Best F1 2020 Settings for Thrustmaster TX / T300
F1 2020 plays really well with a wheel, though the default settings for the Thrustmaster TX and T300 aren't the greatest. Most importantly, the steering angle needs to be set correctly for the game to be playable. Secondly, while the default force feedback is usually too strong, in this case, it is actually too light. Both of these issues are easy to fix.
It's good to note that many people mistakenly believe that maximizing the force feedback settings means the force feedback is more "realistic." The true purpose of the force feedback is to give you information about the track surface and how much grip the tires have. In real life, this would be felt through g-forces and the shaking of the car. If you raise the settings too high, the wheel just maxes out. At that point, you no longer get any information about the track or car; the wheel just feels heavy all the time.
In this guide, we will first look at the settings you need to set in the Thrustmaster Control Panel, if playing on a PC. Then we will look at the in-game settings to improve the force feedback.
Thrustmaster Control Panel Settings
The first thing that needs to be fixed is the steering angle. By default, F1 2020 uses the full rotation of your wheel, which is far too much for an F1 car. In an F1 car, the steering angle should be about 360°, meaning you can turn it 180° to the left and 180° to the right. While possible to do in-game, setting this in the Thrustmaster Control Panel provides a better Soft Lock.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Rotation | 360° |
| Overall Strength of all forces | 75% |
| Constant | 100% |
| Periodic | 100% |
| Spring | 100% |
| Damper | 100% |
| BOOST | Off |
| Auto-Center | by the game |
Spring is not used by F1 2020, so the value actually doesn't 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 for the in-game Wheel Damper setting. This adds weight to the wheel when the car is moving slowly. Without this, the wheel feels very light in slow corners, which is quite unnatural. Since it is commonly suggested to set Damper to 0, make sure this is on.
BOOST should always be turned off. For an in-depth look as to why, see my BOOST Force Feedback Analysis.
F1 2020 Settings
In Game Options > Settings > Controls, Vibration & Force Feedback > Thrustmaster TX / T300 > Calibration:
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Steering Deadzone | 0 |
| Steering Linearity | 10 |
| Steering Saturation | 0 |
I raise the Steering Linearity to make the wheel less sensitive when the wheel is centered.
In Game Options > Settings > Controls, Vibration & Force Feedback > Thrustmaster TX / T300 > Vibration & Force Feedback:
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Vibration & Force Feedback | On |
| Vibration & Force Feedback Strength | 70 |
| On Track Effects | 22 |
| Rumblestrip Effects | 50 |
| Off Track Effects | 67 |
| Wheel Damper | 10 |
| Understeer Enhance | Off |
Vibration & Force Feedback Strength is the overall strength of the force feedback. Raising it too much starts to overwhelm the wheel, making the wheel feel heavy and lifeless. I find the range of 70-75 works best. This also scales the vibration effects, so if you lower this, you will have to raise the vibration effects to compensate and vice versa.
On Track Effects is the vibrations felt based on the track surface. This is a strong effect, so this needs to be kept quite low. This can vary by track. I find 20-25 works best.
Rumblestrip Effects is the vibration felt when running over a kerb. I like this effect, but that's just personal preference. Feel free to turn this down.
Off Track Effects is the vibration felt when you leave the track. This is fairly strong. Raising this too high will make the wheel quite violent if you go off the track.
Wheel Damper gives weight to the wheel when the car is slow. This is most notable in slow-speed corners. Without this, the wheel goes weightless, which feels strange. Even a small amount of damper gives enough weight to feel more natural, without being too strong.
Understeer Enhance drastically lightens the wheel when you start to understeer. I find this more distracting than anything. The wheel lightens so much when you start to understeer that it feels more like the wheel is broken rather than something that is happening to the car.
Conclusion
With the steering angle set correctly and the force feedback set properly, the game feels really good on these wheels. If you have a VR headset, you may be interested to know that F1 2020 works surprisingly well in VR using VorpX.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments.