Mobile Driving/Flying Cockpit with Motion and Tactile ( Build )
stigs2cousin
Premium
I know your not exactly the guy "to keep it simple" and I myself am also guilty of "feature accumulation" 
, but this could be a good time to check which features are necessary for reliable operation.
My excuse for a cockpit/dashboard with hardbuttons is that I mostly drive plain and buttonless wheels with triples.
As you are in VR I can understand the need for e.g the seat adjustment joystick, but things like B Bias and TC should be covered by the encoders on the wheel.
A "slimmed down" Button Box" would be less prone to failure as Motion and Tactile shurely put a strain on the components?
And may I ask how you secured the cables as I have cabling failures even without motion.
, but this could be a good time to check which features are necessary for reliable operation.My excuse for a cockpit/dashboard with hardbuttons is that I mostly drive plain and buttonless wheels with triples.
As you are in VR I can understand the need for e.g the seat adjustment joystick, but things like B Bias and TC should be covered by the encoders on the wheel.
A "slimmed down" Button Box" would be less prone to failure as Motion and Tactile shurely put a strain on the components?
And may I ask how you secured the cables as I have cabling failures even without motion.
RCHeliguy
Premium
Agreed about simple. I removed all 3 of my rotaries. My GT3 wheel has everything I need for that. I still have a few extra controls left with this downsizing, but this is just to get it functional again.
I used my glue gun to stabilize wires in my button box after I got the DBox last summer.
I used my glue gun to stabilize wires in my button box after I got the DBox last summer.
Where did you get those flat levers for the lights and wipers? All I found are tiny and rounded, or a bir larger and rounded (but too hard to press). I mean momentary levers (2 ways).
As regards button boxes, I've also considered the idea of adding more controls to mine, but then I reconsider it because in VR it's better to keep things simple. The 9 buttons layout I use (3 rows and 3 columns) is great because I place 3 fingers on the buttons and I know easily what to press. I also have tested several ideas that work great for some of my buttons, like two functions for short and long press, a unique lever that has several functions (a button close to it to select them) and altering the functions of the controls of my left button box when I hold one button on the right button box (for instance, I use this idea for adjusting the seat and the mirrors without the need for more extra buttons).
As regards button boxes, I've also considered the idea of adding more controls to mine, but then I reconsider it because in VR it's better to keep things simple. The 9 buttons layout I use (3 rows and 3 columns) is great because I place 3 fingers on the buttons and I know easily what to press. I also have tested several ideas that work great for some of my buttons, like two functions for short and long press, a unique lever that has several functions (a button close to it to select them) and altering the functions of the controls of my left button box when I hold one button on the right button box (for instance, I use this idea for adjusting the seat and the mirrors without the need for more extra buttons).
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RCHeliguy
Premium
I got the switches from aliexpress. This link still works.
Below is a list of the parts I got for my button box. Some of the links may not work. I designed this originally 3 years ago! Geeze time flies!
| BBI-64 Button Box | 1 | 50 | $ 50.00 | ||
| Ribbon Cable | 20 pin | 1 | 1.48 | $ 1.48 | |
| 16pin | 4 | 1.19 | $ 4.76 | ||
| 8 pin | 1 | 0.95 | $ 0.95 | ||
| Ribbon Extension Cables | 16 Pin Extension ( 8 Inches) | 2 | 7.95 | $ 15.90 | |
| 20 pin Extension ( 6 Inches) | 2 | 7.95 | $ 15.90 | ||
| Ribbon Cable Box headers | 20pin | 1 | 1.22 | $ 1.22 | |
| Curved needle | 16pin | 1 | 1.13 | $ 1.13 | |
| 8 pin | 1 | 1.03 | $ 1.03 | ||
| Jumpers | F-F | 1 | 5.52 | $ 5.52 | |
| F-M | 1 | 7.49 | $ 7.49 | ||
| Assorted | 1 | 6.98 | $ 6.98 | ||
| Assorted | 1 | 7.49 | $ 7.49 | ||
| Rotary Encoders | 288V232R161B2 | 3 | 4 | $ 12.00 | |
| Joysticks | HKL-C24 | 2 | 15 | $ 30.00 |
16.66€ 40% OFF|22Mm Joystick Switch Self Reset/Self Lock Cross Tuimelschakelaar 2/4 Geen 2/4 Posities HKL C12 HKL C22 HKL C14 HKL C24|Schakelaars| - AliExpressSmarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com
|
| Brass red buttons | 16mm | 10 | 3.31 | $ 33.10 |
5.07€ 45% OFF|16 Mm Metaal Messing Drukknop Hoge Ronde Momentary 1NO Auto Drukt Knop Pin/Schroef Terminal Overkoepelde/ flat/Hoge Hoofd|Schakelaars| - AliExpressSmarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com
|
| Red buttons, ( R33 B) | 12mm | 7 | 5 | $ 35.00 |
1 RED Momentary Normal OFF-(ON) Push-Button Switch,R33B | eBay[high quality products]-- NOS [ NEW ]. Thread Portion: 11.25mm/0.44", length: 6.50mm/0.255". 7A/250VAC [ ALSO WORKS FOR 12V ].
