which one is beter 8/8/8 or 64/8/8 can u mix it

[learjet]

hi, can anyone advice me of which i/o board its best when building a flight simulator. can either one be combined or use together..???

what would be my options with phidgets 8/8/8 or flight deck tech. 64/8/8 ,can i connect thru reversers to either board?

any help and info/advice will be helpfull...

current learjet-45 builder

[Bob Reed]

What kind of boards are you looking to get? Would help to answer your questions.

[Westozy]

FDT Sim-Boards are built specifically for flight simulators and are very easy to use.
www.flightdecktechnology.com

Gwyn

[brianwilliamson]

Sorry Gwyn, but I cannot quite agree. Please read my previous posts and you will see that if you are building a full-sized and complete simulator, then there are a lot of functions that do not as yet do what they are advertised to do. So it will depend on what stage of realism you require your simulator to achieve, so please be aware that these boards are still not fully developed.
Regards...............Brian W.

[Westozy]

Brian, I can only report my own experience which is now 6 months of absolute faultless performance of my Sim-Boards and my experience with dealing with the guys from FDT has been very rewarding. I have focused on keeping my build as simple as possible and it is, the simplicity has paid off. I think the level of operability you are trying to achieve is probably beyond the abilities of any current interface manufacturer. Our forum is filled with builders discussing problems with PM Systems/Project Magenta etc. and that is why I have avoided the expense and hassles of such software. The combo of Sim-Boards, PMDG and CPFlight hardware has provided a very reliable and useable 737 sim for me which is ready to fly in less than 2 minutes from boot-up on a single PC. My total expenditure is still under AUD$6,000.
Please take no offence as I know your simulator and workmanship is excellent and I fully respect your achievements.

Regards Gwyn

[brianwilliamson]

Gwyn, that is fine, as I was only advising on the experience that I have had using these boards, and in fact the whole set of them.
I was just suggesting to a prospective buyer of the product that he be aware of the problems, and if he is building a simulator in the same veign that you have, and he does not require all the functions that are advertised on the product, and also in the future does not have need for these requirements, then he has the knowledge to make a qualified descision, with as much information as possible.
Regards...............Brian W.

[ekezz]

I have some experience with the Phidgets. I have a LED64 and three 16/16/0 and one 8/8/8.

The last one is connected to a separate PC and on this one I use FS2Phidgets software to interface to MS-FS. FS2Phidgets is very straightforward to use and we have a support forum here at mycockpit. Presently I'm still testing (not operational) four analogue slider potmeters for Flaps, Speedbrake, Throttle 1 and 2. So far all looks good.

The other boards I use for the overhead panel and are connected to PM Systems on a separate PC with a touchscreen. Again the setup is very simple as PM Systems has native Phidgets support. And PM Systems has a mode in which you can see what variable to use and wht value to use. Simply assign the proper variable to the Phidget Input or LED number and you are set.

I am a big fan of the PM software suite even with the price levels, which I must admit can be steep for some wallets. And the same goes for the Phidgets boards. The USA price is ok, but the European price is too high if you compare it (probably due to Rate of Exchange). You can do pretty much with Phidgets and FS2Phidgets

My personal opinion is that the Phidgets are simple to use and interface. For any product you will find people who like or dislike it. The choice really is about how deep you want to go into "programming" the interface and functions. For me that is to "simply" install the boards plug and play, hook up the power and the switches, enter the Variable names, and Fly the bird.

My most favourite combination is the PM Systems in conjunction with the CP Flight MIP board (MCP required as well). This combination does not need any programming or variable name entry. They are developed to use together, and I can just hook up the switches and LEDs and it works.

I have no experience with FDT nor with Opencockpits. They are cheaper which does not automatically mean they are of less quality. I guess the interfacing software is different and needs to get more known. FDT has a supportforum here and Opencockpits has its own elsewhere. FDT is a new player on the market and seem to be a serious player with good intent. As with most newcomers the high expectations of (potential) customers will not always be met, as product & software development/distribution cost time, and so does support. It's hard to find the balance between these two categories (even for big companies as I can tell you from experience). So it really depends how advanced you want the functions to work and at what stage or time in future you will need them.

Hope this helps in making your choice.

[Bob Reed]

I agree with Kester on this. It depends how deep you want to go. When I first looked at FS2Phidgets there was not enough there for me to program what I wanted to. I know that was some time ago and a lot has been added since I last looked. The other problem with Phidgets is there is no support for 7seg displays. If you plan on getting hardware such as Go-Flight, CP Flight, FDS hardware where the 7 segment displays are already in their then this will not matter. There are a number of interfaces out there that are getting better and better. It is going to be a personal thing. I have still found nothing better then EPIC. And trust me guys I have looked at everything you have sent my way! It does all I ask and I have come no where near reaching it's end. Just my 2 cents...

