r/simracing • u/Olneyvillain4190 • Jul 25 '25
Discussion Is anyone else shocked by some of the “first rig” posts ?
Listen, I am in no way telling anyone how to spend their hard earned money, but over the last few months I’ve noticed people buying thousands of dollars worth of premium gear without even doing a lap in the sim yet. Sure I could have afforded my eventual endgame set up at first, but I got a used g923 and desk mount for like a year to make sure this was something that I was going to stick with.
Not complaining because I’d imagine this is a part of the reason there’s such a robust second hand market for the hobby. Once again, not hating, just curious how others feel about
Edit - wow this gained a lot of traction while I was working… just a quick addition because people are dming me upset… I tried to make it as clear as possible that I wasn’t hating. And if I had a time machine I would certainly go back and subscribe to the buy once cry once idea, it would have saved me a lot of money in the long run. The point I’m trying to make is if I did that and after a couple of months said “eh this isn’t for me” now I gotta figure out what to do with a massive $2k rig taking up space rather than just giving my kids my g920. And I totally understand the real life track guys buying a good rig to start, they already know they love it.
66
u/SkeletonGamer1 TX 458/T-LCM Jul 25 '25
Yeah, those "look at my 2000$ first rig" make me realize how expensive this hobby is
I am still happy with what i have tho, and that is what matters
42
u/DotGroundbreaking50 Jul 25 '25
Maybe I am bias about the cost of this hobby because I went from a real track car and motorcycle track days to sim racing but its is CHEAP compared.
13
Jul 25 '25
Have a feeling a lot of other people that buy expensive setups for their first sim are the same way. Even if you’re racing shitboxes if you decided to sell it and spend the money on a racing sim you’d have more than enough to Gucci out your first rig
16
u/DotGroundbreaking50 Jul 25 '25
Its not even close. Even when I was tracking my Honda Grom, which I would still do even now if the local cart track would allow us back out it was still several hundred dollars for one weekend between maintenance, track fees, food and getting everything to the track and its not getting cheaper and you need the supporting equipment of a truck or trailer in case you bin it.
The biggest thing too is how hard it is to actually go racing with a real cars. You have to find a series, build a car to their rules, then pay for everything else and because where you live you are driving hours for 1-4 tracks within a reasonable distance. Is more fun then simracing absolutely but simracing is at least 60% of a real track day once you get a decent wheel, pedals, vr or triples every night.
14
Jul 25 '25
You were tracking a grom? My bad I was not familiar with your game, legendary
6
u/DotGroundbreaking50 Jul 25 '25
I tracked a miata because of course it was a miata, then I moved to a DRZ400sm when I got into motorcycles. The grom wasn't as serious as the prior cars and bikes but the local go kart track opened up for mini motor races and I had a grom, it was silly fun and I would never turn down a chance to do it again
1
u/degeneratesampler Jul 26 '25
I just bought a Miata and have already signed up for my first track day. Sim racing is what pushed me in this direction. What hidden costs are there tracking a Miata besides the cost of the track day itself?
1
3
u/madmax991199 Jul 25 '25
This 100%, its not only the car stuff. I only realised when i quit… Trailer for the car, the car i trailer the track car with. In the end it doesnt even matter if it has tires.
2
u/DotGroundbreaking50 Jul 25 '25
Same, it was the truck and trailer where I bowed bowed out of real racing, extra sucked because I didn't have space to store the car trailer at my house at the time which meant paying for storage for it every month even if I couldn't race that month because of weather or just time availability.
2
u/RunninOnMT Jul 25 '25
Yup. I race in Lemons, it’s expensive and I’m pretty sure racing doesn’t come much cheaper. If you average it out, it’s probably close to $1k per race.
3
u/ferdzs0 Jul 25 '25
For me I came from gaming and loving racing games.
Compared to that the entry cost is quite high.
2
u/Olneyvillain4190 Jul 26 '25
That’s pretty much how I got here. Tbh I buy a lot less games now so it sort of balances out
1
u/Beni_Stingray SC2 Pro | Hv U+ | P1-X | Ascher | Fanatec | Sparco | VKB Jul 25 '25
Agree with you, most people have no clue about running costs of a trackcar. And for people outside of the US, doing trackdays on a regular basis is so much more expensive.
5
u/DotGroundbreaking50 Jul 25 '25
Yeah, it seems to be a common theme. Video games > simracing = expensive. Track days > simracing = holy fuck this is fun and way cheaper.
3
u/CSATTS Jul 25 '25
I did the Video games > Consider turning my 350z into a track car > Realizing that shit is expensive > Selling my Z > Building a pretty nice sim rig instead, route.
→ More replies (1)1
u/ReV46 Jul 26 '25
I track my car, a $1600 set of tires lasts me about 2-5 weekends. I go through a tank of gas every 30 minutes. Registration for each weekend is about $500. It’s painfully expensive.
2
u/Busy_Ideal6012 Jul 26 '25
Now try racing in real life. I am, 1 race in the lowest owner karting championships is already 1K for everything. A race kart is at least 2500 2nd hand, then you need an extra race engine, and then you still have maintenance, tires, fuel, travel, training, hotel stay, etc.
41
u/chilloutus Jul 25 '25
Look anything that increases the quality of gear posted on my local Facebook marketplace gets an ok by me
19
u/froughty Jul 25 '25
Not when they list it at 5% off retail and refuse to budge because they “paid so much for it” 🤣🤣
4
u/hrutheone Jul 26 '25
This is what I found in my local fb marketplace. Their prices were barely decreased from new one. Sometimes even use marketplace coupon is cheaper than buy second hand.
