Saitek Pro Flight Yoke with Three-Lever Throttle (PZ44)
by Saitek
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List Price: Our Price: $117.91 You Save: $47.08 (29%) Availability: Usually ships in 3-4 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Saitek Pro Flight Yoke with Three-Lever Throttle (PZ44)
Customer Review: Great Feel. "Phantom Key presses" were easy to fix for me ....
Summary: 5 Stars
To start with, I wish I had purchased this setup much earlier. It feels so good and delivers such rock solid performance that I cannot imagine flying the civilian aircraft in FSX without it. If you want the C-172 to become as compelling as the P51 in your control, then this is the setup you'll want.
But I vacillated on this purchase for some time before buying it due to all the reviews reporting phantom key presses. I didn't want to order something I'd likely have to return or exchange. Although I love flying with my CH Fighterstick , Pro Throttle and Rudders when flying warplanes or helicopters, I always felt like I was missing out on the joy of civilian flight simulation when using a stick instead of a yoke. So I finally mustered up the courage to order the Saitek Yoke in spite of the many poor reviews while holding my breath on the "pkp" issue.
By the time I got mine, I had thoroughly familiarized myself with the scope of the phantom key press problem and the possible cures. I had hoped mine would not suffer the symptoms but those hopes were dashed very shortly after loading up my first flight with the new controls. Sure enough I had the dreaded phantom key presses switching my views. By a process of elimination - including flying other sims without any hitch, I concluded the issue lies within the FSX setup itself. I was right. Upon closer inspection I noticed two unusual controllers listed in my FSX control menu: "Mouse Yoke" and "Mouse Look". Each of those had mysteriously been assigned default button assignments which conflicted with what I had manually set up with the Saitek Yoke. Particularly, I noticed the "extend gear when throttle rapidly decreased" and "retract gear on rapid throttle increase" commands were assigned to a button in the "Mouse Yoke". I also had a large list of view commands mapped by FSX to buttons in the "Mouse Look" controller. All I had to do was clear each and every one of the "joystick assignments" in both and all was well.
I now have about 10 hours of flight without a hitch using the Saitek Yoke and even added a second throttle quadrant for even more enjoyment with multi-engine aircraft. I coupled these controllers with the book "Microsoft Flight Simulator X For Pilots Real World Training" and I began working through the lessons. The experience is unequalled in all the 20+ years of computer gaming I've done to date. The Saitek yoke made the entire experience more immersive and rewarding.
Needless to say, I strongly recommend this yoke and even the second throttle quadrant to go with it. The reviews to the contrary can be quite demoralizing, but it appears the fixes to all the woes were only all too easy in the end. If you're considering this setup and you ask me, I say go for it. You won't be sorry.
Customer Review: Looks can be deceiving.
Summary: 1 Stars
As an instrument rated private pilot, I have used all versions of Microsoft FS to "practice" instrument flying, including the most current FSX. I have use a joystick for years, but was looking to add a little more realism to my sim experience. What a mistake I made buying the Saitek yoke. It has been a very frustrating several weeks. First of all, looks can be deceiving. This yoke looks awesome on the outside, but I ditto the comments of another reviewer regarding the DETENTS in the PITCH and AILERON AXIS! I would agree that the little "bump you feel" in the middle of the axis is very annoying. The yoke slide movements are also very stiff, binding significantly. This is especially evident during simultaneous pitch and roll movements. Knowing that I would void the warranty, I tried to fix this by opening it up and removing one of the springs. This helped a little, but the detents still prevented smooth movements in pitch axis making it very difficult to fly an ILS. Also, when I opened it up, I learned first hand that the "precision bearings" Saitek claims to use are non-existent. There are only plastic sleeve bearings and one metal rolling pin. No amount of lubrication (Teflon, silicone grease, LPS, machine oil) would make this thing move smoothly. The plastic workings inside also are very cheaply made. Once again, the looks from the outside can be very deceiving. This yoke is WAY over priced. Despite all the hype, this yoke did not meet my expectations. Just like a previous reviewer commented, I did everything to get this thing to fly smoothly and all I could do is fly with the trim, but even that was all over the place like a "drunk in the sky" Flying an ILS was next to impossible without the autopilot engaged. I also found that the assigned buttons would change spontaneously to different assignments.
So, I too am very disappointed, tired, and plan to throw it it the trash. I was hoping to at least be able to use the throttle quadrant, the only part of it that worked decent, but the one that comes with the yoke cannot be use as a standalone device. It has a PS/2 like plug that only works when plugged into the back of the yoke. The Saitek website even confirms that a PS/2 to USB adapter won't work. The throttle quadrant is only recognized when plugged into the yoke. Thanks again, Saitek. I plan to try the CH yoke next, but will likely stick with my Logitech joystick for a while. The joystick has been flawlesss. So there's yet another review from yet another actual pilot. I don't do reviews very often, but felt it was important to warn others about this inferior product. What a waste of money. Wish I had not tried to fix it so I could try and get my money back, but the yoke looks so cool I was hoping to make it work . . . but, of course, looks can be deceiving!