www.ebay.com
|
| Start Button | 30mm | 1 | $ - |
2.49€ 5% OFF|1Pc 30Mm Metal Roestvrij Staal Waterdicht Momentary/Vergrendeling Led Drukknop Auto Auto Motor Start Pc power Symbool|Schakelaars| - AliExpressSmarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com
| |
| HMD Center | 30mm | 1 | 6.39 | $ 6.39 |
2.49€ 5% OFF|30Mm 6V 12V 24V 220V Blauw Ring Led Light Momentary/Locking Drukknop dpst Metalen Industriële Boot Auto Diy Schakelaar|Schakelaars| - AliExpressSmarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com
|
| On/Off Switch | 12mm | 3 | 2.65 | $ 7.95 | https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32976630820.html |
| Pit/Recover Mushroom Button Red | 22mm | 1 | 4.21 | $ 4.21 |
4.96€ 10% OFF|22 Mm Metalen Aluminium Paddestoel Knopcontacten IP67 Waterdichte Schakelaar Momentary Vergrendeling Vergrendeling 1NO 1NC 22 Mg/ l.f.c|switch momentary|switch pushswitch switch - AliExpressSmarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com
|
| Momentary Toggle | 12mm | 4 | $ - | ||
| M3 Threaded Inserts | 1 | 16.98 | $ 16.98 | https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KP86T8G | |
| M5 Threaded Inserts | 1 | 10.91 | |||
| M5 x 16 Bolts | 6 | ||||
| M3 Bolts | Lots | 2 | 9.99 | $ 19.98 | |
| M3 Square Nuts | 1 | 6.99 | |||
| 12V M and Female mount, plug | 1 | 10.99 | $ 10.99 | ||
| 12V M and Female disconnects | 1 | 7.49 | $ 7.49 | ||
| 5mmx2mm round magnets | 2 | 8 | $ 16.00 |
Wholesale Super Strong N52 N50 Round Disc Neodymium Magnets Rare Earth 100 500 | eBayMaterial: Neodymium Magnet. N50/N52 grade Magnets are made of a brittle material. These magnets are not as strong as steel. They are more like a brittle ceramic. If you let two magnets slam together, they can crack and break.
www.ebay.com
|
I've found this one, but it's not momentary: https://es.aliexpress.com/item/1005..._id=202312110324554532893087772840001969137_4
RCHeliguy
Premium
These are the larger Momentary switches I'm using.
RCHeliguy
Premium
Soldering done.
Ready to assemble!
3 years later, I still like the modularity of this, but I forgot how much fun running all the wiring was... And the glue gun fairy will spread goodness all over these wires once I've verified that every control works.
I do think having a removable patch bay is something that I will keep in whatever my next full design is. While painful, wiring this up on my desk is MUCH easier than wiring it while it is mounted to my rig. That was a nightmare.
Ready to assemble!
3 years later, I still like the modularity of this, but I forgot how much fun running all the wiring was... And the glue gun fairy will spread goodness all over these wires once I've verified that every control works.
I do think having a removable patch bay is something that I will keep in whatever my next full design is. While painful, wiring this up on my desk is MUCH easier than wiring it while it is mounted to my rig. That was a nightmare.