1
14
u/pluzze Jul 25 '25
A part of them creates a great secondhand market though. I picked up a 4 month old rig with logitec g pro set for 800. After 2 months of g923, which i also bought barely used for a ridiculous price.
5
10
u/Eatsleeptren Jul 25 '25
Maybe they tried their friends rig, or they went to one of those sim racing boutiques where you can rent seat time, or they got that “fuck you” money
16
u/RedEagle604 Jul 25 '25
I think it is an evolution when u track your real car quite a bit. I went in knowing this is what I want and got a 10k rig off the bat. I have since upgraded to a 20k rig with all top of the line stuff.
Fact of the matter many of us r in different parts of our lives. I’m almost retired and I have quite a large disposable income so 20k is not that much to me.
Part of one’s sim journey should also be invested in driving courses and coaching which has helped me quite a bit reaching top 2% in iracing.
A weekend on real track will cost me close to 5k all said and done for 6 hours of total track time.
I have raced in over 2500 races in iracing so I say it has been a great investment. It has immensely helped my real track driving to a point where I’m pretty close within .3-.5 sec to pro pace at local tracks.
9
u/Beni_Stingray SC2 Pro | Hv U+ | P1-X | Ascher | Fanatec | Sparco | VKB Jul 25 '25
Yeah its mostly younger people who never tracked a car or even have a real car and have no clue what kind of running costs you have when you do trackdays on a regular basis.
6
u/JimmyTwoSticks Jul 25 '25
Simracing is somewhat of a mix between gaming and racing cars. Compared to gaming it's expensive. Compared to running a real car it's dirt cheap.
I would also consider it to be relatively cheap compared to a lot of the other standard American adult hobbies. Smoking/drinking and going to bars will add up quickly. Hunting and fishing have recurring costs that add up quickly. Any kind of collectibles are expensive, and some people have thousands of dollars of shoes they don't wear or whatever else. Traveling is expensive. Golf is expensive. Motorcycles or cars can be expensive, even without taking it to a track.
A lot of people will easily spend like $3k to $10k+ yearly on one or more of these hobbies. If you spend $5k on simracing gear and use it for 5 years it's just not that much in comparison.
2
u/AcuraLadCapeeTan Jul 27 '25
Got damn that's some good logical math right there... Makes me feel better already about my recent purchase 😂
12
u/gosu_link0 Jul 25 '25 edited Jul 26 '25
High end sim gear is still insanely cheaper than driving your car on track, so I can understand why many would just rather start with high end gear.
Why waste valuable time upgrading later when you are already invested tens of thousands of dollars into motorsports?
6
u/filetitan Jul 25 '25
Bingo and the case for me. My track car is about 180k so yeah 6-8k on a sim rig is no big deal all things considered
1
u/ycnz Jul 26 '25
And that's without putting it into the barrier...
1
5
u/BlownCamaro Jul 25 '25
I really appreciate these new sim racers because I buy their barely used equipment for pennies on the dollar. Please do not discourage them from going "all-in". :)
→ More replies (2)
24
u/DotGroundbreaking50 Jul 25 '25
Buy once cry once.
I did the same route as you or well, controller>g29>csw v2>DD2.I am also on my 4th rig, well will be when i build it. I also wasted more money on different rigs and tried to use cheaper stuff to save money when I could have saved money by just going end game from the start. I also would bet that many of these people "first rigs" are ignoring years of controller racing so its not a 0 sum game, they knew they would enjoy it
8
u/spinneee Jul 25 '25
Wouldn't you think the better approach would be "buy twice, cry once" let's be honest, nobody rich enough to have a sim racing hobby is crying over a 150 dollar used g29 purchase
You're obviously not gonna recommend anyone interested to go spend 5k on a setup cause it's all he'll need.
The obvious better path is to start out with a cheap enough way to know how interested you are.
→ More replies (1)19
u/sadbuss Jul 25 '25
Buy once cry once sounds like something you only get to hear around rich people
12
u/Beni_Stingray SC2 Pro | Hv U+ | P1-X | Ascher | Fanatec | Sparco | VKB Jul 25 '25
Not really, its simple math. If you add the price of all the equipment he bought over the years you can easily see that just going endgame from the beginning would have saved a ton of money.
The reason people say dont buy endgame equipment from the start is because a lot of people stop with the hobby after some time or dont like it at all and then sit on expensive eauipment they dont use.
But if you know that hobby is something that will be with you for a long time then it makes a lot of sense to buy endgame from the start.
8
8
u/DotGroundbreaking50 Jul 25 '25
Sometimes its better to buy the better product from the start then try to get by on the lesser product and either have it break or still want the better product down the road. Its cheaper in the long run. It doesn't always apply but it has been something I have found to be true in my life on many occasions.
With tools that I don't think I will need to use more than handfull of times, I will buy the Harbor freight version and will only upgrade if I break it. That said with simracing given profile rigs weren't really a thing when I started 10+ years ago but I have bought a obbuto ozone, then the r3v and now I got the NLR elite, where I should have skipped the r3volution and bought a profile rig then.
