Fanatec Load Cell is not what I expected

[R55NA]

Recieved it yesterday with my DD Pro bundle, Mclaren GT3 rim and Boost Kit. Using it on a Omega GT stand and my chair doesnt move.

After the gushing reviews, endless high praise, and it - apparently - being an "essential" item for all Sim racers, I expected it to be a game changing piece of hardware.

What I have instead is a ridiculously stiff pedal that I can barely move with my hands, let alone with foot travel. I read a comment on another page stating "its like pushing hard into a brick wall".

How are Youtube reviewers and Sim Racers not commenting on this? How are they able to get so much travel on it? Their calves are definitely not as defined as The Rock.

Any tips? Or shall I just sell it on?

 

[priesty_lfc]

I struggled with this as I never adjusted the pressure settings, unsure if you have as was easy to miss but when connected to the laptop you can amend it in respect of how hard you need to press for max breaking.

At 100% which I guess was default it was stupid as I couldn’t even get max breaking which I guess is the issue you have, I’m at 55% and it’s so much better now!

 

[R55NA]

I struggled with this as I never adjusted the pressure settings, unsure if you have as was easy to miss but when connected to the laptop you can amend it in respect of how hard you need to press for max breaking.

At 100% which I guess was default it was stupid as I couldn’t even get max breaking which I guess is the issue you have, I’m at 55% and it’s so much better now!

I have it on literally 5% and its still ridiculous, and not fun. Barely any travel in it whatsoever.

 

[Theiceman1]

I have it on literally 5% and its still ridiculous, and not fun. Barely any travel in it whatsoever.

Read somewhere on the fanatec forum that it will get softer over time... 🤔. Got mine today. Will install later and see how it goes.

 

[BigJimmy]

I thought they worked on pressure rather than travel.

 

[Goonie75]

They are meant to be hard like a race car brake pedal, what pedals have you come from?

 

[R55NA]

I thought they worked on pressure rather than travel.

I have heard that, but I see videos of the reviewers pushing it 10x further than I.

They are meant to be hard like a race car brake pedal, what pedals have you come from?

I am using the standard CSL pedals that came with the DD Pro, and I used Thrustmasters T3PA Pro. Both are more fun to use than this 1mm of travel Load Cell.

This guy can push his all the way to the bottom nearly!

 

[super_gt]

This guy can push his all the way to the bottom nearly!

This is because he applies 60kg of pressure with his leg.
If you want a longer travel, here's a mod:

Fanatec CSL – Elastomer Brake MOD [CSL Pedals LC / Elite LC / Elite v2 LC] (PC, PS4, PS5, XBox) | 3DRap

This Brake MOD increases the realism and performance of the load cell on the Fanatec CSL pedal / Elite. Allows various effects adjustments and completely improves the way you brake!

www.3drap.it

 

[HugoTwoWheels]

Recieved it yesterday with my DD Pro bundle, Mclaren GT3 rim and Boost Kit. Using it on a Omega GT stand and my chair doesnt move.

After the gushing reviews, endless high praise, and it - apparently - being an "essential" item for all Sim racers, I expected it to be a game changing piece of hardware.

What I have instead is a ridiculously stiff pedal that I can barely move with my hands, let alone with foot travel. I read a comment on another page stating "its like pushing hard into a brick wall".

How are Youtube reviewers and Sim Racers not commenting on this? How are they able to get so much travel on it? Their calves are definitely not as defined as The Rock.

Any tips? Or shall I just sell it on?

Most Youtubers and people at simracing forums, reddit included, are elitist bull****ters. Regarding load cell technique, most of the reviewers and "simracers" don't even know how the technique works and what differs it from potentiometers or hall sensors. Nor do they know what the pros and cons are. It's really like looking for information on sound and equipment advice on HIFI forums... Horrible and misguiding.

Load cell is great if you understand what it is and can adjust and modify it to meet your specific needs. In many cases, the end result can't be replicated with potentiometer/hall.
Saying "pressure based" or "distance based" doesn't explain anything.
Personally, I use a hall sensor brake with very low resistance as a brake pedal, wearing socks. I see no benefits in using a load cell. And I have zero issues braking without ABS or trail braking. It's absolutely not realistic though.

What's the purpose of you getting load cell in the first place? Automatically better lap times? Won't happen. There are perfectly good reasons for getting expensive brake pedals, but most are bad ones.

 

[Abarth_71]

Mine came today. Got it set up and yes I realise it's supposed to be stiff but it's ridiculously so with hardly any travel, nothing like the amount of travel seen in the various YT vids. Going to order some of the brake mods that Super_GT posted above.

 

[super_gt]

nothing like the amount of travel seen in the various YT vids

These reviewers come from very high class pedals where they require high pressure, so it is not a problem for them to apply a lot of pressure, and they have quite strong cockpits as well.
I can assure you that the pedal travel you see in these videos is real.
This is me applying 60kg of pressure on the pedal, with BRF set to MAX to reach 100% braking force.

