Gaming Seat Experience the topmost gaming seat ever!

Review by O:

Racing games need a wheel, and wheels need to be fixed to something steady. I missed playing racing games because the standard controllers just do not fit the bill. The good news is that the seat is allowing me to rediscover racing games.

Despite being 6ft3 200+ lbs the seat is comfortable; I can even slide my 6 year old in, and play with him steering and me on the pedals. Both the pedals and steering wheel attachments are adjustable with its max range out of the comfortable reach of my legs. If anything, they should make it work for smaller folks like my 6 year old, who cannot reach the pedals. He is 4ft, I expect you need to be at least 4ft6. The seat folds, but think twice if you want it to pack away discreetly in a tight corner; in this regard the manufacturer's photos are accurate. The only thing that I would really add are channels to enable the wires to be discreetly routed; with just 3 cables for the wheel, it still looks like a mess of spaghetti. The steering wheel attachment could be a bit stiffer, but I do not notice this when playing. They also include loads of Velcro and ties to keep things attached. Bottom line, if you like racing games, and want to treat yourself, this seat will fit the bill.

Review by Donovan Myers:

I bought my Playseats Evolution Gaming Seat back in 2007 around the time that Forza 2 came out for the Xbox 360. I also purchased the Microsoft Xbox 360 wireless racing wheel. I also own a PlayStation 3 and a Logitech Driving Force Pro wheel that I have used with the seat.

I can't recommend this seat for the following reasons:

1. The included "seat" that gets mounted to the whole thing is very cheap and not even close to a real car seat. It comes "folded up" and you basically unfold the back section. Because of this, there is a metal rod that runs across right where my backbone hits the chair. Since this is a "cheap" chair, it does not have very good lumbar support and after a few races my back really begins to feel the metal rod.

2. The steering wheel mount is designed to pivot up and down, but it is very hard to get the bolt tight enough to keep it from pivoting up and down when you're actually using the seat. Occasionally you'll have to yank up on your wheel to pull this mount back into position.

3. Wheel support & Nickle and Diming. The Xbox 360 racing wheel I purchased with the seat didn't mount well and I had to hack together a solution using some foam material (craft store) and particle board. Eventually I made it work. Since I bought my seat, I see that Playseats has introduced a 360 wheel mount solution (for extra money) as well as seat rail sliders, stick shift holders, etc. For 0 all of this stuff should be included. Especially with how low quality the seat actually is.

The Xbox 360 pedals work fine w/ the pedal mount if you jam them back under the lip which causes some scuffing and wear to the pedals. The Logitech Driving Force Pro wheel works well with the steering wheel mount but there is no reasonable way to attach the pedals. I don't believe zip-ties and velcro are an acceptable mounting solution (though PLENTY are included).

4. This may come down to personal taste, but, the between the legs design results in a very flimsy, unstable feel to the whole thing.

As some other reviewers have mentioned, I also wondered if I received a "used" product. My box was very badly damaged (but everything inside was okay).

If you can pick this up for 0-200 and are willing to put some work into it (replacing/fixing the seat rod issue, welding the steering wheel mount so it doesn't pivot, etc) then it might be a decent value.

Review by O:

Racing games need a wheel, and wheels need to be fixed to something steady. I missed playing racing games because the standard controllers just do not fit the bill. The good news is that the seat is allowing me to rediscover racing games.

Despite being 6ft3 200+ lbs the seat is comfortable; I can even slide my 6 year old in, and play with him steering and me on the pedals. Both the pedals and steering wheel attachments are adjustable with its max range out of the comfortable reach of my legs. If anything, they should make it work for smaller folks like my 6 year old, who cannot reach the pedals. He is 4ft, I expect you need to be at least 4ft6. The seat folds, but think twice if you want it to pack away discreetly in a tight corner; in this regard the manufacturer's photos are accurate. The only thing that I would really add are channels to enable the wires to be discreetly routed; with just 3 cables for the wheel, it still looks like a mess of spaghetti. The steering wheel attachment could be a bit stiffer, but I do not notice this when playing. They also include loads of Velcro and ties to keep things attached. Bottom line, if you like racing games, and want to treat yourself, this seat will fit the bill.

Review by Donovan Myers:

I bought my Playseats Evolution Gaming Seat back in 2007 around the time that Forza 2 came out for the Xbox 360. I also purchased the Microsoft Xbox 360 wireless racing wheel. I also own a PlayStation 3 and a Logitech Driving Force Pro wheel that I have used with the seat.