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RCHeliguy
Premium
Very happy with this purchase! Damn! It actually does sound nicer than my ESS DAC on my 105D did.
It doesn't just take an M.2 drive, but I can just plug in any external USB drive as well.
Spotify works great. It triggers my amp. The only tiny thing is that it needs a physical network connection for my phone app to turn it on. It has a remote and you just tap the volume knob to turn it on. You can turn it off by the Android app. If I could turn it on with my phone it would be perfect
Most importantly it sounds fantastic! Great match for my ML's. Let me explain. There were some songs that sounded harsh and were basically unplayable and that is even with zero compression. I can play them all now
It doesn't just take an M.2 drive, but I can just plug in any external USB drive as well.
Spotify works great. It triggers my amp. The only tiny thing is that it needs a physical network connection for my phone app to turn it on. It has a remote and you just tap the volume knob to turn it on. You can turn it off by the Android app. If I could turn it on with my phone it would be perfect
Most importantly it sounds fantastic! Great match for my ML's. Let me explain. There were some songs that sounded harsh and were basically unplayable and that is even with zero compression. I can play them all now
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RCHeliguy
Premium
The experience I've had with the DMP-A8 so far.
It was very well packaged.
It has a strong 5Ghz network connection. The first thing I did was allow it to upgrade its software which involved a download and 2 reboots.
It indexed the 4Tb M.2 music drive I put in it very quickly. It said it recognized a new device and then let me add the library.It also could immediately access any external USB drive I plugged in. It also has file transfer capability, so I can plug in an external USB drive and move music to the internal drive. You can also plug in a USB CD player to rip music. I went ahead and ordered a $31 tiny CD/DVD player/burner for dedicated use ripping tracks if I ever have the need to.
For phone connectivity, it shows a QR Code to download the software and another QR code to connect with the device.
It needed WiFi connected for this to work.
The Android software allows full control just like being on the front panel.
The volume adjustment defaults to .5dB per click, and is configurable.
It has a remote with volume control buttons and other controls, the phone app has volume control and it has a physical knob.
It triggers my amp properly when it turns on.
It plays tracks smoothly with no background noise even at very high volume.
I logged into my Spotify account with it and it worked from their perfectly well. Set it to Very High bit rate and no auto quality adjustment to make it say at 320kbps and it sounds better now. Also set Spotify to use the 4Tb drive for any local music file storage and set it to store files at Very High bit rate.
Spotify sounds better than it did coming from my previous device, but I didn't have the ability to configure it as well there.
The music software is very comparable to the JRiver Music server software I used to enjoy, and I'm finding navigation through my library easy already.
I'm running Balanced XLR cables to my amp at 4.2V and the volume and dynamics sound very good. ( FYI, the A6 runs a higher Voltage )
I'm actually surprised at how different the sound is coming from this device. Completely shocked is more accurate.
I connected my OPPO 105D analog output to it and played a BD through it there was a slight audio lag, so I adjusted the latency in the OPPO audio output setup to -50ms and then the mouth movements synced up well with the sound.
I am mostly surprised at how much harsher my OPPO 105D DAC sounds in comparison. There are some songs that sounded good below a certain volume, that have no limitations now and others that were unplayable that sound perfectly fine.
I was EXTREMELY curious when people said that this device sounded more analog or warmer than the ESS Saber DAC's, but they were absolutely correct. It's not a subtle thing either. Everything sounds better and the overall experience has been excellent.
I'll consider this topic done unless anyone has a question.
It was very well packaged.
It has a strong 5Ghz network connection. The first thing I did was allow it to upgrade its software which involved a download and 2 reboots.
It indexed the 4Tb M.2 music drive I put in it very quickly. It said it recognized a new device and then let me add the library.It also could immediately access any external USB drive I plugged in. It also has file transfer capability, so I can plug in an external USB drive and move music to the internal drive. You can also plug in a USB CD player to rip music. I went ahead and ordered a $31 tiny CD/DVD player/burner for dedicated use ripping tracks if I ever have the need to.
For phone connectivity, it shows a QR Code to download the software and another QR code to connect with the device.
