In the test window you can also check the "Log jhoystick" option and it will display what buttons were pressed, makes life a lot easier seeing the actuall number instead of searching for those flashes.
Btw, VKB have also recently a couple of new STECS videos showing how to add the third virtual flap button and also how to convert encoders into axis. You can even convert the K-switches to axis! The more I learn about the STECS and the software the more I'm really liking how configurable it is. I think they're really offering something no other throttle does.
I heard about their video and it's great that they put one out as it definitely will help the majority of people who don't know the software. I really like the ability to change that three position switch to an axis! More options is a great thing. It lets people use the hardware in ways the designers may not have considered. I will admit that I never really gave VKB much thought. I had my Warthog Throttle and stick and then bought a VKB stick base it it was great! I had some issues and their customer support was rock solid (which is an often overlooked aspect when people want to buy a device). I knew I wanted a new throttle and was going to buy a Virpil but I wasn't too thrilled with the latest they had. I avoid WinWing because of customer support issues which I have heard of. Then VKB announced their new throttle and I did some research and saw that people have had generally great CS experiences with them... and here we are. :)
@@YofbjpYudhs I have no doubt that they do. I do have the Virpil CM2 base for my stick but I have never had much need to use it beyond calibration of the stick. My videos about the VKB STECS was just my efforts around sharing my experience and opinion of it and then the solutions which people helped me to discover. This all forced me to make greater use of the software than I had wanted but it all worked out well and so I thought I'd share that part, hoping to help people who are in similar situations such as I found myself in. I love my Virpil base and really was considering their CM3 throttle but I wound up buying the VKB as it was new and shiny and I liked the customization aspects of it via hardware options.
@@YofbjpYudhs Donyou mean the white selector knob on the base or the roller wheel type things (one on the left and one on the front of the left throttle)?I don’t know if the rollers can be made into an axis. So far I have only heard of the flap switch on the STEM having this option. I don’t think it can.
That was George Boole's head, the guy who booleans are named after. The VKB software has a lot of extra features that are not super clearly laid out, however a lot of this stuff is covered in some of their videos on their channel. The problem is they fail to explain how they would work all together to do the things you want to do. So thank you for taking the time to put this all together to help others figure this out.
Thanks! Yes there is a clear disconnect between VKB and the average users out there. It can do a lot of stuff but it’s a challenge to figure it all out or find the pieces relevant to what you want to do.
most confusing driver. it took me weeks to figure out how to set up the pedals with a key to use differential braking the way i wanted, and my computer took a dump and i cant seem to get it working again. i need to get on the discord but im so discouraged to redo bindings right now lol. its so powerful but man is the interface rough
Mind blown! This is the first “how to” vid I’ve found. I got the STANDARD throttle. Pretty slick! Although, despite my doctoral work and being an “old guy”, I’m faced with a moderate learning curve. You’ve done well with translations btwn VKB and DCS in terms of set-up! Much appreciated! -cheers! Don
First off, thank you for that great compliment. I really do appreciate it because it means that I was able to help out with stuff which had vexed me at one point as well! These are what typically drive me to make videos. I learn something new, smack my forehead because I missed it or it took me this long to figure out etc. and I know others are in the same boat that I was in and I want to save them the wasted time and/or aggravation. I am happy that I was able to help you out with my videos. Have fun!
@@alligator5706 Thank you for your kind words! I bought the STECS when it first came out and. I had some challenges with it and wanted to share my thoughts on it so it could help others decide if they wanted it. I also wanted to share what solutions I was provided to hopefully help people running into the same or similar issues. Glad it helped you!
Thank you so much for this. This throttle is amazing, but it takes a lot to get it set up. I have spent a couple days fiddling and I’m finally getting close to being able to play smoothly. Thank you!!!!
Thank you for such high praise. I know what you mean about taking time to set up! It took me many attempts and a lot of time to finally figure it out. Their documentation sucks to put it bluntly. It’s part of the reason why I made the two videos.. to help others struggling with the same issues I faced.
Thanks! That is high praise indeed! The standard I think is the sweet spot throttle config. It would have better served me in VR than the Max with the STEM being so far away. I’m still learning to find it (as you could see in the video).
Thanks for the video. I have the STECS Max and may make my own review as I usually play mech games at the moment rather than flight sims. It's been an interesting transition from the Thrustmaster TWCS throttle. It's a great piece of hardware, for sure!
I think a video review from a mech driver would be great! I heard back from VKB and they stated that they will not be selling the 3 way switch for several months and even then, it would be part of a pack of multiple other buttons. It sucks because they sent us FIVE single press buttons and a single three way. No big deal in the end I guess. Just sucks to wast money on all of those single press buttons so they can sit in the storage case forever.
Thank you! I am glad that this was able to help out. It was a little confusing for me at first but with the help of many others, I finally got it all dialed in to where I want it.
I thought it might be possible but didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up. I’m not surprised that this can be done. They did a great job with the software and hardware.
The thing you did with the flaps switch, DCS actually has a work around for this in the controls. Using your flaps as an example, if X is up and Y is down, you can made the middle position set as "X off" and "Y off" and it will do the same thing. The TM Warthog throttle has the same issue with center positions not being "buttons". Awesome video though. Pretty convinced I need the Stecs Max now.
Hey thanks! I had no idea that there was this configuration available in DCS! Out of curiosity, where is that set? It's probably better to do it via the VKB software regardless as it adds an additional button in the middle right from the start. Apparently you can also set that flap switch as an axis by opening it up and removing the physical detents inside. VKB apparently posted a video to illustrate this. Pretty cool to have that option if you want/need it! I'm sure people who fly flat screen would love to use that as a zoom (although it would work best for that role in the STECS Standard config. Again.. It's great having options!
@StrIIker-TV if you go into the adjust controls screen, double click on whatever you want to set the button for, then instead of hitting the button you want to assign, open up the "Key/Button" dropdown. There will be options for button 1, button 1 off, button 2, button 2 off, etc. Hope that helps! I agree being able to do that right in their software is cool.
@@DaveyCooterAhhh! Okay that's super helpful! Man, stuff I wish I had known before! That's a huge help for times when the hardware can't be programmed!
Another great video, thanks for making, it must take a lot of effort. Really excellent tips for the curves and how to adjust the afterburner positions. That's what i was struggling with on mine, as I mentioned in your previous video, so thanks for that.
Thank you for your kind words and most importantly, I am happy that I was able to help. I enjoyed working on the video and I find that in making these, I push myself to develop a stronger understanding of the subject which in turn, helps me enjoy it all better. A main driver is that I know how frustrating it can be trying to get something to work and having challenges. Finding some help online can be a huge relief and help ya get flying that sim already!
Thank you! It works like a charm now! Let me know if you have any issues. It’s pretty straight forward once you play with the software but it can take some time to get your head around it.
So…. I did a thing. I tried to config the the upper hat switch as my TDC slew (Hornet). Zero luck. I did config the flaps for all 3 settings. Many thanks!
Okay, I actually think that’s great that you tried that! It’s a very cool idea and you learned some of what the software can and cannot do. That’s key. Thank you for sharing that info! I had considered trying that but resigned myself to sucking it up and getting comfy with the existing TDC. I’m much better with it now. I can skew it around pretty well in the Strike Eagle and Hornet. New video should be out tomorrow demonstrating more cool stuff and I use both aircraft.
That pulse for both ways across the detent is exactly what I wanted. Pulsing flaps are also interesting. VKB fixed it very quickly. Kudos! And good video instructions, thanks for that. ;-)
@@dcsfrost I experemented with both switches as pulse and without and decided to leave the flip switch as pulse, including the middle position which I may or may not bind. I use the flip switch for gears, actually, and it serves well for both two-way gear levers and three-way levers (e.g. Yak-52, MiG-15 or back of the L-39 Albatros). For the TGL switch I decided NOT to pulse, because it is a momentary (spring-loaded) switch. It is actually advantageous to have the action while you're holding it. I like pulsing for things that stay in posiition (flip switch, or 5-way rotary switch under the throttle) because until I move it again it doesn't mess with my cockpit after the mission start. That's the benefit of pulse action. Nothing else, I guess. Pulse for momentary switches doesn't make much sense, because then you can't use them as press-n-hold action. So if I had flaps on the flip switch, I'd not mind the pulse action. If I had them on the toggle, I'd NOT use pulse action. I actually use one of the K-switches for the flaps - again, without the pulse action.
@@dcsfrost Sometimes when I load into a hot jet, the physical flap switch may be set to something incorrect. Like the jet may auto set flaps to half in the Hornet but my switch may be set to full or auto from a previous session. If the switch is set to continuous signal, it will set the flaps to that setting. This may not be what I want. This simply makes sure that the physical switch position which I may not have checked doesn’t impact the sim. Ultimately this is not too important. I should be setting flaps regardless of how I load into the aircraft but it was something which popped into my head as something which I should try to change.
Glad to help! It actually becomes pretty simple to do once you get the basics of the software sorted out. Feel free to pop by to ask questions if you have any! I have mine dialed in perfectly now.
Three position switch for the flaps is also great for mig-21 landing gear which is also 3 position and will run out of fluid if you leave it in up or down position instead of putting in neutral.
It's a great set for sure! Which version did you get? The STECS Standard is actually a nice layout if you need more buttons. The mini probably would have been fine for me but in the end, I'm glad I got the extras. It's all a great set and a good price and the ability to mix and match or add on later adds value.
@@andreyzhavoronkov6746 yeah that was a solid choice. I like the positioning of the STEM better for VR. As you can see in the video, I fumble around blindly trying to find stuff still whereas having it on the base, closer to me would have been much better. I know you will enjoy it when you get it!
I just got mine in today and honestly, swapped back to my warthog right away. I’m sure it’s a great throttle but the lack of a raid/flir switch, lots of plastic, funky quirks (as you’ve mentioned, it’s plug and play if you don’t want any customization which is probably the most appealing thing about the throttle and a big selling point for sure), it’s just more trouble than I realized. I’m short, it’s awesome, just not for me. I’m sure this tutorial will be a huge help to ease that learning curve for those that want to go that deep. Great video, my friend. If anyone is interested in the throttle “like new” i.e. out of the box today, let me know 😂
I hear ya! It is a big adjustment from The Hog throttle. I was surprised at the plastic but then my only other throttle was the chunk of metal so that’s all I knew. It took a while of use and even now, I still need to remember which switch does what but I am happy that I have more stuff on the throttle handles because I needed it. It is definitely not for everyone and I will never push what I like on others so I completely support your decision and want to thank you for taking time to share your experiences with others here as I am sure it will help them out. Enjoy that Warthog throttle my friend! It’s a solid piece of kit and still remains my favorite. I still have mine.
Hey brother! So, I’ve been watching all these videos raving about the Stecs throttle, and after having seen yours, I’m more or less convinced that I should at least give it a shot. I also purchased it for the additional buttons but after digging into the software, I’m so incredibly lost. Would you be available for “hire” via discord or something similar to help me set it up correctly? I’ve always considered myself a smart guy, but apparently not smart enough for this throttle/software. Let me know if you’d be available. Again, I’ll gladly pay to get this thing working and be able to use it to its full capacity.
@@Emo_Aviator hi! I would be happy to lend a hand. I am offline more or less for about 2 weeks though. (Not near my computers) so it would have to wait until then.
@@Emo_Aviatorone other thing.. You should ask around on the VKB support forums as they are very helpful there as well as the VKB Discord. I got the help from VKB through the HOTAS Reddit site. Sometimes you just need a little nudge to get past one thing which causes frustration.
Hey thanks for the great compliments! Gratz on grabbing a STECS! It's a great throttle with incredible configurability and customizations! The few gripes I have are around availability of buying specific buttons (I want a couple more three position buttons) and the thumb stick (which I have gotten used to but would still swap it out with a more conventional one as a Throttle Designator Controller button). I'm working on a video in which I outline how I have configured the buttons as I have been asked several times about this. It's a guide to help people get started and plan it out in a useful way. Let me know how you like the STECS once you have it!
