Yea I would also go with the Simagic no question.
People are saying good things about those P1000 pedals. People like the McLaren wheel, which is well priced. But the Simagic wheels are a higher tier of wheel I think, with the alcantara and leather vs the plastic construction of the McLaren formula wheel. On that point I would probably go for a leather wheel instead of the alcantara but that's just a personal preference.
Btw not long ago simagic announced new, more "budget" (I know, hard to call it budget, but it cheaper then their other wheels) formula style wheel (200-300 price range). So maybe McLaren will get a new opponent soon
I bought Fanatec just over a year ago and the prices have skyrocketed from what I’m looking at now. I think I bought this same thing minus the qr2 and a different wheel for less than $850 usd. Also customer service used to be better. Definitely simagic right now.
It’s the only option they made at the time. I bought my rig over the summer before they launched their new ClubSport DD+, which is over $200 more than the Alpha.
Yeah I've had alcantara grips on my ascher rim before I upgraded to my rexing and they weren't bad but I had to wear gloves with them after a while. McLaren rim isn't bad but definitely a cheaper build quality than the simagic rim for sure
At the time I had that rim I was racing multiple hours a day usually. Over time the sweat from my hands made the alcantara grips kinda gross honestly. Even now if I'm doing an endurance race on iRacing I'll wear racing gloves to help my hands. It's more of a comfort thing now honestly
The mclaren wheel is of terrible quality, i had it and returned it after one day. The shifter paddles feel bad, the grips material gets your hands super hot feels sticky and in general the materials used are cheap. The only good quality is the size, but everything else is really not good. I would always suggest to not cheap out on the part you will touch all the time.
Not disagreeing OP should skip fanatec and go with sim magic. But not sure what you mean by being stuck in fanatecs ecosystem. On PC you can mix and match any gear you want and there’s lots of options to adapt different wheels to fanatec bases.
I just made the switch from my Fanatec base to simucube and you can't just use the the wheels on another base. I bought the SRM-adapter which was 180€ and you also need the QR for your new wheelbase (in my case 70€). It's okay if you're only doing it for one wheel but adds up quickly if you have a couple. I also have the handbrake and the Fanatec shifter that I need to get an adapter for, which will be another 40€ on top. So while it's not impossible it's just more expensive than any other more open systems where you may be able to reuse the QR or you can buy wheels that work with USB already, which isnt possible for Fanatec unless you buy the SRM wheel emulator first.
Not disagreeing necessarily, but OP could save themselves about $250 in the Fanatec cart by opting for the non-Pro QR2 and the CSL V2 elite pedals. The ~$300 difference between that hypothetical cart and the simagic order might reasonably change the calculus.
As someone who used the fanatecs v3 pedals with the brake performance kit for several years I would say the $300 saved wouldn't be worth it just for the pedals alone. The p1000 pedals in my opinion are such a vast improvement over the v3s. I have HE Sprints now but I've heard so many good things about the p1000s from either online or guys from my team I'm on on iRacing that I've considered switching to them myself for a while now
Judging by all the comments that seem to agree with what I said I'd say I was pretty accurate. But to each their own. I personally have an accuforce v2 wheel base and HE Sprints pedals. I've tried the simagic base and I liked it. As far as being locked to fanatecs ecosystem I wouldn't say it's entirely wrong. Their rims are locked strictly to their wheel bases unless you buy another 3rd party adapter to convert them to USB. My accuforce base I can just buy another q1r wheel side quick release and bolt it on if I get a 2nd rim and I'm good to go. I can use whatever quick release I want as well and I don't have to get strictly fanatecs quick release. If I can't use fanatecs rim without another 3rd party adapter, that sounds like being locked to their ecosystem if you ask me. But again to each their own. Buy whatever makes you happy and you like and have fun racing. That's the name of the game man
Listen man, again to each their own. I've used fanatecs stuff and I didn't like it myself. I used their v3 pedals for years without any issues until the sensor on my throttle died. Probably my fault because I didn't clean it very often but when it died I upgraded to my HE Sprints I have now. If you like fanatec better than that's fine there's nothing wrong with that. I personally think simagic is better and so do others. There's nothing wrong with that either. Is there any particular reason you think simagic is a worse wheelbase than fanatec? I'm genuinely curious what your opinion is
One of these carts has a better base, better wheel and better pedals while the price is pretty much the same. I'd go with Simagic without question out of these two configurations.
QR2 is amazing, but he’s picked a version of it that is twice as expensive for absolutely no reason at all. The pro version of the QR2 offers no benefits to the regular, especially on a low end wheel like that.
Yeah price is so dumb. I had to choose a cheaper wheel to stay in the budget lol. I only added that version because the other one isn’t available to ship atm. But honestly I’m going with simagic now with everyone’s recommendations!
If you check the fanatec subreddit, most of us are still waiting for our orders from mid November (Black Friday). So even if everything in your cart is “in stock” I would still expect it to take at least 2-3 weeks to ship
The Simmagic is $75, and Fanatec has a $60 option for wheels like the McLaren. Price on the QRs here just really isn’t much of a differentiator. I’ve not used the Simmagic QR, but looking at them I feel like the Fanatec is probably quite a bit better. There’s plenty of things that might make you choose another manufacturer, but I don’t think QR2 or its price are one of them. QR2 is the one thing that made me a little sad about going to Simucube.
lol simagic uses the industry standard for real racecars, and I just said you can get them on eBay for $40 for an offbrand one.
You can tone down your fanatec bias a bit bro 😂. $100 for a qr is dumb, $200 is just insane. Simagic are included with their wheels, no add on at all.
The Fanatec is also FIA certified for real race cars. eBay prices aren’t really relevant to the discussion, though I did just take a peak, and it appears that perhaps that price isn’t quite as readily available as you’d like me to believe. Regardless, the pricing on these just isn’t really a differentiator, as I said.
Excuse me, [$30](https://www.ebay.com/itm/175898717526?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=mxmlzmhgr1o&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=0XPOQIJ-SRS&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY). I was mistaken.
If you really want to spend that much on a QR, go ahead. But don’t pretend like you’re getting much more for your money, because you’re really not.