It needed WiFi connected for this to work.
The Android software allows full control just like being on the front panel.
The volume adjustment defaults to .5dB per click, and is configurable.
It has a remote with volume control buttons and other controls, the phone app has volume control and it has a physical knob.
It triggers my amp properly when it turns on.
It plays tracks smoothly with no background noise even at very high volume.
I logged into my Spotify account with it and it worked from their perfectly well. Set it to Very High bit rate and no auto quality adjustment to make it say at 320kbps and it sounds better now. Also set Spotify to use the 4Tb drive for any local music file storage and set it to store files at Very High bit rate.
Spotify sounds better than it did coming from my previous device, but I didn't have the ability to configure it as well there.
The music software is very comparable to the JRiver Music server software I used to enjoy, and I'm finding navigation through my library easy already.
I'm running Balanced XLR cables to my amp at 4.2V and the volume and dynamics sound very good. ( FYI, the A6 runs a higher Voltage )
I'm actually surprised at how different the sound is coming from this device. Completely shocked is more accurate.
I connected my OPPO 105D analog output to it and played a BD through it there was a slight audio lag, so I adjusted the latency in the OPPO audio output setup to -50ms and then the mouth movements synced up well with the sound.
I am mostly surprised at how much harsher my OPPO 105D DAC sounds in comparison. There are some songs that sounded good below a certain volume, that have no limitations now and others that were unplayable that sound perfectly fine.
I was EXTREMELY curious when people said that this device sounded more analog or warmer than the ESS Saber DAC's, but they were absolutely correct. It's not a subtle thing either. Everything sounds better and the overall experience has been excellent.
I'll consider this topic done unless anyone has a question.
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Mr Latte
Premium
Glad that you like it, kinda as expected it does what you wanted or its supposed to do then?
Its your thread so you post what you want but some may wonder, what has this product got to do with a simrig build, how does it improve that or how games sound on your setup?
Not everyone from the hifi world is that happy with how the company that makes this product has been giving "influencers" free units for positive reviews. Now I'm not suggesting thats what you are doing at all, but you may have watched several reviews of the product that have.
I don't doubt its a good product and it certainly looks cool (for those that want that type of thing) but I'm sure in simracing this issue is starting to happen more and more too....
Its your thread so you post what you want but some may wonder, what has this product got to do with a simrig build, how does it improve that or how games sound on your setup?
Not everyone from the hifi world is that happy with how the company that makes this product has been giving "influencers" free units for positive reviews. Now I'm not suggesting thats what you are doing at all, but you may have watched several reviews of the product that have.
I don't doubt its a good product and it certainly looks cool (for those that want that type of thing) but I'm sure in simracing this issue is starting to happen more and more too....
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RCHeliguy
Premium
What I can say is that I recently purchased and then returned an Emotiva XDA-3 which is only $700 by comparison and it completely crapped the bed.
I didn't like how the XDA-3 sounded. It didn't match my system well and it had piles of issues that I hated about it. The volume was purely by remote and it took FOREVER to change the volume any appreciable amount. The balanced output Voltage levels were a poor match for my amplifier, one that I purchased from them a number of years back. Basically I needed to run it nearly at 0db or full volume to get any reasonable volume. The DAC didn't sound any better than my 105D. Running Spotify through it, the first second or so of each track was lost when switching tracks.
So far the A8 is worlds better. The features alone are liberating, making this a much better experience for me. The Music Server software is a huge step up from Volumio and more like the JRiver Music Server I used to use on a PC and it does sound better. The phone interface is fantastic.
It is a high end swiss army knife front end to my stereo that does everything I can think of wanting to do.
I can't speak to how they deal with reviewers, and it may turn out that I find out in hindsight that I don't like how this company operates, but I spent $2K out of my pocket on this thing. I'm also not creating a YouTube video about it.
EDIT(Dec 14) : While I like the overall sound better, I may have lost a bit of spatial imaging. I can hear the vocals center stage and instruments pretty well left to right, but I'm not quite hearing the full 3D queues that I had with the Sabre DAC. However, I have a Christmas tree next to my stereo, the speakers are off center and it's possible some other things are interfering. So I won't know for certain, until the tree comes down and my den goes back to normal.
