Best Thrustmaster TS-PC Racer Black Friday and Cyber Monday Deals & Sales 2020:

Thrustmaster had already struck a big blow with its T500RS in 2011. Since then, the French manufacturer has worked hard to expand its range of flywheels and make force feedback accessible to the greatest number: T300 and TX in the mid-range, then Entry-level T150 and TMX each have good qualities in their price range. It is therefore with some interest that we observed the return of Thrustmaster to the top of the range with a TS-PC Racer designed to seduce fans of car simulation on PC.

Presentation

The least we can say is that Thrustmaster did not do things by halves to design its new flywheel: new 40 watt motor with integrated cooling. New high-efficiency “Turbo” power supply and even a new open wheel, mainly designed for racing in single-seaters and prototypes.

In addition to increasing the power of the engine (40 W, torque announced as 1.6 times greater than that of the T300 / TX), the manufacturer has worked on the speed of its steering wheel so as to offer dynamic torque (50% higher than the motors previously used, with a locking force 4 times higher), ensuring powerful effects, whatever the speed of rotation.

The TS-PC Racer is however a somewhat special steering wheel, since it is sold without pedal board. So we only assess here the base and its wheel. It should nevertheless be associated with a pedal set worthy of the name. We can only advise you to opt for a T3PA. Pro or a pedal set from another manufacturer which will be independent (USB connection directly to the P. C) or can connect via a direct adapter on the TS-PC.

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A clearly visible move upmarket and a unique wheel

With its TS-PC Racer, Thrustmaster goes upmarket and it shows from the discovery of the base, much better finished than those of the T300, TX or even the T500RS. Plastic gives way to metal here, with a more robust steel chassis, visible on the back and bottom. A plastic covering is however used for the finishing, of satisfactory quality. On the top, an aluminum plate in gray color brings a small more luxurious side to the whole and ventilation holes reinforce the “sport” side in addition to playing an obvious role in the cooling of the engine.

If it is a little more imposing than the T300 and TX, the TS-PC Racer is not huge either despite the use of a larger and more powerful engine. It must be said that the power of this new steering wheel is now external, which saves space in the base, avoiding the passage to the latter to have a heating element to cool in addition to the engine. A toroidal power supply which is also quite impressive with its circular design in the shape of a car turbo. Without being really huge, it still imposes and displays 1,960 g on the scale.

Installation and settings

Regarding the fixing of the base, Thrustmaster uses here its clamp system which is tightened with a simple screw, by hand. Small rubber pads both protect the support and prevent the base from slipping. This system has proven itself and ensures good tightening. However, the underside of the support on which the steering wheel is installed must be smooth and devoid of any bar which would prevent the clamp from closing properly, for example. But such a steering wheel is intended rather to be used with a real racing seat. It is of course equipped for this with threads, allowing a permanent and more durable fixing.

The installation of the wheel on the base is fairly easy. It is enough to insert it into the central orifice of the latter, in the shape of a cross and provided with a polarizing key, then to screw a plastic part around its axis. A small metal screw then crosses the plastic of the axle to secure the attachment. So that the steering wheel cannot be unscrewed during use. This locking principle does not really encourage replacing the wheel very frequently. Since you have to take out the screwdriver, on the one hand, and hope that the screw continues to hang in the plastic by means of repeated screwing and unscrewing. Of course, we can always replace it with a larger one in the event of a problem.

Question connectivity, the Thrustmaster TS-PC Racer offers four sockets distributed on its rear face. In addition to the power connector and the USB type-B socket for connection to the computer, two other sockets are used to connect the pedal board (RJ12) and gear lever (PS / 2).

Permanent power and fine effects

In order to check what the TS-PC Racer really has in our stomach, we of course installed it in our racing seat and prepared a panel of various simulations: Assetto Corsa , Project Cars , F1 2016 , DiRT Rally and RaceRoom . If it took a few minutes to adjust the steering wheel, for lack of immediate recognition in most games. The steering wheel is too recent – and management of use profiles. We did not take long to discover what the TS-PC Racer reserved us. And the least we can say is that it did not disappoint!

But before starting the race, we could not ignore the ventilation which starts up from the first turns of the wheel. The TS-PC indeed integrates a first fan within its engine, which is triggered very early to keep it cool. A second responsible for extracting hot air from the hull finds its place in the back of the base. Due to their small size, these fans must spin relatively fast to be efficient and therefore make a little noise. 

Fortunately, once plunged into the race, their operating noise is quickly forgotten. This is nothing compared to the noise emitted by the T500RS fan after a few minutes of use. However, you can’t help but think that a fan larger diameter extraction might have further reduced this operating noise. Let’s not deny our pleasure, the Thrustmaster TS-PC Racer is absolutely quite quiet, even when the engine is heavily stressed and we were not disturbed excessively during our tests, far too focused on what we could offer the steering wheel in terms of sensations.

CONCLUSION

More powerful, more responsive and tireless, the TS-PC Racer from Thrustmaster surpasses all previous steering wheels from the manufacturer. It succeeds brilliantly in its entry into the high-end segment and can rub without blushing at competing steering wheels, with Fanatec in its sights. If its F1 / proto typed wheel is not suitable for all games, it is very pleasant to use with suitable vehicles and allows the TS-PC to stand out, avoiding duplication for buyers already equipped with a another Thrustmaster wheel. Too bad, however, that the base is not sold alone.

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