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Think I've found me a new flight sim


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7 hours ago, SERNAK said:

I have the Suncom F-15 TALON joystick and throttle and haven't used them more than a decade. Does any one still uses them and if so, what kind of modifications has he applied in order to be functional?

 

I read that you need a good graphics card and someone gives the specs from his computer. I guess my PC wont be able to run the newer simulators - I have a HP xw4600 workstation 64bit.

For the Suncom gear, I think those use the old 5-pin DIN keyboard connectors, which were replaced by the PS2 connector, and then those were replaced by USB.  I'm not sure what you can do to get them to work with modern hardware.

 

Here are my PC specs for reference:

Processor: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz (Turbo up to 4.2GHz)
8MB Cache
Processor Core: Quad-Core
Memory: 32GB DDR4
Max Memory: 64GB
Memory Slots: 2
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB
Hard Drive: 3TB SATA HDD (7200rpm)
512GB 3D TLC Solid State Drive
Optical Drive: Ultra Slim SuperMulti DVD±RW drive
Audio: Integrated 5.1 audio
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3 hours ago, Ken Cartwright said:

For the Suncom gear, I think those use the old 5-pin DIN keyboard connectors, which were replaced by the PS2 connector, and then those were replaced by USB.  I'm not sure what you can do to get them to work with modern hardware.

Hmm, I guess it's time to put these two in my display case, pity though, they were a great set.

 

So, besides a new set of throttle and stick I need to upgrade my computer and buy a new sim !

 

Thanks for your reply Ken.

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On 6/27/2018 at 10:44 PM, Vidar_710 said:

I’ve been with the Black Sheep since 1999. I taught them CV NATOPS in 2000 in Microsoft Combat Flight Sim 2 Pacific Theater.  Later we took our carrier operations to IL-2 Pacific Fighters. Now, we are putting it to good work with the Hornet in DCS. I’m a retired S-3 Viking Weapon Systems Operator, currently an airline Captain. We have 7 other pilots in the squadron with a Hornet driver on the roster with 2 other Hornet drivers that just fly with us.

The Carrier that comes with the Hornet (Stennis) is an upgrade to the Vinson in DCS World, but NOTHING compared to the super detailed aircraft carrier modules to come on the near horizon, and Heat Bur’s F-14 Tomcat.

 

Tracy. Aka BSS_Vidar

 

BSS214.com

What’s a S-3 Weapons Systems Officer?

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On 7/4/2018 at 2:35 AM, SERNAK said:

I have the Suncom F-15 TALON joystick and throttle and haven't used them more than a decade. Does any one still uses them and if so, what kind of modifications has he applied in order to be functional?

People convert them to USB as I heard. Something like http://realsimulator.com/html/fusba.html Not cheap, but just a fraction of Warthog price.

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Thanks for your reply Helmsman,

 

After watching the installation video it does seem pretty simple to convert it to a USB platform. And hopefully it will work however, I have never heard of before this company and the price is considerable.

 

Anyhow, thanks again for your suggestion, I will definitely consider it because it's a shame to turn these two into "museum exhibits"!!!

 

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On ‎7‎/‎4‎/‎2018 at 3:35 AM, SERNAK said:

I have the Suncom F-15 TALON joystick and throttle and haven't used them more than a decade. Does any one still uses them and if so, what kind of modifications has he applied in order to be functional?

 

I read that you need a good graphics card and someone gives the specs from his computer. I guess my PC wont be able to run the newer simulators - I have a HP xw4600 workstation 64bit.

I had that setup, the Suncom F-15E Talon stick and throttle, and I searched for a way to use them with later computers and modern FS's but it is virtually impossible unless you are an electronics wizard. The Talon stuff used an older IDE joystick plug which computers did away with long ago. There are IDE to USB adapters but from what I read they are pretty much useless for this setup as you can lose almost all functionality. That is too bad because the set was really nice and accurate. As far as I know the Thrustmaster stuff is they way to go but it is expensive if you wan a realistic HOTAS setup. Maybe you can pick one up used but even then they are still expensive.  

 

I wrote this before seeing the link to the USB converter. Maybe I should have hung onto my set. This wasn't available when I sold mine.