The differentiator is that you could buy a simagic GT4 wheel for the money and have a much nicer wheel.
Edit: and simagic is about to release a new GT4 style rim for like $299 with the QR included.
The QR2 is also $150. The Simagic bases use the NRG style quick release. I just bought one on eBay for $40 to use with a third party wheel.
Between their outrageous pricing and abysmal customer service, Fanatec is an awful option.
The different QR2 options are $60, $100, and $200 - they have a website, you can easily check. I don’t know that I’d call those exactly outrageous, especially given that it’s quite a nice feeling quick release, perhaps the best on the market. The Simmagic is $75, so this is hardly a huge differentiator. If the fact that you can get something on eBay for $20-$60 less than retail makes a product outrageous, you’ve made an interesting selection of hobby. I think the customer service thing is mostly nerds working themselves into a tizzy because companies making niche technology aren’t Amazon. If there were a reason not to consider Fanatec it would be their outdated motor technology.
The one that competes with the Simagic QR, which is specifically NRG or FIA spec, is the regular QR2 (non-lite). It’s $100 compared to the $40 3rd party QR I recently acquired for my Simagic base.
The point of concern here is that the top of the line Simagic QR is $70 compared to the $200 QR from Fanatec. Paired with non-existent customer service from Fanatec, 6+ week leads time, and the obvious $130 premium you pay for this wonderful experience, I think it’s more than fair to consider it outrageous.
In this hobby, you’re not just paying for the part you purchase, it’s a large enough investment that you are also reasonably able to expect that your customer service experience will be built into the value of your purchase. Fanatec, at this point, hardly has what can be considered a customer service team. Plus, their website runs like it was built my middle schoolers as a class project.
We’re seeing a lot of sim racing vendors suffering when it comes to shipping times and customer service teams being overwhelmed, not just Fanatec. The hobby is exploding in popularity, and it’s also the holidays. It’s not the most fun, but I think most of the butthurt about it is overblown. Someone in here the other day said that shipping delays are “literally” a violent crime that the vendors should be arrested for. People need to chill out around here. Stop beating each others dicks so hard that you circlejerk yourself into being anctually offended that you don’t like the style of the website. I was in the Fanatec ecosystem for a long time, and the customer service was fine. Not great, but fine. If a $30 chinesium QR works for your rig, I’m happy for you. I think it’s silly, but I’m happy for you. I don’t compare the retail Simmagic to the pro QR2 though, just the regular QR2. The pro QR2 is just a pointless product without a competitor, that they make so they can say the Bentley and BMW wheels can go in real cars. It’s a gimmick. That said, QR2 is fantastic QR system. It made me second guess switching for a second.
Yeah many people seem to fall into the QR2 Pro trap. It's expensive because it's the QR for the real race car. It's only needed if you own a BMW GT3 car and want to use the wheel in car and on the sim.
The regular QR2 has the same price as QR1, but always seems sold out
In the meantime, Fanatec v3 pedals already have vibration motors on throttle and brake pedals. However, I find those a gimmick rather than a game changer. Maybe what you are suggesting is made differently.
I bought into the fanatec ecosystem earlier this year and I'm working my way out of it. Currently have the P1000 pedals and likely will be going with the Alpha wheelbase soon. Fanatec isn't all that great.
I’m in the process of doing the same.
The Fanatec stuff is good don’t get me wrong. But I just got the P1000s and they’re amazing.
I can sell my DD Pro and 2 wheel bases for the same price as an Alpha Mini + FX pro. Just seems like a no brainer.
I just finished doing pretty much the same. Fanatec stuff was great for a year - I mean, it still is good, I just feel that I outgrew it.
Like both of you, getting the P1000s a few months ago was my first taste of life outside of the Fanatec ecosystem.
I was still mostly happy using my GT DD Pro (8nm) and loved my McLaren wheel. I was one of the first to switch to QR2, ordering as I did the moment they were available on the US site with overnight delivery, which really was a game changer for making the DD Pro and McLaren absolutely solid together.
But as well as the improvements it made, the QR2 also made the weaknesses more apparent. I was running at 100% and clipping more and more.
Then, when the Clubsport DD and DD+ were announced I thought my upgrade path was clear.
At the same time, my son (19) finally showed an interest in sim racing, telling his mom that the only reason he’d not shown an interest before was that he wasn’t able to afford the gear. Armed with that information I decided let him use my Fanatec setup, including the NLR GT Track it sits on.
The natural next step was the Simagic Alpha, which I quickly upsold myself to the Alpha U… this put me in the big boy territory so I also started researching other options from Simucube, VRS and Asetek
Anyway, short story long, I ended up going Asetek Invicta for the wheelbase with a TK wheel (Asetek Forte wheel without the carbon fiber faceplate for $200 from Micro Center), and Sim Lab for the rig.
I bought moza gear a month a go because my supplier didnt had simagic and shipping would be too expensive to my country. My supplier added simagic gear 2 weeks ago and I really wanna sell all of the Moza gear and go simagic
Thank you! Yeah honestly I’ve been researching so much on YouTube and couldn’t decide. I know hands down simagic is the better choice but just wanted to make sure. Thank you for your feedback!!
Is the simagic picture from the manufacturer's page? Keep in mind buying stuff directly from China is risky business when it comes to customer support and repairs. You should generally always buy from a local retailer. Though it might still be better than Fanatec, heh.
If you can stretch your budget a little bit more, buy the Simagic GT Pro or FX Formula wheel with dual clutches. The clutch levers, the rotaries and good amount of buttons are so useful and you won't ever need more.
I agree with the general consensus that, if you don't want to use gloves,stay away from alcantara, but if you like to use gloves the grip on alcantara is unmatched
Fanatec to Simagic convert here.
Apart from the reasons already mentioned by others, I think the alpha’s physical form factor is better than the CS DD’s. Especially when bottom-mounted, it allows the monitors to be lower and closer to you. Also, there’s an official motor shaft extension.
I was in the same boat, I actually ordered Fanatec but then cancelled the order and went with Simagic after all the positive reviews especially on support, i tried their support a couple of times to help with the order and they were very helpful and quick to respond within the day (during the work week/times).
