jmig
October 12th, 2008, 18:45
I am a big fan of the T-38/F5 series of airplanes. I was really disappointed with the Alphasim F-5E when it came out. So, I decided to risk wasting another $39.00 on the Sublogic F-5E. After flying it, I flew the Alphasim F-5 and Piglet's F-5A to compare them with the Sublogic version.
The Sublogic’s 3D panel is really nice on the eyes. The drag chute works, night lighting is not so glary as the Alphasim version. The AB effects are nice and well done. The sounds are some of the most accurate high performance fighter sounds this side of real flying.
The Sublogic F-5 has a working INS for navigation and radar. However, they and the radios only work with 2D popups or the 2D panel. As a young person once said to me, "That is so last century." FSX is about VC panels. Why put something that only works on a pop up 2D panel? I am disappointed here.
I consider the Alphasim F-5E to be a dog. The only way I can get it to go supersonic is in a 30 degree dive. It takes 95% power to hold altitude and airspeed on approach.
The Sublogic F-5E is just the opposite. It is dang near impossible to slow it down. It has an animation when you extend the speed brake which causes the panel to shake. Nice but unrealistic. In the real world you feel the vibrations of the air flowing over the speed brakes and hear a rumbling noise. However, the panel doesn't shake like you are in moderate turbulence, as the Sublogic panel does.
I could hold airspeed at altitude at 40-50% power. I don’t think this is accurate. When flying overhead patterns, I found that 50-60 % power in the final turn usually kept me on speed. Oh, that reminds me, the AOA indexer is hard to see. You have to lean to the left (using Track IR) to see it because of the glare shields.. Of course, at least Sublogic HAS a working AOA indexer. Alphasim somehow forgot to include one on their F-5E.
Interesting, Piget’s F-5A seems to have the most accurate flight model of the three aircraft. However, since his model is an “A” model and presumely has less thrust you must take any comparison with a grain of salt. However, his model rolls faster than the other two. The T-38/F-5 airplane has a roll rate of close to two complete rolls a second. Piget’s F-5 carries what I consider more normal power settings during the various phases of flight. The other two, however, look much better in the cockpit. Piget’s VC is rather flat and undetailed.
The Sublogic has an awesome Black USN Aggressor paint which is worth the price by itself. It also has a bunch of missions, including a formation flight. I haven’t tried them yet, so I can’t comment on them.
If you are from Europe this model might appeal to you. It has versions of most of the nations which flew the plane.
Did I waste my $39.00? Not really, I plan on flying it more. I want to try the formation mission. I can get around the limited VC function with my cockpit and its external controls.
The Sublogic’s 3D panel is really nice on the eyes. The drag chute works, night lighting is not so glary as the Alphasim version. The AB effects are nice and well done. The sounds are some of the most accurate high performance fighter sounds this side of real flying.
The Sublogic F-5 has a working INS for navigation and radar. However, they and the radios only work with 2D popups or the 2D panel. As a young person once said to me, "That is so last century." FSX is about VC panels. Why put something that only works on a pop up 2D panel? I am disappointed here.
I consider the Alphasim F-5E to be a dog. The only way I can get it to go supersonic is in a 30 degree dive. It takes 95% power to hold altitude and airspeed on approach.
The Sublogic F-5E is just the opposite. It is dang near impossible to slow it down. It has an animation when you extend the speed brake which causes the panel to shake. Nice but unrealistic. In the real world you feel the vibrations of the air flowing over the speed brakes and hear a rumbling noise. However, the panel doesn't shake like you are in moderate turbulence, as the Sublogic panel does.
I could hold airspeed at altitude at 40-50% power. I don’t think this is accurate. When flying overhead patterns, I found that 50-60 % power in the final turn usually kept me on speed. Oh, that reminds me, the AOA indexer is hard to see. You have to lean to the left (using Track IR) to see it because of the glare shields.. Of course, at least Sublogic HAS a working AOA indexer. Alphasim somehow forgot to include one on their F-5E.
Interesting, Piget’s F-5A seems to have the most accurate flight model of the three aircraft. However, since his model is an “A” model and presumely has less thrust you must take any comparison with a grain of salt. However, his model rolls faster than the other two. The T-38/F-5 airplane has a roll rate of close to two complete rolls a second. Piget’s F-5 carries what I consider more normal power settings during the various phases of flight. The other two, however, look much better in the cockpit. Piget’s VC is rather flat and undetailed.
The Sublogic has an awesome Black USN Aggressor paint which is worth the price by itself. It also has a bunch of missions, including a formation flight. I haven’t tried them yet, so I can’t comment on them.
If you are from Europe this model might appeal to you. It has versions of most of the nations which flew the plane.
Did I waste my $39.00? Not really, I plan on flying it more. I want to try the formation mission. I can get around the limited VC function with my cockpit and its external controls.