which is best to buy? a plug and play flight stick or a flight stick that has drivers?

I have CH, all 3, stick, throttle and pedals cost me about $340 5 years ago. Look here http://3sqn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1604

They work just like I took them out of the box and are very programmable. The forums are very helpful http://www.ch-hangar.com/forum/index.php?

I do like how the new Logitech look like http://assets.logitech.com/ext...ght%20Systems%20G940 they are gonna cost $300, but who knows how long they will last. Look around at different ones and see what other people say. Cougars are nice, but IMO they need to be modded to be able to fly with, I want to fight people not the stick.

Totally depends on your budget and your level.

Serious Simmers like Cali will get value for money from setups like the CH range with the amount of flying they do, and the serious level they do it on-line.

I'm not at that level. I bought a Saitek X52 a while ago and for the off-line flying I do, I was happy to pay that sort of money (130 US dollars).

For others still, who only run up Lockon from time to time, then a cheap and cheerful 40 dollar stick is fine.

I started out with a cheap stick I already owned before getting Lockon. Once it started wearing out then (because I was getting more and more into Lockon) I upgraded.

Depending on the size ofyour budget, the other thing I would recommend that you consider buying is a TrackIR head tracking device. This transformed Lockon for me. Being able to simply turn my head to look out the virtual cockpit instead of having to think about where I wanted to look and move a hat switch to do so - it's amazing.

my budget is 30 to 40 bucks. my skill level is high for lockon.how long is the life span of a flight stick and is plug and play is better than flight stick with drivers? i had a st90 plug and play and it was ok but i had to recalabrate often. where can u get reviews for flight sticks

I have a full CH HOTAS as well as two addtional CH controllers and they're going strong 5 years later. The only time I have to recalibrate is if I unplug one.

You're not getting anything of any quality for $30 to $40.

I also use the CH equipment, and still using a Track Ir 2.. Works great, 5 years later. Admittedly- It's time to sell it and move on to a TiR5, but since my daughter mangled my front USB port- I cant fly until it's replaced anyway..