Four Throttles by Leonard "Viking1" Hjalmarson
	Let's talk HOTAS... hands on throttle and stick. Many virtual pilots start out with a standard $30 stick or single stick with throttle wheel and then later move on to more sophisticated two fisted gear. Currently there are four popular rigs on the market that allow a gamer to pursue his simulation of choice with hardware in two hands, and change is in the wind. Why two fisted hardware? As you grow in ability or start to play more serious sims at higher levels of difficulty you discover that having to search for keys while dodging a SAM and hitting a target with a guided weapon is too much to ask. Or you get into a knife fight and are trying to lock a bandit on radar while manouvering into a good position for a shot. Uh-uh, it ain't gonna work! Time to eliminate that nasty keyboard. If real pilots can't make it work, neither will we. Sans Keyboard With a complete HOTAS setup you never have to touch the keyboard. A separate stick and throttle not only gives you exacting control, it also adds way more command functions for your instant hands on access. Yes, you have to REMEMBER where the commands are, but after fifteen or so hours in a sim it all starts to fall into place. There are limitations to this picture, of course. Even the most advanced programmable hardware out there, the Thrustmaster kit, becomes complex and a memory drain when programmed to the max. A simulation like Janes F15 or Microprose Falcon 4.0 demands some backup gear like the Quickshot Masterpilot. But there are other reasons to go two-fisted into battle. Helo and Bomber Sims Team Alligator First, there are helo simulators. If you've flown Longbow II, or Apache-Havoc, or Team Apache with a stick and keyboard, you already know that this is the worst way to fly a helicopter, and as flight models become more realistic the challenge will only increase. Saitek X36 Helicopters just don't work like jets. First, they are down in the mud flying nap of the earth, and one needs to be constantly adjusting the collective in order to stay below radar coverage. When you're in an F16 a hundred feet high or low doesn't matter. But fly Longbow II above fifty feet or so and you become every man's favorite target! Second, there are multi engine simulators, primarily bombers, but also those aircraft like the twin Baron or the P38 Lightning. Using a throttle wheel when flying a multi engined aircraft detracts from the sense of immersion. After all, you have two engines. Controlling these aircraft with a single throttle definitely feels like the arcade approach to gaming. In fact, using a stick at all with these type of aircraft feels wrong: time to invest in a flight yoke. Click to continue		SUNCOM SFS Four Throttles Currently there are four companies manufacturing HOTAS rigs: stick and throttle combinations. They are CH Products, Saitek, SUNCOM and Thrustmaster. (Only CH and SUNCOM currently make flight yokes.) Of the four throttles on the market, only SUNCOM makes a split throttle (two levers on a single unit.) Thrustmaster TQS All four of these throttles are currently being changed, with at least three going USB this fall: CH Products Pro Throttle, SUNCOM's SFS, and Saitek's X36. The Thrustmaster throttle is also undergoing revisions, but the direction of these is not clear. Other major changes are happening in two of the other companies product lines. CH is redesigning their throttle and SUNCOM is redesigning theirs. CH, SUNCOM and Saitek are all releasing new software to go along with DX7. The only samples I have personally seen are SUNCOM and Saitek: the software will become much more powerful and also more intuitive for both these companies. SUNCOM's new software will allow saving of configuration files for later modification or reload, just as Saitek, Thrustmaster and CH have been doing for years. FoxTwo for Thrustmaster Of the four throttles, to date only Saitek and Thrustmaster have offered on board mouse or cursor controls. However, rumor has it that both CH and SUNCOM have looked carefully at that option and we might see this feature added to coming hardware. Split Throttle The SUNCOM SFS is currently the only split throttle in the consumer market, although high end solutions exist from companies like PFC ($500 US range.) The new split throttle under USB and DX7 may offer the option of pairing, which would make it the unit of choice for four engined aircraft like the B17 or B24. USB will also greatly simplify installation and calibration and has already impacted various flight sticks. Go to Page Two
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