Can you go just as fast or faster with a controller than a racing wheel?
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I’ve had a G920 since the release of FM6 and it took some practice, but now I can go as fast as I could with the controller. It’s now just a matter of preference. The controller is easier to set up - the wheel takes up a lot of space in the TV room, but if I want to do some serious driving then I’ll go with the wheel. The wheel makes for more accurate driving too - I can count on doing clean laps with the wheel.
controller = fast laps
wheel = immersion
pick one
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Sadly, I’ve found this to be true. I am such a lot slower with the wheel in FM6. I was faster with it in FM5.
I would sell a kidney for a nice wheel setup, just for the immersion factor. I’ve raced on a couple and really enjoyed them. I don’t think there is a clear answer as to whether one is faster than the other though.
Peace
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Controller is easier to be faster, imo. Gamepad users have filters applied to their steering input to keep their car at the limit of friction, all the time. You can’t turn this feature off even with sim steering assist, it will only slightly unlock counter-steering. With a wheel, your’re allowed to apply input that goes well past the limit of friction. Hence burning up your tyres, giving you less grip, and essientially making you slower.
If you want go fast with a genuine feeling that you, the driver, are making the automobile go fast and not a programmer holding your hand the whole time, I’d go with a wheel 
There are #1s set with both, wheels are expensive. Pick your choice basically if you’re comfy with it, you’ll do well.
If you’re thinking about getting a wheel make sure its not just for forza. Its an expensive investment to base on one game. Theres a bit of a racing game renaissance at the moment where theres many good games to choose from, but to be honest as far as the wheel goes forza is not near the top of that list. So if you have the budget for a wheel, id expand that budget to get some other racing games that can take advantage of the wheel. As far as being faster, the controller in my experience is much better for forza, its been designed around one. Theres a stickied thread on wheels if you want to read more about peoples opinions on them.
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It depends how fast you are with a controller, I suppose. In previous forza with a controller I was never particularly fast, but with a wheel I can top 1% most tracks without trying too hard. Controller just isn’t for me, and I’m much faster with a wheel. Is it worth the investment so far? Absolutely.
I couldn’t go back to a controller after using my wheel since FM3. It helps increase the lifespan of the game for me too. With a pad I would be bored after 3-6 months but with the wheel I have been on every week since October so far with no sign of giving up just yet. As for lap times I started off slower but have eventually got up to speed and would definitely say i’m faster with a wheel.
I have a question related in that most top times seem to use the manual with clutch, are they using the controller and using the clutch with the RB button? This seems impossible to get consistently clean laps with, for me anyway.
This is because the tunes are exploited, unrealistic. No race engine parts needed and the pi saved goes onto power. A lot of these cars drive like Mario kart although some are driven and set up properly.
For me forza should be about realism but if you watch the fast laps you will probably see the car go around almost every track in one gear which is completely unrealistic. Does a gt race car drive a whole race in 3rd gear!
Many people will win at all costs and if it means manual clutch, pi on power, skinny tyres, ultra soft suspension to provide Mario kart handling then who cares as long as its a win.
Turn 10 could fix this by restricting pi or forcing race parts if man clutch used but this would destroy its poster boy.
You will get to know the exploit tuners by seeing their totally unrealistic stats in multi hoppers.
I prefer more realism.
None of what you said has anything to do with what the guy was asking. He was asking if the top guys are using RB for clutch and the answer is no, they have clutch as the A button.
There’s a lot you can do to cars IRL that you can do in Forza, only difference is people are not willing to put $50-100k into dropping a V12 in a MX-5 IRL(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZLnrOeu0KE). Why would you force “race parts” if using man/w clutch? Old VX Honda civics with less than 50hp didn’t seem to require any race parts installed when coming manual from the factory, so how would that make it more realistic?
Oh a FWIW most of the top guys don’t use the 1 gear or rev bangers in MP hoppers because they don’t need to for one and they just are not good “lobby” cars for the most part.
Practice and get better don’t blame it on “exploit” tunes or builds for not being as fast, some of these guys can run circles around most people with a completely stock car lacking 50pi or more than your car.
