Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.flight-sim (
More info?)
I have been using my stock Cougar hotas , since I purchased it about 3 years
ago, ( I think, just a few months after they came out), and it still works
fine to this day.
I did not have to pay anything, to get it to work properly. I think it is a
great Hotas, for me. So much so, about a year ago I purchased another , and
it still sets new in the box.
I have ordered the Uber2 nxt gimball mod, along with the hall sensors for
the stick and throttle. The mod is being mfg now, and will be shipping
sometime next week.
I did this not because I needed it to get it to work properly, but because I
wanted to make what I consider a great stick even that much better. Yes, it
has strong springs, and transition flats. Never really bothered me that
much, but I look foward to softer springs and no flats. Undoubtedly it will
help my gunnery skills in dogfights better.
The first Cougar I paid 299.00.
The second I paid 239.00
Imho, that is not a bad price at all for what you get. I paid more for my
old F16 FLCS and TQS. Of course, the price of the gimball mod along with the
hall sensors will very significantly add to my overall cost. But, I figure,
It is going to last me for a very long time...
Having said that, I would recommend for anyone considering the Cougar:
If any way possible, find someone near you that has one, and give it a test
run. I know this may be difficult. but your not going to find them in stores
most likely to try out. If you cannot , and do get one, give it a little
time before deciding whether it is a keeper. If it is still not, shouldn't
be much trouble selling it at a reduced price. There is still a strong
following for the Cougars.
Check out the forums and info at http://cougar.frugalsworld.com/ . There is
much there you can read up on for the Cougar.
If you are not serious long term on your flight simming, then the Cougar is
probably not for you. Or you might even consider buying one off ebay or
elsewhere second hand.
I also have heard nothing but good things about the CH Fighterstick Pro
setup. I may even get one of these some day just to compare and see how I
like it. I do not hear of people complaining about the CH setup, and I know
some here have switched from the Cougar to the CH and are glad they did.
I kind of view the difference between the two as this:
The Cougar, as a stock Hotas setup, has a smaller but very dedicated
community. Many have no qualms with spending more money to make it even
better ( not to work properly, but to make better)., as is evidenced by the
mods and extras being made for it by this same community. If TM had
supplied it, with the parts that are being made now by a few guys in the
community, it would have been way out of price range to sell as a stock
Hotas.
I view the Cougar as an excellent foundation to start with, way above par,
with some innards that are only about par at best.
If you are a racing sim enthusiast, you can almost compare the Cougar to GPL
.
The CH Hotas, much more common and satisfies most who purchase it. While it
won't have the same cold steel and solid feeling, it makes a great setup
for even the most serious of simmers. For me, I really like that cold steel
and solid feeling, and doubt I would like going back to plastic as much.
I view the CH as a great stick to have , with good foundation and good
innards, that undoubtedly will last a long time as well.
I cannot speak of the difference in programmability, as I have not seen the
CH's. I can say the software and programmability of the Cougar is excellent
and very diverse. I love to get in there and mess around with programming
for my flight sims, and getting it to where it truly is a HOTAS for me,
having never have to hit the keyboard until I exit the sim
.
Hope this helps in some way,
--
Don Burnette
"When you decide something is impossible to do, try to stay out of the way
of the man that's doing it."
JP wrote:
> For it's price, you shouldn't have to monkey with anything to have
> it work correctly.
>
>
> "Lange" <lange@arodnap<--reverse_this.be> wrote in message
> news:cMnNd.4724$UU1.372883@phobos.telenet-ops.be...
>> Terrible spelling errors, here's a better version:
>>
>> If you don't have a problem "monkeying" with it to get it work
>> properly (and if you don't have problems to pay for some of this
>> extra stuff, like Hall Sensors instead of pot's), the Cougar is a
>> superb stick. And with the latest software, almost all the problems
>> with disconnections from time to time are gone.... my last
>> disconnection was +/- 6 weeks ago, plug out, plug in, problem
>> solved!!!
>>
>>
>> --
>> Lange,
>> 666th Black Brigade
>>
http://www.666th.com
>> ICQ: 15439346
>>
>>
>> "Jim Moody" <tjmoody@sbcglobak.net> schreef in bericht
>> news:XkTMd.814$ZZ.93@newssvr23.news.prodigy.net...
>>> I have $70 in credits at Amazon.com and am looking to purchase
>>> either the Thrustmaster Cougar or the CH Fighterstick/Pro
>>> Throttle/Pro Rudders combination. The price is not much different
>>> between the two except for the fact that I believe I could use my
>>> CH gamport pedals with the Cougar and I would need to get USB
>>> pedals with the CH setup.
>>>
>>> I've heard a lot of negative things about the Cougar but I'm
>>> technically minded and don't have a problem monkeying with it to
>>> get it to work properly.
>>>
>>> Anybody have any recommendations? Preferably from those who have
>>> used/owned both.
>>>
>>> By the way, I originally bought the Saitek X-52 thinking for the
>>> price ($35 with all the credits I had) it would be the best choice.
>>> There were all kinds of problems with it from huge dead zones to
>>> not being recognized by the computer at times. So it went back to
>>> Amazon.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram