Simagic lists Sustained torque, peak more than likely is higher. I recently got the Alpha myself, I am happy with what I got! Did consider the U, but didn't feel like something I need. I would say they have upgraded all of them. I got a pretty fresh alpha and it has the same kind of power plug and it does turn on when you rotate it. Which I found amusing, it will connect to windows if you keep spinning it. lol My GT1 wheel came with both of the paddle shifters having minus cut in them. Hahaha Joking aside, Simagic has really created something special here, I can't say I have a comparison. It's the simple things that get me. Simple quick release, that is based on a real release, why not? Wireless wheels, with all styles to choose from! Not to mention, you can mount it however you like.
Curious to know your opinion - if you ran an alpha at 11.5nm and an alpha ultimate at 11.5, would they feel similar at that level, or would the ultimate feel more detailed? That would be about 75% on the alpha and 50% on the ultimate. Thinking of upgrading but not sure the marginal benefit is worth it. Your videos are wonderful man, very informative.
I'm using the Alpha Mini wheelbase with FX Pro wheel Thinking about upgrading to Alpha or Ultimate I'm a bit confused. 10 Nm vs 15 vs 23 Nm I'm okay with 10 Nm. What is actually the difference between the Mini and the Ultimate, except for the Nm?? For example, if Ultimate is set at 10 Nm and Mini as well, 10 Nm, do they feel the same? Has the Ultimate more " power " vibrations, etc, vs the Mini, when both are set at 10 Nm? What about the noise / heat ?! Does the big brother, Ultimate, generate more noise/ heat, vs Alpha Mini? Any advices are welcome, thank you in advance
The mini is amazing. It's kinda like choosing an engine for a BMW 5 series. It doesn't have as big an impact on the car for some people but for others, it's the reason they bought the car :)
That legit excitement when you went out on track and got the sliders right, you can't fake that. Really shows how you are feeling about this wheelbase. It also looks so nice, visually. Clean, compact yet so powerful. This video almost makes me want to stop my abuse to Tony. Almost... 😂
Wow, does it really only cost around $1400? I honestly thought it would be much higher, and I see it on sale for $1200 at some retailers. That's crazy good value for what this is! I ordered my Moza R9 just last week but looking at this...I have a feeling in another year or so I'll make another jump to Alpha U or SC2 Pro. Thanks for the video, Laurence!
It depends on the reseller but yeah, the prices aren't too bad. that said, it's close to the SC2 pro pricing which might inspire some people to just be the safe bet
I was looking into the R9 and GS Wheel, could get them for around £850, but the simmagic Alpha Mini and the GTC Wheel came out to around £900, much better deal, ordered it last week
@amarokdcs yeah that stinks. They didn't even charge me Tax or shipping. Not sure how much the simucube is there? But I would still choose simagic all day!
I've had the Alpha U for a while and totally agree with Laurence. The Alpha U is amazing. The way it delivers it's 23Nm is truly sublime. The wheelbase has everything the Alpha Mini and Alpha has, but with added communication and power. What Simagic have done (with all three servo wheelbases) is nothing short of outstanding🏅💯
Hey mate Does your alpha ultimate base get hot ? My one gets realy hot after couple of races on iRacing and I’m not sure if it is normal The base is amazing like you sad Thanks
Finally a review on the alpha U! Got one of these coming my way soon, I was looking for the alpha 15nM but since that was out of stock I just pulled the trigger on the U Edit: it just arrived and the box is beat up and there's a big hit on the base that took off a chunk of the metal... They definitively need to improve packaging. Too little padding for something weighting over 15kg
@@LaurenceDusoswa Sadly it's worst, in your case the box seemed to be bottomed out and in the video I can't see yours scratched or marked. On mine it's like something fell in top of it or the box fell into something spiky since there's a puncture through the boxes and foam into the base with a big mark on the metal Hopefully I can get a replacement soon :/
@@CHAPI929292 HI Chapi, I am about to order the Alpha U soon, can I kindly ask for an update on your case? Will they replace it? I wonder how their customer support is.