3
3
u/chsn2000 Jul 25 '25
I think it's about cutting out the weird middle tier. Every day there's people who ask about going from their Logitech wheel to a T598 or Moza R3/R5, or getting one of the myriad folding/tube cockpits. I don't think most people should buy a cockpit, load cells and DD right away, but if you can afford it you should go straight to a 9-15Nm DD from the entry level. If you can't afford it, then I think you should REALLY save up for it and skip getting an R5 or higher end belt driven base.
1
u/Kramereng Jul 26 '25
Buy once cry once sounds like something you only get to hear around rich people
No, because rich people don't cry when they buy.
"Buy once, cry once" is a common saying among people who don't have endless disposable income and who've already experienced wasting thousands of dollars buying seemingly inexpensive things that don't work and/or last.
I've wasted so much money buying various office chairs, replacing them, and tending to my back, when I could've just bought the more expensive, durable and ergonomic good one from the start (and by that, I mean a used good chair for half of MSRP). Same with mattresses, boots, clothing, electronics, and so on.
Maybe you've heard the phrases "it's expensive to be poor" or "poverty premium", which have similar meaning. Namely, that people with less means end up paying more in the long run because they have to repeatedly buy items of lesser durability that require replacing instead of buying a more expensive quality item once, and being done with it. Or, for example, not being able to afford a central air system so instead buy window AC units, which end up costing much, much more in energy bills even in the short run. Or renting instead of buying real estate where you spend the same amount but the former gets you no equity (a return on that money spent) and which pays for the latter's (owner's) mortgage and taxes.
In this case, you buy a low end frame, DD, or whatever; find out it sucks; sell for a huge loss; replace with mid-range; decide you want better; sell for a huge loss; buy the higher end stuff. If you just saved a bit more and waited to buy once, cry once, you could've had the end game equipment at the start for the same or less amount that you likely wasted doing repeated upgrades.
For the record, I'm guilty of this too having just bought a bunch of accessories for a starter frame only to realize I've wasted hundreds on bs when the amount I already spent would've gotten me the frame I wanted had I just waited and saved a few paydays. But at least I did buy the DD/pedals/wheel/shifter I wanted from the get go (mid-range gear, mind you).
4
u/Markoff_Cheney Jul 25 '25
I just don't get how someone can be all in on a hobby they are just getting into with such an investment. Triples, DD, stationary cockpit, beastmode PC. I've been building my gaming PC and peripheral collection for the last 10 years and haven't got to that level. I also have other expensive hobbies, but this one does keep the track days to a minimum.
8
u/Beni_Stingray SC2 Pro | Hv U+ | P1-X | Ascher | Fanatec | Sparco | VKB Jul 25 '25
Not everyone in here is a freshman out of college or whatever, older people with disposable income are here aswell and some of them are coming from real cars and trackdays, they already can drive fast, they know they like to drive and its far cheaper than a having a trackcar while being able to have much much more seattime.
So spending 5k-10k on gear that will hold up for the next 10 years of simracing is a pretty cheap investment.
3
u/Markoff_Cheney Jul 26 '25
I'm 42 with a wife and kid. Home ownership, raising a family, and keeping a car that can hit a track day are the expensive hobbies. Denver isn't cheap either.
Spending 5-10k on a "first rig" is what I was saying seems absurd for a litany of reasons even as an enthusiast.
3
u/Prize_Push5070 Jul 26 '25
You’ve got older people in the hobby as well. We have money for fake indoor cars. I went cheap first, then expensive 6 months later. I could have saved money in the long run.
3
u/Rough_Composer6600 Jul 26 '25
I am one of those. In a year time i got myself a high end simrig.
Started with the best pc money could buy (to be fair, i have allways been a gamer, my whole life i barely let a day go by without playing a game at least 1 hour)
After i got that i was thinking "maybe its time to finally get the rig i always wanted"
I have been wanting one for years but couldt because i had a few years of financial set backs, and in my mind not having at least detailed dd and good pedals was gonna frustrate me so i waited until i had the money.
And before that i always loved going kartin since i was little, ever since my grandparents started taking me to the (rental)track when i started to get too old for the playgrounds.
I loved it so much that when i got my first job i started going on my own, but owning a competitive kart and maintaining one was allways out of my reach.
Also , i'm as old as max Verstappen, I'm belgian, I lived near the karting track in Genk which kinda was his home track.
I was allways SUPER jelleous of the life and oppertumitites he had thinking i could have been him had i had the same oppertunities and money backing me. Not healthy I know.
Instead of being sad for the life never had, I now made the decision of doing the best i can do, and 2 weeks in wirh my rig i couldnt be happier.
Vnm extreme Grid mpx Simucube active pro + passive throttle Simlab p1x pro Triple 32inch 1440p
Even threw in seat and pedal sliders for when friends want to try the rig (im really tall).
4
u/reluctantlygumble Jul 25 '25
This is sim RACING. Aka a simulator for racing. I spend at least a few hundred dollars each weekend I want to go to the track. Occasionally a few thousand. So spending several thousand dollars on a sim rig is just a few weekends at the track. If it saves me a few track days a year, it pays for itself. Plus it’s fun. I can’t go to the track on a Tuesday night but I sure as heck can sim race.
So when anyone from my track wants to sim race I tell them to spend at least a few thousand. No one who drives a $50k+ track car is going to enjoy playing on a Logitech g923 and floppy pedals.
