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Way back in the early days of COMBATSIM.COM™ I owned SUNCOM's F15 Talon, and later their SFS throttle. Both were great hardware, but the buttons on the throttle weren't as strong as they could be, and there were limitations in the ability of the units to emulate all keys.
It's taken a while, but SUNCOM has made the transition to new software and then to digital USB devices. The first step in that direction was the new software. The second step is the release of their USB Flight Controller.
On its own its not a great revolutionary product. It needs a new USB throttle in order to be programmable. Gone are the red indicators on the side of the unit and the programming slider switch. In the meantime, it's a nice plug and play device that benefits from the intrinic value of USB. In other words, there is no lag in response and no jitter or drift.
Like SUNCOM's previous gear, the SFS Flight Controller is finely detailed and sits on what Suncom calls "Saturn Ring Technology." This provides self-centering moderate resistance movements which are very precise. The feel is tighter than the CH sticks but not nearly as heavy as the Thrustmaster F-22 springs.
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As for buttons and hats, the stick sports a red pickle button on the top left, a hat more or less top center, a thumb switch half way down the shaft on the left side, a pinky button on the lower left, and a single throw trigger.
With the classic look of SUNCOM's F15 sticks, its a nice unit with a comfortable feel. The stick uses a lot of metal in the base and weighs about 50% more than the CH Combatstick, giving it a solid presence. When the new throttle and software arrive it will be a beautiful mate for the new USB unit.
I flew the SFS in Janes F15 as well as European Air War, and it functioned nicely in both. While you can't program the stick directly, EAW allows reassignment of controls in game so I could place padlock and targetting commands at my fingerprints. The stick was reliable and performed predictably.
Most sim buffs need both a stick and throttle and this unit on its own is half naked. But when CH Products new USB throttle arrives, or when SUNCOM releases their own unit, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this product.
Next up: CH Products Combatstick USB.
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