheel was licenced by Cessna, and for what ever reason, the licensing stopped, so they had to stop selling it. Maybe it was a limited time licensing and they didn't renew? Maybe there was a falling out? But it is also the reason you can't get the -90º+90º yoke anymore either and all you can buy is the -45°+45°.
I’ve been using the CH yoke for thirteen years. I fly for a living and it has been with me from piston twins to turboprops to Boeing equipment. It’s always been an excellent tool to practice my manual flying skills and still looks and feels like new. I do like the look of the Honeycomb, and wait to see how their throttle quadrant will fair.
Philip Parsons Man CH made good products. My Pro Pedals are 22 years old, from Christmas of 1997, lol.
I have the CH Yoke as well, and I can tell you, after getting my hands on the Honeycomb Alpha yoke at Sun n' Fun last year, it is light years ahead and feels way more realistic than the CH Yoke. Trust me, get one and toss the CH, you won't regret it.
@@ImpendingJoker I have now gotten the Honeycomb Yoke coming from the ch yoke and you are absolutely right
You are killing the Brunner force-feedback. By the time you've gotten to the ~$900 yoke you are within reach of the Brunner.
For controls for the Honycomb, there's the bravo.
There is one thing simmers are looking for: Zero deadzone. The CH and saitek have a huge deadzone. The Honeycomb and Redbird have a small deadzone but it’s still there. The Yoko and Brunner have no deadzone. But the problem is they are both $1100.
For the ~$800 price, the YOKO Yoke by Virtual Fly is absolutely worthwhile. Just read the reviews online. Unanimously positive. Not FFB but requires pitch force be trimmed away. Does not have a center point. Roll is also very realistic. The Yoko was designed for a Virtual Fly customer operating a 4 Ton UAS. Highly recommended. Virtual Fly also makes the full scale 6DOF simulators. They know their stuff. My CFI/CFII gave my rig an 8+ out of 10, mostly downgraded as no G Forces on your body. No surprise there. So for a home sim, the YOKO is an outstanding choice if your budget permits.
I'm still rockin FSX with that old CH yoke and rudder pedal/ bar stool setup
I use FSX with CH yoke, CH pedals and CH throttle quadrant and it works brilliant. Next to it I use Trackir 5 which makes it even more realistic.
TrackIR was a game-changer for me. Once you go with head tracking, you don't go back.
For my taste in yokes I would prefer that the fore and aft draw would be longer and would not have spring return centering. I would also like a yoke that turns at least 90 or slightly more degrees left and right. I realize a desktop yoke is not going to have a long fore and aft draw but a little more than they do now would be better realism. I expect I will get back into flight sim in retirement. Nice video.
That’s funny I’m standing here looking at my CH throttle quadrant add-onUSB plug with six sliding handles 6 foot buttons on the side I don’t see what model it is but it sure works good for me. Oh yeah and it’s ROHS compliant. Product number 300
133 thanks it is a good review
6 foot buttons? Why are they so big?
X-Plane 11 is good for stalls, crosswind landings and stuff!
it's good for seeing what it's like however what you don't feel is getting tossed around. you can't really feel the plane getting moved around in a sim,
Fsx, xlplane, etc... none of them produce realistic stalls or crosswind landings. They are only good to reproduce 0 kts wind conditions as far wind goes. Stalling is a big laugh in x-plane if you have flight experience in real aircrafts (and then we didn’t talk about the forces you feel on your body when practicing a stall) 🤣
@@tellyjoossens4186 You can't compare FSX to X-Plane 11... And yes, you don't feel the forces, but the physics are pretty darn realistic for a computer simulator.
Telly Joossens those conditions are actually simulated pretty well in xplane, just not fsx
@@tellyjoossens4186 The apparently you've never flown P3D with an A2A product.
First time I’ve seen this channel, great stuff
I stay current with Honeycombe Yoke, Thrustmaster pedals, X-Plane 11 and VR. Well worth the money. Save a lot of money on flying.
If you want the most realistic GA planes you should be flying A2A aircraft in FSX or P3D. They blow the doors off anything in XPlane. This is coming from a Part 65 certified mechanic, and Part 147 instructor. You won't find systems modeling better anywhere else.
ImpendingJoker Thanks for the advice. I used sim coders reality addons. Ever tried?
@@ImpendingJoker xplane is overall a better sim flight model wise A2A is limited to P3D aging code
I would like to add the Yoko "The Yoke". I tried them all but the Yoko feels most realistic to me.
had the saitek one for a while. The ergonomics were great but it was really unusable for precision hand approaches. They built in a huge deadzone into the thing wich cannot be solved with software. i ended up modifying it to use a bodnar board but in the end i bought a cheaper CH and it has been flawless.
Buy the honeycomb even real pilots will tell you, plus their bravo throttle quadrant which isnt displayed here.
don't forget the monster PC required to use the flight software etc......big bucks!!!
