I've had mine about 6 months now and can say it's not something I regret buying. And even though I'm about to criticize it pretty harshly I would still call it my favorite piece of gear I own. The H-pattern is great. Without nitpicking it to death, I would say it is quite satisfactory in its action and functionality. No issues in functionality and the build quality is top notch. The changes are quite smooth (not much 'clunk' to them) and I've had very few issues with missed shifts (it can happen but it's usually all me). The weight, the spacing, and other ergonomics are somewhere between totally acceptable and very good. No issues with noise (it's very quiet) or rattling. The sleeve lockout for R & 7/8 works intuitively. I've never had any reason to go for 7th gear while driving and the act of getting into and out of R can be learned quickly. No complaints about that aspect. The one thing about this unit that really sucks is that the sequential mode just doesn't feel all that great. It's not horrible but I don't get much satisfaction from using it and usually just go to the paddle shifters instead. There is an adjustable tensioner on it but it doesn't address the real issue, which is that the throw is too long and "springy". It's quite easy to short-stroke it and miss a shift and the only way I can make it feel halfway decent is to purposefully use it in an aggressive manner (which kind of hides the spongy-ness). This is a real drag because, for me at least, I now have to figure out how to mount an H-pattern, a handbrake, AND a sequential shifter in some sort of usable manner. This kind of kills the whole concept of an H/SQ combo unit. I've heard the same complaints about Fanatec and VNM. When you look at all of the H-pattern options on the market I still think the Simagic is one of the top picks for the money as long as you don't expect a sequential function that rivals the dedicated units on the market.
Aesthetically speaking It looks fantastic. I’m fortunate enough to have a ProSim so I’m not in the market but this looks way better then pretty much everything else. It’s great to see more H patterns on the market. I feel like it’ll drive people’s interest in manual gear box cars.
Nice review. I understand your last part but people like me also play a lot of assetto corsa driving street cars casually and H pattern shifting is super fun in that sense.
I was going to complain about this being an 8-way shifter. But this one seems to be well-designed: 1-2 to the left, 3-4 at the centre, 5-6 to the right, as it should be! The fact it is not easy to shift to 7-8 is not a bug, is a feature! Sincerely: someone who drives a manual car in real life.
Awesome review Shaun, thanks! The detents and resistance in shifting is exactly what I'm looking for that the Thrustmaster shifter lacks. Definitely getting one of these 👍
Love a H shift nothing more exhilarating than a Historic or open wheeler;;; or embarrassing than dropping the box and stalling on the grid,, 🙈😩🤫 But so satisfying,, block changing and doubling the clutch,, toe heeling ,, even if you don’t win,, the drive is so much more when you’re dialled in Great info Shaun ,, keep em coming,informative as always 👍🏼
Maybe some of the truck sims could make use of the extra gears (Roadranger box)... Use the lift mech for splitting gears. Really interested in Simagic gear. Great review as always. Cheers 👍
Not impressed with this review. You seem to be more concerned about using H pattern vs SQ overall rather than reviewing the product itself. You've told me nothing about what's actually tangible to me as a potential buyer and customer of this Simagic shifter. What I would have liked to see is a breakdown of how it works internally showing what mechanisms its using i.e. Is the H pattern and SQ mechanisms the same or are they different? If they're different how do they work? What materials are they using internally? Are they using microswitches or hall effect sensors? Secondly you mentioned the tension is adjustable but you never showed it at its lowest and highest tension settings and how switching between H pattern and SQ affects the tension either. I would have also liked to have seen how much force in kg is required to actuate the shift both in H pattern and SQ. I also need to know if the shift knob is replaceable and if so, what shaft and thread size does it use? And lastly a direct comparison for both feel and sound with its competition which is the Fanatec SQ1.5 and the VNM H pattern shifters. As someone who owns a Fanatec shifter and looking to upgrade, this shifter is on my radar but you haven't given any reference point or any kind of indication as to whether the shift feel is better or worse than my Fanatec one. Also how does it compare to higher end shifters like the Simvertex H pattern and BDH?
