Asetek SimSports
Asetek SimSports are a relative newcomer to the Direct Drive market, having only released their first wheel base about a year ago at the time of writing. Their first product, the Invicta hydraulic sim racing pedals were released about a year before that.
However they are a division of a much larger company in Asetek who make a lot of the All-In-One water cooling products you probably have in your gaming PC, as well as for huge server farms, etc, so despite their relatively small market share in Sim racing, they are a big company with a lot of money behind them to innovate in the sim racing space. They came straight out of the gate with impressively well refined products, and their ecosystem is maturing quickly.
Asetek Simsports market their products in 3 distinct tiers which are intended to suit the needs and budget of sim racers within the mid to high end market. However they have taken a unique approach to this, and where other brands sacrifice build quality and materials in their lower end hardware, Asetek Simsports removes features like extra buttons, LED lighting, motor strength, etc to reduce the price of their cheaper products.
This means not only are the materials used and the overall build quality is consistent across the range, but many of their products can be upgraded from La Prima spec to Forte. Pretty cool!
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As part of our Essential Direct Drive Sim Racing Buyer's Guide we covered the most important details of the Asetek ecosystem.
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Asetek SimSports REVIEWS AND CONTENT
Asetek SimSports Pros and Cons
Pros
- Industry leading Force Feedback quality
- Outstanding quick release and open ecosystem that allows just about any wheel to be used wirelessly with their bases
- Clean and easy to use software despite being feature rich
- Products are cross compatible between product ranges and in some cases even upgradeable without the need to buy a whole new device
- Outstanding customer service as reported by most customers we’ve spoken to
- Rapidly expanding network of partner wheel manufacturers
- Backed by a large parent company with greater resources than some smaller competitors.
Cons
- No Native Console Compatibility
- Limited ecosystem with no shifter or handbrake at the time of writing
- Current wheels are…. let’s say “polarising” in their visual design
- Products use a different mounting pattern to well established competitors which means you may have to drill holes in some cockpits to mount properly
MOZA Racing
Moza exploded onto the scene out of nowhere in 2021 with their R16 Direct Drive wheel base, and took advantage of Fanatec’s stock problems at the time by releasing a huge range of products and very quickly building a large market share. They now boast an extensive ecosystem with Load Cell pedals, wheelbases ranging from an entry level 5NM, all the way through to their high end R21 21NM wheel base, shifters and a hand brake. They also have a large variety of wheels to suit various budgets and driving styles, and even recently released a dedicated truck sim wheel!
Due to their rapid growth and the speed in which they’ve released products, the products themselves are a little less refined than we find elsewhere, but overall they provide a good driving experience for the aggressive price point which has certainly been a big factor in their success.
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As part of our Essential Direct Drive Sim Racing Buyer's Guide we covered the most important details of the MOZA ecosystem.
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If our MOZA Racing reviews have helped you decide what the best sim racing gear is for you, please consider using the links on this page to make your purchase. By doing so you’ll be supporting Boosted Media at no additional cost to you! This option is available for a huge range of Sim Racing gear.
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MOZA Racing gear at Pagnian Imports
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MOZA Racing gear at APEVIE SIMULATOR
With Discount Code “BOOSTED”
5% OFF
Discount Code: BOOSTED
If our MOZA Racing reviews have helped you decide what the best sim racing gear is for you, please consider using the links on this page to make your purchase. By doing so you’ll be supporting Boosted Media at no additional cost to you! This option is available for a huge range of Sim Racing gear.
5% OFF
MOZA Racing gear at APEVIE SIMULATOR
With Discount Code “BOOSTED”
5% OFF
MOZA Racing gear at Pagnian Imports
With Discount Code “BOOSTED24”
MOZA RACING REVIEWS AND CONTENT
MOZA Racing Pros and Cons
Pros
- Extensive ecosystem with something to suit just about everyone
- Can upgrade your base without having to upgrade all your wheels
- Great (and cheap) Quick Release
- Well established reseller network
Cons
- No Native Console Compatibility (R3 3NM Xbox compatible bundle was announced 9 months ago but has not been released as of the time of writing)
- Build quality and materials not as refined as other alternatives but OK for price
- More filtering required in force feedback settings than other alternatives in order to remove robotic feel, which also sacrifices fine force feedback detail.
- Software is glitchy and unrefined compared to other brands despite lots of adjustability.
- Current pedal offerings are inferior to competitors even at the same price point
- Many users report overheating issues when using more aggressive force feedback settings
- Shipping price varies massively depending on location so shop around
SIMAGIC
Simagic have established themselves as one of the key players in Sim Racing, with an extensive mid to high end ecosystem of direct drive bases from 10NM to 24NM in strength, as well as a variety of wheels, pedals, handbrakes and shifters which compete very aggressively against the likes of Fanatec and Moza.
