The poor mans sim pit

[OldAirmail]

The Saitek TPM




This isn't going to excite any of the jet-sons around here, but for those who like flying -

Cessna


Mooney


or many of the other GA planes that use a push/pull system This is the TPM for YOU!


I have to admit this was pretty low on my "Want" list. Most of the planes that I fly use a lever throttle quadrant. The ones that don't will respond to a lever throttle quadrant anyway so why bother.

The reason is because it adds a lot more realism.

This is not like the other Saitek units except for the height and width of the front panel. The depth of the box is almost 4 ¾ inches deep. Seven and a half inches measured from the end of the throttle knob to the back of the box. Ten and three quarters when the throttle is pulled all of the way out!!!


As you can see from the first picture, the top is tapped incase you want to screw one, or more, of the other Saitek panels to the top.

And, as shown in another post, it's a great place to put a mini keyboard so that it'll be easy enough to reach for those times where you just have to type something.



There are a few things to note;

When I started using this with FSX, the "MIXTURE" knob was working the rudder; "PROP" was working the elevator! Check your flight sim to be sure, what's' what.

And don't forget to un-check the "Auto Mixture" box in the FSX settings or the Mixture knob will do nothing! When you pull it back so far that the flow becomes too lean and the engines die THEN you know you have it right.

About the switches - When you flip them down they make a contact. That contact can be assigned an action. Fine so far. BUT flipping it up doesn't make a contact and I don't think that FSX has any way of registering that a contact was broken.


In other words, if you assign the #1 button to the landing light it will turn it on when you flip it down. Flipping it up does NOTHING. No contact. Nice going Saitek. Flip it down (again!) and it makes contact again and the landing light goes out. Great, just what we need - a switch that you have to flip twice. AND THEN you leave it there. Nice going Saitek.

This can easily be corrected with FSUIPC. It's not rocket science. You just assign an action (such as "Lights Off") when that switch LOOSES contact.

Again - BE SPECIFIC! Don't just assign "Lights" to the switch. Assign "Lights ON" to the down (contact) position and "Lights OFF" to the switch ***loosing contact*** when it's moved upward.


So I'll be specific here -


And while I'm being specific, let me mention something for those who haven't bought a copy of FSUIPC. When you click on the [Buttons + Switches] tab, all you have to do is to click on one or the other, and FSUIPC will recognize the "joystick" and the button on the "joystick" that you pressed.


When I say that you REALLY need FSUIPC to get the most out of your simpit toys, I really do mean it.

It's more than worth the money and it's so easy to use.

I don't know how to use one tenth of it's capabilities. But look what a simpleton, like me, can do by flipping a switch and selecting a couple of items from a list of options! How much simpler do you want it?


Now, just like the last time, I'm going to recommend another website article - Saitek TPM teardown....

[JBaymore]

When I say that you REALLY need FSUIPC to get the most out of your simpit toys, I really do mean it.

It's more than worth the money and it's so easy to use.

I don't know how to use one tenth of it's capabilities. But look what a simpleton, like me, can do by flipping a switch and selecting a couple of items from a list of options! How much simpler do you want it?

Absolutely true. FSUIPC is the "Swiss Army Knife" of simming.

See the "Homebuild Cockpits" section for numerous threads on using FSUIPC.

best,

.....................john

[OldAirmail]

When I say that you REALLY need FSUIPC to get the most out of your simpit toys, I really do mean it.

It's more than worth the money and it's so easy to use.

I don't know how to use one tenth of it's capabilities. But look what a simpleton, like me, can do by flipping a switch and selecting a couple of items from a list of options! How much simpler do you want it?

Absolutely true. FSUIPC is the "Swiss Army Knife" of simming.

See the "Homebuild Cockpits" section for numerous threads on using FSUIPC.

best,

.....................john

John, I've been avoiding the "Homebuild Cockpits" section for a number of reasons.

Three of the biggest are money, time, and space.

But I am on the verge of making such a decision.

If I do, it won't be one of those realistic Boeing or Airbus cockpits, but something along the lines of a small GA cockpit. It also wouldn't be realistic, but based on the equipment that I'm using now. Still....

The parts from my "last computer" are collecting dust. Those parts may not be anywhere near the bleeding edge of computerdom, but they are a lot faster than anything that FSX was designed for.


It's a slippery slope. I'm not there yet. Just looking at the edge of the slope.


BTW, I just did a broad search for FSUIPC in SimViation and only came up with 28 references. And a lot of them were mine!

[JBaymore]

John, I've been avoiding the "Homebuild Cockpits" section for a number of reasons.