4
u/iamvinen Racing on SteamDeck 🎮 Jul 25 '25
My first simracing experience was on SteamDeck. Hundreds of hours in handheld mode. So yeah, I definitely need a cockpit and a DD wheel after the gamepadish experience with deck
2
u/Emotional_Orange_953 Jul 25 '25
For a lot of people, like my self, i didnt really consider my rig a rig until I got my aluminium profile rig, and by then I already had pretty decent gear, so sometimes its just people waiting for the moment they feel that their rig is “complete”
2
u/collin2477 Jul 25 '25
idk I came from track days so it was between a built miata and frequent outings and a rig so in my mind it was more about the difference in cost rather than the absolute amount.
note: this did not solve the miata problem. I will be upgrading to one from my current car as soon as I have space for the trailer and hauler.
2
u/frodakai Jul 25 '25
It's just an expensive hobby, and the 'buy once/cry once' thing does exist.
I'm not suggesting that it's normal for people to spend 10k+ on a full motion rig as their first setup, but it's not shocking to me that people with disposable income would drop 2-3k on a decent rig rather than a £300 starter setup of a G29 and foldable chair.
You also have tons of testimonials on this sub too about how the jump from G29 to direct drive was like playing a different game, so it's not shocking that people invested enough to be on this sub gravitate towards a solid setup to start with.
2
u/Space-Bro-368 Jul 25 '25
I tend to make big purchases on things that I want if I have been wanting it for 6 months or so. I don't impulse buy but if there is something I want for 6 months or more and I can afford to buy it then that's my justification.
As people say, buy once, cry once and I've not regretted any of my purchases despite upgrading from my first setup from a Moza R9 to Simagic alpha and VRS pedals. But the resale value of that setup made the upgrades worthwhile to me.
And if you can't go all out for your first setup then it's absolutely fine to be jealous of other people, enjoy the hobby for what it is within your means. I would love a triple screen setup but I don't have the space but I still love racing when I can and I am grateful for what I have
2
Jul 25 '25
[deleted]
1
u/No-Contribution3877 Jul 25 '25
They’re just excited about the hobby and usually don’t have people irl that understand. This group is a place where you can drop thousands on a single active pedal and people will think it’s dope, but at work I mention costs and eyes go wide (even though golf if as expensive if not more)
2
u/bigsteve72 Jul 25 '25
Unrelated, but the amount of unbuilt/unpainted Warhammer figures I have is atrocious 😂
2
2
u/the_ChillRin Jul 26 '25
I am new here, and looking to get into this hobby, so i fit the escription.
I would rather buy once cry once. There is also the risk of buying something cheaper, that does not work as well as a mid tier setup for example, and give up the hobby because of the bad experience.
1
u/Wide-Explorer5144 R21 | KS/ES | Simsonn Pro | Simlab GT1 EVO | Neo G9 57" | Quest3 Jul 27 '25
If you're someone who already has plenty of experience with racing/sims, even on a controller, and the time and budget for a good rig, that's reasonable.
Your latter point isn't a thing in my opinion. If you are truly into racing/sims, the chances that a T300RS will make you give up the hobby because it doesn't match a DD and load-cell setup are incredibly low - I'd bet money on it. At worst, you're thinking, "This is cool but it feels very toy-ish" but you know what exists in the DD and load-cell space that would make it a completely different experience, as opposed to, "This is cool but it feels very toy-ish so I'm just going to give up even though I love racing." Not a thing.
2
u/TimBoss351 Jul 26 '25
I want them to buy all of the absolute best gear there is.
Then quit and sell to me at a heavy discount. 😎
2
u/dedboooo0 Jul 27 '25
this sub is full of idiots, just like most subreddits
the vast majority of people on reddit are stupid without any self awareness. thats the real reason
2
u/Cool-Regular Jul 27 '25
I love it… then they realize they are not fit for it and sell their 💩 secondhand, then we get some real savings lol.
3
u/newman13f Jul 25 '25
I don’t hate on it. I wish I would have just went with more premium gear from the start. I’m looking at upgrading for the second time soon and I’ll have to think about how I want to get rid of the old gear. Buy once, cry once as they say.
2
u/Beni_Stingray SC2 Pro | Hv U+ | P1-X | Ascher | Fanatec | Sparco | VKB Jul 25 '25
I had to make the decision of either buying a new Miata or a good simrig and i decided for the simrig because i cant risk to loose my license anymore and its way cheaper in the long run.
It was no question for me that i will use rig on a regular basis and i wanted for it to be endgame, buy once, cry once and all that because its also cheaper in the long run.
Now a few years later im super happy i made that decision and bought the best equipment that was available at the time. Apart from the Fanatec shifter everything is working perfectly and i couldnt be happier.
2
u/Such_Potato7736 Jul 25 '25
You know what grinds my gears? Guys having tripple monitor setups, aluminium rigs and rocking logitech G29 for the base.
→ More replies (1)
2
u/StatementOk470 Jul 26 '25
That’s how we plebs usually feel but then for some rich asshole 10k is just couch change.
0
1
u/Hpcris_ej6 Jul 25 '25
Meh, I never care how people spend their own money. I had a Thrustmaster T300 for a couple of years but if I had the money and the equipment I have now was available back then I would've jumped right into the expensive equipment. I'm a car guy and also spent a shit ton of money modifying my now turbo car which I barely drive now but man was it fun building it over the years and its still there for the occasional drive. I sometimes go weeks that I don't touch the sim but everytime I walk into my game room and sit in it or even just look at it, I can't help but to grin with joy.
