What happened? Competition. My TS-PC served me well for 5 years, I have no complaints, really. But as I wanted to step up to DD, there were simply way better products on the market. I sold the whole TM gear and went for Simagic. It's a different world. TM became totally obsolete in this fast evolving world
Honestly, I'm not sure. A part of me thinks they may be somewhat complacent. They're afraid to lose their old products which all rely on that QR system. The software has been good enough for them, but they've not paid attention to the market and what people want I think.
@@LaurenceDusoswa That "quick release" was the worst part. I had the PMT QR system, which made it way better. But then it couldn't be used with T818. The real trouble for TM is that the basic DD products by Fanatec, Moza, Simagic, etc are not significantly more expensive than T300. So I can't imagine there are any new customers buying TM. The only ones buying more TM stuff are probably those who are deeply in that ecosystem already.
Nice review, I got my T818 since cyber monday for a nice deal and I'm super happy with it so far(60-70 hours of use in iracing). Installing the software to make it all work was a bit of a hassle took me an hour or so and I had to drill new holes in my rig which was another hour of work. Those have been the only downsides for me so far. Been using the base with the open formula wheel and the ffb has been fantastic for me also it has plenty of power. I used the TM recommended setting for iracing and the ffb felt great right out of the box never felt the need to adjust anything. I think the T818 has a fair price for 10nm constant torque since the wheels are better priced than the competition but would only recommend it if you don't have interest in using high end wheels.
Through the review, I had one word in my head - "unfinished", which is even worse if you consider all the long time teasing and delays. A lot of things seem like an afterthought. It's very weird, because I'm sure thrustmaster doesn't lack funds to do proper r&d, and they had all the time in the world with the only limit being when they want to actually be finished, which makes me think the problem lies somewhere else internally. Compatibility with old steering wheels seems to be a blessing and a curse.
They really just needed to wait until they had new wheels to release alongside with it, alongside a higher quality set of pedals. No one is buying the T818 at it's price without looking into it first. The adapter is a PITA, the fact they didn't include the mount to actually make it compatible with existing wheel decks is ridiculous, and I don't understand how they thought these things wouldn't be pointed out in all reviews and turn people off who were considering upgrading. They've had the existing QR out for over a decade now, it's understandable they needed to change. But to not have higher quality wheels and pedals for new customers makes this base a non starter for them as well. Console compatibility is the only thing that can save it, and it's taking TM forever to even get that done.
You sound like you an AI is speaking, with your voice, of course. It maybe just me but that's what it sounds like to me. Honestly, I would prefer if you did it the traditional way( speak into a mic), it's easier to pay attention. @@LaurenceDusoswa
If I did that, you’d complain that the videos are too long :) this is months worth of work condensed into 15 mins and if I could get AI to achieve this result, I would 😂
I just got my 818 Sf1000 and first impressions are good. I saw a good deal and my trusty TS PC Racer wheel was acting wonky so I pulled the trigger. I had no issues getting the screen to work with AMS2. Just pluged it in, updated the firmware without much hassle and it just works. I spent about half an hour getting it up and running and fiddling with the FFB settings to get it working just how I like it. Once set to my liking I am pretty pleased with the FFB. It's not a massive step up from my previous wheelbase but there definitely is more subtlety to it and it's a lot faster to react. It only took me a couple of laps to adapt and I am basically right at home already. The extra couple of Nm this thing has is nice but I don't think I'll use it at full tilt. The rim is the biggest suprise to me. I can't overstate how usefull the extra telemetry is you get on the screen. Tyre wear, sector times, estimared laps in a timed race... It's all there at a glance. All the buttons have a real positive click to them and the shifters feel awsome. The placement of the knobs feels deliberate wich really shouldn't be a suprise being that it is a faithful replica of the real thing. I'm sure there are plenty of really high end wheels that have even better fit and finish but I think TM really stepped up their game with thing.
@@GuitarooMan93 to be honest i sold mine. It felt good but because of the diameter i lost some feeling of torque in my base. Running a T-GT2. So i'm gonna stay with my crappy openwheel for 60€ on my PS5 at the moment haha
You’ll start to see new wheels that are made for their new QR. I personally think it looks like an uncomplicated system that isn’t going to add £100’s to every wheel their customers buy. I like Thrustmaster and think they are given a hard time, especially by those who have moved to Fanatec, who are trying to convince themselves it was a good idea….. until you have a warranty issue or you have to wait 2 months for an order to ship, with no communications. I only race on PS5, so decided to with Thrustmaster. I went with the GT2, LCM pedals and rally wheel. This vs a Fanatec setup came in over £300 cheaper. I personally prefer belt driven over DD in rally driving as it’s less harsh and has some central resistance/mechanical feeling. However the big plus of Thrustmaster is you don’t need to deal with Fanatec who are a terrible business to deal with, and although their products are good day one, are riddled with issues….. that they charge you to fix (QR1). As someone who isn’t a hardcore sim racer looking to live a fantasy that I’m a professional racer using exact 1:1 replicas of the real kit, spending £1000’s to do so, I think Thrustmaster still has a good position in the market for people like me, which to be fair is likely the biggest segment.
