TH8RS, DSD, etc. to Fanatec Adapter - BasherBoards SFA1

[mrbasher]

Based upon what you have done I would recommend checking the firmware on the shifter. I would like to rule that out. I can't see a reason why it would have lost it, but it's possible.

Please try that and let us know.

 

[BODHI85]

Received my sfa1 and it works great. Thanks mrbasher.

Though I have yet to do a firmware upgrade. I'm a little worried about messing it up.

Anyways, I was wondering if anyone did their firmware upgrade using Windows 8. Also, I have it running on my mac via virtual machine. Does that make a difference?

 

[ninjajimmy]

I've talked to Mr. Basher and we think the firmware needs to be updated for my shifter. Hopefully that's it and I can get some racing in soon.

If you plan to do it now i'd be interested in your findings. I have a few more hours before i'm home to give it a go myself.

Update the firmware on the adapter as he described, but don't update anything on the shifter.

Then go through calibration as you normally would and see if it works in game with clutch.

If not, and you have the same issue i'm having, download the driver for the shifter (link below), follow directions and update, and see if that works.

http://ts.thrustmaster.com/eng/index.php?pg=view_files&gid=3&fid=15&pid=320&cid=15

The theory here is that the suspected old firmware in the TH8RS isn't working correctly with the new firmware for the SFA1. At least that is my understand in layman's terms

 

[mrbasher]

Well, nobody should be afraid to update the adapter firmware. Many people have now updated the firmware without any issues. However, given the number of these that I've sold, we are bound to run into some speed bumps along the way.

Rest assured, the firmware is tested as working properly. My customers are not my beta testers unless I specifically have a conversation with someone and we agree to test something together.

What ninjajimmy stated are my thoughts for the moment. It seems the old firmware and new firmware both work with the newer version of the TH8RS firmware. However, the new SFA1 firmware possibly might not work with the old TH8RS firmware. I am still waiting to confirm that. Unfortunately, to my knowledge I can't downgrade the firmware on my TH8RS to test.

The best solution currently looks to be making sure the firmware on the TH8RS is up to date. This I know works perfectly.

 

[JogoAsobi]

I updated the TH8RS Firmware first (Windows 7 64B), then I re-calibrated the TH8RS via the Thrustmaster utility.

After that I disconnected the TH8RS and performed the BB SFA1 update as per instructions.

Absolutely no issues here. PS3 Slim/GT5/Fanatec GT3RS V.2/CSP V.1s.

I purchased a few TH8RS from Amazon UK and all required Firmware updates.

 

[thehawk05]

Checking the calibration of the TH8RS with its utility is a great place to start if things go screwy. The third day I was using my TH8 with the SFA1 while playing Forza 4 my car suddenly would shift between 1st and 3rd while in the 1st gear slot all on its own and would also go into 3rd gear when I was selecting 5th. Tried rebooting the Xbox, wheel, redoing calibration on the wheel etc all to no avail. Took the shifter and connected it to my PC and for whatever reason the shifter had lost calibration. Redid it with the utility tool and all has been well since.

 

[mrbasher]

Wait until you hear ninjajimmy's story... I'll let him tell it...

 

[menos | M6]

Awesome Love hearing this stuff! Thank you both for posting about your experience.

Except the Mac part I had thought that may be an issue for some folks. I will do some research and see what I can come up with, though it may not be soon I am afraid. I have a Mac I can test with at least, so that's a start.

Everything works beautifully here - shifter from Amazon (firmware unknown) + SFA1 without updating to latest firmware.

I keep it at that and enjoy. Should at some point a Mac solution for flashing these parts be developed, I am all ears ;-)

Thanks again - I am looking now into the remaining weak spots of my simulator (wheel rim, frame, carbon fibre seat, speaker brackets, triple fine adjustable monitor positioning, maybe start tactical audio, …)

 

[ninjajimmy]

:tup:I'm keeping this short and sweet because it could take way more time to explain. Jon if you have anything to add feel free.

First off: mrbasher is an awesome dude. If you are looking for an adapter for the TH8RS without a doubt go with Basherboards SFA1.. We must have talked on the phone for a combined time of at least an hour and a half trying to figure out what my issue is (we figured it wasn't the adapter, but he was still calling me to try and remedy my situation). He goes above and beyond that's for sure.

