Best channel hands down when it comes to sim racing. Goes over every little details and scenarios. You can just tell how much time goes into making these videos. Not to mention his got almost bob ross type of relaxed voice that will just make you feel like you are meditating lol. Keep up the good work and i can almost guarantee sim racing will be different without what you do for us. Hope I can race w you in the future.
if you get this, which you should if you have a limited wallet or space, buy the chair link, it's a little accessory that links any chair with wheels with the wheel stand
Barry, You are a life saver. I am just getting into sim racing a newbie I guess, No, not even a newbie as I have no equipment yet, more like an embryo. LOL. You have saved me from chasing my tail and asking (but not getting any) advice on where to start. I was looking at all these high price rigs, wheel hubs, pedals, and than I saw this video and made everything clear for me. Thanks so much! And for that I plan on buying a t-shirt from you. Thanks again. Joe Lister
I am really happy I ran across this. My Omega Apex arrives Monday and not only was this a very informative video it will also help me put it together properly. I'd prefer to grab a full cockpit but I live in a small apartment. One thing I intend to do is instead of the rubber pads is get some good quality locking casters in their place so I can just roll it out of the way after disconnecting the power supply and USB cable of my Logitech G920. I don't so much play racing games as much as ATS and ETS2.
i bought an old Subaru seat from my local scrapyard for £25, and just bolted it down to 4 square pieces of 2x4 wood. It doesn't move or wabble at all and is a better (and cheaper) alternative to a desk chair as far as sim racing is concerned.
I just got into Sim Racing last year and your channel is the first I go to for Sim gear reviews. I really love the fact that you don't just review high end gear, you cover all price points and various cockpits, again not just high end full motion rigs but all types for all budgets. Also like raloP commented below I too can't wait to watch your review of the dd1 and dd22
Thank you Barry for the video, assembled this for my pedals and wheel earlier today. Shifter is coming soon! Just hoping if anyone reads this and buys this, the screws come randomly tossed in the bag. You gotta look at each one and rely on the instructions the best you can to judge which screws are which measurement. Will help make assembly twice as faster!
New to sim racing but just wanted to say thank you for all the extremely detailed testing/explanations you do. You helped me decide a t248 and this stand are perfect for me as a beginner to get a reasonable experience without spending thousands to see if i want to invest more down the line 👍
This was the best review I have ever seen! Your skills at teaching and putting together a good review/ setup is top notch. Thank you for waking the time Barry!
Thanks for the review Barry! I just got mine in the mail today after watching your video a few weeks ago. Showing the material thicknesses and your super in-depth analysis went a long way to help me make my decision, and I am very happy with my purchase.
The GT Omega Apex is on sale for Prime Day right now at $119.99 which led me to your incredible review which then led me to hit the complete purchase button. Thank you.
@@MichaelSuperbacker I watched reviews for both (by the same reviewer) and I honestly think it just comes down to preference. The differences are marginal and is solely up to you. You cannot go wrong with either because both are fully upgradeable. By that I mean you can order a classic rear frame ($89.95) + a rs6 seat ($219.95) to get a full cockpit (albeit still more expensive than purchasing the ART Cockpit fully assembled ($399 on the GT Omega site). I just went for the Apex because I didn't mind the $25 price difference. 99% sure there isn't a noticeable difference in performance between the Apex and Classic so if youre on a somewhat budget, you should be 100% fine with the Classic!
Barry - great review as per norm. I can always count on you spending pretty much the same amount of time and effort on a $150 unit or one that is well beyond my simming budget and that seems to be very rare in today's bait-click / soundbite websphere. To solve the chronic seat drifting away from the pedals syndrome I picked up a set of locking casters for my office chair. I found a set made by Alvin for $15 online. Depending on your physical weight you may only need to install 1-2 not all 5 that come with the order. I presently am using only 1 on a short pile carpet and it works for my 160 lb weight. As an even more economical solution - in another life as a drummer I used to keep a simple rope in my gig bag that I would use to connect my drum throne (seat) to the bass drum if I was playing a gig with a "house set" of drums (not mine) and that had hardwood floors or similar to prevent the bass drum from "walking away" from my seated position. Wish I could take credit for the rope idea but alas it has been handed down for generations in the drumming community.
I just purchased one. It fits my current needs, and is upgradeable to a full cockpit when I have the extra funds. And more affordable than some upgradeable wheel stands. Its not the extruded aluminum I really want, but I can afford this now and hopefully upgrade in the future if I get further into this hobby.
