Thrustmaster Comes Out Swinging! BUT is it Missing Something? AVA Base Review

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This is the New Thrustmaster AVA flight simulation stick base. In this full review, we go through the AVA base in detail, look at the build quality, price, what its like to fly, and, what the future might look like in terms of accessories and upgrades.
This Thrustmaster AVA Base was supplied by Thrustmaster for the purposes of this review however this video is not sponsored and, all comments and thoughts are my own.
Let me know what you think. Is this new piece of flight sim kit something you'll be picking up on release or, are Thrustmaster too late to the party?
Check out the Thrustmaster AVA Base:
amzn.to/3QXAzQ3 (Affiliate link)
www.thrustmaster.com/en-us/pr... (Non-Affiliate link)
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00:00 AVA Base Intro
00:11 The Price
00:38 Features
04:00 Accessories
04:48 Design & Build Quality
0 7:47 Using the AVA Base
10:00 The Good Stuff
10:40 The Not So Good
11:10 Final Thoughts

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Опубликовано:

5 июл 2024

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Комментарии : 158

@kdolanjr Месяц назад

I appreciate the customizable options here, but if they really want to wow me it'll have to be a force feedback base.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

It has to happen at some point. I think we're in for an interesting few years in flight sim

@ytmaxxammo8591 26 дней назад

Exactly, I just do not see the total upgrade here. I mean yeah its probably more precise, however the absence of the damper is insane. I just cant with the old wobble stick lol.

@aquamich129 Месяц назад

Nice video! Great quality editing mate! The most important was the zero detent, not feeling the cross that you have on other bases! It really looks butter smooth!!!

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Yea, it's a pretty smooth piece of kit. I'm loving the accuracy through the middle.

@PaddyPatrone Месяц назад

Basically doing what the competition did for many years now and not beeing cheaper. They should have at least tried to innovate.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I feel like they have in s sense with the new defection masks. This makes it great for use with extensions too.

@jayphi4095 Месяц назад

Probably the only positive point

@Kebabs91 Месяц назад

I'm heavily considering upgrading my Warthog base to this AVA. Great review! Good job!

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

You won't be disappointed. Is a whole new level. They have really stepped it up alongside their others. Now just need to wait for that damper accessory.

@AsheS-J Месяц назад

Great vid, I'll be upgrading my t-flight hotas one to this! Also can't wait for the damper, it will make the stick have a bigger sense of heft. Do you know if you can adjust the pitch and roll tension differently, as I'm learning the a320, and it has a much stiffer pitch than roll axis. Thanks for the video, you really covered all aspects of the ava!

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Yea you can do this either with the pre load or stiffer springs or both

@FlightSimMuseum Месяц назад

Nice review and good on you for mentioning that the 'bounce' is not applicable / relevant in flight. And yes, the ability to make minute adjustments was the most significant change I noticed going from Warthog to Orion. Great to see that TM are back in the top end HOTAS/stick game after 14 years and providing more competition in this niche.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I feel like we're in for a few exciting years in flight Sim. We seem to be getting new stuff all the time. How is your ORION going? How long have you had it?

@FlightSimMuseum Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia I got the ORION about 9 months ago when the Warthog developed a loose wire / contact somewhere in the stick, resulting in random control inputs and view changes. A little bit annoying especially on finals 😃. I'd been on the COUGAR since release (2003?) and then about 4 years on the Warthog. Considering the 3,000 odd hours the Warthog had flown, I considered that a fair $ per mile. As you said - the ability to make absolutely minute adjustments (ORION/AVA) is a revelation, and for made helicopter flyable suddenly enjoyable, with actual fingertip control in that context. At the same time I replaced the Warthog throttle with the ORION. I love the 'feel' of the ORION throttles. I've repurposed the Warthog throttle as a lighting (and other) control panel on the right side of my 'pit, so it lives on for a few years more. And yes, it's the best of all times to be in flight sims, with all this great hardware and MSFS 2020 / 24 finally delivering on a VFR capable entire world. Stuff we only dreamed about in the 1980s.

