The Thrustmaster T500RS Thread

[RC45]

I noticed that the price of the T500 RS has now dropped to $549 on Amazon.com and eligible for free shipping within the US. I'm actually quite interested in replacing my G27 with the T500 so I almost pressed the button. But I'm just not willing to make the jump until I know I can get my hands on the h-pattern shifter and know for a fact that it operates, feels and functions at least as well as the wheel itself. I'm a bit disappointed that we're now half way through April and at least to my knowledge, we haven't seen so much as a pre-production spy photo or speculation rumors for any further official comments from Thurstmaster. I'm very worried that this could end up being a piece of vaporware and we'll never actually see it.

Has anybody heard anything further about the h-pattern shifter?

I have been enjoying my T500RS and Act-LABS gated shifter on the PC since January. Fanatec delivered my December ordered CSP's in February.

I don't think we will see a Thrustmaster shifter - they have not even attempted to keep sales from Logitech or Fanatec for H-gate shifter folks by way of even asneak peek - this leads me to believe there will never be a shifter.

They have shown they don't need one to make sales, so why throw R&D away on an apparently unwanted access.

I used my Fanatec H-gate shift once and then tossed it and the GT2RS wheel in the attic.

I m not even playing Gt5 anymore, what a let down it turned ou tto be - I played GT4 for 3 years, GT5 got boring and bland after 3 months.

And now we have rumours that PD is working on a new project? The T500RS is the "official" wheel for GT5 and doesnt need an H-gate to fully exploit the game, so again, I dont think TM or PD are really hot on the whole shifter/clutch thing.

At the end of the day the T500/CSP/Act-LABS is a great combo. For PS3 GT5 thrills with a clutch I just haul out the trusty G25.

The TM shifter will need to be really significant to entice me to buy it, assuming it ever shows up.

 

[Dijital Majik]

I don't know why people are expecting spy shots or sneak peaks of the shifter when you consider we didn't even know about the existence or production of the T500RS until just before it came out, not even any rumours that a wheel was in development.

The current lack of a shifter is what's holding me back from buying a T500 tomorrow, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I'm also sure TM know this. It seems TM like to keep a tight lid on things until ready for production, and don't see why it would be any different for the shifter.

 

[RC45]

I don't know why people are expecting spy shots or sneak peaks of the shifter when you consider we didn't even know about the existence or production of the T500RS until just before it came out, not even any rumours that a wheel was in development.

The current lack of a shifter is what's holding me back from buying a T500 tomorrow, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I'm also sure TM know this. It seems TM like to keep a tight lid on things until ready for production, and don't see why it would be any different for the shifter.

And the result was a slow retail deployment that lost TM many many sales. Retailers where not geared up for the launch, product was slow to be released and arrive.

There is a reason why companies pimp and promote products; launch sellout.

Recall the hype that GT5 received, fooled millions of us to prepay years before the title went gold.

Now that the T500RS is out and in retail, there is no earthly reason not to hype the coming H-gate shifter - thats assuming their is a shifter to hype

 

[Mr Latte]

To be fair nothing of the T500 was shown until about a month before its mostly paper release date. Although the actual instore release in many regions came at least a month later than the so called official announced availability date.

I cant quite remember but think that a TM spokesperson responded on "Facebook" a while back within one of the discussions that the "H Shifter" was expected in the summer.

If thats the case then we might not get to see images of it until again about a month before its release. Assuming that is they go about things the same way as before with the wheel. It does however make LOTS OF SENSE for them to develop a shifter for this wheel as not only will many owners of T500 consider getting it but it will also be suitable for ANY PC sim owners using any wheel.

Id guess they would develop one for the same reason they make all their other products and thats as a business to make money.
We dont know either way but they have stated one is forthcoming.

This wheel has generated a HEAP of interest and sold well now that its more readibly available.
Just look at these forums, hasnt this thread had more interest/views than the complete Fanatec thread thats covered all their wheels and general discussions.

 

[rebla47]

I do not lose my hope so early to be releasing the H-shifter, although I admit that I have my doubts. T500 RS is an official wheel from a serious manufacturer, with the support and direct participation in the development of the game's creators pointer on PS3. And it comes with a clutch pedal...

I think the shifter make sense in GT5: there are many cars in the game would charge interest if you could drive its with manual transmission.

And although I agree with RC45 (like many others) that GT5 is a short game, boring and not very addictive, but I think an update would effect the release of the H-shifter.

 

[jjaisli]

I don't know why people are expecting spy shots or sneak peaks of the shifter...