@@TUGRA14 Hi mate Initially they refused to replace it or give me a refund. They insisted it was UPS fault so I should make a claim with them and get a refund from UPS After a couple of days of struggle they finally agreed to give me a refund or replacement. I opted for the replacement and they sent me a new base, this time with proper packaging. Funny enough UPS managed to beat up the package again but this time the damages didn't reach the unit so it arrived in good shape I can't say support was the best but in the end they at least helped me solve the issue so I guess that's what matters
@@CHAPI929292 for them to tell u to go after ups is ridiculous... they choose the shipper.. send me a new base and they can deal with it.... them just trying to pass the buck along is unacceptable for a business. I'm glad it hot covered for ya... as I'm sitting here thinking between simucube and simagic, this made my decision easy. I think I will go simucube.. How are you enjoying it so far? What did ya come from
Absolutely love my alpha u. Switched from the dd1 to alpha u recently and couldn’t be happier. The alpha u is better in pretty much every way. Much better build quality, qr is in a different universe from the shit qr1 and the ffb is much much smoother and more detailed
Expecting my Alpha U to come in the mail any day! Your video helped me pull the trigger. After a few months of using it, would you mind sharing what FFB settings you using today? I usually run ACC but any starting point would be helpful!
I just bought the Alpha after watching your video, I got it with the Formula wheel and I love it. The quality is incredible and the base feels as solid as a rock. The quick release is also very good and a lot more secure than the Fanatec one in my opinion. The LED also comes on when you turn the shaft.
Darn you LD... Just ordered my Alpha and my wallet is crying. Think I burned up my Alpha Mini and had to get a new PCB board to fix it from running it to hard and hot. Just rewatched to get ready for next week. Will I be able to run the same settings as my Mini and just turn up the total power?
In ACC Is the ultimate at 60% in game equal to the Mini at maximum ?? I tested the ultimate today at 35% and feel like the CSL 8nm. And it works out as 8nm from 23nm at 35% So by that logic the ultimate at 60% should feel like Mini at 13nm, which was very strong for me Can you shed some light for me as I want to decided ??
Buy the one you can afford. If 8Nm is enough, just enjoy it :) the big thing you get with more power is more dynamic range. So that means that the details are clearer even when not using maximum power. Think of hitting a small stone on a race track at 100kph. It gives a big bang that barely moves your steering wheel. But you feel it. It’s kinda like that.
Did anyone else see the LED flash on the wheelbase when Laurence snaps the QR on? 5:18 Edit: If I'd watched for 5 more seconds I'd have seen it light up when turning it.
Yep. When you turn the shaft it acts kinda like a power generator. So much so that if you disconnect the power, but connect the usb, and turn the steering wheel lots, the PC will recognise the base as bein connected. Once you stop spinning the steering wheel, it will ‘power off’ and disconnect again.
I've commented on a bunch of your vids, sorry for the spam lol. Going from G923 to Simagic Alpha U and CSL elite V2 pedals - I am pretty much set forever right? I have a works bell QR hub on my Miata - that should snap right onto this base if I am not mistaken...
I feel that the new sim pro manager is holding back the wheel bases full power it is in beta still. I have the alpha and the ffb no where near as strong as it was before with alpha manager.
@@LaurenceDusoswa like everything, I suppose, but in comparison with my experience with Fanatec, it is a night and day difference, from equipment to customer support
If someone isn't running the FFB at 100%, is there still a benefit to the more powerful base? IE if you never go beyond 50% because you just don't want too fight the wheel that much, do you still get a benefit with the U over the Alpha in terms of quicker response or anything?
You get rapid response and lots of granularity in the ffb. The power is not as important as the dynamic range of a wheelbase and generally a more powerful base can transmit more details
With alpha mini, suspension high, smooth level low, we can hear some sound in the base. Smooth level has to set low to feel all the details. Do the alpha U make noise with smooth level low and suspension high?
the notch feeling through the center of the wheels rotation can be caused by content managers "FFB Post processing" after I turned that setting off the notch was completely gone (I am using the alpha mini so it might be different)
If you haven't used the SC2 Pro with the current July firmware, you can't compare it anymore. I bought a VRS DFP in March because I had some trouble with the SC2 Pro and wanted to send it to RMA (a 2nd time). Those issues with FFB-drops vanished after the April firmware update, but while testing the VRS I preferred it's FFB over the SC2 Pro and twitched back to the SC2 three times to be sure that it's not just imagination. I especially was missing some road-texture in the center I get with the VRS and even was a few tenths faster with the VRS in AMS2. I also got too harsh jolts over bumps which was especially annoying in rF2 and with the VRS I was even SECONDS faster for delivering what I need instead of crazy stuff. In July I thought it's time to sell the SC2 Pro since it's warranty was running out. The July update was out and just wanted to install it, try for an hour or so to be sure that it's not doing strange things again. It's on my rig since a month now while the VRS is collecting dust now. For rF2 alone I probably would prefer the VRS still but the SC2 Pro is now decent as well and no more missing road texture, also much better in Raceroom. ACC and iRacing I didn't play enough to make an opinion and the tyre-model in AC seems quite out-dated anyway to feel enough nuances, at least with the Kunos content I've tried.