There is a lot of stuff in there that can easily be extrapolated to less "formal" setups. A lot of the interfacing electronics and software can work in many sim configurations.

Just because you are on a diet does not mean you can't look at the menu.

best,

.......................john

[OldAirmail]

Who wants another monitor!
Raise your hand
BTW, if there is an irritating animated GIF that's bothering you simply hit the ESC key.
. . . Hit ESC now!

(Synopsis: a USB to VGA adapter will let you exceed you monitor limit.)

Adding a second monitor can be very simple if it's less than 10 years old. If your old desktop computer has a newer video card you can probably run 2 monitors even on Windows 98.


I'm not talking about one of the Eyefinity cards now. Most desktop video cards in the last 10 years have 2 or more video connectors on the back. But even if there are 3 connectors on the back, you may be limited to the use of ANY 2 connectors.

Look on the sides and back of a laptop and you'll probably see another video connector. You should be able to plug another monitor in, and have 2 monitors working, the laptop screen & the other monitor.


The biggest problem may be matching the connectors on your computer/laptop to the spare monitors. You laptop probably has a VGA connector, and the new monitor that you bought may have a different type connector. Now, you’re in trouble.

That is, if you don’t have a cable converter. Fortunately they are fairly cheap.


Antiques
The problems with the older laptops are 2 fold.
* You're limited to the laptop screen AND the plug in monitor.
* If you laptop is as old as mine, the resolution may be to low. Connect a large monitor to a low resolution output and the result is pretty ugly.

So if you're using a laptop, check the maximum resolution before buying a new monitor.


This is MUCH less important for desktop computers where you can just buy a new video card that has 3, 6, 12, or more video connectors.

Pop quiz - Can you plug your monitor in here without an adapter?



Another way.
Before I go to far, let me say that you need a reasonably good card with 1 gig (or more) of fast memory. It doesn't have to be the best. My card is the best that will work with MY CPU and motherboard. There are a lot of faster cards out there. But I do ok anyway.

A case in point. The Saitek Pro Flight Instrument Panel is expensive, but nice to have. However you'll read here and there that they'll make your FPS drop.

People forget that time goes by. That "fast" computer that they bought 5 or 6 years ago for big bucks isn't so great anymore.

If the FPS go down when you plug a Flight Instrument Panel in, then your CPU and GPU stink. No two ways about it. No use arguing.


So, all of your video ports are filled up, are they?
By now you know what I have, in the way of monitors, when I fly the FSX airways. If not then lets do a recap -
* Three 22 inch monitors. (That's a fib. The old one is only 20" or 21".)
* Two 9" USB monitors that I'm using as instrument panels.
* One Saitek Pro Flight Instrument Panel

Well....
I have an old 4:3 ViewSonic monitor. I'd like to use it as a large instrument panel.

I want to use it, but...

But I can't add it to my computer. No monitor connectors free.


THE SOLUTION
There is indeed a solution - the USB 3.0 to VGA Adapter for Multiple Monitors up to 1920x1080.


With this, the newest addition to my so-called sim pit, I can now use that old VGA monitor.

The price wasn't so bad, $50. What made me pick it though was that a company called DisplayLink makes the USB interface and chips. I have a lot of trust in them.

In January of 2012 I bought my 9" USB touch screen monitor. Whenever I put the FSX GPS into the USB monitor it would go blank. In fact ANY FSX screen that was supposed to be animated/updated would go blank. I e-mailed DisplayLink and in 4 or 5 weeks they put out an update that fixed the problem. Most companies would have said, "That's a minor problem for a very limited number of people. Screw them."


How well does it work? GREAT!

I have all of these running at the same time.
* Three 22 inch monitors with FSX stretched across all of them.
* Two 9" USB monitors running the old instrument panels.
* One Saitek Pro Flight Instrument Panel
* AND I plugged in the old ViewSonic monitor, loaded it up with instruments from G.A. Panel AND MY FPS STAY THE SAME! What more can you ask for.

All of that on a card that IS NOT the latest and greatest, and an i5 CPU that isn't overclocked! You do have to spend some money, BUT you don't have to have the very best to get good results.


Problems/Negatives

After I ordered it from Amazon, Plugable (the manufacturer) sent me an e-mail directing me to the latest driver updates and urging me to pre-install them so all I would have to do, later, was to plug it in. While installing the drivers I was warned that a certain process had to be shut down. It gave me the name and ID of the process (aka PID) to be closed. I use a free program called Process Explorer to do that kind of stuff.

After stopping the indicated process everything went well. Most people don't seem to have that kind of problem installing the drivers for this though.