Well, because...

Now that the T500RS is out and in retail, there is no earthly reason not to hype the coming H-gate shifter - thats assuming their is a shifter to hype

I hope you're wrong though RC about the shifter itself. If they don't make one, it will probably mean a lost sale from me. At least in the short term.

I don't want to go o/t about GT5. But the offline part of the game for me was always going to be nothing but a tedious chore to earn credits. For me, the game is all about online. And the physics engine and car variety is sophisticated enough and large enough that it will keep me entertained for a long time to come. That is, so long as enough of my PSN friends continue to play it as well. And I don't think I'm the only one. So long as PD continues to patch and improve the game there is and will be a sizeable market for this wheel just from PS3 GT5 players. How many of them want or desire a potentially expensive H-pattern in addition to the wheel is another issue. I really wish they had been sold as package like the G27 as it calls into question the shifter's compatibility with future PS3 games.

Personally, I think Thrustmaster is playing it cool. They're probably working on the shifter but are waiting to gauge sales numbers before announcing anything further.

 

[makimak22]

Paddle shift IS faster than clutch and stick in real life driving. Why should it be different in a race sim game? I do agree if the car you are driving in-game doesn't have semi-auto, you should use stick shift. I guess if the car is only ever made in right hand drive then you should swap the gear mount to the other side as well??

Thrustmaster was well known for their flight control "stick" before they finally made a serious attempt to make a decent wheel. So why wouldn't they finish the job? Yamauchi San would insist...\

Regarding marketing hype, well... maybe the French do it differently...

GT5 maybe short, but what's stopping PD from releasing new cars and tracks as DLCs? Other racing games have been doing it....

 

[sandboxgod]

Hi Sandboxgod, I just did few laps on GT5 with my GT2. Well, to answer your questions...first, I took the Alfa Romeo 155 2.5 V6 TI '93 to Nurburgring Nordschleife. On the long straight towards the end, I took my hands off the wheel and the wheel remained straight right until the end of the straight where the wheel wooble a bit. But it's nothing like what DFP does. So, I think you would be okay with this.

Also, GT2 does return to center if you let go of the wheel...but it's much slower than what T500RS does.

I have spent the past few days playing with T500RS on GT5. Going back to GT2 feels very different. T500RS wheel feels so much tighter, it gives me a sense of precision as I turn the wheel. T500RS FFB is also much stronger yet refined. GT2 FFB on GT5 doesn't feel as tight and detail as T500RS. It kind of gives a "toy-like" feeling. I know there will be people out there disagree with me. But that's just how I feel about these two wheels.

The pedals...at first, I missed the load cell brake on my G25 with AP Electrix mod. After tweaking the CSP with tuning kit and put the brake one slot up, it feels much better and it feels closer to the AP Electrix mod. But after few days on T500RS' inverted pedal setting, I don't really miss load cell that much. I guess this is the thing that you can get used to. But one thing I do miss is the CSP ABS vibrating motor. I have it set at 95 so when I really slam or floor the brake, it vibrates. I like that effect a lot and it helps me to judge how hard I am hitting the brake.

I'm going to stick with GT2 for a bit longer because I want to finish off Forza3 before the new one comes out later this year. I was about half way thru the events before my 3rd Xbox wheel broke down. Now, I am going back to it with GT2 and enjoy the game.

Ah thanks for the detailed response. Still waiting patiently for my GT2 to arrive. Like you, I haven't beaten the Forza 3 campaign and was looking forward to using it for that purpose. I was curious what I should expect coming from using a T500RS when it gets here.... Just hoping it won't be a big shock

I noticed that the price of the T500 RS has now dropped to $549 on Amazon.com and eligible for free shipping within the US. I'm actually quite interested in replacing my G27 with the T500 so I almost pressed the button. But I'm just not willing to make the jump until I know I can get my hands on the h-pattern shifter and know for a fact that it operates, feels and functions at least as well as the wheel itself. I'm a bit disappointed that we're now half way through April and at least to my knowledge, we haven't seen so much as a pre-production spy photo or speculation rumors for any further official comments from Thurstmaster. I'm very worried that this could end up being a piece of vaporware and we'll never actually see it.

Has anybody heard anything further about the h-pattern shifter?

Yeah an h-pattern shifter would be nice for console play. Like RC45 says, it appears t500rs owners will have to use external shifters for PC play at least for now. Someone above mentioned Thrustmaster mentioned on Facebook that a shifter was due for the summer or something but they have removed that comment from their page

 

[jjaisli]

Paddle shift IS faster than clutch and stick in real life driving. Why should it be different in a race sim game?