Alright you don't like Fanatec, good for you. Moza and Simagic both do better at decent prices. And fanatec's customer service problems definitely seems like to be an overseas problem, because for all their products I've ordered it all shipped in under a week.
this whole comment reeks of trying to justify your bad purchase. Especially when you were talking about the feeling of the wheel being better for you, yet the obvious reason for that is that you have no idea how to tune the feel of a dd wheelbase using software. Also there are way more competitors than fanatec that do it much better.
IMHO Thrustmaster's mistake is that they designed their QR system for backward compatability. Although this is a good thing for existing Thrustmaster users, it wasn't so good for others that just wanted to jump to a DD from their Logitech or belt drive systems. Thrustmaster should seriously think about a new QR system (metal), either as an upgrade or as an option alongside their existing products.
First, Great review as you gave what you feel about this base. I however have had not one issue you describe here ? My base T818 has been rock solid ! absolutley zero flex anywhere ! More FFB Than I can handle and the detail is just amazing ! I could have got any base I wanted , I love my T818 ! I also have it set to where i want it and i do not at all wish for more " software" sometimes less is more and i change my settings per car in game anyway . I am surprised and sorry you had this experiance, Maybe i got a base from a good batch but mine has been flawless for almost 10 months now and I love it .
I was fully invested with TM. Wheelbase, 5 rims, pedals, shifter, handbrake. It still wasn't appealing enough to not jump ship and move to Simagic. I would've had to spend an extra $200 on top of the base just to stay in the ecosystem, and the base is already basically the price of the Alpha Mini, and has a cheaper build. Console compatibility is the only thing that can save this base and they are taking forever on that.
@@bfife22I feel like you are representative of the majority of people out there. They’ve fallen so far behind the likes of simagic even if you already have tons of wheels you still have to buy the adapters to this new QR. at that point buy simagic QRs instead and switch ecosystems
Over priced and prone to parts breaking often. I had a t150 + pedals= pedals broke ( spring ), T300 wheel would not maintain same FFB over 30 to 45 min ( FFB fade running at 75% , Open-Wheel add on open wheel rim ( R shifter stopped working ( paid about $65 to get replacement parts for shifter+spring ), T-LCM pedals ( springs for gas+clutch lost all tension, so very short throw ) over all the load call was OK, but they did flex due the bottom being plastic. Thrustmaster products are not made for lasting long. They are great for entry level sim-racing beginners. --Over priced --Cheaply made plastic products ---Bad customer service, takes a long time to get them to either send you the parts, have you send it back for replacement, or charge you for the replacement parts+shipping. FYI: I upgraded to Fanatec as soon as I could. I have the CSL DD pro 8nm bundle. ---Inverted V3 pedals --BMW GT2 wheel --Formula clubsport V2.5 open wheel -- Is Grand Turismo wheel (bundle came with the GT wheel+ the CSL load cell pedal set.) The quality and functionality of the Fanatec DD was amazing coming from the belt driver TM T-300 of of course. Like day to night difference. FYI-If you can afford the 20nm or 25 nm DD get that and save money now, because I will be upgrading ASAP. -- Inverted V3 pedals are also Day to Night, the V3 pedals feel like real car pedals. --CSL pedals gas+brake-load cell. I used these with the clutch and they were also better than the TM T-LCM pedals. ( stiff brake though but you get uses to it, and the Fanatec software allows you to adjust it very easily ) I will note the 8nm is solid but with the larger nascar wheel I found I loss some feedback due to the 8nm maximum ability. It never faded and I have not had many issues with it. The one issue I had was a common problem with the U clamp on the shaft not being tightened properly from the factory so it needed to be loosened then pushed in all the way in then tighten it with a small torque wrench I bought off Amazon. Haven't had a problem since.
It’s shame indeed man 🙈 The world is moving in fast pace some just can’t keep up with the new passionate sim producers 🤷♂️ Sometimes good slap can be very healthy and hope those guys will take it in the good way. Happy new year bro 🤛
I had the SF1000 for probably 4 months and it was decent but the T818 just didn’t do it for me. Could have done SF1000 488 GT3 and been done but oh well. No regrets moving to Moza! I’m sure the honesty will disappoint thrustmaster but they need to hear it. Great review 😎
they need to make wheels that go direct in to the base as I wanted to get one but the adptors was the number one complaint I kept reading and hearing online so instead got the Logitech G Pro Wheel instead and had zero issues, shame as all the reviews say that the wheel base is grate but package letdown by how most wheels connect
I have no problems/issues with my SF1000 wheel on a T-GT II wheelbase. The buttons/encoders work, the LEDs work, the LCD display works. As for telemetry support, it depends on the game that Thrustmaster supports, which you can see the list on their support website. I tried F1 23, and all the telemetry worked in the display. Assetto Corsa Competizione has full telemetry support on SF1000 wheel. I mainly play GT7, and sure the telemetry is very limited and the display only shows basic stuff like speed/tacho, but it's a developer-specific issue (it's up to Polyphony Digital whether they add more telemetry to SF1000 or not). SimHub has GT7 support which added more telemetry on the display, given that you download a mod to replay telemetry from SimHub to SF1000.