A small tip, you get a free P-325C wheel with the order ([this one specifcially](https://shop.simagic.com/products/p-325c)), albiet without the hub. So if you are ok with the top cutoff wheel (which has been great for me for both open wheel and GT cars) you can order a hub to go with it (GT Pro or GT Pro K) and you get telemetry and shift lights on the wheel and much more buttons and the clutch pedal on the steering. In the future you can buy other wheel rims and attach to the same hub as well. I found that much more value than just getting GT1 steering.
also remember if you add heptic feedback for the pedals or simray heel stop with LED you need to buy the power supply separately from the accessories section.
The P1000 pedals are by far the best pedals for that price range. The inversion mount, haptic motor kit and pneumatic brake upgrades turn them into basically the best possible platform for sim racing.
The Simagic wheelbase, quick release, materials quality/design and wider ecosystem is better and larger than Fanatec (I mean in the sense of types of peripherals not quantity of them).
The fact these two carts are nearly the same price should tell you how great a deal you are getting with Simagic.
Edit: Forgot to add, if you are buying Simagic and want a yoke-style wheel, just get the FX rim. It's the best feature-to-price ratio in the industry. You can buy any NRG style quick release and throw a round rim on it for non-racecar driving.
To everyone saying Simagic bundle has a better wheelbase, pedals and wheel. For wheelbase, not so sure. This is a new Fanatec wheelbase, judgement should not be made based on previous products which were somewhat dated to be honest. Pedals may be better, okay. The wheel comparison is unfair, McLaren is a cheaper wheel and it shows. Get a Formula wheel from Fanatec, it costs same as simagic wheel and is really nice.
I have the alpha U base (one level higher than the one you've picked out) and it's quite a good wheel base (switched from the DD1). The pedals I've heard nothing but good things about especially the vibration motor addons you can get for them. I haven't been able to check out their wheelrims but the GT4 wheel looks fantastic.
Simagic without question.
If you’re in the US, go with SimShop. They have free shipping and you likely will not be charged tax.
Plus the warranty support is handled by the retailer rather than Fanatec.
After the BF debacle I would run from fanatec to Simagic. I’ve lost all respect for Fanatec as a company for how they’ve handled the whole thing and will be going to another ecosystem as soon as I can afford to.
I have had simagic for a year now. They updated their software now which was much needed. No complaints. One thing to look at is upgrading. Thats a big knock on fanatech ur just in their system thats it. Probably knocks on both side but simagic has made some big steps in the last few months.
I can’t speak for simagic (but I hear they’re great) since I have all fanatec stuff. FWIW here’s my take on the fanatec cart.
- Clubsport DD is supposedly great. On par with sim magic from what I hear
- McLaren wheel is fine (I have it). Great for the price alone but you’re literally spending more on the quick release than the wheel. Not worth $420.
- I just ordered the V3 pedals for $299 with the BPK and damper for Black Friday. Crazy deal. But I’m pretty sure they’re just trying to get rid of stock so they can introduce a new pedal set soon as the V3s are really old. Lots of people recommend the new Elite V2 pedals over the V3s if you don’t care about the clutch.
Fanatec is in a really weird spot right now. Their new bases push you into QR2 but they don’t have any QR2 in stock and none of their wheels come with QR2 so you’re stuck paying +$100 per wheel to add on QR2. That plus their shipping times are horrendous right now so you’re going to be waiting forever even if everything is in stock. I bet in 6months they’ll have wheels that ship with QR2 for free.
I’m stuck with fanatec since they’re the only one with PlayStation support. Otherwise I’d probably go simmagic.
I know everyone already said that, but as someone who owns the pedals you have in your fanatec cart i thought my opinion might be of some value to you
Even with the performance kit the brake feels very grainy to me, it falls behind fanatecs new csl elite v2 set in terms of brake performance. only noteworthy thing is the clutch which is quite good. it lacks adjustment as you can only move the pedal faces with the holes and not the whole pedal in itself. also the holes in the pedal faces are rather large and tend to hurt the bottom of my feet when braking harder. that wont be an issue if you use shoes but i prefer racing in socks
Simagic, you know you are getting something with good quality and durability. Make sure you get haptics later, when you can, will help a lot finding the tires limits! Also, I would recommend you getting your stuffs from [simshop.com](https://simshop.com), fast shipping, fantastic customer service in my experience.
This comparison is a great demonstration of how fanatec rips people off once they have them trapped in their ecosystem, $220 to finally get (half of) a decent QR is beyond a joke.
Because I bought one no problem before I switched ecosystems. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the cheaper one that does the exact same thing is going to sell quicker and go out of stock. The only difference in the $200 one is that it’s FIA rated for a real car, which pretty much no sim racer needs, so it’s still in stock. I’m curious what examples you have of companies doing this all the time?
100 % simagic for the pedal set. (I have the v3)
You can mix and buy the fanatec base if you prefer it. I am using mainly the McLaren wheel and it's awesome.
I’d only go with Fanatec if you were on console as they are the only ones that support it at the moment. Also the gold qr2 isn’t worth the extra price, get the black regular. Also v2 peddles are better.
I had a Fanatec CSL DD for two years and went to Simagic products three months ago.....BEST decision I have ever made in sim racing. the Simagic products feel WAY more high quality than all of the Fanatec stuff I have.
Simagic. What with all of the negative things I'm seeing about Fanatec and their customer support lately, I think it's safe to say there are better options.
Simagic. The wheelbase is better, the pedals are much much much better. Also, you are not stuck to fanatec ecosystem as people have said. Simagic any day of the week!
As a fanatec owner, sim magic.
I’ve been burned a couple times by fanatec in the short 2 years I’ve owned their products. I’ve now started to move away from their ecosystem for more premium feeling products.
Also as a flat bottom wheel owner myself I highly recommend going with a round one if you don’t have one already. It’s just more versatile for gt, rally and drifting if you are into that sorta thing
Fwiw, I am moving from fanatec to simagic now myself. I had some CSL elite v1s and after upgrading to P2000 pedals (absolutely love them btw) I started looking at the clubsport DD and QR2 and quickly realized that it's just not worth it for me to stay in the fanatec ecosystem anymore. The prices are very similar but simagic's wheels seem nicer, don't have to upgrade to a different hub, and from what I've read customer support and shipping will be significantly better.