 

[Abarth_71]

I can't get anywhere near that amount of compression. I appreciate what you're saying but for an entry level load cell it's too stiff and they don't offer tuning kits for it. The brake pedal in my car is very firm but the load cell is something else entirely. I've ordered one linear and one progressive pedal mod so hopefully that'll help.

 

[Theiceman1]

So finally had time to test the load cell last night. At 100% brake force it quite hard. Took brake force down to 55% and that's my sweet spot. Not much travel, but it works on pressure. Much better than the stock brake. Will take time to get the muscle memory working. Overall happy.

 

[Napalm_LT]

I can't get anywhere near that amount of compression. I appreciate what you're saying but for an entry level load cell it's too stiff and they don't offer tuning kits for it. The brake pedal in my car is very firm but the load cell is something else entirely. I've ordered one linear and one progressive pedal mod so hopefully that'll help.

The real car have some dead zone, where car braking only a bit or don't brake at all. Another thing - how often do you brake 100 % in real life??? In racing games you do that all the time so camparing race vs real life isn't good. Big dead zone in the race car brake pedal would cost time, because car start to brake after a bit of time. ust count how many times you are braking during one lap, during one hour race???
If you prefer soft pedal, load cell isn't for you, but I believe you just need some time to get used to them. As example I always used some brake mods for pedals to get stiffer brake pedal, but when I moved to V3i it took about month to get used to them. So advise - be more patient and you will be happy with them.

 

[Abarth_71]

Not saying I want a soft pedal at all. It doesn't matter what car it relates to I want a progressive pedal that gets harder the more you press not one that's stupidly stiff the whole time. That's got nothing to do with it having a dead zone. The load cell should be able to do this.

 

[B80]

Who'd have guessed many years ago that when I started doing twice weekly squats, lunges, deadlifts and calf raises etc they'd finally be of 'functional' benefit for a video game, of all things. I knew it would eventually come in handy

Just ordered GT Premium bundle with load cell yesterday...

 

[Daz555]

Recieved it yesterday with my DD Pro bundle, Mclaren GT3 rim and Boost Kit. Using it on a Omega GT stand and my chair doesnt move.

After the gushing reviews, endless high praise, and it - apparently - being an "essential" item for all Sim racers, I expected it to be a game changing piece of hardware.

What I have instead is a ridiculously stiff pedal that I can barely move with my hands, let alone with foot travel. I read a comment on another page stating "its like pushing hard into a brick wall".

How are Youtube reviewers and Sim Racers not commenting on this? How are they able to get so much travel on it? Their calves are definitely not as defined as The Rock.

Any tips? Or shall I just sell it on?

For stiff pedals to work well your setup really needs to be in a sim rig - one where your driving position really drives your back into the seat when you press the brake. In a setup like that even a fairly heavy load cell does not feel that stiff at all. The problem with stiff pedals in my view is when you have a very upright driving position (say in an office chair with a wheel stand) where you are pressing "down" on the pedals - this gives you very little bracing/support for the pedal action and engages the wrong muscles.

This kind of setup makes it hard to press a very stiff pedal:

This kind of setup makes it easy (in my view):

In the first picture you are really only using the small muscles in your ankles/calves to press the brake and in the second you are adding in the large muscles in your thigh and backside.

 

[Goonie75]

Not saying I want a soft pedal at all. It doesn't matter what car it relates to I want a progressive pedal that gets harder the more you press not one that's stupidly stiff the whole time. That's got nothing to do with it having a dead zone. The load cell should be able to do this.

LC pedals are trying to replicate race car pedals, the CSL LC doesn't really come close, if you want to see a set that does check out this video, these move about 1cm then no more, the rest is pressure, just like a race car, because real race cars don't have vaccuum boosters that make the pedal squishy and difficult to brake accurately. I am not suggesting you get pedals like these but thought it might explain what LC pedals are trying to replicate, and trust me the CSL LC are a lot softer than the hardcore LC pedals on the market.

 

[diablopug]

The 3drap Mods for the LC what ones are worth getting? My kit hasn't arrived yet. But I've had one of the 3drap rubbers on my Logitech G29 to make it stiffer. (forgot which one I fitted) is alot stiffer than standard. But an idea which one to go for. Mainly drive GT cars than single seaters. Games GTSport/GT7, ACC & PC2. Know I need to give it time getting used to the LC once setup.

 

[SteveTM]

The CSL load cell felt extremely stiff for me as well and not much fun to use. I didn't even wire it up after fixing it to a solid Sim-Lab rig, just returned it as I knew without any ability to make adjustments I'd never use it. I considered spending more money on alternative elastomers, but difficult to know if it would make the brake feel too 'weird' or still too hard, or if making it softer might also slow the pedal's rebound speed (the standard brake still has a spring to help with that).

