Hello from Hawaii

Greetings from sunny Honolulu. "Long time listener, first time caller"... that's me. I've been reading threads here, off and on, for years, as I dabble in my mind about what I want to build, and I've finally decided to join so that I can begin asking (hopefully not stupid) questions.

I've been building in my mind for 25 years -- ever since I was 13, using SubLogic's FS on a Comodore 64, sitting under a recently-acquired refrigerator box (my first sim pit!!), wishing I could have 8 monitors somehow surrounding me so that I could turn my head to look at that excellent wire-frame Sears Tower Building as I flew by. (btw, sitting under a cardboard refrigerator box with a computer and monitor gets HOT quick!)

I've recently had to build a "sim pit" out of necessity (it is, after all, the mother of invention). My wife has begun working from home, and so all of the flightsim hardware clamped to various places on the desk had to go... for some weird reason I'll never comprehend, it was "in the way". So, I essentially built a "movable stand", to which I've mounted all of my hardware (yoke, pedals, TQ, various Saitek panels). I carry this stand into the office when I want to "play my pretend airplane game", as my wife so affectionately refers to it, and then carry it back out to the garage when I'm done.

My current setup is 3x 24" Acer wide-screen monitors, connected via Matrox TH2G (for external views), and a single 22" wide-screen monitor (mounted to my portable stand) onto which I drag my instrument panel.

I've been given the green light to get a second computer, take back my 3 monitors, and move into a "permanent" (although small, 8'x10' room) space. So, here I am, pouring through these forums and building (in earnest) in my mind again.

Jimmy
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Here are a couple of shots of my "portable flight deck"....

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-X...-56-17_426.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-R...-19-25_871.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-_...-34-14_322.jpg