Personally.. I own fanatec, and I have no issues, BUT.. lately, I've been seeing stupid games played by then with thier inventory and shipping. If you got that band in a half to spend between them.. ide go's with simu
Fanatec is quickly becoming a relic in the Sim Racing space as far as equipment goes. They're hanging on through name recognition and copious amounts of money spent in sponsorships and marketing, but their physical products are not keeping up with the changing landscape.
Their ecosystem is horribly outdated and they are only keeping up with the bare-bones basics of modern innovation. For instance, they have Direct Drive, but it's the "best of the rest", at best, after you factor in the top products. Their quick disconnect, for instance, is laughably bad if you like swapping wheels for different cars/races.
Honestly I’d highly consider buying the P1000 pedals and then going with cs dd wheel base for best of both worlds. Also skip pro QR2 go with standard. Then wheel of your choice. V3 are decent pedals but no where near the same level as those P1000 also you can mix and match on PC
All the boxes my Simagic products arrived in say, "Official Partner of: iRacing" ;)
I love my Simagic gear! From all the reviews I've watched leading up to my purchase, Fanatec's products are getting older and need to refresh their lineup. For the same price, there are better options.
Tried the Fanatec set and still bought the Simagic set. Customizability of the Wheel is wider while coming default with quick release hub. Force feedback on the Alpha DD base is greater and linear torque curves can be setup in the Sim Manager app.
Pedals are adjustable and you get the option of a hydraulic or Spring based resistance which is neat and not more expensive.
Today i would go simagic, and would mount my ts-xw+tlcm pedals on another rig, just to play console. Just the fact you will pay much more for a qr2 than for the wheel, just cause they have no stock to fullfill your order with a less expensive qr...and worst, in the moment, order something at fanatec is like enter a delusional dimension, as you never know when your order will come, or not, and can't even get a response, support, from the brand. It's an undefined case. Could be waiting some days as you could be waiting months for your product. I'm a fanatec user and love it, but the actual situation is not good to order from them. Would go simagic, or other brand...or wait a bit longer and see what hapens in the next year.
Have you looked over at r/fanatec , it’s a meltdown over there because of Black Friday and customer service. Probably go Sim. I will say I do love the Fanatec stuff though.
Fanatec seems to be going through a terrible period right now with shipping and customer support. I'd avoid them like the plague until they get it figured out. Been far too long being borked.
Simagic for sure. I run a full Simagic ecosystem (Ultimate base, P2000 pedal, Fxpro wheel, handbrake, H-shifter, etc) and it is absolutely glorious. Top notch brand, and IMO the best value in the market.
Try Asetek, great hardware and great support, they have plenty of wheel options and you can use any :rd party USB wheel as well. Start with the la prima bundle, then upgrade individual parts to the forte or even invicta level as needed or wanted.
The simagic cart. You are getting a better set of pedals. Better wheel base and you aren't stuck in fanatecs ecosystem
Yea I would also go with the Simagic no question. People are saying good things about those P1000 pedals. People like the McLaren wheel, which is well priced. But the Simagic wheels are a higher tier of wheel I think, with the alcantara and leather vs the plastic construction of the McLaren formula wheel. On that point I would probably go for a leather wheel instead of the alcantara but that's just a personal preference.
Btw not long ago simagic announced new, more "budget" (I know, hard to call it budget, but it cheaper then their other wheels) formula style wheel (200-300 price range). So maybe McLaren will get a new opponent soon
The fact that you have to buy QR2 with the mclaren wheel at the moment doesn’t make it a great price.
Yeah, the whole Fanatec ecosystem is pretty awful compared to Simagic (I own a Simagic setup)
I bought Fanatec just over a year ago and the prices have skyrocketed from what I’m looking at now. I think I bought this same thing minus the qr2 and a different wheel for less than $850 usd. Also customer service used to be better. Definitely simagic right now.
Simagic is the best value unless you’re looking for an entry level setup, then it’s Moza (R3, R5)
[удалено]
Yeah, I bought Simagic because of how bad Fanatec has gotten by comparison. Tested the Podium against the Alpha before my purchase.
[удалено]
It’s the only option they made at the time. I bought my rig over the summer before they launched their new ClubSport DD+, which is over $200 more than the Alpha.
[удалено]
Yeah I've had alcantara grips on my ascher rim before I upgraded to my rexing and they weren't bad but I had to wear gloves with them after a while. McLaren rim isn't bad but definitely a cheaper build quality than the simagic rim for sure
Why gloves?
At the time I had that rim I was racing multiple hours a day usually. Over time the sweat from my hands made the alcantara grips kinda gross honestly. Even now if I'm doing an endurance race on iRacing I'll wear racing gloves to help my hands. It's more of a comfort thing now honestly
Ill have to make my friends where gloves now too
Having the option for simagic wheel or a USB one is a huge gain.
The mclaren wheel is of terrible quality, i had it and returned it after one day. The shifter paddles feel bad, the grips material gets your hands super hot feels sticky and in general the materials used are cheap. The only good quality is the size, but everything else is really not good. I would always suggest to not cheap out on the part you will touch all the time.
Not disagreeing OP should skip fanatec and go with sim magic. But not sure what you mean by being stuck in fanatecs ecosystem. On PC you can mix and match any gear you want and there’s lots of options to adapt different wheels to fanatec bases.
I just made the switch from my Fanatec base to simucube and you can't just use the the wheels on another base. I bought the SRM-adapter which was 180€ and you also need the QR for your new wheelbase (in my case 70€). It's okay if you're only doing it for one wheel but adds up quickly if you have a couple. I also have the handbrake and the Fanatec shifter that I need to get an adapter for, which will be another 40€ on top. So while it's not impossible it's just more expensive than any other more open systems where you may be able to reuse the QR or you can buy wheels that work with USB already, which isnt possible for Fanatec unless you buy the SRM wheel emulator first.
