Sim racing can be competitive and fun – but to maximise your experience, your equipment must be aligned. There’s nothing worse than devices not being seated properly, an uncomfortable driving position or even the incorrect settings for sub-optimal performance.
To be at one with your virtual car, you also need to make sure you’re harmonious with your equipment.
Based on the Traxion team’s experiences and feedback from the Traxion community, here are some top tips for those just starting to use high-end sim racing equipment, such as that created by Simucube.
1. Minimise movement with a secure setup
“Don’t underestimate the need for proper mounting, even if starting with a low-power wheel, a desk can work well enough for the wheel, but the pedals and your seat are the tricky part.”
So says Traxion community member Recarsio, and it’s hard to disagree.
Especially if you’re entering the realm of more powerful wheelbases, for that more authentic feedback, affixing it to a desk isn’t advised. Instead, a dedicated cockpit is a better solution to provide solidity during high cornering forces.
But, as Recarsio states, an often overlooked element is the whole setup, which needs to be ergonomic and rigid to support not just the wheel base, but the pedals (especially if they are load cell or active) and the forces put through a seat.
If you have your wheel base mounted somewhere solid, but your seat moves, or your pedals aren’t at the right position, your whole experience is impacted. Once you have all the equipment in the right place, be sure to make sure every single bolt and screw is tight. Don’t focus just on your wheel; each element is important.
It’s a sentiment echoed by MrJr1976:
“Sturdiness and comfort above all else. You will be sitting in that seat for many hours. Make sure it’s comfortable. You want to eliminate as much flex as possible. The last thing you want to be thinking about while navigating Eau Rouge is that your chair or wheel is moving. Muscle memory plays a big part in competitiveness.”
Top tip: Before taking to the track, take the time to mount your sim racing equipment in a sturdy, safe and secure fashion.
2. How to avoid force feedback clipping
“First, I would explain what force feedback clipping is and that they should put the FFB gain in the software to 100% and try to set the strength of the FFB in-game, to not run into a bottleneck here,” suggests CreeperGreenMC.
Clipping is when a game or sim requests more force than a wheel base is set up to deliver, potentially removing subtle details.
Now, with a high-torque wheel base such as a Simucube, the propensity for this to occur is lowered – however, it’s not impossible.
The Simucube 2 Pro, for example, can output up to 25Nm of torque (or force), so it’s rare that a simulation title will ever request this peak. But CreeperGreenMC’s point still stands.
To avoid this, open your sim’s ‘FFB meter’ and drive several laps – if it’s hitting the top or turning red, then the forces sent to your wheelbase are too high (aka in-game gain). If it is clipping, consider lowering the in-game FFB gain/strength.
Then, you can use the Tuner software to adjust the base’s overall strength in alignment (the Max Drive %) and receive appropriately scaled granular detail.
Top Tip: Ensure the game itself isn’t straining and therefore muddying its force feedback detail, and then use Simucube Tuner to perfect the feeling afterwards.
3. Tweak your settings per sim, car
Experiment a little before committing to your software settings – remember that, in the case of wheel bases in particular, each game also has its own in-game settings, so just because you have the same settings in Simucube software as someone else, it doesn’t mean you will have the exact same experience.
We found that subtly different FFB settings work in Simucube Tuner software for Le Mans Ultimate compared to iRacing, for example.
Creating and loading different presets can contribute to your enjoyment, helping deliver the ideal feelings and sensations through the wheel.
With most wheelbase accompanying PC software, like Simucube Tuner, there is the ability to save and load presets, with you treating it like a car setup, tweaking until you find the sweet spot.
And it’s not just wheel bases and sims you can have presets for. Even within the same sim platform, the pros have alternative FFB presets for alternative vehicles and thanks to the invention of the Active Pedal, presets can be saved for that too.
For instance, we have a different FFB setup for IndyCar compared to MX-5 on iRacing, and this also specifically applies to the brake pedal. It’s fine to get very used to one type of brake feeling and a consistent pedal, but you may not want the brake pedal in a low-powered club racer to be as short and stiff as the brake pedal on a hypercar or single-seater.
Some cars suit a progressive pedal that you can feel all the way down, while others suit an instant wall-like feeling for immediate stopping power under heavy load.
Top tip: Not all sims are equal, and the same is true for cars – tweak, and save, your FFB presets.
4. Download presets from the pros
Creating your own wheel and pedal presets and saving them is all part of the fun. It’s the sim racing learning curve.
But, some manufacturers, such as Simucube, offer up presets from seasoned esports or motorsport pros – think of it like a headstart in terms of setup, although remember, they are all personal preference.
We trialled the likes of James Baldwin’s, Daniel Morad’s, Luke Bennett’s and Heikki Kovalainen’s presets, which were all available in the software from the off, just to see how each would feel with certain cars and sims. You might find a feeling you like quicker this way.
You can also download presets created by the Simucube community via the Paddock in the Tuner software, or upload your own for others to use. Handily, you can search by user rating and sim racing platform to receive a solid foundation.
Top tip: If you can’t beat them, join them.
5. Active Pedal – start slow
If using a Simucube Active Pedal – an innovative and highly-adaptable force feedback pedal – try not to use too many of the electronic aids all at once.
Initially, too much information could muddy the water, so pick the element that is most important to a particular car first of all.
If it’s GT3s, it’s good to know when the ABS is kicking in, while not that important to know a set braking force percentage or when you might lock up.
Conversely, in a Le Mans Hypercar/LMDh with no ABS, it’s important to know when you are about to lock up, or to try and build muscle memory for a particular amount of braking pressure to avoid locking up.
So, in this example, we’d recommend using the effect for braking force percentage, and set it for a point just before a lock-up might be at risk of occurring in regular braking circumstances.
Alternatively, set the effect to tell you when you have actually locked up, as this can also be good to know if it’s not obvious at first and can help prevent micro-lockups, which can cause instability and tyre wear.
Top Tip: Force feedback-equipped pedals are intense; pick the right effect per car
6. Patience is a virtue
“Be patient”
You could have the best equipment in the world, mounted solidly to the ultimate cockpit and tweaked with the software settings until the sun sets – but that won’t automatically make you a ‘driving god’.
This will likely take time and commitment. You must adapt to your new setup, as you may have muscle memory from using a gamepad, or a different type of wheel and pedals. So, if at first it doesn’t feel natural, that’s okay – with time, your reactions will adjust, your reflexes change, and you will become a better sim racer by tweaking your options, software and equipment layout as you go.
Then, it’s simply down to your skill on track – good luck!
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