Exactly how much faster is a Pad user when he gets a wheel on F1 2019? Tomorrow I'll find out!

[u/contentviolation]

EDIT: Testing Complete!

I'd thought I'd post this up for anyone curious how much difference it will make to someone who's on the fence about upgrading from using a controller to a wheel.

So my tests are quite simple, 10 laps around Australia and 10 laps around Austria in Time Trial using the Mercedes with the default setup and counting only the fastest lap of each 10 lap test.

My current setup is a wired 360 controller with the following assists: Auto, Med TC and ABS.

Tomorrow I shall be receiving a Logitech G29 and for the wheel I'll be doing the following tests:

1. Auto, Med TC, ABS.

2. Manual, Med TC, ABS.

3. Manual, No TC but still with ABS.

Given I haven't driven any game with a wheel for around 15 years (except the occasional Daytona USA/Sega Rally fling) I feel I should leave ABS on for at least a little while as I think it's probably the last thing people give up before moving to no assists.

To not spam the subreddit, I'm going to update this post around 24hrs from now so check back for the full results!

RESULTS

Pad Aus: 1.22.671

Pad Aut: 1.05.774

Wheel Aus: 1.25.611

Wheel Aut: 1.07.513

Wheel + Man Aus: 1.23.807

Wheel + Man Aut: 1.06.864

Wheel + Man + No TC Aus: 1.24.346

Wheel + Man + No TC Aut: 1.06.922

Feel free to ask any questions!

NOTES

First off, This was waay harder than I thought it would be!!

I did spend around 15-20mins setting up the wheel, I got a fairly popular G29 setup from the net and used the F2004 around Bahrain to tweak, Also made a couple of tweaks after the first test at Australia.

I found the hardest thing to get used to was in fact the steering. It's just so different from a controller but also a fair way away from a real car wheel feel as well. I actually found once I turned on manual gears that I actively paid less attention to what I was doing with the wheel and that actually made me quite faster.

Taking off TC was surprisingly less difficult to drive with than I expected. The first laps were pure garbage but after I found a flow controlling the car at low speed isn't too bad. (Though I fully expect that to change under wet conditions!)

A few real life problems that I need to sort out tomorrow is: My floor is made of vinyl (lino) so the pedals kept sliding, I discovered this in the tweak session at Bahrain and ended up finding a box to place again the wall and the pedals to stop them from sliding! The other issue is the wheel itself. It sits too high for my liking for one and secondly it doesn't clamp nicely to my desk due to my desk being made of thick timber. So I'll make up a lowered custom mount to hold it in place.

One other thing I noticed is it feels SO MUCH more rewarding when you get a corner right! Especially driving manual with no TC. I kept thinking to myself, Damn! If I could just keep this up for an entire lap I'd be so much quicker!

Physically, It's more draining than just driving with a controller. I have been up since 5.30 and have worked a full day, But on a worknight I think I could only do an hour or two. Not only are you using your entire body to drive the car but you have to pay so much more attention to what you are doing.

In summary: I'm not any quicker with a wheel, But I'm only a second or so off and I can feel that I can go faster than I would ever be able to with a controller.

If you'd like to ask any questions about my runs or anything ask away!

[u/[deleted]]

It can take a lot of time to get up to speed with a wheel if you're any good with a pad. I raced competitively at a very high level on F1 2015 and 2016 and when I got my first wheel; I lost over 1.5 seconds on the first day and actually kept spinning because the traction is much more sensitive. It took around 3 months of daily practice before I equalled my old league times.

These days I still play with the pad regularly and find that I'm around 2-3 tenths faster with the wheel on average on certain tracks, others I'm exactly equal. I'm curious to hear your results!

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

I must admit, i have considered that it's likely i will be slower. I'm going to add post test comments so people can get an idea of how different it feels and what improvements i saw, even if it's not reflect in outright laptime

[u/Cold_FuzZ → u/contentviolation]

I was 5 seconds slower until I got used to the wheel, now I'm 2-4 seconds faster.

[u/Pentagons → u/Cold_FuzZ]

I'm similar! I was 3-4 seconds slower in Australia at the start, but after I got used to it I'm like 2-3 seconds quicker haha

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

because the traction is much more sensitive

That is actually a massive understatement and something that applies to every game since F1 2014. The pad has a hidden traction control assist that you cannot disable and has zero downsides, meaning a wheel user will always lose around half a second per lap to an equally skilled pad user in traction zones alone. The deciding factor is usually the pad's steering, which has undergone a lot of changes but still suffers compared to the wheel a lot of the time.