Thanks! This is why I made the video. I had a lot of questions and managed to get some answers and thought I should share it with everyone. It sucks getting stuck and not knowing what to do next.
Recommendation for one of the two K-switches if you don't need it for anything else right now: Dedicated canopy control. I have found having that accessible a really nice thing in all planes. =) And for the other, dedicated seat height adjustment. Also a really nice thing to have. =) Great to see you got your issues solved! Was always rooting for you, hehe. With the two latest guide videos they've released they've also shown how to turn the encoders into axis, and the 3-position flap switch can be an axis as well. That's what I'm going to do with mine (order is in, shipping might start towards the end of this week for EU), since I already have a SEM module with my landing gear and flaps controls.
Are the K-switched the two white ones on the STEM? That sounds like a cool idea and I am definitely going to try it. Thanks for all of your help and guidance! It was and is greatly appreciated. I had the video mostly done a couple days ago but I kept adding this and tweaking that. I get picky.
@@StrIIker-TV Yup, those are the ones, the white ones with the button in the center. I have a button/switchbox I built that has my dedicated seat height and canopy controls, I mostly use the K-switches for various 3-position switches, but they seem like they'd be good for that kind of thing. And yeah, happy to help. =)
I am sorry, I missed this question! I bought some adjustable cinch straps (amzn.to/3B8lYwd) which have velco backings and are stretchable. I wrap them around each thigh. I also bought some adhesive velcro (similar to these amzn.to/3ZpSJ1V ) and stuck the corresponding part onto the back of the Tartarus (and my trackball for my right thigh). I trim them for size. This is very simple and effective. I hope this helps
Just received my STECs and used this video to help set it up. Amazing. This should be on VKB official guide. Thankyou! Would love to see what else you mapped to all these controls. You didn’t make a mapping diagram did you?
Hi! Congrats of getting the STECS and thank you for your great compliment. It’s much appreciated. I didn’t do a mapping diagram but I am working on finishing up a quick video outlining how I mapped my throttle for a couple of the aircraft which I fly. I will throw together a diagram as well.
Thank you for this excellent follow-up video. I hope this isn't a stupid question, but from my understanding, it appears that if you wanted to, you could setup different detent profiles for different aircraft but use the same physical detents/rail provided that each profile has its curves set to accommodate the slightly different afterburner activation % of each plane if you so chose, correct? I ask because I plan to get the mini+ and button combo set and would prefer to not change out rails (although I would if I needed to).
Hi! Thank you for the great compliment. I do think that you are correct (and no, your question is definitely not a stupid one). You could set the detent in the general location that you want to have it kick in and use the profiles in software to set detents based upon custom curves and adjusting the size and positions if needed to match what you want. A single frame would definitely suffice. You can then use the button press technique to swap from one profile to the other. I would probably set the AB detent (if you fly aircraft with after burners) to around 75 on the frame as that is probably a good spot. I think most people who do use the afterburner either go full on or full off so there,'t not a need for a large mount of motion in the Afterburner side. If you do like to stage in increments in the afterburner, moving the detent down a little would help. I posted pics of my two detent frames in the community tab. I would use the while settings personally if I had a single frame to play with. I think most throttles out there just have a fixed afterburner detent position and players adjust using the DCS curves. Being able to do it all in the VKB software makes it much better as the user curves can get "messy" and are a bit of a pain to get set properly when trying to adjust. Lastly, it would be nice to see VKB allow more detent profiles in the software. Figure out some way of differentiating them with the colors or just require using the software to activate a profile beyond the base 5. Hope I helped ya!
@@StrIIker-TV thank you so much for the detailed response. It appears that VKB software is so powerful, you can do almost anything. It looks like maybe I'll just have to memorize the coloured lights for each jet which shouldn't be a big deal. On another note, that Alex Oz guy strikes me as a computing genius. I'm glad you were able to contact him and that he was helpful. Looking forward to seeing more of the STECS in action.
Hey Str][ker, Another great video! Hope all is well. I too have the warthog throttle but am thinking of switching to the Stecs for the versatility. For the AB, did you set up the curves for the detent as we did for the warthog or does just mapping the fingerlift buttons do the trick? Thanks!
Hey! Thanks for the compliment and I hope all is well with you too! I've been thinking of making a brief followup video to share my thoughts now that I have been using the STECS for a while. It's a similar process. You move the throttle to find the point where the AB initially stages in and note where that is on the throttle. Then place the physical lug there. Lastly, you need to hop into the VKB software to set some curves. I'm hopeful that the video helps enough to get people going. The nice thing with the VKB software is that you can adjust where Idle is and where the AB is via these curves (VKB curves, not DCS). For example, I could set a curve where the throttle is physically at 50% but have it in DCS read as 100% (Full throttle). The throttle scales from zero to this new 100% for what it sends to DCS. Obviously this is not practical but I am hoping it helps you understand the concept. So with the AB detent, you (via VKB software) identify where the max mil power is, and set that percent at that physical detent. The rest afterwards would be the staging increments for AB.. As for kicking in AB where physical finger lifts exist (such as the Hornet), I set a few things up for this as demonstrated in the video. I set the throttle the same way as mentioned but once I pass through the AB detent, I enabled a trigger action to press a button. That button is then defined in DCS as the finger lift button for passing into afterburner. The warthog only has actual buttons for the Idle / cutoff (when you lift the throttle out of off into idle for example) and nothing for AB. That's where you need to play with curves in DCS to match the physical location of the AB detent on the warthog. None of this applies with the STECS as most of the heavy lifting is done in the VKB software. Hopefully this helps. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.
@@StrIIker-TV Great info! I will digest this and scan for future videos and I'm sure, all will become clearer once I actually get the unit. So, just to see if I get it. Instead of setting the curves up in DCS, all is done with the VKB software after determining the Mil/AB position? Thanks again
@@greyeagle5199 Regarding curves for AB, yes, you set those in the VKB software. There are other settings in DCS which you set and then configure stuff in the VKB software but the curves are not needed for AB settings in DCS.
striker I have a question, I just ordered this throttle. Should be in Friday. I fly the 18 and the 15E mainly. How did you know where to put the the detents on the plastic itself. At what percent? Does it matter? or do you just place it somewhere near the bottom and top, set the detents in software and than make small changes in software after going into DCS?
Here's a shot of what I did for physical placement of the detents. It's down a few posts on my community tab. I couldn't find a direct way to share that particular comment. www.youtube.com/@StrIIker-TV/community For the afterburner on the Hornet, I determined where to put it by hopping in a free flight and listening for the loud afterburner engage sound as I slowly moved the throttle forward (there's an option as well to make the AB sound louder which helps). Once I learned the precise location, I put the detent there (I had the detent on the frame installed but it was somewhat loose so I could move it with some effort). Once you have the location set, do the finger lift configuration (setting events) per the video as this will trigger the AB as you push past it and step out of AB as you pull back. The Strike Eagle AB was a little different as you can also configure the percentage in DCS in the Strike Eagle Special tab and then set it on the frame (it' sin the video under the Configure DCS for the F15E). Watch the segment on Adjusting F-15E Detent for how to do it using the curves. It works really well. You could even do this with the Hornet if you wanted. I think the physical locations which I used are a good start for you to get things configured. I know it probably looks a little confusing but once you have the throttle and play around a little and use the steps I outlined, you should be good to go. As for the Idle detent, I moved the throttle to the bottom and set the detent just above it. I don't need any extra room below the Idle Detent as it's off. You do want to use the curves as well to set zero once you hit that detent. Use the event to trigger the throttle off or idle. Make sure you click the video description as well as it has the chapters listed there and makes it easy to find them. You can also mouse over on the playback bar for the video and find the chapter you want. Let me know if you need a hand. I'd be happy to help clarify or provide more detail for ya.
@@StrIIker-TV Sounds good Sir Ty. I saw that you can set the AB for the F15E, Just wasnt sure if you set that too where you are putting the detent physically. I will wait till i get the throttle in a few days and then go back and watch your Solutions video again to try the things out. After some time I will probably be replacing my joystick as well. Currently use the X56 throttle and stick. But Not sure if I want to go with VKB for a stick or someone else. I read a lot of stories about winwing having really bad customer service, which actually turned me off there orion 2 F15 throttle, I had almost made that purchase instead.
@@sirbum69 That sounds like a good approach! You got this! Hopefully the pictures of the two detent frames helps As for WinWing.. that poor customer service is why I skipped on them. Also I had concerns about design quality but that was just my personal opinion formed after looking at some of their gear. It’s too bad because I think their stuff looks very cool but after having experienced bad customer service elsewhere, it’s a top priority for me when deciding upon a vendor. I don’t know the VKB sticks at all so I can’t comment on them. I do have a high opinion of Virpil’s control stick base. I have the CM2 but would have loved a CM3 for the dampening it has.
Just got the throttle and had it setup for the hornet in about 20 min. Had to invert the throttle for what ever reason and unbind the throttle from pitch and roll but worked slick
@@sirbum69Great to hear! It was pretty easy to fget going. I've had similar issues with various axes which needed to be inverted as well on all aircraft. I also constantly get the throttle being bound to pitch etc. I wonder how it is that DCS does this but oh well. :)
Hi, I have a small channel im and I’m waiting on a similar setup to yours to get into DCS. How do you record DCs in a rectangle (in vr). When I’ve tried all I got on my screen was a weird eye view.
Hi! I am always happy to help out with these frustrating things. I was in your shoes before. What you are seeing is the HMD mask which DCS uses to not render content which will not be displayed in the headset. This maybe helps give you a slight boost in FPS but I don't' think by much. In DCS, there is an option under the Options - VR tab labeled "Enable HMD Mask". You want to DESELECT this. This will get rid of the black parts of the display. You also want to DESELECT "Use DCS System Resolution" as this in my experience causes distortion of the window which you are going to record (makes things look squished / wider). So now you have a window to record in OBS. You will want to run DCS in VR mode. Load into a jet sitting on the runway or whatever, put the HMD down and center the VR view (you should have this bound to a handy button). Now in OBS, select the Game window as the video source. You should already set the resolution of the output, framerate, etc. in OBS. You now need to zoom the DCS output to fit the wider aspect of the OBS recording canvas. This means that you will chop some of the top and bottom off and probably part of the right side (assuming you are mirroring the right eye) but that's okay. Drag up and down to center the view to what you want recorded. I had to fiddle with this to get things just right. That should do it. I am working on a "how to" video for recording DCS the way I do (multiple audio channels etc) so that may help you as well once I finally get my butt in gear to finish it. If you have additional questions, please feel free to ask! No point in re-inventing the wheel with some of this stuff! If the above didn't work, let me know. There's a different way which I used to have to do to get rid of the HMD mask but I haven't had to do that since Eagle Dynamics added this check box to DCS.
in the F18. Any idea why the left afterburner sometimes doesn't activate? it's seems to happen more often if a quickly go over the detent. As if the event button is not pressed long enough to activate.
I've tried to replicate this a few times over the past few weeks and so far I have not experienced it. I think you can increase the amount of time the action triggers when you move past the detent? I'll have to have another look (It's been a long time since I messed around in the config tool). The action is supposed to be momentary (i.e. brief) and should send it through to DCS which should detect the "button press" and hit the finger lift for Afterburner. I assume this is how you have it configured?
@@StrIIker-TV i configured exactly like in the video. I've since changed the setting in DCS to activate both finger lifts instead of mapping them individually. I'll never use afterburner on only left or right separately. It seems to have fixed the issue.
I don't get the three way flaps. Mine just flashes the middle position every time I move it up or down because the up or down pulses and then goes OFF which means it triggers the middle button. It just doesn't work like you're showing here. And the official VKB video on making the three way switch is also different, they tell you to make a virtual button which doesn't show up in the buttons menu.
