Saitek X52 Flight Control System 5

Is the Saitek X52 Flight Control System worth $100.



Quite simply YES. Just in terms of immersion the Saitek x52 flight control system is worth the money. If you're using a single control stick for your flight simming, get have to get one of these. And while you're at it get the Beta programing software from the Saitek website.

PROS

Good price for a HOTAS.
Value for money.
Lot's of customization through programming.
Adjustable throttle tension.
Adjustable handrest.
Looks purdy.

CONS

Light and maybe too loose for some.
You really do need to download the Beta software to get the most out of the stick.
Unstable on the desk.

I defy anyone who gets this stick not to turn the lights off and see what it looks like in the dark!

Saitek X52 Flight Control System 4

The standard software that comes with the Saitek X52 Flight Control System is easy to use. It has a nice 3D interface that shows you which button on the stick you pressed and you assign a key press or macro to it.

But it's also a little limiting AND time consuming. Trying to organise your controls is difficult, although the X52 Flight Control System does have three modes each of which can have a shifted and unshifted state.

That essentially gives you 6 modes on the Saitek X52 -- that's 6 different keypresses (or macros) which can be emulated by each button.

Saitek's beta programming software is even better for hardcore enthusiasts allowing much more flexibility including the ability to assign other buttons as 'shift' buttons. You don't get the fancy 3D graphics with this beta interface but it's worth it. Just by introducing one more shift button you can add another 6 modes to your X52 flight control system.

So forget the software on the disk and go for the beta.

But beware -- any profiles made with the standard Saitek SST software will not be compatable with Saitek's beta which is a real pain in the butt.

Another function that's missing from the Saitek programming software is the Cycle command which allowed a button to cycle through keypresses. This is missing both from saitek's standard software and the x52 beta.

You'll have to be patient to program the X52 flight system. With 12 different modes in my current x52 profile there are about 560 button presses to program.

This is where the x52's clutch button has it's use -- hold it and press another button to see a description of it's function displayed on the LCD screen.

You can also use the clutch button to change profiles on the fly. If 500 commands aren't enough, set up another profile for your flight control system with another 500 commands and swap profiles on the fly, in game.

But neither of these things are really as good as they might at first appear. The x52's clutch button doesn't show info on all the hats or sliders, so if you forget what a certain rotary does in a certain mode, you may be outa luck. Swapping profiles for the x52 mid game is a little clumsy. This would be best suited for games where you control a variety of vehicles and set up a profile for each vehicle type.

However, even with the complexity and key-mashing involved with something like Falcon 4, 500 commands should sbe enough.

Next my final thoughts on the Ssitek X52 Flight Control System.

Saitek X52 Flight Control System 3

So it's time to fire up the X52 Flight Control System. Loading the drivers and programming software and then pluging in the Saitek X52 Flight Control System was all very easy and straightforward.

Insert the CD, press ok a few times, make a cup of coffee and return to your installed Saitek X52. Done.



The first thing you notice is the X52 flight control system is very pretty. Once the Saitek x52 is powered up, all those blue LEDs and the backlit LCD screen make the controller a very sexy piece of kit.

I load up Falcon 4, go into the setup screen, point the setup at the Saitek X52's. To my surprise most of the x52's buttons are recognised as DirectX buttons! It doesn't make too much difference, because Falcon is too complex and without programing, the Saitek X52's buttons are largely useless.

The X52's flight stick is gorgeous. The flight controller is light and nimble with very low resistance. This has it's pros and cons making it easy to make small adjustments to your flight but it's also easy to overuse the flight stick and end up barrel-rolling to your doom.

The X52's rudder control is a twist grip. If you have rudder pedals the twist function can be stopped by pulling out a plastic tab at the base of the stick which locks it and stops it from rotating.

Both the Saitek X52's pinkie switch and the trigger are metal. The primary trigger is a two-stage switch. I was fairly surpised that it wasn't easy to accidently get to the second stage of the trigger. In my first profile I set the trigger up to assign a target at stage one, and fire the 20mm at stage two. I didn't once fire accidently when targeting. Nicely done.

