Thrustmaster Hotas Cougar PC Flight Stick

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Product Details

Product Manual [194kb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 12.6 x 17.2 x 10.2 inches ; 17 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 19 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000062SSB
• Item model number: 2960534
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,867 in Electronics (See Bestsellers in Electronics)

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  #5 in	Video Games > PC Games > Hardware > Controllers > Flight Controls
  #5 in	Electronics > Computers & Accessories > Game Hardware > Controllers > Flight Controls
  #13 in	Electronics > Computers & Accessories > Game Hardware > Controllers > Joysticks

• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: March 22, 2002

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description
The most realistic flight simulation controller is here: the HOTAS Cougar, lifelike in design, lifelike in performance. This is truly "Hands on Throttle and Stick" gameplay. Based on the actual controller found in F-16 fighter aircraft, the HOTAS transports you to the furthest reaches of flight-simulation technology. From the second you grab hold of both the stick and the throttle, you notice the difference. All metal, black, and ready for business--that is the HOTAS. This controller offers up to 28 programmable buttons, multiple programmable hat switches, and adjustable resistance for the throttle, afterburner, and idle detent. These are just a few of the many features of this revolutionary stick and throttle combo. Without question, the HOTAS Cougar is the controller for true flight enthusiasts.

Product Description
Thrustmaster Hotas Cougar PC Flight Stick. When you¿re looking for the best of the best in flight simulation, three words come to mind: precision, realism and performance. The new partnership between Thrustmaster and the Virtual Thunderbirds demonstrates the perfect union of these concepts, bringing the most advanced flight stick on the market to the most skilled hands in aerial simulation. Thrustmaster¿s HOTAS Cougar is unlike any other simulation device on the market. A replica of the legendary F-16, the benchmark in terms of modern fighter planes, the HOTAS is the product of long and considerable investment in Research and Development. Thrustmaster¿s partnership with the prestigious U.S. Air Force adds unique credibility to the HOTAS, since the product¿s functionalities are in every way identical to the controls of the real aircraft. The Virtual Thunderbirds, a leading aerobatic simulation group, are well-known for their skills at reproducing aerial shows performed by the United States Air Force¿s Thunderbirds demonstration squadron, composed solely of F-16 fighter aircraft. A replica crafted for performance. Our all-metal HOTAS Cougar is a real powerhouse of technologies, featuring 28 programmable buttons, adjustable throttle resistance, adjustable Afterburner and Idle detents and a variety of programmable hat-switches, in particular. All of this results in formidable efficiency and great realism in aerial simulation games, notes Eric Mindjimba of Thrustmaster¿s International Marketing Department. We are very happy to be collaborating with leading members of the simulation community such as the Virtual Thunderbirds, as this gives rise to far-reaching ambassadors able to demonstrate all the possibilities offered by the HOTAS Cougar. Co-engineered in collaboration with US Air Force and used by US Air Force for pilot training - a reference in the aircraft sector. Endorsed by the Virtual Thunderbirds and the Russian Knights.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars superficial quality, September 14, 2003

By	G. McNeil (Anchorage, AK United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have been using the Cougar for over a year now and have concluded that it is a combination of the best and the worst in consumer products. In the end analysis it is ok for someone who doesn't mind tinkering, modifying and repairing. If it wasn't for the online community I would have thrown my Cougar away a long time ago. These guys are the BEST thing going for the Cougar. Support from the manufacturer is far from acceptable. Now for the good and the bad.

This product has a great feel about it. Largely because it's all metal, heavy and seems durable. The metal, however, is very soft and, consequently, easy to strip threads. The switches and pots are low quality. Replacement pots are only available through the manufacturer as they were specially made. (I think by CTS) The Throttle Quadrant has a speed brake switch which is on in the forward position, off in the middle position and momentary on in the back position. The switch itself is the toggle variety. It is guided by a plastic guide that works well when properly aligned but there is nothing designed into the product to insure alignment. You'll have to fix this yourself or the guide is likely to break. Fortunately the procedure is detailed in Frugals World Cougar forum.

Programmability is a big plus with the Cougar. Again, if you are not up to tinkering and just want to plug and play, look for something else. If you don't mind spending some time with your face in the manual and working through a profile or two you will have incredible flexibility.

The throttle itself is rather sticky through its range of motion and there are two detents for idle and afterburner. All in all it is clunky and I opted to remove the detents. As far as the sticky motion is concerned I have yet to find a way to fix it.

The Cougar is not really a desktop item. Sure it's heavy and you would think it would stay put but it doesn't. It is a lot more enjoyable when anchored to a platform. If you are contemplating this purchase I suggest that you go to and get familiar with http://cougar.frugalsworld.com/. They will be your primary support group and you can get some insight to the problems and soulutions that the rest of us are working through.
Pay special attention to the instructions when loading the software. There seems to be a problem with version 2.04 that damages the throttle pot.

106 of 118 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars All show, no go, December 14, 2003

By	Ninoslav Tomlinovic "hristo32" (Koprivnica, N/A Croatia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Pros:
1. metal and sturdy (except throttle lever support which is plastic and actually broke on mine). Metal makes for great feel of the stick, much better than any plastic joystick.

