Next Level's new Traction Plus
- Thread starter Hiro Abe
- Start date
Pricey and about 18 months too-late. There’s several folks designing DIY traction loss rigs with Chinese servo motors and controllers. I’ve got a preliminary design myself, and costs should be under $1000. The availability of new motor controllers that interface with common Simulator motion software packages makes this kind of project fairly easy, on the level of the DIY D-box setups.
OSW + DIY motion setups are changing this whole world, and (edit: some) commercial vendors are either too-late or haven’t gotten the message yet. The days of $10,000+ motion rigs are pretty much over.
OSW + DIY motion setups are changing this whole world, and (edit: some) commercial vendors are either too-late or haven’t gotten the message yet. The days of $10,000+ motion rigs are pretty much over.
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Yup couldn't agree more. If this was priced at 3k maybe 4k max I would probably jump all over it. But 6k is just absurd I can build an entire 5 dof with TL for less than that. Also if you read the fine print, the understeer effect doesn't work in any of the Dirt titles.
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I have to admit that the price for the Traction Plus seems completely out of whack. On the other hand, Next Level Racing has demonstrated with the NLRv2 Motion Platform that they are able to support their products and supply plugins at a rate that seems astonishingly quick...
Long story short: I just hope that enough people buy the Traction Plus so that they can release a Traction Plus v2 at a lower price... Hopefully, then we'll finally be able to afford it. I was literally ready to jump on it upon release... until I stumbled upon the price.
Long story short: I just hope that enough people buy the Traction Plus so that they can release a Traction Plus v2 at a lower price... Hopefully, then we'll finally be able to afford it. I was literally ready to jump on it upon release... until I stumbled upon the price.
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No one is buying this at this price. I don't even know of a single game that outputs understeer telemetry which means they are guessing with calculations based on sway and or yaw. So you're basically paying $6k for a glorified TL setup that looks cool.
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I love my NLR V3 motion unit and the specs and ability of the Traction Plus are awesome. I did get to try out an early prototype last year in Assetto Corsa and it was loads of fun, feeling the tyres break traction was great. But I have to agree the price is way out of the ballpark for most of us and probably only pro drivers and race teams will be the early adopters here. Looking forward to some news from customers and youtube vids of the T+ in action though.
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Many of our Sims have dedicated traction loss telemetry. I use Simtools with my DIY D-Box setup, and you can see exactly what telemetry each Sim outputs. It's surprisingly comprehensive. Off the top of my head, I believe Project Cars 2, AC, and iRacing all have traction loss output (not just yaw, but a channel the specifically shows loss of rear traction). FYI. See, the tuning screen for PC2 in Simtools. Note the "Extra1" channel.
Because of this, the software side of adding a TL setup to your rig is very easy. If you use a controller like Thano's 7-channel controller (which I do), you can add TL and seat-belt tensioners to a D-box style setup via the same controller and software.
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Yes I have a DIY TL setup so I am well aware of its telemetry, I am just not aware of any titles that output understeer telemetry specifically, which is why I mentioned that they must be using some kind of calculation to guess the understeer based on other factors.
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Barry’s review is up, haven’t had a chance to watch it yet.
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Very thorough and informative review, Barry likes it for sure and his expose makes me want one right away ! There really is no other sim out there like it and it looks to be engineered to an extremely high quality, even more than the V3 which is also built like a tank.
Surprisingly Dirt Rally 1 & 2 are both lacking the telemetry for understeer or oversteer, which is a shame as I think they would be great examples to drive on the traction plus. Hopefully they get patched.
Surprisingly Dirt Rally 1 & 2 are both lacking the telemetry for understeer or oversteer, which is a shame as I think they would be great examples to drive on the traction plus. Hopefully they get patched.
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Don't think you need a d-box with this and actully I reckon the V3 would feel better imho as the software is designed and optimised for both units running in sync. My impression of Barry's reaction is that he may ditch the d-box and keep the T+ with V3. He didn't say that so I am only speculating based on his reaction and commentary.
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Looking at Barrys reaction in his D-box review, I don’t think he will give up his d-box/profile setup.
Still would love to see this under a p1x. The p1x is heavy and can get heaviers with all the stuff we put on it. Barry told me that the 518lb weight limit may be conservative and this may handle more.
No idea how much a p1x weighs though
Still would love to see this under a p1x. The p1x is heavy and can get heaviers with all the stuff we put on it. Barry told me that the 518lb weight limit may be conservative and this may handle more.
No idea how much a p1x weighs though
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Yes, Barry was quite impressed with the effect it provides. He intimated that he wants to mount his main rig on it though i don't know how that would work with his DBox. I found it extremely intriguing, maybe even moreso than the DBox/SFX100 rig movers. To feel under and oversteer, in my mind, not only adds to immersion but can be pretty useful from a practical standpoint where it can help in recovery of a slide.
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I agree that the price seems crazy, though I think this product is a hopeful sign of things to come (especially for those of us who aren't as into the DIY options). The first company who can offer a modular platform of RTL + D-Box style motion for a reasonable price (I would say sub-$5000) will make a killing, IMO.
I know that there are already options out there for this (SFX-100 combined with SimX DIY RTL under a well-designed platform would do it for the price), but I simply don't have the time or interest to invest in building/integrating/configuring all of that to work well together. I'm just hoping I can stay satisfied with my current rig (GS-5 with Buttkickers and VR) until then lol!
I know that there are already options out there for this (SFX-100 combined with SimX DIY RTL under a well-designed platform would do it for the price), but I simply don't have the time or interest to invest in building/integrating/configuring all of that to work well together. I'm just hoping I can stay satisfied with my current rig (GS-5 with Buttkickers and VR) until then lol!
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I emailed Barry a few weeks back and he says he plans to integrate it with the dbox. I’m looking forward to seeing his take on it if he can get it all working properly.
I agree the price is rather high, as well as the complexity once added to a P/R motion platform. Would rather just mount a GS-5 for 1/2 the price.
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