Bought it near relase, sold it after a month of use. I think the real issue are the plastic rims not the base itself, it really felt like that my SF1000's plastic was gonna scramble in my hand (+ an absurd amount of flex due to the adapter). For the rest FFB was pretty good, and firmware was very poor but that can still be enhanced with updates.
Got mie a few days ago, 2nd hand but never used. I have little to no flex (No more than my TX) and the SF1000 does feel a bit fragile but if it goes you just sent it back to them.
@@JasonTaylorRacingF1 The main problem is the price tbh, you can get much better build quality from simagic, or moza for around the same price. Hell even fanatec has better build quality & materials than thrustmaster
I currently have a 5+ y.o. Base TX, which is solidly screwed to my Sim-Lab GT1-EVO. Well, when I say "screwed" ... Inside the wheel base, there are two 2 x 3 cm (more or less) pieces of metal with the screw holes ! Everything else is plastic ! No surprise there is still a big amount of flex, even when screwed on a very good alu. profile rig ... The T818 does better. But they forgot the QR ... "unfinished" as I saw in @Salutifer0us comment, for sure.
I had a thrustmaster TS-XW, a bunch of wheels including the ferrari rim, waited and waited for this to become available on release, but eventually sold all of my thrustmaster gear and grabbed a Moza R12. Absolutely no regrets at all.
Shows that it's beneficial to be in the discord if you want early opinions on hardware. I'm glad it helped dude. Although I'm not sure if it gave you any clarity :p
I had a T500RS for nearly a decade and only recently sold it and upgraded to a used T-GT2 which worked out as costing me exactly €0 for the upgrade. Its a lovely upgrade but if I were to go DD I wouldn't be going Thrustmaster unless I found a T818 for €300 or less. The T818 just wasn't thought through & I could see that before the reviews came in. Eg they have the RGB strip hidden behind the wheel rim meaning it is useless as a rev indicator. Why?. The shell is plastic when everyone else uses metal. The coloured panels are a gimmick & expensive. The QR is a big improvement but a big improvement on terrible still isn't in the same league as Fanatec's QR2. That and there has only been one of the promised new rims delivered and that looks cheap compared to Fanatec's cheapest alternative. I have 5 TM rims with 4 of the 5 customised by me so selling it all to go with Fanatec would likely be a big (for me) financial loss. For the moment I'm just going to sit back and stay with my TGT2.
Stick with the TGTII for as long as you can . Ive punished mine drifting for way over 2500 hours and it loves it, even with a heavy 360mm nardi fitted .
The biggest mistake I made as I was beginning was to buy Thrustmaster products. I was lucky/fortunate and bought the extended warranty so swapped it all out for Moza stuff.
Great review. I think the main difference between Thrustmaster and Logitech, is that one knocked it out of the park with their new DD and the other didn't. Sure, Logitech took forever to release some new rims, but that looks like it's going to change especially for pc players.
I used a TM TS-PC for years, i used a cheap mod called a Quik Ring which makes the dreaded screw obsolete. I would also point out that many Fanatec users are all too familiar with the dreaded screw. Excellent point about wheel weight, I've always gravitated towards lightweight wheels but hadn't really thought about it until I got myself a CSL DD, I tried a couple of wheels when I first got the CSL DD 8Nm and was amazed at the difference a ¼ of a kilogram makes to the FFB. Sure I know plenty of sim racers need more than the basic functionality that is the trade off for a lightweight wheel, but for me the jump in responsiveness adds more to my experience than additional switches, rotary encoders and the like, and the slight annoyance of having to wear gloves (lightweight wheels often come clad in Alcantara, necessitating glove use if you wish to preserve the looks of your wheel) I did consider the TM DD and would have stayed within the ecosystem had it not been so expensive. I always liked the simplicity of TM's software, but I'm a "set it and forget it" type of guy, and I found getting a decent setup very easy for the TS-PC. I can't get past thinking that the T818 is overpriced, and don't regret my defection to Fanatec.
I bought the sf1000 when it landed in Canada. I was super stoked to buy it and it was a big purchase for me. It was basically DOA. No matter what i did it wouldn’t work properly. Disconnecting, no lcd, random inputs, not recognized, etc. sent it back to the dealer and they quickly refunded my money without offering an exchange or reason. I think because they were having so many returns maybe. I was excited for the Thrustmaster DD to come out. When it was revealed I was shocked at how disappointing it came across. Especially the quick release and shape. Given the reviews after a year, I think I’m moving on to Moza. Super sucks because I do like the choice of rims and the Ferrari Sparco partnership. But Moza is just looking much better for the price and quality. Too bad.
I paid 2145 CAD brand new for the TS-PC 488 Edition, TH8A shifter, T3PM pedals and NLR Wheelstand 2.0. After one year of competitive use, Im planning to sell the entire rig for 600-900 CAD. That alone should tell you how severe my problems with the TS-PC were.
