Wouldn't you agree that flying a heavy jet in FS can be a pain? There are so many switches and levers that you find yourself rushing with the mouse from one end to the other. And if you have a Level-D or PMGD aircraft you're flipping through the panels like a madman.
You could of course get yourself one of those cockpits from Flight Experience, but who has $600,000 lying around? One of the perks of being a flight sim editor is that you get to review cool stuff. A few weeks ago I got an email from Korea asking if I'd like to review one of their VRi aviation panels. They didn't need to ask me twice!
Hardware overview: MCP and CDU panels
developer: Virtual Reality Insight
publisher: Wilco Publishing
price: USD625/EUR469
test system: Pentium Core2 6600, 2GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 7950GT 512MB
I'd like to start the review with saying that the panels I reviewed are still in development. I can of course only review what I have, so be aware that the final product may change.
So, what is it actually that I'm reviewing? I've been sent an MCP and a CDU panel. Both panels have all functional buttons you find in the heavies. For the autopilot you have the dials, you have some of the on/off switches and the rest is buttons. The panels are kept in black and are mounted onto a piece of plastic.
What struck me a bit odd is that the electronic boards are semi-exposed and some of the electronics are visible. That doesn't instill too much confidence and a label stating 'don't touch' doesn't make it any better. Having said that, I didn't have any problems so far. The developers told me that the final panel will be sealed, so if this is correct this isn't an issue (the photos show the sealed version).
The dials and switches are quite sturdy, the buttons however feel a bit flimsy, but again it doesn't seem to matter in operation. What does matter is that the CDU panel is quite high and the base not strong enough to support the height - when you press the buttons the panel tips over. Again, the developers told me this will be fixed in the final version.
Another feature of the panels is a little LCD screen on each. This simply gives you some functionality feedback, so you know the panel is operational and what modes are selected. On the MCP it also shows you the autopilot settings which is very neat.
Both panels operate via a USB connection, simply plug them in and they work. Well, almost. The bigger MCP has an option to run on USB power and when you run it just on USB it seems to work fine when you look at the LCD. However, the dials and switches didn't do anything for me. This was easily fixed by using the supplied power connection. Why USB power is an option I don't know, but it works just fine if you select external power.
A side note about the external power adapter - I was quite surprised that it runs on 110/220/240 voltage, I hadn't seen such a smart transformer before. While you won't need an extra transformer to adapt to your local voltage, you may need a socket adapter. The supplied cord works for European sockets, luckily I have a few adapters lying around. If you're not on the European system and don't have any adapters, you'll need to visit your local hardware store and spend ten bucks.
Driver installation: you need to know your stuff
Once you have the panels all set up, you need to install the drivers. This is a weak part of this panel solution, it's overly complicated and you also get a little 'surprise'. To start the driver application you need to drop a low-level system driver into your Windows system folder. This isn't a big deal really, yet it makes me cringe. Most hardware devices need such a driver, but the difference is that these drivers are installed by a proper installation program and show in the system hardware section where you can update or remove them. I'd like to see the same thing done to this driver.
Next you need to copy the actual driver frontend onto your hard drive, which allows you to set the driver up. Again, it would be nice if that were done in an installer. All of this is not a big deal, but now it gets a bit clumsy. You need to start this driver every time you'd like to use the panel and set the USB port! This is a hassle. I have to admit I don't like the idea of having to start drivers every single time you run Flight Simulator. To be fair I have to do the same for eDimensional products, but I don't need to load my joystick driver manually and calibrate every single time...
The driver also allows you to select the aircraft you're flying which sets the key settings for you. This is neat, but if it could be done from within Flight Simulator that would be even neater. A bonus is that you can actually check the panel as well with the driver frontend. You can turn the dials and press some buttons and check if they work. A feature I actually needed (read below)!
After your drivers are installed you get a little surprise. You need to own the professional version of FSUIPC. If you're using both FS9 and FSX and don't own the pro version, be prepared to pay another $50. When Pete Dowson decided to make FSUIPC payware it was because he was getting annoyed that commercial vendors would use FSUIPC for their products, so his idea was that the commercial developers would pay the license fee, not the end user. I'd really like to see this panel delivered with FSUIPC, even if it makes it more expensive.
I'd like to summarize the driver installation process here. It is a tad complicated. Let me put it like this - if you're not confident browsing through system folders, have a relative or neighbour 'fixing' your computer, or wouldn't have a clue where the driver settings are, then this panel is not for you. If you're reasonably confident with computers you probably will be fine, although the driver installation is a bit tedious - not just point and click.
In operation: flying made a lot more real and convenient
Ok, now we got the panel hooked up and drivers installed. How does it all actually work? Very well, in fact extraordinary well. Almost. The MCP panel I was sent had a small but significant defect. The altitude hold dial worked in downwards direction, but not into upwards direction. This made flying in altitude hold pretty tricky as you can imagine. I went back into the driver window and it confirmed, turning the altitude dial to the right did not send a signal to the PC. To cut a long story short, I wrote an email and VRi's very friendly service sorted it out. I got a free replacement sent from Korea while I took the defect panel to my local post office to send it back (cash-on-delivery).
I have to admit that I would have preferred a panel without defect, but VRi dealt with the situation really well and after all this little affair was no big issue. Email communication was prompt and service very friendly.
Ok, enough talk about the panel itself, how does it work in Flight Simulator? I have to say that once you took the hurdle of setting the drivers up, it works well, very well indeed! I tested the free iFly, which is a great simulation of the Boeing 767, including a fully functional flight management computer.
Buttons, knobs, everything works very well and makes flying the heavies a very pleasurable experience. You can program the autopilot and the FMC, all without the use of the mouse or keyboard. If you're flying heavies a lot, this will transform your simming.
The MCP panel includes a full autopilot, including knobs for speed, heading, an EFIS section, and finally a little COM section. The EFIS section allows you to, for example, to swap from VOR to MAP, enter waypoints or look at the weather radar. You also have buttons for your gears and flaps. You can adjust the brightness of the LCD output as well. The CDU panel allows you to control your FMC, you get the keyboard, you can enter fixes, legs, and what not. Both panels will let you fly heavies without mouse and keyboard.
Summary
Both panels do their job very well and can transform your flying experience. Due to the overly complicated driver installation I would recommend the panels only to people who have basic computer knowledge. If you're relying on setup installers to get the job done these panels are not for you.
When I reviewed the panels first I was given a price point of about USD 300. That would have been a great value in my opinion. As I'm writing this review, the panels retail together at USD 625. Personally, I find that a bit steep for what you get - to be fair though, the panels have been further improved since. If you fly heavies frequently, you may be able to justify the expense.
Work well and transforms the heavy flying experience
Driver installation overly complicated, hardware needs some improvements
Christian Stock