Anyway, I'm ready to put this behind me and get back to my rig.
I didn't like how the XDA-3 sounded. It didn't match my system well and it had piles of issues that I hated about it. The volume was purely by remote and it took FOREVER to change the volume any appreciable amount. The balanced output Voltage levels were a poor match for my amplifier, one that I purchased from them a number of years back. Basically I needed to run it nearly at 0db or full volume to get any reasonable volume. The DAC didn't sound any better than my 105D. Running Spotify through it, the first second or so of each track was lost when switching tracks.
So far the A8 is worlds better. The features alone are liberating, making this a much better experience for me. The Music Server software is a huge step up from Volumio and more like the JRiver Music Server I used to use on a PC and it does sound better. The phone interface is fantastic.
It is a high end swiss army knife front end to my stereo that does everything I can think of wanting to do.
I can't speak to how they deal with reviewers, and it may turn out that I find out in hindsight that I don't like how this company operates, but I spent $2K out of my pocket on this thing. I'm also not creating a YouTube video about it.
EDIT(Dec 14) : While I like the overall sound better, I may have lost a bit of spatial imaging. I can hear the vocals center stage and instruments pretty well left to right, but I'm not quite hearing the full 3D queues that I had with the Sabre DAC. However, I have a Christmas tree next to my stereo, the speakers are off center and it's possible some other things are interfering. So I won't know for certain, until the tree comes down and my den goes back to normal.
Anyway, I'm ready to put this behind me and get back to my rig.
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RCHeliguy
Premium
Button Box is debugged.
One wire was out on the Bodnar board and 3 wire pairs for the toggles were reversed.
I still have some incentive to redesign my Button Box because I can't leave these wires open like this long term, but it all works now. Of course I could design an enclosure that screws into the metal inserts for the panel. That would make me feel better leaving it this way for a bit longer time.
Have the 3D printed gauges on both sides and I leveled the mount to 0.1 degrees before setting their zero point. Granted having a little twist in the mount shouldn't impact steering in any meaningful way, but this is an easy way to eyeball if it is level using the gauges on each side.
I'm less worried about rack issues, so I have one gauge for measuring telescoping. Currently it is completely retracted. That is where it is the most solid.
So I'm finally ready to try this out!
One wire was out on the Bodnar board and 3 wire pairs for the toggles were reversed.
I still have some incentive to redesign my Button Box because I can't leave these wires open like this long term, but it all works now. Of course I could design an enclosure that screws into the metal inserts for the panel. That would make me feel better leaving it this way for a bit longer time.
Have the 3D printed gauges on both sides and I leveled the mount to 0.1 degrees before setting their zero point. Granted having a little twist in the mount shouldn't impact steering in any meaningful way, but this is an easy way to eyeball if it is level using the gauges on each side.
I'm less worried about rack issues, so I have one gauge for measuring telescoping. Currently it is completely retracted. That is where it is the most solid.
So I'm finally ready to try this out!
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RCHeliguy
Premium
I pulled apart the right side of the ASR mount to reverse the right profile so I have a slot side down for a cleaner USB plug mount, and I used Loctite and torqued the bolts down very firmly.
I also verified that I could slide the wheel base out and put it back in place reasonably easily. I do have the left to right level to 0.1 degree and the side rotation also accurate to 0.1 degree.
So I was able to tear the right side apart, reassemble it with Loctite and set the position back to my zero mark and easily slide the wheelbase back in place
All you would need is a spare set of SGR 15 rails, cut somewhere near 203mm, some matching length profile and a custom plate to mount to bolt down to that and you could mount a yoke and be able to easily swap between them.
I also verified that I could slide the wheel base out and put it back in place reasonably easily. I do have the left to right level to 0.1 degree and the side rotation also accurate to 0.1 degree.
So I was able to tear the right side apart, reassemble it with Loctite and set the position back to my zero mark and easily slide the wheelbase back in place
All you would need is a spare set of SGR 15 rails, cut somewhere near 203mm, some matching length profile and a custom plate to mount to bolt down to that and you could mount a yoke and be able to easily swap between them.
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