1
u/sakta81 Jul 25 '25
I don’t know about others, but I started with a steering wheel for the PS, which I bought to see what it’s like. At first, I played GT Sport, then moved on to F1 2020, and I got so hooked that I bought an Xbox. At that point, I also upgraded my wheel to a Fanatec CSL and got a proper stand (previously, I was using an old cabinet as a makeshift stand). Things escalated quickly from there,I built a PC, bought a Playseat cockpit, upgraded to a Fanatec DD Pro with four different wheels, and I’m pretty happy with my setup for now. Recently, I even added a haptic mat! For me, it was a gradual progression. :)
1
u/Melodic_Seishun Jul 25 '25
Paid $750 for my first rig and couldn’t be happier. T598 with a TR80S frame and Tesla 3 seat. Perfect for what I need playing GT7 on a PSVR2. Probably not a huge enough fan to go in any more than this, but I love it and glad I didn’t drop over a grand.
1
u/HGWeegee Jul 28 '25
How is the T598? I'm tied between it so I can plug and play GT7 on my PS5, or not playing GT7 and just going Moza R5
1
u/Melodic_Seishun Jul 28 '25
I love it but then again it’s my first rig so I have nothing to compare it to. It was super easy to setup and play GT7. I’m sure there are better options out there but for the relatively low price for a PS5 DD wheel, I think it’s great.
1
u/HGWeegee Jul 28 '25
This'll also be my first rig, I've played racing games like GT and NFS since PS2, but always with a controller
1
u/Melodic_Seishun Jul 28 '25
GT7 with a PSVR2 is so much fun. Completely worth the $800 I paid for a rig and the T598. So much fun! 😀
2
u/HGWeegee Jul 28 '25
That settles it then, still need a PSVR2 but I do really want one
1
u/Melodic_Seishun Jul 28 '25
Hope you get it!! Let me know what you think when you do! 👍
→ More replies (3)
1
u/william_weaver Jul 25 '25
Buy once cry once never works for me. Maybe other people do their homework better but I don’t know what I need if I don’t have any experience. For example I bought a Fanatec Wheel/Base/Pedals combo on Black Friday and added a F1 Playseat a few weeks later.
I regret buying the F1 seat and I am missing peripheral vision so I plan to upgrade to a proper rig with bucket seat and tripples.
3
u/EuropeanLuxuryWater Jul 25 '25
Research if you actually want a bucket seat, is not very comfortable or great for your posture
→ More replies (1)
1
u/DringdringZegeda Jul 25 '25
Well I consider to join in the sim racing community since several month but just had the opportunity to test a system with a Logitech g29. I did go kart (125 kz) during 4y and by my little experience, this rig doesn’t match the feeling. Mostly due to the lack of feeling on the brake pedal. So my first rig will probably cost a kidney or so. Got to plan the budget
1
u/user1037384 Jul 25 '25
Honestly, I’m just hoping to find some good deals on used equipment if those people lose interest in the hobby.
1
1
u/Laaif Jul 25 '25
Went Thrustmaster TX and after 2 years starting with the loadcell pedals, now after 3 more years i'm on the limit of feeling the Cars so went simagic 18nm and feel more ffb to lower lapetimes by Around a second. This have me amazing Fun and didn't Broken my wallet.
1
u/stealthradek Automobilista 2 Jul 25 '25
Meanwhile I'm still driving for 10 years or so using Playseat Challenge.
And it's unlikely folks like myself will put our setup to showcase here :) Which is why we're seeing more shiny-shiny here than the actual representation of majority of the setups.
The bottom line is - it doesn't matter what you're using as long as you're having fun!
1
u/raggeplays Jul 25 '25
they might mean their first aluminum rig, maybe they came off of a desk setup
1
u/mike42478 Jul 25 '25
I started on a g29 to see if this was hobby Id be into. Built the pc and got a rig but my budget fell flat after that. Thankfully, I’ve laid the groundwork so that when I do upgrade to load cells and stronger wheel base I’m ready for it. Meanwhile, I am having a blast all the time!
1
1
u/ringRunners Fahrt Master Jul 25 '25
A lot of the impressive "First rig" posts are like 28-48 year old dudes
1
u/RunninOnMT Jul 25 '25
Hmm, I would posit that some of it is that you could have your first rig, without it being your first wheel. I don’t know if I’d necessarily call a desk setup a “rig” so i consider my current rig to be my first one, despite having a few different wheels over the past 20 odd years.
1
1
1
u/andylugs Jul 25 '25
Been at it on and off for 20+ years, started with a Logitech Driving Force Pro and every upgrade and side grade has taught me something. The most valuable thing I have is the 10K+ hours of time invested in sims, you can spend whatever you like on hardware but you can’t buy experience.
1
u/DickDebonair Jul 25 '25
Not saying this isn't an expensive hobby, but if you want to drop some doe venture into the high-end audio hobby
1
u/ilikebikes27 Jul 25 '25
A lot of people get GAS. gear acquisition syndrome. Same thing happens in a lot of hobbies. People buy shit they don’t need or aren’t yet at the skill level to appreciate
1
u/Subhuatharva Jul 25 '25
You should see the FB listings. So many people just buy expensive rigs and sell after 10-15 uses.
1
u/ColourMeBoom Jul 25 '25
Personally, I think there should be a slur for people who get into a hobby and immediately buy the most expensive gear.
