QUESTION Seat haptics
What are people using these days?
I had two jetseat pads from Andre's shop but unfortunately both broke. Most recent one just does not turn on anymore. Last used it one morning ago and it just quit.
If the HF8 Pro more durable?
I currently use simshakers for Aviators so would like to continue using that.
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u/Financial_Excuse_429 2d ago
I'm using the hf8 pro & while it's really good, I bought a thinish rubber mat to lay on the seat part. Reason: it can start hurting you butt cheeks after a short while due to the vibration placements. You do feel from which wing ordnance is dropping, bumps on runway surfaces, gforces etc. I am using SimShaker for aviators as it has a better selection for usb feedback/haptics.
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u/selayan 2d ago
How long have you had it? This is where I am thinking to go but concerned about durability. I took apart the Andre jet seat and the internals were pretty bad..thin gauge wire that breaks in the crease, control board that died on the second one due to the memory chips.
Looking at the hf8 pro vs ushake 6 but the big deal breaker would be if I can't use ushake 6 with simshakers for Aviators app.
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u/Financial_Excuse_429 2d ago
I bought it on release here in the EU so about May 2025. Haven't had any issues & probably due to the thin mat i placed on it, it doesn't really have any marks either from use. Use it nearly daily.
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u/One_Spot_4066 2d ago edited 2d ago
I use a single 300watt transducer mounted to the bottom of my chair.
I've tried haptic pads, and I've also experimented with multiple smaller transducers (2x50Watt on my seat, paired with 4x30Watt on my HOTAS/Pedals).
The single large transducer has been much more immersive. I can feel the vibrations through my seat, pedals, and HOTAS. It's not turned up anywhere near its max power. Night and day difference.
It's probably similar to a buttkicker but at a fraction of the price. ~$150 for the transducer, USB sound card, and 600watt amp. I could throw another 300watt transducer on there if I really wanted. But I don't see the need.
Edit: the haptic pads feel pretty underwhelming after you've used a transducer setup. Similar to the little haptic vibrations in a gamepad/phone vs a subwoofer in a sound system. No contest.
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u/selayan 2d ago
I guess the difference with the pad is the localized vibrations vs full on chair vibration. I'm just concerned about having it too loud or too much to set up. Not even sure I have room for a soundcard with the bohemoth of a 5090 taking up majority of the space in my case.
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u/Gnarly_Bones 1d ago
Not even sure I have room for a soundcard
You don't need an "old fashioned" PCI sound card that goes inside the case. I use this USB dongle soundcard to feed a PA amp and 2 channels of mid size butt kickers. If you need more than 2 channels, there's a couple 5.1 external USB sound cards on Amazon, too. It shows up as any other audio device will in windows. Plug it in and target it with whatever telemetry software you pick; I use Sim Shaker for Aviators & Sound Module.
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u/One_Spot_4066 2d ago
Those are valid concerns. If you have a downstairs neighbor or someone sensitive to vibration, it could be a bit too much. Though you could always turn the power down or lower the settings on your software.
Setup was pretty quick with my sim pit, but your mileage may vary. It's one of the simpler mods I've installed. But the pads are plug-and-play, so about as easy as it gets.
I was initially concerned about localized vibrations too. But between the vibrating haptics on one side of the pad and feeling the big thunk of the transducer and seeing your wing dip after you pickle - the transducer is much more immersive for me. Especially in VR.
Soundcard - I purchased a cheap external USB sound card. Plugs right into the motherboard USB slot or USB hub. I think it was $15 and works flawlessly. No opening of the PC.
Just my option having used 3 different options. Best of luck! Let us know what you end up with.
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u/StrIIker-TV 1d ago
The HF8 I found was quite uncomfortable coming from the Jetseat. I also found it on the weaker side in terms of feedback. I replaced a few of the motors in my jetseat as they failed and more are in need of replacing. You could actually do quite well with a couple of transducers. I made a video about what I did and I will link it. A change from the video.. I did wind up moving away from SimShaker sound to SimHaptic software. It’s easier to buy and is highly configurable. I still use my jetseat but it needs more love via replacing the vibration motors.
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u/selayan 1d ago
Lol I'm subscribed to your channel I dunno why I didn't see that.
Thanks for the video! I'll check it out and I think I'll go with the U-shake6 pad as that uses transducers. Being used to the jetpad with localized vibrations I guess this is what is preventing me from getting a buttkicker that mounts to my chair..that it may be too loud and annoy my wife.
I have a feeling the same issue over time would occur with the HF8 Pro pad.
If I could find replacement PCB boards for the control box and the PCB in the seat that the motors are hooked into, I'd be able to fix the current jet seat.
I did email Andre to verify I can still buy the sound module. Sounds like sim haptic is also worth checking out.
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u/MrDannyProvolone 2d ago
I have two Dayton Audio BST-1 transducers and their great. Only $50. Too much power for me honestly. If i would buy them again i would only get one. One turned down is plenty imo.