[Michael Carter]

Since I'm approaching that point myself, I have to ask, as an analog cockpit builder will the FDT boards allow me to wire my annunciators, indicators and so forth without using PM?

I need to have the approach progress indicators light at the correct time, the landing gear indicators (though I may use a completely separate circuit for this), AP dis-engage indicator, low oil pressure lamps for all three engines, wind shear alert and warning, flap load relief, fire handles, comparitor panel indicators, DH indicator, reverser indicators, reverser not locked indicators, leading edge and trailing edge flap in transit and extended indicators, and the altitude alert indicator/annunciator.

Can I get all of this to work with FDT?

[Bob Reed]

Yes... I think you can get all that to work with the FDT boards. You are using a single computer approach, right?

[brianwilliamson]

Yes you can very simply wire any switch and any indicator led, and the program will indicate that you have a connection.In that regard it is extremely good for seeing what switch and led you have hooked up.

The major problem maybe that the program will not do what you require. I t works perfectly for arguments sake, on the 6 undercarriage lights with a single switch.There are of lot of functions that will operate directly with Microsoft FS9, so I would suggest you download the software and you get it to run by telling the program you are connecting to com 1 and then add all the modules to make a connection. Then you can look at the library configurations and see if there are the appropriate actions you require, but they may or may not work, as we have indicated previously.

With the 727 it may not be as yet programmed for say, the flap load relief. I would suggest that you send an email to FDT and ask the specific questions to them as to your individual requirements. As Bob says Epic is very powerful, but you have to be clever like Bob to program it.Phidgets seem also to be very good and have great support, but I cannot speak first hand on that.For extreme cheapness, IO cards seem very good, but again you need programming skills. The best and probably the most reliable seem to be Flight Deck Solutions, but they are vey specialised.Hope this helps a little.
Regards.................Brian W.

[Michael Carter]

Yes... I think you can get all that to work with the FDT boards. You are using a single computer approach, right?


Yes, I'm using a single computer for now, but may use a second down the road for outside views.

[Michael Carter]

Yes you can very simply wire any switch and any indicator led, and the program will indicate that you have a connection.In that regard it is extremely good for seeing what switch and led you have hooked up.

The major problem maybe that the program will not do what you require. I t works perfectly for arguments sake, on the 6 undercarriage lights with a single switch.There are of lot of functions that will operate directly with Microsoft FS9, so I would suggest you download the software and you get it to run by telling the program you are connecting to com 1 and then add all the modules to make a connection. Then you can look at the library configurations and see if there are the appropriate actions you require, but they may or may not work, as we have indicated previously.

With the 727 it may not be as yet programmed for say, the flap load relief. I would suggest that you send an email to FDT and ask the specific questions to them as to your individual requirements. As Bob says Epic is very powerful, but you have to be clever like Bob to program it.Phidgets seem also to be very good and have great support, but I cannot speak first hand on that.For extreme cheapness, IO cards seem very good, but again you need programming skills. The best and probably the most reliable seem to be Flight Deck Solutions, but they are vey specialised.Hope this helps a little.
Regards.................Brian W.


It has to be simple. I may be clever in the shop, but not so much with computers.

As I get closer to the point of having to decide which board to go with, I will asuredly contact FDT with pointed questions about my particular aircraft requirements. Sure hope I can pull this off.

[kiek]

Hi,
IMHO it's not the hardware but the software that counts. I mean cockpit hardware is very simple (from an electronics point of view), not more then push buttons, on/off switches, rotary switches, rotarie encoders, leds and 7-segment displays. Most interface systems can support that.

But then it's the software that makes the diference (!), especially if you have to simulate flight deck system functions that are not available in your panel.

I have very good experience with the SIOC software system of Opencockpits IOCards. Their interface boards are awesome too, you can buy them already tested and assembled, they are cheap, proven, mature, work without a problem, only need 5V .... I run these systems now for more then 3 years (www.nicokaan.nl) (http://www.nicokaan.nl)).

My 2 cts...
Nico

[Michael Carter]

I worry about that. I can't program anything other than a Hagstrom board which isn't really programming at all.

The Dreamfleet 727 model uses every indicator on my real panel, but I have no idea whether the input/output card will receive the signals from the Dreamfleet model required to turn these indicators on and off at the correct times, or if at all.

If I have to program any of this, I'm in real trouble.

[Bob Reed]

Well it is all going to count on if your model is using FS for the systems or if they are doing there own. If they are doing there own, and they do not provide information to FS and then you may have a problem. You will need something that will do system logic as well....

[Michael Carter]

How can I check this without having anything hooked up yet?

Is there an .ini or .config file I can look at to see if this flight model is talking to FS?

If so, what am I looking for?

[Bob Reed]

What flight model are you using?

[Michael Carter]

I'm using the Dreamfleet Boeing 727-200 by Paul Golding.