The VRS DFP is so close in feel to the SC2 Pro that most will never feel the difference on track, but the difference in price is quite substantial. The VRS DFP is very hard to beat.
@@maxdigiacomo7641 The difference in price could be worth getting the SC2, since you need to buy a QR wheel- and baseside for the VRS and apart from cheap Ebay-stuff the options are costly, especially if you want to connect more than one wheel. The SC2-QR is the cheapest option for just wheel-side QR and a full kit is at least 165€ plus extension. I bought the SRC QR plus extension and it's over 100€ per wheel, but can't be called a 'quick' release and reminds me of Fanatec-QRs (just without the play). The hub VRS sells is crap with high risk of slipping, but no alternatives in Europe either other than the SCR QR. And the SC2 Pro is clearly more powerful and comes with build in wireless. The SC2 Sport is more comparable with the VRS including spacer and (nowadays only) base-side QR, wireless and overall the more polished product. In order to attach the QR to the VRS I had to rasp off a little off the torque-pin that needs to fit to the shaft, so it feels a bit DIY and not really thought through from the connectivity.
@@Leynad778 Yes the SC2 Pro is a more polished product and has more power, but most will never use the extra power. If your in to wireless wheels and switching out your wheels often, then yes i would go SC2. You could get the VRS DFP and good wheel with the SRC QR for about the same price as the SC2 PRO. Dont get me wrong the SC@ PRO is a great system. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE--No4IXs5Dt4.html
Does the Simagic Ultimate make as much chattering noise as the Simucube 2 Pro? I have the SC2 Pro and will happily change it out for this if it is silent. That plus the built in wireless connectivity and power is a huge plus over an antenna and battery.
Do you hear the chattering while driving? Or are you trying to keep the noise down for others? The alpha u has its own little noises but I haven’t compared the noise side by side
@@LaurenceDusoswa it’s mainly when hitting rumble strips does it make the noises I’m talking about. Lowering the slew rate limit to its minimum removes the noise entirely, but also makes the base fat less responsive. It also happens a lot on bumpy courses like Sebring.
Is it worth spending the money on the Alpha compared to the csl dd 8nm? I know this is the Alpha U, but I have no need for 25nm 15, which seems more than enough. Hope you see this as I'm looking to upgrade in the next week
I currently own a DD1, formula V3 wheel, and the Porche rim with podium shifters. I upgraded my brakes to Simtrecs, and now thinking long and hard of ditching the dd1, Anyone have any thoughts on this Alpha u as it looks amazing, and that FX pro wheel with screen looks incredible. If people say its as good to dd1 I can sell both wheels and the dd1 and its almost a wash? should i do it ?
People say that the simagic alpha u is a good upgrade from the DD1 but I cannot make a call on that as I haven't reviewed the DD1. It sounds like a good deal to me if you break even for sure
@@LaurenceDusoswa awsome!! Think that might be the peefect blend of quality with enough power and pricing to make the jump worth while. As The skm magic is 1700 out the door, and simucube would be well over 2k plus additional funds for qrx system.
I just ordered this base and hope my rig can handle it lol. Stupid question probably, but do you get this stuff for free? And if so how do you go about a career like this?
I get this stuff without paying money for it yes. The only way to get started is by reviewing the hardware you have and using that as a portfolio when approaching companies about doing reviews. Try to focus on hardware that you’re likely to buy. In the beginning you’ll be lucky to get stuff at cost price or even half price. Eventually when you prove your worth, you can set expectations like I have clearly outlined on my website at www.laurencedusoswa.com/about/ But be under no illusions. This is only a career for a select few. It makes me some pocket money but I’d need to be doing at least 10x what I’m currently doing just to make minimum wage. I have a day job. Hope that answers your question.
I have the alpha for a few weeks now. but haven't changed any settings yet. Some cars in IRacing seems a little weak. I guess I will have to change some settings.