@fixitman2174 14 дней назад

I've seen numerous "reviews" for this, and none have specified if the gimbal is metal or plastic. It definitely looks like plastic in every video though. I still believe TM are sticking to their theme: over-priced garbage. That's exactly what my broken-at-60-hours Warthog was. I won't make that mistake again.

@dutch_bullet Месяц назад

Arrived today, looking forward to try it after work.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Let me know how you go? Im keen to see if you agree with everything I said in the video. Also helpful for others to see your comments too.

@dutch_bullet Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia Did some quick flights and messed with the parts. First impressions is that the center is super smooth compared to the Warthog. And I agree with you it needs the dampers. It feels a bit "springy" when it returns to center.

@r4dio4ctiv3man9 Месяц назад

This is pretty much the same design as the Virpil T50 CM1/CM2/CM3 bases, except for the Virpil bases don´t need an offset adapter. It is good to see TM does not forget the combat flightsim community and is upgrading the product line, but i fear they`re a bit late to the party. Also how much buttons are supported? The TM Warthog Base is limited to 23 buttons and 2 analog axis, as all of the TM gips do "only" have 23 buttons in total. Virpil uses the same connector, so the TM grips are compatible and vice versa. It´s just, that Virpil bases support 34 (i think) buttons and 4 analog axis, as they offer grips with that large amount of buttons/axis. So hopefully TM expanded the number of supported buttons and axis, so it doesen´t matter wich base you get. Otherwise, it´s better to stick with Virpil...

@shagrat47 Месяц назад

The virpil bases should support a theoretical limit of 128 buttons. Though the Virpil sticks don't reach this amount of buttons, some throttles in combination with panel, connected with the AUX connector, come close.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I'm not sure about that but I'll check it out. I have both the TM and virpil.bases here.

@aquamich129 Месяц назад

Good point, but the video shows that the connector is different. It is red vs the black one from the hog. Also the shape looks different so my 2 cents is they changed the din to a new one

@artsolano6762 Месяц назад

This. If the new base doesn’t support things like twist axis, I won’t be getting it no matter how good it is.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

@@artsolano6762 I don't think it will. Any twist function stick I reckon will have to have the mechanism in the actual grip

@TheD4VR0S Месяц назад

The problem with the old Warthog base was it was possible to connect the stick backwards, is that possible with this base ?

@ColinDyckes Месяц назад

I bought this AVA base and think it's perfect with zero slop/deadzone and smooth progressive stick forces. Default cams with medium springs at near minimum. Not sure why everyone goes on about dampers quite so much as you should never just let go of the stick while flying with any deflection. Having said that TM have said that an adjustable damper will be available. Check your grip first for slop in the pitch axis because you'll certainly notice it with the default strong springs!

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Thanks for the insight. Sharing stuff like this is great for others to see.

@Sinni64 Месяц назад

I have the default cams and the medium springs tightened a little over minimum aswell and I have a deadzone. Adding to that, my stick is not in the middle position. It‘s a little bit foreward due to the weight of the Warthog stick, but still in the deadzone. The problem with that is, that if I go stick fwd I get instant stick movement ingame (good), but if I go stick aft I have to move through the whole deadzone, before anything happens ingame (very bad). Did you calibrate the stick in some way, or did it work out if the box for you?

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

@@Sinni64 right out of th box it was fine for me. Have you played with the preload of the springs?

@Sinni64 Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia Found the solution. It was just my blindness while reading the user manual and missing the calibration part. After I did the calibration, which is very straight forward, and unticked the use deadzone option in the windows game controller settings, there is zero deadzone ingame. Now everything is perfect.

@ColinDyckes Месяц назад

@@Sinni64 Check that the springs aren't too loose. That's the only thing that will give you a physical deadzone with the cam not touching the roller bearing at centre.

