Community Question | Your Best Sim Racing Purchase

[Paul Jeffrey]

In 2020, the list of accessories one can purchase to enhance the sim racing experience is near endless - but which item has been your absolute best sim racing purchase during your virtual career?

It could be a PC component (or a console ofc!), a bit of hardware, an app, a game or even some content - the scope of the question is as wide as you wish to make it.

We are lucky to live in a day and age where many things are possible, and immersion of our hobby has really moved to a level we thought practically impossible just a short decade ago.

With such a massive list of variables within our chosen (e)sport, which piece of hardware/software has proven the test of time to be your ultimate best sim racing purchase?

 

[Highsider9]

Live for Speed. The one that started it all. Made some great Friends Racing online.

 

[eg01st]

 

[cpt_gandy]

I have not brought it yet but this year i do plan to buy some load cell pedals

 

[RasmusP]

Going from g27 to csw 2.5.
Feeling the weight shift nuances when starting to brake and when going back on the throttle changed the driving experience from "doing correct inputs" to "driving by instincts".
The loadcell csl pedals were a nice upgrade too but when I tried my old g27 pedals with the new wheel I could brake better and accelerate more controlled too.
Simply due to feeling the pedal inputs in the ffb!

Was thinking about to quit simracing but then decided to give it another try with the better wheel and it's awesome again since then

 

[UMC 22]

A Virtual Reality headset. I'd always considered VR to be a bit of a fad like 3D was. Then I was living with a housemate who had a Rift and persuaded me to give it a go. Mind blown. The same day I spent a rather ridiculous amount of money on a Rift and the PC upgrades I needed to run it. It changed sim racing for me, and I could never go back to flat screens now.

 

[Midnight⠀]

For a software - rFactor 1. I was kind of late to the party, when I purchased the game several years after it's original release, but there was a silver lining: a huge amount of mods were available. WSC 1970 and Virtua LM tracks quickly got my liking and this was also the game that originally inspired me to get into modding and skin creation. After all these years still playing it, it's good fun.

For a hardware - Clevo P870TM1-G. A fairly heavy desktop replacement notebook, utilizing desktop components, therefore it packs a huge amount of power, great cooling, easy maintenance and a fast IPS screen. Countless hours of modding and games related to it, travelled to really far places with me, so it was definitely a solid choice of hardware for my needs.

 

[Metla]

A house, to set my gear up in, Its pretty comfortable, has a couple living areas, swimming pool , built in robes, en-suites.

 

[FeltHat]

oculus rift cv1

 

[BrunoBæ]

dont know what happened

EDIT: Maybe NR2003 or my cute little wheel was not allowed here - but Im stubborn

ToBeContinued

 

[numbersevenhull]

My compact DD from Sim-plicity. Around the same price as a CSW2.5 and utterly transformed every sim I own. I'd give a very close second to a rig from Simetik which probably felt the closest to a bargain given its build quality/price.

@Paul Jeffrey Can we have a thread on worst sim racing purchase next week? That would be interesting

 

[BrunoBæ]

 

[numbersevenhull]

View attachment 368603 View attachment 368604

I recently bought Nascar 15 for a staggering £1.79 and I have to say it's the most extraordinary single player experience I've had in ages.

 

[Helldriver]

I just cant decide, if it´s the direct drive wheel or the VR Headset, sorry.

 

[MarcG]

VR 'nuff said.

 

[xVatch1x]

Software: ACC early access
Hardware: Sim Lab GT1 Evo hands down. Closely followed by Fanatec V3 Pedals

 

[Redvaliant]

No more hard dining chairs for me! Nah, I'm a serious sim racer, I need an Ikea easy chair to get that last piece of the immersion pie.

 

[brc19]

Fanatec V3 pedals. Big step up from G29 pedals.

 

[BrunoBæ]

I recently bought Nascar 15 for a staggering £1.79 and I have to say it's the most extraordinary single player experience I've had in ages.

I just checked - and it looks like your "Nascar 15" is some kind of console game.
Thats ok with me - but the legendary game I does refer to (NR2003) is the orig sim iRacing build their whole system upon.
And eventhough the name suggest a Nascar game then I have only used it to be able to drive the socalled GTP mod (90´ers prototypes).

CatsAreTheWorstDogs: Said in a friendly way I dont think your console game is in any way comparable.

 

[Jack Sargent]

Got to be the wheel that made me realise racing games were more than just collecting cars. When I discovered this wheel with Gran Turismo 4 everything changed! Soon found my way to PC sims with GPL and GT Legends being the first and most loved. Still to this day I haven't found another title with the character or charisma of those two. Something about a sim being dedicated to only one series that makes it special perhaps. I dunno but there was something in those that raised them above the pixels they displayed.

Logitech Driving Force purchased used for £50 circa 2007.