Recently discovered that a ratchet strap will keep the chair in place, and allow easy adjustment for initial setup. No need to use door stops, weighty boxes and putting the wheel base against your monitor stand/desk. The strap keeps the chair and the stand tethered together, and its pretty darn solid. Good enough for stiff loadcell pedals.
GT does sell a frame alone or a frame with seat for this. Unfortunately with seat it's twice as much as this LOL. Rear frame alone, $114.95 With seat, $404.90
can't wait for your Fanatec DD review. wheel stands are meant to be an affordable alternative to a full rig and as such they are not built to the same standard. If you are a DIY type person you can mod most wheel stands and make them better. Would love to hear your thoughts on the playseat challenge. Thank you far all of your hard work Barry.
Thank God. I bought the Apex in a Black Friday sale panic-buy before I watched Barrys review. I was so scared watching this video that he was gonna say it was crap. This is my first step into SIM Racing. Grabbed the G29 on offer too. Counting the days to getting my hands on them all. We're renovating our house so when we're all set up, I'll invest in the seat base add-on and racing seat. Really hoping the new setup gives new life to Dirt 2.0, Snowrunner, Project Cars 2 etc.
Just got mine today, just waiting on the hard-mount adapter for my Thrustmaster TMX. I can confirm, it's solid AF. They also include different feet in my purchase, same adjustable metal feet, but a ribbed rubber coating underneath. Puts up great resistance on carpet, i can barely budge it. Even pulling on the base it barely slides, and if you apply any downward pressure at all, it'll just stick like glue. Going to see how it performs once I got everything installed and can stamp on my pedals in anger, but so far the first impressions are very positive.
@@psistorm04 Thanks for the answer but i did not understand. Do i have to buy the Ricmotech mod to mount the wheel or not? I know that with the mod you can hard mount it, but otherwise can you not mount it with the clamp?
@@georgeapostolo3865 No, the clamps won't fit around the horizontal beam where the mounting plate sits on, believe me, I tried, since I had to wait on said adapter when I first bought it. So yeah, you will 100% require the ricmotech adapter
I bought the thrustmaster t300rs gt and this stand 2 months ago. I love it. For my first setup I enjoy it fully. Yes I want to eventually upgrade but I always want to upgrade. It's sturdy, dosent shake at all plus I don't have much room and it folds up without taking anything off for easy storage. So glad I did my research like I said I love this thing. On carpet it doesn't slide for me at least.
@@zoranlovric9871 I tried to use it in my lazy boy lol. That didn't work and no i haven't used it on my couch but because of the angle it wouldn't work. Any desk or kitchen chair works just fine.
@@zoranlovric9871angle and seating depth both play a factor but you can angle the pedals more up and probably make it work like I said I only tried it on my lazy boy and that was not working at all. I've been just happy and fine with my chair from my dinning room.
Just got this rig(along with Fanatec CSL Elite bundle with loadcell pedal) for my new PC, am a complete noob to sim racing so this is invaluable stuff. Some small advice: you might want to mention in the title that you cover the assembly of the stand, as I was looking around for Omega Apex assembly advice on RU-vid and skipped your video as it seemed to just be a review.