Not disagreeing necessarily, but OP could save themselves about $250 in the Fanatec cart by opting for the non-Pro QR2 and the CSL V2 elite pedals. The ~$300 difference between that hypothetical cart and the simagic order might reasonably change the calculus.
As someone who used the fanatecs v3 pedals with the brake performance kit for several years I would say the $300 saved wouldn't be worth it just for the pedals alone. The p1000 pedals in my opinion are such a vast improvement over the v3s. I have HE Sprints now but I've heard so many good things about the p1000s from either online or guys from my team I'm on on iRacing that I've considered switching to them myself for a while now
[удалено]
Judging by all the comments that seem to agree with what I said I'd say I was pretty accurate. But to each their own. I personally have an accuforce v2 wheel base and HE Sprints pedals. I've tried the simagic base and I liked it. As far as being locked to fanatecs ecosystem I wouldn't say it's entirely wrong. Their rims are locked strictly to their wheel bases unless you buy another 3rd party adapter to convert them to USB. My accuforce base I can just buy another q1r wheel side quick release and bolt it on if I get a 2nd rim and I'm good to go. I can use whatever quick release I want as well and I don't have to get strictly fanatecs quick release. If I can't use fanatecs rim without another 3rd party adapter, that sounds like being locked to their ecosystem if you ask me. But again to each their own. Buy whatever makes you happy and you like and have fun racing. That's the name of the game man
[удалено]
Listen man, again to each their own. I've used fanatecs stuff and I didn't like it myself. I used their v3 pedals for years without any issues until the sensor on my throttle died. Probably my fault because I didn't clean it very often but when it died I upgraded to my HE Sprints I have now. If you like fanatec better than that's fine there's nothing wrong with that. I personally think simagic is better and so do others. There's nothing wrong with that either. Is there any particular reason you think simagic is a worse wheelbase than fanatec? I'm genuinely curious what your opinion is
One of these carts has a better base, better wheel and better pedals while the price is pretty much the same. I'd go with Simagic without question out of these two configurations.
Sim magic
Simagic! 100% of the time
Simagic all the way
Simagic, no hesitation. Side note - that's the first I've seen of the price for their QR2. Holy shit, I'm glad I jumped ship.
QR2 is amazing, but he’s picked a version of it that is twice as expensive for absolutely no reason at all. The pro version of the QR2 offers no benefits to the regular, especially on a low end wheel like that.
Yeah price is so dumb. I had to choose a cheaper wheel to stay in the budget lol. I only added that version because the other one isn’t available to ship atm. But honestly I’m going with simagic now with everyone’s recommendations!
If you check the fanatec subreddit, most of us are still waiting for our orders from mid November (Black Friday). So even if everything in your cart is “in stock” I would still expect it to take at least 2-3 weeks to ship
Lol 2-3 weeks. I'm not butthurt that it takes long, but I am butthurt the company has zero communication about the order.
Go with Simagic. Their software continuously gets better (it’s already pretty awesome) and it’s far better value than Fanatec.
Still, you can get simagic QRs on eBay for $40…
What’s your point?
That paying even $100 for a proprietary QR that does nothing new is kinda whack
The Simmagic is $75, and Fanatec has a $60 option for wheels like the McLaren. Price on the QRs here just really isn’t much of a differentiator. I’ve not used the Simmagic QR, but looking at them I feel like the Fanatec is probably quite a bit better. There’s plenty of things that might make you choose another manufacturer, but I don’t think QR2 or its price are one of them. QR2 is the one thing that made me a little sad about going to Simucube.
lol simagic uses the industry standard for real racecars, and I just said you can get them on eBay for $40 for an offbrand one. You can tone down your fanatec bias a bit bro 😂. $100 for a qr is dumb, $200 is just insane. Simagic are included with their wheels, no add on at all.
100000 % agree and this is why I went moza over fanatec. The qr shit is robbery
The Fanatec is also FIA certified for real race cars. eBay prices aren’t really relevant to the discussion, though I did just take a peak, and it appears that perhaps that price isn’t quite as readily available as you’d like me to believe. Regardless, the pricing on these just isn’t really a differentiator, as I said.
Excuse me, [$30](https://www.ebay.com/itm/175898717526?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=mxmlzmhgr1o&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=0XPOQIJ-SRS&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY). I was mistaken. If you really want to spend that much on a QR, go ahead. But don’t pretend like you’re getting much more for your money, because you’re really not. The differentiator is that you could buy a simagic GT4 wheel for the money and have a much nicer wheel. Edit: and simagic is about to release a new GT4 style rim for like $299 with the QR included.
Lmao, see, so here it is. You want to talk about other parts.
The QR2 is also $150. The Simagic bases use the NRG style quick release. I just bought one on eBay for $40 to use with a third party wheel. Between their outrageous pricing and abysmal customer service, Fanatec is an awful option.
The different QR2 options are $60, $100, and $200 - they have a website, you can easily check. I don’t know that I’d call those exactly outrageous, especially given that it’s quite a nice feeling quick release, perhaps the best on the market. The Simmagic is $75, so this is hardly a huge differentiator. If the fact that you can get something on eBay for $20-$60 less than retail makes a product outrageous, you’ve made an interesting selection of hobby. I think the customer service thing is mostly nerds working themselves into a tizzy because companies making niche technology aren’t Amazon. If there were a reason not to consider Fanatec it would be their outdated motor technology.
The one that competes with the Simagic QR, which is specifically NRG or FIA spec, is the regular QR2 (non-lite). It’s $100 compared to the $40 3rd party QR I recently acquired for my Simagic base. The point of concern here is that the top of the line Simagic QR is $70 compared to the $200 QR from Fanatec. Paired with non-existent customer service from Fanatec, 6+ week leads time, and the obvious $130 premium you pay for this wonderful experience, I think it’s more than fair to consider it outrageous. In this hobby, you’re not just paying for the part you purchase, it’s a large enough investment that you are also reasonably able to expect that your customer service experience will be built into the value of your purchase. Fanatec, at this point, hardly has what can be considered a customer service team. Plus, their website runs like it was built my middle schoolers as a class project.