Hmm, I wonder if the newer version of the VKB software does something differently. So, when you enabled polling and you move the flap switch UP, it flashes the number? Same with down? It's possible you have them set as Encoder instead of buttons. It's in my video as well in the segment "Make Flaps Pulse". You can change the type to button again for the three positions. So you followed the instructions here? ua-cam.com/video/rvK4ksUBbPU/v-deo.htmlsi=nK2jCKrGu9NzwYEa&t=1126 and then check to see how the three positions are defined (as buttons or as encoders) via this ua-cam.com/video/rvK4ksUBbPU/v-deo.htmlsi=pfrG-hWacREAoNE2&t=1373 I think you can do virtual buttons but if you use the boolian as I demonstrated, the logic works that if neither the up position or down position are set, then it equals the third (middle) button.
So I'm thinking about getting this throttle but I don't have any desk mounts or a home cockpit. Do you think the STECS Max will be fine if I wanna use it on top of my desk?
On a desktop, my main concern would be that front part which is on the frame away from the main throttle base. It might be too far to comfortably reach it but then again, you will probably assign functions to that part which are not used a lot (I don’t). I have radios, flaps, landing gear assigned and that stuff doesn’t get used a whole lot. The max also has that small part towards the rear which adds a handful of extra buttons which may be pretty handy for you. I do think it would work for you on a desk. The nice part also is that the rear part is pretty small so the throttle handles will be close enough to you and the edge of the desk. Ultimately you are getting the 4 buttons, plus the rotary button with press and two more under the flaps (I use one for eject) which can be pretty useful. The STECS standard lacks this small part so you lose those buttons and they put that front part at the back (closest to you). The STECS max has some good weight to it and grips surfaces well. Another plus, you can adjust the friction for the throttles so no worries about pushing or pulling the base unless you really max out the friction (nobody really does this) so it will work well for you.
Thanks for the reply! It's hard finding info out there about the Max because most people went for the Standard one. I think having the STEM in front of the actual throttle will be better for me because I won't have to reach as far away for the main part of it which is the throttle levers (the most important part lol). Again, thank you so much for your reply, this helps a lot!
@@ExactPlanet0 Glad to have been of assistance. If there’s anything else you want to ask about with the STECS please feel completely free to do so. To date I am still very happy with my STECS Max and am happy I made the switch.
Why does the flaps need a pulse and its not enough to work it as a button? Also I see you use the Max Stecs version. Do you think the extra little module with the 4 buttons its worth it or not that usuable?
I prefer the pulse so that when I load into the Sim, the flaps in DCS don't automatically jump to the position of the physical flap switch (because it will be continually getting a button press). It's not necessary but a preference of mine. Well, the Max also adds the bracket to hold the other panel upright at an angle plus it comes with the additional button modules. I do use the small extra module for some stuff like exterior lights, flashlight, active pause, etc. so for me, it has been useful but it's not essential in my opinion. I use PointCTRL to interact with the cockpits so I try to use the actual cockpit controls when possible. The buttons on the throttle base are generally non-aircraft controls (sim controls). I do use the flaps and gear switches though since it can be dicey having to look down to reach for them during a cat shot. I've been using the radio knobs to adjust the channels in the aircraft as well.
Hi! For which aircraft? The F-15E Strike Eagle has a special setting to manually define it. I went with the "real world" setting of 64%. To achieve this, I physically set the detent to have the leading edge at 75%. I did have to fine tune the afterburner detent using the software as demonstrated in the video. The hornet has a higher value and that I believe is hard set in DCS. What I did was hop into the hornet and move the throttle until I can hear the AB kick in. I was initially looking at the external view but the initial stage doesn't really light up. I noted the position of the throttle and set the detent accordingly. On the detent frame, the Large L detent (the one I am using) has the leading edge at 85% exactly (well, close enough). If it would help, I can post two pictures to the Community section of my channel and you can see the exact positioning. Let me know!
The STECS throttle has provided me with great fine control of the thrust in the aircraft which I have refueled in (The Hornet and Strike Eagle). The throttle has two tension adjustment knobs (one per side) which allows you to adjust how much resistance you receive while moving the throttles forward and aft. I suggest looking at that part first to ensure that you don't have the friction too high as it then will result in excessive movements of the throttle. It requires a little more force to overcome the initial friction than to maintain/continue that motion and that can result in moving the throttle more than you wanted. You also don't want the resistance to be too low or the throttles will be too loose and you can wind up over adjusting the throttles, particularly later in combat etc. Having gotten the throttle part out of the way, it comes down to the actual refueling. I'm not sure what experience and/or proficiency you have with air to air refueling so if I am being overly basic with this, please forgive me. The general approaches to getting this down involves first mastering formation flying. Fly near the tanker and just maintain position. You will start to learn how much adjustment is required for this. Build a sight picture such as.. the top left corner of the right mirror should be right next to the door on the side of the tanker etc. and that's what you work on to maintain position. Once you can master formation flying, the tanking part is easier. I don't want to delve too deep into detail here if it's not helpful for you so please let me know if you want more information about any aspect of this. I would hapily make a video to demonstrate this as well and can set a camera up to focus on the throttle movement.
I have tension to the bear minimum, so it just doesn;t move forward or backwards, but cant seem to get constant speed, just touch it is 5kn to fast or too slow, roll and pitch is pilot (indian, not the arrow, but thrust no matter what i do cant get it to settle down. @@StrIIker-TV
@@DCoy305Which aircraft are you flying? A former WSO from an F-15E Strike Eagle said that it can be a good idea to pop the speed brake a bit to help give you better control over the speed. with the throttle. If you have the tension set as low as you mentioned, that may be the issue because it will not take much to move. Have you ensured that you properly calibrated the throttle? This is a very important aspect. Try running the calibration again. Also ensure that you don't have curves set too high in DCS or the VKB config tool. You should not be seeing such a dramatic increase in thrust with a small input. If that is happening, I really do think it's a calibration problem. Also, have a look at the axis sliders in the DCS Axis configuration for the throttles. Ensure that you get proper motion forwards and back.
@@DCoy305 Hi! I am using Curves in both VKB for the throttle only. In VKB I set the curves so that the at the idle detent, the throttle is at zero and then curves to get the throttle set properly before the afterburner detent. I recall showing this in the video for both the F-15E and F/A-18C. The curves in VKB are there to help you set the in game throttle position to where you want it by using an offset vs where the physical throttle is. For example, with the cutoff detent in place at the lower end of the throttle, the throttle never physically reaches where the zero is (because of the physical detent) and so it by default is telling the sim that it's at something like 10 or 20% because that's physically where it is. The curve allows the throttle to set a new 0% regardless of the physical location of the throttle. So, I set the curve and now DCS sees zero throttle when the throttle is physically at let's say 20%. Pulling past the detent then sends the cut off command to DCS via the detent action which I configured. So that's the VKB curve.. In DCS you can set curves to reduce the input intensity for a given amount of throttle movement but I don't do this as I find the responsiveness of the throttle to fine plus this will make small adjustments to the throttle much greater later in the curve. The throttle is best left as a straight linear line. Thjis is all applicable to the viper too (which I do have). Curves in DCS are great and almost a must have for rudder inputs (specifically for nose wheel steering) and stick inputs. This way, the initial inputs are lessened by the curve. Without curves on the rudder pedals, I am zig zagging a LOT on takeoff rolls because even a small deflection physically on the rudder pedal is enough to turn you left or right a fair amount. I also added a dead zone to the rudders so that I'm not deflecting the nose wheel by being slightly off center. Does this all make sense and help?
Hey man, when are you gonna upload again. It's been 11 months and we haven't seen any new content? :( But I hope all is well and there isn't a bad reason for not uploading. Much love.
@@blackmedic6302 hah! 11 Months hmm? Well I think it’s been about a month and a bit since my last video but I hear ya! Heheh. I got sidelined with some VR issues where my Aero was not performing its eye tracking. It would fail at seemingly random times and my view would switch to a lower resolution and it would be difficult to read the displays and things generally became blurry. I have a partial fix to it but Varjo customer support has been horrible which is too bad because I really love their hardware and had strongly encouraged people to consider buying their headset when asked. However, I do have a lot of footage and am going to make some more. I’ll probably add some helicopter stuff now and then and plan to do some more hardware / stuff I use videos as well. Thanks for reaching out though! It’s greatly appreciated.
I followed this but for some reason after I pass the AB Detent for the F-18 it just sets my virtual throttle speed to 0 in both DCS and the config software. I feel like I'm missing something.
Hmm, so this is in the VKB configuration software? So you are in the configuration software and when you push past the detent, the throttle falls back to zero. There is definitely a step missed here (I think I captured it all in the video though). The detent configuration was set correctly? If this is in DCS, I wonder if you are incorrectly binding the finger lift for the Afterburner detent? Is it possible that it's using the binding for setting the throttle to idle? The idea is that once you reach the detent and push into it, there is an action button being pressed. Check here in the video (timestap link) ua-cam.com/video/rvK4ksUBbPU/v-deo.htmlsi=f1go8R8EYKckwSSW&t=897 and make sure that the fingerlift button press is different from the Idle or off buttons defined on the page. Also make sure the Special setting for Afterburner Detent is Always on. Let me know if you got this sorted out or not.
@@StrIIker-TV So I ended up just deleting it and using the physical detent as a reminder and just pressing the finger lifts on my HOTAS. I could try messing with it again, but honestly this works fine for my needs anyway, all I really wanted was a way to mark the AB position on the throttle since its annoying to look down and read it.
@@TimRich1259 As long as you are happy with it then stick with that for now! If you ever want or need to do more, give it another look. I think there's some simple step missed or mixed up. Feel free to ping me in the future if you change your mind and get stuck agian.
This are called PointCTRL. They are definitely a huge help when flying VR. I click everything in the cockpit using them. I only need to assign buttons on my throttle base and the Tartarus on my left thigh for things which are not in the cockpit like external views, map, kneeboard commands etc. There is a long wait for them but go order one. You only pay when it’s ready to ship if you still want it. If you don’t want it any more, no need to do anything. Www.pointctrl.com
I'm wondering if it'd be possible to set up the 3 pos switch as an axis (which I know is possible), but one that also triggers button presses at the start, middle and end (similar to the detent button presses you setup). In that way, you could both use them in planes like the F-14, which have a throttle axis, and in planes with a 3 position flap switch (like the F-18), without having to change anything between them.
I am almost certain that you can do this very thing. The software has a huge amount of configuration options and this has to be one such option. I imagine there is a setting in the VKB software in which you can configure virtual buttons at varying axis positions (basically what is done with the detents in a way).
Yeah, to be honest, it doesn't really change that much, except that in the Tomcat, the flap lever animation is now smoother, since it's using the axis.
Certainly! Those are called PointCTRL (www.pointctrl.com). They are an amazing device which uses a sensor mounted on the VR Headset and two finger devices which emit an IR light. The head sensor sees the finger sensor and moves the mouse cursor to where your hand is. It's designed and calibrated to match up perfectly in the cockpit in DCS. It's fairly inexpensive (at about $250 I think) and really is an incredible device. Sadly, there is a TWO YEAR wait on them as it's a side thing for the maker and he had to halt production recently due to real life needs. You do not get billed until your order comes up and you can decide then if you want it or not. It may be worth hopping on the list (submit an order) just in case. I am going to make a video to better describe it and demonstrate it. I've put it off but I get asked a lot and so it's time to get off my butt! I built the cockpit specifically with these in mind as it gives me something to touch and rest my finger one while clicking buttons etc. It's not needed but it adds a little bit to my enjoyment.
Hi! That's an amazing little device called PointCTRL. The things on my fingers have an IR emitter and on my VR headset is a sensor which tracks their position. This then moves the mouse cursor to that location. The finger Control Units (FCU) have three buttons on them and they function as left and right mouse clicks as well as a scroll wheel function. It's a must have item for DCS (or MSFlight Sim). There's a long wait list but it's so worth getting on it. You do not have to pay until you get the invoice when your order comes up to get ready to ship. If you don't want it at that time, you simply ignore the invoice and pay nothing. Hopefully Miles, the guy who makes them, will be able to ramp up production better than he has so you won;t have to wait 2 years (yes, he's currently shipping orders placed two years ago).
