New Member Looking For Advice

[Saylor1322]

Im new here and have done some looking around and searches so please bare with me. I know its a little frowned upon to join the group and just look for specific advice without contributing but since Im new to simulators and dont have much experience to offer this is about the only place I have to start. So here it goes:

Im looking to put a simulator in a house that we are currently designing. Ive done about as much research as I feel I can do on my own and talked to several of the companies and now just looking for some real world feedback. So here is the criteria I have so far:
1. Must be able to seamlessly transition from L to R during game plan
2. Must be ceiling mounted I will be using the space as an entertainment area as well and dont want to risk a unit being damaged, plus the L to R thing.
3. Need ability to do multi sport / game (I cant sell this to the wife if it doesnt)
4. Space is pretty flexible but I will have minimum of 14 x 18 and 10ft ceiling height
5. Im looking for something that my son and I can use to improve our game with spin rate, club information, etc. not just a gaming system. If there is something out there that also gives camera / playback features of the swings that would be great as well.
6. Must represent realistic ball flight

So here is where I am with what Ive found so far:

Foresight
- Looking at the Hawk model
- This brand seems to get really good reviews with longevity and technology.
- Not sure I like the FSX software compared to others.
- Does not give putting data / feedback other than the ball rolling for the game
- Also does not give club head data

About Golf
- Ive seen this one in person and it looks like a good system but never played it
- I dont have a good feel for the technical side of their systems and what feedback they provide

HD Golf
- I think I am leaning towards this one at the moment but not 100% sure yet
- The technology seems very state of the art with the cameras, putting options, feedback, etc.
- From what I found it seems that this gives the most realistic ball flight, correct me if Im wrong
- Also seems to have a good multi sport option

Full Swing Simulators
- Price point seems high
- Technology overall seems good and they certainly are proud of the pros that use their product



Obviously price point is going to be a factor in all of this as well. I think overall Im prepared to spend about 40k maybe slightly more if needed but it seems by looking around I should be able to accomplish this within that budget. There is a broker here in the area I live that carries Foresight and Trueflight and his pricing seems to be less than if I went direct with Foresight so that may be a consideration as well.

Let me know what the opinions are on these for what Im trying to accomplish.

Thank you in advance.

[andygg1986]

When you say that it must be able to do multi sport/game, can you be more specific? What sports would you want to play? I think that you are potentially really limiting yourself for a feature that seems gimmicky. At least with Foresight, they are a golf company that said hey, we can track a soccer ball so we will add that as a novelty feature. I can't imagine too many people with a GC Hawk kicking a ball over and over at a screen. Most sports aren't really geared towards working well in a simulator. If you are mainly interested in playing video games on the same screen, then the golf hardware is irrelevant.

I would consider Uneekor based on your requirements. It is relatively new and has very good reviews, and does everything but multi-sport. You can also get it with TGC for golf, a screen, mat, enclosure, and gaming PC for closer to $10k instead of $40k.

[FaultyClubs]

Check out Uneekor threads for another alternative people seem very happy with.

Check the build threads for how do do it far less than $40k.

14x18 seems quite a small space.

No idea what you mean by multi sport.

[Saylor1322]

Thanks I had not checked out the Uneekor ones yet but I will, never heard of them. As far as build I do not want to try to build it myself I dont want to deal with the programming, computer requirements, hookup, etc. I just want a one stop shop for design, installation, programming etc. Not to mention the technical support if something goes wrong.

Also curious why you think 14 x 18 is too small? Ive not talked to any of the companies that suggested anything bigger? From what Ive gathered every system places the tracking device around 12' from the screen so if Ive got 18' depth then I have 6 feet behind where your hitting as clear space giving me plenty of room. Maybe the 14' should be closer to 16 or so but Ive got that as well.

For multi sport there seem to be some systems out there that have soccer games, hockey activities and even baseball that can be played on the system. They dont provide the same training feedback but still a fun entertainment option for the family. I believe about golf has this since the one I saw at the home show advertised it and I believe HD Golf has this specifically for hockey not sure of the others. Realistically the multi sport is just a gaming system for the family to enjoy as part of the package.

[FaultyClubs]

Installation is trivial IMHO. You're spending about $30k to save a few hours of work. But everyone is different so that's fine.

Is your space 14 or 16? You said 14. If that's the hitting area and it opens into a larger space OK. If it's a closed room it would feel small to me. You'll need space for furniture, cameras, computers, TV, sound system, people etc, etc.

No input on gaming system. The G'kids use our space for real games though. Hockey, soccer mostly but also football and Frisbee. They do that more than golf. Lol. That and movies.

[3on3putt]

18 feet in length is fine. Frankly I'd be more concerned about the 10 feet ceilings than anything else (but I'm also taller with long arms).

At 14 feet you would likely have to be offset a little with two hitting areas (for both righty and lefty). The overall size doesn't lend a lot of space for spectators, but it's fine for 1-2 people to be in there.

With a budget of that size, you could build a really cool shed somewhere on your property or knock down a wall and build an extension or something that would give you even more space and really open up the opportunities. No sense in sacrificing anything if you have that kind of money to spend. Most people are nowhere near that amount in their builds.

If you're looking for other sports just purely for fun and entertainment (and not actual practice), why not just throw a Nintendo Wii or something in there with all the sport specific attachments and call it a day? Then you can choose a golf simulator that is not dependent on having other sports (which is going to limit your options).

[Saylor1322]

I've double checked my plans and have closer to 17 width and then 18 feet is what I'm planning for the turf area. Beyond that I've got about 18 feet of open space where I am going to put a sectional or stadium seating. On the width the limitation Iis a support colum but I'll also have about 15 feet to the one open side past the column.

For games a Wii is a good option and the xbox kinnec .

[3on3putt]

I've double checked my plans and have closer to 17 width and then 18 feet is what I'm planning for the turf area. Beyond that I've got about 18 feet of open space where I am going to put a sectional or stadium seating. On the width the limitation Iis a support colum but I'll also have about 15 feet to the one open side past the column.

For games a Wii is a good option and the xbox kinnec .

So 36 feet in total length? (18 for "turf area" and 18 more in "open space")

[Saylor1322]

Yes 36 total length from the screen to the opposite eall

[JKCapeCod]

The Uneekor is a great choice. We have been up and running for 3 weeks, it is fantastic. Really liked James at InHome golf for advice.

[Saylor1322]

The Uneekor is a great choice. We have been up and running for 3 weeks, it is fantastic. Really liked James at InHome golf for advice.

Thank you Im going to look into that system.

[baker2217]

After 2 years of research, I finally pulled the trigger and put in an HD Golf System in September. I love it. I’m happy to post pictures, videos, answer any questions, whatever you’d like...

The Multi-Sport shooting games are fun...but I didn’t get that many (just shooting and Dodgeball, which is crap)

[htdumps]

Take pictures of the cameras, tell me about how you or they installed and calibrated it.

[Saylor1322]

After 2 years of research, I finally pulled the trigger and put in an HD Golf System in September. I love it. I’m happy to post pictures, videos, answer any questions, whatever you’d like...

The Multi-Sport shooting games are fun...but I didn’t get that many (just shooting and Dodgeball, which is crap)

Thank you I actually did a demo today on the HD and sent them my plans to get a complete quote on the system.