Well, yes and no. If you take a car such as the Ferrari F330 P4, it ONLY has an H-pattern shifter in real life. And in the game, if you use paddle shifts, it's supposed to simulate moving the h-pattern from one gear to another. But if you use a real h-pattern shifter, such as the G27, the game will simply not allow you to shift as fast as you can using the paddle shifts. There's a very noticeable difference. And there's no reason for that discrepancy. So in a sense, it's an artificial slow down engineered into the game that simply doesn't allow h-pattern shifting to be as fast or efficient as using the paddles.

Someone above mentioned Thrustmaster mentioned on Facebook that a shifter was due for the summer or something but they have removed that comment from their page.

Hmmm. Well, that's not a good sign. I'm willing to bet if we don't hear anything within the next 3 months, we never will.

 

[makimak22]

The G27 shifter hardly sets any "industrial standard" and neither could the Fanatec's. Remember neither are officially approved for GT5. To really judge the shift feel for GT5 the only way right now could be by trying the FREX Type-G. OR the T500's in the future....

 

[OwensRacing]

The G27 shifter while lacking in many areas. It is still a solid piece for the packaged price. I have gotten fairly good with the shifter. Heel/Toe and precision up shifts. As well not much granny shifting.

Key is mph. You don't shift off rpm if you got wheel spin at all. It will N on you. If you drive through the spin to the peak mph per the gear it will shift every time.

Hope that helps some.

 

[Jose']

At ~2:05 she says that it will have for sure the H-shifter, so why do not believe her?

 

[OwensRacing]

Believe half of what you see and less of what you hear.

Sure hope the shifter makes it's way to market this summer. One big reason why I have not used my T500. Still rowing gears on the G27.

Hopefully get some work done on the new cockpit soon. Busy busy. And a week worth of being sick recently. I am ready to get to using the new wheel.

Check out this custom cockpit I made for my two boys. Fully adjustable as well the pedals and wheel can be removed for standard gaming chair.

Note the orange and green. 787b coloring. When it warms up some more. Plan to do the seat up with some more livery like seen on a 787b. My kids love that car. 4 rotor Rotary FTW.

 

[Tbear]

After much thought and after discussion with my wonderful wife, I have decided to cancel my order for the G27 (which is backordered and not due to be restocked until end of May) and have just ordered the T500 RS from B+H photo. I had already received a wheelstandpro for G27. Fortunately, for just 10 bucks, they will send me a pedal adapter plate that will allow everything to be secured. Can't wait!

 

[DaveS1138]

I'm curious what other peoples resolution was too. I have had the wheel for a week and it just started doing the same thing a few days ago. As the fan starts up you get a loud grinding noise (for about 45 seconds in my case) before the fan spins up to speed and sounds normal.
I sent a video in to tech support today.

Its a pity its having these issues since its an incredible wheel.

Yea Dave it's really a pitty. They too, made me send in a video showing the noise, which was no problem since the noise occurs every time. After that, they requested proof of purchase for which i sent in my amazon invoice. They then aknowledged they received my email, and I'm waiting for a response. The issue I'm interested in is whether they fix the wheel or do they replace it. Do they take care of shipping. If so which carrier do they use. I'm also wondering, in case they don't pay for shipping costs, is there a simple fix to this fan noise.

Just a quick update on this issue with the fan being very noisy during startup.

I just got an answer back from Tech support saying

The oil inside the fan needs to warm up for a couple of minutes before starting to lubricate the mechanism. Our R&D team is already working on a solution for overcoming this situation.
Please take into consideration that this noise will not have any negative effect on how the wheel or the force feedback motor works

just FYI

 

[RC45]

Just a quick update on this issue with the fan being very noisy during startup.

I just got an answer back from Tech support saying

The oil inside the fan needs to warm up for a couple of minutes before starting to lubricate the mechanism. Our R&D team is already working on a solution for overcoming this situation.
Please take into consideration that this noise will not have any negative effect on how the wheel or the force feedback motor works

just FYI

LOL - this is there answer?

I was the first person to report this issue in early January - I telephoned their support played them a recording and their tech person read my complaint online (someone poste dit and the video on Facebook) and they accused me of staging the issue with "some ambient noise".

I exchanged that wheel for a second one and the issue was still there.

I see now they acknowledge the fan issue and blame it on "cold lubricant".

What a crock - the issue occurs AFTER the fan has been operating a while, IOW after the lubricant would be warmed up, not before.