@artsolano6762 Месяц назад

Does the base support Virpil twist or any future grip from Thrustmaster having a twist?

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

not at the moment. Not sure if they will introduce this.

@artsolano6762 Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia That’s too bad because the Space Sim market is getting more and more use of twin stick setups with twist. VKB and Virpil will own that marketplace

@takeoffwithjakesoft Месяц назад

In this price range, the damper should be included. That wobble would drive me crazy when I need to go hands off the stick for a moment.

@gpk13 Месяц назад

The little black cylinder on the axis *IS A DAMPER*, other articles, videos and forums mention it, not sure why this video keeps saying it doesn't have one. FWIW, some say it's not strong by design to not interfere and/or are saying it's a non-issue in practice.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Something I never thought about would be when its hands off. especially with motion.

@WhiteHawk77 Месяц назад

My only concern with this design is dust getting into the gimbal as there’s no rubber gasket to stop that like on other companies bases like this.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

True. Only time will tell if this will be an issue

@alexandersnel7895 Месяц назад

Came to this video and ordered it right away, using the warthog for IL2 (warbirds) and moving to this is a world of difference, from sticky stick into smooth and sensitive, im still getting used to it but its very much promising. The wobble / ossilation is there and more prominent wit my extender mounted. With hard springs fully tied down it dampens it slightly, but ill have to get used to it. No problem in flight as im always hands on anyway. Thanks!

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Glad you're enjoying the stick. What size of extension are you using?

@alexandersnel7895 26 дней назад

@@g-locmedia the xl is too large for me, so went for medium, wich suits me well!

@g-locmedia 25 дней назад

@@alexandersnel7895 are you enjoying it

@cutlass6332 5 дней назад

I have to correct one point of your video, there are non-adjustable dampers installed. At 2:10 in your video its the black circular device mounted with two screws above the cam the other one is mounted under the half-moon plastic cover at the ball of the stick iteself. These are removable and an adjustable version is coming in future. They are shown on Page 6,7 & 35 of the User Manual PDF. I only just found out myself but wanted to share the info, as they don't seem to do very much, although I haven't removed them to see the difference. I also hate the pendulm effect of having the heavy Hog stick on there, I think clutches would have made this base so much better.

@g-locmedia 5 дней назад

Wow. Thanks for picking that up. Doest feel like they do anything at all.

@cutlass6332 5 дней назад

@@g-locmedia I heard Nobifier mention them then I went to the manual and hey presto. I bought mine based off your video it's just needing a wee bit of work on TMs part and this base roll be too notch. I really like the calibration method tbh

@alchemist6395 Месяц назад

I think we might see some more accessories dedicated to space sims like left handed sticks for the duel stick configs with angles adapters. I'm willing to even go further and speculate on a collective stick for the helicopter setups. Now if only Thrustmaster would focus their energy and their software

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I wouldn't be surprised about them getting in to space. It's a large niche now.

@Starsnu1 Месяц назад

Very good review of this AVA base. I would like to get one, but I already own the Virpil Mongoose T-50 base and a Warthog base as well. I use the Virpil for DCS and the Warhog for MSFS Airbus aircraft coupled with the Airbus stick from FlightSimProjects. You mentioned that you thought when the damping system is available that this would make the AVA a great device to compete with the top bases available. How do think it compares to the Virpil Mongoose? IMO, the Virpil far exceeds the Warthog in terms of build quality and "feel".

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

It's up there with virpil and winwing although I really need to test it with the damper accessory when it gets released. The new AVA is a massive step up from the old warthog

@Starsnu1 Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia Thank you for your reply. I'm going to FSExpo in Las Vegas and I know ThrustMaster will be there. I'll get an opportunity to try out this base.

@EyesFoward 27 дней назад

Now all we need now from Thrustmaster is a Force FeeBack stick and Yoke

@g-locmedia 26 дней назад

The flight sim industry is about to see rapid change with FFB products.