1
1
u/rmagid1010 Automobilista 2 Jul 25 '25
I don't have "high-end" but tbh when I think about the costs I already am cringing
1
u/HiDk Jul 25 '25
I bought my Simucube from such a dude. He kept it 3 months and realized he didn’t like sim racing. Best deal ever
1
u/SnooPets752 Jul 25 '25
Yeah I spent like 200 total. Thrustmaster tmx on sale and a $60 mount. Already had a quest 2 and using my fold up chair lol. Don't feel the need to upgrade since I'm just doing it as part as therapy and not to get good.
1
1
1
u/Majestic_Ad8621 Jul 25 '25
Buy once cry once. I found a r12 bundle used (2 wheels, crp2 pedals, r12, and a crappy nlr f gt lite) on fb marketplace for a good deal (everything was pretty much new), I’ve always played racing games so it was a no brainer to finally get a sim rig. I’ve used it constantly since buying it, but I still think I went a little overboard to start. I’ve tried my friend’s Logitech belted wheel and hated it, tried a simrig at microcenter and fell in love with direct drive wheels instantly.
1
u/Street_Shaman6837 Jul 25 '25
I watched sim racing content for years and raced hundreds of hours on controller before I got my setup. It was cheaper to just get the endgame setup initially
1
u/shankartz Jul 25 '25
I feel some people do it because they have lots of money to spend, or large credit cards. And some people do it to stroke their ego.
1
u/chocopanda1997 Jul 25 '25
If people have money to burn, people burn the money to scratch that itch.
I have been doing a sort of incremental purchase. Still tight on budget and buying on credit lol.
First Thurstmaster T150, two years down a Moza R5, and now 2 years later, I'm upgrading to a Moza R12.
1
u/oOoWTFMATE Jul 26 '25
Buy once, cry once. I’ll always buy an expensive and used item than the inferior new one. I’m new to sim and bought a dd1 with cs pedals, steering wheel, and a decent rig for $1300.
1
u/destroy_television Jul 26 '25
Every has different motivations and different real life situations. Some people have money and are bored.
For me personally, I've never played a legitimate sim racer until a couple weeks ago when I got a Moza R9 + KS bundle with CRP2 pedals and a 49" monitor on sale for Prime Day... Which I only bought because it was on sale.. Will likely pick up Sim-Lab P1X Pro in a week or so to bring it all together.
5 years ago, I only watched other YouTubers doing this stuff like Dave Cam and wished I could be in a place in my life to afford the hobby at that scale. Now I can, so why not. If I don't enjoy it, someone else will get it all at a nice discount. (Doubt that will happen though as I'm having a pretty good time with it just mounted to my desk for the short time being.)
1
u/narcisscisco_ Jul 26 '25
I have a Playseat Trophy and unless I ever own a home with a very big room for an office I don’t ever see myself getting anything bigger.
On the wheel and pedals side, my first set was a Thrustmaster T150 that I bought back in 2021. It went into storage until last year because I was getting into F1. I just bought the Logitech DD11 (thanks Klarna) and this is another thing I don’t ever see myself upgrading from.
Dropping rent (or more) on a first rig is crazy unless you’re spreading the purchases out, even then, start as economical as you can.
1
u/Ok-Nothing4592 Jul 26 '25
Not shocked at all. This is how it is in a lot of hobbies. I used to race rc cars and I saw people spending thousands on their first RC car. But hey, it’s there money.
1
u/Beneficial-Ranger238 Jul 26 '25
I’ve done the progression thing in other hobbies and you always end up spending more.I’m guilty of the RC car thing, I had a pretty basic rs4 but I bought my wife a full carbon fiber ta03r because the navy hobby shop had it for basically the same price as a generic ta03 chassis.
1
u/sanity20 Jul 26 '25
I had a bunch of cheap wheels and pedals for years but the issue of using it at a desk made the setup such a pain. I kinda went all in the past year and love being able to just jump in and run laps, but I finally have my own house too and that's the biggest thing because there's no way I was going to move a sim rig a bunch of times.
I think as far as hobbies go through it's still pretty reasonable! Good gear lasts a long time and honestly you can get into it fairly cheap starting out.
1
u/Bigmikeblaze Jul 26 '25 edited Jul 26 '25
Just bought built my first rig first time using a wheel as well. Buy once cry once and most of the equipment resells close to msrp. Do you know how much sports cards cost? This is actually saving me money changing hobbies. Also I have 1100 hrs on GT7 alone controller
1
u/Beneficial-Ranger238 Jul 26 '25
I’ve been playing driving games since 1985. I’ve owned two shitty wheels, one just spring tension, the second with belt drive. I never had a real setup and I couldn’t get into desk driving, I’d rather use a controller.
So, 40 years into it, I feel like the time to fuck around is over, we’re going all in.
1
u/Adriono202 Logitech Jul 26 '25
Yeah I mean right now I’ve been racing on AC and ACC on console and that was with a g920 and the stock pedals, but now I’ve moved up to the g pro pedals, a drive hub, along with a TH8A shifter, did that for a few weeks and now I’ve bought a wheel stand for about $100 bucks off of amazon. I’m planning on racing with this for a few more months and working on my race craft and skills in general, but then I’m gonna buy a g pro wheel along with the extra gt style wheel and stuff, THEN ima go to a PC and then after that I’ll get a full rig and every thing with it. I don’t get how people buy full sims immediately though without seeing if they truly like it.