They just need to admit they used a rubbish fan and be done with it, buth they wont do that.

 

[Gigantoad]

The fan on my last wheel (now dead and replaced) used to do just that. Be noisy once it started and then quiet down after 5-10 seconds.

 

[jimmyhu]

I am new to this Thread and bought this wheel for a week

now having this problem, what do you guys think?

Grateful for your reply

 

[Topyn]

I've also a CPS but prefer playing with T500 Pedals for several reasons:
* I love suspended position
* More stable
* More adjustable positions (and very easy to install)
* Lot of next mods possibilities (real paddles, loadcell, etc...)
* Very easy to disassemble
* Better accuracy on PS3 with 10 bits resolution = 1024 values on each pedals
(on PS3, CSP have a poor 8 bits resolution = only 256 values on each pedals)

Wow that's a really huge discovery you made there I had no idea 👍

Very easy to verify:
1) Just download "DIView Direct Input software" here:
http://www.leobodnar.com/products/BU0836/DIView.zip
2) When done launch the software and choose "Axis/View Raw Data".

Result for T500 RS:
Wheel Axis = 16 Bits resolution (65536 values)
Pedals Axis = 10 Bits resolution (1024 values on each pedals)

Result for Porshe Wheel with CSP plugged on the wheel:
Wheel Axis = 14 Bits resolution (16384 values)
Pedals Axis = 8 Bits resolution (256 values on each pedals)

 

[t500mikeblur]

Lots of great advice i found here.
My T500 is coming 👍

 

[DaveS1138]

LOL - this is there answer?

I was the first person to report this issue in early January - I telephoned their support played them a recording and their tech person read my complaint online (someone poste dit and the video on Facebook) and they accused me of staging the issue with "some ambient noise".

I exchanged that wheel for a second one and the issue was still there.

I see now they acknowledge the fan issue and blame it on "cold lubricant".

What a crock - the issue occurs AFTER the fan has been operating a while, IOW after the lubricant would be warmed up, not before.

They just need to admit they used a rubbish fan and be done with it, buth they wont do that.

I'm not happy with that answer either
Although I'm more unhappy that it took over a week of constant emails from me after sending them a video of the noise to get them to give me any kind of reply at all.

with my wheel it runs for about 8 mins before the fan turns on. Then for a good 45 seconds or so it runs with a loud grinding noise that gradually fades to the normal fan noise.

Fair enough if they say the oil in the fan is too cold to lubricate the fan correctly at startup......but if the fan is running for 45 seconds every time I start it up with no lubrication and obviously with something giving enough surface on surface rubbing to cause this much grinding noise then it seems to me that the fan has a very serious fault and will fail over time because of this.

So I really want to know what they are planning to do to fix this. I certainly dont want to wait for the fan to fail which will almost certainly be outside its warranty period.

This is the sort of thing I would expect from a $100 wheel......absolutely not from a $600 wheel

 

[Fanatec...]

@Topyn
It sounds like you have a lot of inside information. Is it conincidence that you joined this forum right after the T500RS was released?

Theoretical resolution is one thing and real precision something else sometimes. TM shows in their own videos that the resolution jumps in big steps and you cannot reach each individual value of the 65563 values the T500 has.

Perhaps you should slow down a bit...

 

[Overdoser]

i found a solution to the noisy fan issue. or rather i think it is more of a maintenance procedure we need to do every once in a while depending on your environment.

my fan had been making the startup noise for the past month. prior to that I had been using the wheel almost daily for at least a month.

yesterday while i was blowing the dust out of my computer fans i realized that perhaps it was dust accumulation that was causing the blades to be unbalanced and rattle at startup. I don't believe thrustmasters "oil theory" since the fans wouldn't make the noise when the wheel was new and this issue creeps up over time. so unless oil is leaking or somehow from heat/use the oil properties change drastically I don't see why it would cause the noise.

so to clean out the fans in the wheel you have to use something with really a great amount of air pressure. much more pressure than the compressed nitrogen can sprays i believe. what i used was a high powered hand held air blower which was basically a big electrical motor with a handle on it forcing air into a narrow opening. the blower has some attachments such various sized nozzles for blowing crap out of your computer.

I knew that I couldn't take apart the wheel so pretty much this was my only option at cleaning the fans. I didn't think it would work but there was really nothing else i could try other than smacking the wheel around or contacting thrustmaster lol.

i spent probably a good couple minutes just blowing a ton of air into the fan through the tiny holes at the top opening and when the fans came on by themselves after the wheel warmed up, they just had the same low gradual hum as when the wheel was new. I've only cleaned out the fans once so we'll see how long it'll take before the noise comes back.