Assuming you are referring to race transmission (or were you meaning engine transplants) you are making valid points. Its beyond pathetic watching a player on say, ‘Twitch’ whose build see so sharp he needs to get another player to give him a boost off the line, then wobbles round every corner amd bend with all the stability of a toy hula girl but glued to the corner by some magic differential only to imitate a Saturn 5 down any straight. And all this only using two gears. Absolutely dripping in realism.
Of course trying to follow irl tuning theory delivers a car slower than grandma’s Prius. Theres no a huge amount of depth available for ‘sim’ (roflmao) racing in Forza Motorsport. And lets not talk about how big a bung Honda must have chucked T10…
It doesn’t matter if it’s a wheel or controller being used or which controller buttons are mapped. With each assist you drop your lap time will improve once you’ve got to grips with driving without the assist. Using the clutch gives a small increase in overall acceleration. Map the clutch to whatever is most comfortable and consistent but just make sure you can disengage the clutch prior to the gear change to avoid damage.
For FM2 and FM3 I used a controller but for FM4 I had a wheel. For FM5 I was back to a controller because my 360 wheel didn’t work for Xbox One, but I seemed higher on leaderboards than when I played FM4. By FM6 I had a wheel and wasn’t as competitive.
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Don’t buy a wheel exclusively for Forza, the wheel support is really bad in this game, but if you plan to play PCars, Dirt Rally and upcoming Assetto Corsa you should definitely get yourself a wheel.
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I now have an Obutto R3volution with Thrustmaster TX racing wheel + Leather 28 GT wheel + T3PA pedals + TH8A clutch all that in my gaming room together with the Xbox One 1 TB. I bought all that in september 2015 especially for Forza 6 and moved my former main 55" plasma TV there. I did get FH2 and Project CARS as well in anticipation for FM6. While I am really impressed with the Force Feedback of PCARS it’s subpar in FM6. I wanted to have an ultimate Xbox One racing simulator there but thanks to Forza not being what I expected in the immersion area and the Xbox One being weak compared to the PS4 (especially compared to the upcoming PS4K) I have changed my plans.
My XBox One is now connected to my new main TV in my living room (65" UHD LED) and it’s great for sofa gaming (Fallout 4, Far Cry Primal, Dragon Age Inquisition, FM6, … all with the Elite controller). I think I will keep it like that, the Xbox One in my living room and all games requiring a controller to play will be bought here. This is also me acknowledging that Forza 6 is just an arcade game you better play with the controller.
The plan is now to get the PS4K when it comes out in 2017 (I don’t have a PS4 yet) and then buy all these great racing simulators for the PS4 instead. That would be Assetto Corsa, Project CARS GOTY edition, Dirt Rally and Gran Turismo Sport. At least a few of them will have the immersion of a racing sim / semi sim that I long for.
Until the PS4K is out and for the time being I could move my Xbox One back and forth between my living room and gaming room whenever I want to race with my rig setup. Or I could connect my PS3 and G27 there for some GT6 playing. The latter I might even do just for fun, it’s been a long time since I played GT6 and I never did it with the Obutto setup (back in the days it was a Wheelstand Pro in front of my sofa :p).
That’s the long term plan. PS4K + racing rig for real immersion. Obox One + elite controller for the arcade games (FH2, FM6).
Forza wheel support is a contradiction in terms. Dirt Rally is incredible with a wheel, and I kinda hate Rally games. Can’t wait for Assetto Corsa! PCars stinks on xbox imho.
I use both. I’m about equally fast with either one. I’ve tested this in Rivals extensively. The wheel is more fun/immersive. It has a real advantage in precise car placement especially in long sweeping corners and on banked ovals. But, the wheel is less forgiving of driving errors or getting bumped around in lobbies. Even when the steering is set to Normal, the wheel can be harder to recover from skids and collisions and it takes longer to get off the wall and back onto the track. Surface differences seem to matter more with the wheel. I feel dips and bumps that the controller ignores.
You can’t connect a headset to a wheel. I end up using Kinect, which seems to work okay for me. There are work arounds.
It’s harder to look around when using a wheel. Layout 4 allows for buttons to look right, left, and back, but the controller is better for this.
There is a lot of discussion about the physics of the wheel. Whatever. I’m still using mine. It took a while to get the hang of it.