We need to talk about the braking feel

Something happened in one of the updates post v1.3 that has made the braking feel too snaggy and sensitive, sort of like in early access times. With the Logitech pedals I'm used to having to run like 30% sensitivity and 85-90 brake pressures, but even that seems to to not work any more. The problem is that the brakes just lock too easily and there is no good communication in the FFB or sounds about where the threshold is. I'm reduced to driving by guessing what the threshold might be.

Furthermore, ABS feels broken or at least dysfunctional in this version. GT3s require you to threshold brake at all times even from high speeds or lock the brakes, which is not a thing at all (they lean heavily on the ABS irl). ABS between 1-7 does nothing, the wheels still lock. ABS between 8-10 is too intrusive and destroys your braking distance. Other ABS cars like the 190 EVO feel completely hopeless. Even with ABS at 9 you still spin out braking in a straight line with 65% brake bias. I had to start pumping the brake like I was driving a 1960's Trabant to prevent spinning. It didn't use to be like this a few months ago.

How are people managing to brake consistently post v1.3? Does everyone just have $1000 load cell pedals now?

 

I noticed this as well and Im using Heusinkveld Ultimate+ pedals.
Been turning down brake pressures to avoid locking my brakes…

 

I find that if I don't recalibrate my pedals every time I use the SIM then I have what is described. I just put it down to my set up. It takes only a minute so I just do wheel and pedals everytime I play.

I also thought that as the pedals are easier
to press than a real life pedal that I was just pressing too hard so I try to not over brake. Anyone that is behind me in a race will see that I don't have the braking sorted

 

?

So many people so many opinions
Perhaps the brake feel is changed a little, but nothing I can't fix with a little adjustment to my car setup.
Perhaps "old" setups are used?
EDT: Just did some testing with Merc 190 EVO, default setup, and everything feels quite normal, ABS seems to work

 

At least some of the brake problems could probably have a relation to this Thrustmaster issue:
I cannot understand how the brakes in this game work

 

For the nay-sayers who still believe there is nothing wrong with AMS2 brakes, here is a real life Stock Car Brasil driver on AMS2 complaining about the unrealistically sensitive brakes:

 

Same on my TLCMs.

I do agree that something in the brake feel has changed since 1.3. I'm not sure what exactly it is, but I feel that cars are less stable under braking and brakes lock a lot more easily.

 

I have been able to get some cars to completely spin out under heavy braking with very minimal steering inputs with the default brake settings, the Corvette GTE is one of them.

 

I agree something has changed of late with the braking as I've spun out under braking multiple times.
With default + I find it happens even more. I like the feel of the load transferring forward when braking, but the force is so overpowering that it drowns out all other details and your left guessing what the car is doing and sawing at the wheel.

I've reverted back to the default ffb which makes the braking really flat but more controllable to a extent...they still lock up alot and abs on cars that use it (GT3) don't seem to be working right.

 

This looks like a real cool thing to watch. Unfortunately, my portuguese sucks big time.

Can't say that I'm having the same issues as you, not having any troubles under brake besides fading under sustained loads on cars with steel brake discs. But that's the complete opposite of what you are experiencing, I can confidently lean on the longitudinal limit of the tyres.

Just wanting to get all variables out of the way: on what cars are you experiencing such behaviour? What changes are you doing to the default setups, besides brake bias and power?

 

In short... a year ago, braking was one of the few thingsthat was good in ams2, now I often have the feeling that bringing a car to a hold is taking to long... like 50m from 100, when it should be 30m.

 

I agree on this - but not that it was OK before.
I have discussed this with one of the devs in Raceroom because I dont feel that (more or less) ANY of the sims I have tried does brake as hard as its possible to brake in RL in a racing car.
His name was Alex something.
But we didnt get to a common agreement

Lets take any formula car in RL.
You often see if a driver does panic that he is able to block his wheels almost instantly.
Even in F1.
To the best of my experience this is not possible in any sim.
If you as example try to brake fully to block the wheels as example driving 200km/h in a formula car then the car slows down but the tires begins not to scream/block until the speed is about 120-140 km/h.
AMS2 isnt worse than comparable sims.

My oppinion is that its because the different tire models isnt able to calculate or simulate such an abrubt change in rotation (and urgent here) grip change.
All commercial TMs are only able to calculate/simulate gradual changes.
(IMO).

ByTheWay: In another thread (cant remember) I have described a talk I had with a scientific engineer at a visit to Bridstones lab in Luxemburg about this RL vs virtual sim(plification) of change in grip.
Find it if you are not convinced

 

when the game came into early access it was like you are describing and noone liked it, hence why they turned down the brake pressures.

u just cant compare driving in reallife with driving infront of a monitor. you will never get the gforce like you feel IRL.
IRL you can easily drive a car even while being deaf and you will feel if u are braking to hard, since the whole car vibrates and soon you will get to know how much gforce you need to feel before the car locks up, and then you just go by that.

simulating just doesnt make much sense here.

maybe it has something todo with the gforce related camera they have recently added, maybe they add that so you can "feel" the gforce by camera tilt
total guessing i havent even played the game for weeks

 

I agree with that.
At least its not how braking in reality is that is simulated.
But to repeat myself then AMS2 isnt worse than the other commercial competitors.

 

I guess it's a problem with tire grip AND braking. Something is plain wrong here. Take the BMW M3 Sport Evo and deactivate ABS. accelerate and brake hard. You can now push the car at constant 100km/h over the tarmac with blocked front tyres. The concept of any modern car RL is to make the brakes be able to stop the car even if the engine is stuck at 100% Throttle. In case of AMS2 it's the tires that don't do the job to bring up enough brake grip.

 

Last night I was trying to set some laptimes in time trial with the Ginetta G55 GT4 Supercup & Super V8, but the brakes were too sensitive for my taste, brakes locked up too easily. I know it has nothing to do with the fact that I'm using controller because I can drive a bunch of other cars just fine.
Realistic aids, default car setup (90% brake pressure), Nurburgring GP, hard braking resulted in instant lockup and spin out, but even even pressing the trigger only halfway resulted in lockup and spin out. The only way to avoid lockup and spin out was to either feather the brakes or to pump the trigger around halfway depending on the corner.

 

@FS7
I hear your critique - but I guess Im not the only one here who cannot really take a critique, based on how AMS2 react to the rather on/off brake swith on a game pad, serious.
I mean I know exactly how I would react if a RL car journalist in as example Top Gear did control my favorite RL car with a game pad.
And then told me (or Mistar Clarkson) that something is completely wrong with this car.
At least I know how Clarkson would react

 

Now I agree to an extent but I feel it can still be greatly improved in AMS2.

Out of all the Sims I run, iRacing I find has the best braking feel through the ffb. ACC is pretty good too.
You can feel the initial brake bite, the forward weight shift, with some camera ques, the wheel has a tightening feel that builds up while giving a squirming feeling of keeping the car balanced under heavy braking, a pull to a side to indicate which tire locked than goes light when for lock ups till grip is regained.

AMS2 really depends on the ffb file used.
Default and say the rfuktor file are very flat/vague and I find your relying on the camera gforce and audio cues.

Default plus is better as you can feel several of the cues iracing presents but the forward weight shift is so overpowering and happens so quick it feels like the car is gonna loop and when it does there is zero detail of what the rear is doing.

If they can find a happy medium between default and default + while toning down the brake sensitivity it would be great.

 

I use an analog controller, I can modulate brake & throttle fairly accurately and see how much brake/throttle I'm using on the hud, but for the 2 cars I mentioned even when trying to be more gentle with braking the brakes on those 2 cars lock up too easily imo.

 

OK