@marktheimmortal 23 дня назад

While I love the warthog as an upgrade to my old X52, I'm a little disappointed by the movement of the joystick, especially in the centre. This base might be a game changer for me if I upgrade the base while keeping the warthog throttle and the stick...

@g-locmedia 22 дня назад

Really. I love the feel through the centre. So easy to be accurate. Although as I said in the video it's missing a damper.

@artao5 27 дней назад

Needs force feedback. Particularly now that the patents holding such back are expired. FFB Sticks AND pedals. I recently got an old Logitech G940 FFB stick, and it's game-changing; quite literally. Especially regarding helos, but any aircraft where the stick moves when you trim it and/or has mechanical connections to the control surfaces.

@g-locmedia 26 дней назад

I think the flight sim niche is about to see so rapid change in electronics

@MCP2002 17 дней назад

With the feel of this stick, Id like to see how the damper performs in a deadstick config. The CM3 is mediocre for deadstick, so this could be a viable option. Just wish TM had more grip options.

@g-locmedia 17 дней назад

I'm so keen to that damper released

@arielis78 Месяц назад

Are you planning to review the WinWing Ursa Minor?

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Potentially. Just having a look today about it. Unless there are any other good reviews come out I reckon I might get a hold of one.

@arielis78 Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia So far 2 very positive reviews on YT.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

@@arielis78 I'll need to check them out

@gaminginstilllife9429 Месяц назад

VKB is my king

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

The gunfighter is a great stick.

@randallmacdonald4851 Месяц назад

I've had TWO Warthog sticks that failed miserably with the infamous "stiction" problem right out of the box so I'm a bit gun-shy of getting another Thrustmaster product. I now have Winwing's stick that is unbelievably sensitive... exactly what I want in a stick. Maybe the AVA stick base will be like Winwing's but... We'll see.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Yea I had the original warthog for about 2 years. I never had any fail but I do agree about the stiction. This new base is in a different league to the old one. Obviously we'll need to wait and see long term how it holds up but I am confident after seeing the build quality. Also, no stiction here

@WhiteHawk77 Месяц назад

Well, I don’t have this stick base, I have a couple of Virpil’s, but this is basically how Virpil, VKB, and WinWing bases work so stiction shouldn’t be possible.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

@@WhiteHawk77 I can confirm like you say there's no stiction

@cammy9r Месяц назад

I wonder if TM are late to the party. In the UK AVA is £250 and the WarBrd d £240. Price wise its more than the Virpil WarBrd d. I always regretted buying the warthog, the grip is nice though and can be used on the Virpil base. I ended up modding the warthog to use as a dedicated cyclic and use the Virpil as catch all flight stick. I also got (not received) the winwing Orion 2 16ex from the UK warehouse (or I think I have). Winwing have not been overly clear with their communications and have given me a dead tracking link. I will wait it out and hope I have not lost the £288, thats for the grip,base and cam/spring damper set. On the other hand Virpil was next day with tracking and delivery time slot.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

In some sense they could be. I guess we'll have to see how it's plays out and how popular it might be.

@THESHADOW97139 Месяц назад

THANKS !! If only they could make glider gear 😔

@hornetj3777 Месяц назад

Will there be an Xbox compatible version?

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Honestly, I don't think that will happen but you never know. If the demand is there!?

@Michael-ig8ne Месяц назад

It’s sad that there’s no real FFB option. I mean Microsoft had a decent FFB with the sidewinder back in the day and it’s just sad that they act like they can’t add any FFB for anything less than $1100

@sluxi Месяц назад

none of the big mass market brands have done it so the high prices are mostly down to it still being the realm of small companies that can't really scale the production and hit a lower price point like someone such as Logitech. Maybe we're getting close to FFB being resurrected in mainstream flight sim products...

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Next few years I reckon you'll see a change to the ffb line up.