@@LaurenceDusoswa instead I worry, there is something off axis that after a certain number of degrees of steering scratches on the inside. from zero degrees up to around 100-120 it goes smoothly, then from there it scratches up to 180 190 degrees
Sad to see Thrustmaster not stack up well with the new base. I too started off with a TX Leather and my son uses it now. I think you were spot on about them looking too hard at Logitech... They both feel down on quality for the price.
Interesting to hear that you have a lot of flex on your first model and it was apparently an issue with one of the first batches. I preordered mine so I have mine for a year now. No flex at all. Absolutely none. So it surprised me that some people and RU-vidrs were complaining about this. The amount of flex you show in your review is crazy and definately not as it should be. I absolutely love the ffb and the SF1000, biggest problem I think it that the quickrelease adapters are hardly available. Only very recently they're being sold again in the EU shop after many months of waiting, and for what I understood they're still not being sold in the USA.
I remember the launch of the base, and hosts definitely had a French touch, as I would myself when speaking English. I also checked on Wikipedia : Thrustmaster is US based, but part of a French group (Hercules Thrustmaster). I suspect it suffers from the "small chief upon small chief" French problem. I can tell, I'm French ... And I saw this in action in an other renown group. May be OK when every thing is allright and easy. But when times get rough, all these chief panic, want to make the more money possible, in the smallest amount of time possible, putting the less effort possible in it. If they are not going well, I can guess the HR department is hard at work, pushing people outside, one way or another. Now that I spoke bad about my own country (and I could go on about many other topics ...), let's say that TM saw the other brands making greater and greater product, direct drive based. And they tried, but did not went far enough, didn't put enough thinking in it, and perhaps, were stopped in their tracks, without the possibility to reach their dream goals. Too bad, will they have a second chance to catch the DD train ?
TM has an issue with how they do things, it’s the same in the sim racing community as the flight sim community. On the low end, their stuff is actually priced, but on the high end their stuff is priced to much for what it is, their products seem like they are priced right but when you look at the competition they always cost more than they should, on paper their stuff seems good, and if you’ve never used anyone else’s products in the same price range you start to find all of the little compromises they do just to get you things like a screen and their software always has kinda lacked behind others. Most of what you’re paying for is the license rather than the quality of the product. I’ve abandoned TM for awhile now.
Thank you for your honest review of the T818 wheel base and the associated wheels. I started in the Thrustmaster ecosystem. When I upgraded to load cell pedals, I didn’t like the Thrustmaster offerings. Then my TH8a H-pattern shifter shaft broke. Thrustmaster Customer Support was very helpful in getting it replaced. When the repaired shifter wouldn’t calibrate, they washed their hands of it. I waited for Thrustmaster to launch their direct drive wheel base because of my investment in wheels. After reading several reviews of the T818 I decided to abandon Thrustmaster. I had a question about my T399 GT RS compatibility with a PS5 deck but couldn’t find a way to contact their customer service. Their trouble ticket system wasn’t working. I emailed them. and crickets. I think they are crashing.
How would you compare the FFB and Strength against the Alpha Mini? I'm in a dilemma, I already have the Alpha Mini and I recently purchased the T818 Ferrari Bundle because of a mistake on a website, I got it for $824 AUD which is insanely cheap I was looking at buying the SF1000 because of a recently released USB conversion kit so I could use it on the Alpha Mini. I'm deciding whether to sell the T818 and keep the Alpha Mini and convert the SF1000 or to just sell the Alpha Mini and use the T818 since that would be easier. I'm also worried because if I sell the T818 and something becomes faulty with the SF1000 or the T818 that I've sold, I wouldn't even know if I could return it. Is the Alpha Mini a lot better than the T818? I don't mind the Thrustmaster software, As long as the presets feel good, QR is fine as well, I don't mind the plastic QR and I only plan on having an aftermarket Deep Dish wheel to drift with so it just comes down to the FFB and Strength.
I would sell or return the Thrustmaster setup including the SF1000. And use the $800 to buy a Simagic GT NEO and a standalone display like the SOELPEC XR-5.
@37jw no the ffb is really good on the t818. Very similar, if not more powerful than the alpha mini. But the alpha mini is a better product. Better mounting options, better quick release (by a country mile), better software, better form factor. It’s just a far better product.
@@LaurenceDusoswa Yea I see, It's such a tough choice. I just received the T818 today, I'm not going to open it because I'm still unsure on what to sell. That's also the reason why I don't want to test it out yet. I won't refund it because I got around a $700 discount on it. I've never been one to adjust the settings to much with my Alpha Mini, I barely understand what most of the settings do anyway. I do kind of like the simpleness of the T818's settings but if I don't like the feel of the modes, I won't be able to adjust it either.
The wheels are ok. They're decent value. But they're nowhere near the quality of the competition these days. They just feel cheap by comparison unfortunately.
I have a T818 that I use with the TM Open Wheel (for road) and the R383 (for oval and rally). Coming from a T300 so I could use both wheel rims with the new base. I like it. I tested the Fanatec and Simagic Alpha Mini before my purchase and didn’t quite like as much.