@@samuelpastor2093 Well I was looking for a new shifter since the sequential side of my Fanatec shifter broke, so that was my first priority. The H pattern still works so in the end I kept the Fanatec and I'm purely using it as a H pattern but then I bought a Prosim Lite V2 as a sequential shifter. That way I can still switch between H pattern and sequential. I've completely lost interest in this Simagic shifter now and I'll be upgrading to the BDH shifter when I've got the money to do so
I've watched you test several shifters, it's kinda disappointing that you don't compare them to each other to help people get the right one the first time. I will upgrade my shifter at some point, but I find that most reviewers just say something along the lines of "yeah it feels good, and there's a nice clunk", but rarely actually compare by feel, despite having experience with most/many other shifters.
If you want to quickly switch from H-pattern to sequential then yes, i bought one so i could always have the shifter right where i want it and not have to have 2 shifters crammed next to each other.
I upgraded from the SSH newt2 and hell yes it's worth it. The feeling is so much better and more satisfying. Very solid and clunky. The SSH is great too if you're on a budget.
I'm looking into this solely because I'm experiencing an inconsistent issue with the Clubsport. I love it but it randomly will register one gear as another (in the most miserable cases, 3rd becomes reverse). It's not VERY common but it happens often enough that I worry about it and it's not limited to a single title. Also not willing to go back to unscrewing and screwing things in when I know there are shifters that avoid it.
Is there one racecar you need 7th gear or even a street-car with h-pattern gearbox? If there is a 7th, it's the economy-mode. I would not buy a shifter without knowing how it works, so a look inside is missing and I still don't know how it sounds...
Love how to engage reverse, but for 7-8...ahhh...nope. Deal breaker. Looks like others might like that, but not for me. If I decide to get in a Porsche 911, Z06 Corvette, etc. I would have to do the lift thingy :(. Would be great if that was something that could be adjusted for multiple preferences. As usual, great video Shaun.
@@zodiacbtk I appreciate the suggestion, but prefer not to buy something with 3D printed parts. However, I do hear that is a very good shifter for the price. I guess I am picky 😀.
I have this shifter , and its great........ except , weirdly , windows doesn't recognize/see it on boot up. I have to unplug/re-plug it for it to be seen. Anyone have any ideas?
*Well.. I am not too happy with it. I just got it and broke after 5 minutes of use. lever locked in the middle in H pattern mode. I went on simagic discord and saw multiple people having the same issue. Some sent it back twice :(((( Too bad. It felt superb for 5 minutes.*
@@EpicFatLipdepends on the car, if it's got a crash box then you can pretty much just smash it in just lifting the throttle. It seems brutal but how the things are built to be used
well shit ... guess I finally have a new shifter to save for XD I love that pull feature for the last two gears and reverse Great review as always Shaun!
One point not brought up in good first impression. How noisy is it , the well enclosed design looks like it might suppress some noise , but just how noisy is it ? , most on the market are a little too noisy for my ( or other house members ) liking .
I feel like it would've been nicer to have a switch on the shifter body for switching between 6 and 8 speed H-shifting. That way it's just the one flip of the switch that engages or disengages the 7/8 gate when you're doing vehicle setup instead of lifting up on that gear lock collar each time you want to go from 6th to 7th
I just wish Fanatec would already make new model as connecting to the wheel and console compatible are nice to haves I bought Clubsport v2.5 and 6 months later they released the direct drive models for cheaper so was kinda disappointed so don't want the same thing to happen again..
I'd try getting a used one. Sometimes there are straight up bargains. I got lucky and had a dude selling a shifter for 100€. Contacted him like 2 mins after he posted it. He then asked me if I need pedals too. He threw in a set of V3s with all the upgrades for another 150€. If you see someone selling the shifter for 150€ I would just go with it. If a new one comes out, you can sell it with little to no loss.
