Nick1150
06-17-2009, 02:28 AM
Hi,
My name is Nick and I am 34 yo. I live in Athens, Greece, and I am in the process of deciding the way to go as far as expanding my flight sim capabilities. I fly online with two monitors almost a year now, I would like to upgrade into something better. I want to start from somewhere, but where will that be ?
I think that the right way to begin is to let you know what I already have, and how much I am willing to go. So here it goes:
1 x dual-core desktop @ 2.5 Ghz with 2GBs RAM and with 2 x Nvidia Sparkle 9600 GT SVGA (PCI- Express, 1 GB)
2 x 17" TFT monitors
1 x CH Eclipse YOKE
The second video card was ordered last week and installed yesterday. I was planning to buy two extra TFT monitors (see scenario #4).
This desktop is connected in a home LAN (has both wired and wifi), with high speed internet, so network is not a problem here. Also there are 3-4 VAIO laptops (wife, daugher, mine, etc...) so I do not need it for taking e-mails, surfing the web, etc..... just for the sim.
Please see the setup I currently use: (This picture is without the yoke)
http://www.insomnia.gr/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=15187&d=1231749799
I always fly on line (PDMG 737-600) and I use one monitor for external view and centre panel view, and the other monitor for radio, throttle, FS navigator and the rest of equipment. To be honest I was planning to buy 2 extra monitors to make my monitors total to 4, and expand my view for better satisfaction, but searching the web I realised there are so many options that I needed help to decide.
My budget is between 800euros and 3000euros but that has to do also with the way of paying. Giving small amounts from time to time will make thinks easier and possibly expand the budget more.
The scenarios I was thinking are:
1) I must admit a full size cockpit is very appealing to me, and I have the space in my home to guest it, but it needs a lot of $$$ knowledge and time to build it. If the project will be kept in a step by step basis which means that the $$$ will be given in also a step by step basis, then I can handle the cost. The other two (time and knowledge to build it) are thinks I do not have. So my fear is to end up with a semi-finished cockpit and to fly with my desktop as now :roll: In this scenario I would think that one projector will be enough for me (1 VGA), 2 TFT monitors for the captain and the first officer (1 VGA) one TFT monitor for the center panel (1 VGA) and one TFT monitor for the forward overhead panel. This totals 4 TFT monitors. Can I do that with one desktop ?
2) The second scenario is to build only the captains panel kit or maximum the captains and maybe the center panel too. But what's the difference with the first scenario ? I think its worth the extra $$$ for the FO panel. Don't you ?
I believe the question remains the same as far as the desktop is concerned. Can I do this project with my current PC configuration ?
3) The third scenario is to make a simpler, easier, and cheaper kind of home cockpit, which is a projector for the external view (1 VGA), 2 TFT monitors for the instruments (2 VGA), and one for the overhead instruments (1 VGA). All these in a custom made wooden construction.
4) This scenario was in fact what I was thinking I wanted to do when I first started sim-ing. No cockpit just 4 TFT monitors... 3 monitors for the external view (number 8 view), the left forward view (number 7 view) and the right forward view (number 9 view), and finaly one TFT monitor with a custom aluminium construction above my head for the overhead instruments. That's it... no panels, no special hardware and costly constructions just that simple. Just see the pic above, and imagine one more monitor on the right and one above in an overhead pane style, and that's all.
I would appreciate your opinion on the above.
Thanks in advance
Nick
My name is Nick and I am 34 yo. I live in Athens, Greece, and I am in the process of deciding the way to go as far as expanding my flight sim capabilities. I fly online with two monitors almost a year now, I would like to upgrade into something better. I want to start from somewhere, but where will that be ?
I think that the right way to begin is to let you know what I already have, and how much I am willing to go. So here it goes:
1 x dual-core desktop @ 2.5 Ghz with 2GBs RAM and with 2 x Nvidia Sparkle 9600 GT SVGA (PCI- Express, 1 GB)
2 x 17" TFT monitors
1 x CH Eclipse YOKE
The second video card was ordered last week and installed yesterday. I was planning to buy two extra TFT monitors (see scenario #4).
This desktop is connected in a home LAN (has both wired and wifi), with high speed internet, so network is not a problem here. Also there are 3-4 VAIO laptops (wife, daugher, mine, etc...) so I do not need it for taking e-mails, surfing the web, etc..... just for the sim.
Please see the setup I currently use: (This picture is without the yoke)
http://www.insomnia.gr/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=15187&d=1231749799
I always fly on line (PDMG 737-600) and I use one monitor for external view and centre panel view, and the other monitor for radio, throttle, FS navigator and the rest of equipment. To be honest I was planning to buy 2 extra monitors to make my monitors total to 4, and expand my view for better satisfaction, but searching the web I realised there are so many options that I needed help to decide.
My budget is between 800euros and 3000euros but that has to do also with the way of paying. Giving small amounts from time to time will make thinks easier and possibly expand the budget more.
The scenarios I was thinking are:
1) I must admit a full size cockpit is very appealing to me, and I have the space in my home to guest it, but it needs a lot of $$$ knowledge and time to build it. If the project will be kept in a step by step basis which means that the $$$ will be given in also a step by step basis, then I can handle the cost. The other two (time and knowledge to build it) are thinks I do not have. So my fear is to end up with a semi-finished cockpit and to fly with my desktop as now :roll: In this scenario I would think that one projector will be enough for me (1 VGA), 2 TFT monitors for the captain and the first officer (1 VGA) one TFT monitor for the center panel (1 VGA) and one TFT monitor for the forward overhead panel. This totals 4 TFT monitors. Can I do that with one desktop ?
2) The second scenario is to build only the captains panel kit or maximum the captains and maybe the center panel too. But what's the difference with the first scenario ? I think its worth the extra $$$ for the FO panel. Don't you ?
I believe the question remains the same as far as the desktop is concerned. Can I do this project with my current PC configuration ?
3) The third scenario is to make a simpler, easier, and cheaper kind of home cockpit, which is a projector for the external view (1 VGA), 2 TFT monitors for the instruments (2 VGA), and one for the overhead instruments (1 VGA). All these in a custom made wooden construction.
4) This scenario was in fact what I was thinking I wanted to do when I first started sim-ing. No cockpit just 4 TFT monitors... 3 monitors for the external view (number 8 view), the left forward view (number 7 view) and the right forward view (number 9 view), and finaly one TFT monitor with a custom aluminium construction above my head for the overhead instruments. That's it... no panels, no special hardware and costly constructions just that simple. Just see the pic above, and imagine one more monitor on the right and one above in an overhead pane style, and that's all.
I would appreciate your opinion on the above.
Thanks in advance
Nick