They’ve also introduced innovative products like their haptic feedback motors for pedals, which integrate seamlessly into their ecosystem, but can also be paired with other brands, and this has become a real strength for them. Where other brands intentionally make it as difficult as possible to mix and match their product switch other brands, Simagic seemingly do the opposite.
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As part of our Essential Direct Drive Sim Racing Buyer's Guide we covered the most important details of the Simagic ecosystem.
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If our Simagic reviews have helped you decide what the best sim racing gear is for you, and you would like to support our work at Boosted Media at no additional cost, follow the affiliate links below or use our discount code when purchasing through Smagic and we will earn a small commission from your purchase.
SIMAGIC REVIEWS AND CONTENT
REVIEW – Simagic Alpha Direct Drive Sim Racing Wheel Base
The Alpha is a 15NM Direct Drive Sim Racing Wheel Base from Chinese manufacturer Simagic. Depending on where you live, price wise it sits in the same ballpark as the Fanatec DD1, Simucube 2 Sport and VRS Direct Force Pro, so lets take a detailed look and see how the Simagic Alpha performs.…
SIMAGIC M10 & GT4 REVISITED – Some Big Improvements!
9 Months ago I reviewed the Simagic M10 Direct Drive Wheelbase as well as the GT1 and GT4 wheels. While I was impressed overall with the product for the money, there were some areas of improvement. In the time since, I've been impressed with the progress I've seen, so I reached back out to…
How to mix Simagic Wheels & Bases with Other Brand Hardware – Fanatec / Simucube / etc
Since my full review of the Simagic Wheels and M10 base a little while back, I've been asked hundreds of times if the Simagic Wheels can be used on other wheelbases, as well as if you can use other brand wheels with Simagic wheelbases, so today I'll show you how all these scenarios work and what…
Simagic M10 Direct Drive Review – Part 2 – Software – Driving Tests – Final Thoughts
Over the last few days, I've put the Simagic M10 Direct Drive Wheelbase through its paces with over 20 hours of use spread across multiple different sim titles. Some aspects have impressed me, some not so much. So today I take you along for my first drive, through my impressions, as well as my…
Simagic M10 Direct Drive & GT1/GT4 Wheel Review – Part 1 – The Hardware
Simagic is a brand that's recently exploded on to the scene and gained a lot of attention by offering the cheapest available Direct Drive Wheelbase we've seen so far. But they've actually been quietly developing and selling their product in China since mid-2018, so they're not exactly inexperienced…
Pros
- Extensive ecosystem that covers a variety of needs and budgets
- Natively console compatible (PlayStation & Xbox)
- Ability to tune force feedback and driving settings or switch profiles directly from the wheel
- Excellent game compatibility and game level integration (Many games already have presets baked in, etc)
- Excellent consistency in the driving experience between different games
Cons
- Slow customer service at time of writing
- Company’s current financial position appears unstable
- Software on PC is outdated compared to competitors
- Force Feedback locked out unless you use their wheels or hub adaptors
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Fanatec
Fanatec have the largest available ecosystem of products including wheels, pedals, direct drive wheel bases, a shifter and a handbrake (although the shifter and handbrake are well overdue for a refresh). Their products are split across 3 different tiers. The CSL range, which is their cheaper more entry level gear, ClubSport, which sits in the middle, and Podium at the top. Although this gets a little confusing as their new ClubSport DD and DD+ actually provide a marginally better driving experience than the older Podium DD1 and DD2, with smoother, faster response and more force feedback detail. The new ClubSport DD and DD+ also boast Fanatec’s new “FullForce” technology, which adds more granular detail to things like road textures and kerbs for the games that support it (which at the time of writing is none).
Fanatec’s products are also natively console compatible, which is one of the major reasons why their products are so popular.
Worth noting is the fact that Fanatec lock out force feedback on their bases if you do not have a Fanatec branded wheel or hub attached to the base, which will increase the cost associated in using their bases with any aftermarket wheel. There are aftermarket adaptors which can circumvent this.
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As part of our Essential Direct Drive Sim Racing Buyer's Guide we covered the most important details of the Fanatec ecosystem.
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Detailed Fanatec Reviews and Guides
Fanatec Pros and Cons
Pros
- Extensive ecosystem that covers a variety of needs and budgets
- Natively console compatible (PlayStation & Xbox)
- Ability to tune force feedback and driving settings or switch profiles directly from the wheel
- Excellent game compatibility and game level integration (Many games already have presets baked in, etc)
- Excellent consistency in the driving experience between different games
Cons
- Slow customer service at time of writing
- Company’s current financial position appears unstable
- Software on PC is outdated compared to competitors
- Force Feedback locked out unless you use their wheels or hub adaptors