I've had mine about 6 months now and can say it's not something I regret buying. And even though I'm about to criticize it pretty harshly I would still call it my favorite piece of gear I own. The H-pattern is great. Without nitpicking it to death, I would say it is quite satisfactory in its action and functionality. No issues in functionality and the build quality is top notch. The changes are quite smooth (not much 'clunk' to them) and I've had very few issues with missed shifts (it can happen but it's usually all me). The weight, the spacing, and other ergonomics are somewhere between totally acceptable and very good. No issues with noise (it's very quiet) or rattling. The sleeve lockout for R & 7/8 works intuitively. I've never had any reason to go for 7th gear while driving and the act of getting into and out of R can be learned quickly. No complaints about that aspect.
The one thing about this unit that really sucks is that the sequential mode just doesn't feel all that great. It's not horrible but I don't get much satisfaction from using it and usually just go to the paddle shifters instead. There is an adjustable tensioner on it but it doesn't address the real issue, which is that the throw is too long and "springy". It's quite easy to short-stroke it and miss a shift and the only way I can make it feel halfway decent is to purposefully use it in an aggressive manner (which kind of hides the spongy-ness). This is a real drag because, for me at least, I now have to figure out how to mount an H-pattern, a handbrake, AND a sequential shifter in some sort of usable manner. This kind of kills the whole concept of an H/SQ combo unit. I've heard the same complaints about Fanatec and VNM. When you look at all of the H-pattern options on the market I still think the Simagic is one of the top picks for the money as long as you don't expect a sequential function that rivals the dedicated units on the market.
you have shh for 109e better that shit
Aesthetically speaking It looks fantastic. I’m fortunate enough to have a ProSim so I’m not in the market but this looks way better then pretty much everything else. It’s great to see more H patterns on the market. I feel like it’ll drive people’s interest in manual gear box cars.
Seems like a toss up between this and the Frex for me. I already have a heusinkveld sequential shifter, so the frex does seem to make more sense.
Nice review. I understand your last part but people like me also play a lot of assetto corsa driving street cars casually and H pattern shifting is super fun in that sense.
I was going to complain about this being an 8-way shifter. But this one seems to be well-designed: 1-2 to the left, 3-4 at the centre, 5-6 to the right, as it should be!
The fact it is not easy to shift to 7-8 is not a bug, is a feature!
Sincerely: someone who drives a manual car in real life.
gonna use the 8th gear as reverse like my real car. havent come across a sim car that uses 8th H shifter gear. max was 7 gear.
I would also rather have 7-8th free, I also exclusive drive manual in real life, that statement means nothing.
Ferrari FXX Assetto Content Manager has 8 gears and is a blast to drive!@@rickylah69
Great video Shaun, great to see Simagic "shifting gears" and getting products out in time for reviews on release day. 😉
Yet another great review. Thanks for sharing.
Would of been nice to know how the feel of the sequential mode compared to the sequential Q1 shifter.
Super interested in this shifter.
Awesome review Shaun, thanks! The detents and resistance in shifting is exactly what I'm looking for that the Thrustmaster shifter lacks. Definitely getting one of these 👍
Love a H shift
nothing more exhilarating than a Historic or open wheeler;;; or embarrassing than dropping the box and stalling on the grid,, 🙈😩🤫
But so satisfying,, block changing and doubling the clutch,, toe heeling ,, even if you don’t win,, the drive is so much more when you’re dialled in
Great info Shaun ,, keep em coming,informative as always 👍🏼
Maybe some of the truck sims could make use of the extra gears (Roadranger box)... Use the lift mech for splitting gears. Really interested in Simagic gear. Great review as always. Cheers 👍
Thank you sir. Great review as always! Been looing for someone to review this thing. How does it compare to Fanatecs regarding feel?
Not impressed with this review. You seem to be more concerned about using H pattern vs SQ overall rather than reviewing the product itself. You've told me nothing about what's actually tangible to me as a potential buyer and customer of this Simagic shifter. What I would have liked to see is a breakdown of how it works internally showing what mechanisms its using i.e. Is the H pattern and SQ mechanisms the same or are they different? If they're different how do they work? What materials are they using internally? Are they using microswitches or hall effect sensors?
Secondly you mentioned the tension is adjustable but you never showed it at its lowest and highest tension settings and how switching between H pattern and SQ affects the tension either. I would have also liked to have seen how much force in kg is required to actuate the shift both in H pattern and SQ. I also need to know if the shift knob is replaceable and if so, what shaft and thread size does it use?