I upgraded from a TS-PC Racer, now have a F 488 gt3 wheel too, it is way better than this review makes it. Especially after installing the mobile app, that allows changing settings on the fly.
I feel like they took too long to react, maybe thought their old gear would just keep paying dividends to people entering the market. Then they took too long once they did react and have arrived a year or two behind the times already.
Thrustmaster did drop the ball. I have TM wheels and was looking for a DD, after a while I went with Moza R12 that even was less than half the price of the T818 where I live. T818 was 1600euros, and R12 was about 700 euros. For the price difference i could buy new and better wheels.
I have a feeling these companies do better than you think - just not in the high end. I assume they still sell tons of g923's and t150's or whatever they are called. Though logitech having a quick release and no wheel options is... shockingly bizarre. Every single DD pro owner would buy a formula wheel, but I guess they don't want to pour a new plastic mold or something? It's so weird.
Methinks one rim option got caught up in the process of product dev - either in the research phase (specifically answering "what do players actually want in a [formula] rim") or in the prototyping phase (firmware failure or defective manufacturing), so they might have had to start from scratch again. Another possibility is that they wish to release all the rim options at once (say, at least a formula rim and a more minimalist rally/drift rim as opposed to the standard D shape GT rim), so having one rim being held up throws a spanner in the works. Logitech in recent years (15+) has definitely been the type to play it slow and smooth with their product design. Usually they never are the first to bring new technologies to market, even in a testing sense (TrueForce is an obvious exception), they usually wait to see how the market reacts to certain implementations and certain design trends before taking the time to thoroughly research and come up with their own designs. As a result their stuff are charged at a premium, aren't the first to arrive at market, and the reliability isn't the best. However, in turn - the reliability is good enough, if not slightly better than their competitors, the firmware, technology implementation, and human use case/design works very well, and although the numbers and specs aren't at the top, usually they are within spitting distance of the absolute premium best across the board.
@@munmunyeeThe wheels are also just a niche product for Logitech. They earn most of their money with Keyboards and standard desktop input devices. So they can afford to play it slow. TM in comparison... they already sit in some kind of niche with all their products.
@@MrNice-zm9qk Thanks for adding to my comment! For TM, I speculate that one of two things happened, maybe even both. 1) The simpler answer is that the execs at TM did not expect the market to shift towards DD wheelbases as fast as it did. Before the CSL DD, direct drive bases were seen as a professional tool and not for the consumer market, and even when the Platform series came out, it was clear that it was competing at the professional and uber-highend section of racing simulators, and not at the consumer/home use section. Therefore, TM did not feel the need to overcommit/speculate into a trend that might not have followed. Unfortunately, in between the time of release of the CSL DD and TM's T818, the Chinese manufacturers soon flooded the simracing market as a whole with cheaper Chinese designs that were (slightly) less reliable but got the job done at a much more reasonable price to consumers compared to NA-based design and development. This is evidenced when TM chose (or were forced to) double down on the TGT II being a high end belt drive instead of DD. 2) The more speculative answer is that the buisness/analysis department came up with numbers with the given data they had, and made the report/decision that the process of R&D and manufacturing a new DD unit for the sake of competing in a niche section (DD bases in 2020/1) was not worth it or too risky compared to the then-seen-as minimal market share they would painstakingly carve out. Either way, TM were caught on the back foot once they commited to developing the TGT II (and arguably the TS-PC line), as a result their design is not particularly outstanding and sits at an awkward pricing. And as a result of the late development they lost the Gran Turismo licensing+partnership for GT7. As an aside, I remember when TM snatched the licensing from Logitech when GT6 rolled around, because of just how good the T300 felt compared to both the G29 and DFGT. Thus the TGT was developed for Sport with pro competition in mind. Then Fanatec made out with the licensing partnership by being hugely disruptive and bringing affordable and small form factor DD bases to market. When Logitech revealed the Pro Wheel with Trueforce, I was beginning to think that Logitech might steal the licensing again. But now that Fanatec has also revealed a competitor to Trueforce (awaiting implementation from different devs), I think the Clubsport DD is going to firmly maintain it's position as the official wheel for the GTWS going forward. Either way, Thrustmaster isn't going to have a chance with the licensing partnership and the extra profits that come with it for a VERY long time.
Problem in sweden/Scandinavia is that with inflation and taxes this base cost 1000-1500€ depending what shop so the market here is zero for thrustmaster
This is really disapointing for me as a console peasant who's fairly deep into the eco system. I upgraded from a t300 to a TGT2 a couple years ago, annoyingly just before the DD pro came out, but its developed a problem with random button presses and disconnects, which is unbelievably frustrating mid race. I think its to do with that daft "quick" release losing connection I'm tempted to move to Fanatec but changing to a new eco systems not cheap and its going to eat into my budget for a PC build . Was hoping this could bridge the gap for me and not have to sell my pedals, hanbrake and Sparco wheel, but i'm tempted to just cut my losses and see what i can get for them and move to something more reliable. Sad because i really enjoyed the wheel when it worked! the rumble feature on the back was a great for what it was and the GT wheel was brilliant for Gran Turismo. Definetly backed the wrong horse, frustrating
Like the plastic wheel hub that Fanatec used for two plus years was any better. Also many had issues with the CSL DD steering column being pulled right out of the base.