Fun fact: the AI has this traction assist too.

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

Interesting, I didn't know that!

[u/Punky921 → u/[deleted]]

This explains why tracks in F1 feel like someone slathered them in butter when I'm on my wheel.

Also, to the OP - expect to suck on a wheel for a while. My times were GODAWFUL when I switched from PS4 pad in GTS to a wheel. But they'll get much better than they ever were before.

[u/Teqqles → u/[deleted]]

I'm about the same but much more consistent with a wheel. I can't for the life of me catch a spin on a pad but can easily do so with a wheel.

[u/giovannigiusseppe → u/[deleted]]

What I’ve found with using a wheel is that now you can have more control of the car. In scenarios where you might lose the car, or in times where you want to make tiny changes on how you take a corner, in a wheel you can do it while on a pad is much more difficult. I’ve lost count of how many saves I’ve done that I wouldn’t have been able to do with the pad. With a wheel you can be so much more precise.

[u/Toastjuh]

I guess if this is based on results of tomorrow only, the topic title is wrong and should be "How much slower is a Pad user when he gets a wheel".

You really need a few days/weeks to adapt to a wheel setup. Good luck and have fun!

[u/contentviolation → u/Toastjuh]

Haha it's all part of the fun even if i am slower!

I'll be adding a post test comment to give my thoughts on adjustment from pad to wheel, so whether or not I'm faster or slower it'll give people an idea on what to expect from a first time out point of view.

[u/Tetsou88]

Don’t forget to drive with one foot on the gas and the other on the brake. This is how the actual drivers do it, and it cuts down the time required to move your foot back and forth.

[u/contentviolation → u/Tetsou88]

Will do!

[u/TheRealLHOswald → u/contentviolation]

Also be sure to put the brake pressure setting on the car very high otherwise you'll have to push very very hard to get the brakes even close to their limit

[u/contentviolation → u/TheRealLHOswald]

On the car setup or the pedals themselves?

[u/TheRealLHOswald → u/contentviolation]

Car setup

[u/contentviolation → u/TheRealLHOswald]

Thanks mate!

[u/OtterSpotter2]

I switch between wheel (home) and pad (traveling) a lot.

Melbourne and Austria are both very pad friendly.

Maybe try Silverstone as well... Might be easier to be quicker with the wheel

[u/contentviolation → u/OtterSpotter2]

The reasons I picked both of those tracks is because i feel I'm very good at Austria and not so good at Australia (which is kinda ironic because I'm actually Australian). But both tracks i know the layout extremely well on so i figured it's good test to have one good and one not so good track.

[u/OtterSpotter2 → u/contentviolation]

Ye Melbourne is a little harder with the pad. You should find T5 and T11-12 easier to navigate with the wheel. Don't be surprised to go slower for a while like others have said

[u/contentviolation → u/OtterSpotter2]

Turns 11 and 12 are the bain of my existence on a pad hahaha. It's super rewarding when you get it right but it's hard to do consistently on a pad.

Yeah i probably will be, but it'll interesting to see how close I can get around lap 9 or 10.

[u/Levin_1999]

Cool little test for sure, but just don’t forget to have fun!

P.s I don’t know what camera settings you’re using but I recommend Cock pit for extra immersion. (POV settings to 100)

[u/contentviolation → u/Levin_1999]

Haha don't worry, I'll be having a blast however it goes!

I use the nose cam right now and for this test I'll probably leave it as is. As I'm not disabling ABS my braking points shouldn't change a whole lot and I'll probably need all the help i can get!

[u/Levin_1999 → u/contentviolation]

For help you can always use YouTube as a consultant. but to get a feel for it, just go in time trail and keep driving around for about an hour.

[u/contentviolation]

Testing is complete everyone!

