TrackClip Pro

Last blog post I said I bought a TrackClip Pro at the OzFlightSimExpo.

The TrackClip Pro attaches to headphones replacing the normal TrackClip reflector unit you would wear on a cap hat when using the NaturalPoint TrackIR 4 Pro .

The TrackIR Pro for the uninitiated is an awesome USB head tracking device that gives simmers the ability to look around the cockpit/game in response to real head movements. It consists of a small USB camera type device you put on your monitor and a infrared reflective clip you attach to a hat. Sims including flight sims, racing sims and Armed Assault support it and it adds to the immersion and greatly enhances gameplay. To see how it works, have a look at the video demos on the NaturalPoint website.

There is a copycat DIY project using webcams called FreeTrack, I've read it might have issues with CPU use on your PC and responsiveness due to the update rate of your webcam but I've not tried it yet.

When I first saw the TrackClip Pro and the cost of approx $50 I thought - man I bet I could MAKE one of those for a couple of bucks, after all it is just three infrared lights. So I bought three infrared LEDs from my local Disk Smith, grabbed a couple of wire coat hangers and got out the electrical tape. I then fashioned up a Trackclip Pro type device in a very approximate shape of the real deal. I powered the system with a 9 volt battery, an extra red LED to show the circuit was working ok and put a resistor (330 Ohms) incircuit to suit the LEDs. Well I discovered that the infrared LEDS (at least the ones my Dick Smith stock) are TOTALLY USELESS because they have a very narrow beam and turning your head the TrackIR can't see them. You need wide radiation angle LEDs. I've also since seen on the FreeTrack forums that the FreeTrack people file down the top of the LEDs to get around the view of beam issue (with the cost of degrading light output) so I might have to try it again doing that.

But now I've got the real TrackClip Pro was it worth the money to replace the hat clip? In a word, well two words - HELL YES!

I hated wearing a hat, especially when in summer it hits 35 degrees in my tiny computer room. I can use the TrackClip Pro on my headphones (it fits on my SpeedLink Medusa Gamer headphones fine) or a old single ear headset I've cut the audio lead off. In use the TrackClip has much better tracking feeling smoother in-game and with none of the dropouts I would normally get with the hat clip from moving my head too much that would drop the visibility of a reflector. Also it looks a lot less odd than wearing a cap with the reflector on it.

The TrackClip Pro is a great addition if you are a TrackIR Pro 4 user. Big thumbs up from me!

On the TrackIR Pro 4 I have to have a grumble. The top sensor unit is attached to the three legged base using a tiny 2 mm stem of plastic.

It is around this tiny part that the top rotates. Of course I've snapped my TrackIR Pro 4 in two having broken this stem and it is now attached with a big wad of blue-tac. Not very good engineering. But otherwise a really excellent peripheral that greatly enhances simming.