GTUltimate Race rig review

I've had the new GTUltimate rig since release and I've been using it for quite some time, but haven't had a chance to get a review up, I thought I really should before Christmas hits because this is worth looking into.

I'll start off by saying it's a great product, I don't think I'm faster at all, but I don't have to keep adjusting seating positions or move the wheel stand any more, I get in and off I go. It pulls apart into two manageable pieces, so when people come over all they see is a racing seat in the corner and knowing me just think it's me being a racing nerd. Without this feature I don't think I could get it around my apartment.

The main thing to consider with this is it's a real racing seat, as far as I can tell anyway, it looks and feels exactly like the one in my Dad's race car. There are no adjustments it's a rigid one piece. This isn't a criticism that's just how it is and if you want to play with anything seat related like in your car you are out of luck. Definitely no seat warmer either... =)

Delivery was smooth, the day after release, it was delivered in the morning by Toll from QLD, luckily I had the day off to play.



It's a big box and weighs in at 35kg. It's packed in 2 boxes so very much protected.



Putting it together is pretty easy, one person can do it, the adjusting will take you a bit longer.
The seat is just two side plates and a front and back brace. The front brace is fully adjustable.


Being tall 6'4" I thought I'd need it all the way out, not the case in the end. You can adjust these when it's all hooked up with relative ease.



You can adjust the seat angle a bit but moving these bolts on the side. In the end I moved the front all the way to the top and the back to the bottom for a slight recline. The seat fabric, base and back padding is all head in place by Velcro so getting to the bolts is easy enough. It is though a finicky job.



The wheel stand is the v2 version and joins to the seat with 2 long bolts. The stand hasn't changed much but it doesn't need to as it's a great stand way better than the Rennsport Fanatec one. I did discover that the manual seems to point the wheel plate out over the pedals this is actually incorrect, it should go the other way facing towards you. Put the wheel on first before attaching the plate to the stand.



Most of the bolts use allen keys and 13mm spanner so pretty easy.

The Gear Shifter adapter and plates you will get two of, one with the seat and the other with the stand as you can attach the shifters to either of them on either side what ever suits.

End result is it looks like this, I haven't tidied the cables up properly in this photo, please ignore and I don't have shifters.





It took me a couple of days to get my seating position just right. Getting the right leg and arm distances just takes a bit of time to dial in, due to the seat and the pedal base both being able to slide. Once it's in just know which notch you lock the seat in and off you go. I suggest not moving the pedal plate once in place. I actually used old HDD's to give shorter people access. Everything else is easy enough to adjust and remember.

Construction is rock solid nothing moves, wobbles or flexes on it. I pull the whole rig forward right up to the TV screen and back every night at least once. I never get distracted by any shifting of couches, and stands any more and I think in general that helps my concentration and immersion more.

The seat by itself might rock a bit before you sit in it but after that it settles nicely.

Rubber pads underneath are very good.



Some things to consider with this rig, the racing chair will not be for everyone. It's very snug for me at a 37 inch waist, I disappointingly discovered yesterday, Brett from Pagnian says it can accommodate a 38-40 inch waist max. If you use Kinect for head tracking it will not work with this seat, I've tried everything and the headrest just stops Kinect from working properly. That said I'm not missing it that much any more.

Because I'm a bit of a sloucher I can get a stiff back from this sometimes just because there is less lower back support, but that's just me, as I don't have the lumber curve sitting straight has never been all the comfortable for me. That said I'm about that stiff after being in the car for that long too, so have had no issue being in this rig for 6 hours.

The Clubsport Pedals still only sit on the pedal plate, but I haven't found that an issue so far. I might at some point attempt to bolt them to the plate and drill some holes. Right now I'm happy the way it is.

Pagnian support as always has been great I've heard and this was no different. Brett touched base the whole way along as it was new kit, and answered all my questions very quickly. OZFM do get a discount of $50. People who already have a stand can just buy the seat I believe.

Final Words: It's not cheap at $799 and the seat isn't for everyone but after comparing it to so many other rigs out there this one has more options than most. In all likelihood I will eventually make it a self contained rig with a big screen and Xbox attached to it, in a gaming dungeon sometime in the future, it has that flexibility and that is one of it's many great points.

Verdict: It is sensational and I love every minute in it. It's a very solid and great looking piece of kit. If you need a portable rig this is it, 10 minutes and it'll be out of your lounge room and hidden away. That said every person who has come in and seen has instantly wanted a go =)

Hope this helped, sorry if it's overly detailed, but I thought due to the expense it's good to know what you are getting. If you have any further questions let me know.

Great review, I hope you dont mind, I have posted a link on Pagnian's Facebook page.

Great detailed review, well done suncrossed.

Could you use a white sheet over the top of the seat to get kinect working? That's what I do with my seat, but its a lot smaller than this thing.

I have the GT Pro, and use kinect with Forza. My head pokes over the top of the seat, and thats all that is picked up in Forza (head tracking).

Interesting read, thanks suncrossed. I was just recently looking for a simulator and was debating going through Pagnian's, but finally settled on something else that I'm very happy with although I would of been happy with there's also after reading your review.

Can someone explain the benifits of using kinect in forza for head tracking and the differences between using it and not? As I never have used it and dont know.

Thanks guys for the positive feedback, appreciate it. Daz no problem, glad its worth publishing further :-)

The white sheet is the only thing I haven't tried, I'll give it a try tonight. It seems to be the side parts of the headrest they stick out past the head and you can't clip them out. It sees my head during tuning and all seems fine but once in Forza it doesn't work. This seat is pretty high I can rest my head on it which is unusual for me... I'll see if I can get a photo of me in it just so people can see.

The head tracking is helpfull for looking at apexs when entering the turns. It is very difficult to set up right, however once it is done, it seems to work quite well. The part I find annoying with using kinetic is the voice prompts... However I am sure you can turn that off somehow.

If you have played shift 2, they toyed to do a similar thing without the kinect. That too worked ok, I thought.

SG1 RAZOR wrote:Interesting read, thanks suncrossed. I was just recently looking for a simulator and was debating going through Pagnian's, but finally settled on something else that I'm very happy with although I would of been happy with there's also after reading your review.

Thanks Razor, which rig did you end up getting?

The Head tracking is a pretty great feature, as Daz said getting it working right can be difficult, but once done being able to focus on the apex of the corner is very beneficial... and adds just that little bit more realism to the game as the screen perspective shifts and isn't locked.

I ended up going with the Monza Pro. Be definatley trying the kinect with forza at some stage and seeing how it goes.