Thrustmaster T248X review: A worthy contender

The Thrustmaster T248X is the corporate’s try at a price range choice for Xbox and PC gamers alike, however how does it maintain up in opposition to the competitors?

Sim racing over the previous couple of years has turn out to be a extensively well-liked sport, with folks world wide taking to Assetto Corsa or iRacing to compete in opposition to others.

Forza Motorsport is about to launch on October 10 with EA Sports WRC only a month later, and followers are excited concerning the well-liked racing video games. We reviewed the Logitech G920 racing wheel for these on a price range, however what about these with a bit extra money?

Thrustmaster was type sufficient to ship over the T248X wheel and pedal set, and we will confidently say it’s price trying out.

Key Specs:

• Connectivity: USB-A
• Compatibility: PC, Xbox
• Force Feedback: Hybrid Drive
• Price: $399.99
• Features: Force suggestions, Magnetic paddles, Magnetic pedals, Dashboard show, three Force Feedback settings

Design

The Thrustmaster T248X has an interesting design that we fairly get pleasure from, however we do assume they may have accomplished a bit higher with the general design.

Its plastic wheelbase and desk clamp are precisely what we anticipated for the value and bolts onto our Secretlab Magnus Pro desk with none concern.

The wheel itself is available in at proper round 10.5″ in diameter, which is similar to Logitech’s G920 and G923 wheels however is a bit smaller than others.

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Thrustmaster did wrap the outer dealing with portion of the wheel in leather-based, however we discovered it to be barely noticeable and nowhere close to as top quality as different wheels. The remainder of the primary wheel portion is created from plastic, aside from the paddles.

The firm didn’t skimp on buttons and options on the face of the T248X, with the dashboard show being the largest factor added to make the wheel stand out from its competitors. With it, you may view a bunch of various bits of data together with gear ratio, RPM, greatest lap, and extra.

It’s fairly useful for in-game info, nevertheless it additionally offers you the power to regulate settings on the wheel with out having to tinker with in-depth software program.

Thrustmaster added two magnetic paddles to the again aspect of the wheel, that are very well-built. However, they’re horrendously loud and we discovered the noise to be very distracting whereas ingame.

The buttons on the face of the wheel are mounted instantly into the molded a part of the wheel. They’re completely serviceable, and so they don’t really feel like we’ll have any points with them breaking within the close to future.

The T248X comes with Thrustmaster’s T3PA pedals as effectively, which we discovered to be phenomenal because of the actual fact the brake pedal could be adjusted to 4 totally different strain modes. The base is essentially fabricated from plastic, which is ok, and all three of the pedal faces are fabricated from light-weight metallic.

We do want that the T248X was wrapped in higher-quality leather-based across the rim of the wheel and would have beloved to see Thrustmaster make the paddles fairly a bit quieter. Although it’s made nearly completely of plastic, it nonetheless feels fairly premium and we’re undoubtedly blissful utilizing it for lengthy periods.

Features

The Thrustmaster T248X has a plethora of options which might be fairly good for a starting sim racer. The buttons are effective, and so they’re all inside straightforward attain whereas in-game.

As there are loads of cables working from the total wheel setup, cable administration is significantly appreciated and Thrustmaster did fairly effectively doing so with cable channels and Velcro straps to assist hold them tidy.

They even took it to the subsequent degree with the USB cable, as you may disconnect it in the back of the wheel with out having to run the cable by way of the velcro strap every time. We do want they did it with the ability and pedal cables, although.

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One of an important features of higher-end racing wheels is drive suggestions, and Thrustmaster’s adjustable hybrid drive is nice. It’s not as top quality as direct-drive wheels, however the hybrid drive is unquestionably a step up from the G920’s absolutely gear-driven system.

Instead of only a gear, the hybrid drive system makes use of a gear and belt mixture for even higher suggestions. There are three presets for the extent of drive suggestions as effectively, that are accessible by way of its onboard display.

The Thrustmaster program is by far the best software program we’ve ever used, primarily as a result of there aren’t actually any options to it. There are choices to check the enter, the present drive suggestions, and replace the firmware of the system.

We actually favor it this manner, as every recreation typically wants its personal tweaking with a racing wheel, so this leaves altering across the controls to both the one system settings or in-game.

Gaming Performance

We have been a bit hesitant to check out Thrustmaster’s Hybrid Drive setup however have been pleasantly shocked as soon as we began gaming with it.

While the gear drive on the Logitech G920 is loads for many, the added torque and really feel from the T248X is effectively well worth the added $100 or so in value.

The added torque comes from Thrustmaster’s Hybrid Drive system, which makes use of each a belt and kit to offer drive suggestions. It’s not fairly as good as a full belt drive system, however we discovered it to be fairly real looking whereas testing it out.

We used it on Assetto Corsa Competizione and Dirt Rally 2.0 and the wheel felt nice all the time.

The T3PM pedals are actually, actually, good, straight out of the field. We discovered the brake to be extraordinarily clean and simple to press, which makes utilizing the T248X way more real looking.

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You can mod the brake resistance as effectively by altering out the spring or eradicating the bump cease, and Thrustmaster even affords a spring package with two totally different energy springs to check out.

Our solely criticism concerning the T3PM pedals is that they don’t grip onto carpet or hardwood very effectively in contrast to the Logitech G920 pedals. However, the upper high quality brake resistance and total really feel make them our most well-liked choice total.

Should you purchase it?

You ought to undoubtedly have a look at the Thrustmaster T248X in case you are seeking to buy a racing wheel and are restricted by way of price range.

The hybrid drive system and high-quality pedals present stellar immersion into the most recent racing video games and the $399.99 price ticket isn’t out of attain for many.

The Verdict – 4/5

We love Thrustmaster’s T248X steering wheel, however the noise made by the paddles and low-quality leather-based wrap across the rim of the wheel make them fall simply in need of good.

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