PropNut

After reading a bit (Saitek Forums) there are several issues with the X45 that might be causing your problem. 1. Check the deadzones in the Saitek software to make sure they are not pulled all the way out, this would give the appearance in game that the axis are not working but the buttons are. In Windows and Saitek software it would appear that the axis are working. 2. There is a USB driver issue with the older version of the X45 (no idea how to tell them apart) requiring a re-installation of the HID driver in control panel. 3. There is a windows registry issue that can cause your symptoms also. See this post: http://www.saitekforum.com/showthread.php?t=14029 Let me know if these work for you, David

Hmm...look on the bright side....we fixed the connection issue! (ok, poor humor.....still looking into it) David

Sorry, I missed the comment about everything working in the Saitek software. Are you using Windows 7 or XP? If you are using WIndows 7 does the joystick appear under the devices and printers area (in the windows button menu)? If you highlight it and right click then choose game controller settings does it show up as "ok" and can you then double click on it to see the buttons and axis? Windows Vista and XP have similar areas where you can see the joystick functioning outside of a game, in XP you should be able to find the joystick utilities under control panel as a single icon. I know that Windows 7 has issues with older USB devices and does not like their drivers (X36 is not usable with Windows 7 at all...I had one that I wanted to tear apart and use in my simpit). I have not had any experience with the X45 yet but I will continue to research it. A couple of things to try....try exiting out of the Saitek software completely and then go to the windows joystick utility (as mentioned above) and see if it is working, also try something simple like IL-2 to see if they axis are binding (I is, to me, just faster than loading FSX or Falcon). By the way, BMS has released their new Mod for Falcon 4.0. Updates the graphics, modeling, flight dynamics, damage models, etc. A really cool mod to bring Falcon into the new century. You can google BMS Falcon 4.0. or I can get the link for you when I am a bit less lazy, lol. David Here is a picture of the steps in Windows 7 that I was talking about. The person who posted this in another forum is having the same issue but with to resolution as yet.

The problem is defiantly with your hotas, If the connections to the plug are good on the PCB then it might be the cable that has a bad connection. Use a V/O meter to check for continuity from one end to the other (the cable between the throttle and stick). Sorry to hear that you are having such issues. Does the throttle all by itself work ok?

The Core i5 2500k that I just built for a buddy came with the fan (you can check on the ad where you buy it from if it does, if it is an OEM chip usually not but if it is a retail chip in a blue box then yes it does) and they do a fine job of cooling the CPU even under mild overclocking conditions. He CPU ran at 28c idle and no more than 42c under load (four simultaneous Prime 95 programs running, one for each core). Very very cool running CPU. I used water cooling in the past and it is great for keeping the CPU cool if you need it, in this case I doubt you will. I had to downsize my case due to desktop space restrictions (these three monitors take up a huge amount of space) but here is the case with water cooling that I was using with my Core i7 920. This is my Steampunk solid brass and cherry case: http://www.overclock.net/case-mod-work-logs/468160-project-serenity-another-wooden-case.html For now, I would recommend just using the stock fan until such a time as it proves not to keep up with any overclocking that you do, this will keep your budget happy. David

http://www.m2film.dk/fleggaard/trailer2.swf

Here are the type of IR LEDs that I use, you can pick them up at Maplin's there in Northhampton: http://www.maplin.co.uk/ld271-infrared-emitter-2262

Let me know if you want some help, I would be happy to do so if I can. David

Sounds like there is a loose solder joint, you can test it out by using a fine tipped volt/ohm meter and checking for continuity on the plug and solder connection. Put a bare wire into the plug, connect your V/O meter to both sides and wiggle the plug around, see if the meter jumps. If it does, you can try to resolder the connections by applying a soldering iron to the contacts (just enough to melt the solder, not enough to make it run off and use a very fine tip on a good quality soldering iron, not a soldering gun). It would be good practice for building your Freetrack heaset! This should be needless to say but....lol...I will. Do all this with the joystick unplugged, either into the throttle base or the USB. By the way, the same thing happened on my old X52, it uses a slightly different plug but same issue. David

