After reading and watching many reviews I finally decided to upgrade my old CH Products joystick for the VKB Gunfighter Mk.IV Combat Edition Ultimate. To say it was an upgrade is an understatement. VKB have absolutely nailed it! The product is premium in both quality and feel. From the cool feel of the aluminium grip and smooth tactile buttons and levers to the variation of springs and cam levers for the perfect feedback, this is a complete joy to use.
I only wish I upgraded sooner!
The canted grip makes it much more intuitive for ascend/descend thrusters.
The build quality of VKB is next level. Putting it together from the box felt right and left me feeling a level of satisfaction usually reserved for DIY projects (but it was also really easy).
Theres enough buttons to bind to secondary functions you need and they are all responsive. It feels good in the hand.
Great gear wouldn't buy anything else!! Perfect controls
It has a great build quality. The grip feels like an airworthy part, the design is ergonomic (built for large hands I think but still feels good), the switches are great, the movement is smooth and controlled. It makes you want to fly a real twin-engine plane!
Best value joystick on the market !
Smooth and makes playing games a joy.
Really fantastic service from VKB AU AAA+++
amazing purchase, loving every second of it when im playing Star Citizen with my mates. easy to setup and put together straight out of the box
For anyone thinking about "will the Gladiator EVO Flight Stick" cut it in Elite Dangerous, just get it. I bought it (the Premium) primarily to use in Elite, and compared to my "Saitek 55 Hotas joystick," the difference is night and day. The array of buttons on the upper part of the stick is similar to the Saitek but the six others on the base (including a throttle) make it almost a mini hotas in itself. I've only had it for less than a week, but just the feel of the buttons and the gimbal, suggests it has been built to last. The fact that you get a kit of spare springs, of different tensions and spare buttons is all the more impressive. The only change I made was to replace the installed 20g gimbal springs with the supplied lighter 10g springs, which for me, makes the stick perfect for space combat in Elite. For the moment, I'm still using the tired old Saitek Throttle (with all its busted buttons) but will definitely pair the Gladiator with the STECS Standard Throttle as soon as I get some spare cash. For Elite Dangerous, at least, I couldn't recommend the Gladiator Premium enough.
found i had to change one spring but other then that its perfect
still need to learn how to really fly with it but probably the best thong iv brought for gaming next to my pc
Easily the best joystick for its price! So much better and more sturdy than anything remotely in its price range.
There is a slight feeling of this thing being a bit of a toy, especially the button feel. I came from a Warthog throttle which I have used for many years and was interested in the movable pitch and yaw.. I play predominately Elite Dangerous and like how this thing feels after a bit of use. The hardest thing to get used to is the exact thing I wanted to try, the pitch and yaw adjustments. I would love the ability to "lock" the pitch and yaw and be able to use as a standard throttle etc.. I would also really love some better feeling buttons, they work fine, just feel a bit "mushy". The throttle sits quite high in the hand, so please be aware of this, and when simply resting your hand on top it is extremely easy to adjust the pitch or even the yaw on simple flight maneuvres.. I was a bit worried I would not like the throttle indentation option, but after using it for a bit actually like it a lot.. I now have 2 methods to reverse my throttle, moving the stick slowly back for fine maneuvers, or using the thumb wheel to a 180 on/off reversal of throttle.. Easier than it sounds...
The STECS is quite accurate and can give some very fine adjustments, you just have to get used to making a small motion instead of a full sweep of the throttle etc..
Probably the biggest advantage so far is my placement of the Flight Assist ON/OFF option on the trigger of the left hand, makes very quick FA on/off settings proving deadly in a dog fight..
my First HOTAS… really enjoying using it. Great feel. Plug and play great. Software bit of a challenge to navigate… calibration & detects fine but gave up trying to covert ring finger encoder to an axis.
I have been using this Joystick for 2-3 weeks and use it to play X 4 . The stick itself is very sturdy and the grip is comfortable. Assembly was easy using the You tube instructions and there are a lot of spared parts including springs allowing adjustment of tension. There a a multitude of buttons allowing customization of many functions. The buttons have a good quality feel to them. Overall I would recommend this product
Extremely fast delivering very well put together instructions need to be in a little bit better quality YouTube channel is fantastic to finding out problems or issues with controllers plugged in worked extremely well very fast. Very happy. Recommend to anyone.
Fantastic products works extremely well very well together. Extremely happy with customer service. Will recommend things to my friends.
Have tried a few joysticks and controllers over the years but the precision and
handling of the Gladiator Space Combat Grip coupled with the sensible button placement left the others in its wake. Package arrived quickly and contained all those little extras to truly make it customizable as my own.
Great product VKB
Fantastic mount. Very sturdy and high quality.
Excellent joystick for entry level users
I just wish I got the premium!!!
I am pairing this throttle with a VKB Gladiator joystick. i have not owned any other throttles for comparison, but the smoothness of the axes cannot be overstated. And it's not just the look and feel of the unit, it's the almost infinite versatility in which every single button, switch and axis can be modified via software to have different or multiple functions. Eg - In Elite, when i move my throttle to the zero mark, it also opens my cargo hatch to slow me down even faster, and blinks a blue LED to advise me, all from a single movement. I look forward to further in-depth customization with the help of VKB's Discord, which has been extremely helpful thus far. My only partial issue is that the X & Y axes move your wrist in unusual ways, so you may need to experiment with placement to avoid strain.
The quality feels really good. There are lots of interchangeable parts included as well that can make it feel better to your preference. It has a nice feel and weight to it.
Arrived in a reasonable amount of time, packaged very well and most importantly is a fantastic throttle.