VirtualGT Personal Racing Simulator
http://www.virtual-gt.com
Base Price: $16,995 USD
Price as Tested: ~$20,990 USD
The VirtualGT is an all in one cockpit solution. It includes the PC, chassis, seat, surround sound, vibrators, springs on 4 corners, wheel and pedals. Display options include No Display (base), Plasmas, and Projectors. Unit tested used Panasonic projector and large screen (didn't measure the size!).
Good: The audio and vibration transducers were great and definitely added to the immersion factor. Projector screen appropriately sized. Seat was comfortable - somewhere in between a racing seat and a road seat.
Bad: Cost. Harness belts secured with cheap plastic clip (the ones used in backpacks). Chassis springs are useless. Foot well seemed a little narrow for properly spaced pedals.
Ugly: Cost. For this kind of money, I don't want plastic G25 wheels and pedals.
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The simulator was setup to run rFactor. This is my first time playing rFactor so I attempted to not let that affect the review at all.
Controls:
This unit appeared to have modified G25 pedals. The clutch and brake pedal were replaced with a super wide brake pedal. The optional sequential shifter and G25 shifter were not present. This was possibly done because kids are the target audience where this simulator is located.
Obviously, the G25 is not a commercial grade wheel. The left and ride sides of my wheel were duct taped (do to damage). I was told not to pull back on the wheel or step hard on the pedals (so I'm assuming the wheel could possibly get yanked off with a good amount of force). The wheel and pedals seemed to be firmly mounted when I drove. For this price, I would expect top of the line controls - not the same wheel I already own.
Score: 60
Driving position:
The driving position actually felt fairly natural. I was able get a comfortable driving position by moving the seat closer to the wheel and pedals. I believe the pedal and wheel mounts can be adjusted as well but I did not attempt this.
The foot well is possibly too small for properly spaced pedals. While a high end set may fit, I'm not sure about a foot rest. For the crappy G25 pedals, it was just fine.
Since this unit lacked a shifter, I'm not able to rate its placement.
Getting in the simulator was a bit more difficult than a real car. I don't really recall why. From memory, it felt more like getting in a go kart than a car.
Score: 80
Audio and vibration transducers:
I thought the audio was great. It's a 4.1 surround system. The audio was pumped up to deafening levels (which added to the immersion factor, but I would obviously tone it down if I owned this). I did not notice where the speakers were placed, but the engine sound appeared to come from the bonnet. My fear is that my Logitech Z-5300 5.1 speakers would sound just as good if I played with the volume that high (and with the same game). I've never actually used speakers to play - only head phones.
The vibration effects did not seem to coincide with the force feedback. For example, I don't recall feeling rumble strips or anything of that nature. To be honest, it felt kind of random at times. On straightaways, it rumbled the seat and chassis (?) just as much as hitting uneven pavement. With that said, even if it simply uses audio to produce the vibrations it still added to the immersion factor and I would use it in my cockpit. I've never used a cockpit with vibration transducers so I have nothing to compare it to.
Score: 85
Display:
The projector was a Panasonic Model FT-something. It was a white LCD projector judging by the size of it. The projector screen was a decent size, but it did not really make you feel like you were in the car. I'm not sure if it's because it was too far away or if it was simply too small - probably a combination of both. IMHO, if you're going to use a projector the actual wheel should appear to blend into the in-game cockpit. If felt like I was playing a game - it did not feel like I was IN a simulator. The Frex CurvedScreen would probably add a ton to this cockpit.
Score: 82
PC:
I don't have much to say here. The PC is located on the rear of the seat in a see-through case with some sort of exhaust pipe coming out of it. I'm not sure how fast it is or what kind of video card comes with it. It seemed to run rFactor fine. Occasionally, I thought I noticed a little drop in FPS but it might not have been anything. Anti-aliasing and AF settings didn't appear to be on, but I may be wrong as I was too busy focusing on other aspects of the sim. It appears that you cannot easily use your own PC. You have to buy theirs with the unit. I believe you can simply detach the PC and send it to them for repairs or upgrades. While that may be fine for some joe schmoe who doesn't understand computers, I want the flexibility of using and upgrading my own PC.
Score: 75
Other:
The harness belts would actually be kind of cool but the plastic back pack clip just makes them feel extremely cheap. I thought the chassis springs were a neat idea until a sat in this thing. They're supposed to mimic the feeling of stepping into a real car with real springs. It really didn't add anything to the experience nor did it feel real - all it added was cost. I doubt the other people I rode with even noticed it.
I did not attempt to use any of the millions of buttons on this thing as we were told not to. They seemed liked they would be useful changing wheel profiles (for degrees of rotation and force feedback) but to be honest I'm not sure if they could be used for that.