2. Vast programming abilities (rivaled only by top competition equipment). This is, IMO, the best thing about the Cougar.

3. Impressive looks and design - a real stunner. Better than any other joystick in this regard.

Cons:
1. Poor gimbal construction. The stick will inevitably develop center play which, in combination with stiff springs, makes the center position feel like a detent - this effectively denies any precision control near the center. A fix for this is available as a 3rd party product, but is costly - almost twice as the Cougar itself.

2. Poor quality potentiometers. With joystick this expensive, HAL (contactless magnetic potentiometers) are the way to go, or at least high quality potentiometers found in competition products. HAL potentimeters for Cougar are also available as a 3rd party product, but are costly (a kit of three is slightly less than 200$).

3. Sticky feel with throttle. The material has quite a difference in friction, which means it is hard to move the throttle, but once you do move it, it is hard to stop it in desired position. No precision here. If the resistance is lowered, the throttle lever falls forward/backward due to its own weight !

Verdict: A wannabe quality product which simply falls short in crucial areas. Requires significant additional costs to make it work as advertised. Definitely not recommended, as there are much better options out there.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TM Cougars: For Hard-Core FltSimmers and tech gurus, July 30, 2004

By	T. Spann (So. California USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Personal Testimony:
Well, Ive been into flightsimming since 1985. Ive owned every one of Thrustmaster's flight controllers since the: FCS/WCS, FLCS/TQS, FLCS-Pro/TQS, FLCS-Pro/TQS w/Dig Upgrade Chips, and now the Cougar FLCS and TQS controller set. All of these still exist are in working order in my "collection bin", except that Im using the Cougars presently.

I have not needed to fix the Cougars and Ive had them for about 2+ years now. With proper care (dust covers and keeping the dust off them), not beating on the stick & throttlem or hamfisting the little switches when using, proper electrical care when plugging them (they do contain electro-static sensitive EEPROM chip); they will last a long long time. These are not plastic like all the previous TM controllers, but rather are metal. Being in a Falcon4 flight sim squadron, I put in about 5-10 hours a week using the Cougars. So my Cougars have been used for at least 1000 hours and dont have a scratch or exhibit any spiking or other symptoms.

Reliability:
While it is true that many have bad pots and switches either from the day they were recieved or after 100s and 1000s of hours of use, the vast majority do not experience this kind of mechanical failure. TM will send you the parts for free if you write/email/call them. Yes, it did take about 4 months for me to get backup parts (I didnt need them yet). And yes, there are HALL Effect (electro-magnetic parts) to replace the moving pots (potentiometers) which make the controllers even more long lasting. This would be for those with the money and is very worth the investment if youre logging 100s of hours in your favorite flight sim.

Complexity:
Cougars are not for the techically challenged or timid flight simmer. You will have to know how to program in the TM button command file language (or just slightly modify the existing ones to meet your needs), know how to hook up your flight controllers to work with the Cougars, understand Windows controller utility, use the TM Command and Control setup software, use the FOXY stick file editor and Cougar maintenance software (which is super), understand flight controls as they relate to the aircraft you are simulating an how that maps to the stick buttons and axes, understand the complex flight sim (for hard core simmers that would be: Falcon4, LockOn, MS-FS, IL2 and others).

Support:
Thrustmaster controllers, and COUGARs in particular have a super user community of technologically adept users that are there to help world wide due to the web forums. (...).
With almost a 100 Falcon4 and LockOn online flight squadrons, which you can find with any inet search engine, there are lots of opportunities to get help and join a online flight squadron. The software and bios (flash micro code) is a free download, as are many user controller files. The negative side is that this is a French and Canadian business (Guillemot) that took over the American owned Thrustmaster company, so there are delays in getting parts and finding new units. One often has to find them on Amazon or Ebay (and I dont advise buying used ones as you may be buying a damaged set).

Value:
Or bang-for-the-buck? One movie date with condiments will cost you near $50 for about 2 hours of fun, or $25/hr. You will get 100s-1000s of hours with TM Cougars. Thats $300/100 or about $3/hour if you only fly 100 hours total (which is not very hard core flight simmer). Thats just the quantitative value. For the qualitative value you have the realism, full functionality and "feel". Realism wise, I own a real FLCS and TQS from a F16-A fighter jet. When you put the Cougars next to the real set, they are almost identical in form and function. In fact, the functionality of the Cougars are user definable due to their programmability - where as the real ones have set functions. Just put the Cougars in your hands, and you will feel the solid construction and will have as close as you can come to the real things in the palm of your hands.

Realism:
See for yourself, compare these real HOTAS from a F16-A with the picture of the COUGARs which emulate those found in a F16-C:
(...)
In closing, the TM Cougars have a steep learning curve and require care, patience, perserverance, technical skills and some serious bucks. They are clearly for the high end or "hard core" flight simmer. The CH Products Pedal Pro (gameport or USB) work well with the Cougars. If you want force feed back, I recommend that you instead get a MS Sidewinder Pro2 USB which is a stick, throttle and rudder with FFB all in one with limited user function programmability. Other sticks and throttles Ive tried like: Saitek and Ch Prod have their place, but must bow to the king of controllers: the TM Cougars.

Fair skies and check six,
AV8R