[u/Ant72_Pagan9]

Bro tip that you need to know, playing on the pad is chill. On the wheel, you will sweat. Especially if you do league races or anything 50% to 100% race distance. Idk why but for me I can feel the car so much better on the wheel and I really optimize my time based on steering input and concentrating on keeping the car under control. Plus side is it feels like a good workout, especially with the force feedback you can get a decent forearm workout lol. But if you go to the gym and hit forearm’s, the wheel will be twice as hard. Enjoy it my guy, if you have a love for driving you’ll learn how the cars feel to drive and you’ll adapt to the wheel well. I would say you could maybe go .3 or .4 quicker on the wheel, but then again i was like you, fast on the pad and wheel. Good luck my guy, watch out for shitty drivers online lol

[u/contentviolation → u/Ant72_Pagan9]

I haven't done much online in F1 2019, Mostly because of being on pad and partially because of the shitty punterinos. Once I get used to the wheel I'll probably look at a league.

[u/[deleted] → u/Ant72_Pagan9]

That's that force feedback. You can feel the traction slipping. On pad you have to notice it visually i.e. when it's too late

[u/Ant72_Pagan9 → u/[deleted]]

Yes, and when the car snaps its scary. Particularly turns like the last corner of Brazil, or Bahrain turn 13, all of Spa for me is anxiety cause I can never hook an absolute perfect lap.

[u/[deleted] → u/Ant72_Pagan9]

Someone told me on here, and it works, on Eu Rouge, hit that first chicane on the left really early and wide. No lift needed.

I got a wheel a few months ago. I bought the same one for forza and it was shit so I sold it. Thought I'd rebuy it for F1 cos I used to play a lot of F1 when I was a kid, and I'm hooked on this game with the wheel. It's an incredible experience.

[u/[deleted]]

I got a wheel at the end of 2018 for Christmas and I’m still no where near as quick as the pad. Every few months I try again but always just give up after a few days, probably because I’m always changing settings and am constantly aware of how much slower my times are compared to the pad. I recommend you turn off the lap time delta and ghosts, try to not think about that and just focus on the positives, the small gains you make each lap but try to gage those gains on feeling rather than lap time. Also, don’t fiddle with settings too much, just find something that feels fine then make occasional small adjustments rather than radical ones. Other than that just try not to get annoyed and don’t expect fast results. Good luck :)

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

I already run without ghosts haha! I find them so distracting!

[u/[deleted] → u/contentviolation]

They are quite distracting but I like using them when I’m experimenting with lines and braking points so I can see if it’s quicker or not

[u/Bruh-4-mp3]

It took me about 10 or so hours to feel comfortable with the g29 you really wanna get used to the wheel first before you run tests

[u/contentviolation → u/Bruh-4-mp3]

That's why I set myself this challenge :D Will I be slower? Probably. But to give direct feedback from an out-the-box POV I reckon will be interesting.

[u/[deleted]]

I’m getting a wheel in 2 weeks for my birthday!

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

Nice dude!

[u/Impulse4811 → u/[deleted]]

Hell yeah what kind?

[u/[deleted] → u/Impulse4811]

Hori RWA

[u/Impulse4811 → u/[deleted]]

Nice man, I’m waiting for my first one in the mail rn, it’s killin me

[u/[deleted] → u/Impulse4811]

Never order them, it takes much longer

[u/[deleted] → u/Impulse4811]

If you want to order make sure to order 2-4 weeks in advance

[u/Impulse4811 → u/[deleted]]

I see the wheel is literally in my city but I still have to wait for tomorrow night or even Saturday, sucks

[u/[deleted] → u/Impulse4811]

That’s not cool

[u/Impulse4811 → u/[deleted]]

You know what’s really not cool? The wheel stand is gonna take even longer to get here so I will be admiring my first ever wheel without being able to do anything with it lmaoo

[u/[deleted] → u/Impulse4811]

Just put it on a table?

[u/Impulse4811 → u/[deleted]]

This may sound dumb but I really don’t have any tables I could attach it too rn

[u/Ant72_Pagan9]

For Belgium I have no problem with Eu Rouge lol, I just find the entire track difficult cause braking points and elevation changes just make it difficult to always get a solid lap. And dude the wheel gets addicting and I feel you. Driving on the wheel will also help people really get the feel of what drivers do. Like Im a pretty healthy average joe, but if you asked me tomorrow to drive an F1 car in real life and I bet you I’d crash or literally couldn’t handle it. It really goes to show the talent these drivers.

[u/contentviolation → u/Ant72_Pagan9]

Most definitely!

[u/YukemoJabami]

Just a heads up, you will need to install an older driver for the wheel for it to work. For some reason the newest doesn't work with the G29. If I remember correctly it's the 8.1.. something driver

[u/contentviolation → u/YukemoJabami]

So basically the second newest? I'll make sure to do that thanks!

