Best DiRT Rally 2.0 Settings for Thrustmaster TMX / T150
DiRT Rally 2.0, the rally car simulator from Codemasters, is best played with a force feedback wheel. The game transmits a lot of information about what the car is doing through the force feedback of the wheel. Given the difficulty of controlling a rally car, you want to get as much information from the wheel as possible without fighting the force feedback.
Unfortunately, the default force feedback settings in DiRT Rally 2.0 don't work very well for the Thrustmaster TMX and T150 (they are essentially the same wheel). The force feedback is set too strong and it just feels like you are fighting to turn the wheel on every single corner, when it should be relatively easy. These are great entry-level wheels for their price, but they don't have the responsiveness of more expensive, higher end wheels, leading to these kind of problems.
With that in mind, it is important to tune the force feedback settings in the game to your particular wheel. After doing a lot of research and my own testing, I found the best settings for the Thrustmaster TMX and T150. These really made a big impact on my enjoyment of the game.
Thrustmaster Control Panel Settings
DiRT Rally 2.0 has a Soft Lock feature, so it will automatically set the proper steering angle for each car in the game. Set the maximum steering angle in the Thrustmaster Control Panel and calibrate the wheel in-game.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Rotation | 900° (TMX) 1080° (T150) |
| Overall Strength of all forces | 100% |
| Constant | 100% |
| Periodic | 100% |
| Spring | 100% |
| Damper | 100% |
| BOOST | Off |
| Auto-Center | by the game |
Spring is not used by DiRT Rally 2.0, so the value doesn't actually matter. Some games require Spring to be on for their force feedback to work, so I keep it at 100% as a general rule.
Damper is used in DiRT Rally 2.0 for the Wheel Friction and Tire Friction effects. I don't use either of these effects, they only make the wheel a little heavier and are unnecessary.
BOOST should always be turned off. For an in-depth look as to why, see my BOOST Force Feedback Analysis.
DiRT Rally 2.0 Settings
In Options & Extras > Input > Connected Devices:
It is very important to calibrate your wheel by highlighting the wheel and choosing Device Options. Without calibration, the steering angle won't be set correctly and the wheel will feel very strange.
In Options & Extras > Input > Connected Devices > Thrustmaster TMX / T150 > Advanced Settings:
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Steering Linearity | -4 - 0 |
| Steering Deadzone | 0 |
| Steering Saturation | 100 |
| Soft Lock | On |
Setting Steering Linearity to a negative value makes the steering more sensitive when the wheel is centered. This can be useful for older cars that have a larger degree of rotation, if it feels like you are unable to turn the wheel fast enough around corners. For modern style cars, Steering Linearity should be set to 0, or the wheel will be over sensitive when centered and harder to control.
In Options & Extras > Input > Connected Devices > Thrustmaster TMX / T150 > Vibration & Feedback:
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Vibration & Feedback | On |
| Self Aligning Torque | 45 |
| Wheel Friction | 0 |
| Tire Friction | 0 |
| Suspension | 60 |
| Collision | 100 |
| Soft Lock | 150 |
| Steering Centre Force Enabled | On |
| Steering Centre Force | 100 |
Self Aligning Torque is the overall strength of the force feedback.
Wheel Friction and Tire Friction are both Damper forces. In different ways, they both add resistance to the wheel only if you have the Damper force enabled in the Thrustmaster Control Panel. Wheel Friction is a mostly constant force that simply makes the wheel heavier. Tire Friction is mostly felt based on the speed of the car. When the car is still, you will feel the heaviness of the car when you try to turn the wheel. I don't like Damper forces on these lower end wheels, so I turn these off.
Suspension controls the vibrations you feel in the wheel from the road surface.
Collision controls the vibration when you hit a rock or something on the side of the road.
Soft Lock is the force you feel when trying to turn the wheel past the real-world steering angle.
Steering Centre Force is only ever used when you start a race or reset the car to re-center the wheel. It has no effect when you are driving.
Conclusion
Before making these changes, I found the game fun, but often annoyingly hard to control. After applying these settings, I was no longer fighting with the force feedback and I finally had complete control over the car. This makes the game so much more enjoyable to play because you can actually control the car in difficult situations. I highly recommend you try these settings.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments.