G29 or t300

Steve Worrell · Apr 30, 2018

Hi guys.

I just got a bonus from work in the form of Argos (UK retailer) vouchers. I'm thinking now might be the time to retire the g27 and upgrade.

I had a look on the argos website and the best wheel and pedal combos I could find were the g29 and t300 and I'm wondering which is the better option. I mainly drive GT cars and occasionally drop in to single seaters.

Would love to know your thoughts. Feel free to have a look on the Argos site to see if I have missed something.

Thanks,
Vern

Leonardo Ratafiá · Apr 30, 2018

The only good thing about the logitech are the pedals

Steve Worrell · Apr 30, 2018

Leonardo Ratafiá said:
The only good thing about the logitech are the pedals

Good to know but that doesn't really answer the question.

Are you saying the t300 is the better option?

RasmusP · Apr 30, 2018

T300 is stronger, smoother and from what you can read on the forums not very reliable.
Pedals are a lot worse if you don't get the T3PA PRO.

So the question is: pedals or wheel? If you keep the G27 as a backup you should be okay with the T300 being shipped away every now and then if you get a bad one. And you will be able to use the Logitech pedals but have the T300 ones if the Poti's die...

As a real replacement: None of them... Some Fanatec loadcell pedals, the TS-PC or similar would be a real upgrade.
If you "have to spend the vouchers" and don't have real costs on your actual bank account though... Get the T300 and keep the G27.
The G29 is basically the same as the G27. Slightly better pedals, slightly smoother, slightly nicer rim etc. but in the end you have the same general experience. The wheel still has a massive deadzone, rattles, you feel the single teeth of the gears and it still spins too slowly to catch fast slides.
I don't know if the T300 is that much better in this regard but from what I experienced in my 10 minute session in F1 2017 at a local store it is way nicer. Smooth, quiet, almost no deadzone on default settings and pedals actually felt okay!

But now comes one downside from my very personal opinion: the shift paddles are plastic flaps with quite some travel distance. If the Logitech's are like 1mm travel (feel measurement), the T300's are like 10mm.
Honestly I think the T300 are more "real" and you would get used to it

Leonardo Ratafiá · Apr 30, 2018

Buy a T300 try the pedals if not satisfied buy a USB adapter for the g27 pedals and use them. At least those are real metal pedals, fully customizable.

thepharcyde · Apr 30, 2018

Had both, T300 hands down, never tried the pedals as I bought T3PA as part of the sale on Gumtree

Emery · Apr 30, 2018

Just say "no" to Logitech's gear drive. It was good over a decade ago but better belt drive designs arrived since the days of the G27.

Trans-Girl · Apr 30, 2018

I "upgraded" from a G29 to a T300, turned out to be an expensive mistake, I went through 3 T300 bases in 6 months (cutomer service was appaling) with 3 different problems, the TH8a lasted a couple of months, failed due to dry solder joints, the T3PA pro pedals lasted 2 hours, the gear didn't mesh properly with the pawl on the throttle pedal... never again will Thrushmaster (not a typo) enter my life... oh and check out GT Planet to read other peoples horror stories of the T300..

TheGTGeek · May 5, 2018

I'm on team Logitech for this one for the reliability and the extra features. the T300 isn't my sort of wheel really.

thepharcyde · May 5, 2018

TheGTGeek said:
I'm on team Logitech for this one for the reliability and the extra features. the T300 isn't my sort of wheel really.

Ironically I'm the opposite in terms of reliability. My T300 is second hand so no idea of the use before I got it and it's lasted longer than both my G27/G29 that were brand new.

I do run my T300 with the fans on max for what it's worth.

Gear driven for RF2 is just horrible in comparison. No idea how the McLaren winner managed the quickest time with his, I suspect he turned FFB off?

Thomas Weg · May 5, 2018

I got a used TX in the end of 2015 and still using at 100% force.

As far as i know the realibity issues are mostly caused by the power supply and 110v input voltage.
In the europe with 230V there are far less issues.

Trans-Girl · May 5, 2018

I'm in the UK.... the problem seems to stem from the design flaw of having a PSU onboard the wheelbase that generates a lot of heat, couple that with very poor quality control and you have a recipe for disaster.

ABono · May 6, 2018

Just got a G920 as it just got discounted to $370 here whereas the T300 is $599. It does have the T3PA pedals but didn’t think it was worth it. This is in Australia

aKy0001 · May 7, 2018

Got a used T300, driving with it for about 1 1/2 years now, also at 100% force in driver (adjusting ffb in sim so it won't clip). Still working perfect, but I did some modifications to it.
I removed the original psu from the case and replaced it with an external one (24V, 5A) so it can't generate additional heat inside the wheelbase.
I also put on two 90mm fans on both sides of the wheelbase, the right one blows air directly onto the ffb motor, the left one pulls warm air out of the wheelbase. Reaaally helps to keep things cool. I also did the magnetic-shifter mod with neodym magnets on my 599XX Evo Wheel.
Next thing to do: replace psu with a 32V, 5A one, to overclock the wheel.
I really like how easy it is to mod the T300. Only upgrade i would ever consider is a DD wheel.

maelstrom · May 7, 2018

Trans-Girl said:
...the problem seems to stem from the design flaw of having a PSU onboard the wheelbase that generates a lot of heat, couple that with very poor quality control and you have a recipe for disaster.

Did you use the option to force the fan on? I've not had any problems with overheating or quality control.

Trans-Girl · May 8, 2018

maelstrom said:
Did you use the option to force the fan on? I've not had any problems with overheating or quality control.

yeah, and people then have had problems with fans failing, you say you have had no problems with quality control... that's why it is a quality control issue, some people have had problems with their T300s and some haven't.

maelstrom · May 8, 2018

Trans-Girl said:
yeah, and people then have had problems with fans failing

Has this happened to your T300? What other problems have you had?

Jeremy Ford · May 8, 2018

I wouldn't think swapping from a working G27 to a G29 is worth it, it's the same innards with a cosmetic upgrade. The T300 will provide noticeably improved FFB over the Logitech, but those cheap pedals are Fisher Price quality. The durability of the T300 wheelbase, well that's a mixed bag depending who you speak too. Some people seem to have repeat failures, and others can't speak highly enough of how great they are. But if you buy from Argos they do have a decent replacement policy which is handy.

thepharcyde · May 8, 2018

maelstrom said:
Has this happened to your T300? What other problems have you had?

Fans can be replaced and or aftermarket solutions used in their replacement as they use a universal size fan <£20 cost easy even for a Noctua

thepharcyde · May 8, 2018

Jeremy Ford said:
I wouldn't think swapping from a working G27 to a G29 is worth it, it's the same innards with a cosmetic upgrade. The T300 will provide noticeably improved FFB over the Logitech, but those cheap pedals are Fisher Price quality. The durability of the T300 wheelbase, well that's a mixed bag depending who you speak too. Some people seem to have repeat failures, and others can't speak highly enough of how great they are. But if you buy from Argos they do have a decent replacement policy which is handy.

G29 supposibly improved on the optical encoder with a hall sensor