And lastly a direct comparison for both feel and sound with its competition which is the Fanatec SQ1.5 and the VNM H pattern shifters. As someone who owns a Fanatec shifter and looking to upgrade, this shifter is on my radar but you haven't given any reference point or any kind of indication as to whether the shift feel is better or worse than my Fanatec one. Also how does it compare to higher end shifters like the Simvertex H pattern and BDH?
Hope Barry from SRG will review this shifter in the future!
What that guy said.
Did you end up upgrading from Fanatec? What did you end up with? DS-8X or VNM ? If yes are they worth over fanatec?
@@samuelpastor2093 Well I was looking for a new shifter since the sequential side of my Fanatec shifter broke, so that was my first priority. The H pattern still works so in the end I kept the Fanatec and I'm purely using it as a H pattern but then I bought a Prosim Lite V2 as a sequential shifter. That way I can still switch between H pattern and sequential. I've completely lost interest in this Simagic shifter now and I'll be upgrading to the BDH shifter when I've got the money to do so
Awesome Video Shawn!!
Nice shaft.. on that shifter! Love the knob too. Nice to see Fanatec alternatives that aren't so chonky.
I've watched you test several shifters, it's kinda disappointing that you don't compare them to each other to help people get the right one the first time. I will upgrade my shifter at some point, but I find that most reviewers just say something along the lines of "yeah it feels good, and there's a nice clunk", but rarely actually compare by feel, despite having experience with most/many other shifters.
What are you using as the bracket/plate to attach the shifter to the chassis with? It looks like a solid platform. Thank you!
The question that needs to get asked in all shifter reviews is "Is it $280 better than an SHH NEWT2?"
If you want to quickly switch from H-pattern to sequential then yes, i bought one so i could always have the shifter right where i want it and not have to have 2 shifters crammed next to each other.
@@TheMrkiddi Then again, the Clubsport Shifter from Fanatec does that for 150 bucks less.
@@TheMrkiddithe SHH takes seconds to switch from mode to mode too
Now the question how much better is it than the SHH Thorn? Lol
I upgraded from the SSH newt2 and hell yes it's worth it. The feeling is so much better and more satisfying. Very solid and clunky.
The SSH is great too if you're on a budget.
Thanks you for your content :)
The main question I have is: How does it compare to the Fanatec Clubsport shifter? Is it worth the extra money?
i dont think its worth it because the fanatec shifter does everything that this shifter does for way cheaper
@mqt5704 im already on the simagic ecosystem and if it's going to have better build quality I'd rather do that
I'm looking into this solely because I'm experiencing an inconsistent issue with the Clubsport. I love it but it randomly will register one gear as another (in the most miserable cases, 3rd becomes reverse). It's not VERY common but it happens often enough that I worry about it and it's not limited to a single title. Also not willing to go back to unscrewing and screwing things in when I know there are shifters that avoid it.
Would love a comparison of how much tension it has vs the moza HGP and VNM shifter as it looks really light to change gears
You can adjust the strength needed for shifts and it can become quite hard
Great review! I wondering though, how does this compare with teh Fanatec Shifter? Seems like this might b a strong competitor.
Fanatec nice feature is console and pc use and about $100-120 less
Love the review and very informative. Do you feel the feel is worth upgrading from a TH8A or is the improvement in feel minimal?
Wondering the same thing
Oooooo i like this a potential upgrade from my Moza hgp 7+R just maybe simmagic makes awesome stuff
What ! Did we switch to metric ? Great review .🤘🏼🏁
Can you use a VNM shifter and compare for the price?
Is there one racecar you need 7th gear or even a street-car with h-pattern gearbox? If there is a 7th, it's the economy-mode. I would not buy a shifter without knowing how it works, so a look inside is missing and I still don't know how it sounds...
Some Corvettes have 7+r h pattern
@@Turbo1602ti All C7 manuals, and I think (don't know what generation) 911's also have a 7 speed row your own.
