- 727
- San Jose, CA
- GTP_Strop
I've been racing the G25 for about half a year now and prior to that spent several years with the DFP. Recently I discovered that the G25 doesn't work with GT5P unless you have the shift box connected (which I don't have).
The choices were buy a new G25 to get the shift box or buy a DFP-GT. I chose the latter figuring if it didn't work out I could return it and get the G25. That and I get a chance to compare the two that everyone is probably weighing up just like I was.
First the pedals. Not much change from the original DFP, if at all. Sadly the pinouts from the connector have changed and the plug (DB-9) is keyed to not accept the G25 plug, making a quick plug and play difficult.
I have the G25 pedals directly mounted onto my Sparco Cockpit GT and I was loathe to give this up. Even though the faux hydraulic cylinders on the G25 pedals aren't (they springs inside plastic cylinders), they're still worlds better than the DFP version.
In the end I took the cable from the GT and connected the spade connectors directly to the pots on the G25 pedals. Fortunately they both appear to use the same 10K pots so after a little fiddling (the brake pot is upside down compared to the DFP-GT version) everything was working. The driver seems to auto-calibrate on startup so I didn't notice any problems with range either, the pedal travel matches the full range on screen.
Now for the wheel. Amar is right that it doesn't feel as smooth as the G25. There is more of a notchiness as you turn it, but worlds better than the original DFP. Feedback seems very similar and it's as quiet as the G25 (maybe even a little quieter and again vast improvement over the DFP). Feedback strength seems similar too, and the like the G25 is easy to turn quickly (which is unlike the DFP which felt like molasses). I run FFB at 10 but then again I'm a weightlifter who also used to drive a pre-power-steering 911 so I'm not frightened of a little turning resistance.
Grip is excellent, it's contoured nicely and has a very grippable texture - a big improvement on the G25 which I found a bit slippery at times. It is centred around the hub which is nice, my G25 wasn't and looked a bit silly when calibrating. To state the obvious it's very nice having all of the buttons right there at your fingertips. Not having a ghost on/off button at the wheel was a huge pain for GT-4 time trials (I race WRS here). I know that is fixed of course in GT5 which allows you to remap the buttons but I'll probably continue GT4 WRS for a while.
In spite of what Logitech's own web site says, it does have paddle shifters behind the wheel. Well, switches anyway and with my small hands and short fingers they're only just reachable and took a bit of getting used to. I prefer the G25 setup but I can live with the DFP-GT.
Lastly, it's a very nice looking wheel, much nicer than the G25. The lit GT logo is a nice touch and despite the marketing photos I've seen everywhere (including the box) showing it as a dull mousy grey it's actually quite black. I agree with Amar that backlit buttons would have been nice but you can't have everything.
So far it's early days but at least my preliminary conclusion is that it's a keeper and I'm retiring my G25. I can already hear the cries (the bugger's mad) but money wasn't an issue, I could care less about 'genuine leather' and the H shifter box was a pain in the bum that didn't fit on Sparco Cockpit and just got in the way. It really came down to the loss of smoothness versus the benefits of being fully supported by GT5P and having all the controls where I want them. I also got the best of both worlds in being able to use G25 pedals with the DFP-GT wheel but I'm guessing most people don't have cockpit frames so won't see as much difference.
Pictures here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/craigamey/Sparco
The choices were buy a new G25 to get the shift box or buy a DFP-GT. I chose the latter figuring if it didn't work out I could return it and get the G25. That and I get a chance to compare the two that everyone is probably weighing up just like I was.
First the pedals. Not much change from the original DFP, if at all. Sadly the pinouts from the connector have changed and the plug (DB-9) is keyed to not accept the G25 plug, making a quick plug and play difficult.
I have the G25 pedals directly mounted onto my Sparco Cockpit GT and I was loathe to give this up. Even though the faux hydraulic cylinders on the G25 pedals aren't (they springs inside plastic cylinders), they're still worlds better than the DFP version.
In the end I took the cable from the GT and connected the spade connectors directly to the pots on the G25 pedals. Fortunately they both appear to use the same 10K pots so after a little fiddling (the brake pot is upside down compared to the DFP-GT version) everything was working. The driver seems to auto-calibrate on startup so I didn't notice any problems with range either, the pedal travel matches the full range on screen.
Now for the wheel. Amar is right that it doesn't feel as smooth as the G25. There is more of a notchiness as you turn it, but worlds better than the original DFP. Feedback seems very similar and it's as quiet as the G25 (maybe even a little quieter and again vast improvement over the DFP). Feedback strength seems similar too, and the like the G25 is easy to turn quickly (which is unlike the DFP which felt like molasses). I run FFB at 10 but then again I'm a weightlifter who also used to drive a pre-power-steering 911 so I'm not frightened of a little turning resistance.
Grip is excellent, it's contoured nicely and has a very grippable texture - a big improvement on the G25 which I found a bit slippery at times. It is centred around the hub which is nice, my G25 wasn't and looked a bit silly when calibrating. To state the obvious it's very nice having all of the buttons right there at your fingertips. Not having a ghost on/off button at the wheel was a huge pain for GT-4 time trials (I race WRS here). I know that is fixed of course in GT5 which allows you to remap the buttons but I'll probably continue GT4 WRS for a while.
In spite of what Logitech's own web site says, it does have paddle shifters behind the wheel. Well, switches anyway and with my small hands and short fingers they're only just reachable and took a bit of getting used to. I prefer the G25 setup but I can live with the DFP-GT.
Lastly, it's a very nice looking wheel, much nicer than the G25. The lit GT logo is a nice touch and despite the marketing photos I've seen everywhere (including the box) showing it as a dull mousy grey it's actually quite black. I agree with Amar that backlit buttons would have been nice but you can't have everything.
So far it's early days but at least my preliminary conclusion is that it's a keeper and I'm retiring my G25. I can already hear the cries (the bugger's mad) but money wasn't an issue, I could care less about 'genuine leather' and the H shifter box was a pain in the bum that didn't fit on Sparco Cockpit and just got in the way. It really came down to the loss of smoothness versus the benefits of being fully supported by GT5P and having all the controls where I want them. I also got the best of both worlds in being able to use G25 pedals with the DFP-GT wheel but I'm guessing most people don't have cockpit frames so won't see as much difference.
Pictures here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/craigamey/Sparco
). The long pedal connector is actually useful if you're routing it around a cage or frame, better too long than too short - and don't laugh but my twins play that way, one steers and the other operates the pedals.