For those wondering: for some reason there was nothing coming from the shifter....nada. No power or anything. After trying to get the computers to recognize it I decided it was useless and ordered another one. I then decided to pull it apart to just see if anything was out of whack. Took it apart, checked all the connections and plugged it in. It works! Put it back together and i'm enjoying racing finally with it!

I just took two videos to show my setup and some in game use with the shifter. It's finally awesome to use it after all the issues I was having.

First video is my rig setup and the second is some noob racing. Note I made the videos for someone who hasn't seen the adapter or understand how it works.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OOEJnvxfV0&feature=share&list=UUZUOmQxsHCIcaRm-DHx-aKw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VB3j-I2D0KY&feature=share&list=UUZUOmQxsHCIcaRm-DHx-aKw



One note: I found in order to keep the settings saved you need to power down the console first, then unplug the USB from console, then I shut down the wheel and removed the shifter cable from wheel. I'm sure there are other ways as well this just worked for me. When I turned it all back on it went

Xbox
plug in adapter to Xbox
plug in adapter to wheel
turn wheel on
enjoy game

 

[JogoAsobi]

Everything works beautifully here - shifter from Amazon (firmware unknown) + SFA1 without updating to latest firmware.

I keep it at that and enjoy. Should at some point a Mac solution for flashing these parts be developed, I am all ears ;-)

Thanks again - I am looking now into the remaining weak spots of my simulator (wheel rim, frame, carbon fibre seat, speaker brackets, triple fine adjustable monitor positioning, maybe start tactical audio, &#8230

Long time mac user here, unfortunately the majority of device firmware updates outside of Apple's garden are not available on the Mac. Get yourself a retail Windows OS, and install it via Bootcamp. Supported versions of Windows will vary depending on your particular Intel Mac's specs and the Feline species of the OS you have installed. All that info is readily available on Apple's site.

There is also a great 3rd party utility called WinClone by TwoCanoes that will allow you to back up your Windows Bootcamp partition in the event you ever have to migrate HDs down the road.

That is how I update the majority of devices I own that require firmware updates via a MacBook Pro.
I guess you are currently unable to update your Fanatec firmware or run their utility as well.

The Thrustmaster firmware update and utility software only run on Windows as well. Highly recommend the calibration software (Thanks MrBasher for the tip). It lets you do stuff like set your neutral zones, recalibrate to compensate for different shifter plates like the one posted by Villeneuve73, DSD's, Yip's, Mobism, and etc.

 

[mrbasher]

ninjajimmy,

Really quick, I wanted to point this out before I head to bed, I'll respond more later... JogoAsobi pointed out something at the end of his post that I think will help you, based upon what I am seeing in the video. (I had the same thing happening)

Download this utility from Thrustmaster: http://ts.thrustmaster.com/download/accessories/pc/wheels/exe/TH8RS/TH8_RS_Tool_v1.0.7.0.rar

You'll need a utility like 7Zip to extract the contents. Then run the utility.

It will allow you to set up where the gear changes actually happen. Based upon what I am seeing in your video, it looks like the upper gates engage much sooner than the lower gates. This makes it look like the adapter is lagging the shifts when you go into 2nd, 4th or 6th. Take a look, I'd bet that as it sits now, those lower gates are engaging pretty "low." What I mean is, they aren't engaging until you are a ways down into the gate. Mine was like this stock.

I will suggest the same thing I did to JogoAsobi... Set it up so that it's sort of divided into 3rds. So upper 1,3,5,7 gears take up the upper 3rd in the utility, neutral is in the middle and 2,4,6,R take up the bottom third. Adjust to preference of course, but try to keep the upper gates and lower gates at similar distances from where the stick actually stops, if that makes sense.

This was driving me NUTS in GT5 until I realized what was going on. I adjusted it using the utility, saved the settings to the shifter and it was much better.

Speaking of which the utility actually saves the settings on the shifter itself, not in Windows. So you can adjust it, then those settings will carry over to wherever you use it, be that xbox, ps3, or whatever else.

ok bedtime.