@@tonspike It's good. The GT Omega is very sturdy, no loose parts. Relatively easy to put together. I like the little things: the fact that they've included four or five separate, decent quality velcro cable-holders so that the wires from the wheel and pedal setup can be fixed to the stand. It weighs a shit-ton, as you'd expect. Re. the CSL Elite, plus the pedals and loadcell setup: being honest I've never owned a beginner wheel, I went straight to the CSL rather than try the t150/t300 thrustmasters or the g29s, which seem to be the most common first steps. So I can't compare the CSL to any of the lower tier wheels. What I can tell you is that it does everything I want it to, the wheel is smooth and has 1080 degree rotation, it's highly calibratable too - if, say, you're into drifting like I am and you want a shorter turning range so that you're not constantly throwing the wheel from one extreme to another that's as easy as two button clicks and an adjustment of the turning range away. Five separate customisable presets. And for a newcomer like me it is unbelievably violent. The fanatec downloadable setup for the PC has a 'test functions' thing, and when you choose 'test ffb' it was like a scene from the exorcist, it scared the shit out of me. The wheel just jerked about like no peripheral I've ever used before. The amount of torque in the thing is alarming. I'm still a bit antsy about setting it at full ffb. So if you're planning on playing it anywhere near full ffb then you really need a stand like the GT Omega because clamping it to your desk won't be good enough. Re. the pedals? They look a bit dull and ugly - black rubber rather than the nice shiny steel of some of the thrustmaster ones, but they do the job very well. There's very little resistance though, aside from the load cell pedal(sold separately), which you need if you're going to be using the clutch. And it's all a lot more expensive than a Thrustmaster setup. At least double. But the pedals work excellently, and even though they're a bit nasty looking they don't feel cheap when you're using them. The load cell pedal works on a different principle from the default brake pedal: it measures pressure on the pedal, rather than travel distance of the pedal, so instead of pushing it down a certain distance, you have to push it down with a certain force. Apparently this is much better than the default because your muscle memory remembers different amounts of muscle force much more easily and precisely than different amounts of pedal distance. As with the wheel, it's surprising how much force is built up in this thing. I needed to halve its default setting before the amount of force for full braking was really comfortably within my grasp. Before that it required ridiculous pressure.Again though calibrating that was just a case of pressing a couple of buttons and toggling a guage, all of it happening in the lcd display on the wheel. One slight niggle is that no matter how many times I go back into Assetto Corsa on my PC it unfailingly forgets to recognise the CSL and I have to go to controls and reset it. This happens sometimes just when I change tracks in the same play session. I don't know if it's an issue with the game or the wheel(AC is a real pain in terms of UI) but it's annoying to have to keep randomly changing things in the hope that it'll recognise the wheel this time. It happens in AC Competizione as well though. Dirt Rally 2 has no problem with it, although for some reason it tanks the frame-rate when I set it on 4k. Switch it to 1440p and the framerate's fine. I don't get this issue when I'm just using controller. It's not an easy setup in terms of downloading drivers, getting games to recognise it; that would be my biggest complaint so far. I imagine that Logitech and Thrustmaster are much more user friendly. But if I set it up anyone can, and Fanatec has its own interface on PC that you can download. tl;dr: it's really good. I'd say go for it. Fanatec have pretty high demand so it'll come when it comes but it was only a few weeks for me.
@@thesprawl2361 Wow, thank you for such an in-depth review! You've helped ease my worries. I've grown up using cheaper wheel options (last I owned was a T150) and having driven real race cars the cheap stuff doesn't cut it anymore. I'm between the GT Omega Apex stand and the Next Level Racing GTLite--I don't need the full cockpit experience necessarily but am more so interested in something that can fold away relatively tightly.
@@tonspike You're welcome. I think you really can't get anything better for the price point. I don't need the full cockpit either. I'm not going to be thrashing about that hard that I need it. And the GT Omega is really secure and grips to the floor. It's in front of me as I type and I tried moving it with my foot, pushing as hard as I can. It wouldn't budge. Rock solid.
Thank you so so much for this. I actually happen to have almost identical pieces of kit arriving tomorrow, the same stand, the same pedals but the wheel base is the TS-XW(in essence identical to the one shown here). This has given me the peace of mind needed to put everything together confidently. It appears that I will need some additional hardware as the nuts and washers are provided but not the bolts(a bit annoying). Thanks a lot.
I bought a amazon return TS PC racer wheel for $300 from a local business after watching your tear down review. So much nicer than the $10 craigslist Driving Force I got ages ago. Really happy except its in a home office and awkward bolted to a desk. Was looking at stands online and liked this one. Searched youtube and you turned up again, even with the same wheel lol. Anyway, you certainly proved the stand was stable with all that heel toeing. I'm convinced... Cheers :)
I use two 6 foot lengths of webbing and some sliders. Lash the arms of my chair to the desk. Keeps the chair from moving front to back, and also spinning.
Great Review. Thank you. I have been a flight simmer for years actually made my control stand for it out of PVC and works great. I am just getting into Racing/ driving sims and Have Been researching for good Wheel stands. I really like your video as I WILL be using a desk chair similar to yours with it. I will just make a small modification add on to set the chair wheels inside a bracket attached to it to help with the moving of the chair and the stand. I Have just actually ordered the GT OMEGA APEX you just reviewed. The Current price is about $ 124..95 US DOLLARS and should have it in about 7 days according to Omega. I will be attaching a G920 with shifter and [pedals to it. Again Thank You for a actual review of it as most just say how they like or dislike something and never actually do a complete review like you have.
67BlackFastback I’m glad I read this comment. I been looking for like a nice racing seat and making a bracket by if they are making one then I’m just gonna wait. I’m so excited now
Any word on when it'll be available? I just ordered one of these stands and have a perfect bucket seat that I'd like to attach/detach easily. Especially if its a budget add on.
I find if you use a pair of adjustable webbing straps from the stand to the seat arms fixes any movement between the stan and the seat. I have used them for years between my seat and desk.
I have the Rseat Wheel stand, and let me tell you that thing is a beast. I want to put an OSW in there and I'm sure I can hold it with no problem. Great video Mr. B!
Thanks for the review Barry, although I was sort of hoping you were going to throw the Bodnar on there to see if it could handle it :D. I think we all know it wouldn't work but I often see questions from people about putting a DD wheel on a "rig" that isn't stable. It'd be interesting to see how something like this would handle the weight and power.
I have this stand. It is sturdy ass hell. I think it might do better than you think. It doesn't shake or move at all with my thrustmaster t300rs gt. I know DD is no joke but this stand is legit. All metal no plastic except for like 2 spacers where the pedals part to the stand slide.
Thanks for this review Barry. I found it very useful i have to down size. I lost the space i use for my sim rig in a divorce. This little stand may be what i use for a while. Thanks SRG!
Watched this video before ordering, was out of stock/on preorder. Watched this WHILE ordering it, and now watching it again because it arrives tomorrow and i'm too pumped. Probably going to watch it tomorrow when it arrives so I know how to set it up properly lol.
So I haven't seen the whole video yet, but I'm marveling at your ability to sit on your knees, on a piece of cardboard over concrete, and not wear knee pads. I'd be done for awhile after that position.
Are you planning on reviewing the full setup for this as well - add on seat frame for example? Might also be worth looking at the V2 shifter mount which is shorter and looks a lot stiffer as well as the classic mount which looks more like a road car type position. Great review as always.
I have found your channel not long ago and i really like the way you explain everything and the level of detail of your reviews. I'm looking for one of this wheel stands, what do you think over the one from Next Level 2.0? I've seen you've reviewed both and i'm not sure which one to go for. Thank you!
i've got one of those. It's really stable. That thing wont move while steering, i guarantee you that... But it does have one important drawback... the periferals position. See. there'sre really only 2 places you can mount a shifter and handbrake: -The side plate, and right next to the wheel. Next to the wheel is a good enough place for the handbrake ONLY IF it actually fits. Most wont. i use the th8a in that position as the handbrake, and gets the job done well enough. The side plate has a fixed height, and if you screw in a shifter there, it could very well be low enough so that your elbow rubs the armrest of your chair every time you go reach it. Just look how close his arm was to the armrest in the video.... be aware of that. If you use a clamp thou, you can add in some pieces of wood of smth to raise the height of the shifter. Apart from that, this mount is great for the price.
Nice review! I'm looking at this as well as I'm just getting into Sim Racing now. I was thinking of the issue with the chair and sim rig moving around. What about locking the two together with a sturdy strap like a come-along. just wrap the strap around a couple of the chairs pedestal feet and then tie or hook onto the bottom crossbar of the wheel stand at two locations. That way if you push on the stand, the chair nor the stand will move because they are now one unit. What do think? Cheers!
I just recently bought this and as with most things, companies look to cut corners wherever possible. For example the rubber feet I got are just 45mm (1.7”) so the footprint has reduced dramatically and so has the grip. Overall it’s OK for $150 stand. Just bummed that mine did not include the large diameter feet with what appears to be superior grips.
Hey Barry, thanks for this review as I've been looking at this exact stand as a solution to mounting a wheel/pedal set for sim racing at my desk. Was just curious on your thoughts as far as how it might hold up to mounting the new Fanatec DD1 wheel base, even if it meant having to run the direct drive motor at lower torque settings. Thanks!
The wheelbase plate has Fanatec mounting holes. So no problem getting it mounted. I would have to try it myself to give any feedback. Not sure how the Apex mount would react to the added weight. Even if you turn the DD1 torque levels down.
With the Podium Racing Wheel F1 set on its way soon, I would also be interested to see how/if this could handle the added weight/torque of such a setup
Hello Would you please look into a F GT lite from nx level racing? Need a foldable cockpit with more a F1 seating position and your reviews are 2nd to none 🙏
Can you please review the Simlab WS-Pro with the seat add-on? Seems similar to this, but I can't find any reviews on it. And eliminates the problem with the office chair movement.
I got the Apex version about 6 months ago now, and I have no complaints. The reason I got the apex over the regular is because the apex has more adjustment than the regular. I’d recommend the apex due to the low difference in cost.