The other problem isn't really a problem. When using the shortcut key strokes to change the Eyefinity monitor arrangement from 2 to 3 main monitors, while I have the 4th monitor active, There is a 10 to 15 second delay. But this is ONLY when I switch the Eyefinity arrangement using the shortcuts. No other lags noted.


PS - No USB 3 ports on you computer? Not a problem - it also works with USB 2 (just a little slower).

PS 2 - DoubleSight from time to time has great deals on standard and USB monitors. I can't recommend Amazon for refurbished/used monitors. Their prices are only $10 to $20 off their regular price. You might as well buy it new.

.
.

SNEAK PEEK
Next week - the saga of the NEW (for me, anyway) GPS.

[OldAirmail]

What a week!

Working extra shifts and computer problems.


The computer problem came about by my adding a four port USB3 card to my computer.

After adding the drivers for this card ALL of my USB assignments got screwed up. A forced restarting, twice, didn't help much. Luckily, I have an old PS2 Keyboard.


Without this keyboard I would not have been able to log on.


And guess what. All of my flight sim add-ons? They had to be reassigned. Talk about fun!

The only thing not working right, at the moment, is my TrackIR5 software. I downloaded the TrackIR4 software and it works fine. But the TrackIR5 software is a hell of a lot better.

With the TrackIR5 software my FPS dropped down to 1.5 to 2 FPS.

With the TrackIR4 software it went back up into the 60s.

[OldAirmail]

I hope that anyone who wants to read this has a fast connection, cause there will be a lot of pictures. Trying to do it without a lot of pictures wouldn't get the ideas across.

GPS!!!!

WHAT A DIFFERANCE THIS MAKES!


Part 1, what's out there.
By now most of you have realized that I like to flip switches and turn knobs.

So a while back I learned how to use the Saitek Radio Panel knobs to "work" the standard FSX GPS knob (page 3 of "The poor mans sim pit"). And it does work very well too. But I just wanted more of a "real" experience.


There are (as much as I care to know) 3 physical GPSs available for FSX/flight sim fun, as opposed to real world instrument training.

The first, and by far the best looking, is the Emuteq GNS530 GPS for $700. BUT, it does cost £445/$700. In it's favor, it is back-lit, and looks very well made.




NEXT

The next one is the VRInsight GPS 5 Panel for £305/$480. This unit seems to be meant to sit on top of a desk top, not added to a cockpit panel. It is better, price wise, but still more than I want to pay.

One of the things that I don't like about this one are the cables coming out of the right side. But it too appears to be back-lit.




NOTE
The Emuteq is running the Reality XP G530 software, £32/$49.95.

The VRInsight GPS 5 Panel is running the standard FSX G500, free of course.


NEXT

The last one is one made by a small company Desktop Aviator, and has the catchy name Model 2450 GPS.

At £145/$228 you know that they aren't getting rich. For what it's worth, they also make a GPS panel with a fake screen for £60/$95. The buttons and knobs, of course, work so you can control an on-screen GPS.

The screen is probably the smallest of the three at 4 X 3 inches (5.25 diagonal), but it looks fine in reality. The stated resolution is 620 X480. I think, however, that may be old information, because my video card, and Windows 7 Pro, both report it at 800 X 600. At any rate it's adequate for the job.



The green buttons and the concentric knobs are very easy to use.


This one will run either the Reality XP G530 or the FSX G500 software.

And this, of course, is the GPS panel that I bought.

[OldAirmail]

GPS!!!!

WHAT A DIFFERANCE THIS MAKES!


Part 2, the negatives

First I'm going to get the negatives out of the way. If any of this turns you off (and I know that some of you want ONLY the best) this will save you some time.


Remember, the Model 2450 GPS is a budget flight sim GPS, so you aren't going to have big screens and heavy metal enclosures.


* While the screen is adequate, the lack of an enclosure puts the unit at risk from damage. You DO NOT want to simply place it on your table top (except for when you first get it & can't stop yourself from playing with it ).


They even state;
“The Model 2450 GPS/Monitor was designed to be flush mounted inside your homemade aircraft panel.”


* Either build your own enclosure, or install it in a sim pit panel. In either case, add your own cable stress relief so that the cables aren't accidently pulled away from the circuit boards, causing damage. I'd suggest 2 or 3 of this type, with the cable looped in a circle, or a sharp bend. DO NOT count on just one. If jerked hard enough the cable, no matter how tight, can slip through a single tiedown/holddown.




* The face of the panel is a plastic of some sort. So DON'T throw it at the cat late at night. And DO NOT use it as a step stool to reach that can of peas in the back of that top shelf. Now, I ask you, is that an unreasonable request? The face of the panel looks good, and is more than strong enough for it's intended purpose.