I actually shoot videos of DCS flying now and then showing my use of it.. Here's a recent one.. ua-cam.com/video/gWxrynTIfSA/v-deo.htmlsi=ZxBE_8eIJxcyol1W
Ugh. That’s damn ridiculous! Reminds me of the nightmare I had with HTC when my Vive controllers failed within warranty. I don’t know what you’ve tried but for some companies, you need to keep contacting them, requesting escalation to a manager or higher tier technician, etc. Ultimately, I got my HTC issue resolved when I took to social media and started posting about it and including the company (@) in my comments. It’s tough to find a company with great support. For me, Virpil has done just that. You may want to investigate the quality of Winwing’s support and their products before committing to that company as well. It may be more of the same if not worse. Hopefully they have addressed it.
The finger lifts I refer to are the set of levers on the front of the throttle handle and the ones on the rear. They look like the finger lifts on real combat jet throttles (such as the F-18 or F15E) which are generally used for moving the throttle out of off to idle and from mil power to afterburner. The aren’t actual finger lifts on the STECS. In DCS there are finger lift settings for both the Hornet and Strike Eagle which you configure. In the Strike Eagle the finger lifts are used to start the engines. Also thanks!
@@adiedri38Heh yeah! It's actually not as difficult as it looks. The software is confusing and their documentation is not the best but the community is VERY helpful and often the staff with VKB help out. I use their forums and Discord to get help with questions. The gear itself just takes time to learn (or relearn) which buttons do what and that takes practice, practice, practice.
@@adiedri38 Hi! I do not have a bindings video but I will put a quick one together. I know why you are asking this question. When I was starting out and when I upgraded to the STECS, I struggled with figuring out what I should map and where. I didn’t want to map settings to buttons which in the end don’t “make sense” in terms of location. I try to match the aircraft which I am flying as closely as I can and go from there. I will see what I can throw together for ya!
You can physically put detents on the black detent frame however for some reason which makes zero sense to me, the software does not allow you to configure the detents. If you go into the software and select the black detent frame color, you cannot do anything to set the detent positions by running the detent wizard. I was going to reach out to VKB to ask why they made this choice and ask if they can add the option to the software.
Thanks. Yea I was confused since I got the mini stecs which only has the black detent, but I couldn’t do all the cool stuff you showed to fine tune it in software.
@@planecrazy242Just pick one of the other colors in the software. That's what I initially did because I wanted to use the black detent as it looked best for me. I looked in the VKB software and could not set any detents on it so I chose the white one in the software and was using that for the black detent. I eventially decided to match to color as I didn't want to confuse things in the video and moved my Hornet detents to the white detent. So, put the detents on the black one, choose a different color in the software and have fun. Actually, you could put the detents on in one physical location and then use different colors in software for different aircraft. You would just need to use curves in the software to adjust to match the detent position and afterburner start for each aircraft. It would be super easy. Just follow what I did for the hornet or strike eagle but on a single detent. The hornet afterburner starts later than what I have the strike eagle set for so I would adjust the curves to match. One color for hornet, another for strike eagle. Let me know if you need a hand.
Hi! This will work for single engine aircraft such as the F-16 and warbird types. I also use it for the BlackHawk where I decouple the left and right throttles and use one for collective and one for engine RPM (I forget what it's called). So for the F-16, you simply need leave the throttles coupled and then set the detent for afterburner.I've not done it and there was another person who said they are having difficulty however I think some step is missing for them. The actual process will vary for the F-16 and other aircraft. You can see the difference for how the Strike Eagle and Hornet are configured in the videos I made for example.
That, my friend is a PointCTRL and it is awesome! In effect, these little devices allow me to move the mouse cursor around on the screen and buttons on them are mouse button clicks and there’s a way they also do scroll wheel movement. There is a long wait currently but I do suggest that you place an order and then some day in the future, you will get an email saying it’s time along with an invoice. If you pay the invoice, you will get the PointCTRL within a couple of weeks. If you no longer want it, don’t pay and you lose nothing. The finger devices have an IR light which a sensor mounted on the top front of the VR headset tracks and moves the mouse cursor to that spot. So I completely interact with the buttons, switches and knobs in the cockpit using these. I don’t have to bind anything extra to my HOTAS. I have posted a few videos showing me using it and recently posted some more. Please feel free to ask me any questions which you may have.
Do you mean that you want the Joystick firmware? If so you can get all of the latest from here: sites.google.com/view/njoy-32/home . I apologize if this is not what you meant but I was not clear on the term "video update firmware" and as this is about the Throttle, I assumed you meant that. Let me know if you were referring to something else. I am not a fan of how VKB packages all of their firmware for everything into a single zip file. Also, they changed the contents of the zip file from what was in it when I received my throttle to a few days later when it had the firmware for the STECS however they did not change the name of the file (it was the same version name). They really need to clean it all up.
@@StrIIker-TV sorry typo on video. Is there an instruction on how to update the stecs to the latest firmware? I can't find anything online. They are so bad with instructions to be honest.
@@YofbjpYudhsI think I found a video but here's the basic idea. Extract the firmware file, open the VKB Config tool. Under Tools, select Bootloader. Navigate to the extracted file. Select it. Click on Flash It. All done. If you change your mind and don't flash the device, I have found that I need to unplug the throttle and plug it back in as it gets stuck in some odd state.
It’s a Razer Tartarus. I do a brief description of it in this video at 7:28. ua-cam.com/video/IpVzlA3SzIw/v-deo.htmlsi=6aF0O5t6673hmroF It’s super handy in DCS. On my right thigh I have a track ball as well
@@StrIIker-TV i kinda figured thats what it was, was thinking of getting one the other day but settled on getting an apache keyboard unit from tek creations. On a side note, thanks for this video I just got my STECS set up perfectly now. Got it yesterday.
@@utley Hey awesome! Let me know how you like that keyboard! I'm going to be digging deep into the Apache once I get my collective stuff from Virpil (that sweet new Apache collective.. drool..) I'm just curious about the keyboard but since I'm in VR, I couldn't really use it. I am fortunate to have PointCTRL which I use to type on the Apache keyboard in DCS. I'm happy to hear that I was able to help out in soime small way to get your STECS rocking quickly. It's a pretty sweet throttle.
My exp with VKB today "I guess the proper name for the switch in question is a "Trigger switch" yes? now all I need is how to replace the switch i can find nothing on youtube on our VKB's forum. I'm not too pleased on how VKB expects me to change the trigger without instructions is that too much to expect??? how about you take all my VKB products in trade for a WINWING or VPRILE ...,.. ARE YOU GOING TO STAND BEHIND YOUR UA-cam WHAT!... AT 74 I THINK I CAN HANDLE REMOVING A BUNCH OF SCREWS IF THAT WHAT YOU WANT ME TO DO PROBABLY CROSS-THREAD THEM AND RUIN THE THROTTLE" still no guidance from VKB as they don't know at this point. my VKB products 2 bases 3 sticks and this stecs 33% failure rate if you can afford the loss buy VKB
Yikes that sucks! Sorry to hear that! I don’t know how their customer service is for problems with the hardware but generally I heard good things prior to buying the STECS. I got some help with the configuration fairly quickly from them but that’s the extent of my experience. I have had stellar experience with a hardware issue with Virpil though and would happily recommend them. I’ve heard bad things about Winwing though as they are apparently worse than most to get quality help but maybe they have improved? I hope you get your issue resolved. One thing I might suggest is to join the VKB forums and post some questions there. I got a lot of help from other users on that forum. Maybe also ask on the HOTAS Reddit forums. People there are great and always eager to help out. Let me know how it goes!
It’s actually not that bad. It’s only as complex as you want it. If all you want to do is to use the throttle and buttons as is, then plug it in, assign buttons and axes in DCS (or your game of choice) and you are all set. If you want to take advantage of the configurability via software, then there is some learning to do but to be honest, you probably don’t need to do more than I demonstrated in this video and the previous one. The benefit is that you have choices. I would rather have choices and options than being locked in to a single set up.
thank you for this video.... I think this really was the over the top straw for my decision. Actually I will be getting the Gladiator as well, I am debating on the left hand model for a collective/throttle. Problem is shipping! So I figure if I just get it all at once I may save some. Is that an accurate assumption?
First of all, thank you for your kind words. I am happy to hear that I was able to help you out in some way. Hopefully once you get your device(s), this video will help with getting it all configured. As for ordering, generally getting multiple items in a single order saves on shipping. What I would suggest is to add the one item to your cart and check the shipping charges and note it somewhere. Then add the second item to the cart and check the shipping charges for both. Compare and then you can determine how much you would save ordering together. Sometimes the increase in shipping is negligible and some times it is larger.
@@orionmecGreat to hear! Hope you enjoy them. I am finishing up a video right now which focuses on using ScratchPad plus a mod for it which makes entering waypoints and target data super easy and is a huge help for those of us in VR. I made one not too long ago which used The Way plus ScratchPad but this new method is much cleaner and uses just ScratchPad. I demo some fun bombing runs as well.
@@orionmec Hi! No, I have no code to offer you but thank you for asking. I have no clue if VKB does anything like that. I made the video on my own, to help people with stuff that I had trouble with. I bought the throttle on my own. To be honest, I’m happy knowing that my little video was useful and that’s help enough for me. Let me know how things go with your new gear! It was a little tough transitioning to the new throttle at first because I only knew the Warthog throttle but I am really happy I did.
![Str][kerTV](http://yt3.ggpht.com/nyCYJbLzftuzWPvnp7dFMOMFarXh9PS7OWoCGe3BGT_LOIXeV1ZEnnjx303oClLp4yIOSbqXfb0=s48-c-k-c0x00ffffff-no-rj)
In the test window you can also check the "Log jhoystick" option and it will display what buttons were pressed, makes life a lot easier seeing the actuall number instead of searching for those flashes.
Ahh! That’s a great thing to know! Brief flashes can be tricky. Thanks!
Btw, VKB have also recently a couple of new STECS videos showing how to add the third virtual flap button and also how to convert encoders into axis. You can even convert the K-switches to axis!
The more I learn about the STECS and the software the more I'm really liking how configurable it is. I think they're really offering something no other throttle does.
I heard about their video and it's great that they put one out as it definitely will help the majority of people who don't know the software. I really like the ability to change that three position switch to an axis! More options is a great thing. It lets people use the hardware in ways the designers may not have considered.
I will admit that I never really gave VKB much thought. I had my Warthog Throttle and stick and then bought a VKB stick base it it was great! I had some issues and their customer support was rock solid (which is an often overlooked aspect when people want to buy a device). I knew I wanted a new throttle and was going to buy a Virpil but I wasn't too thrilled with the latest they had. I avoid WinWing because of customer support issues which I have heard of. Then VKB announced their new throttle and I did some research and saw that people have had generally great CS experiences with them... and here we are. :)
Surely virpil must have a powerful software as well?
@@YofbjpYudhs I have no doubt that they do. I do have the Virpil CM2 base for my stick but I have never had much need to use it beyond calibration of the stick. My videos about the VKB STECS was just my efforts around sharing my experience and opinion of it and then the solutions which people helped me to discover. This all forced me to make greater use of the software than I had wanted but it all worked out well and so I thought I'd share that part, hoping to help people who are in similar situations such as I found myself in. I love my Virpil base and really was considering their CM3 throttle but I wound up buying the VKB as it was new and shiny and I liked the customization aspects of it via hardware options.
@@StrIIker-TVHello thanks. Do you know that rolling thing near throlly in the middle? Can I make it into axis please.
@@YofbjpYudhs Donyou mean the white selector knob on the base or the roller wheel type things (one on the left and one on the front of the left throttle)?I don’t know if the rollers can be made into an axis. So far I have only heard of the flap switch on the STEM having this option. I don’t think it can.