Edited by jpk
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On 7/4/2018 at 10:39 AM, Ken Cartwright said:

For the Suncom gear, I think those use the old 5-pin DIN keyboard connectors, which were replaced by the PS2 connector, and then those were replaced by USB.  I'm not sure what you can do to get them to work with modern hardware.

 

Here are my PC specs for reference:

Processor: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz (Turbo up to 4.2GHz)
8MB Cache
Processor Core: Quad-Core
Memory: 32GB DDR4
Max Memory: 64GB
Memory Slots: 2
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB
Hard Drive: 3TB SATA HDD (7200rpm)
512GB 3D TLC Solid State Drive
Optical Drive: Ultra Slim SuperMulti DVD±RW drive
Audio: Integrated 5.1 audio

Gawd...  my PC ain't even close.  I'll be getting a new rig once my current machine dies (if it ever does, this thing has been rockin' for over 5 years with no issues) that will be able to run this sim easily. I've heard good things about the latest line of Intel CPU's, hopefully they will have dropped in price by the time I'm ready to purchase.   I remember when an overclocked Celeron CPU, 4 gig of RAM and a 3DFX graphics card was all it took to have flight sim bliss.  Jane's F-15E ran great on that rig, their SH sim was always looked a bit "wonky" though...

 

I do hope that DCS eventually gets their avionics up to the level of Janes or the later Falcon 4 upgraded versions.   Incredibly steep learning curve but some much fun the first time you get a kill or hit a target. 

 

 

 

 

Edited by 11bee
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2 hours ago, 11bee said:

I do hope that DCS eventually gets their avionics up to the level of Janes or the later Falcon 4 upgraded versions.   Incredibly steep learning curve but some much fun the first time you get a kill or hit a target.

 

I play both DCS and Falcon 4.0 BMS. To be honest, I think the avionics of the aircraft that are modeled in detail in DCS (A-10C, F/A-18, MiG-21, L-39, F-5, etc.) have already reached the level of the F-16 avionics in Falcon 4.0. The learning curve on the DCS A-10C was about the same as the learning curve on the F-16 in Falcon 4 BMS for me. The graphics in DCS have a big edge though - the resulting immersion is incredible. Falcon 4 still has the edge with its dynamic campaign engine, although I have played some of the add-on BMS campaigns and due to all the voice-overs and complexity of the mission design system, they also offered a deep level of immersion - just in a different way than those of Falcon 4.

 

One thing that probably bring a lot of people into DCS (besides the incredible graphics) is the slightly simplified aircraft available as the Flaming Cliffs 3 series: F-15, Su-27, Su-25, etc. They are modeled quite well, but not with same level of detail as the dedicated add-on aircraft like the A-10C. They are a good way for new people to get into simulators without unnecessarily over-simplifying things for them. For example, some of the FC3 flight models are almost as accurate as the flight models of the full-detail add-on models, but of course they don't have the fully clickable cockpits.

 

For what it's worth, my PC is a little older and actually runs DCS very smoothly: i7-930 processor (now more than 5 years old), overclocked to about 4GHz, GTX 1060 graphics card (this is the one item that I did buy recently) and 12 GB of pretty old RAM. Because of the graphics card, I see the game pretty much as good as the videos that you see on YouTube, although I suspect I had to tweak a little more than the guys who have these brand new rigs needed to tweak. I play at 1920 x 1080 resolution.

 

I've been flying simulators since the 1980's and the days of the Commodore 64, and this is certainly one area where I do not miss the "good old days".

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My goodness how things have changed. Unbelievable the level of detail these sims have today. Just beautifully well done graphics and fidelity to the actual aircraft. Its a long way from the Atari XL computer I used to type games into from a magazine (page after page of 4-digit numerical strings). And to think, it really wasn't that long ago (1980s). 

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On 6/29/2018 at 10:09 PM, 11bee said:

One thing I really liked about your sims was the fidelity of the weapons and avionics.  I still think you guys might have pushed the OPSEC boundaries a bit further than you should have 🙂 but it was all good.  