As I said: "If there is a 7th, it's the economy-mode", so not for acceleration.
Ford Escort Cosworth RS Group A rally car. But it's definitely not common.
Porsches do
Love how to engage reverse, but for 7-8...ahhh...nope. Deal breaker. Looks like others might like that, but not for me. If I decide to get in a Porsche 911, Z06 Corvette, etc. I would have to do the lift thingy :(. Would be great if that was something that could be adjusted for multiple preferences. As usual, great video Shaun.
shffter shh best ! not this shit and 109E not 450E
@@zodiacbtk I appreciate the suggestion, but prefer not to buy something with 3D printed parts. However, I do hear that is a very good shifter for the price. I guess I am picky 😀.
would you choose this shifter or frex h-shifter ?
How does this feel to shift compared to the Moza hgp so far i haven't felt one that shifts better than Moza's hgp
This is what I want to know!
If only moza's shifter had a stiffer spring to engage the 7th/reverse it would be the best shifter in the market, but maybe is changeable
I have both. DS-8X feels slightly better and more true to life. Moza's detents are too strong and it feels clicky.
Great for American Truck Sim :=)
I have this shifter , and its great........ except , weirdly , windows doesn't recognize/see it on boot up. I have to unplug/re-plug it for it to be seen. Anyone have any ideas?
Did you solve it? I have the same problem
dang just ordered a vnm box. this looks great.
*Well.. I am not too happy with it. I just got it and broke after 5 minutes of use. lever locked in the middle in H pattern mode. I went on simagic discord and saw multiple people having the same issue. Some sent it back twice :(((( Too bad. It felt superb for 5 minutes.*
Shouldn't you engage the clutch when shifting in H-pattern??
i was thinking the same, may he has automatic clutch enabled ? or something like that.
@@michaelkopec.5814 Even still... To keep your credibility, reviewing a H-pattern shifter, engage the clutch when shifting.
@@EpicFatLipdepends on the car, if it's got a crash box then you can pretty much just smash it in just lifting the throttle. It seems brutal but how the things are built to be used
5th gear is the limit for me too. How does it compare to others?
It doesn't go that well with honey but fries are okay. :p
Well, time to add to cart
can the shift knob be changed?
Check video @ 2:23
Yes
this vs Fanatec sq?
what im liking about simagic, is non propietary. cause im gonna mix and match parts.
Your missing clutch for the H-pat.😢
well shit ... guess I finally have a new shifter to save for XD I love that pull feature for the last two gears and reverse
Great review as always Shaun!
I'd drop an old school hurst hand shifter on that lol
One point not brought up in good first impression.
How noisy is it , the well enclosed design looks like it might suppress some noise , but just how noisy is it ? , most on the market are a little too noisy for my ( or other house members ) liking .
Looks good
12:40 ETS would be one usage.
I have been looking for a H shifter for a long time. But the throws looks way to long 😒
Check out the VNM Shifter. I have one and love it!
I feel like it would've been nicer to have a switch on the shifter body for switching between 6 and 8 speed H-shifting. That way it's just the one flip of the switch that engages or disengages the 7/8 gate when you're doing vehicle setup instead of lifting up on that gear lock collar each time you want to go from 6th to 7th
I just wish Fanatec would already make new model as connecting to the wheel and console compatible are nice to haves I bought Clubsport v2.5 and 6 months later they released the direct drive models for cheaper so was kinda disappointed so don't want the same thing to happen again..
I'd try getting a used one. Sometimes there are straight up bargains. I got lucky and had a dude selling a shifter for 100€. Contacted him like 2 mins after he posted it. He then asked me if I need pedals too. He threw in a set of V3s with all the upgrades for another 150€. If you see someone selling the shifter for 150€ I would just go with it. If a new one comes out, you can sell it with little to no loss.
I was ready to buy until I heard reverse is top left, no thank you. That is a deal breaker and very unfortunate to hear.
The shifter is noisy and bounces around like a crazy pig in SQ mode
Automatic clutching 😂
The beauty of simracing.😂 Cutchless
@King of Nothing 😂👍
Need a discount code.