@Jerichoom Месяц назад

Saw this thinking of wow, a FBB from Thrustmaster! But no...not sure it's more superior that the Virpal base at this price point

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I think we have to wait until the damper comes out to really see which is the best but obviously this is going to push the cost higher too.

@diggler64 Месяц назад

Got it and love it. Wanted to upgrade my warthog base without crazy shipping delays and brokerage. Got it from Amazon in less than 24h. It is an upgrade : super precise vs warthog. I don't even know what problem a damper would solve for me. The hardware is plug and play but the button layout for the grip had to be redone in DCS as the base is viewed as new device.

@stevesteven-gw4zy Месяц назад

Same thing, love it , and had to config the buttons in dcs

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

This is great thanks for sharing. Awesome to get another's point of view for other potential buyers.

@Tigermoto Месяц назад

If the button numbers haven't changed then you could have just loaded the old device anyway and it would work

@Arnaud.fissette Месяц назад

ai love your vidio's ken jou post mor content

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Thank you so much

@PeypaMikko-1842 Месяц назад

Thank you for your review. No damper scratch from factory is a big L when other brands do have it. It makes it even harder to justify the price. Too late, too expensive, too greedy, imho.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I think the true test is when the damper gets released. I'll be eager to rest it out against virpil

@aquamich129 Месяц назад

The price is not crazy besides wining. Check out ckb and vorpil and it is more expensive with tax and shipping to europe

@PeypaMikko-1842 Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia My point is that if you have to buy the Thrustmaster damper, it is already a L. I have no doubt their damper will be good though. Other brands have integrated damper.

@ChipDavis160 Месяц назад

Those oscillations are concerning, cant imagine trying to aerial refuel the F16 trying to compensate for that movement.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

You can't feel it when using it. It's actually really accurate but the damper will be a must when it's released.

@diggler64 Месяц назад

I suck at air refuelling and yesterday was my best F18 refuelling session ever (with AVA in default config). The oscillation he demonstrated requires deflecting the stick quite a bit and letting go of it... how on earth would you create that oscillation while refuelling !?!? 😮. The oscillation does not exist in real life scenarios (hand on the stick). And even if you need to let go of the stick ... in a DCS scenario you would not let go from a fully deflected position. You would neutralize the stick first and then let go (with any base).

@aquamich129 Месяц назад

@diggler64 I fully agree. I don't understand people talking about bouncing. On which multiverse do you let go your grip??? The hog was sticky !!

@sunrrrise Месяц назад

@@diggler64 It is one of those artificial and stupid tests, like how many circles you are able to draw or how fast joystick goes to neutrum.

@Ghost-pz3uy Месяц назад

Plastic case and no base plate..., i am not sure if is this a good deal.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I thought the same but actually getting my hands on it quite high quality. Cant argue with no base plate though.

@castorex День назад

@@g-locmedia no base plate is a conciouss decision, and the right one. AVA base is primarly targeted to Warthog HOTAS owners, so why on earth they need second plate AND pay for it by default? Good call on not including it in the base package.

@rapidrapid2589 Месяц назад

I have one but it makes a clunking sound on the Y Axis. reported it to Thrustmaster.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Yea that's definitely not right. Let us know in the comments how you go with support.

@rapidrapid2589 Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia Just waiting >>>We thank you for contacting Thrustmaster Technical Support. You are reaching us regarding your AVA BASE which is making a "click" sound while moving the joystick. In order to provide you a complete answer, we will contact our experts regarding your case and will get back to you as soon as possible. We thank you for your understanding and your patience. We wish you a nice day and remain at your disposal for any further questions.

@rapidrapid2589 Месяц назад

Double post.

@rapidrapid2589 Месяц назад

All resolved, seems that there was a loose screw in the Base of the Stick which had worked loose and nothing at to do with the AVA.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

@@rapidrapid2589 have you got it working correctly now?

@vincentsantucci2478 Месяц назад

Too little, too late, too expensive. The story of Thrustmaster. Will they never learn?