 

We were very careful about this because of my previous work on the Hornet program. I needed two public sources for anything we put in the game. Jane's Information Group was a huge help. I had bookshelves full of the stuff they sent, plus I could email or even call and ask specific questions. Boeing was putting out all kinds of PR back then and we used that stuff for the cockpit layout (I was able to order a near full size poster of the F/A-18E cockpit from the Boeing store for example), to reverse engineer displays and all kinds of other things. There were a lot of similarities between the Hornet and Eagle avionics systems so work that we did for the F-15 was pretty easy to adapt. There was a fair amount of smoke and mirrors going on too. You'd be pretty surprised if you saw how simple the radar model really was. It was very basic, but damn effective. We had great programmers and artists.

 

-CJ

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My first job out of college was with a major flight simulator company, we built full 6DOF motion bases and what was then state of the art CGI on continuous collimated displays up to 210 deg wide by 40 deg vertical.

 

By "state of the art" I mean anywhere from 3 to 9 cabinets full of custom built hardware running proprietary software.  We were able to render up to 3000 shaded, non-textured polygons at a fixed 60 hz display rate.  We gained the ability to apply texture to polys in the mid 80s.  (I have actually met James Blinn to discuss ways to implement texture techniques, back then called "bump maps" our term for bmp / bit map image files) We could also do a large number of both raster and calligraphic light points, with some tradeoff between raster lights and polygons.  These "image generators" (IG) ran about $7 million USD and up.  This was in the early 80s.

 

Compare that to your basic graphics card today.  In fact, today's IGs used in both military and civilian flight simulators are actually PCs running commercially available high end graphics cards.

 

Attached is a small image of a "screen shot" from a CH-53E sim we did in the mid-80s.  The models are shaded only, with an early attempt at a textured sky model.

kc130-1.jpg

Edited by habu2
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16 hours ago, murad said:

did they figure out the a2g radar yet?

 

It’s being worked on and should debut in the Hornet some time down the line. 

 

Some aircraft down the pipeline which I’m excited for are the Tomcat by Heatblur Sims and Strike Eagle by Razbam. 

 

Mark

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  • 2 weeks later...

You guys will laugh at me ..it's okay, but I truly miss A-10 warthog from the 486 days.

I'd love to have that game, simple as it was, for my Windows XP. I haven't flown a military flight SIM since.

Chip

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53 minutes ago, DrGlueblob said:

You guys will laugh at me ..it's okay, but I truly miss A-10 warthog from the 486 days.

I'd love to have that game, simple as it was, for my Windows XP. I haven't flown a military flight SIM since.

Chip

 

I still play Red Baron 3D. Haven't really advanced to anything more current, as I don't feel like shelling out for throttles and pedals and junk. 

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The Graph Sim F/A-18 Hornet 3.0 was one I enjoyed for a long time. It was easy to just go out and bore holes in the sky, shoot some landings, land and carrier.The game wasn't dependent on difficult combat but I could mess with that if I need some hostile action!  

I'd download it from the old-games website if I knew it would run on my current MacBook Pro.

Rick in Maine

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On 7/19/2018 at 9:15 PM, Rick in Maine said:

The Graph Sim F/A-18 Hornet 3.0 was one I enjoyed for a long time. It was easy to just go out and bore holes in the sky, shoot some landings, land and carrier.The game wasn't dependent on difficult combat but I could mess with that if I need some hostile action!  

I'd download it from the old-games website if I knew it would run on my current MacBook Pro.

Rick in Maine

I forgot all about that one.   Good pick. Lots of good blasts from the past.   EAW was a good WW2 sim; probably my favorite was Tornado.  Very old school but was a wonderful sim.   Mission planning was a blast, lofting a full load of dumb bombs on some godless commie airbase while dodging SAMs and AAA was great fun.  Not as much fun was having to use an MS-DOS boot disk to get max performance from my ancient 386 PC.  

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This also ran well on a Mac back "then." An iPhone is small, though I'll give it a try. I'll lobby GraphSim about larger Mac use i.e. laptop and larger.

I was glad to see even the short previews for the present app. May have to spend my money on it!

Rick

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For flight sims you definitely need a large screen. In my opinion iphones and ipads are not good for games, at least, for this level of games. Plus, you can't use a stick and a throttle, which for flight sims is a totally different experience!!

 

If I was going to buy a new flight sim, I would definitely invest in buying the best hardware to support it. AND a large screen of course!!!

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