 

[Topyn]

@Topyn
It sounds like you have a lot of inside information. Is it conincidence that you joined this forum right after the T500RS was released?

Theoretical resolution is one thing and real precision something else sometimes. TM shows in their own videos that the resolution jumps in big steps and you cannot reach each individual value of the 65563 values the T500 has.

Perhaps you should slow down a bit...

LOL because this technical information comes from you
FANATEC - January 10th, 2009 at 09:22
http://www.virtualr.net/fanatec-clubsport-pedals-ship-in-february/

 

[Fanatec...]

Topyn
let me give you some advice about viral marketing. It is an unwritten but golden rule that you should not write comments anonymous or pretend that you are giving a user opinion about your product. It is even worse if you talk bad about a competitiors product under a false name.

This will just result in lost confidence of your target customers and people will be more sceptical about whatever you are announcing. You are making pretty bold marketing statements but that is still in an acceptable area. People can easily find out for themselves that the wheel rim is as detachable as the steering axis has a 16bit resolution.

So basically you have 3 choices now.

A) Invest a lot of time and energy to "proof" that you are just a normal guy and not related to TM at all

B) Stop posting under this nickname and leave the forum or just get a new nickname and continue.

C) Admit who you really are and repeat your statements as official company statements

I would choose C) but fortunatly I was never in such a situation to decide about those options.

Best regards

Thomas Jackermeier
CEO
Endor AG / Fanatec

 

[RC45]

Topyn
let me give you some advice about viral marketing. It is an unwritten but golden rule that you should not write comments anonymous or pretend that you are giving a user opinion about your product. It is even worse if you talk bad about a competitiors product under a false name.

This will just result in lost confidence of your target customers and people will be more sceptical about whatever you are announcing. You are making pretty bold marketing statements but that is still in an acceptable area. People can easily find out for themselves that the wheel rim is as detachable as the steering axis has a 16bit resolution.

So basically you have 3 choices now.

A) Invest a lot of time and energy to "proof" that you are just a normal guy and not related to TM at all

B) Stop posting under this nickname and leave the forum or just get a new nickname and continue.

C) Admit who you really are and repeat your statements as official company statements

I would choose C) but fortunatly I was never in such a situation to decide about those options.

Best regards

Thomas Jackermeier
CEO
Endor AG / Fanatec

Word to the wise, fix your own house before you go throwing stones at others.

You are slow at delivering your product, you product is not as advertised and prone to failure and when you do eventually deliver one has to worry about whether the product will withstand continuous use.

I find this "forum wars" between manufacturers hilarious.

Oh, and it was easier and less frustration for myself to just toss your junk in the attic than suffer through your poor communications and slow support.

Again, you might want to reconsider throwing stones when you live in a glass house.

 

[sandboxgod]

I am new to this Thread and bought this wheel for a week

now having this problem, what do you guys think?

Grateful for your reply

I am sorry to hear that fan issue. Do you mind looking at the bottom of your unit to see which version your T500RS is? For instance, when I look at the bottom of my unit it says 'V2'.

Before purchasing my T500RS unit I tried reading this entire thread as best as I could and noticed multiple users suspects that the T500RS V2 models have corrected the fan issue. for instance, my unit has a perfectly silent fan so far.

Good luck with your issue. This does not bode well for Thrustmaster if they have a defective fan unit in their 1st generation models. I hope I am dead wrong!!

Very easy to verify:
1) Just download "DIView Direct Input software" here:
http://www.leobodnar.com/products/BU0836/DIView.zip
2) When done launch the software and choose "Axis/View Raw Data".

Hey thanks for the information I will give that a try for fun. I am amazed at the volume of knowledge collected here (seriously)

 

[makimak22]

Topyn,
WOW! How`s that for a knee-jerk reaction.....

 

[thomasphoenix]

I have a T500RS V1 for more than a month and a half now. No issues at all, touch wood!

 

[RC45]

I have a T500RS V1more than a month and a half now. No issues at all, Touch wood!

Other than the fan grind the T500 seems to be pretty bullet proof. it has outlasted my GT2RS wheel.

That one the paddle flaps have made dents in the wheel, the wheel over heats and the FFB drops in power after a short time, not to mention it will randomly reset/turn off/fail to detect on the PS3 or PC.

My T500RS on the other hand (still BIOS version .31) is a solid piece of kit.