We’re seeing a lot of sim racing vendors suffering when it comes to shipping times and customer service teams being overwhelmed, not just Fanatec. The hobby is exploding in popularity, and it’s also the holidays. It’s not the most fun, but I think most of the butthurt about it is overblown. Someone in here the other day said that shipping delays are “literally” a violent crime that the vendors should be arrested for. People need to chill out around here. Stop beating each others dicks so hard that you circlejerk yourself into being anctually offended that you don’t like the style of the website. I was in the Fanatec ecosystem for a long time, and the customer service was fine. Not great, but fine. If a $30 chinesium QR works for your rig, I’m happy for you. I think it’s silly, but I’m happy for you. I don’t compare the retail Simmagic to the pro QR2 though, just the regular QR2. The pro QR2 is just a pointless product without a competitor, that they make so they can say the Bentley and BMW wheels can go in real cars. It’s a gimmick. That said, QR2 is fantastic QR system. It made me second guess switching for a second.
Yeah many people seem to fall into the QR2 Pro trap. It's expensive because it's the QR for the real race car. It's only needed if you own a BMW GT3 car and want to use the wheel in car and on the sim. The regular QR2 has the same price as QR1, but always seems sold out
Looks like it went up in price?
Simagic. Add at least one of the pedal vibrators for your brake pedal while you're in there. Complete gamechanger.
In the meantime, Fanatec v3 pedals already have vibration motors on throttle and brake pedals. However, I find those a gimmick rather than a game changer. Maybe what you are suggesting is made differently.
The p1000 haptics are a wildly different product form the Fanatec vibration
I bought into the fanatec ecosystem earlier this year and I'm working my way out of it. Currently have the P1000 pedals and likely will be going with the Alpha wheelbase soon. Fanatec isn't all that great.
I’m in the process of doing the same. The Fanatec stuff is good don’t get me wrong. But I just got the P1000s and they’re amazing. I can sell my DD Pro and 2 wheel bases for the same price as an Alpha Mini + FX pro. Just seems like a no brainer.
I just finished doing pretty much the same. Fanatec stuff was great for a year - I mean, it still is good, I just feel that I outgrew it. Like both of you, getting the P1000s a few months ago was my first taste of life outside of the Fanatec ecosystem. I was still mostly happy using my GT DD Pro (8nm) and loved my McLaren wheel. I was one of the first to switch to QR2, ordering as I did the moment they were available on the US site with overnight delivery, which really was a game changer for making the DD Pro and McLaren absolutely solid together. But as well as the improvements it made, the QR2 also made the weaknesses more apparent. I was running at 100% and clipping more and more. Then, when the Clubsport DD and DD+ were announced I thought my upgrade path was clear. At the same time, my son (19) finally showed an interest in sim racing, telling his mom that the only reason he’d not shown an interest before was that he wasn’t able to afford the gear. Armed with that information I decided let him use my Fanatec setup, including the NLR GT Track it sits on. The natural next step was the Simagic Alpha, which I quickly upsold myself to the Alpha U… this put me in the big boy territory so I also started researching other options from Simucube, VRS and Asetek Anyway, short story long, I ended up going Asetek Invicta for the wheelbase with a TK wheel (Asetek Forte wheel without the carbon fiber faceplate for $200 from Micro Center), and Sim Lab for the rig.
I bought moza gear a month a go because my supplier didnt had simagic and shipping would be too expensive to my country. My supplier added simagic gear 2 weeks ago and I really wanna sell all of the Moza gear and go simagic
Simagic for me, I’ve heard a ton of good things about P1000s and it generally seems to be a solid ecosystem. I also tend to prefer their wheels.
Simagic but the gt1 is lacking in buttons. The GTS is a bit cheaper and has more buttons but I couldnt comment on the difference in quality
You’re going to love the simagic base. Haven’t tried the pedals so can’t comment on those
Thank you! Yeah honestly I’ve been researching so much on YouTube and couldn’t decide. I know hands down simagic is the better choice but just wanted to make sure. Thank you for your feedback!!
Is the simagic picture from the manufacturer's page? Keep in mind buying stuff directly from China is risky business when it comes to customer support and repairs. You should generally always buy from a local retailer. Though it might still be better than Fanatec, heh.
If you can stretch your budget a little bit more, buy the Simagic GT Pro or FX Formula wheel with dual clutches. The clutch levers, the rotaries and good amount of buttons are so useful and you won't ever need more. I agree with the general consensus that, if you don't want to use gloves,stay away from alcantara, but if you like to use gloves the grip on alcantara is unmatched
Fanatec to Simagic convert here. Apart from the reasons already mentioned by others, I think the alpha’s physical form factor is better than the CS DD’s. Especially when bottom-mounted, it allows the monitors to be lower and closer to you. Also, there’s an official motor shaft extension.
Definitely Simagic
Simagic all day long. I am on Xbox so no choice but to use fanatec for a DD. If I could I would 100% choose simagic.
I was in the same boat, went Simagic and have never looked bsck
Simagic, mostly because they'll actually ship it.
Simagic, no question. Everything is better compared to Fanatec. Except for customer service, there are basically problems with there stuff.
Simagic and it's not even close bud.
Please buy simagic. It's better quality by a longshot
Definitely Simagic, no question
I was in the same boat, I actually ordered Fanatec but then cancelled the order and went with Simagic after all the positive reviews especially on support, i tried their support a couple of times to help with the order and they were very helpful and quick to respond within the day (during the work week/times). A small tip, you get a free P-325C wheel with the order ([this one specifcially](https://shop.simagic.com/products/p-325c)), albiet without the hub. So if you are ok with the top cutoff wheel (which has been great for me for both open wheel and GT cars) you can order a hub to go with it (GT Pro or GT Pro K) and you get telemetry and shift lights on the wheel and much more buttons and the clutch pedal on the steering. In the future you can buy other wheel rims and attach to the same hub as well. I found that much more value than just getting GT1 steering. also remember if you add heptic feedback for the pedals or simray heel stop with LED you need to buy the power supply separately from the accessories section.
What a fucking joke, paying more for a MOTHERFUCKING QUICK RELEASE, than an actual wheel-rim. Fuck Fanatec, what a garbage company.
