• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

RipCordless

A pop-culture consumer who keeps it, by design, in the shallow end of the pool.

  • Home
  • Quotes
  • Guide to Surviving Comic Con
  • FIFA Career Mode
    • FIFA 19
  • Contact Me

Thrustmaster TX Racing Wheel Ferrari 458 Italia | Review

Jun 5, 2014 by Rip

After Santa delivered an Xbox One and a handful of games, Forza 5 caught my attention immediately. After playing the game for a few days with a controller, I decided to splurge on a top of the line racing wheel for a more immersive experience. (A friend turned me onto racing wheels a few years ago and it redefined the racing experience on PC and console.) Over the last three to four years, I’ve enjoyed all sorts of racing wheels, from a low-end but solid Mad Catz for the 360, to the top of the line Logitech offering in the form of the G25 and G27 for the PC (the pinnacle of racing wheels/pedals in my humble opinion).

Unfortunately the choice for racing wheels is currently quite slim for the Xbox One so I pulled the trigger on one of the only only high end options currently released, the Thrustmaster TX Racing Wheel Ferrari 458 Italia Edition. Ordered from GameStop online, the wheel arrived promptly and I set about putting the accessory through its paces. This is a honest review of my experience and opinion with this wheel.

Wheel Build Quality

– Very low quality plastic and a THIN wheel. After about an hour of racing, the edge of the wheel was causing discomfort in the web of my right hand (but I manual paddle-shift and thus may be a how-I-hold-my-hand style issue); however, no other racing wheel has ever caused this level of discomfort.
– Cheap plastics which remind me of old Tupperware containers or recycled Ford dashboards. Only visible metal component are the paddle shifters.
– OVERALL WHEEL IMPRESSION: When compared to other racing wheels, this is merely okay. Not amazing, no horrible, barely adequate, and I would rate the wheel build quality a 3/5 stars.

Pedal Build Quality

– Product advertises metal pedals but only the pedal plate is metal, not the entire assembly.
– Very cheap plastics (again) and the entire pedal base is very light weight causing a SIGNIFICANT issue: when one brakes hard for a corner, the entire pedal assembly tilts forward. One would think, “Well, my heel on the pedal base will prevent that,” but not so fast. Because the spring in the brake pedal is quite stiff, one must apply robust force to ensure the brake is appropriately engaged thus the tipping effect is pronounced and unavoidable.
– OVERALL PEDAL IMPRESSION: Probably the worst set of pedals I’ve personally used for any racing game (also used Logitech G25/g27, MadCatz Wireless Racing Wheel for Xbox 360) thus I would rate the pedal build quality a 1/5 stars.

Wheel & Pedal In-Game Feel

– Once more, merely okay. Force feedback isn’t smooth and seems inconsistent with other products I’ve used. One may feel wheel resistance entering a corner but suddenly the feedback is gone mid-corner. Very frustrating.
– Force feedback is VERY robust so it is probably best to turn it down at least initially — though I personally enjoy a good tussle with the wheel.
– Wheel reactions are a mixed bag. If you set up a dead zone for the wheel in Forza 5 (Xbox One), there is a delay in onscreen reactions. In other words, set up a 5% entry dead zone, and you’ll have to turn the wheel 5% before anything happens on screen (causing what looks like screen-lag). Change the dead zone to 0% and anything you’re doing at the wheel is reflected instantly on screen. Unfortunately, removing all dead zone makes the wheel very twitchy and the game becomes near unplayable. Thus I would rate the in-game feel a lousy 2/5 stars.

Bottom Line

– In my opinion, this product is absolutely NOT worth $349 for the set. This is more like $199 or perhaps $149 worth of racing wheel but apparently two things have happened. First, Thrustmaster slapped a Ferrari logo on the product jumping the price. Second, this is one of only a handful of  racing wheel options currently on the market.
– My advice? Wait for something with better reviews. From where I sit, when considering quality, price, and experience, I would rate this a mere 2/5 stars. Pass.

Huh, maybe someone else should see this...

  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • WhatsApp
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Print

Filed Under: Entertainment, Tech Tagged With: Forza 5, Game, Racing Wheel, Thrustmaster, Xbox One

Primary Sidebar

// about rip

Raconteur. Mediator. Gamer. Dilettante. Deliberative. Nerd. Serious world, not so serious here. “No word from Fenchurch today,” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

// TWITTER

Ripcordless avatarRipCordless@Ripcordless·
8 Jun 2021 1402340172390273028

Masterpiece.
A fucking masterpiece.