* The screen in my unit is slightly off center. About 1/16 to 3/32 of an inch (.1 to .2cm) to high. I could fix it with about 30-45 minutes of work. BYW - you can only notice it when the screen isn't lit. I'm to busy pressing buttons, turning knobs, and looking at what's on the screen to care.


* The screen is powered. The power cord is only about 3 feet long. In all probability, you WILL want an extension cord. The other 2 cables should be long enough for most people.


~ This is actually two different parts. One is the VGA monitor. The other is a set of USB buttons and knobs. No instructions come with the unit.

* If you don't know how to add another VGA monitor to your system, OR if you can't understand the instructions that you'll find on the internet - DO NOT BUY THIS GPS PANEL! Save us all some headaches ok? Just don't buy it.

~ Desktop Aviator has a link on their website on how to set up the buttons. BTW - they have two button assignments wrong. Read the next part to set it right.


* The GPS unit DOES NOT come with a power supply. But they only charge $5 for it. Don't like spending $228 and NOT getting a plug in wall transformer? I'm sure that the Emuteq comes with one. FOR ONLY $700!

* Along the same line, a some people will want a 90 degree VGA adaptor. This costs $3.75. "OUTRAGIOUS!!!", you say. Take your outrage and put it someplace dark. You'll have a hard time finding one this cheap elsewhere.



As I said Desktop Aviator isn't going to make a fortune selling this stuff.


That's about all of the bad stuff that I can find.

All in all there's nothing that I would consider a real problem.

Finito


My advice
Buy one of these before they realize that they're probably loosing money on this GPS. They could just stop making them. I'm not kidding.

[OldAirmail]

GPS!!!!

WHAT A DIFFERANCE THIS MAKES!


Part 3, MAN THIS IS GREAT!





For a lot less money you can get one of these without the VGA monitor. It just has a static GPS picture in place of the screen. But even saving a bunch of money, I would feel cheated some how. I WANT THAT IMAGE TO MOVE!

Before this one came out, I used to dream about finding a small monitor to slip behind the cutout. But screens small enough to fit are hard to find, AND expensive!

So when this one appeared on their website I thought long and hard about it. I also started saving money. Just in case I did want to spend it on ....

Well, just in case. You know.


All of my doubts are settled now. This GPS works great. The screen is just big enough (I had strong doubts about that). And last, but not least, it works with all of my other monitors without slowing down the system.

And more to the point, it's fun and I get great satisfaction from using it.


I had to use a DVI to VGA adaptor and cable to go from my computer to the GPS. It worked perfectly, no problems.



.

Starting it up.
When you plug the VGA cable and power cord into the VGA screen part, the screen will probably be black/off. It could also be a solid blue, and display VGA.

(SIDE NOTE - there's a 3-4 inch circuit board strip on the back that lets you adjust things like brightness & contrast.)

In windows 7, right click on an empty spot of the desktop and choose "Screen resolution". That'll get you to the next screen below where you can select the monitor (the GPS) that you want to make part of your desktop.

At times my video card, or Windows 7, doesn't recognize the VGA part (screen # 1, far right) of the GPS. If that happens, click on it anyway. Click on the "Multiple displays:" dropdown, and choose "Extend desktop to this display". Make sure that it's set it to 800 X 600. Click on the Apply button. It'll work fine.




After you get the GPS up and running, you'll want to start your flight sim up. I don't know about other sims but FSX will give you this warning:

Select NO to continue.
This is about FSX not wanting to run on a low resolution screen. IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOUR DRIVERS OR OTHER HARDWARE!



On their website (and echoed all over the internet) is a warning not to plug the USB cable into a different USB port on your computer after setting the GPS buttons up. The instructions say that the GPS assignments will be lost if you do. Just to test it, I placed the USB cable in another USB port in my computer (as opposed to a USB extension). No problem, at least not for me.


Once you have the screen lit up and showing some part of your desktop, you're ready for the next step: the button assignments.

Go to their Installation Instructions. It can't hurt.

But they do have two buttons (numbers one & two) listed in the reverse order.

Buttons one & two are correct in the picture below.





This is a pretty bad picture of my working GPS with the lights down low.



The far left green button (from the picture on their website) has been moved a little more to the left, and replaced by a small toggle switch. I put the ON and OFF labels there.

The toggle is better than a push button, in that you can see if it's on (up), or off (down).

This toggle doesn't turn the aircrafts GPS on & off, it turns the VGA monitor on & off.

.

That's all for now.

NEXT WEEK - The FREE GPS software that you REALLY want to use with the Desktop Aviator GPS.

