Best beginner HOTAS.

[DemonicCyclops420691788]

Title says it all. What's the best HOTAS I should buy for the price.

[ace30]

T.16000M FCS (Flight Control System) Bang for the buck i find this thrust master very good.Especially when your using VR.

[Aldaris]

For price either the T16000M, the X-56 or the X-52 are all good options. If you have a spare $900 then go for the Warthog HOTAS with the TPR rudder pedals.

[startrekmike]

That is a more complicated question than it might seem at first.

Buying a HOTAS is (at least in my experience) not unlike buying a electric guitar. For the beginner, it can be difficult to know what you really need and how much you really "should" spend. This is results in a lot of new guitar players buying $150/$200 "starter packs" with a very cheap guitar and a rather awful little 15 watt practice amp (that usually sounds pretty bad). For the guitarists that stick with it for six months to a year, they will find that they "outgrow" those "starter pack" guitars and amps and start looking at more expensive/capable setups that can meet their needs.

Your first HOTAS is not going to be all that different. It is tempting for the beginner to go for the cheapest setup and that can potentially be okay but it might also be wasted money if you intend to stick with the DCS hobby. Think of it like this. You could spend $150 now on a entry level T.16000 HOTAS or even $50 on a T Flight HOTAS-X and do alright but if you opt to stick with it, you may end up moving towards a $250 Logitech X56 or a $400+ Thrustmaster Warthog (or even a $500+ Virpil setup!). If you end up upgrading, your entry level stuff won't really have any resale value and will kinda end up being a sunk cost.

It is a tricky thing. If you want the best "bang for the buck", you may want to invest in a more expensive setup since it will retain some of its resale value while also allowing you to go straight to something that will grow with you as you continue in the DCS hobby. It is not unlike buying a $600+ guitar to start off with. You end up with something that has some resale value and will continue to be useful even after you get some experience under your belt.

In the end. You can get by on anything from a basic setup to something more expensive and elaborate. It is just a bit complicated when you factor in what the best HOTAS would be for the price since that may not end up being the cheapest setup.

[CommandDork]

I started with the Thrustmaster T-Flight Hotas X which retails for about $50. I then upgraded to the T16000M with the rudder pedals included, retailing between $99 and $150 depending on the direction of the wind.

Having said that I would jump straight into the T16000M (with rudder pedals). It's a great beginning HOTAS and wont break the bank. It offers considerably more than the starter T-Flight.

[Zig the Caver]

The T16000M FCS pack (stick + throttle + rudders) is a good option for a complete HOTAS. The 16000M stick by itself if that is all you can afford.

The TM T-Flight is decent enough but intended more as a console controller.

[Gahooligan]

go for the t-flight if you feel you want to try a stick, or if you're not sure about the longevity of your interest in the game.
I certainly wouldnt want to spend $100+ on a stick and then it collects dust six months or a year later. I've been putting off getting a stick for DCS, and i think i might get the t-flight.
I like my controller setup but DCS and IL2 are the only games in the flight-sim genere that i play, so even that investment is a bit fency for me.

[Sandy Caine]

The 16000 FCS pack is a good HOTAS and is affordable. 200 euros in Italy.

[DemonicCyclops420691788]

Originally posted by Sandy Caine:

The 16000 FCS pack is a good HOTAS and is affordable. 200 euros in Italy.

I haven't bought it yet. I'm just browsing for my very first one. Lol

[Emme]

No it's not so complicated, get the t16.000 FCS Hotas System or buy a more professional one like the x56 or Warthog if you have the money! It's not like there would be hundreds of different hotas systems out there to choose from.

I wouldn't recommend to buy the T Flight X, it's a waste of money. The Stick is okay but you will lack a lot of buttons in a fully simmed cockpit. FCS Hotas even with pedals is good to start and does the job well enough for full sim planes.

[Tigermoto]

I borrowed a T.Flight off a friend and found it really restrictive. the cable separating the stick from the throttle is a little too short (about 300mm or 12 inches) but the detent in the the throttle was rather nice. Because i wanted something a little more substantial, i looked at buying the Saitek X52 or the Thrustmaster T16000 HOTAS as they were a similar cost at the time here in the UK.

After reading how many Saitek systems were cheaply built and self destructing after a few months i bought the T16000 HOTAS and I really like it. It's reasonably well put together and behaves really well. The only things i can complain about is that there is no throttle detent for reheat (British for Afterburners) and it could do with more buttons and a split throttle. Some people complain about the throttle being a slide, but as they are in most military aircraft anyway i do find it a little odd.

I'm considering upgrading to either a Saitek X56 Rhino as apparently Logitech have upgraded the quality control since they bought Saitek, or just buying some pedals.
I am leaning more toward pedals, because like most flight simmers, i'd ideally like the HOTAS Warthog, which has no twist rudder; but unlike most simmers who write in the forums, I'm not a blessed millionaire and not ready to throw that kind of money around on a hobby, which is also why I'm less tempted by the Rhino, as it's 2/3rds the cost of the Warthog.