I can't recommend this seat for the following reasons:

1. The included "seat" that gets mounted to the whole thing is very cheap and not even close to a real car seat. It comes "folded up" and you basically unfold the back section. Because of this, there is a metal rod that runs across right where my backbone hits the chair. Since this is a "cheap" chair, it does not have very good lumbar support and after a few races my back really begins to feel the metal rod.

2. The steering wheel mount is designed to pivot up and down, but it is very hard to get the bolt tight enough to keep it from pivoting up and down when you're actually using the seat. Occasionally you'll have to yank up on your wheel to pull this mount back into position.

3. Wheel support & Nickle and Diming. The Xbox 360 racing wheel I purchased with the seat didn't mount well and I had to hack together a solution using some foam material (craft store) and particle board. Eventually I made it work. Since I bought my seat, I see that Playseats has introduced a 360 wheel mount solution (for extra money) as well as seat rail sliders, stick shift holders, etc. For 0 all of this stuff should be included. Especially with how low quality the seat actually is.

The Xbox 360 pedals work fine w/ the pedal mount if you jam them back under the lip which causes some scuffing and wear to the pedals. The Logitech Driving Force Pro wheel works well with the steering wheel mount but there is no reasonable way to attach the pedals. I don't believe zip-ties and velcro are an acceptable mounting solution (though PLENTY are included).

4. This may come down to personal taste, but, the between the legs design results in a very flimsy, unstable feel to the whole thing.

As some other reviewers have mentioned, I also wondered if I received a "used" product. My box was very badly damaged (but everything inside was okay).

If you can pick this up for 0-200 and are willing to put some work into it (replacing/fixing the seat rod issue, welding the steering wheel mount so it doesn't pivot, etc) then it might be a decent value.

Review by Joe Carson:

I just got my Cohesion XP 11.2 gaming chair today and I love it. This is the first gaming chair I've ever gotten and I have to say this is more than I expected. The speakers are great on highs and lows and the quality of the sound is great. The built in sub can go very very deep and pierces you very nicely. The chair is very comfortable and easy to maintain and set up is very easy. Overall this chair is just amazing but there are a few minor setbacks. First the package that comes isn't your ordinary brown cardboard box but one with pictures and description of the product inside so you might want to make sure your home when delivered because leaving a blank box with a 200 dollar product on your porch for hours is sometimes unsettling as it is. Secondly you need to buy a female to male adapter if your tv doesnt have a headphone jack or no go. Thirdly the chair isnt fully wireless because those speakers need a stronger power source than a few batteries. Fourthly is its mainly for people under 5' 6". Lastly it is expensive but you get more than what you pay for in my opinion. Bottom line if you want a great gaming chair and are willing to shell out over 100 dollars then this is the chair to go with.

Review by Andrey:

Pros: Well built. Leather wheel feels much better than plastic. Clutch, break, gas all have different push pressure. Feedback force feels great. I just hope the motor won't give up on me any time soon!

Paddle shifters made out of metal and when shifting they feel very durable and firm.

Installation was a breeze.

Cons: The leather is no BMW quality! However, as mentioned before, it's much better than plastic wheel.

The screws that attach the wheel and shift stick to the table are made of plastic and give impression if you screw them too hard they'll crack. But so far so good.

Lots of cables. But I just taped them together and it's now manageable.

Have no horn button?..

I don't have much to say about manual shift stick. It feels alright but I don't use it in any games( takes longer to shift), only paddle shifters.

I've never tried g25, so I can't compare them but judging from the pictures, extra buttons on g27 give a bigger advantage.

Overall, I'm very satisfied with this product.

Games played with G27: iRacing, NFS Shift.

Review by I. R. Smart.:

I had the privilege of owning its predecessor several years ago, the G25, so I knew mostly what to expect with this new G27, but I was still expecting so much more from Logitech. The expression "Logitech giveth and Logitech taketh away" seems most pertinent.

So, let's start:

Opening the box and getting everything out is very simple. All the parts are well designed, but you're immediately greeted with what I think is the biggest issue with the G25/27 set, - the cables. So many cables! 400 cables! (at least it feels like it)

The wheel has a cable coming out of it that goes into your PS3; the pedals have a cable coming out of it; the shifter has a cable coming out of it, and then there's the power brick that has a cable to be plugged in. All these cables plug into the wheel itself, and it's definitely not a pretty sight. I don't know about other people, but I don't have a place where I can leave my steering wheel/shifter/pedals plugged in 24/7, so setting all this up and putting it away again is a COMPLETE pain in the rear.

