CH Pro Throttle and Logitech Extreme 3D Pro; My Thoughts

[Breytac]

After much reading and watching Elite players using HOTAS setups, I figured if I'm going to get serious about this game, I would like a HOTAS setup. After a lot of research, I decided on the CH Pro Throttle and a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro...and I'm LOVING it. I did some of the combat training missions, and I was pulling off maneuvers with precision I could only dream of by using the keyboard and mouse. There are so many buttons on the throttle, and a mode switch, of which there are 3. In each mode, each of the buttons will do different things, For example, in mode 1 a button will maneuver the ship, in mode 2 the same buttion will focus on your left hand panel. (I still haven't figured out how to set buttions to different modes, but I would like to set up something like a combat mode and a UI mode). All the buttons and hats are within easy reach. What really sold me on the CH throttle is the fact that it has a mini joystick, which I have assigned to lateral and vertical thrust. Thrusting around a target, or even coming in to land, is a breeze as the thusters respond to how far joysitckis moved , rather than going to full whenactivating thrusters on the keyboard.Don't let the plastic look of the throttle fool you. What you think would be an all plastic design, isn't. Some, if not all, the parts are metal. (I know the parts of the mini joystick are metal as you can see them). The joystick itself is fairly basic. It has a POV hat and four button on the top, your usual trigger and a buttion on the thumb rest (which I have assigned to seconday fire). There are also 6 buttions on the base of the joystick It also has a twist function, something the CH sticks don't have to my knowledge.

As I also have Horizons, I found driving the SRV somewhat annoying with the keyboard. I pretty much had to keep it under a certain speed while turning or I'd spin out (standard physics really). I also found that going to fast over a hill and attempting to keep the buggy somewhat stable mid air was also a bit of a pain. Not with the joystick and throttle. Jumping a hill and landing flat is child's play, even if the hull does take damage (thank the maker for onboard SRV repairs!). While I still have to be somewhat careful while turning at speed, it can be done. I have a buttion mapped on the joystick to switch between the driver's cockpit and the turret gunner's seat.

Summing up, this is one of the best investments I have made for playing a game. If you're looking a for good HOTAS set up, this would be it. I payed around the same price for this set up as I would have for an X52 Pro. If you can afford it, I'd pay the extra and get a CH joystick. It doesn't have the twist function of the 3D pro, but you can get around that by using the in-game setting to convert roll into yaw.

[ScruffyBee]

Been using this setup for months. Great setup.

[Dread Lord]

yeah HOTAS are awesome! that throttle is really great!