THe problem with the RedBird is that you can't attach it to the stand thus you'd have to put weight on it e.g. a book for it to not move.
I have just AMD Ryzen 5 2400G, 24GB DDR4 3200MHz RAM and AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (Integrated Graphics). I have constant 60FPS on lowest Settings. If you look Flight Simulator 2020 is one of the best optimized games ever (Optimization Score is 9.7 out of 10)
The saitek yoke has a massive hardware dead zone that means a whole inch and a half of travel in any direction does absolutely nothing. This disastrous design flaw makes this yoke unuseable for anyone who wants proper control. You can only eliminate the dead zone by replacing components with custom chips. Saitek have been made aware of this for many years but conitnue to ignore their customers and still produced this flawed yoke. The redbird yoke is a complete rip off (you can buy a decent used whole car for the same price).
I do not have this problem, As soon as I move the yoke in any axis I get a response from any A.C I fly immediately, maybe I got lucky.
U tell them finger!
Lovely setups man, keep it up !
what about a joystick to simulate airbus or other side stick planes??
that was my next question. Thank you for bringing it up.
Hotas warthog or the Airbus tca pack or the Virpil controls. I’d start with the Airbus, then move on to the warthog.
Got the Logitech (Saitec) yoke today. Ran it for about an hour and the "Dead Zone" at about 5 degrees left irritating as heck. Read all kinds of mods to correct it BUT this seems to have been an issue for years and still not fixed? If peeps can mod it to fix it WHY hasn't logitech done it? So its now back in the box and going back tomorrow.Too bad because otherwise it seems ok. Honeycomb will be next purchase I think ... after doing some good research. Any comments appreciated
I am getting the saitek yoke and throtle quadrant for my birthday
me who isn't a pilot and can't afford this neither
"hmmm interesting"
The new Thrustmaster Airbus Controls are missing. Very interesting video, anyway...
Airbus does not have steering yokes like the ones shown. It is just a fly by wire joystick
Thanks for the Video
Very good and unbiased presentation
No, their bias is clear when they said that XPlane was the best way to go, when there are much better aircraft made by A2A Simulations(who make the software for the the Redbird) and they are made for FSX and P3D. There is no GA airplane in XPlane 11 that even comes close to an A2A product, and I know systems as I am a Part 65 certified A&P and Part 147 instructor, as well as a Part 107 UAS operator.
I have just ordered the Logitech tho I wanted to get the honeycomb but I couldn’t afford it
Sorry to say BUT... Xplane IS NOT the only option. Still you hava P3D and FSX-SE (steam edition). Both with plenty of add-ons.
Xplane is not good, why, no plane with carborator for more realistic, A2a with Prepar3d :)
@@sergeihitstuff7834 What??? You don't have a clue do you, x-plane has Electric, Carb, injection, many different turbine engines, rocket. You do get addons for some aircrafts similar to Accusim that A2A uses.
X-plane does have some addons but the realism is just not good enough compared to fsx or p3d. Ok-ish for larger jets but for the smaller GA stuff like a c172, x-plane is pure crap. The a2a addon is the most decent but still lacks a lot of physics ant thus realism. Have tried almost every c172 addon and still isn’t the same like a simple carenado c172 addon for fsx (which really feels about the same as the real thing).
@@Topper_Harley68 None of the planes in XPlane 11 come close to the realism of A2A planes in P3D. I am a Part 65 certified A&P, and I can tell you, the systems in every A2A aircraft handle and preform just like the real thing.
@@tellyjoossens4186 None of the planes in XPlane 11 come close to the realism of A2A planes in P3D. I am a Part 65 certified A&P, and I can tell you, the systems in every A2A aircraft handle and preform just like the real thing. None of what you said really made sense though.
I have had the CH Eclipse for many years which will do me as I will never be able to afford anything else or flight lessons for that matter! :)
Good morning excuse me, friend, the ch products yoke, it works, in the new microsoft fs 2020, to a friend, he did not recognize it, in his simulator ... thanks for responding.
Best Buy employee knows his stuff!
Flight Simulator 2020 Aug 18 release. Wooooo!
Woooooooo!
WooooooooOOooOo!
Ok let me ask a dumb question, which one is the best for just goofing around with the sim.. I am not a pilot but I enjoy flying so to speak, Which one is good for X-plane and the Big Boys Jets aka commercial.
I already own X-plane and have a Logi-tech Joy stick..
I use CH yoke, pedals and throttle quadrant. Combined with Track IR 5 it is super realistic
You did not mention the Premier Consumer Yoke and Peddles from Brunner. Why?
Nice and informative....good video!