That was George Boole's head, the guy who booleans are named after.
The VKB software has a lot of extra features that are not super clearly laid out, however a lot of this stuff is covered in some of their videos on their channel. The problem is they fail to explain how they would work all together to do the things you want to do. So thank you for taking the time to put this all together to help others figure this out.
Thanks! Yes there is a clear disconnect between VKB and the average users out there. It can do a lot of stuff but it’s a challenge to figure it all out or find the pieces relevant to what you want to do.
most confusing driver. it took me weeks to figure out how to set up the pedals with a key to use differential braking the way i wanted, and my computer took a dump and i cant seem to get it working again. i need to get on the discord but im so discouraged to redo bindings right now lol. its so powerful but man is the interface rough
Mind blown! This is the first “how to” vid I’ve found. I got the STANDARD throttle. Pretty slick! Although, despite my doctoral work and being an “old guy”, I’m faced with a moderate learning curve. You’ve done well with translations btwn VKB and DCS in terms of set-up!
Much appreciated!
-cheers!
Don
First off, thank you for that great compliment. I really do appreciate it because it means that I was able to help out with stuff which had vexed me at one point as well! These are what typically drive me to make videos. I learn something new, smack my forehead because I missed it or it took me this long to figure out etc. and I know others are in the same boat that I was in and I want to save them the wasted time and/or aggravation. I am happy that I was able to help you out with my videos. Have fun!
@@StrIIker-TV I try to config a little each day and fly with my X-56.
@@donrumseyYeah that's a good approach. Don't burn out spending hours trying to config.
Thanks so much for these videos, they were really helpful in my decision of getting the STECS Max and then helpful configuring it
@@alligator5706 Thank you for your kind words! I bought the STECS when it first came out and. I had some challenges with it and wanted to share my thoughts on it so it could help others decide if they wanted it. I also wanted to share what solutions I was provided to hopefully help people running into the same or similar issues. Glad it helped you!
Thank you so much for this. This throttle is amazing, but it takes a lot to get it set up. I have spent a couple days fiddling and I’m finally getting close to being able to play smoothly. Thank you!!!!
Thank you for such high praise. I know what you mean about taking time to set up! It took me many attempts and a lot of time to finally figure it out. Their documentation sucks to put it bluntly. It’s part of the reason why I made the two videos.. to help others struggling with the same issues I faced.
Amazing video, this is the new go-to for showing what the STECS is all about. Love my own Standard! :-)
Thanks! That is high praise indeed! The standard I think is the sweet spot throttle config. It would have better served me in VR than the Max with the STEM being so far away. I’m still learning to find it (as you could see in the video).
Thanks for the video. I have the STECS Max and may make my own review as I usually play mech games at the moment rather than flight sims. It's been an interesting transition from the Thrustmaster TWCS throttle. It's a great piece of hardware, for sure!
I think a video review from a mech driver would be great!
I heard back from VKB and they stated that they will not be selling the 3 way switch for several months and even then, it would be part of a pack of multiple other buttons. It sucks because they sent us FIVE single press buttons and a single three way. No big deal in the end I guess. Just sucks to wast money on all of those single press buttons so they can sit in the storage case forever.
Appreciate your videos! My main tool to set up my STECS!
Thank you! I am glad that this was able to help out. It was a little confusing for me at first but with the help of many others, I finally got it all dialed in to where I want it.
I thought it might be possible but didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up. I’m not surprised that this can be done. They did a great job with the software and hardware.
The thing you did with the flaps switch, DCS actually has a work around for this in the controls.
Using your flaps as an example, if X is up and Y is down, you can made the middle position set as "X off" and "Y off" and it will do the same thing. The TM Warthog throttle has the same issue with center positions not being "buttons". Awesome video though. Pretty convinced I need the Stecs Max now.
Hey thanks! I had no idea that there was this configuration available in DCS! Out of curiosity, where is that set? It's probably better to do it via the VKB software regardless as it adds an additional button in the middle right from the start. Apparently you can also set that flap switch as an axis by opening it up and removing the physical detents inside. VKB apparently posted a video to illustrate this. Pretty cool to have that option if you want/need it! I'm sure people who fly flat screen would love to use that as a zoom (although it would work best for that role in the STECS Standard config. Again.. It's great having options!
@StrIIker-TV if you go into the adjust controls screen, double click on whatever you want to set the button for, then instead of hitting the button you want to assign, open up the "Key/Button" dropdown. There will be options for button 1, button 1 off, button 2, button 2 off, etc. Hope that helps!
I agree being able to do that right in their software is cool.
@@DaveyCooterAhhh! Okay that's super helpful! Man, stuff I wish I had known before! That's a huge help for times when the hardware can't be programmed!
Another great video, thanks for making, it must take a lot of effort. Really excellent tips for the curves and how to adjust the afterburner positions. That's what i was struggling with on mine, as I mentioned in your previous video, so thanks for that.
Thank you for your kind words and most importantly, I am happy that I was able to help. I enjoyed working on the video and I find that in making these, I push myself to develop a stronger understanding of the subject which in turn, helps me enjoy it all better. A main driver is that I know how frustrating it can be trying to get something to work and having challenges. Finding some help online can be a huge relief and help ya get flying that sim already!
Great video! Very informative. The Flap 3-Position fix is what I was looking for and you explained it very well.
Thank you! It works like a charm now! Let me know if you have any issues. It’s pretty straight forward once you play with the software but it can take some time to get your head around it.
So…. I did a thing. I tried to config the the upper hat switch as my TDC slew (Hornet). Zero luck. I did config the flaps for all 3 settings. Many thanks!
Okay, I actually think that’s great that you tried that! It’s a very cool idea and you learned some of what the software can and cannot do. That’s key. Thank you for sharing that info! I had considered trying that but resigned myself to sucking it up and getting comfy with the existing TDC. I’m much better with it now. I can skew it around pretty well in the Strike Eagle and Hornet. New video should be out tomorrow demonstrating more cool stuff and I use both aircraft.
That pulse for both ways across the detent is exactly what I wanted. Pulsing flaps are also interesting. VKB fixed it very quickly. Kudos! And good video instructions, thanks for that. ;-)
Thank you. Yeah it’s a powerful program for configuration. The trick is to discover / figure out how it all works and what can be done with it.
Can I please ask what advantage is there for flaps to pulse?
@@dcsfrost I experemented with both switches as pulse and without and decided to leave the flip switch as pulse, including the middle position which I may or may not bind. I use the flip switch for gears, actually, and it serves well for both two-way gear levers and three-way levers (e.g. Yak-52, MiG-15 or back of the L-39 Albatros).
For the TGL switch I decided NOT to pulse, because it is a momentary (spring-loaded) switch. It is actually advantageous to have the action while you're holding it.
I like pulsing for things that stay in posiition (flip switch, or 5-way rotary switch under the throttle) because until I move it again it doesn't mess with my cockpit after the mission start. That's the benefit of pulse action. Nothing else, I guess. Pulse for momentary switches doesn't make much sense, because then you can't use them as press-n-hold action.
So if I had flaps on the flip switch, I'd not mind the pulse action. If I had them on the toggle, I'd NOT use pulse action. I actually use one of the K-switches for the flaps - again, without the pulse action.
@@dcsfrost Sometimes when I load into a hot jet, the physical flap switch may be set to something incorrect. Like the jet may auto set flaps to half in the Hornet but my switch may be set to full or auto from a previous session. If the switch is set to continuous signal, it will set the flaps to that setting. This may not be what I want. This simply makes sure that the physical switch position which I may not have checked doesn’t impact the sim. Ultimately this is not too important. I should be setting flaps regardless of how I load into the aircraft but it was something which popped into my head as something which I should try to change.
Thanks. Getting my throttle and stick next week and was wondering how to setup the f18
Glad to help! It actually becomes pretty simple to do once you get the basics of the software sorted out. Feel free to pop by to ask questions if you have any! I have mine dialed in perfectly now.
Same, thx for vid :)
Three position switch for the flaps is also great for mig-21 landing gear which is also 3 position and will run out of fluid if you leave it in up or down position instead of putting in neutral.
Thanks for the video. I'm waiting for mine to get shipped and def-ly learned a few tips and tricks I'm going to use :)
It's a great set for sure! Which version did you get? The STECS Standard is actually a nice layout if you need more buttons. The mini probably would have been fine for me but in the end, I'm glad I got the extras. It's all a great set and a good price and the ability to mix and match or add on later adds value.
I'll be getting Standard version. Should be good for the VR setup and I do like the fact that it has the detent box and kit attached.
@@andreyzhavoronkov6746 yeah that was a solid choice. I like the positioning of the STEM better for VR. As you can see in the video, I fumble around blindly trying to find stuff still whereas having it on the base, closer to me would have been much better. I know you will enjoy it when you get it!
I just got mine in today and honestly, swapped back to my warthog right away.
I’m sure it’s a great throttle but the lack of a raid/flir switch, lots of plastic, funky quirks (as you’ve mentioned, it’s plug and play if you don’t want any customization which is probably the most appealing thing about the throttle and a big selling point for sure), it’s just more trouble than I realized.
I’m short, it’s awesome, just not for me. I’m sure this tutorial will be a huge help to ease that learning curve for those that want to go that deep.
Great video, my friend.
If anyone is interested in the throttle “like new” i.e. out of the box today, let me know 😂
I hear ya! It is a big adjustment from
The Hog throttle. I was surprised at the plastic but then my only other throttle was the chunk of metal so that’s all I knew.
It took a while of use and even now, I still need to remember which switch does what but I am happy that I have more stuff on the throttle handles because I needed it.
It is definitely not for everyone and I will never push what I like on others so I completely support your decision and want to thank you for taking time to share your experiences with others here as I am sure it will help them out.
Enjoy that Warthog throttle my friend! It’s a solid piece of kit and still remains my favorite. I still have mine.
Hey brother! So, I’ve been watching all these videos raving about the Stecs throttle, and after having seen yours, I’m more or less convinced that I should at least give it a shot. I also purchased it for the additional buttons but after digging into the software, I’m so incredibly lost.
Would you be available for “hire” via discord or something similar to help me set it up correctly?
I’ve always considered myself a smart guy, but apparently not smart enough for this throttle/software.
Let me know if you’d be available. Again, I’ll gladly pay to get this thing working and be able to use it to its full capacity.
@@Emo_Aviator hi! I would be happy to lend a hand. I am offline more or less for about 2 weeks though. (Not near my computers) so it would have to wait until then.
@@Emo_Aviatorone other thing.. You should ask around on the VKB support forums as they are very helpful there as well as the VKB Discord. I got the help from VKB through the HOTAS Reddit site. Sometimes you just need a little nudge to get past one thing which causes frustration.
Awesome video! Thanks!
Awesome video I have a stecs coming. Great prep video.
Hey thanks for the great compliments! Gratz on grabbing a STECS! It's a great throttle with incredible configurability and customizations! The few gripes I have are around availability of buying specific buttons (I want a couple more three position buttons) and the thumb stick (which I have gotten used to but would still swap it out with a more conventional one as a Throttle Designator Controller button). I'm working on a video in which I outline how I have configured the buttons as I have been asked several times about this. It's a guide to help people get started and plan it out in a useful way. Let me know how you like the STECS once you have it!
Really great video. Saved me so much time!
Thanks! This is why I made the video. I had a lot of questions and managed to get some answers and thought I should share it with everyone. It sucks getting stuck and not knowing what to do next.
Exactly what I was looking for, thank you!
I’m happy to have been able to help! I still need to do a quick button mapping video to help people with a starting point.
@@StrIIker-TVThat would be super helpful actually!
Recommendation for one of the two K-switches if you don't need it for anything else right now: Dedicated canopy control. I have found having that accessible a really nice thing in all planes. =)
And for the other, dedicated seat height adjustment. Also a really nice thing to have. =)
Great to see you got your issues solved! Was always rooting for you, hehe. With the two latest guide videos they've released they've also shown how to turn the encoders into axis, and the 3-position flap switch can be an axis as well. That's what I'm going to do with mine (order is in, shipping might start towards the end of this week for EU), since I already have a SEM module with my landing gear and flaps controls.