 

[Spike125]

One more thing I would like to add. I you have problems with the shifter in sequential, you can calibrate this section as well.
After calibrating the shifter completly, don't open the same utility if you just want to check the shifter, as it will every time you open it, reset your TH8.
For checking the function of the shifter in any mode, install the driver and then select the device properties in the game device manager.
The windows 7 drivers and all the utilities from Thrustmaster are working under Windows 8, confirmed.

 

[ninjajimmy]

Yeah, i'm going to download that tonight Thrustmaster Program tonight to set and adjust each shift point. I'm just happy it is working now.

I was adjusting some settings on the wheel as it is very different from Forza 4 to Horizon. After getting it where I like it in Horizon I took out a Pagani Zonda R for a spin...super fun! Easy to drive at 200 mph on the highway passing cars, no real tire spinning, steering feels suburb, etc. Definitely put a smile on my face for sure.

Now to find wheel settings I like for Forza 4.

 

[thehawk05]

Got my custom made Delrin knob from Rob Niziolek at Product Innovations today that he made to my specs. Absolutely love it compared to the stock piece. Feels fantastic, throw feels shorter thanks to how low it goes down on the stock stick and the finish quality is top notch as was his customer service. Even with Hurricane Sandy interrupting his manufacturing he still had it fabbed and shipped to Canada in around 12 business days. It feels super comfy and natural to hold while running through the gears. The rounded top also helps it to simulate a traditional round knob so you can alternate your grip style when shifting by placing your palm over it. Although it looks grey in the photos it is indeed black in color and is you can see on his site you can get numerous other colors as well along with different styles of knobs. He finishes his knobs by glass bead blasting them which gives it this nice subtle suede type of feel to it. It could easily be polished if one wanted as well. All in all I'm very pleased with how it turned out.

Crappy Pics from iPhone (I'll get better ones tomorrow):

http://www.productinnovationsonline.com/Shift_Knobs.html

Specs I requested:

4" Black Hardbar
M9 x 1.25 thread pitch
2.25" counterbore with a 10mm diameter (allows it to sit low on the TH8 stick)
Drilled and tapped depth .75" above the counterbore to accomodate threaded area of TH8 stick

 

[JogoAsobi]

Got my custom made Delrin knob from Rob at Product Innovations today that he made to my specs.

I like it! How much?

It appears his website is up and functional, his online store has pricing listed.

Think that will be the way to go after I get a different plate with shorter throw.

 

[thehawk05]

$60 shipped to Canada

 

[JogoAsobi]

Did you get the 4" length?

I guess the better question is what are the specs for the one you ordered?

In case some of us might want the same.

 

[thehawk05]

Check my earlier post...edited with specs

 

[JogoAsobi]

Thanks!

 

[PrimoShooter]

Just a quick heads up for anyone ordering the SFA1 in the UK

I ordered mine on the 2nd of November, it arrived in the UK Parcelforce hub on the 4th and was cleared through customs on th 6th , I was notified of the VAT and Parcelforce's administration cost by letter on the 8th with delivery due on the 9th.

Total cost = Th8 shifter £60(Amazon) + £78(SFA1 + cable) + £28(VAT etc)
= £166

 

[ninjajimmy]

Just following up. I got the new shifter in tonight and calibrated it using the software. Basically set it up as soon as I go into the "fork" in each gear it counts it as being in gear. I plan to install the new shifter tonight and also put the Pedal filter in the CSR pedals and play with those a bit. Then it's just a matter of organizing all the wiring and getting some playtime in.

 

[mrbasher]

Just a quick heads up for anyone ordering the SFA1 in the UK

I ordered mine on the 2nd of November, it arrived in the UK Parcelforce hub on the 4th and was cleared through customs on th 6th , I was notified of the VAT and Parcelforce's administration cost by letter on the 8th with delivery due on the 9th.

Total cost = Th8 shifter £60(Amazon) + £78(SFA1 + cable) + £28(VAT etc)
= £166

Out of curiosity, did you select EMS shipping? It looks like it based on the shipping speed and price you paid. I'm curious what parcelforce one is? Both of my shipping options are USPS...

I think I should make everyone aware of something... if you select EMS for shipping my actual shipping cost for international orders is $38 for the UK and $35 for everywhere else. That is why the price is so high. USPS First class is usually about $7 to $8, hence the price being so much lower.

I hope you guys understand that I can't eat the shipping or VAT and still produce these for people.