The downside to the X52 Flight Control System is that the stick is too big for my hand. It is adjustable in terms of where the handrest sits (a thumbscrew allows you to raise the hand-rest up or down, taking the pinky switch with it). However, I found that if I had the hand-rest in it's highest position (which was the best place for my thumb to reach the buttons on the top of the stick) I didn't have room between the pinky switch and the trigger for my other fingers :(

There are no adjustments for the throttle. It feels a little big for my hand, but I'll just have to live with that.



The X52's throttle was real nice for gaming. The X52's throttle has detents for idle and afterburner/mil power setting and adjustable tension on the throttle arm itself. You can slacken it off or tighten it up according to your preference simply by using a thumbscrew. Tightening it up is when you discover why Saitek supplied you with the suction cups. If you push hard either forward or backward you'll rock the throttle off balance. The same goes for the x52's stick. Neither of the X52's control devices have the weight, balance or stability you'd like.

But that's nothing a couple of screws couldn't solve -- bolt the whole thing to your seat/desk. Both the throttle and stick have holes drilled through their base just for this purpose.

Other than the balance and sensitivity of the X52 flight control stick/throttle, I must say I was impressed with my first flight. It was a lot easier to control the F-16 with the Saitek X52 Flight Control System and it gave for a much more immersive experience.

The real reason I got the Saitek X52 Flight Control System was for all the buttons, rotaries, hats and other stuff it has. Time to program and see what this puppy can really do...

Saitek X52 Flight Control System 2

So the Saitek X52 Flight Control System arrives on your doorstep and you think "Hell, I just spent $100 on a joystick -- I hope it's worth it"

It's a smaller box than you imagined -- and a lot lighter than you'd think. Maybe they ship the control stick and throttle seperately? Nope. The X52 Flight Controller is light.

So it's out of the box. What do you get? There's a flight stick and a throttle and a connecting cable to join the two together (the joystick connects to the throttle via a 5 pin connector, and then the throttle connects to your PC via a USB plug.

This was my first issue with the Saitek X52 Flight Control System. If the X52 flight stick connected directly to the PC you could probably use it as a standalone joystick controller if you wanted.

Also in the box is the X52 driver CD which also contains the Saitek X52 progammable interface software and the X52 manual. What? No printed manual! That's right! It's a PDF on the CD.

That's a real pet peeve of mine, especially on a piece of kit that costs $100. But I can live with it. I've had Saitek products before and know what to expect from the software. It would have been nice to have a printed manual though.

Oh , and you also get a bag of rubber suction cups.

The rubber suction cups are about as much use as a chocolate teapot. My desk isn't smooth so they won't stick. And when you attach them to the stick or throttle they have a tendancy to fall out. Well, no worries, both the units have little rubber feet so that should be ok. Shouldn't it?

So next we plug in the Saitek X52 HOTAS flight control system and play!

Saitek X52 Flight Control System 1

I just got my Saitek X52 Flight Control System. That's $100 worth of game controller -- but I guess you already know that because you're here.

The purpose of this blog is to review the Saitek X52 Flight Control System -- not just a one off post about, yeah it's great outa the box, but to really see if the Saitek X52 control system is worth the money. I've read a lot about it being good/bad and how it does/doesn't hold up after a few months of use so I thought I'd write a small mini X52 diary.

Here is my out of the box impression:

The Saitek X52 Flight Control System is quite a step up from my old stick -- a Saitek ST290 Pro. That old saitek was a good stick for the money; it worked flawlessly for 3 years and was a steal at under $30. But it's just not enough stick for semi-serious flight simming.

I splashed out on the X52 Flight Control System -- the cheapest HOTAS I could find. So in comes the Saitek X52 Flight Controller. Would I recommend that you part with $100 for this baby?

This is not a control system for the casual gamer. If you're put off by the fact that it has too many buttons, too difficult to program etc etc don't buy the Saitek X52 Flight Control System.

The X52 control system is part toy, part gadget. Like most things gadget the Saitek X52 requires a certain amount of patience to master. The Saitek X52 Flight Control System is aimed at the casual to serious flight sim market so we're not talking Halo controller here. The Saitek X52 flight control system is for serious gamers. And for $100 it should be!

But is it worth it?