Putting the cable issue aside, there's a lot to like with the G27. It's an improvement over the G25 in many ways:

1.) The G27 wheel uses helical gears (or diagonal-cut gears) vs the G25's straight-cut gears. What this means is that there's a reduction in noise when turning the wheel, and it's also smoother while maintaing powerful force feedback! Great stuff!

2.) The shifter on the G27 no longer has a sequential mode (i.e. clicks up and down only), which is no big loss to me. I prefer either the regular 6-speed or using the paddle shifts on the wheel. While it may seem that this is still a LOSS compared to the G25's 6-speed AND sequential shifting, the new addition to the G27 is that the gears don't CLICK into place. On the G25, every gear change would greet you with a CLICK as the gear was put into place. Logitech have removed this sound so the gear movements don't hurt your ears with their plastic sounds as the G25 did. Now, some people have modified their G25 shifters to remove this sound, but it voids your warranty and I've read of several people irreparably breaking their shifters by doing this... In any case, for me, the G27 shifter is an improvement over the out-of-the-box G25 shifter.

3.) The pedals are now adjustable, which makes it a joy to heel-and-toe while racing. The pedal layout is a huge deal more comfortable than on the G25 pedals. This, for me, is a huge improvement. My right foot would get very uncomfortable with the G25 layout.

4.) There's a new set of tachometer LEDs on the wheel, though I've yet to play any game that supports them yet... It's a neat little feature, though, if it does as advertised.

5.) The G27 also has some more buttons on the steering wheel, which you can customize, of course.

So how does it play?

VERY well, depending on the software!

Need for Speed: Shift PS3:

I first tried out Need for Speed: Shift on the Playstation 3, and was pleasantly surprised to see that no setup is needed, and the controls just work. In fact, it even shows you a picture of the wheel/pedals on the control screen (albeit just the G25, but still...). It's great to have the wheel work out of the box with no tinkering. THAT said, there's perhaps too much force feedback in Shift to be particularly comfortable. The faster you get, the more the wheel fights with you. At 120mph, it's very hard to keep the wheel straight. I've track-driven several times at near 150mph speeds at times, and I can safely say my steering wheel doesn't fight me in real life like it did in the game...

So, for ease of use with Shift, I'd say 5/10. It's just too hard to keep the wheel straight at relatively high speeds...

Gran Turismo: Prologue PS3:

NOW we're talking. None of the fighting I experienced in Need for Speed: Shift, and plenty of smooth corners and subtle force feedback. It's fair to say the force feedback is a tad muted in Prologue, but it's infinitely more comfortable to play than Shift, and a real joy to hit those apexes time and time again. 9/10.

Overall, this wheel is excellent, but the pain of setting it up is just too much to ignore. It really is a cable nightmare. The wheel, pedals and shifter could easily be wireless by this point, meaning the only cable needed would be a power cable to the steering wheel for the force feedback to work. I suspect the inevitable G29 will remedy this, as the way the G27 currently works is a direct copy of the G25 which is 3 years old as of November, 2009.

Overall, though, a great wheel, if you can be bothered to go through the setting it up...!

4/5

Note: This wheel is for PC AND PS3.

Review by JJAM:

I bought this for my husband for Christmas, and he loves it. He said he would give it 4.5 out of 5 stars. The downside's of it he said are, the directions are confusing in a few parts on how to put together. It is a monster to move sometimes (our computer is hooked up to our 42in plasma screen, so it can't stay in the same spot at all times). The accessories are a pain to get onto the chair.

Other than that, he loves it, says it's great, and is perfect for either PS3 or PC racing games. He primarily does the Need for Speed series, and it works like a charm.

Review by Rah B Koz:

Used with a Logitech Force GT wheel and pedals, this is an amazing place to play GT5 Prologue.

The wheel clamps perfectly to the top plate, and I routed the cables down the support tube (with a dremeled slot in the end cap for the cables). The pedals were stuck down with the included velcro and cable ties.

There is plenty of adjustment room for different size drivers (4 foot tall to 6 feet tall), and its comfortable too. I found myself watching a movie in it.

It's heavy (50lbs), which makes for a solid perch, but moving it out of the living room is a chore, so prepare to decorate the room around it.

The installation instructions are not that great, but a reasonably able person can put it together in a few minutes.

Review by D. Bowman:

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R1C5ZG3IKESHH6 Hopefully my video review will answer any questions you have about this seat set-up.

This is a great product, well built and quality made.

This seat makes playing the latest driving video games feel as real as possible.