Customer Review: pros and cons
Summary: 4 Stars
i've been reading about the phantom key issue for a month.. and i was really unsure if i should buy the product at all.. but after reading a few reviews people suggested that i dont install the software that comes with the product, and it works fine.. i read abt it in various forums.. so decided to take the risk..
after the anticipating wait for delivery, i found myself quickly ripping the box open to try it out.. (since i cant return the product as it cant be shipped outside the US, which il be leaving in 4 days)
i let the 64 bit windows 7 auto detect the yoke and TQ.. it installed without a problem.. booted up fsx, and breathed a sigh of relief.. its working perfectly.. flew for a good hour without ANY problem..
pros
the yoke has a very solid feel to it.. although there's a slight play between the steet rod and the yoke.. but it doesnt really affect the experience..
the yoke has 3 additional usb ports..
the TQ is perfectly calibrated with the right amount of friction..
cons
its just been a few hours since i got this, so i guess i have to adjust the null zone.. but when i pull on the yoke, at 140 knots on the runway, the elevator isnt that responsive.. at a particular point, it suddenly adds too much elevator.. and the vertical speed jumps to 2000.. im sure i can adjust it through fsuipc though..
the tq is SMALL.. i was expecting it to be bigger in size.. it was disappointingly small..
it looks flimsy.. the point where the reversers engage, feels like a plastic stopper inside that might break.. its all cheap plastic.. so doesnt have a nice feel to it.. ive made a better TQ at home with metal..
the TQ can only be connected to the saitek yoke.. since it doesnt have a male usb head.. it plugs in directly into the yoke.. i guess its not a problem if u wanna use a different yoke.. but i'd like to have the option..
one serious con.. when i activated the auto pilot after flying through 10000 feet, and activated autothrottle, obviously, the N1 decreased on the plane to maintain speed, and the throttle quad, not being motorized, remaned at 90%.. (duh) but when i wanted to descend manually, i turned autothrottle off.. and decreaed the throttle on the TQ physically.. and it was no longer synchronized.. i.e 50% on the TQ was throttle idle on the plane.. so weird.. guess i cant use autothrottle
i just wanted to buy the yoke.. but i found out that it comes with a package deal..
overall.. i think its a brilliant product.. GREATLY enhances the flight sim experience.. i'd recommend it to any serious flight simmer.. the yoke is plain amazing.. NO problems at all
Customer Review: Unusable due to dead zones
Summary: 2 Stars
Two star, and that is without the phantom key issue... Coming from CH product, I was hoping the metal axle with "ball bearing" some reviewers mentioned would be a nice upgrade. However, there is no ball bearing, just the axle rubbing against two teflon/plastic rings, preventing smooth motions. The separate throttle quadrant with prop and mixture was also attractive to me. This is the only thing that prevented me from giving only one star, since this is a big step up and feels quite nice.
First, the "phantom key press". When I first received the yoke, it was in "mode 3". Not understanding why it came preset in "mode 3", I changed it to "mode 1" and starting flying. Not long after, I experienced the phantom key press (random view changes, gear up and down, etc.). Luckily, I had the presence of mind to return it back to "mode 3" and the problem vanished for good. I was ready to do some serious flying.
The clamp needed to secure the yoke to a desk is enormous and doesn't allow a keyboard drawer underneath. Hence, I had to drill holes in my desk and secure the yoke with 4 M4 screws (the yoke has 4 threaded holes designed for that)
Now for the really bad. The center detentes in the pitch and roll axes are just a joke. The force needed to get out of the center makes it unflyable since no small adjustments are possible near the center, mostly needed on final approach. The springs are strong and are not like in the CH yoke product. Once centered, it is very difficult to move out smoothly, making small correction nearly impossible. With the CH Yoke, motions near the center position have the least resistance, as it should. It's the opposite with the Saitek.
After just a couple hours of this, I decided to open the yoke and remove all the springz responsible for this crazy strong centering (no warranty needed for me). The feel was much better, smooth in both axis. BUT, as it turns out, it doesn't matter whether the springs are there or not, Saitek has a dead zone BUILT IN. When calibrating the flight controller and reducing the dead zone to its minimum, the dead zone is still significant and the yoke won't respond to any motion within 5-10 degree on both side (pitch or roll). That means no fine adjustments are possible when flying a final approach, even without the crazy springs!!!. Mostly unusable for flying, and since this is a flying yoke, just plain unusable.
I'll go back to my CH yoke which has no dead zone and for which I have a new appreciation (but also no throttle quadrant).
Customer Review: WARNING - No Technical Support, Faulty Software
Summary: 1 Stars
First, this product arrived on time and, although roughed up by UPS, worked fine. Packaging was very good and all items were undamaged. Saitek quality is very good and the yoke and throttle quadrant work fine, although it was much more difficult to use than expected. There is no manual supplied with the equipment that is useful and the manual for the SST programming software is useless.
I have another Saitek input device, the x52 fighter stick and throttle which have been in use for a few years along with Saitek drivers and their SST programming software. Being somewhat concerned that I would have a conflict with the older system when I installed the new yoke (they would be used for different sim software and not at the same time) I attempted to contact Saitek tech support as shown on their website. The phone was never answered, the email server was constantly having "connection issues" and the "official forum" is closed to new registrations. Support is presumably provided by Mad Catz something or other.
Installing the new software provided with the yoke was a disaster. None of the profiles developed using the other version were recognized, the new software is much more difficult to use, one reason being that none of the button assignment numbers in the software templates match anything provided by Saitek, so you have to guess. I finally managed to create a profile for Flight Simulator 2004 but the program refused to use any of the commands. It also broke my other stick so I had very basic use of that. I wound up removing all the new software and drivers and reinstalling the older version for my fighter stick and got that working again. I then had to manually assign commands within FS 2004 for the yoke and throttle and have that working, but without the programming capability due to the older software not being aware of the newer yoke.
I would buy this product again, but just aware that you are on your own with faulty software and non-existent support from the manufacturer.
As an update, after a week of frustration trying to get this to work correctly and getting no useful information via support email I have returned the unit to Amazon. The throttle quadrant refused to work in FS2004 and I could not get one button on the yoke to program. In addition, doing a calibration within FS would reprogram the entire unit with commands from some source I could not track down.