An Honest Review on the SHH Sim Racing Shifter

H-Pattern shifters for sim racing have always been… a bit… out of touch. The inexpensive ones have always been mediocre and the expensive ones are good... but expensive. And there’s really been no in-between. So that’s where SHH Shifter comes in: a sub 100 euro H-pattern and sequential shifter that is actually good? Let’s find out.

The SHH shifter retails for €98 and for that, you get quite a bit. This includes the shifter itself with either a 7-speed or 6-speed plate, the included shifter mount of your choosing, both a sequential and h-pattern knob, a USB Type-B cable, all of the necessary alan keys needed to adjust and configure everything to your liking, and a 1-page sheet with all the instructions.

Though this shifter has been out in the market for several years now, the version I have (the most recent) is substantially different from previous versions seen in other, older reviews on YouTube. According to the company, the newest version has had 25 substantial changes from the original model with smaller revisions and updates here and there.

The outer casing is 3D-printed and features the company logo on the front. The shaft is made from aluminum, and the internal components are CNC machined and reinforced to withstand wear and tear. The shifter plates are made from high-quality thermoplastic and offered in a variety of finishes. Mine is wrapped in carbon fiber vinyl but they also offer loads of customization when it comes to nearly every aspect of this shifter and you can find more on their website if you’re curious.

A few of the most notable features of this shifter are the following:

It uses magnetic sensors which transmit data without any physical contact. This greatly increases the longevity of this shifter as the sensors wear out less and are less prone to malfunctioning.

You can use this shifter in both an H-pattern and sequential mode and interchange between the two in a matter of seconds. All you need to do is push down and turn the knob 90 degrees to the right and you’re in sequential mode. You can also use it with the optional sequential plate though that is not required.

You can adjust and fine-tune the force and feel of this shifter with the included alan keys. All you need to do is carefully loosen or tighten a few internal screws.

Finally, it is plug-and-play. Simply connect the single USB cable onto your PC, bind the shifter in-game, and you’re good to go. There aren’t any drivers needed or anything of that sort. That being said, this shifter will not work on consoles. It only works on PC via USB.

All that being said though, how does it actually perform in-game? 

On the H-pattern mode, it feels quite good. The shifts are consistent, have a short throw, and it's very apparent when you have put it into gear. Unlike the Logitech shifter which has a very subtle feel, this one feels very mechanical. At the highest spring resistance, it requires a good amount of force to move around but I felt it was too snappy. It was either you are in neutral, or you are in gear with no good feel of the transition when up or downshifting.

Lowering the resistance, I got it to where I liked it. It required less force, but I felt more in control when flowing through gears. As you’ve noticed, the shifter itself is quite compact which means that in action, it has a short throw and all of the gears are very close to each other. In this sense, it felt very similar to the Logitech shifter and very different from the Thrustmaster shifter which is significantly bigger. While its compact size isn’t necessarily a bad thing, I did find myself miss-shifting every once in a while. With its mechanical feel, it was a lot less common than with the Logitech shifter, but I still did find it occurring every here and there. Of course, this also has to do a lot with the driver's skill so keep that in mind.

In essence, the H-pattern mode was impressive. The shifter can be quite snappy, but with the right adjustments and enough practice, I could see people being seriously quick with this. Moreover, it has a very tactile feeling to it which makes it feel more realistic compared to its competition at this price.

The sequential mode is where I found myself really enjoying this shifter though. As I stated before, switching to the sequential mode only takes a few seconds and in-game, it felt very realistic. A good amount of force mixed with the mechanical feeling of the shifts meant it was always clear when I had up or downshifted and it also felt very satisfying to do so. I can confidently say that this sequential mode felt far better than the somewhat bland feeling of the TH8As.

With all that being said though, there are two substantial drawbacks I found throughout my time using the SHH shifter.

The first is that there was a good amount of flex and movement with the mounting system I was using. This mount mimics the standard Logitech and Thrustmaster mounting system but no matter how tight I had it onto my rig, I still felt, and visibly saw a good amount of movement, especially when quickly shifting. Keep in mind that there are a variety of different mounting solutions available when purchasing this shifter so while this was a problem for me, it might not be for you depending on your mounting situation.

The second main problem, and probably the biggest thing to worry about, is the rigidity and long-term reliability of this shifter. Its entire outer shell is made from 3D printed plastic which is a big reason why this shifter can remain so affordable, but at the same time, it always made me conscious and more wary of how I went about using it. It didn’t feel delicate, don’t get me wrong, but it certainly didn’t give me the confidence to throw around and beat, as I would otherwise do. I’m not saying this shifter will break after a few months of use, but what I am saying is that I felt a lot more cautious of how I treated it in-game. Moreover, unlike the Thrustmaster or Logitech shifters which prevent from dust and debris from entering the internal components, the SHH shifter and all its internal circuit boards and sensors are a lot more exposed to dust or anything else that may perhaps find it’s way in there and this could cause problems down the line.

As for my conclusion, I’ll keep it very short. The SHH shifter provides truly great value for money and if you want the manual experience at an affordable price, I totally recommend it, just keep an eye out for how you treat it.