An Honest Review on the PXN V99
This is the PXN V99—a sim racing bundle from PXN that comes with a force feedback wheelbase, a detachable steering wheel, a set of pedals with a clutch, and even an H-pattern shifter. Did I mention it also works on Xbox, PS4, and PC?
Competitively priced at around $230, it's in stark competition with the likes of the Logitech G29, Thrustmaster T150, and T128. PXN sent it to me for review, and after several hours of use, I have a lot to say about it. So, in this review, I'll be going over all the good, the bad, and how I think it compares to its fierce competition.
For simplicity's sake, I'll start by going over this product's pedals, followed by the shifter, steering wheel, and ending with the star of the show, the wheelbase itself.
PXN V99 Pedals
The included pedals in the V99 bundle are immediately noticeable for their unique design. They feature stark blue accents peeking out from the bottom, with the rest following suit.
The pedals themselves have a futuristic/robotic look, which I must admit grabbed my attention. Unfortunately, their looks are undoubtedly their best attribute. There's extremely minimal adjustability, with no way to adjust their resistance or position on the pedal plate. The most you can do is slightly adjust their angle and marginally move the pedal faces, so again, not much.
In use, these pedals are comfortable. They have a large, smooth heel rest that works well, and the pedals can be used with or without shoes without any problem. Mounting is facilitated through four hard mounting inserts at the bottom, and I can imagine you won't have any issues just laying them on the carpet or floor and using them as is since all three pedals have such little resistance.
On that note, their in-game performance is underwhelming, but for an entry-level set similar to those included with Logitech and Thrustmaster bundles, they do the job. Hall effect sensors are found in every pedal, which should help with longevity and reliability, and they all have a good amount of travel.
Unfortunately, getting a good feel from these pedals is nearly impossible as they have a very dead feel, with almost no resistance on the throttle and clutch and only a tiny bit more on the brake, which I could easily press down with my hand just to give you an idea. This resulted in me constantly locking up on track when using cars without ABS, and since the throttle is so easy to push down, I found myself spinning out more often than I would have liked.
Of course, I could imagine getting a bit more used to them over time, but for now, they are more about the looks. At the end of the day, for an entry-level pedal set that comes included with everything else, they perform as I would expect. It's great to see they come with a clutch and look pretty good—something I can't say about the Thrustmaster offerings this set competes against.
PXN V99 Shifter
Moving on, one of the most interesting and unique things bundled with this set is the H-pattern shifter. However, like the pedals, considering it comes bundled with everything else at this low price, it's not going to be anything extraordinary—in fact, it's quite the opposite.
Nearly identical in design to the Logitech Driving Force shifter, this one from PXN is made entirely from plastic. It features a gated 6-speed mechanism and two additional buttons that can be mapped in-game. Reverse gear can be accessed by pushing down on the knob and slotting it into the 6th gear slot. Mounting can only be done using the included table clamp, which has a large enough range to accommodate most desks and shifter plates.
The bronze accents give this shifter a premium look, but that's about it in terms of anything upscale. The build quality isn't the best, with a very short shifter rod and an entirely plastic knob that even wiggles side to side when gripped in the palm of my hand. As you can imagine, the shifting feel is also nothing to brag about. There is very little resistance when flowing through the gears, all of which are very close to each other. It's certainly not made with immersion and realism in mind.
However, what this shifter is made for is just fun. Despite its poor quality and feel, it was still enjoyable to have the action of shifting through gears when just looking to have a good time. I would never use or recommend anyone use this when racing competitively (trust me, just use the paddle shifters), but if you're just cruising and looking to have a good time, it ultimately does the job, and I found myself having quite a bit of fun with it. It's also worth noting that the shifter clamp did a great job firmly holding the shifter in place, and the two mappable buttons were a nice and handy touch—something neither Logitech nor Thrustmaster offers in their respective H-pattern shifters. So, my ultimate assessment of this shifter is that it's not great at all, but at least it's something, and at least it's included—something the competition doesn't do.
PXN V99 Steering Wheel
Moving on to the steering wheel, surprisingly, this is where I think PXN may have done a little too much. Though it's entirely based on personal preference, I don't like the look of it, and the two columns it has leading up to the center plate even negatively impacted my in-game performance, which I'll speak more about soon. But anyway, the quality here is decent.
To start, this is a 300mm rim, which immediately feels bigger and easier to use than the 270mm diameter rims of the G29 and T150. Moreover, it's wrapped with a very grippy rubber material that provided a comfortable, sweat-resistant in-game feel. The functionality is okay with 14 mappable buttons on the faceplate, all of which feel nearly identical to those on an Xbox controller. I think having at least one rotary encoder would have gone a long way, but instead, PXN included not just clutch paddles on the back but also a detachable quick-release system.
The QR system works similarly to the ones used by Thrustmaster, in the sense that you have to hand-tighten it, but that's expected at this price point. The paddle shifters here are also okay. They have a metallic finish that looks nice, and they have a very clicky action and noticeable noise, making it clear when you have pressed them. The clutch paddles have a very mushy feel, which isn't anything to write home about, but at least they're included.
One thing I really don't like about the paddle shifter module is their placement. Being so close to each other, I often found myself accidentally pressing the clutch paddle when trying to upshift or downshift. I really wish PXN had placed it slightly lower than it currently is. I also wish they were a little quieter, but that's more of a nitpick than anything else. In-game, this steering wheel did a good job. As I said, the rim is comfortable and has good thickness, and combined with its rubber finish, it gave me plenty of grip. Its 300mm diameter was also commendable, along with the placement of all the buttons, none of which were particularly hard to reach.
