Saitek & FSUIPC

[BigMacCy]

Hi to all fellow simmers,

I am not one to sit and write in forums the moment I run into problems looking to find the easy way out. I look and read and for me to be here now and writing in the forum I think I have used up all my resources and patience !!

I explain :

About a year ago I made the mistake of purchasing the SAITEK yokes , 2 x throttle quadrants and pedals , in an effort to upgrade my equipment and get more involved in the game. Big mistake !!!! SAITEK forums have postings that havent been replied and the only thing that someone can derive is that most probably they are either in the process of closing down or been taken over. Now a company seems to have taken over their forums and some movement and replies to peoples problems are to be seen.

Anyways, after trying to configure my yokes to work the way I wanted them to, I now find myself after all this time still trying to configure them. My last attempt before throwing all the equipment out the window, was to purchase the FSUIPC module and try going down that route. Well , well , well it all seems Greek to me ....

Looking through the topics i realise that there are many people who have upgraded to FSX and many of the topics regard FSX , however, I am still using FS9.

In desparation , I am looking for someone to please help me in the calibration of the Saitek joysticks.

Appreciate your time.

Thank you

[Ian P]

As a user of Saitek equipment for years, I have never had any problem at all calibrating any of it with either the default settings or FSUIPC. Indeed right now I have a CyborgX and Saitek pedals stick plugged in, calibrated through FSX. Later today, I hope to swap the stick for the "full rig" of a Saitek yoke and two additional throttle quads, all of which are calibrated and assigned using FSUIPC for FSX.

There is a known issue - supposedly with the early yokes and which was eliminated later (they replaced my yoke and it now works fine) - with random button presses. Pete put a function in to FSUIPC which eliminated button "spikes" shorter than a set time frame and it did help the Saitek yoke a lot, but getting a replacement for the faulty one was still the best thing to do.

MadCatz, I believe, took over Saitek several years ago, but their online support has usually, to be honest, been pretty terrible. I believe that there have been issues with them using 3rd party software as part of their driver suite that they are not licensed to as well, but don't accept that on face value as I have no proof of it. However the hardware is generally of reasonable or good quality and it does work fine in all the sims I have tried it in (X-Plane, Flight Unlimited 3, Fly!II and the MSFS series, mainly).

If you follow the instructions in the FSUIPC documentation to assign and calibrate controls, you should be fine.

Cheers,

Ian P.

[BigMacCy]

As a user of Saitek equipment for years, I have never had any problem at all calibrating any of it with either the default settings or FSUIPC. Indeed right now I have a CyborgX and Saitek pedals stick plugged in, calibrated through FSX. Later today, I hope to swap the stick for the "full rig" of a Saitek yoke and two additional throttle quads, all of which are calibrated and assigned using FSUIPC for FSX.

There is a known issue - supposedly with the early yokes and which was eliminated later (they replaced my yoke and it now works fine) - with random button presses. Pete put a function in to FSUIPC which eliminated button "spikes" shorter than a set time frame and it did help the Saitek yoke a lot, but getting a replacement for the faulty one was still the best thing to do.

MadCatz, I believe, took over Saitek several years ago, but their online support has usually, to be honest, been pretty terrible. I believe that there have been issues with them using 3rd party software as part of their driver suite that they are not licensed to as well, but don't accept that on face value as I have no proof of it. However the hardware is generally of reasonable or good quality and it does work fine in all the sims I have tried it in (X-Plane, Flight Unlimited 3, Fly!II and the MSFS series, mainly).

If you follow the instructions in the FSUIPC documentation to assign and calibrate controls, you should be fine.

Cheers,

Ian P.

Thank you for your reply, one thing though, I am using FS9 and have downloaded and purchased the version which is 3.98. Is there a later version or can i download the FSX version to be used with FS9 ??

[pschlute]

I still use FS9. I have used Saitek in the past but now use the Ch settup of yoke;throttle quad; and rudders.

Without knowing your specific problem it is difficult to be precise but here are a few tips I have found.