@@LaurenceDusoswa I don't race on PC anymore. Was a charter member at iRacing. Console racing only leaves you with one option IMHO and that is the Logitech G Pro.
Quality control is an issue with the T818. A not insignificant number of owners had power supply issues that caused the wheelbase to switch off on bursts of force feedback caused by kerbs, for instance. I also find it inexcusable Thrustmaster (and Logitech with their DD) suddenly decided to change their hole pattern making their wheelbases incompatible with wheel decks designed before 2022. In fact, I haven't yet seen a wheel deck with T818 compatibility. Add the awful quick release and the fact most of their wheels are subpar for a direct drive offering and it's a really really tough sell. Even the price isn't good enough, in my opinion.
As a flight sim enthusiast im still pissed and annoyed about TM's software for their warthog throttle and base. We have to use T.A.R.G.E.T. which visually looks like it hasnt been updated since 2008 and feels like it too. You can't just edit the base configuration for each input, you have to manually remap EVERY SINGLE BUTTON and EVERY SINGLE AXIS EVERY SINGLE TIME you want to make ANY CHANGES. Not only that, but the configuration options have vague options or requires you to write script functions to do what you want making it nearly impossible to figure out how to configure the buttons/axes the way I want too without literally learning an entire programming language. Example: some of the switches are 3 positions, forward middle rear. normally how it works is forward/rear are constant button presses and middle is a no switch pressed. If you want the middle position to be its own keypress you have to create a script that detects when the forward keypress is released and use that to trigger a virtual keypress, then when one of the other two keypress events are detected it has to turn off the virtual keypress. That alone is 5 lines of code I have to write from scratch myself, then if I want anything beyond that bare basic functionality I'll have several more lines of scripting to write, all for just 1 switch! Not only that, every time I would want to use that configuration I would have to start up the program, and run the config which is incredibly annoying and every time you forget you have to restart the flight sim which can take several minutes plus all the time you wasted loading into a mission/server and starting up your aircraft because the software won't 'hotswap' functions into the sim. They are still releasing new hardware for their flight sim ecosystem with this same old programming software, I doubt the t818 will ever get anything better than what it shipped with on release.
@@SIMRIG412 not really, they're still solid options. But Fanatec now have better offerings and the competition is really good. From moza, to Simagic and Asatek, the direct drive market is pretty much thriving. But Fanatec still leads because they are have much less finicky game compatibility.
Quick release looks very bad for me and as a ecosystem it would be a deal breaker . I would recommend trustmaster to replace this as soon as possible with some rigid metal qr as it will be a no for many ppl .
Hit the nail on the head. So many better options out there nowadays (Moza Cammus, Fanatec, etc) and I feel like TM (Logitech included) have missed the sailing boat. Its kinda sad really. I recently retired all my TM gear and upgraded to SimMagic and couldn't be happier with the quality. I don't know why anyone would even consider those two in today's sim racing landscape
Moza, Cammus??? You joking right You obviously have never owned or used a Asetek or Simucube because if you had you wouldn’t mention both of those horrendous excuses for DD”S I’m not being condescending but I take exception to people talking positively about inferior brands who completely rip off there user base with how poor the quality of there products are and the tech they use. Logitech, Cammus, Thrustmaster, MOZA under there r19 should all be thrown in the bin I want people who pay there HARD EARNED money on these things to buy something worth that hard work earning that money All the best mate
@@jeeziRacer I mean I think it's a bit unfair to compare Moza or Cammus to very high-end gear. Those are entry-level DD's. Simucube especially is in a different league altogether. Although I don't have experience with Moza/Cammus personally, there are many reviews that seem to indicate they are a viable alternatives and not trash-bin worthy. The takeaway really is that their existence in the market at this price point is a disruption. That ultimately is a good thing as it has clearly forced TM & Logitech, who previously monopolized the market with substandard entry-level gear, to react and try to catch up. I think it's great that someone new to simracing can affordable purchase a DD because of that, something that didn't seem possible say 5 years ago. Cheer's!
i bought myself into the fanatec world... for pretty much exactly half the price of that Ferrari version i got a 8Nm base, a solid entry wheel and 3 pedals with a load cell brake... had a thrustmaster TMX Pro set before.
I would have bought this instead of csl dd if they had better pedals, shifter, and especially price than fanatec. Fanatec just had better deals overall. Ignoring fanatec's shipping issues.
The wheel is pretty amazing. But why would I buy this over an 8nm dd from fanatec? Has anybody really felt that thing maxed, i compared it to other 12nm units and its very close. Tbh we dont need anymore then that anyways. People talk about real but dont realize its way way different then comparing to real cars. Its not like what you think and 8nm is enough since the game is pulling the wheel and its plenty of poeer. Using more may be fun but its actually not needed to be competative. So let me ask again why would I pay this much?