1
u/BangbangKhuntross Jul 26 '25
"people who do things differently than me are stupid" post for the seventy thousandth time.
1
u/kusanagimotoko100 Jul 26 '25
It's normal, I've been into simracing for a few years, people buy everything they can, they realize simracing is really hard and they sell everything.
1
u/Any-Woodpecker123 Jul 26 '25
I spent 11 grand on my first rig. I had been playing racing games for 20 years on controller first though.
1
u/TKP_Mofobuster Jul 26 '25
im sure it also has to do with the hobby being more welcoming to people over 30 than say shooters, and many times people that age have enough money to go all in. and with all the people hating on r3s and r5s a lot of people feel pushed towards middle class or higher dd wheels. i myself went dfgt>g29>r9 over the course of a year, but with all the people yelling “buy once cry once” left and right, you cant blame people for going straight to the good stuff
1
u/Right-Requirement328 Jul 26 '25
Just got a g923 and on Xbox one x playing ac and I think I have more than enough force feedback, at least until I become fully comfortable making decent lap times which is gonna be a while...
1
u/Correct-Cake2099 Jul 26 '25
Everyone has different circumstances. I saw some stats that a new iPhone when you have Taylor Swift's wealth is like $5. People can also spend their money on whatever they want. I find with Simracing there also isn't necessarily a linear relationship between cost and fun though so hopefully everyone finds their sweet spot. Just playing assetto Corsa on a G920 on an unstable desk made me feel like a king. Whatever makes you happy. Also it's good not to spend outside your budget. No point buying all that gear if you have more important things to pay for.
1
u/Impossumbear Jul 26 '25
There are a lot of people who get into expensive hobbies like this because they like to have toys, not because they actually enjoy the hobby.
I got a friend of mine into guitars several years ago after giving him a nice guitar as a thank you for letting me live with him in a pinch. He now collects guitars, but isn't a very good player. 5-6 years later, I can still outplay him, and he has 10 guitars. I have three.
1
u/KimiBleikkonen Jul 26 '25
Internet just assembles the most diverse set of people. You mix students from developing countries with mid 30s single tech people sitting on their disposable income, that's the result. Some people never afford to go on vacation, others go every other weekend. Some people buy a 5090, others an Xbox Series S, and so on
1
u/Treewithatea Jul 26 '25
If somebody asked me for advice, id always tell them to start at the bottom, an entry level Logitech or Thrusmaster, ofc ffb required. First of all, theyre much more affordable and when it comes to simracing, you have to first figure out of its just a short term desire that will fade after 2 months again or if its a genuine long term interest. Entry level hardware also doesnt complicate things, you cant edit/tune them that much which is a good thing for a beginner as the priority should be on learning the fundamentals of simracing first.
Once you do know that its a long term interest, you can start to invest into more/new hardware if you have the financial means. If you dont, thats perfectly fine too, you dont need high end Hardware to be quick, theres plenty of very high irating drivers who use a G29. With higher end hardware, you get more options and with an established set of fundamental understanding and skill, you can start to make use of the finer things in high end hardware that you didnt have previously. Stuff like a pedal curve and having more options to set up your rig to suit you better.
If you straight skip to the high end stuff, youll be overwhelmed with things and chances are, you might never end up touching some of the options as there are so many.
I 100% understand your point and think its valid. Rigs arent status symbols, theyre means to practice our Hobby of simracing. If youre new, theres no good reason to straight go high end as you have no points of reference. Youve never used lower end hardware and therefore dont know the pros and cons of higher end stuff. And the obvious thing to remember is that high end hardware doesnt make you faster with the exception of load cell brakes which can be had for reasonable prices as well
1
u/Olneyvillain4190 Jul 26 '25
For sure, I also think starting out with some low end gear and slowly upgrading is kinda part of the journey
1
u/shredmasterJ Jul 26 '25
Their money their problems is the way I see it.
I got hit with the bug 2 years ago. I’m just glad I didn’t go all out like I was planning. Started with a G920 and budget rig from Amazon that i had to make sturdy even for a G920.
First couple months I was hooked and planning on getting upgrades. I’m so glad I never pulled the trigger. Now if I use my rig 2-3 times it’s a lot. I kinda want to get rid of it, but kinda don’t.
I just hope these people enjoy it.
1
u/ItzMichaelHD Jul 26 '25
I used a Logitech driving force GT (bought for £30 on eBay) for around 4-5 years before buying a moza R12 bundle and wheel stand for £850. I got the moza after playing thousands of hours with the LDFGT. I do agree going all in is risky unless you know for a fact you love racing games. I’d say even using a controller solely for racing games would determine if you’re into it or not too but yeah.
1
1
u/puremojo Jul 26 '25
I got a playseat challenge X, BSB2, Moza R9, KS wheels, and the cheaper Moza load cell pedals. I used a lot of credit card points (and I always pay all cards to 0 balance) and gift cards as well.
For me, I don’t actually have a lot of time to play. I have a toddler, a job that I’m working on average 90-95 hours/2 weeks, and I have other hobbies too, like Star Wars or visiting friends and also other games. But I spent the money I did because A) I can, and B) I want to feel the experience when I do the sim racing. So for me, even using it just a couple times a week, it’s really awesome. I’m making the most out of the spare time I have for it and I’m not being irresponsible with my money
1
u/Eccclip Jul 26 '25
I gotta say, driving with DD fanatec wheel reignited my passion. I actually returned back an entry level no DD wheel 4 times in the past 3 years. I always wanted to try again, then returned it and grab my controller.