#insideboburnham
@boburnham

Reply on Twitter 1402340172390273028Retweet on Twitter 1402340172390273028Like on Twitter 1402340172390273028Twitter 1402340172390273028
Ripcordless avatarRipCordless@Ripcordless·
23 May 2021 1396515261528756227

And now we say goodbye to Gini. Thru his professionalism, expertise, & energy, he was a big reason for our recent success.

@GWijnaldum

Goodbye & good luck. You will always be in our hearts. #YNWA

Twitter feed video.
Image for the Tweet beginning: And now we say goodbye
Reply on Twitter 1396515261528756227Retweet on Twitter 1396515261528756227Like on Twitter 13965152615287562273Twitter 1396515261528756227
Retweet on TwitterRipCordless Retweeted
rogbennett avatarroger bennett@rogbennett·
16 May 2021 1393984445770833925

Liverpool’s Goalkeeper scores winner in 95th minute with season on line. Incredible sporting moment that almost cracks chill of my cold blue heart. Allison lost his father at the end of February. What emotions he must have experienced in this second 🙌🇧🇷

Twitter feed video.
Image for the Tweet beginning: Liverpool’s Goalkeeper scores winner in
Reply on Twitter 1393984445770833925Retweet on Twitter 1393984445770833925887Like on Twitter 13939844457708339255675Twitter 1393984445770833925
Ripcordless avatarRipCordless@Ripcordless·
16 May 2021 1393991505279258624

Absolutely incredible.
Another “moment” in Reds history. We go again but need a hand getting over the line. C’mon Leicester! https://t.co/T5VwD1uKRT

Reply on Twitter 1393991505279258624Retweet on Twitter 1393991505279258624Like on Twitter 1393991505279258624Twitter 1393991505279258624
Ripcordless avatarRipCordless@Ripcordless·
15 May 2021 1393598553839194114

.@Speechify_audio Was interested but the price point ($12/month) for premium is just too high. Unfortunately, the free voices pale in comparison. Great concept, may return if/when price drops.

Reply on Twitter 1393598553839194114Retweet on Twitter 1393598553839194114Like on Twitter 1393598553839194114Twitter 1393598553839194114
Load More...

page two

  • Sea of Thieves Shows Promise

    Sea of Thieves Shows Promise

    I recently joined others in adventuring my way through the Sea of Thieves (Panic, 2018) closed beta. Participation …
  • Drama Sucks

    Drama Sucks

    What happens when drama arrives in an unexpected environment? If you are drama-averse, what is …
  • Has Destiny 2 Lost Its Way?

    Has Destiny 2 Lost Its Way?

    We’ve all played video games which didn’t quite hit the mark. Back in the day, …
  • Destiny 2 Xbox is Down

    Destiny 2 Xbox is Down

    I boxed myself into an odd gaming corner lately, probably the result of unintended circumstance. …
  • Liverpool Set for Defensive Problems

    Liverpool Set for Defensive Problems

    Well, shit. The Premier League summer transfer window has slammed shut and Virgil Van Dijk …
  • Destiny 2 (PC) is Staggeringly Good

    Destiny 2 (PC) is Staggeringly Good

    Bungie finally released the Destiny 2 (PC) beta this week and have I’ve been impressed. …
  • Xbox One X: Project Scorpio

    Xbox One X: Project Scorpio

    Gaming console choices have become more complex over the last few years. The original dominance …

// page three +

Footer

// Why?

Before I answer why, let’s talk about the rules. Here, I chatter about unimportant things. I stay in the shallow end of the pool, speculating on pop culture fascination, the journey of Liverpool FC, while offering an opinion or two on gaming. Why? Because I enjoy the written word. There is both a precision and also freedom with its balance, flow, and elegance. And this corner of the Internet offers a place to dabble in topics which avoid anything with a fuse.

Tags

Liverpool FCKloppGaminggolfTVWindows 7Comic ConXbox OneLFCAT&TBreaking BadH1N1iPhoneSchoolTechnologyPremier LeagueiPhone 4CameraComputer ScienceConspiracyDrivingEnglandGadgetNewsNikon

// LOGIN

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Copyright © 2023 · Metro Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

 

Loading Comments...