Hi Leon, I have built a dozen or so Freetrack setups for various people, I make the head clip as a duplicate for the Track Clip Pro (so it works with Track IR as well) on my CNC machine. I use a USB port for the 5v power and 5mm 940nm IR LEDs that I grind down myself so they have a wider range of beam. I have used many different webcams, pretty much anything that has a removable IR filter (be careful as many webcams do not have a removable filter). The lifecam as Mayhem points out is a very good choice, but whichever cam you find to use make sure you find references for it on Freetrack's forums. This is the best way to safely remove the filter, having someone else figure it out for you first, lol (ok, that usually works for me anyway). Here is my favorite circuit for wiring the LEDs: and a picture of one of my clips, this is an old picture, my new CNC units do not look nearly so crude. I use a large jaw spring type paper clip (the type used for large stacks of papers) to hold it to my headset. I have to admit that I now use TrackIR (5) as I was convinced by a couple of friends to purchase it...to be honest, other than the issues with setting up the software to work well with the camera (tweaking can be a pain) they work pretty much exactly the same as far as I can tell. If you like tweaking and tinkering you will love your freetrack system. David

Well, I am sure she would say ok to going...but not ok to the 2000.00 or so it would cost me to go. But I will be there in spirit and I will of course look through all the pictures that you post of the event.

I remember half a dozen of these sitting at Merrill Field in Anchorage Alaska when I was a kid. The U.S. Forestry Service used them as forest fire spotters or some such. Always exciting when they took off (our house was near the end of the run way).

Snacko, nope, that is not bad at all.

Hmm...I wonder if my wife will let me out long enough to go to Duxford next year? If I start saving money now........

Wow Snacko, that card rates right up there still. I would not bother to upgrade for a while. Try this: load RoF and start a quick mission. Load 15 planes on both sides and start the game. See where your frame rates (using Fraps) comes in at the center of the furball. As a reference, my Core i7 920 with an HD6970 2gb @ 1920x1200 gets 25-45fps in one of those dust-ups, especially near the ground over a city. RoF is both a test of your CPU and GPU as an older GPU with a newer CPU will get better frame rates than will a newer GPU with an old CPU. Case in point: I have a Core i5 2500k with my old HD5850 sitting here running RoF in that mission, it gets 5fps (average) better than does my Core i7 920 with an HD6970. Here are my graphics settings in RoF:

I used to have that problem as well (sometimes still do) but alt-tabbing fixes it. For some reason the game loads in front but your mouse control is still on the desktop. Very frustrating, I agree.But it is easier for me to see the issue as I can still see the mouse moving on a couple of monitors that I am not using for the game.

Good morning Leon, I have no real preference for video card manufacturers, my current GPU (HD6970) is a Sapphire but my last two were XFXs and the two before that were EVGA, and before that they were BFGs (Stands for Big Fucking Gun, I wonder how many people in the buying public ever figured that out?Although that is not officially the companies acronym). There are too many to say that this one or that one is best. Like I said, I would look at the review ratings on Newegg.com (even though you cannot buy from them) and balance that with the cost of the card, this is what I do. I chose the Sapphire this time as the specific card that I purchased is actually an HD6950 but it unlocked to become an HD6970. Most HD6950s will not do that anymore...but that is another story. Gustang, Joebob, and I think one other person here have purchased the XFX HD6950 2gb and are very happy with it. I am pretty happy with my Sapphire card. Read the reviews and then choose. Do a search on Newegg.com for HD6950 2gb and scroll through them to see how many "eggs" each has been rated and then click on the eggs to read the specific reviews. On the motherboard debate: I will throw a vote in for my favorite maker: EVGA I have had their 680i, 780i, and now their X58 Tri SLI, great motherboards with huge overclocking potential (irony: I hardly ever overclock). But they are very expensive. The computer that I have sitting here that I built for a buddy (just waiting on his new memory to arrive, in the meantime it is using 8gb out of the spare parts drawer) is using a very cheap Biostar Crossfire board. Cheap boards but they also have one of the best review ratings on Newegg.com No issues with it running 24/7 (well for the last week anyway) playing RoF, IL-2 CLoD, L4D2, and Metro 2033 (I left the metro 2033 benchmark program running on 40 run loop with no issues). Just to let both of you know, Intel plans on releasing their Enthusiast grade Sandy Bridge CPUs in the next couple of months, (November 17 last I heard) I am not sure how that will effect prices but there might be a lot of used 2500k CPUs and motherboards on the market at that time. And of course one of the enthusiast CPUs will be priced just above (around 280.00 USD) the current prices of the Core i5 2500k (currently around 215.00 USD). The new motherboards are going to be the X79 by Intel.

A couple? They come out of the wood work like...er.......

I had tried that before installing Kev's mod, it did not help. But it sure was worth a try.