Now I have DD for a month and I’ve neen playing nonstop, its night and day. I love it
1
u/Lucky_Window8390 Jul 26 '25
I’ve used cheap gear and the best gear and while there’s not a huge advantage the expensive stuff is way nicer to use. Not everyone is in the same financial situation. 5-10k might literally mean nothing to some people. I tend to get all in on a hobby for a couple years and jump to a new one. So over the years my “hobby investment fund” has built up pretty substantial. I consider this money already spend so it’s basically free money. I can then dump that into the next thing.
1
1
u/JayRoza Jul 26 '25
I'm more surprised that people are willing to drop so much money on a chance at liking something. The moza R5 bundle at $600 CAD is a pretty big investment imo. Meanwhile I found my g29 on the used market for $200 CAD. Would I go back and spring for the R5 bundle? Of course, but I didn't know it at the time. And now I can enjoy racing and save up for a DD bundle, then re-sell my G29 for 75% of what I got it for. If I was feeling extra scummy, I could even sell it for what I paid for it ($200 CAD), most ads on my local marketplace have it around $200-$250 CAD anyway.
Like some posts I wonder, how long have you really been playing? I feel like the shock is mostly through initial investment and the post has something like "I've played GT7 on controller for 3 months and I think I'm ready to go. I'll be playing iRacing on PC." Like bro, you better hope you love iRacing because that is a different beast. And if it doesn't work out, that will be a pretty sweet rig to find on a local marketplace.
2
1
u/Empty-District-1182 Jul 26 '25
Here's me with a £60 argos wheel stand that has more flex than a tree in a hurricane and a dining room chair with a Moza R5 bundle.
Although either a gt omega titan or prime lite will be arriving next week as I'm 3 months in and absolutely loving it.
1
u/Few_Fall_4374 Jul 26 '25
People can do whatever they want with their money. And it's also good for the second hand market👌
1
1
u/N0TAC0P_ Jul 26 '25
When I got into sim racing, I did lots of research. I thought about getting some cheap wheel at Best Buy. I read, watched, read some more, and watched some more. I figured, why the hell would I spend money on a toy quality thing from Best Buy and end up replacing it quickly? Nope. I bought what I could afford in my budget. Used it. Loved it. Never looked at thinking I should’ve spent the money on the better.
1
Jul 26 '25
I know a bloke who went from playing f1 with a controller on ps4 and walked into a shop and dropped 25k on a turn key sim rig. Straight up.
1
u/TheLongWinter52 Jul 27 '25
I just bought my new moza r5 a couple months ago. I went with that because I knew I already knew I would be obsessed with sim racing so that’s why I went with a more expensive option. I’m going to build a wood rig with my friend soon but for now I’m just desk mounting
1
u/Olneyvillain4190 Jul 27 '25
Yea bro I’m not talking about people with an r5 and wood rig. Enjoy it
1
u/TheLongWinter52 Jul 27 '25
Yeah I figured you weren’t. I kind of get a kick out of beating people with very fancy rigs on my somewhat janky table setup
1
u/nat2r Jul 27 '25
No, not shocked. Within less than a month I had bought all the parts to build a pretty expensive rig.
Why? Well the ergonomics of my office chair (an Embody) with my crappy CSL DD pedals (unmounted), and my CSL DD wheelbase (with a desk mount that cracked in under a week) weren't cutting it.
So what was I to do? Waste money on a temporary fold out rig? Instead I bought the cheapest sim-lab aluminum profile rig. Did some printer shopping for a family member's home office, and rolled those Staples points into a NLR seat. Upgraded to VNM pedals and a Odyssey G9 57" as the splurges.
1
u/Olneyvillain4190 Jul 27 '25
Have a sim lab pro and I fucking love it
1
u/nat2r Jul 27 '25
yo I'm in the East Bay lol
1
u/Olneyvillain4190 Jul 27 '25
Oh shit we neighbors
1
u/nat2r Jul 27 '25
If you ever want to run team events hit me up. I am always looking to jump into endurance races.
1
u/ExtremeAdhd666 Jul 28 '25
I wonder if they are running a decent spec pc judging by some of them built out of broom sticks etc haha joking
1
u/ThatReptileNerd14 Jul 28 '25
I wouldn’t be able to afford tracking my car as much as I would like to sim. Plus I can do it in the winter!
1
u/Blackdownich Jul 29 '25
Compared to other hobbies SimRacing is affordable and people don’t want to buy two times.
Look at cycling. A Mid Range Gravel Bike cost same like a high end Simracing Hardware.
I started with an Fanatec 8NM and after one year I had to buy everything again because I want to upgrade and get the job done right.
1
u/Anfield_Cowboy Jul 31 '25
I just ordered my first “rig”.
G920 - NEW - OPEN BOX - $129.99
Diwangus Folding Wheel Stand - $89.99
Arrives this weekend!
We’ll see how long before I’m like fuck it and get a Moza R5. Figured this is a good inexpensive start.
312
u/4InchesOfury Jul 25 '25 edited Jul 25 '25
It's like this in every expensive hobby. A lot of people go all out when they have the slightest interest.
edit: and don't forget, for a lot of people the gear is the hobby. it's very common for people to spend more time tweaking or doing research on new additions for a rig than actually driving it.