SPAD.neXt

Hi Ulrich, DAZ

To help you in your research, please find attached the way I am using your products. (please for yours eyes only). It is a hudge work, the job still on working progress, step by step !!!

This solution has been choosed to avoid many problems with several screens and to reduce cost/room of heavy buttons panels from china where interface's software are not stables and not normalized at all. (e.i vrinsight company had faded away from the market).

on the left side checklist
on the right side Panels, Views (I am also using EZ cameras) crew and Cpt annoncements, and fire/emergency panels.

If you want to continue this discussion, it will be with pleasure. Please use my email address that i gave to you to buy your products.

Tks
Alain

Hi,

For these who are interested, I have tried many USB2 hubs to run my FIP without any success. In my personal experience there are several key points to respect as you already know.

- Motherboard must powerfull to support it, including a lot of USB2 port on the back. Unfortunattly few recent motherboard offer this possibility.
I have overclocked my Asus motherboard and using a core9 with 128 GB.

- Don't try to connect your hubs on USB3 ports.
- The power of the ubs must be high as well.
- My recommendation is to use Windows 10 professional.

After a lot of reseach on the web, I founded these ones which can support until 13 ports (in theory), I use only 8 of them. They can be founded https://www.ldlc.com/fiche/PB00073510.html.

When I switch the PC on, I can see the Fip seen working, then they switch off for a while and there are really working again when I launch Spad as an administrator. We can see that we are at the limit of the system but it works...... If someone could me help me, it will be nice.

I am using the Prepar3D v4 because this software gives me more flexibility and stability compare to the other one. According to my settings I am working at 30 FPS.

Regards.
Tks
Alain

I certainly would sign up for a USB3 option as that is the critical issue for many. I am not unhappy with the current cache on FIP offerings. They are not comprehensive but provide for great functionality and a vision of what should follow.

alain44 wrote: ↑

01 Dec 2019, 08:52

- connection between pc and the device (that's the main issue). How to manage the connection between multiples devices and PC? Do you have in your relationships someone who can study with appropriate tools the component of a saitek FIP to understand it? The key point is to know at what place/level the speed restriction takes place? (PC bus, management of usb ports, FIP's device itself, …).

There are several bottlenecks:
a) the driver on pc side. It's not written to handle many fip simultanously. That could be easily fixed, but as I said before, my mission is not to do other people's work.
b) the firmware of the fip is from 2005. It still has the bugs in it it had 10 years ago. The developer of the firmware left Saitek/Madcat long time ago.

alain44 wrote: ↑

01 Dec 2019, 08:52

Other approach with the help of Ulrich / DAZ:
Perhaps, it might possible to start a discussion with Logitech to explain them the situation. Is there a solution to rewrite the firmware, to add a new EPROM, to move for USB3 ? ? I Don't know …

Updating the fip to USB3 will need a hardware redesign. I doubt Logitec will invest that. And again not my mission to do their work.

alain44 wrote: ↑

01 Dec 2019, 18:28

For these who are interested, I have tried many USB2 hubs to run my FIP without any success. In my personal experience there are several key points to respect as you already know.

Decision about which HUB is fairly easy.
- It has to support TRUE USB2.0 ports. (not compatible or such!)
- if it's a USB3 port on PC side, the HUB has to implement USB2 Flowcontrol. (Must be stated in specs)
- it must be able to provide NoOfPorts*1.0 + 0.5 A of power. No matter what FIP specs say, they draw MORE than 0.5A if being driven with SPAD.neXt (becasue the fps is higher). So if you have a USB hub that provides e.g. 3,5A power, you can only drive 3 fip with it reliably.

Anyhow, please keep this thread clear of discussions.Open seperate threads to discuss stuff.
It's just to poll the need and to make up my mind, if it's worth to invest in prototyping a device (which is not a cheap and esay job).

c0nnex wrote: ↑

02 Dec 2019, 03:20

Anyhow, please keep this thread clear of discussions.Open seperate threads to discuss stuff.
It's just to poll the need and to make up my mind, if it's worth to invest in prototyping a device (which is not a cheap and esay job).

Maybe you should add another item to the Poll.....How many would you buy?

I currently have 9 FIPs....If you make Better ones and they are the 60 Euro or so.....Then I will likely buy 9 units to replace these 9...

I know this is about the Saitek FIP's but I think that it is incredible that Logitech have not improved or upgraded any of the Saitek equipment since they took over from Saitek and they are in danger of being left behind.
Cheers
SmiffyRebel

Hi All,

My Personal opinion would be to use a Lan Connection you can pick up a cheap Gigabit network switch for around £30 with 24 ports.
Also if they were modular by Design so that if you owned more than 1 then they can connect together (some sort of Edge Connector) share the same power connection, and addressable through 1 Lan Connection perhaps to a max of 3 units then seperate lan and poer for the next 3

Just my thoughts

jonfly wrote: ↑

30 Nov 2019, 01:00

Please consider support for the upcoming FIPs from realsimgear.com

Pic here

Screenshot_2.png

hum..... just paid 119€ for 1 FIP from saitek. the realsim cost 349€. i'm happy with the saitek one. have already 2. waiting for next updates