 

[PrimoShooter]

Out of curiosity, did you select EMS shipping? It looks like it based on the shipping speed and price you paid. I'm curious what parcelforce one is? Both of my shipping options are USPS...

I think I should make everyone aware of something... if you select EMS for shipping my actual shipping cost for international orders is $38 for the UK and $35 for everywhere else. That is why the price is so high. USPS First class is usually about $7 to $8, hence the price being so much lower.

I hope you guys understand that I can't eat the shipping or VAT and still produce these for people.

I hope this reply appears in the correct place as I am using the gtplanet app for the first time .

Parcelforce is a UK delivery company that USPS use. You can track the package using both their web sites.
For some reason the Th8 shifter is now showing on Amazon at 125 pounds, so I only paid a little over that to get it working with my wheel.
I am happy with the cost just to have a good quality shifter connected.
I am sure people understand what a good deal they are getting with the adapter, I am looking forward to using it for the first time this weekend .

 

[Spike125]

I gotto say it again, MrBasher goes above and beyond to support his product.

Thx

 

[Publicsafety]

:tup:I'm keeping this short and sweet because it could take way more time to explain. Jon if you have anything to add feel free.

First off: mrbasher is an awesome dude. If you are looking for an adapter for the TH8RS without a doubt go with Basherboards SFA1.. We must have talked on the phone for a combined time of at least an hour and a half trying to figure out what my issue is (we figured it wasn't the adapter, but he was still calling me to try and remedy my situation). He goes above and beyond that's for sure.

For those wondering: for some reason there was nothing coming from the shifter....nada. No power or anything. After trying to get the computers to recognize it I decided it was useless and ordered another one. I then decided to pull it apart to just see if anything was out of whack. Took it apart, checked all the connections and plugged it in. It works! Put it back together and i'm enjoying racing finally with it!

I just took two videos to show my setup and some in game use with the shifter. It's finally awesome to use it after all the issues I was having.

First video is my rig setup and the second is some noob racing. Note I made the videos for someone who hasn't seen the adapter or understand how it works.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OOEJnvxfV0&feature=share&list=UUZUOmQxsHCIcaRm-DHx-aKw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VB3j-I2D0KY&feature=share&list=UUZUOmQxsHCIcaRm-DHx-aKw



One note: I found in order to keep the settings saved you need to power down the console first, then unplug the USB from console, then I shut down the wheel and removed the shifter cable from wheel. I'm sure there are other ways as well this just worked for me. When I turned it all back on it went

Xbox
plug in adapter to Xbox
plug in adapter to wheel
turn wheel on
enjoy game

I am having the same problem. I ordered my SFA1 the day they were available. Was just able to order my shifter last week. Today it was delivered. Hooked it up.... nothing.

I am running the utilities on the shifter now. If you have any hints to get it working... Please let me know.

 

[mrbasher]

Edit: Disregard

 

[mrbasher]

If you ever have trouble with the adapter, the best thing to do is start from scratch and follow the instructions:

1. Start with nothing plugged into the SFA1 and your wheel turned OFF.
2. Plug your shifter into the adapter on the input labeled “SHIFTER”
3. Plug the supplied USB cable into the SFA1 on the input labled “USB”
4. Plug the other end of the supplied USB cable into one of the USB ports on your console (or some other USB power source)
5. Plug the adapter into your wheel using the input labeled “WHEEL”
6. Turn on your console
7. Turn on your wheel
8. Recalibrate the shifter on your Fanatec wheel (PC MODE seems to be the preferred method)
9. Turn your wheel OFF then back ON...
10. Use wheel and shifter

After this, each time you are going to play:

1. make sure the shifter is plugged into the adapter
2. apply power to the adapter via USB (so turn on computer, console, whatever)
3. turn on wheel
4. Play

 

[Publicsafety]

Good news. My shifter and SFA1 work flawlessly. mrbasher you have my gratitude

 

[PrimoShooter]

I updated the TH8 firmware and ran the calibration program.
Updated my SFA1 firmware.
Followed the SFA1 connection instructions.

And guess what, it works perfectly.
One happy customer.

 

[ninjajimmy]

Just updating. Haven't played Forza much, but when I have my SFA1 box is working great with the new TH8RS.