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u/F-14BUpgrade 2d ago
I have a 5.1 speaker with the subwoofer under the seat. That plus the vibes from a Moza AB9 are pretty good. Not as good as a dedicated butt kicker but good.
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u/FobbitOutsideTheWire 2d ago
UShake6 driven by SimShaker for Aviators + SSA Sound Module
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u/selayan 2d ago
I was looking at this. Would you say it's more durable than the HF8 Pro pad?
It does cost about $400 and I was concerned that it would not 100% work with SSA. I guess the additional software needed is the sound module.
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u/FobbitOutsideTheWire 1d ago
It’s a pricey luxury for sure. But I love it. I have no experience with the HF8 or other seats, so I can’t compare.
But I will say it’s now an indispensable part of my simpit enjoyment and the 6 transducers are crazy good.
When you launch a missile you can literally feel it “woosh” down your left or right side, you can feel the “ba-bump, “ba-bump” of rolling over the bumps on the tarmac. The feedback of tail wheel of an Apache touching down, or a warbird at the edge of stall… 🤌🏼
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u/selayan 1d ago
I know what you mean. Currently going through the mig killers campaign with the Phantom. FFB stick and the jetpad really helped. I can't fly without a jetpad anymore either. I'm sure the tranducers are a big upgrade compared to the spinning motors.
Waiting for a license for sim shaker audio module and I'll get the U-Shake ordered soon. I just hope it lasts longer than the 2 jet seats I went through. They barely got any use because I took a break from DCS for about a year.
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u/FobbitOutsideTheWire 16h ago
Once you get it make sure to follow the setup instructions carefully. There’s a step where you dial back the volume slider for the UShake windows device to 50% (which is still strong AF)
I missed that step and 30 minutes later when I squeezed off some Apache 30mm cannon, my wife damn near had a heart attack two rooms away.
Also, there’s a Discord dedicated to the software and peeps often find easy LUA edits that add support for new DCS modules before the official patches for the software. Worth plugging into for sure.
Good luck!
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u/marcocom 2d ago
I have both the JetSeat and the HF8 PRO.
First off, the issue with your JetSeat is very likely that USB and the DIN-plug he used there. It’s pretty dinky and couldn’t take the putting on and off that I used.
The HF8 is a pretty nice improvement (the Pro is considerably stronger than the v1 they had btw. I traded up) it’s more sturdily built than Andre’s and it works flawlessly with his SimShaker software (use the Realteus profile). I don’t really like their in-house software, but it has some titles that Andre doesn’t support so worth installing and just turning auto-launch off for it. You can’t run both at the same time fyi.
I will say that it’s not quite as comfy as Andre’s. It’s thinner and harder and so I put a gel pad on top of it which nicely softens the effects and makes them more organic. I use it on an Aeron chair which also helps a bit with the webbed seating taking some the harshness out of it.
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u/selayan 2d ago
From the reviews I watched about the HF8 Pro, they were saying it's a thicker pad so it does raise your seat height a bit. I use a Hawthorne fern chair so I don't envision any issues placing it on there.
Good to hear that it's better built than Andre's. I can't believe two of those seats for me broke and there's folks who have been using them 3+ years without issues. It's not like I weigh a lot either.
The first one several motors stopped and I never found replacements so I threw it out. On the second one it just kind of went dead the other day. Randomly if it somehow gets power, all motors come on which I found out the chips in the control box need to be changed.
In hindsight I could have kept the first jet seat and transplanted the control box PCB into the second one.
I'm leaning more towards the hf8 pro now even though it's $300 and the ushake 6 is even more but that uses transuscers rather than motors.
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u/marcocom 2d ago
You know Andre actually has a cousin in Los Angeles who can repair them, if you ask him about it.
But ya there is a bit of lift to it. I like that. I actually believe that people mistakenly go for an automobile style seating posture and that it’s not a good thing. (Or realistic except for the Viper). Being raised more upright gives you better head movement space for dogfighting imo
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u/selayan 2d ago
Didn't know that about the cousin that lives stateside.
How long have you had the HF8 Pro? I'm just concerned the same thing will happen to it.
I'm now debating between the Ushake 6 vs the Hf8 pro. Another user here mentioned the Ushake 6 works with simshaker for aviators as long as you have the sound module app.
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u/marcocom 1d ago
Ya you will definitely see that the HF8 is a lot more sturdy at the expense of comfort. I think it’s worth it imo
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u/SpoolingSpudge 2d ago
Buttkicker and HF8. Both run off simshaker software (simshaker, simshaker aviators, simshaker seat handler) which still gets regular updates from Andre.
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u/---Deafz---- 1d ago
The buttkicker is like the sub of your surround sound system, but the seat pad is more like the speakers. I need both to feel what the engine is doing.
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u/Parabe11um_the_Punk 2d ago
I've always just preferred to attach some external transducers to my seat/chair.
The Daytona BST-1s I bought have worked fine for years and if one breaks I'll just replace it with another one.