Are the K-switched the two white ones on the STEM? That sounds like a cool idea and I am definitely going to try it.
Thanks for all of your help and guidance! It was and is greatly appreciated.
I had the video mostly done a couple days ago but I kept adding this and tweaking that. I get picky.
@@StrIIker-TV Yup, those are the ones, the white ones with the button in the center. I have a button/switchbox I built that has my dedicated seat height and canopy controls, I mostly use the K-switches for various 3-position switches, but they seem like they'd be good for that kind of thing.
And yeah, happy to help. =)
Great video! Really helped me out with setting up my STECS. I do have one question, what did you use to attach your keyboard to your thigh?
I am sorry, I missed this question! I bought some adjustable cinch straps (amzn.to/3B8lYwd) which have velco backings and are stretchable. I wrap them around each thigh. I also bought some adhesive velcro (similar to these amzn.to/3ZpSJ1V ) and stuck the corresponding part onto the back of the Tartarus (and my trackball for my right thigh). I trim them for size. This is very simple and effective. I hope this helps
Great info thanks! Very helpful
Thank you for the compliment. I am happy to hear that you found it to be helpful.
Nice video, well explained. 😀
Thank you! I had fun making it.
Just received my STECs and used this video to help set it up. Amazing. This should be on VKB official guide. Thankyou! Would love to see what else you mapped to all these controls. You didn’t make a mapping diagram did you?
Hi! Congrats of getting the STECS and thank you for your great compliment. It’s much appreciated. I didn’t do a mapping diagram but I am working on finishing up a quick video outlining how I mapped my throttle for a couple of the aircraft which I fly. I will throw together a diagram as well.
@@StrIIker-TV Awesome thanks very much :) This video is an absolute godsend, think I have watched at least 5 times
Thank you for this excellent follow-up video. I hope this isn't a stupid question, but from my understanding, it appears that if you wanted to, you could setup different detent profiles for different aircraft but use the same physical detents/rail provided that each profile has its curves set to accommodate the slightly different afterburner activation % of each plane if you so chose, correct? I ask because I plan to get the mini+ and button combo set and would prefer to not change out rails (although I would if I needed to).
Hi! Thank you for the great compliment. I do think that you are correct (and no, your question is definitely not a stupid one). You could set the detent in the general location that you want to have it kick in and use the profiles in software to set detents based upon custom curves and adjusting the size and positions if needed to match what you want. A single frame would definitely suffice. You can then use the button press technique to swap from one profile to the other. I would probably set the AB detent (if you fly aircraft with after burners) to around 75 on the frame as that is probably a good spot. I think most people who do use the afterburner either go full on or full off so there,'t not a need for a large mount of motion in the Afterburner side. If you do like to stage in increments in the afterburner, moving the detent down a little would help. I posted pics of my two detent frames in the community tab. I would use the while settings personally if I had a single frame to play with. I think most throttles out there just have a fixed afterburner detent position and players adjust using the DCS curves. Being able to do it all in the VKB software makes it much better as the user curves can get "messy" and are a bit of a pain to get set properly when trying to adjust.
Lastly, it would be nice to see VKB allow more detent profiles in the software. Figure out some way of differentiating them with the colors or just require using the software to activate a profile beyond the base 5. Hope I helped ya!
@@StrIIker-TV thank you so much for the detailed response. It appears that VKB software is so powerful, you can do almost anything. It looks like maybe I'll just have to memorize the coloured lights for each jet which shouldn't be a big deal.
On another note, that Alex Oz guy strikes me as a computing genius. I'm glad you were able to contact him and that he was helpful.
Looking forward to seeing more of the STECS in action.
Hey Str][ker, Another great video! Hope all is well. I too have the warthog throttle but am thinking of switching to the Stecs for the versatility. For the AB, did you set up the curves for the detent as we did for the warthog or does just mapping the fingerlift buttons do the trick? Thanks!
Hey! Thanks for the compliment and I hope all is well with you too! I've been thinking of making a brief followup video to share my thoughts now that I have been using the STECS for a while.
It's a similar process. You move the throttle to find the point where the AB initially stages in and note where that is on the throttle. Then place the physical lug there. Lastly, you need to hop into the VKB software to set some curves. I'm hopeful that the video helps enough to get people going. The nice thing with the VKB software is that you can adjust where Idle is and where the AB is via these curves (VKB curves, not DCS). For example, I could set a curve where the throttle is physically at 50% but have it in DCS read as 100% (Full throttle). The throttle scales from zero to this new 100% for what it sends to DCS. Obviously this is not practical but I am hoping it helps you understand the concept.
So with the AB detent, you (via VKB software) identify where the max mil power is, and set that percent at that physical detent. The rest afterwards would be the staging increments for AB..
As for kicking in AB where physical finger lifts exist (such as the Hornet), I set a few things up for this as demonstrated in the video. I set the throttle the same way as mentioned but once I pass through the AB detent, I enabled a trigger action to press a button. That button is then defined in DCS as the finger lift button for passing into afterburner.
The warthog only has actual buttons for the Idle / cutoff (when you lift the throttle out of off into idle for example) and nothing for AB. That's where you need to play with curves in DCS to match the physical location of the AB detent on the warthog. None of this applies with the STECS as most of the heavy lifting is done in the VKB software.
Hopefully this helps. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.
@@StrIIker-TV Great info! I will digest this and scan for future videos and I'm sure, all will become clearer once I actually get the unit. So, just to see if I get it. Instead of setting the curves up in DCS, all is done with the VKB software after determining the Mil/AB position? Thanks again
@@greyeagle5199 Regarding curves for AB, yes, you set those in the VKB software. There are other settings in DCS which you set and then configure stuff in the VKB software but the curves are not needed for AB settings in DCS.
@@StrIIker-TV 👍👍
Stryker you think you could show a close up side shot of your frames? So I can see exactly where you set the detents?
Already done! It’s under the community tab of my channel. Here’s a link! ua-cam.com/users/postUgkx_q5yCIA7r-5LJSqODCpTVsQJR4Mn01Ff?si=P5FcHh5mku_FCS85
striker I have a question, I just ordered this throttle. Should be in Friday. I fly the 18 and the 15E mainly. How did you know where to put the the detents on the plastic itself. At what percent? Does it matter? or do you just place it somewhere near the bottom and top, set the detents in software and than make small changes in software after going into DCS?
Here's a shot of what I did for physical placement of the detents. It's down a few posts on my community tab. I couldn't find a direct way to share that particular comment. www.youtube.com/@StrIIker-TV/community
For the afterburner on the Hornet, I determined where to put it by hopping in a free flight and listening for the loud afterburner engage sound as I slowly moved the throttle forward (there's an option as well to make the AB sound louder which helps). Once I learned the precise location, I put the detent there (I had the detent on the frame installed but it was somewhat loose so I could move it with some effort). Once you have the location set, do the finger lift configuration (setting events) per the video as this will trigger the AB as you push past it and step out of AB as you pull back.
The Strike Eagle AB was a little different as you can also configure the percentage in DCS in the Strike Eagle Special tab and then set it on the frame (it' sin the video under the Configure DCS for the F15E). Watch the segment on Adjusting F-15E Detent for how to do it using the curves. It works really well. You could even do this with the Hornet if you wanted.
I think the physical locations which I used are a good start for you to get things configured. I know it probably looks a little confusing but once you have the throttle and play around a little and use the steps I outlined, you should be good to go.
As for the Idle detent, I moved the throttle to the bottom and set the detent just above it. I don't need any extra room below the Idle Detent as it's off. You do want to use the curves as well to set zero once you hit that detent. Use the event to trigger the throttle off or idle.
Make sure you click the video description as well as it has the chapters listed there and makes it easy to find them. You can also mouse over on the playback bar for the video and find the chapter you want.
Let me know if you need a hand. I'd be happy to help clarify or provide more detail for ya.
@@StrIIker-TV Sounds good Sir Ty. I saw that you can set the AB for the F15E, Just wasnt sure if you set that too where you are putting the detent physically. I will wait till i get the throttle in a few days and then go back and watch your Solutions video again to try the things out. After some time I will probably be replacing my joystick as well. Currently use the X56 throttle and stick. But Not sure if I want to go with VKB for a stick or someone else.
I read a lot of stories about winwing having really bad customer service, which actually turned me off there orion 2 F15 throttle, I had almost made that purchase instead.
@@sirbum69 That sounds like a good approach! You got this! Hopefully the pictures of the two detent frames helps
As for WinWing.. that poor customer service is why I skipped on them. Also I had concerns about design quality but that was just my personal opinion formed after looking at some of their gear. It’s too bad because I think their stuff looks very cool but after having experienced bad customer service elsewhere, it’s a top priority for me when deciding upon a vendor. I don’t know the VKB sticks at all so I can’t comment on them. I do have a high opinion of Virpil’s control stick base. I have the CM2 but would have loved a CM3 for the dampening it has.
Just got the throttle and had it setup for the hornet in about 20 min. Had to invert the throttle for what ever reason and unbind the throttle from pitch and roll but worked slick
@@sirbum69Great to hear! It was pretty easy to fget going. I've had similar issues with various axes which needed to be inverted as well on all aircraft. I also constantly get the throttle being bound to pitch etc. I wonder how it is that DCS does this but oh well. :)
Thank you so much for this
Glad that you liked it. Hope it helped!
Hi, I have a small channel im and I’m waiting on a similar setup to yours to get into DCS. How do you record DCs in a rectangle (in vr). When I’ve tried all I got on my screen was a weird eye view.
Hi! I am always happy to help out with these frustrating things. I was in your shoes before. What you are seeing is the HMD mask which DCS uses to not render content which will not be displayed in the headset. This maybe helps give you a slight boost in FPS but I don't' think by much. In DCS, there is an option under the Options - VR tab labeled "Enable HMD Mask". You want to DESELECT this. This will get rid of the black parts of the display. You also want to DESELECT "Use DCS System Resolution" as this in my experience causes distortion of the window which you are going to record (makes things look squished / wider).
So now you have a window to record in OBS. You will want to run DCS in VR mode. Load into a jet sitting on the runway or whatever, put the HMD down and center the VR view (you should have this bound to a handy button). Now in OBS, select the Game window as the video source. You should already set the resolution of the output, framerate, etc. in OBS. You now need to zoom the DCS output to fit the wider aspect of the OBS recording canvas. This means that you will chop some of the top and bottom off and probably part of the right side (assuming you are mirroring the right eye) but that's okay. Drag up and down to center the view to what you want recorded. I had to fiddle with this to get things just right. That should do it.
I am working on a "how to" video for recording DCS the way I do (multiple audio channels etc) so that may help you as well once I finally get my butt in gear to finish it. If you have additional questions, please feel free to ask! No point in re-inventing the wheel with some of this stuff! If the above didn't work, let me know. There's a different way which I used to have to do to get rid of the HMD mask but I haven't had to do that since Eagle Dynamics added this check box to DCS.
Bad ass intro!
Thanks! I went through various thoughts around how to do the intro in this manner. It kind of came together and worked out nicely.
in the F18. Any idea why the left afterburner sometimes doesn't activate? it's seems to happen more often if a quickly go over the detent. As if the event button is not pressed long enough to activate.
I've tried to replicate this a few times over the past few weeks and so far I have not experienced it. I think you can increase the amount of time the action triggers when you move past the detent? I'll have to have another look (It's been a long time since I messed around in the config tool). The action is supposed to be momentary (i.e. brief) and should send it through to DCS which should detect the "button press" and hit the finger lift for Afterburner. I assume this is how you have it configured?
@@StrIIker-TV i configured exactly like in the video. I've since changed the setting in DCS to activate both finger lifts instead of mapping them individually. I'll never use afterburner on only left or right separately. It seems to have fixed the issue.