Undoubtedly, my biggest gripe with this wheel is the top handles, which not only make the wheel look bad but genuinely got in the way many times when I was reaching back onto my wheel after shifting gears. Not just once or twice, but on many occasions, my hands would gravitate to that top handle, where I would feel something was off and need to readjust my hand placement, something that shouldn't happen with any sim racing wheel. I feel that if PXN had stuck with a more typical design for this steering wheel, it would probably be a far more popular product. Ultimately, other than that, for the money and its target market, this is a very competitive offering, especially with its 300mm diameter.
PXN V99 Wheel Base
Now moving on to the star of the show, the PXN V99 wheelbase, where you already know I have lots to talk about. Sleek in design, it’s almost identical to the PXN V10 and even resembles a direct-drive wheelbase, but don’t be fooled—it's not. Inside is a dual motor, gear-driven mechanism that outputs up to 3nm of torque and comes with its own quick-release system.
The housing is small and sleek and comes with a pre-attached mounting plate that can be adjusted. This mounting plate will be necessary if hard mounting onto a cockpit or wheel stand. If you don’t have either, a table clamp mechanism is also included for maximum versatility. Behind the base, you’ll be plugging everything in, making sure to connect everything to the base if you’re on console, or you can independently plug in the pedals and shifter via USB to a PC.
Taking it out on the track, there's a lot of good and bad. Starting with the good, unlike the G29, the PXN V99 is silent in operation and can have its force feedback adjusted entirely from the PXN mobile app. In fact, no software is available for this base; it is entirely controlled within the app, where the changes are noticeable, albeit limited. Before tinkering with the software, the wheelbase was underwhelming, but after making a few changes, there was a very noticeable difference to the point where I was actually surprised.
Details in road texture, bumps, and other effects are noticeable, albeit not very pronounced, and the force feedback was enough to make me at least competent on the track. For a wheelbase of this price, there was also a good bit of resistance, helping with the realism and immersion factor. In this sense, it felt very on par with its competitors as it provided a force feedback experience that was enough to benefit the driver, but it wasn’t enough to feel truly immersive like a more expensive and capable direct-drive wheelbase would.
In terms of what's not good, there are several important things to consider. For starters, the V99 has a maximum rotation of 900 degrees, which is enough for most but not for those looking to primarily drift, rally, or play trucking sims. Speaking of drifting, I can’t see this wheelbase being great for that because, especially compared to the G29, I found it very slow to rotate. For example, when I would crash and purposely let go of the wheel, the wheelbase was very unresponsive and slow to react, and its return to center took quite a bit.
The final big negative I found when using this wheelbase was the flex, not from the wheel rim, but from the quick-release system. No matter how tightly I secured it, there was always a noticeable amount of play, which became increasingly apparent depending on my style of racing.
Other than those issues, the overall performance of the V99 was on par with its competitors. The responsiveness was slower than I would have liked, but the detail and feedback I received were enough for most types of racing and expected at this price.
Conclusion
All in all, my experience with the PXN V99 bundle was, considering its price and what it offers, a good one. There wasn’t anything that particularly jumped out at me as special or impressive, but considering that you get this many things for the same price as Logitech’s and Thrustmaster’s offerings is very commendable. This is further elevated by the product's console compatibility, the fact that it can have interchangeable wheel rims, and that it comes with a clutch.
On the flip side, the main advantages of Thrustmaster will be its wide ecosystem and extensive game compatibility, while Logitech will provide tougher competition with the G29 and G920’s leather-wrapped wheel, more responsive force feedback, and better quality pedals. Overall though, the PXN V99 is an extremely strong contender in the entry-level force feedback market and one that I certainly wouldn’t brush aside.
OC Score: 5.7
PXN V99 FAQ’s
What is included in the PXN V99 bundle? The PXN V99 bundle includes a force feedback wheelbase, a detachable steering wheel, a set of pedals with a clutch, and an H-pattern shifter.
Is the PXN V99 compatible with consoles? Yes, the PXN V99 is compatible with Xbox, PS4, and PC.
What is the maximum rotation of the PXN V99 wheelbase? The wheelbase has a maximum rotation of 900 degrees.
How much torque does the PXN V99 wheelbase output? The wheelbase outputs up to 3nm of torque.
Does the PXN V99 have interchangeable wheel rims? Yes, the PXN V99 features a detachable quick-release system, allowing for interchangeable wheel rims.
How is the PXN V99 wheelbase mounted? The wheelbase can be mounted using a pre-attached mounting plate for hard mounting on a cockpit or wheel stand. A table clamp mechanism is also included for versatile mounting options.
Can the pedals and shifter be connected separately to a PC? Yes, the pedals and shifter can be independently connected to a PC via USB.
What materials are used for the steering wheel? The steering wheel is wrapped in a grippy rubber material, providing a comfortable and sweat-resistant feel.
How many buttons are on the steering wheel? The steering wheel has 14 mappable buttons.
What kind of shifter does the PXN V99 bundle include? The bundle includes an H-pattern shifter with a gated 6-speed mechanism and two additional mappable buttons.
Are there any notable drawbacks to the PXN V99? Some users may find the wheelbase's maximum rotation of 900 degrees limiting, especially for drifting or rallying. Additionally, there may be some flex in the quick-release system, and the paddle shifters' placement might not be ideal for everyone.
How does the PXN V99 compare to other brands? The PXN V99 offers a strong entry-level force feedback experience, comparable to other brands like Logitech and Thrustmaster. It stands out for its console compatibility, interchangeable wheel rims, and included clutch. However, it may not match the build quality or responsiveness of higher-end models from these competitors.
Is the PXN V99 suitable for competitive racing? While the PXN V99 is a solid entry-level option, it may not offer the same level of immersion and responsiveness as more expensive setups, making it less ideal for competitive racing. However, it provides a good experience for casual and beginner racers.
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