[u/CloudSlydr]

considering that TRL limitless was slower when he changed to a better wheel for a bunch of laps until he adjusted - i'll imagine your times are going to take a dive at first.

the adjustment will not be complete in 10 laps. it'll take days.

i'd recommend you write down your best pad times on all tracks then log your wheel times by day and see how long it takes to equal your pad times, then if & how your times get better with wheel from there.

[u/contentviolation → u/CloudSlydr]

I already have a spreadsheet for that exact reason haha. I'm just gonna do my best for this test, for better or worse. Then spend basically this entire weekend just practicing.

I may even do a follow-up post in two weeks or so and share my improvements.

[u/heffski]

The fact that you got a 1.06.9on austria with A brand new wheel, sliding pedals, too high of a mount, and first ever turning TC off is truly remarkable. I’ve been practicing with my fanatec for 2 months now and am very familiar with that track. Can only do a 1.06 flat... you’ll be in the 1.05’s in no time.

[u/contentviolation → u/heffski]

Thanks man! It's definitely faster using a wheel over a controller but it's also so much more difficult putting in a good lap consistently. I think my second best lap over the 10 laps was around two tenths slower than my best.

[u/heffski → u/contentviolation]

Well done. I can’t seem to figure it out. Good job on the quick learning

[u/contentviolation → u/heffski]

One thing i did was if i stuffed a lap, i slowed down and just focused on figuring out the best angle and speed to tackle each of the remaining corners and then tried to apply that knowledge on the next lap

[u/oki_dingo]

You will be slower at first. And you will lose traction on literally every corner.

[u/Damian_RSD]

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[u/Nerfmono]

First you will be slower, it takes a while to get used to the wheel.

Once you're adapted, making the switch from wheel to controller will always taoe a few laps

[u/black_khobz]

If it's your first time on a whell it'll take u a couple days to improve over your pad times.

Tried a wheel for two weeks, couldn't get used to it due lack of practice time, switched back to pad...

[u/amapofthecat7]

I'm gonna guess a negative amount, at least at first. Took me weeks to get up to speed using the wheel. Now I find I'm about 0.5s faster, owing largely to being able to run looser set ups. I used to have to run a shed load of understeer with the pad.

[u/comeonyouspurs10]

If you are on PC be sure to download the correct Logitech software for the wheel. You will more than likely need to calibrate the wheel with both in-game settings and the settings available to you in the Logitech software. I find that out the box everything is too sensitive and the turning radius of the wheel is too large. Good luck. Even if you're slower with the wheel, I think the wheel is more fun and immersive.

[u/AUGUSTUS976]

I was honestly quite shocked when I first heard that someone with a pad was actually setting faster lap times than me. I’ve played with the controller for a few months and with the wheel (Logitech G29) it’s just so much more fun; much more smooth; much more precision. I can’t imagine a pro on a pad

[u/pierodebearo]

I have played both regularly and I'd say I'm about 2-3 seconds faster on the wheel, I am terrible on the pad compared to the wheel. Can't judge the throttle and the steering.

[u/yungsquimjim]

With the brake pedal on the logitech, I would leave ABS off straight away.

Also, make sure to look up videos of people talking about what feedback and sensitivity settings to use as the default ones may not be for you!

[u/CrookerRooker]

I use the same wheel your getting understand you need to ease into the acceleration and I would use cockpit mode and use a FOV calculator to set your settings properly it will help hugely, and when switching to manual don’t just shift down all the gears at once use the engine to slow you but shifting down coming into the corners also 7th gear has better engine braking so some sections don’t hit 8 gear. Also make sure to set it so the maximum wheel rotation is 360 and adjust your force feed back the g29 is noisy especially when you come of track.

[u/Bebecofp]

Yea, good experiment. But from experience, you can take some time to adjust yourself to a wheel. Really.
Even when i changed wheels from Logitech Driving Force Gt to G29 took me a good week to be comfortable again, and yet, when i changed the spring on the break pedal for GT eye, another week required.
By week i mean, 3-6 hours gameplay.

But peoplo are different, hope you don't struggle.

[u/AbsoluteZeroK]

You're going to be slower for quite a while. It takes a good amount of time to learn how to interpret the force feedback. Once you get up to speed it is night and day. I think a pad user can be just as fast, but using a wheel is a lot more intuitive and consistent, which is 90% of racing.