I have been running a TS PC Racer for ages. I own three TM rims as well so the T818 seems like the logical upgrade. But as it stands I feel my current wheelbase is more then capable enough (I think It puts out around 6nM). Sure it would be nice to have the smoother direct drive feel and some more torque but there are just too many hoops to jump trough. Maybe if my wheelbase breaks I'll go for the T818 but I might end up going for another brand altogether by then.
Sell it and get a Simagic A Mini, either 2nd hand Heusinkveld Sprints, or CSL elite (with Loadcell!) Plenty of rim options for between 100-300€ (and above obviously) Just my advise. If you'd prefer me to eleborate, im happy to help.
This product felt like a knee jerk reaction to the competition judging by their initial reveal campaign. It felt like they were buying time whilst someone knocked something up in the back.
Come on, the new "ready2race" bundles from fanatec blow this out the water. Especially with the 8 Nm base. For half the price you get a comparable base, a wheel and pedals. For extra 130€, you go also get a load cell brake and the pedals are all metal, unlike TC's TCM pedals. Idk what Thrustmaster is thinking. Over the past two years they went from a very big player, esp in the affordable segments, to a strange brand, good only for die-hard fans
You can say all the same things about their flight sim products. The software is not great and there are just batter options out there. I think they just continue to rely on their better distribution and availability in local retailers to carry them because lots of people don't want to deal with having to order direct, especially with pre-orders and stock problems. Who knows how long that will carry them though. They, along with Logitech had the low-mid market to themselves for so long they got terribly lazy and don't seem to want to change. Some of their products have not changed for over a decade and its like they expect to keep being able to do that. Its a shame because with their manufacturing know how and capacity they can make good products. Their F18 stick is great for example. I just have to use it with a different manufacturers Gimbal and software though and that is just daft.
Just went and bought a full fanatec gt dd pro setup after sinking over 2k into thrustmaster. the t818 shouldnt have ever been released with the QR adapters, the only wheel I feel confident using the wheelbase on 10nm with is their newest wheel 488 GT. However there is a glaring flaw with this new wheel, the stem on the back which goes into the t818 base is less than half the length of all other wheel rims they offer, meaning with my aluminium rig it is literally pointless to have the t818 if i would like to use all my wheel rims, no way am i getting an allen key to adjust it every time i go between their old wheels. I regret puchasing it because I know i wont even get anywhere near the value in money that id get out of keeping all the gear... i have 2 rigs now thanks to this absolute waste of space. Hoping fanatec are smarter. and at least i can sell a fanatec for a healthy % of its original value
Bonsoir,pxn a Direct Drive, V12DDS avec 10nm multiplateforme penser Vous que cela peut être un bon plan ?. merci.suis un peu déçu de la manière de faire du fournisseur Fana, qui malgré tout a du bon matériel.😊
Comparing this wheelbase to the Logitech G Pro is laughable. The GPro has a great quick release and great force feedback. It seems to punch higher than the 11mm it’s rated at. The Trueforce haptic feedback feels incredible aswell. The lack of ecosystem is what’s killing them. (I own the Logitech G Pro and the SC sport.) To be honest, I’m kind of shocked that Thrustmaster would release this base in this state. The quick release is flimsy and plastic. Thank god we have other competitors in the market. Asetek, Simagic, Simucube, and many more good wheelbases out there. I’d stay away from this wheelbase.
SF1000 is amazing wheel, unique in this price because of lcd, clutch etc, I would strongly reccomend it if you like this type of racing (but be aware that lcd won't work in RF2, AC and other unsuppirted games.) But if you decide to buy it you have no other choices than t818 in terms of direct drive and I think its just overpriced base... Im Ferrari fanboy so i can't go anywhere else and my personal experiences with thrustmaster are more than decent but I'm gonna assume it is just luck, but if I could fit my sf1000 into moza or even fanatec I would do it!
Thrustmaster, the brand that sells cheap plastic for the price of metal and acting like it´s still 2010, that´s the problem, not lowering the prices of the plastic items and not launching items with better materials and better electronics.
When Asetek comes in and does it 100 times better than a company that's been around 30 years, there's an issue. I jumped to Asetek over the TM, I was severly disappointed in the d.d. and the F1 wheel, $1000 for plastic 🤦♂️ or spend an extra $200 for superiority and the future. Wasn't a tough choice at all.
I get the sense that Thrustmaster are really out of touch. These days there's some really good bases for cheaper with higher quality ecosystems. Console compatibility is the only thing that would save it.
TM is basically out of the DD game now, one will get more for less money with other brands. It is unfortunate been using TM for over 7 years now, however when the T300 dies, I will go to DD and doubt TM will have anything worth the money. Maybe they can make a comeback with PS/X Box DD.