[logjam]

Having dismantled my Great Grandson's pedal car project. (no longer being able to fit into the narrow seat) I realized a huge profit by selling it on EBAY as a rusted out antique, thereby being able to afford ( from the same source)a well used Saitek X45. I am now enjoying simming at a different level. I never could afford a yoke and now I'm glad because all the new stuff uses a side stick. He he he, some of us old Bug***s still have a few ideas.

[OldAirmail]

I'll still talk about some really great (and free) GPS software this weekend, but I thought that I'd drop in a couple of pictures about something that I'm working on.

[OldAirmail]

While I'm at it - yesterday I found out that the screen on the Emuteq GNS530 GPS is only 1/2 inch (apx 1.3 cm) longer on the diagonal than the one I bought.

Interesting. I thought that it was significantly bigger.

Well.......

Still, the Emuteq does have nicer buttons for only $472 more.

[OldAirmail]

GPS!!!!

WHAT A DIFFERANCE THIS MAKES!


Part 4, the GPS on the screen


The Desktop Aviator GPS is such a delight to use.

My other GPS efforts were fine, they let me push some buttons and turn some knobs. It really was much better than using the mouse to click on, or more often than not, to click near the on-screen buttons and knobs.

Imagine flying in a real plane, and having to use a mouse to operate most of your instruments.

NOW when I push a button or turn a knob, the screen right next to my hand alters immediately. That goes a long way towards making it more realistic. Not to mention easier to learn how to operate the aircraft's GPS. Not to mention a lot more fun.


.

So what's this great (and free) GPS Software?

Enhanced Garmin 500W GPS Unit (500WX)
from Kronzky's Flight Simulator Addons


I have no idea how the other GPS add-ons work, but for the Desktop Aviator you have to drag the flight sim GPS into the monitor.

Once there you have to reshape it until the picture of what you want to look at fills the screen, AND EVERYTHING ELSE will be sticking outside of the small monitor.

Another way to put it, is that all of the buttons, knobs, and the aircraft instrument panel bezel it's self, will be intruding into the edges of the monitor that Microsoft thinks is next to the "GPS" monitor.

Remember this shot showing how Microsoft wants all of its "extended" desktops to be contiguous?


In addition, every time that you resize the full (FSX) GPS panel it stretches into areas where you don't want it to go. So you just keep on tweaking the image until it fits the small monitor. Not a big problem, just annoying.


Lets call up the Cessna on-screen GPS. But to drag it over to another monitor we need an MS Windows type frame around it.



A better way to fit the GPS display into a flight sim GPS add-on would be to remove the bezel with all of it's buttons, etc.

And this is where Kronzky come in. Not only did he enhance the standard GPS images, he also made it a one click operation to show, or hide, the bezel.

So the Cessna GPS can go from this.


To this with one click.


Dropping it, in that format, into the Desktop Aviator GPS takes only a few seconds when you get used to it.

Click on the Kronzky above. Even if you never get a GPS add-on, there are more than enough enhancements to make it a worthwhile download.



Some quick shots from my GPS screen.
. .

. .


Just a reminder; whenever you find something this good, burn it to disk. You don't want to be SOL if his site ever goes down.

[OldAirmail]

GPS!!!!

WHAT A DIFFERANCE THIS MAKES!


Part 5, the enclosure


This should be the end of my GPS panel story.

I'll make this post fairly simple, and won't post the full details of making my enclosure unless asked.

As I said before, this GPS is intended to be placed in a flight sim panel, not just sitting out on your desk or table top.


As much as I would like to put this panel into something like what Romflyer built, I don't have the room and money to build a dedicated sim pit.


For me there is no choice but to build an enclosure for the GPS panel. Of the many types of an enclosure the triangle is the simplest to make AND to copy. After all, you have to make two of these as exactly alike as possible for appearance, and to prevent wobbling.

Let me say first that EVERYTHING that I did was done with the simplest of tools.



Starting to make the bends.


The Open Angle


Closing the triangle with a screw.


Two legs to stand on.


"Vented" sheetmetal fitted to the triangles.


Sides and top in place.


Cover caps for the screws.


. .

Off to Hawaii.


On the cheap, of course. This is (or was) - The poor mans sim pit.


As I now have everything that I want,
it's time to say
FINITO

[JBaymore]

OK... I see HAND TOOLS and metal being formed and other such stuff here.

You are moving DANGEROUSLY close to succumbing to THE DARK SIDE. Soon.... all of you postings will be in the Homebuilt Cockpits Forum Section.

Muuuuhhhhhaaaahhhhhaaaahhhhhaaaahhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.......................

best,

...................john