Review by L. Shaffer:

I compared this racing seat to virtually every other competing product in the market. By leaving no stone unturned I feel I was prepared for the few "downsides" to this product, and as a result I feel really good about this purchase. Let me go into a few more specifics, and keep in mind most of these comments universally apply to any of the Playseats Evolution seats.

Strong points:

- The unit was in perfect condition, well packed, and no blemishes or defects of any kind.

- It looks spectacular. Particularly mated to a g25 wheel, the black and red accents mirrors the black and red of the g25 wheel and it honestly looks like a single kit. Really sporty and eye catching together. I love the black frame. For what it is, it looks pretty hot.

- Incredibly light. If you have carpet it can easily be slid in and out of the room. It would be difficult to lift it alone, but I can slide mine into the viewing room and then out into a storage room in seconds. When you remove the "setup" time, the entire product becomes more valuable and it is this portability that won me over in selecting this over competing products. The kicker is it looks so good I doubt I will move it unless we have formal gatherings.

- It just feels like it was made for the logitech wheels. The included bolts, hole patterns, size of each attachment point...it just goes together so seamlessly.

- Solid. I had concerns regarding wobble in the videos I watched while researching this product. With the logitech wheel I find the unit extremely solid in racing conditions. Keep in mind there is some metal flex and movement. This is one of the tradeoffs for a unit that you can actually move and I was prepared for this. Push hard on the pedals and you can feel the pedal base flex. This is not really a problem as there is no sliding of the pedals/wheel, just a little flexing of the metal that does not impair performance in any way. To get more stability you would be adding weight, and I tend to think Playseats achieved just the right balance. Again, nothing in the unit wiggles, there is just a tiny amount of flexing under forceful use.

- Comfort is fine. Would I choose to sit in this to watch a movie? No, probably not. On the other hand it is conforms well to body shape and is perfectly comfortable for such a light weight seat. The quality of materials is top notch and I noticed no uncomfortable contact points. Again, a great balance between adequate comfort, "racing feel", and light weight.

The negatives are few. I had heard the support bar in the middle is a problem, and this was my biggest concern. It was totally unfounded. I brake and accelerate with my right foot, and use the clutch with my left foot...just as I do in a real car...and I have never bumped the support bar. I actually enjoy the support bar as I have started to intentionally use it as a guide for where my leg placement should be. The ONLY way I can see the bar becoming an issue is if you wanted to brake with your left foot and use your right for the gas. Otherwise the bar adds to the stability and disappears during the game, just as it should.

The one big con is the adjustment method. The infinite adjustments are wonderful. The problem is every time you tighten the adjustment screws you completely gouge the paint. They should really adopt a clamping system and do a better job of lubricating the joints where it slides. Accept that the bottom bar is going to get scratched up and you will be fine. Functionally it is just fine, and the adjustments are great.

At the end of the day the seat not only met my expectations, it actually surpassed them. The unit looks outstanding and it performs flawlessly with the g25/logitech wheels. Playseats really struck the right balance in this product. It could perform with equal success as a permanent racing cockpit, or as an accessory you slide out of the way when not in use.

Other notes:

- The optional gearshift accessory is great. I find it to be the perfect height despite comments that it is a little low, so that may vary depending on user. It is rock solid.

- I have not tried the microsoft wheel or Forza3. It just looks so great with the black frame and red accents that I havent brought myself to remove the g25. Sorry I can't comment on the pairing of that product yet.

Review by JJAM:

I bought this for my husband for Christmas, and he loves it. He said he would give it 4.5 out of 5 stars. The downside's of it he said are, the directions are confusing in a few parts on how to put together. It is a monster to move sometimes (our computer is hooked up to our 42in plasma screen, so it can't stay in the same spot at all times). The accessories are a pain to get onto the chair.

Other than that, he loves it, says it's great, and is perfect for either PS3 or PC racing games. He primarily does the Need for Speed series, and it works like a charm.

Review by Rah B Koz:

Used with a Logitech Force GT wheel and pedals, this is an amazing place to play GT5 Prologue.

The wheel clamps perfectly to the top plate, and I routed the cables down the support tube (with a dremeled slot in the end cap for the cables). The pedals were stuck down with the included velcro and cable ties.

There is plenty of adjustment room for different size drivers (4 foot tall to 6 feet tall), and its comfortable too. I found myself watching a movie in it.

It's heavy (50lbs), which makes for a solid perch, but moving it out of the living room is a chore, so prepare to decorate the room around it.

The installation instructions are not that great, but a reasonably able person can put it together in a few minutes.