Oh wait the Moza R21 is $999 that will be the route i go for sure 21nm will be more than enough but the option to have that much will be there i just upgraded to a Moza setup a month ago so ill have to wait
Man im interested in these my local microcenter has them in stock the Alpha and alpha mini but i got a full moza setup so if i upgrade itll be a R12 most likely and crp pedals how does simmagic compare to Moza
@@LaurenceDusoswa any word on the cost? And those other wheels you flashed up look sweet too. Its always nice to see you grinning like a schoolboy who is up to no good when you are looking at a product.
Me too id like to know how it is compare to DD2, maybe it has more details? And the 23Nm are costant or only the peak?in video It seems relativly easy to rotate also with 100% power. My DD2 at 100% is so strong that breaks the arms and it is always cold also after hours of use.
Hahahaha the mini is awesome but if you have spare money, make someone else happy by selling them your mini and upgrade to an alpha u. That way, everybody wins 😂
@@LaurenceDusoswa Thanks for the feedabck! After a little research, Moza has a new Formula style wheel (FSR) that has the ability to be a direct connection to PC via a USB connection, claiming the ability to be used with other wheel bases. I feel the FSR wheel would be a dream combo with a Simucube 2 pro or Simagic alpha. But I understand that Moza has made some very good progress with updates that the R16/21 wheels bases are very competitive FFB wise, physical design is still lacking imo. Thanks again and hope you have a great day!
lets be honest, when it comes to direct drives it usually comes down to the software, most are now smooth enough and responsive enough in the hardware that the technicalities dont matter. strictly speaking it still looks like the simucube 2 is using technically superior hardware just looking at it on paper but its nothing the average human will be able to differentiate, like the simucube offering 22bit angle sensor compared with an 18bit sensor on the simagic... in my mind i think i would want the one that seems to be no expense spared on paper but the reality is its the robots in factories that need that precision. What is more important for us is the software and i still think the true drive software offers more for a user to dig their teeth into, i really like the static force reduction filter, i think its one setting in the software every other manufacturer should make a goal to have, it literally allows you to bring the detail forward while not breaking wrists in corners. For that reason id take simucube every time (plus im bias because i have one). when it comes to fanatec theres the crucial difference in hardware, where fanatec just does not have very smooth motors, the current quick release is terrible etc etc so for as good as the software is and it is great i just dont see the benefit when it cant overcome the natural issues the motors have (not used csl dd only dd1/2 myself). For that reason id probably choose simagic every time over fanatec knowing the motors are butter smooth.
The SC2 is amazing. I don't let spec sheets make the decisions for me though. And just because software doesn't have certain sliders doesn't mean it doesn't have certain features. Sometimes it's just not adjustable. Honestly, I doubt anyone would tell these apart in a blind back to back test. It's a great time to be in the market for these products. thanks for your detailed comment
@@JohnnyEMatos wheel speed would be the same as the slew rate adjustment which is a setting on the simucube, the slew rate being the motor response speed. Unless wheel speed means something else within the simagic software, i dont see what else it could mean, being able to control the return to centre speed maybe? but that makes no sense as that would be just the centre return spring setting available on most bases. i would think its the motor response setting which as i say simucube has aswell... fanatec does not.
@@LaurenceDusoswa well you dont need to let the spec sheet decide for you since you have them all sent to you to try for free, but as a customer spending money i would think the spec sheet is a good starting point, i certainly give it more than a glance. The static force reduction filter would not be a setting simagic has and uses that you just cant adjust as that does not make much sense considering what the filter is designed to do. I mean its an easy test i would imagine, if you turn up the gain on the wheelbase does that directly effect the weight of the wheel when turning? im sure it does ofcourse like most wheelbases; the static force reduction filter would allow you to turn up the gain and then set a percentage you want that gain reduced for static forces, that would be what we feel when cornering as its a static force or holding force. If simagic does have that feature and you just dont have control over it then how would they know what the user wants it to feel like, some users would want no reduction in force when cornering, some would like a little bit less, a lot less etc. i find it to be an amazing feature that im frankly shocked no other manufacturer has straight up copied, I have no doubt its possible i just dont think its on their radar, it does not get the credit it deserves but its a feature i really think makes simucube stand out, i can happily run the gain at 20nm on the simucube with 20-25 percent reduction in static forces so i get loads of information through the wheel and less of the oh shit that's heavy thoughts in the corners :) and your welcome, i like to discuss it, our hobby is as much the hardware as the racing so its fun to go back and forth about it.