Summary:
Don't waste your money. It's not good as a personal simulator because you're paying too much money for cheap controls and you do not have the flexibility of using your own PC. It's not good for businesses because the wheel and pedals brake easily (I can't even imagine how long the G25 shifter would last).
http://www.virtual-gt.com
Base Price: $16,995 USD
Price as Tested: ~$20,990 USD
The VirtualGT is an all in one cockpit solution. It includes the PC, chassis, seat, surround sound, vibrators, springs on 4 corners, wheel and pedals. Display options include No Display (base), Plasmas, and Projectors. Unit tested used Panasonic projector and large screen (didn't measure the size!).
Good: The audio and vibration transducers were great and definitely added to the immersion factor. Projector screen appropriately sized. Seat was comfortable - somewhere in between a racing seat and a road seat.
Bad: Cost. Harness belts secured with cheap plastic clip (the ones used in backpacks). Chassis springs are useless. Foot well seemed a little narrow for properly spaced pedals.
Ugly: Cost. For this kind of money, I don't want plastic G25 wheels and pedals.
---------
The simulator was setup to run rFactor. This is my first time playing rFactor so I attempted to not let that affect the review at all.
Controls:
This unit appeared to have modified G25 pedals. The clutch and brake pedal were replaced with a super wide brake pedal. The optional sequential shifter and G25 shifter were not present. This was possibly done because kids are the target audience where this simulator is located.
Obviously, the G25 is not a commercial grade wheel. The left and ride sides of my wheel were duct taped (do to damage). I was told not to pull back on the wheel or step hard on the pedals (so I'm assuming the wheel could possibly get yanked off with a good amount of force). The wheel and pedals seemed to be firmly mounted when I drove. For this price, I would expect top of the line controls - not the same wheel I already own.
Score: 60
Driving position:
The driving position actually felt fairly natural. I was able get a comfortable driving position by moving the seat closer to the wheel and pedals. I believe the pedal and wheel mounts can be adjusted as well but I did not attempt this.
The foot well is possibly too small for properly spaced pedals. While a high end set may fit, I'm not sure about a foot rest. For the crappy G25 pedals, it was just fine.
Since this unit lacked a shifter, I'm not able to rate its placement.
Getting in the simulator was a bit more difficult than a real car. I don't really recall why. From memory, it felt more like getting in a go kart than a car.
Score: 80
Audio and vibration transducers:
I thought the audio was great. It's a 4.1 surround system. The audio was pumped up to deafening levels (which added to the immersion factor, but I would obviously tone it down if I owned this). I did not notice where the speakers were placed, but the engine sound appeared to come from the bonnet. My fear is that my Logitech Z-5300 5.1 speakers would sound just as good if I played with the volume that high (and with the same game). I've never actually used speakers to play - only head phones.
The vibration effects did not seem to coincide with the force feedback. For example, I don't recall feeling rumble strips or anything of that nature. To be honest, it felt kind of random at times. On straightaways, it rumbled the seat and chassis (?) just as much as hitting uneven pavement. With that said, even if it simply uses audio to produce the vibrations it still added to the immersion factor and I would use it in my cockpit. I've never used a cockpit with vibration transducers so I have nothing to compare it to.
Score: 85
Display:
The projector was a Panasonic Model FT-something. It was a white LCD projector judging by the size of it. The projector screen was a decent size, but it did not really make you feel like you were in the car. I'm not sure if it's because it was too far away or if it was simply too small - probably a combination of both. IMHO, if you're going to use a projector the actual wheel should appear to blend into the in-game cockpit. If felt like I was playing a game - it did not feel like I was IN a simulator. The Frex CurvedScreen would probably add a ton to this cockpit.
Score: 82
PC:
I don't have much to say here. The PC is located on the rear of the seat in a see-through case with some sort of exhaust pipe coming out of it. I'm not sure how fast it is or what kind of video card comes with it. It seemed to run rFactor fine. Occasionally, I thought I noticed a little drop in FPS but it might not have been anything. Anti-aliasing and AF settings didn't appear to be on, but I may be wrong as I was too busy focusing on other aspects of the sim. It appears that you cannot easily use your own PC. You have to buy theirs with the unit. I believe you can simply detach the PC and send it to them for repairs or upgrades. While that may be fine for some joe schmoe who doesn't understand computers, I want the flexibility of using and upgrading my own PC.
Score: 75
Other:
The harness belts would actually be kind of cool but the plastic back pack clip just makes them feel extremely cheap. I thought the chassis springs were a neat idea until a sat in this thing. They're supposed to mimic the feeling of stepping into a real car with real springs. It really didn't add anything to the experience nor did it feel real - all it added was cost. I doubt the other people I rode with even noticed it.
I did not attempt to use any of the millions of buttons on this thing as we were told not to. They seemed liked they would be useful changing wheel profiles (for degrees of rotation and force feedback) but to be honest I'm not sure if they could be used for that.
Summary:
Don't waste your money. It's not good as a personal simulator because you're paying too much money for cheap controls and you do not have the flexibility of using your own PC. It's not good for businesses because the wheel and pedals brake easily (I can't even imagine how long the G25 shifter would last).