The generations of my racing rig since 2005

I bought my ECCI wheel and pedals back in 2002 and will never use another wheel/pedal combo. I have never had a failure, no broken parts, no issues at all. I've replaced the pots 3 times over the 6+ years I have owned this combo at a total cost of less then $100. Combined with the cost of the setup and shipping, I have had 6+ years of racing on this wheel for less then $1000 (roughly the cost of four G25), and I expect it to last at least another 6 years.


Not long after making the purchase, I was hunting for some type of button system to mount onto the wheel itself. I tried a few different things, but nothing really worked. I needed something that I can program each keystroke and to fit properly. After numerous failed attempts, I settled on the Nostromo N52 Speedpad (costs less then $50). I color coded each button with simple colored folder labels cut to size.

This was not too long after purchasing my first 19" LCD monitor after my CRT gave out on me. A single PC, single monitor did all I needed it to do. The PC was nothing special by today's terms. AMD 2800+ with an ATI 9800 Pro video card. It served me well for my NR2003 racing, but by the time GTR and rFactor became my normal racing software, it was showing it's age.








And so begins the "big expansion" era...




I had heard of the Matrox TripleHead2Go about a year prior to it's release and pre-ordered it as soon as I was able to do so (about 3 months before release). Since I knew I was going to be in need of 2 additional monitors soon, I picked up two cheap ones to become my side monitors when the TH2Go arrives. They ran on a separate video card during the wait, and ended up working well as "work monitors" while my main LCD served as my "racing monitor". It resided on a swinging arm so it could easily be rotated back and forth between my work desk or racing desk.

Im not a patient person and in the short time between the above picture and getting my TH2Go, I went out and bought a 27" LCD television. $600 more dollars after spending $900 on the LCD monitors. The TV worked well though, even in the lower resolution that the TV offers compared to a PC monitor. 1280x768 was the res, but that was not a huge decrease over the 1280x1024 that the monitor allowed so I went with it. HUGE screen of course, making for a cool looking rig to say the least. The 3 other monitors ran on separate video cards and allowed me to begin using in-car telemetry programs and watch live scoring as a race progressed.

It was at this time that a second PC was put under the desk to compliment all the monitors. A AMD 4200 Dual Core was brought in to replace the aging 2800+ system. I still used the older system as my work horse and allowed the new rig to be a dedicated racing setup. The 27" LCD ran on the racing rig and the three other monitors ran on the older work-horse.


Then came in my need for mobility and my first ever laptop was purchased. Again, nothing spectacular by todays standards (AMD 2800+ laptop), but it allowed me to get out from under my desk while working on the up and coming Race2Play.com. It would also allow me the flexibility to travel as the need arose.

The systems went though a different configurations with monitors placed in various locations, but as you can see I was quickly running out of desk space, even with a 6 foot fold up table as my desk. With two full sized PCs and multiple monitors each, the laptop didn't have much room to call it's own...

And so begins the "sky rise" era...

Things starting growing upwards instead of outwards. Sure, I tried the double 6-foot desks in an V shape, but it was tough to glance over at other monitors while I was racing. I kept crashing! So up it was and two more of the LCD desk mounted adjustable arms for a total of three. Luckily I found them on Ebay for dirt cheap as they were $100 each. At one time I actually had two different Internet connections running in (DSL and Cable) to make sure I had a connection. Comcast is not known for their reliability.


Finally, the TH2Go setup arrived one day and I kept the two-tier setup using all the monitors I had already owned. Convinced I did not need to spend any more money on monitors or computers, I was ready to race with more viewable area then anyone else. The TV up top had in-car telemetry and live scoring going so it was just a quick glance up to see everything I needed while racing. The laptop took care of all the voice communications as well. It still took two tables (one to the right of me, not shown in picture) as I was getting a little nutty and brought in 2 additional 19" CRTs sitting on that desk. Why? No reason other then "because I can!"

I tried, I really did. I tried not to buy any more monitors, but the fact that the three monitors were not matching monitors was really getting to me. Slight differences in height and colors between brands convinced me I needed to hunt down two additional monitors of the same brand and model as my first, so I did. I pushed the two older monitors up top along side the 27" LCD and placed them all on a metro-shelf unit for secure mounting.


To show the differences between single monitors and the 3-screen setup, here are some illustrations:

1280x1024

1440x900 (Wide screen)

3840x1024 TH2Go

Eventually, the TV was replaced with a 22" LCD PC monitor for better resolution... and I was simply afraid of that TV falling on me while racing :-)

While the above configuration looked cool, I must say, it is not very easy on your neck. After a few months of neck pains I finally resorted BACK to two split desks. One held my racing rig and another I used for all work purposes. At the same time I ended up picking up another PC (Intel 6600 Quad Core) and it took over the role of my main racing PC. The 4200+ became my work horse and the 2800+ became file storage and a secondary-secondary. The laptop also took a step down the ladder recently when it was replaced with a new HP v9000 (17" wide screen and more powerful ... everything).

HAHAHAHA so why should I get mad losing against this shit. I don't have a chance!

Looks like fuckin Cape Canaveral Tim!

Geeeeeeeez....

Looks like you made a frame for the 3 monitors. Nice, makes it look sharper, and the LCD border less noticeable.

Isn't this considered cheating???? :)

Better equipment wins races, right?

That's no shit obviously.....

That's nice. But I've heard so much about the Lazyboy chair. Where's that, lol?

by request, the pic of my chair

Found at Goodwill for less then $20. I use it every weekend... best $20 sim racing item Ive ever bought