New menu item on our website
It was about time we did an item on this, so that’s why we have a dedicated menu page for this. The Fanatec Tuning menu items explained.
Tuning Menu
The Fanatec wheel has several setup options. Because of this you can adjust several settings while driving, without the need for an extra software app on the computer. The obvious advantage here is that you don’t need to stop your car to adjust something. Since a couple of months now the tuning menu on the Fanatec wheel has seriously expanded, and we thought it was time to explain what function does what.
S_1 (Setup 1-5)
First of all, you need to press the little button next to your display on the steering wheel to get into the setup menu. From here you can select a setting S1 / S5. So, for instance; Assetto Corsa on S1, iRacing on S2, Rfactor on S3 or F1 on S1 eland your favourite car on S2 etc. Nowadays Fanatec also has a software program called Fanalabs. With this software program, you can even save more settings to your liking.
SEN
The maximum wheel range, so, how far your wheel can go from left to right before it stops. The range can be from 1080 to 90 degrees. If you want a setup for drifting you want to move your steering wheel a lot, so you’d probably want a range close to 1080 degrees. If you drive an F1 style car or any open wheeler, you’d probably want a tighter range close to 360 degrees ( so 180 degrees to the left and 180 degrees to the right). You can also leave this setting on auto and let the game decide what range is good for the chosen in game car.
FF
The maximum power of your Force Feedback motors. These can be adjusted in steps of 10%, it ranges from 100 to 0. If you’re driving a car that steers really “heavy” you can just lower the FF until you feel comfortable. Or if you feel the steering wheel gets ripped out of your hands when you drive over the kerbstones, you should also lower the FF.
SHO
Certain Fanatec wheels have internal vibration motors. You can set these vibrations from 0 to 100%. where 100% is the maximum vibration. these vibrations will happen when you brake hard and the ABS kicks in for instance.
ABS
This setting will make your brake pedal vibrate( and you steering wheel if you have you SHO turned on). If you have this on 100, it will start to vibrate when you depress the pedal for the full 100%. If you set this to 75% your pedals will start to rumble if you have your pedal depressed for 75%.
LIN
Linearity adjusts the amount of steering input. When switched off all signals go to the wheel directly in game. If you adjust the number upwards it will result in a less sensitive feel in the middle of the wheel. If your car sways from left to right on the straights, you can use this setting to get rid of that feeling.
DEA
Some games expect a certain daadzone in when the wheel is in a straight position. Fanatec wheels don’t have this problem. With this setting you can create a daadzone in the center of the wheel. the value can be adjusted from 0 to 100.
DRI
“Drift Mode” reduces the resistance of the wheel to make it easier to turn left and right. Like Powersteering in a normal car. If the value is too high, your wheel can start shaking, when this happens you should reduce the value.
FOR / SPR / DPR
These settings let you adjust the force feedback signals of a game. In theorie there are 3 kinds of signals a game can send to your wheel: Force (“pushes” your wheel in a certain direction, spring (“pulls” the wheel to the center) and damper (causes friction or “resistance”). Not every game will use all the effects, and some will only use one type to create a certain “feel”. In the menu you can adjust these “forces” either lighter or heavier.
On Xbox One you will not find these settings because the console does not allow adjustable effects.
Only adjust these settings above 100% if the force feedback is very weak on obviously not strong enough. If a game sends all these effects to the wheel, the unit will operate on its limit. If you then put the values above 100%, it will result in a higher pressure on the motors and the whole unit will create more heat.
NAT DMP ( standard: 050)
This setting acts as an extra “Damper” which you can set from 0 to 100. At 100 you will notice the strongest effect which responds to acceleration and the position of your wheel. when switched “off” you will not feel any “natural dampening” what makes turning the wheel a lot lighter. This setting is used a lot to reduce or remove unwanted vibration. It will happen more often with games that have no optimalisation for “heavy duty” wheelbases such as the Direct Drive units.
The standard value of 50 is a decent balance between steering feel and vibration reduction. (depending on the game).
NFR (standaard instelling: Uit)
This setting simulates the mechanical feel of a steering wheel. The higher the number, the more resistance you will feel when turning the wheel. These can be used to simulate cars without power steering, or cars with very wide tires. It can also prevent vibrations in the wheel.
INT
Force Interpolation “INT” filters and irons out the incoming “raw” FFB signal and raises the refresh rate. If you look at iRacing for instance, if you look at the 60Hz FF signal you see a “step”like pattern. This setting wil cause the signal to look more like a curve, without completely eliminating the signal.
NIN
Natural Inertia “NIN” simulates added weight on the steering axle. This is mostly used for lighter wheels like the McLaren or P1 steering wheel. It causes to make steering changes to feel less “sticky”.
FEI (Only CSW V2.5 and CSL Wheel Base)
standard setting CSW V2.5 :100
Standard setting CSL Base: 050
This adjusts de intensity of effects, it can make it feel more or less fluent. OFF is very fluent, while 100 will feel very sharp and direct. It will also reduce the sound of the base when it is attached to a desk or clamp.
MPS (Multi Position Switch)
Only for the wheels that have the rotating knobs. You can set it to auto, pulse, or constant zetten( is not supported in every game).
BRF (brake force)
Setting the Brakeforce will determine how far you have to push the pedal to achieve a 100% braking. So the higher the number the deeper you need to push the pedal. This only works if you connected the pedals directly to the wheelbase.
Keep in mind that not all settings will show on every base, some bases have more settings, like the DD1.
Hopefully everything is a bit clearer for you now that we explained the Fanatec tuning menu in depth. Maybe you can make the steering feel better for you. Good Luck!
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