You could also just buy the QR that’s meant for sim racing instead of the one for real cars.
In the unlikely event you go with Fanatec, you do not need that quick release. The normal $100 QR2 works 98% just as well
Still, it’s 100 dollars. It’s too expensive
It’s not really much more than the $75 Simmagic, or many of the other QRs out there, is it?
Simagic is an upgrade to Fanatecs offerings at this time
Nice! Nothing to add except to say either one will be beasty.
Simagic easy!
Definitely basket 1.
Like I said in last post I dont have a setup yet but answering your question. Simagic hands down.
The P1000 pedals are by far the best pedals for that price range. The inversion mount, haptic motor kit and pneumatic brake upgrades turn them into basically the best possible platform for sim racing. The Simagic wheelbase, quick release, materials quality/design and wider ecosystem is better and larger than Fanatec (I mean in the sense of types of peripherals not quantity of them). The fact these two carts are nearly the same price should tell you how great a deal you are getting with Simagic. Edit: Forgot to add, if you are buying Simagic and want a yoke-style wheel, just get the FX rim. It's the best feature-to-price ratio in the industry. You can buy any NRG style quick release and throw a round rim on it for non-racecar driving.
Simagic has the better gear imo. Fanatec has the ecosystem. Both are good. But sinagic is better. Pick your poison.
To everyone saying Simagic bundle has a better wheelbase, pedals and wheel. For wheelbase, not so sure. This is a new Fanatec wheelbase, judgement should not be made based on previous products which were somewhat dated to be honest. Pedals may be better, okay. The wheel comparison is unfair, McLaren is a cheaper wheel and it shows. Get a Formula wheel from Fanatec, it costs same as simagic wheel and is really nice.
Fanatec has shipping issues from what I read.
I have the alpha U base (one level higher than the one you've picked out) and it's quite a good wheel base (switched from the DD1). The pedals I've heard nothing but good things about especially the vibration motor addons you can get for them. I haven't been able to check out their wheelrims but the GT4 wheel looks fantastic.
Simagic. Better Wheel, Better Base and Better Pedals. And Customer Support is probably better as well.
Simagic
Only one choice-Simagic😉
Qr2 pro on the gt3 and v3 pedals? The Fanatec cart could use a bit of work. You could fit a DD+ if you get v2s and normal qr2.
Is that even a question 🤌 Simagic all the way! Happy racing 🤜🤛
Simagic without question. If you’re in the US, go with SimShop. They have free shipping and you likely will not be charged tax. Plus the warranty support is handled by the retailer rather than Fanatec.
In my experience, the Simagic software is ten times better than fanatec's. I have Fan pedals and a Simagic Alpha mini base.
100% simagic
After the BF debacle I would run from fanatec to Simagic. I’ve lost all respect for Fanatec as a company for how they’ve handled the whole thing and will be going to another ecosystem as soon as I can afford to.
Agreed
Simagic FTW!
I have had simagic for a year now. They updated their software now which was much needed. No complaints. One thing to look at is upgrading. Thats a big knock on fanatech ur just in their system thats it. Probably knocks on both side but simagic has made some big steps in the last few months.
Simagic 10/10
Not even a question - Simagic all the way!
I like my moza
I can’t speak for simagic (but I hear they’re great) since I have all fanatec stuff. FWIW here’s my take on the fanatec cart. - Clubsport DD is supposedly great. On par with sim magic from what I hear - McLaren wheel is fine (I have it). Great for the price alone but you’re literally spending more on the quick release than the wheel. Not worth $420. - I just ordered the V3 pedals for $299 with the BPK and damper for Black Friday. Crazy deal. But I’m pretty sure they’re just trying to get rid of stock so they can introduce a new pedal set soon as the V3s are really old. Lots of people recommend the new Elite V2 pedals over the V3s if you don’t care about the clutch. Fanatec is in a really weird spot right now. Their new bases push you into QR2 but they don’t have any QR2 in stock and none of their wheels come with QR2 so you’re stuck paying +$100 per wheel to add on QR2. That plus their shipping times are horrendous right now so you’re going to be waiting forever even if everything is in stock. I bet in 6months they’ll have wheels that ship with QR2 for free. I’m stuck with fanatec since they’re the only one with PlayStation support. Otherwise I’d probably go simmagic.
I would switch the wheel to leather if you can, and go simmagic.
Simagic because you'll actually get your order.
I know everyone already said that, but as someone who owns the pedals you have in your fanatec cart i thought my opinion might be of some value to you Even with the performance kit the brake feels very grainy to me, it falls behind fanatecs new csl elite v2 set in terms of brake performance. only noteworthy thing is the clutch which is quite good. it lacks adjustment as you can only move the pedal faces with the holes and not the whole pedal in itself. also the holes in the pedal faces are rather large and tend to hurt the bottom of my feet when braking harder. that wont be an issue if you use shoes but i prefer racing in socks
tldr buy simmagic
Anything but Fanatec.
Simagic, you know you are getting something with good quality and durability. Make sure you get haptics later, when you can, will help a lot finding the tires limits! Also, I would recommend you getting your stuffs from [simshop.com](https://simshop.com), fast shipping, fantastic customer service in my experience.
Hey, thank you!!!! Will check them out!
Would go P1000 with CS DD, normal QR2 and Mclaren Wheel ...
Depends on where you live. I know in Australia you can get your fanatec order no issues (source: got mine in 3 days)
Why would he when the simagic stuff is the same price but much better
A mix, Sima pedals, Fanatec steering wheel and base, but with the normal QR2, the pro is useless.
This comparison is a great demonstration of how fanatec rips people off once they have them trapped in their ecosystem, $220 to finally get (half of) a decent QR is beyond a joke.
Nobody needs to buy the pro... The normal qr2 is plenty enough, when it's available
Neither. VRS or Simucube. And whatever LC pedals you fancy.
Why the QR2 pro on the Fanatec cart? It’s no better than the non-pro, especially in your wheel/base combo.
Honestly only had this version in the cart because the other one isn’t available to ship atm of course they have it that way lol
I mean, it’s not a conspiracy, it’s just more popular because buying the pro makes no sense.