Kev's Widescreen mod did the trick. Thanks for the responses! David

Sorry if this question has been answered elsewhere but I did not find it after an, admittedly, cursory search. Since the install of UP3 my map no longer has grid references on it, as a matter of fact I don't think there is any grid at all. How can I change this back to the way it was? Thanks, David

Hi Flyboy, GTX 569ti is a reference to the graphics processing chip on the video card, which is made by Nvidia. There are many video card makers who use this chip, and others. To make it simple, manufacturers refer to their cards by the graphics chip rather than unique names (although some add unique names as well). The two main graphic chip makers for gaming purposes are Nvidia (who make the GTX 560ti) and AMD (used to be called ATI until AMD bought them, and they make the HD6950). Some of the more popular video card makers are EVGA, XFX, Sapphire, MSI, Diamond, PNY, PowerColor, Sparkle, ASUS, HIS, Gigabyte, and many more. Pretty much go with the best price divided by the best reviews. Newegg.com is a great place to read reviews even if you cannot order from them. (Is there a Newegg.uk?) I like the AMD cards only because of the value-added feature of eyefinity on one card. Eyefinity allows you to plug three monitors into one card and stretch the screen across all three (there are restrictions such as all three must have matching resolutions such as 1680x1050..which is only an example, or be able to be configured in such as way as the resolutions match). With three 22" monitors you can have a gaming screen that is 5040x1050, or three 24" monitors that give you a game screen of 5760x1200, etc. This massive resolution does come at a cost in performance but so far all games play very smooth with the combo of the i5 2500k and the HD6950 (either the 1gb version or the 2gb, but the 2gb is better). To do this with an Nvidia card (such as the GTX560ti you would need two cards and have them running in SLI mode, so twice the cost). There are several members who run in this mode with PCs similar to what you are building or older systems, MadTrooper is running three 22" monitors on an older AMD HD5870, I ran three 22"s on my Core i7 920 with a single HD5850. Others who run Eyefinity might chime in here and let us know how it is working for you. You will need an adapter to run three non Display Port type monitors as the card only has two DVI outputs but the adapter to go from Display Port to DVI is really cheap (about 20.00 here in the U.S.), if you lived closer I have an extra in a drawer you could have but shipping that far would be more expensive than just buying one. Some FAQs that have excellent info on Eyefinity and Nvidia's Surround system: http://widescreengamingforum.com/article/amd-eyefinity-faq http://widescreengamingforum.com/article/nvidia-3d-vision-surround-faq This does not mean that the GTX 560ti is not a great card, it really is, but to do three monitors like I do I would need an extra card rather than just the one HD6970 that I am using. (The HD6970 is the big brother to the HD6950). As to power supplies...I personally think you will be just fine with a 650w PSU, I have another computer running a Q6600 with an HD5850 8gb of ram two hard drives and a DVD (plus a bunch of lights, etc) using an Antec 450w PSU......650w would be plenty for one or even two quality GPUs and the rest that you are using. The Intel Core i5 2500k is much better on power consumption that most CPUs and the GTX560ti and HD6950 are both very good as well. If you can get a larger capacity PSU (Power Supply Unit) for not much more money than do so but dont worry otherwise. As bigger and better units become available prices will drop and you can upgrade when you actually need to probably for the price difference of current units, if you need to at all. If you are looking to add several Raid drives, BlueRay, and Tri SLI you might want a larger PSU, but if not then you are on the right track for cost/efficiency. Also, I googled the case that you listed and that thing is HUGE inside, you will have no troubles fitting even the longest GPU in there, and there is plenty of room for expansion (RAID drives, etc if you so feel in the future). David (notice the two full syllables on the name..not Dave...Dave was my dad, short guy, dark hair..I look nothing like him but my mom gets really upset when I ask about the mailman)

Ouch....it is only 10% more here, depending on which brand/extras that are included.

I would argue that the HD6950 2gb is the best bang for the buck, faster than the GTX560ti and with twice the memory. Plus you can run 3 monitors in eyefinity mode without the need for a second card. But that is just me

Hi Flyboy! Dont forget to plan on flying Rise of Flight (They are giving the game away now, but an awesome flight sim of WWI) I just built a system for a buddy that is very similar to what you have listed with a couple of exceptions. First, the motherboard has built in 7.1 surround sound support so why bother with the Soundblaster card? That would save you 29.99. Second, you might want to consider getting the best GPU that you can afford, perhaps a GTX 560Ti or AMD HD6950? Slightly more expensive but well worth it in performance. Perhaps the savings with not getting the soundblaster would be the difference? Whatever you decide on, welcome to the squadron and I hope to see you on comms! David