Best linear Slide pots for FSX

[Drewsta]

Gday all, I'm using 65mm B10k linear sliding pots for our G73AT trainer, they were bought from Element 14 and work ok. They are connected to a Leo Bodnar Buo836x board and calibrated through FSUIPC in FSX. Does anyone know if 50k pots would provide a smoother response than 10k pots? I'm only interested in sliding pots due to the setup at the moment. Any opinions or experience with good Sliding pots for sims? Thanks in advance.

[Joe Lavery]

I used 10k for both my pedals and my throttle quadrant. But for no more reason than many other builders had done the same. But the response curve seems fine.
Perhaps Ame will have a more definitive answer.

[Trevor Hale]

Your response time is going to be hugely dependent on the Bit rate of the card they are connected to as well as the "Step Size" In Fsuipc.  I presume the Step Size is to high and you are looking for like a 512 jump for each step in UIPC. 

Have a look at that first.

I have used 100K pots before, a calibration range is a calibration range. 

But If they are connected to an 8 bit card the results will be unexceptional none the less.

Trev

[KyleH]

Trevor is correct, it's the quality of the pot, and the interface board that determine the 'smoothness' of the response of the control, not the resistance value.

The total resistance of the pot does not affect the resolution/smoothness of the control.
It only affects the total current of the circuit. You just have to make sure there is enough current that the analog to digital converter is driven properly.

Pots in the 10k to 100k range will do this fine on most boards. Use whatever value the board manufacture recommends for the best results and longevity of the interface board.

[ame]

Thanks for the mention, but I have very little to add. Almost any pot will work. The key parameters are firstly the resistance (which is not critical, but 10k and above is probably most common, and obviously it must be linear). Secondly there is the physical size and shape, which must fit your application. Finally, the quality of the construction, based on how it is going to be used. Paying more does not always equate to better quality, although if it's easy to replace then buy a dozen cheap ones and change them when they fail.