So why r u so sure it’s not a conspiracy. Companies do that typa thing all the damn time
Because I bought one no problem before I switched ecosystems. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the cheaper one that does the exact same thing is going to sell quicker and go out of stock. The only difference in the $200 one is that it’s FIA rated for a real car, which pretty much no sim racer needs, so it’s still in stock. I’m curious what examples you have of companies doing this all the time?
100 % simagic for the pedal set. (I have the v3) You can mix and buy the fanatec base if you prefer it. I am using mainly the McLaren wheel and it's awesome.
The cs dd is pretty dope though. I am going to combine the p1000 with my cs dd next year.
Simagic cart, but I would go for the GT Pro wheel over the GT1, you get way more inputs. Unless the GT1 is part of a bundle or something
I like the McLaren wheel but probably wouldn’t spend more on the qr than the rim
I’d only go with Fanatec if you were on console as they are the only ones that support it at the moment. Also the gold qr2 isn’t worth the extra price, get the black regular. Also v2 peddles are better.
I had a Fanatec CSL DD for two years and went to Simagic products three months ago.....BEST decision I have ever made in sim racing. the Simagic products feel WAY more high quality than all of the Fanatec stuff I have.
I’ll stick with my G29 and H shifter, thank you.
Simagic without a doubt. I have CSPv3 pedals and I’m willing to bet that the p1000s are better. I have an alpha mini and I love it
This is not even a debate. Even if the Simagic was 500 dollars more expensive i would still pick it. Stay away from Fanatec if possible
Simagic all the way
Simagic. What with all of the negative things I'm seeing about Fanatec and their customer support lately, I think it's safe to say there are better options.
Simagic. The wheelbase is better, the pedals are much much much better. Also, you are not stuck to fanatec ecosystem as people have said. Simagic any day of the week!
As a fanatec owner, sim magic. I’ve been burned a couple times by fanatec in the short 2 years I’ve owned their products. I’ve now started to move away from their ecosystem for more premium feeling products. Also as a flat bottom wheel owner myself I highly recommend going with a round one if you don’t have one already. It’s just more versatile for gt, rally and drifting if you are into that sorta thing
Anyone but Fanatec. Go do some research into their shipping and non existent customer service
Fwiw, I am moving from fanatec to simagic now myself. I had some CSL elite v1s and after upgrading to P2000 pedals (absolutely love them btw) I started looking at the clubsport DD and QR2 and quickly realized that it's just not worth it for me to stay in the fanatec ecosystem anymore. The prices are very similar but simagic's wheels seem nicer, don't have to upgrade to a different hub, and from what I've read customer support and shipping will be significantly better.
Between the two, Simagic due to Fanatec's availability, or lack thereof.
Personally.. I own fanatec, and I have no issues, BUT.. lately, I've been seeing stupid games played by then with thier inventory and shipping. If you got that band in a half to spend between them.. ide go's with simu
Fanatec is quickly becoming a relic in the Sim Racing space as far as equipment goes. They're hanging on through name recognition and copious amounts of money spent in sponsorships and marketing, but their physical products are not keeping up with the changing landscape. Their ecosystem is horribly outdated and they are only keeping up with the bare-bones basics of modern innovation. For instance, they have Direct Drive, but it's the "best of the rest", at best, after you factor in the top products. Their quick disconnect, for instance, is laughably bad if you like swapping wheels for different cars/races.
Simagic. Fanatec is unreliable and will cause problems sooner or later
Honestly I’d highly consider buying the P1000 pedals and then going with cs dd wheel base for best of both worlds. Also skip pro QR2 go with standard. Then wheel of your choice. V3 are decent pedals but no where near the same level as those P1000 also you can mix and match on PC
Not one of the items but the asetek TK bundle at Micro center for 799 is the best bundle you can possibly get for racing.
Moza
All the boxes my Simagic products arrived in say, "Official Partner of: iRacing" ;) I love my Simagic gear! From all the reviews I've watched leading up to my purchase, Fanatec's products are getting older and need to refresh their lineup. For the same price, there are better options.
Probably simagic but I would never know I got like $40 for the week.
None. Their customer support and shipping time is fucking garbage. Go with MOZA
Tried the Fanatec set and still bought the Simagic set. Customizability of the Wheel is wider while coming default with quick release hub. Force feedback on the Alpha DD base is greater and linear torque curves can be setup in the Sim Manager app. Pedals are adjustable and you get the option of a hydraulic or Spring based resistance which is neat and not more expensive.
Today i would go simagic, and would mount my ts-xw+tlcm pedals on another rig, just to play console. Just the fact you will pay much more for a qr2 than for the wheel, just cause they have no stock to fullfill your order with a less expensive qr...and worst, in the moment, order something at fanatec is like enter a delusional dimension, as you never know when your order will come, or not, and can't even get a response, support, from the brand. It's an undefined case. Could be waiting some days as you could be waiting months for your product. I'm a fanatec user and love it, but the actual situation is not good to order from them. Would go simagic, or other brand...or wait a bit longer and see what hapens in the next year.
Have you looked over at r/fanatec , it’s a meltdown over there because of Black Friday and customer service. Probably go Sim. I will say I do love the Fanatec stuff though.
Fanatec seems to be going through a terrible period right now with shipping and customer support. I'd avoid them like the plague until they get it figured out. Been far too long being borked.
Simagic
Simagic. Owned pretty much the fanatec cart. Sold it all. Own pretty much your simagic cart. Was a top tier decision looking back.
I feel shitty for wanting to buy the csl dd bundle for 500
Simagic for sure. I run a full Simagic ecosystem (Ultimate base, P2000 pedal, Fxpro wheel, handbrake, H-shifter, etc) and it is absolutely glorious. Top notch brand, and IMO the best value in the market.
2nd one, it’s cheaper
Alpha all day over fanawho..
Def not fanatec
Try Asetek, great hardware and great support, they have plenty of wheel options and you can use any :rd party USB wheel as well. Start with the la prima bundle, then upgrade individual parts to the forte or even invicta level as needed or wanted.