Hi I just bought the Logitech yoke
From you
He didn’t mention how the saitek the (second one) don’t turn a full 90 dagrees
Ironically, I practiced short field/soft field landings and turns around a point in X-Plane 11 the day before my checkride since I felt unconfident and weather cancelled my last review flight. I feel as if it is the reason I did not exceed ACS Standards on those maneuvers since it helped my confidence. To learn how to do maneuvers, sims are terrible for. But to review the procedures of them, they honestly work great. Now I'm using XP11 a lot to practice holding patterns and approaches and it definitely has helped a ton.
i run MSFS with VR and ive logged 500 hrs in the sim and 50hrs in real life. HANDS DOWN flying in vr flying is just like real life
Nice one!!!!
EXCELLENT JOB WELL DONE ...
I'm so excited to fly this plane that has a yoke.... said no one ever.
Please specify which ones work on an Xbox console as well.
What ones have a built in motor so u feel the inputs
Great video.
Do a video on combat flight simulators. Sticks that you recommend for combat.
Great video
Great presentation Sporty's
Looking for throttles for the 737 with usb or wireless only finding prop throttles
You may not be a combat pilot in the real world. But in the Sim world, you will want to become a combat pilot. Take a look at the DCS World software. Watch some of the videos on UA-cam about it.
Very Nice!
Any suggestions for people who aren't affected?
IFR approaches... 😷
P3D is recommended. FSX is old and CPU Driven with lots of computer performance limiters in Frame Rate and Pools. If you use a powerful computer with a GPU P3D and Xplane 11 is the best choice for now. The Microsoft Flight Simulator coming to release will be best used on a Xbox Series X and I wonder if yokes will be supported. The Xbox Power is superior 11teraflops of a new RDNA2.0 Tech and by that this simulator will need a PC with 12-16core CPUs and a RTX 2080ti.
There you are wrong. P3D with A2A aircraft is WAY better than anything in XPlane 11.
@@ImpendingJoker or you're just being biased a2a aircraft would fly a lot more realistic in xplane p3d engine is very limited flying on rails
LOL no one is staying away from their planes! We were swamped at our airport today everyone was flying! PFC yoke here from a decommissioned FTD
I feel this video fails to inform the viewer how bad the first two options are in comparison to the Honeycomb. Both the Saitek and CH yokes are very poor .. they tend to stick and then suddenly release for both roll and pitch - which makes for a very frustrating experience. Additionally, the throttle options provided by those companies are dreadful - just plastic toys essentially. The Honeycomb yoke is much more representative of the feel of a real aircraft. Their throttle offering (currently in final development) is also vastly superior to those demonstrated here. I tried this last year at FS Expo - it features a modular approach for multiple permutations (GA, airliner etc) and is light years ahead of the CH and Saitek options.
God I wish this shop was near me.
i've got the logitech yoke, pedals, throttle quadrant, and the badass A10 warthog hotas setup and i can't really stand taking it down and setting it back up... does anyone make some kind of a nano yoke and pedals that doesn't take up all the closet space?
Whatever, which one do i get for ramming my boeing into skyscrapers in MFS 2020? I heard a new Logitech one came out recently, supposedly good?
Do any of these yokes respond to elevator trim?
why not made own trottle, inside have only 3 potentiometer and wired usb hid board, arcade game controller board.and plywood have easy build frame lot more realistic.
Saitek is a legend!
I've been nothing but disappointed with Saitek stuff.
Logitech yoke and throttle are fine. But to expand beyond that with their multi or switch panel is pointless. They dont work without their software and the software often doesnt work and support is non existent.
Microsoft Flight Simulator X: Steam Edition is still available and very well priced.
With the new MFS 2020 why can't you practice stalls, steep turns etc?
Those maneuvers are as much, or more, about what you feel in the seat of your pants, what the yoke is telling you, and what you're hearing, as what's on the panel. You can practice the maneuvers until you nail them every time on a sim but doing it in real life is still vastly different.
Can I found this in Morocco?
And tell me price plz in usa
bank angle, bank angle, bank angle
I need an advice.I was planning to buy thd logitech yoke for 150$ because that's my budget but i heard thag honeycomb is better but it's out of my budget.Is it worth adding more money and buying the honeycomb yoke without the throttle or the logitech yoke for 150$ including the throttle?
Looking at jumping in to the casual home sim with MFS2020. Are there some good forums to share info on adding things like yokes, pedals etc. I don't want to rush into something and regret the accessories I bought. thx
I notice that your Redbird YK-1 has a ‘push-to-talk’ cable as well as what looks like a hat switch on the right hand grip. Is this a new model?
Yes, we have the latest model in stock.
Never been a big fan of Xplane, I’m still using Flight Sim X
I have the second one and it's really good with a lot of buttons.For the price it's all around perfect for me
Can’t stay current but you can stay proficient
Microsoft flight simulator.."but thats up in the air!" lol 5:45
Thanks for noticing!