@SimonFredrikLaugsand Месяц назад

Single cam and spring pr axis. This is really disappointing. Why on earth would anyone choose this over a Virpil or Winwing base? This is a cheap design with a high price tag.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I can't speak for winwing but I can say the actual feel of the stick is on par or possibly a little smoother than virpil warbird and mongoose. It's really close though.

@SimonFredrikLaugsand Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia Smooth is ofcause good, but Im disappointed in the design. I had the TM Warthog HOTAS for almost 10 years with no issues (but it is very outdated now), so I had really hoped TM would do better than this. My biggest concern is the cam design, and lack of options for extra springs/cams on each axis. And ofcause the price is out of proportion. The Winwing Orion2 base with a grip, extra cams/damper/springs set is 330$, and you get a baseplate and the ability to set the grip with offset.

@AFlockofTacos Месяц назад

So, not as good as Virpil, which is metal, includes a damper, and supports offset mounting of stick without an extension.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

We need to wait and see how good the damper will be. Certainly virpil does come with everything ready to go and I love virpil.

@MCP2002 17 дней назад

Virpil center is a little sloppy with anything other than higher tension soft center and hard center. No center cosmos and no center avias have a decent amount of center slop/mushyness.

@BMB_GT Месяц назад

First!

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Now I never thought you were one of them. Lol. What do you think of the base?

@TheJack4000111 Месяц назад

@@g-locmedia What are they? lol

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

@@TheJack4000111 first commenters. @bmb_gt must have been lying in wait

@BMB_GT Месяц назад

Haha! I didnt think I was one of them, but I have been keen to see your review. I think its a really versatile product with potential to be king. That last point you made about potential civilian aircraft grips is a great idea.

@LE4DB4TH Месяц назад

You lost 100 credibility points and 50 respect points. Good luck

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

How so?

@MotoSauce-ww4ky Месяц назад

WinWing is sooooo winning right now!!!

@jayphi4095 Месяц назад

TOO much expensive for the value….for the same price you have a Winwing AND the stick and damper with the shaker …..better selling its whole old and tired Warthog stick second hand

@Crysonix592 Месяц назад

For the same price you can buy a Winwing base, joystick and damping kit. Seems a bit financially irresponsible to buy this.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

Import taxes and delivery might push it up over however a you have some valid points. Definitely a consideration.

@smokingspitfire1197 Месяц назад

To be honest, this is just crap. There is NO space for making cheap sticks that use a gimbal and spring anymore. VPForce and FFBeast being on the market now have proven that force feedback IS in demand now in flight simulation and for Thrustmaster to cheap out making this crap at this price rather than work on a proper, major company supported FFB stick is ridiculous.

@Problematic_Polygons Месяц назад

Neither of those are easy to manufacture, use good materials, are easy to get your hands on, and compete at the price range of other bases. All I need to say is that those are only made for a select few who are willing to pay enough for a sub par product with a cool feature

@seattime4075 Месяц назад

I built my own DIY full metal FFB stick with a VPforce big servo kit (delivered in two weeks). Love it, but it's not something that everyone can do.

@smokingspitfire1197 Месяц назад

@@Problematic_Polygons On what planet 😂😂. My VPForce is built like a tank and has been absolutely flawless, the waiting list is hundreds long and their praises are being sung by everyone who touches one. FFB is not a ‘cool feature’ it’s a game changer, critical for flight simulation especially in combat. Thrustmaster has decades of FFB experience, they absolutely could make a decent, large-scale competitor for the VP Force if they didn’t know they could just churn out 10/15 year old tech in a slightly new base, slap some new marketing on it, give it a price bump and sell it.

@smokingspitfire1197 Месяц назад

@@seattime4075 DIY definitely isn’t for everyone but that sounds awesome, I went for the prebuilt Rhino and I will never use another nonFFB stick again.

@g-locmedia Месяц назад

I think we'll start seeing more and more ffb sticks over the next few years. My hope is they get wide support from all the flight Sims and games