Throttled

Can't fly at the moment. MSFS suddenly can't detect my Logitech throttle quadrant, connected to my PC through the Logitech flight yoke via PS2 cable. I had this problem yesterday, but was able to resolve it by disconnecting the flight yoke from my desktop while in MSFS (so that the yoke disappeared in MSFS controls) and reconnecting it. But this did not work today. I'd been flying (really fooling) around earlier in the Asobo ultralight with no problems. But when I "escaped" out of that flight and started a new one, I noticed that the prop was unresponsive to the throttle lever. I escaped back to controls to test them, and sure enough, when I moved the quadrant levers, I did not see any white sliders. MSFS still recognizes the yoke, so I can only assume that there's something wrong with the PS2 connection.

Additionally, when I looked for game controllers in Windows 10, I found my Logitech yoke and rudder pedals, but not the throttle quadrant. This would also I suppose indicate that the quadrant's PS2 connection is bad.

Has anybody else run into this problem with the Logitech yoke/throttle combo? If so, how did you resolve it? Or did you?

Unless I can find a reliable fix, I have two options: buy a Logitech quadrant with a USB cable for $60, or upgrade to a Honeycomb quadrant for $380 on eBay.

 

Unless I can find a reliable fix, I have two options: buy a Logitech quadrant with a USB cable for $60, or upgrade to a Honeycomb quadrant for $380 on eBay.

Thanks to a Reddit thread I discovered, I think I've found a quick, reliable fix.

Let us know if it works reliably well!

Preliminarily, I have learned that the adapter will not work plugged into a USB port on the flight yoke itself. I tried that, and my PC flashed a warning that the yoke's USB hub couldn't provide enough juice to power the throttle. (I had a similar problem when I tried to connect my two flight panels through the yoke's USB ports. Turns out the yoke is more of a bottleneck than a hub for USB cables.) I'll connect the throttle directly to the PC tomorrow and report the results.

Let us know if it works reliably well!

It didn't work, either reliably or at all. It turned out I couldn't fool my PC (or MSFS) into recognizing my PS/2-cable-based throttle quadrant as a USB device by connecting it to the PC with a PS/2-to-USB adapter. It seems that this throttle, which was paired with the yoke, will only work (and MSFS will only recognize it) when it's plugged into the yoke's PS/2 port. This, despite the fact that the yoke itself connects to the PC via a USB cable, and consequently, all the signals from the throttle ultimately reach the PC and the sim via USB. From Google, I've learned the difference between PS/2 and USB technology: PS/2 cables carry signals in one direction--upstream from connected devices to computers--whereas USB cables carry signals in both directions. So I guess there was some intervening circuitry--now failed--in the yoke that enabled signals from the throttle quadrant to flow through to the desktop and MSFS. Whatever. This afternoon, I ordered a replacement USB-based Logitech throttle quadrant from Amazon. The "old" PS/2 quadrant is headed for the trash. :(