I don't get the three way flaps. Mine just flashes the middle position every time I move it up or down because the up or down pulses and then goes OFF which means it triggers the middle button. It just doesn't work like you're showing here. And the official VKB video on making the three way switch is also different, they tell you to make a virtual button which doesn't show up in the buttons menu.
Hmm, I wonder if the newer version of the VKB software does something differently. So, when you enabled polling and you move the flap switch UP, it flashes the number? Same with down? It's possible you have them set as Encoder instead of buttons. It's in my video as well in the segment "Make Flaps Pulse". You can change the type to button again for the three positions. So you followed the instructions here? ua-cam.com/video/rvK4ksUBbPU/v-deo.htmlsi=nK2jCKrGu9NzwYEa&t=1126 and then check to see how the three positions are defined (as buttons or as encoders) via this ua-cam.com/video/rvK4ksUBbPU/v-deo.htmlsi=pfrG-hWacREAoNE2&t=1373
I think you can do virtual buttons but if you use the boolian as I demonstrated, the logic works that if neither the up position or down position are set, then it equals the third (middle) button.
So I'm thinking about getting this throttle but I don't have any desk mounts or a home cockpit. Do you think the STECS Max will be fine if I wanna use it on top of my desk?
On a desktop, my main concern would be that front part which is on the frame away from the main throttle base. It might be too far to comfortably reach it but then again, you will probably assign functions to that part which are not used a lot (I don’t). I have radios, flaps, landing gear assigned and that stuff doesn’t get used a whole lot. The max also has that small part towards the rear which adds a handful of extra buttons which may be pretty handy for you.
I do think it would work for you on a desk. The nice part also is that the rear part is pretty small so the throttle handles will be close enough to you and the edge of the desk. Ultimately you are getting the 4 buttons, plus the rotary button with press and two more under the flaps (I use one for eject) which can be pretty useful. The STECS standard lacks this small part so you lose those buttons and they put that front part at the back (closest to you). The STECS max has some good weight to it and grips surfaces well. Another plus, you can adjust the friction for the throttles so no worries about pushing or pulling the base unless you really max out the friction (nobody really does this) so it will work well for you.
Thanks for the reply! It's hard finding info out there about the Max because most people went for the Standard one. I think having the STEM in front of the actual throttle will be better for me because I won't have to reach as far away for the main part of it which is the throttle levers (the most important part lol). Again, thank you so much for your reply, this helps a lot!
@@ExactPlanet0 Glad to have been of assistance. If there’s anything else you want to ask about with the STECS please feel completely free to do so. To date I am still very happy with my STECS Max and am happy I made the switch.
Why does the flaps need a pulse and its not enough to work it as a button?
Also I see you use the Max Stecs version. Do you think the extra little module with the 4 buttons its worth it or not that usuable?
I prefer the pulse so that when I load into the Sim, the flaps in DCS don't automatically jump to the position of the physical flap switch (because it will be continually getting a button press). It's not necessary but a preference of mine.
Well, the Max also adds the bracket to hold the other panel upright at an angle plus it comes with the additional button modules. I do use the small extra module for some stuff like exterior lights, flashlight, active pause, etc. so for me, it has been useful but it's not essential in my opinion. I use PointCTRL to interact with the cockpits so I try to use the actual cockpit controls when possible. The buttons on the throttle base are generally non-aircraft controls (sim controls). I do use the flaps and gear switches though since it can be dicey having to look down to reach for them during a cat shot. I've been using the radio knobs to adjust the channels in the aircraft as well.
What percentage do you physically set the afterburner detent or what is a typical setting? Thanks.
Hi! For which aircraft? The F-15E Strike Eagle has a special setting to manually define it. I went with the "real world" setting of 64%. To achieve this, I physically set the detent to have the leading edge at 75%. I did have to fine tune the afterburner detent using the software as demonstrated in the video. The hornet has a higher value and that I believe is hard set in DCS. What I did was hop into the hornet and move the throttle until I can hear the AB kick in. I was initially looking at the external view but the initial stage doesn't really light up. I noted the position of the throttle and set the detent accordingly. On the detent frame, the Large L detent (the one I am using) has the leading edge at 85% exactly (well, close enough).
If it would help, I can post two pictures to the Community section of my channel and you can see the exact positioning. Let me know!
@@StrIIker-TV I will be setting up the f18. Thanks for the info.
Striker, having some issues with throttle control, too much variance, having a real hard time with thrust control in AAR, any tips with the Stecs?
The STECS throttle has provided me with great fine control of the thrust in the aircraft which I have refueled in (The Hornet and Strike Eagle). The throttle has two tension adjustment knobs (one per side) which allows you to adjust how much resistance you receive while moving the throttles forward and aft. I suggest looking at that part first to ensure that you don't have the friction too high as it then will result in excessive movements of the throttle. It requires a little more force to overcome the initial friction than to maintain/continue that motion and that can result in moving the throttle more than you wanted. You also don't want the resistance to be too low or the throttles will be too loose and you can wind up over adjusting the throttles, particularly later in combat etc. Having gotten the throttle part out of the way, it comes down to the actual refueling. I'm not sure what experience and/or proficiency you have with air to air refueling so if I am being overly basic with this, please forgive me.
The general approaches to getting this down involves first mastering formation flying. Fly near the tanker and just maintain position. You will start to learn how much adjustment is required for this. Build a sight picture such as.. the top left corner of the right mirror should be right next to the door on the side of the tanker etc. and that's what you work on to maintain position. Once you can master formation flying, the tanking part is easier. I don't want to delve too deep into detail here if it's not helpful for you so please let me know if you want more information about any aspect of this. I would hapily make a video to demonstrate this as well and can set a camera up to focus on the throttle movement.
I have tension to the bear minimum, so it just doesn;t move forward or backwards, but cant seem to get constant speed, just touch it is 5kn to fast or too slow, roll and pitch is pilot (indian, not the arrow, but thrust no matter what i do cant get it to settle down. @@StrIIker-TV
@@DCoy305Which aircraft are you flying? A former WSO from an F-15E Strike Eagle said that it can be a good idea to pop the speed brake a bit to help give you better control over the speed. with the throttle. If you have the tension set as low as you mentioned, that may be the issue because it will not take much to move. Have you ensured that you properly calibrated the throttle? This is a very important aspect. Try running the calibration again. Also ensure that you don't have curves set too high in DCS or the VKB config tool. You should not be seeing such a dramatic increase in thrust with a small input. If that is happening, I really do think it's a calibration problem. Also, have a look at the axis sliders in the DCS Axis configuration for the throttles. Ensure that you get proper motion forwards and back.
Running the viper, and also was wondering, are you running throttle user curves? I have no curves set in vkb or dcs throttle.@@StrIIker-TV
@@DCoy305 Hi! I am using Curves in both VKB for the throttle only. In VKB I set the curves so that the at the idle detent, the throttle is at zero and then curves to get the throttle set properly before the afterburner detent. I recall showing this in the video for both the F-15E and F/A-18C. The curves in VKB are there to help you set the in game throttle position to where you want it by using an offset vs where the physical throttle is. For example, with the cutoff detent in place at the lower end of the throttle, the throttle never physically reaches where the zero is (because of the physical detent) and so it by default is telling the sim that it's at something like 10 or 20% because that's physically where it is. The curve allows the throttle to set a new 0% regardless of the physical location of the throttle. So, I set the curve and now DCS sees zero throttle when the throttle is physically at let's say 20%. Pulling past the detent then sends the cut off command to DCS via the detent action which I configured. So that's the VKB curve.. In DCS you can set curves to reduce the input intensity for a given amount of throttle movement but I don't do this as I find the responsiveness of the throttle to fine plus this will make small adjustments to the throttle much greater later in the curve. The throttle is best left as a straight linear line. Thjis is all applicable to the viper too (which I do have).
Curves in DCS are great and almost a must have for rudder inputs (specifically for nose wheel steering) and stick inputs. This way, the initial inputs are lessened by the curve. Without curves on the rudder pedals, I am zig zagging a LOT on takeoff rolls because even a small deflection physically on the rudder pedal is enough to turn you left or right a fair amount. I also added a dead zone to the rudders so that I'm not deflecting the nose wheel by being slightly off center. Does this all make sense and help?
Hey man, when are you gonna upload again. It's been 11 months and we haven't seen any new content? :( But I hope all is well and there isn't a bad reason for not uploading. Much love.
@@blackmedic6302 hah! 11 Months hmm? Well I think it’s been about a month and a bit since my last video but I hear ya! Heheh. I got sidelined with some VR issues where my Aero was not performing its eye tracking. It would fail at seemingly random times and my view would switch to a lower resolution and it would be difficult to read the displays and things generally became blurry. I have a partial fix to it but Varjo customer support has been horrible which is too bad because I really love their hardware and had strongly encouraged people to consider buying their headset when asked.
However, I do have a lot of footage and am going to make some more. I’ll probably add some helicopter stuff now and then and plan to do some more hardware / stuff I use videos as well. Thanks for reaching out though! It’s greatly appreciated.
@@StrIIker-TV I do apologize I meant a few months XD But that's great news :D Can't wait!
I followed this but for some reason after I pass the AB Detent for the F-18 it just sets my virtual throttle speed to 0 in both DCS and the config software. I feel like I'm missing something.
Hmm, so this is in the VKB configuration software? So you are in the configuration software and when you push past the detent, the throttle falls back to zero. There is definitely a step missed here (I think I captured it all in the video though). The detent configuration was set correctly?
If this is in DCS, I wonder if you are incorrectly binding the finger lift for the Afterburner detent? Is it possible that it's using the binding for setting the throttle to idle? The idea is that once you reach the detent and push into it, there is an action button being pressed. Check here in the video (timestap link) ua-cam.com/video/rvK4ksUBbPU/v-deo.htmlsi=f1go8R8EYKckwSSW&t=897 and make sure that the fingerlift button press is different from the Idle or off buttons defined on the page. Also make sure the Special setting for Afterburner Detent is Always on.
Let me know if you got this sorted out or not.
@@StrIIker-TV So I ended up just deleting it and using the physical detent as a reminder and just pressing the finger lifts on my HOTAS. I could try messing with it again, but honestly this works fine for my needs anyway, all I really wanted was a way to mark the AB position on the throttle since its annoying to look down and read it.
@@TimRich1259 As long as you are happy with it then stick with that for now! If you ever want or need to do more, give it another look. I think there's some simple step missed or mixed up. Feel free to ping me in the future if you change your mind and get stuck agian.
What are those finger sensors that he has to interact with the cockpit? Definitely interested on them
This are called PointCTRL. They are definitely a huge help when flying VR. I click everything in the cockpit using them. I only need to assign buttons on my throttle base and the Tartarus on my left thigh for things which are not in the cockpit like external views, map, kneeboard commands etc.
There is a long wait for them but go order one. You only pay when it’s ready to ship if you still want it. If you don’t want it any more, no need to do anything. Www.pointctrl.com
I'm wondering if it'd be possible to set up the 3 pos switch as an axis (which I know is possible), but one that also triggers button presses at the start, middle and end (similar to the detent button presses you setup). In that way, you could both use them in planes like the F-14, which have a throttle axis, and in planes with a 3 position flap switch (like the F-18), without having to change anything between them.
I am almost certain that you can do this very thing. The software has a huge amount of configuration options and this has to be one such option. I imagine there is a setting in the VKB software in which you can configure virtual buttons at varying axis positions (basically what is done with the detents in a way).
@@StrIIker-TV Yeah, might have to try it.
@@StrIIker-TV You know, I reloaded a saved config that had the axis setup, and I found that it was already doing the button thing anyway!
@@RocketToTheMoose well that was convenient! Hope it’s working well for you. Should be a great option to fly with.
Yeah, to be honest, it doesn't really change that much, except that in the Tomcat, the flap lever animation is now smoother, since it's using the axis.
What are the devices on your fingers if I may ask?
Nevermind someone asked down below and I found the answer!