Just ordered an Alpha U last week, excited to get it and I’m moving from a VRS DFP. I’m interested to see how the FFB fidelity is compared to that as the main reason I bought the Alpha U was the wireless compatibility.
@@LaurenceDusoswa if price is no issue though, is there ever a reason to choose the Alpha over Alpha U? E.g. if running the Alpha U at no higher than the peak torque of the Alpha....any trade-offs in favour of the Alpha then?
Really looking forward to your full review, been contemplating going from the mini to the u! You have been one of the go to review and gameplay channels since I started this hobby 😁
Thanks so much for your kind words ❤️ going from the mini to the U is awesome if you can afford it and you won’t regret it. But the mini is already very impressive.
I guess there's gonna be some people in my situation who'd like a bit more nm and are already in the ecosystem with 1 rim (which are pretty good imo). If the u has similar performance to the sc pro, while being priced like a sc sport, seems like a pretty good deal! I hope you get a chance to review the upcoming fx pro rim! Cheers
@@LaurenceDusoswa firstly, thank you for the excellent reviews! If one were to not be using more torque than the Alpha can generate, is there any point in going to the Alpha U still? Might the trade-off favour the Alpha in that scenario due to (e.g.) lower rotor inertia, leading to greater responsiveness/reactivity for the same torque outputs due to the lower rotor mass? I'm really struggling to find an answer to this. I can afford either so it's not a cost issue but rather a performance one plaguing my decision. Any help and insight into my conundrum you can offer would be greatly appreciated! Many thanks in advance if you can and if not, well, thanks for the fab reviews all the same! :)
Hi Laurence ,thanx for the revue I just wanted to hear a little more about the alpha U I understand that you liked it but a little more details about the unit will go a long way Now that you had it for a couple of months .thanx
It’s incredible. There’s a software issue which they might have fixed now where the gt1 and gt4 wheel rims were losing connection to the base. They say they have fixed it but I haven’t had a chance to test. Assuming that’s fixed, the alpha I is the best wheelbase on the market for me. I prefer it to the SC2 pro even though the sc2 pro does have more power.
@@LaurenceDusoswa Hi after watching your video, I brought the Alpha U, the smile on your face totally sold me on it thank you for your channel. keep up the good work.
Just purchased this Friday and can't wait until it arrives! Im sure the difference is substantial from my mini! Just hope my 80/20 rig can. Handel the power. Great review as always 👏 thanks for everything you do!
@Laurence Dusoswa yes sir! Your review was spot on! I've never used the simucube 2 pro before but I don't see it being much better! It took me about 10 mins to get ACC too my liking, and man it made that game come to life! I set it to around 12 nm and couldn't believe all the details I was missing! Appreciate the comment 🙏.
@@vrj0 He is probably talking about the dynamic range If you hit for example a big kerb the mini can't output that kind of torque This is the headroom everyone talks about
Looks awesome 👌🏻 simagic are doing great things. If I was buying now that would definitely be what I go for💯 Fanatec was my only option 3 years ago. This review makes me glad I went with the DD2 for the 25nm and all the fidelity. I had been thinking it's overkill but not anymore 😬
I love my Alpha Mini. Im actually set on 100% ffb, 0 smooth, all mechanical settings at 0, and the game effects at 100 (except sometimes i remove all spring effects) 0 Wheelspeed, 0 Suspension, 0 Interpolation. It works so well I love it to deathh.
I have the mini as well and suggest turning wheel speed up to at least 60. That is what determines how much FFB the base will pick up from the game. And interpolation boosts the FFB signals from the game. I use interpolation at 5 or 6 game dependent
@@ns_racing that's not how interpolation works mate, at least its not with any other wheelbase like fanatec or simucube, interpolation is primarily to smooth out the FFB signal so to make a rough incoming signal essentially smooth and more analogue feeling, it wont boost the signal, if anything it dampens the feedback which otherwise would be very raw feeling. so turning the interpolation filter down or off will increase the detail essentially, at the cost of being more grainy. Interpolation works best on games like iracing where the incoming signal is a harsher 60hz, interpolation will act as a... i guess you could call it an upscaler, smoothing out the harsh signal. if this is not how it behaves on a simagic (i dont know i dont have one) then i would say its not really working as intended.
@@jinx20001 um yea simagic is totally different. It has smooth level for smoothing the FFB signal and interpolation to boost low frequency signals and to multiply the incoming signal.