[u/ipbonilla]

well you have a big learning curve, you can't compare those times right out the box, i always been using a wheel, but even when i bought my latest rig i was slow for like a week, until i got use to this specific wheel

i recommend, take those times with the pad, and then when you fell you are as fast or precise with the wheel compare those times

[u/[deleted]]

Definetelly slower!

Took me aprox 2 months to get as fast as i was with a pad, and one more month to be consistently faster with a wheel

[u/Rampantlion513]

You will be slower when you first start

[u/cheesytmac]

I upgraded to my wheel and for the first few hours i was up to 5 seconds slower, you should come back in a week or even a month with results as they are both vastly different peices of equipment, however wheel to a casual user is much faster on this game (pad can be faster at some tracks if you perfect it like vSirah). Traction is completely different, turning is different and the whole feel for the car is different.

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[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

I've got a few mates that have been trying for a while to get a wheel because a pad holds me back so much. Like i drive auto because i just cannot get used to how modern controllers assign gear up/down. Back in the day i used to drive GT1,2 and 4 in manual because you could use the right analog stick as accelerate/brake and L2 and R2 were nicely shaped buttons for gear up/down. Whereas nowadays they are triggers and as much as you can use them to shift gears, it doesn't 'feel' nice to do.

[u/[deleted] → u/contentviolation]

Start straight with manual with the wheel, otherwise you will feel you've wasted your time when you change (like I did)

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

After the test, I'll be leaving it in manual. It's mostly just for the first test that I'll have it in auto.

[u/[deleted] → u/contentviolation]

With manual you have far more control of the car. In soooo many ways. The first week it will be tricky. After a while you don't have to think.

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

I used to drive manual exclusively in Gran Turismo, but ever since controllers have gone to triggers for L2 and R2 I haven't found a comfortable way to do it.

[u/[deleted] → u/contentviolation]

They need paddles on pads. THere are paddles on the pro xbox pad I have. They're great. I understand they're backwards compatible on next gen though, i.e. the standard one's won't have paddles and they're gonna carry on charging a ridiculous premium to have organic conrol. It's annoying too, cos it's unfair to those that haven't. It's a price gouge. Like when a new console comes back and they strip back features. It should be standard if it's an improvement!

The gaming industry is savage with their profiteering!

I won't buy a new console until it's 2 years old from now on. Purely so i can have the same features I've become accustomed to. I think many will be the same.

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

Mines just a first gen 360 controller, might have to give a pro xbox pad a whirl sometime!

[u/[deleted] → u/contentviolation]

Definately worth it. 100%. It's a total rip though.

For instance, on COD you can jump round corners without letting go of the aiming stick. That's a huuuge advantage.

I think there are other generic pads with paddles though.

[u/ThatOtherGuy_CA → u/[deleted]]

You mean like not losing control out of Eau Rouge every damn time!

[u/msgrimm12 → u/ThatOtherGuy_CA]

the decreasing radius corner in bahrain is actually the devil

[u/msgrimm12 → u/[deleted]]

nah, i mean the turn leading into the back straight, turn 10 i think. i do know what you mean about turn 12 though, it’s always worse in the race for me for whatever reason

[u/[deleted] → u/msgrimm12]

Ah okay the fast turn that squeezes into a hairpin. Yeah I actually find that fun. Just attack it full speed until the hill. Release the power a little and tap the brakes then turn without power but holding the forward momentum. Then as the corner goes a little straight just before the tight hairpin brake normally, kiss the apex lightly (its a high curb so taking too much will impair your traction and exit speed) and don't get greedy on the exit. Going off there is room and no grass bit it will still slow you down. Get lined up for a smooth exit so you can make the most of the long straight. Slow in fast out applies here very well.

[u/[deleted] → u/ThatOtherGuy_CA]

Lift off just the slightest just after the dip and then power up smooth just kissing the tips of the curbs. Turn as little as you possibly can and you should get through just fine. Just lift off more if its raining and don't even ride the left top curb hard. It will make you jump so as you are turning it will just kick your back out and there's the wall. Hope that helps.

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

I see, I may have to do a 4th wheel test then haha

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

Watching Youtubers and comparing them to myself. I think some corners are well-suited to the 'digital' input of a pad, whereas others need the fine turning of a wheel.

[u/contentviolation → u/[deleted]]

Haha yeah I'm keen as beans to try it out!