Certainly! Those are called PointCTRL (www.pointctrl.com). They are an amazing device which uses a sensor mounted on the VR Headset and two finger devices which emit an IR light. The head sensor sees the finger sensor and moves the mouse cursor to where your hand is. It's designed and calibrated to match up perfectly in the cockpit in DCS. It's fairly inexpensive (at about $250 I think) and really is an incredible device. Sadly, there is a TWO YEAR wait on them as it's a side thing for the maker and he had to halt production recently due to real life needs. You do not get billed until your order comes up and you can decide then if you want it or not. It may be worth hopping on the list (submit an order) just in case.
I am going to make a video to better describe it and demonstrate it. I've put it off but I get asked a lot and so it's time to get off my butt! I built the cockpit specifically with these in mind as it gives me something to touch and rest my finger one while clicking buttons etc. It's not needed but it adds a little bit to my enjoyment.
i noticed that you can interact in VR without controllers using that thing in your finguer, whats that?
Hi! That's an amazing little device called PointCTRL. The things on my fingers have an IR emitter and on my VR headset is a sensor which tracks their position. This then moves the mouse cursor to that location. The finger Control Units (FCU) have three buttons on them and they function as left and right mouse clicks as well as a scroll wheel function. It's a must have item for DCS (or MSFlight Sim). There's a long wait list but it's so worth getting on it. You do not have to pay until you get the invoice when your order comes up to get ready to ship. If you don't want it at that time, you simply ignore the invoice and pay nothing. Hopefully Miles, the guy who makes them, will be able to ramp up production better than he has so you won;t have to wait 2 years (yes, he's currently shipping orders placed two years ago).
I actually shoot videos of DCS flying now and then showing my use of it.. Here's a recent one.. ua-cam.com/video/gWxrynTIfSA/v-deo.htmlsi=ZxBE_8eIJxcyol1W
2 of the support tickets from 2023 are still open w/o any comments
Ugh. That’s damn ridiculous! Reminds me of the nightmare I had with HTC when my Vive controllers failed within warranty. I don’t know what you’ve tried but for some companies, you need to keep contacting them, requesting escalation to a manager or higher tier technician, etc. Ultimately, I got my HTC issue resolved when I took to social media and started posting about it and including the company (@) in my comments. It’s tough to find a company with great support. For me, Virpil has done just that. You may want to investigate the quality of Winwing’s support and their products before committing to that company as well. It may be more of the same if not worse. Hopefully they have addressed it.
I enjoy your videos. But, what do you mean finger lifts?
The finger lifts I refer to are the set of levers on the front of the throttle handle and the ones on the rear. They look like the finger lifts on real combat jet throttles (such as the F-18 or F15E) which are generally used for moving the throttle out of off to idle and from mil power to afterburner. The aren’t actual finger lifts on the STECS. In DCS there are finger lift settings for both the Hornet and Strike Eagle which you configure. In the Strike Eagle the finger lifts are used to start the engines.
Also thanks!
Thank you! I have a steep curve to learn with game and new VKB gear
@@adiedri38Heh yeah! It's actually not as difficult as it looks. The software is confusing and their documentation is not the best but the community is VERY helpful and often the staff with VKB help out. I use their forums and Discord to get help with questions. The gear itself just takes time to learn (or relearn) which buttons do what and that takes practice, practice, practice.
@@StrIIker-TV am sorry to ask this as am sure you get it a lot. But, do you have a bindings video? Or a here’s where to start. Thanks again!
@@adiedri38 Hi! I do not have a bindings video but I will put a quick one together. I know why you are asking this question. When I was starting out and when I upgraded to the STECS, I struggled with figuring out what I should map and where. I didn’t want to map settings to buttons which in the end don’t “make sense” in terms of location.
I try to match the aircraft which I am flying as closely as I can and go from there. I will see what I can throw together for ya!
Can’t you set detents on the black slider?
You can physically put detents on the black detent frame however for some reason which makes zero sense to me, the software does not allow you to configure the detents. If you go into the software and select the black detent frame color, you cannot do anything to set the detent positions by running the detent wizard. I was going to reach out to VKB to ask why they made this choice and ask if they can add the option to the software.
Thanks. Yea I was confused since I got the mini stecs which only has the black detent, but I couldn’t do all the cool stuff you showed to fine tune it in software.
@@planecrazy242Just pick one of the other colors in the software. That's what I initially did because I wanted to use the black detent as it looked best for me. I looked in the VKB software and could not set any detents on it so I chose the white one in the software and was using that for the black detent. I eventially decided to match to color as I didn't want to confuse things in the video and moved my Hornet detents to the white detent. So, put the detents on the black one, choose a different color in the software and have fun.
Actually, you could put the detents on in one physical location and then use different colors in software for different aircraft. You would just need to use curves in the software to adjust to match the detent position and afterburner start for each aircraft. It would be super easy. Just follow what I did for the hornet or strike eagle but on a single detent. The hornet afterburner starts later than what I have the strike eagle set for so I would adjust the curves to match. One color for hornet, another for strike eagle. Let me know if you need a hand.
Would this work for F-16 too?
Hi! This will work for single engine aircraft such as the F-16 and warbird types. I also use it for the BlackHawk where I decouple the left and right throttles and use one for collective and one for engine RPM (I forget what it's called). So for the F-16, you simply need leave the throttles coupled and then set the detent for afterburner.I've not done it and there was another person who said they are having difficulty however I think some step is missing for them. The actual process will vary for the F-16 and other aircraft. You can see the difference for how the Strike Eagle and Hornet are configured in the videos I made for example.
excuse me , i just wanna know what is that on your finger ? is it a joystick or mouse ? what name is it?
That, my friend is a PointCTRL and it is awesome! In effect, these little devices allow me to move the mouse cursor around on the screen and buttons on them are mouse button clicks and there’s a way they also do scroll wheel movement.
There is a long wait currently but I do suggest that you place an order and then some day in the future, you will get an email saying it’s time along with an invoice. If you pay the invoice, you will get the PointCTRL within a couple of weeks. If you no longer want it, don’t pay and you lose nothing.
The finger devices have an IR light which a sensor mounted on the top front of the VR headset tracks and moves the mouse cursor to that spot. So I completely interact with the buttons, switches and knobs in the cockpit using these. I don’t have to bind anything extra to my HOTAS. I have posted a few videos showing me using it and recently posted some more. Please feel free to ask me any questions which you may have.
@@StrIIker-TV thanks a lot, I'm Chinese and love your video !
@@ethanshen580 Thank you! I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video! I hope it was helpful.
Hello great video can you point me to the video update firmware the website doesnt have information but just a download zip file. Forums is a mess.
Do you mean that you want the Joystick firmware? If so you can get all of the latest from here: sites.google.com/view/njoy-32/home . I apologize if this is not what you meant but I was not clear on the term "video update firmware" and as this is about the Throttle, I assumed you meant that. Let me know if you were referring to something else. I am not a fan of how VKB packages all of their firmware for everything into a single zip file. Also, they changed the contents of the zip file from what was in it when I received my throttle to a few days later when it had the firmware for the STECS however they did not change the name of the file (it was the same version name). They really need to clean it all up.
@@StrIIker-TV sorry typo on video. Is there an instruction on how to update the stecs to the latest firmware? I can't find anything online. They are so bad with instructions to be honest.
@@YofbjpYudhsI think I found a video but here's the basic idea. Extract the firmware file, open the VKB Config tool. Under Tools, select Bootloader. Navigate to the extracted file. Select it. Click on Flash It. All done. If you change your mind and don't flash the device, I have found that I need to unplug the throttle and plug it back in as it gets stuck in some odd state.
what is it you have strapped to your thigh?
It’s a Razer Tartarus. I do a brief description of it in this video at 7:28. ua-cam.com/video/IpVzlA3SzIw/v-deo.htmlsi=6aF0O5t6673hmroF
It’s super handy in DCS. On my right thigh I have a track ball as well
@@StrIIker-TV i kinda figured thats what it was, was thinking of getting one the other day but settled on getting an apache keyboard unit from tek creations. On a side note, thanks for this video I just got my STECS set up perfectly now. Got it yesterday.
@@utley Hey awesome! Let me know how you like that keyboard! I'm going to be digging deep into the Apache once I get my collective stuff from Virpil (that sweet new Apache collective.. drool..) I'm just curious about the keyboard but since I'm in VR, I couldn't really use it. I am fortunate to have PointCTRL which I use to type on the Apache keyboard in DCS.
I'm happy to hear that I was able to help out in soime small way to get your STECS rocking quickly. It's a pretty sweet throttle.
My exp with VKB today
"I guess the proper name for the switch in question is a "Trigger switch" yes? now all I need is how to replace the switch i can find nothing on youtube on our VKB's forum. I'm not too pleased on how VKB expects me to change the trigger without instructions is that too much to expect??? how about you take all my VKB products in trade for a WINWING or VPRILE ...,.. ARE YOU GOING TO STAND BEHIND YOUR UA-cam WHAT!... AT 74 I THINK I CAN HANDLE REMOVING A BUNCH OF SCREWS IF THAT WHAT YOU WANT ME TO DO PROBABLY CROSS-THREAD THEM AND RUIN THE THROTTLE" still no guidance from VKB as they don't know at this point. my VKB products 2 bases 3 sticks and this stecs 33% failure rate if you can afford the loss buy VKB
Yikes that sucks! Sorry to hear that! I don’t know how their customer service is for problems with the hardware but generally I heard good things prior to buying the STECS. I got some help with the configuration fairly quickly from them but that’s the extent of my experience. I have had stellar experience with a hardware issue with Virpil though and would happily recommend them. I’ve heard bad things about Winwing though as they are apparently worse than most to get quality help but maybe they have improved?
I hope you get your issue resolved. One thing I might suggest is to join the VKB forums and post some questions there. I got a lot of help from other users on that forum. Maybe also ask on the HOTAS Reddit forums. People there are great and always eager to help out.
Let me know how it goes!
This product seems overly complicated, & a huge learning curve
It’s actually not that bad. It’s only as complex as you want it. If all you want to do is to use the throttle and buttons as is, then plug it in, assign buttons and axes in DCS (or your game of choice) and you are all set.
If you want to take advantage of the configurability via software, then there is some learning to do but to be honest, you probably don’t need to do more than I demonstrated in this video and the previous one.
The benefit is that you have choices. I would rather have choices and options than being locked in to a single set up.
thank you for this video.... I think this really was the over the top straw for my decision. Actually I will be getting the Gladiator as well, I am debating on the left hand model for a collective/throttle. Problem is shipping! So I figure if I just get it all at once I may save some. Is that an accurate assumption?
First of all, thank you for your kind words. I am happy to hear that I was able to help you out in some way. Hopefully once you get your device(s), this video will help with getting it all configured.
As for ordering, generally getting multiple items in a single order saves on shipping. What I would suggest is to add the one item to your cart and check the shipping charges and note it somewhere. Then add the second item to the cart and check the shipping charges for both. Compare and then you can determine how much you would save ordering together. Sometimes the increase in shipping is negligible and some times it is larger.
It has also led me to check out some of your other videos... I'm looking forward to seeing them! Thanks for your reply.
@@orionmecGreat to hear! Hope you enjoy them. I am finishing up a video right now which focuses on using ScratchPad plus a mod for it which makes entering waypoints and target data super easy and is a huge help for those of us in VR. I made one not too long ago which used The Way plus ScratchPad but this new method is much cleaner and uses just ScratchPad. I demo some fun bombing runs as well.
I am going to purchase... Do you have a discount code that helps you?
@@orionmec Hi! No, I have no code to offer you but thank you for asking. I have no clue if VKB does anything like that. I made the video on my own, to help people with stuff that I had trouble with. I bought the throttle on my own. To be honest, I’m happy knowing that my little video was useful and that’s help enough for me.
Let me know how things go with your new gear! It was a little tough transitioning to the new throttle at first because I only knew the Warthog throttle but I am really happy I did.