Thrustmaster Replica U.S Air Force MFD Cougar Flight Panel Duo Pack

Post by **DaveK** » Thu Jun 05, 2014 10:23 am

Just spotted these on Amazon (UK) @Â£50 for the duo pack. Lots of buttons and they look cool.

From the blurb . . .

'For diehard flight simulation fans, Thrustmaster is proud to offer a pack of 2 MFD Cougar modules, taking users another big step towards total immersion in flight sim games. The ideal companions for joysticks and yokes on the market, the MFD Cougar Pack lets virtual pilots enjoy more realistic flight conditions than ever before.

The MFD Cougar is a panel of buttons and switches onto which the user can program their choice of functions for any given game. This revolutionary device therefore provides shortcuts which are far more practical and intuitive than the standard method of using a keyboard and mouse for various actions in games.

The MFD Cougar modules from Thrustmaster are replicas of those found onboard the legendary U.S. Air Force F-16 jet fighter aircraft. They are compatible with all military or civil flight simulation games supporting multi-USB.

Each of the 2 MFD modules in the pack features 20 buttons and 4 switches, for a total of 56 programmable controls! 2 programmable LEDs per MFD facilitate identification, in particular during programming phases. The programming interface can even accommodate up to 8 MFD modules at the same time. Finally, each MFD module features an internal memory, which saves all of your settings and preferencesâ€¦ even when used on a different computer.'

Anyone know anything about them? Would they work with Mercenary, I wonder? A merc can never have too many buttons available!

. . . Tempted of the UK

EDIT: From the manual from the website:

'IN OTHER GAMES

The MFD COUGAR is compatible with all PC simulation games (both military and civil
aviation simulators) supporting multi-USB connectivity.

To configure the MFD COUGAR in your game, access the game's Controller Options,
then manually allocate the required features to each of the MFD's buttons.
You only need to perform this operation once; the relevant setting will automatically be
saved in your game. '

[Edited on 5-6-2014 by DaveK]

SeeJay · Post by **SeeJay** » Thu Jun 05, 2014 11:13 am

I have no experience with it, but it looks like it's a frame with a background image (fixed).
So, it's just a set of buttons on a frame that you can program, just like you program your stick.
I see no problems using it with EM or any other sim.

It would be cooler if it was a small monitor in the middle tho!

Post by **DaveK** » Thu Jun 05, 2014 6:06 pm

It seems that you can take the stands off and stick the frames in from of the monitor!

An extra set of buttons would be good and I'd put a map of Evochron in one frame - and a photo of Valerie on her horse in the other

skyratt · Post by **skyratt** » Thu Jun 05, 2014 11:32 pm

From post: 170820, Topic: tid=11447, author=SeeJay wrote:I have no experience with it, but it looks like it's a frame with a background image (fixed).
So, it's just a set of buttons on a frame that you can program, just like you program your stick.
I see no problems using it with EM or any other sim.

It would be cooler if it was a small monitor in the middle tho!

Some guys have adapted existing 7" monitors to make them work like you dsecribe. Some vids on are on youtube with them working mostly for DCS A10.

Post by **DaveK** » Sun Jun 08, 2014 9:15 am

I've ordered one!

Post by **DaveK** » Tue Jun 17, 2014 10:12 pm

It's arrived!

First feedback:

As the reviews say, it's a solid, well built piece of kit. You get two identical units in the box but can use one alone if you want. To get them working I just installed the drivers (disc provided), rebooted and then plugged the two USB units in - the game recognised them without problems. Each has two LED's that you can programme so you can easily see which unit is which (left LED for the left unit!). Creating images for the hollow centre is a doddle with a graphics programme and a colour printer - I recommend glossy paper - they look cool! At the moment I've got the Evoverse core map in one and the asteroid cave layout in the other, but I've also prepped some HiTec ScFi displays to 'ring the changes'. Because I also play at night, I'm experimenting with LED backlights so my inserts are lit up - @ about Â£1 - Â£2 for a USB LED light it's not exactly expensive!

Fingers cut off surgical rubber gloves are making effective diffusers for initial 'experiments'!!

Each unit (you get two in the pack) offers 20 (lit) buttons (five round each side) and four (lit) two-way rocker switches (in the corners). The buttons/switches/LEDs brightness can be changed. Programming from within the game is a doddle - just like you programme any keys / stick buttons etc . . . so you get a total of 56 extra buttons! There are enough so that I can use 'banks' of five buttons to group commands together in logical 'chunks'. The stands are adjustable so you can have the view angle that suits your setup.

Although the units are very well weighted, they tended to slip a bit on my smooth desk - a felt wrapped chunk of thick steel plate solved that totally!!

My set up is now:

main monitor - game + travel buddy 'in' the HUD
second monitor - Evometrics + EM_Tools
Saitek X52Pro Stick+Throttle
2 x MFD Cougar Flight Panels

Headphones+mic

I'm working towards losing the keyboard completely (it takes up a lot of desk space), though I'll keep it handy (it's wireless) for chat with players not using TS or ingame voice chat!

Time will tell about reliability but at this stage I'm dead pleased!

I got it for Â£61 from Amazon and so far I'm well impressed!