My feeling about Thrustmaster is that they kept selling the same stuff for way too long. Too many years without any significant product evolution, just the same plastic with some badges here and there. They were caught with their pants down when Fanatec launched the CSL DD, basically bridging the gap between high-end and midrange wheelbases. I honestly hoped they would react by launching the cheapest DD wheelbase to keep the low end of the market, but no, premium price for a meh product. Of course Moza and others occupied that slot immediately. They are lucky to have the Ferrari brand and i think it's their last hope to sell anything.
I'm playing on series x and i have ts xw , twins handbrake /shifter (600 bucks here in europ e) 2 wheels and t lcm , i cannot shift to another brand because i have to throw out almost 1000 $ so i have to stick with thrustmaster, if you dont have nothing i belive you dont have any reason to buy thrustmaster, you can go with any brand ( i love asetek)
I was in the Thrustmaster Ecosystem, and tried to get the T818 wheelebase. I already had like 4 rims though, and didn't want to buy the SF1000 bundle. I could not find the T818 outside of the bundle here in canada, and after waiting for a few months and still not finding a vendor, I decided to get a Moza R9. Happy with my decision. The Moza wheelebase and especially rims feel very high quality compared to my thrustmaster products, and I am SO happy I didn't go with the T818. The adjustability in the software with a DD is very important, and the lack of options with the T818 would have resulted in a less than ideal experience in some sims, whereas with my R9, I can tune i to feel exactly like I want it to in (almost) all sims
i had a horrible experience with the SF1000. Screen functionality isnt great and the paddle shifters missed shifts all the time, even after upgrading to the more expensive ones
My "clutch pedals" act as throttle and break and I can't really change that. Or do I need to connect the wheel and pedals seperately to my PC to make this work somehow?
The rotary switch at the bottom center of the wheel has 4 positions which let you choose between throttle/brake, double clutch, single clutch/free axis you can assign anything to and double free axis
I had some serious teething issues with mine when I first got it, just with the unit itself, power issues, connection issues, but since I got it fixed, it’s been great, but it has put a sour taste in my mouth, and will eventually switch eco systems
its a amazing direct drive wheel with wayyyyyyyyyyyyyy better support then gaynatec lmao thrustmaster gang and at least they ship there orders n customers get there shit on time.. if u wanna go crazy on SIM u buy simagic and simcube not this or gaynatec or moza….
The price is ridiculous! You can get a fanatec podium dd1 bundled with their formula wheel for 1100€! The fanatec wheelbase is 4 times as good and isn’t cheap plastic bomber! The quality of the force feedback is not comparable at all, the thrustmaster is worse than the cheaper fanatec 8nm wheelbases. People who buy this must me completely clueless! The wheelbase should be priced around 400€.
I'm not worried about them. They're the Fanatec of the low end--not innovative in the slightest, sitting on their name only, and getting consistently beaten by the boutique brands of their target demographic. Unlike Fanatec though, which is like sim racing McDonald's, I don't imagine TM has the public buffer to survive their complacency. If they wanna go the way of the dodo bird and be made an example of, all the better and I hope Fanatec takes notice because it *could* be them one day.
So, what's the goal of this vid ? Seriously, how could we be judge and jury ? Ironically, I've never had issues with TM stuff, unlike some "high-end" products in your affiliate links. T818 ffb is precise and responsive, an organic feeling that I haven't found in the other DDs that I've owned (OSW, AKM53, Accuforce, Fanatec).
If you watched the video, which I doubt you did, you’ll see that I didn’t disagree with you. The FFB is great. The goal of the video is to share my experience and review. I explained everything as well as I could but feel free to ask more questions. It’s interesting that you’ve owned lots of other brands. I’m allowed to have my opinions, as are you :) but don’t try to tell me that TM wheel rims are higher quality than Simagic, moza, simucube, cube controls, GSI, etc… that’s what I’m comparing to.
Certainly not, it would be unfair to compare TM wheel rims with your mentionned brands, which have superior quality (but at what cost for most, double, triple ?) I think we have to think in terms of $$. What budget should you spend to have an F1, rally and GT wheel from another brand ?@@LaurenceDusoswa
Lol, I swapped out from being a long time thrust master guy. I bought everything from the t80 through the tspc, but when I saw the release of this, I went out that day and bought the r9. The deliver far too little, far too late, for FAR too much money.
You may think there’s something special about Ferrari I don’t. Many others beat them on the slick front. Logitech all the way I don’t feel the need to send Ferrari any more money. And I suspect they get a little kick back here.
I love my t818 depite the flaws and old software just cant get any quick release adapters for the rest of my wheels i get no answers of when or why its sad they treat there customers like this if j could go back i would have gone with another eco system
Thrustmaster are really struggling to keep up with recent innovations. They used be have excellent performance for the price with reasonable build quality.
Thrustmaster always had a kind of plastic, toy-like look to me, even compared to the G wheels from logitech. They fall way short compared to entry DD brands like Moza and Fanatec, and its not even worth comparing to things like Simucube.
Fanatec First wave preorder csl dd (KNOCK ON WOOD) it has been a trooper I play 3 or more hours a day. would not trade it for any thrustmaster after the experience I had with the 3 t300's I had. burned up two of them before I dremilled a fan duct and added a pc fan.