Anyway, if you decide the load cell is just not working out like I did, but want a pedal that's a tad stiffer and with a shorter travel than the standard CSL brake, there is a way to make the standard CSL brake feel a bit closer to how I 'thought' the load cell would feel when bolted to a rig. Main thing to do is fill in the hole in the rubber/foam stopper on the standard brake with something solid. Best thing to use is a 15mm wide nylon plastic spacer around 16-17mm diameter (they're pretty cheap on ebay), alternatively a couple of M8 bolts pushed in side by side in the hole should also work. Tilt the foam sideways and it should pop out. Might also want to remove the gap/slack between the foam and the metal pedal by sliding in a 3-4mm spacer/wedge as well (folded card will probably do). I don't recommend doing this mod if you use the pedals on the floor though, as you'll probably find the brake becomes too stiff - although it's nowhere near as stiff as the load cell.

I've posted this quick little mod on Fanatec's pedal forums a couple of times, but no one really replies, so maybe it's just me who likes how it changes the feel of the standard brake, but I hope it helps someone who is also a bit disappointed in the load cell kit's stiffness but doesnt want to spend too much moving up to the V3s or something else for a while.

 

[raghza]

I just started using the CSL Loadcell pedals as well and the very first drive I had a similar feeling, that the pedal doesn't have any travel and I kept wanting to press it down more than I could.
But a few hours in and you start to forget the old sensation of pressing the pedal to the floor. With LC, I can dose the brake much more accurately and stabilizing the car mid-corner via gentle braking is much easier and feels more natural than before.
My point being that the loadcell feels (and is supposed to feel) much more different than the regular pedals, but give it some time and surely you will start to appreciate it. In a real (sporty) car you can't move the brake pedal with your hand either.

 

[Goonie75]

Next time you get in your car, before you turn the engine on, pump the brake pedal to make sure there is no vacuum in the brake booster, then feel how hard the pedal is, much more like an un boosted race brake.

 

[NikNakTobasco]

I just started using the CSL Loadcell pedals as well and the very first drive I had a similar feeling, that the pedal doesn't have any travel and I kept wanting to press it down more than I could.
But a few hours in and you start to forget the old sensation of pressing the pedal to the floor. With LC, I can dose the brake much more accurately and stabilizing the car mid-corner via gentle braking is much easier and feels more natural than before.
My point being that the loadcell feels (and is supposed to feel) much more different than the regular pedals, but give it some time and surely you will start to appreciate it. In a real (sporty) car you can't move the brake pedal with your hand either.

I don’t know. I got mine yesterday and am struggling massively. Put about six hours on it and still not happy really. It’s basically like pushing against a brick wall.

 

[Theiceman1]

I don’t know. I got mine yesterday and am struggling massively. Put about six hours on it and still not happy really. It’s basically like pushing against a brick wall.

@NikNakTobasco what brake pressure are u running at? Try lowering it. Then adjust accordingly.

 

[NikNakTobasco]

The brick wall effect was just not working for me so I looked around and found a neat little mod that’s worked a treat. Using the yellow foam out of the old brake and replacing one of the fillers and one disc out the spring and it gives just a little amount of travel that’s so badly needed. This way you still get travel even with a smaller amount of pressure to help with low braking areas and mitigate the binary nature it had previously.

 

[richroo]

From stuff that i have watched , load cell needs time for your muscle memory to change . potentiometer is more about distance which mods can implement a more natural brake feel altho not perfect.
Load cell is exactly that no movement just presure so to get the feel you really want is dependent on the possible adjustment of your pedals, the top range peadles give alot more adjustment with sponge / rubber inserts and spring load , adjusting this can give some travel before the wall arrives !

 

[NikNakTobasco]

From stuff that i have watched , load cell needs time for your muscle memory to change . potentiometer is more about distance which mods can implement a more natural brake feel altho not perfect.
Load cell is exactly that no movement just presure so to get the feel you really want is dependent on the possible adjustment of your pedals, the top range peadles give alot more adjustment with sponge / rubber inserts and spring load , adjusting this can give some travel before the wall arrives !

I think I need some travel, I don’t want a big floppy thing but I need to know that I’m actually applying the brakes. It’s fine when applying but it’s coming off that’s the issue. There’s literally no appreciable movement at all at around 30% to down to zero so I was finding slower trail braked corners impossible to negotiate. Infield at interlagos being the perfect example.

 

[richroo]

I think I need some travel, I don’t want a big floppy thing but I need to know that I’m actually applying the brakes. It’s fine when applying but it’s coming off that’s the issue. There’s literally no appreciable movement at all at around 30% to down to zero so I was finding slower trail braked corners impossible to negotiate. Infield at interlagos being the perfect example.

how long have you been using them ?
maybe releasing to fast as the pressure is not enough to keep enough input !
just to clarify i'm only guessing as the info is imo from suff i have watched!

 

[NikNakTobasco]

how long have you been using them ?
maybe releasing to fast as the pressure is not enough to keep enough input !
just to clarify i'm only guessing as the info is imo from suff i have watched!

The CSL load cell has literally like 5mm of travel. There’s Reddit videos of people standing on them and it hardly moving. They’re just way too stiff. I appreciate the mechanics of them but the implementation in this case is a bit off. No coincidence that the more expensive V3 pedals they sell aren’t this way and have adjustable travel.

 

[richroo]

need to juggle alot with pressure sensitivity and attachments to find that sweet spot from info in vid !