The most common problem is having assignments in more than place...eg FS9;Saitek's own software and FSUIPC. This will lead to problems. My advice is not to use the Saitek software at all. You then have the option of assigning in FS9 and calibrating in FSUIPC, OR assign and calibrate everything in FSUIPC. The latter means selecting in FS9 "disable joystick", and using FSUIPC to assign (direct to FSUIPC) and calibrate. This takes longer to set up, as you have to assign commands for everything (eg. hat views) but does mean you can set up each of your aircraft specifically. Since I did this I have never had a conflict.

FS9 does seem to assign certain functions (buttons) automatically when you plug in a hardware device. This can mean you press a button to change a view and you find you have lowered the gear ! Using the method in the previous paragraph means you wont encounter this problem.

You dont say which computer system you are using but if Windows7 make sure you have turned off the power saving settings, otherwise your USB ports will go to sleep if they don't detect any movement for a while.

Peter

[oldJ3pilot]

I am using FS9 and have downloaded and purchased the version which is 3.98. Is there a later version or can i download the FSX version to be used with FS9 ?? [/Quote]

3.98 is correct and no, you cannot use 4.60 (for FSX) with FS9.

As for your Saitek dissatisfaction: You haven't really given enough info about the problem for any advice. I have the Pro series yoke with one throttle quadrant, a second Saitek Pro quadrant, and Saitek rudder pedals. All work well and have been fault free. The yoke rarely needs calibration and is quite realistic in feel.

If you use your setup for FSX only you can get by without even installing the Saitek software. If you want all three modes then you need the software. Using the programming software is quite easy for button and slider assignments and is all I use it for. I have a profiles for certain individual aircraft along with a default profile for all the rest.

Frankly though, It is so easy to use FSX control assignments, some LUA scripts by guenseli and others (on this forum), and FSUIPC that I am sorely tempted to remove Saitek programming software and redo everything.

[pschlute]

Thank you for your reply, one thing though, I am using FS9 and have downloaded and purchased the version which is 3.98. Is there a later version or can i download the FSX version to be used with FS9 ??

If you are using FS9 then 3.98 is correct. The FSX one won't work!

[BigMacCy]

If you are using FS9 then 3.98 is correct. The FSX one won't work!

Thnks for the reply,

Can you please tell me what would possibly make FSUIPC stop working ??? What I am doing applying a setting I think will work , try it out and nothing happens, the yokes seem dead, the quadrants dont respond, and the only way to get them working again is to get out of FS9 and restart the program then everything seems to be working again.

Any ideas

[pschlute]

Thnks for the reply,

Can you please tell me what would possibly make FSUIPC stop working ??? What I am doing applying a setting I think will work , try it out and nothing happens, the yokes seem dead, the quadrants dont respond, and the only way to get them working again is to get out of FS9 and restart the program then everything seems to be working again.

Any ideas

You will need to be more precise in explaining your problem.

What OS are you using ? If Win 7 you should turn off power saving. That might explain why your yoke goes dead.

[Pete Dowson]

I believe that there have been issues with them using 3rd party software as part of their driver suite that they are not licensed to as well, but don't accept that on face value as I have no proof of it

I can confirm that. Even threatening to prohibit FSUIPC use with Saitek connected gear (which I can do by reading the USB manufacturer code in software) doesn't move them.

Regards

Pete

[BigMacCy]

You will need to be more precise in explaining your problem.

What OS are you using ? If Win 7 you should turn off power saving. That might explain why your yoke goes dead.

Hi,

I am using Windows XP Home , and Fs9

Thank you

[oldJ3pilot]

I don't want to hijack this topic but Pete's reply concerning Saitek using 3rd party software illegally caught my attention.

Even threatening to prohibit FSUIPC use with Saitek connected gear (which I can do by reading the USB manufacturer code in software) doesn't move them.[/Quote]

Can you provide a bit more information regarding this Pete? What 3rd party software are they using? Lots of Saitek users out here with FSUIPC and your threat to Saitek (if carried out) would cut us off??

Neal Howard

[Andydigital]

Peter is talking about the unregistered version of FSUIPC and Saiteks unlicensed use of it. Registered owners of FSUIPC would not be effected.

[Pete Dowson]

Peter is talking about the unregistered version of FSUIPC and Saiteks unlicensed use of it. Registered owners of FSUIPC would not be effected.

Correct.

Regards

Pete