[STEAM] AU Deals: A Vigorous Hands on With the Moza AB9 FFB Flight Stick and Where to Score it Cheap!

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Though I was very much raised by the teachings of one Pete "Mach 2 with his hair on fire" Mitchell, I chase something more rabidly than Maverick's need for speed—my next gobsmack of force feedback. The more you can shake me, like the 12Nm-producing topic of today, the happier I am. Frankly, that's an intimidating amount of pushback on paper, which makes Moza's optional

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seem like a perfectly understandable purchase.

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I'm already quite familiar with Moza’s brilliant efforts in the

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(and even

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) racing space; this is the first time I’m seeing them deliver something for the stick jockeys. The claim from this peripherals powerhouse is that it’s marrying some already impressive proprietary force feedback tech with state-of-the-art engineering. A lack of actual Gs notwithstanding, I can early confirm that today’s setup gave me probably the most physically engaging flight experiences I’ve felt since that time I was

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.

We’ll turn and burn into the specific reasons why in a second. For now, though, let me provide some prices for the impulse buyers who wish to eject to a purchase without further info. If that’s not you—because that certainly isn’t how I barrel roll—then

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to my continued hands on thoughts.

Moza Flight Test Gear

All About That Base

With the AB9 Base, Moza is hoping to become the untouchable Iceman of moderately-priced flight peripherals with these dual servo motors which deliver 12Nm of peak torque. Through those beasts, you’ll not just feel the expected jolts like explosions when you bite it in a dogfight or get out of control sausage roll below the hard deck. No, the AB9 can also make the subtler, more incidental stuff feel amazing, too, like taxiing, takeoff, landing, and turbulence (where you may or may not get into a flat spin and get NPC Goose killed).

Impressive to look at and constructed from aviation-grade aluminum alloy with a quiet, fanless design, the AB9 is smoother than a Pete Mitchell karaoke pickup maneuver, and it resisted the mild beating I gave it during some high-stress sorties in an FA/18 in DC World. I also love the faux leather insert that reeks of quality, is rigidly built while not being restrictive to movement, and basically just makes me miss every manual car I ever owned.

Otherwise, the stick connector here grips whatever you slot/****** into it like a gorilla, and the plug supports third-party flight sticks primarily of a Thrustmaster or similar design.

Connection is a cinch with one USB-A and a power cord running to a sizeable brick bearing a needlessly neon 'Moza' logo light. As for physical installation, you'd be nuts to try and use this without screwing it to a sim rig or using the optional extra desk bracket. It lets you top mount on a desk (with ****** holes located under the base) or slung off desk and lower, near your hip/******* (using the bases' rearward ****** mounts).

If you're going with the more ideal latter config, definitely make sure your desk suits the two wind clamps and their 70mm attach allowance completely. No not-quite-flush "half-screwed-on" approach is going to work for long. This 157 x 227 x 204 mm chonk is already 5.5 kg without a stick attached (6.3 kg with). And that's before you the FFB tries to give your wrist a run for its money—depending on how extreme you set things in the user-friendly Cockpit Control software suite.

Incidentally, said software plays remarkably nicely with MSFS2020, X-plane 12/11/10, DCS, IL-2, and War Thunder. You can click from a range of presets quickly and be chocks away in no time.

The Stick Selection

My current favourite pick of sticks to use with AB9 Base unit is the MH16, pretty much a fighter pilot's dream choice. As I'd expect from Moza (and the asking price), it feels the goods in your grip and is quite weighty due to its aviation-grade aluminum alloy construction. Better yet, it's bristling with 30 input functions that can be easily remapped. That includes an 8-way ALPS hat switch, which feels nice and responsive, plus a trigger with an endearing, slightly ker-chunk surety to it.

If you're like me, you can always do with more buttons and customisability; Moza has got your back like a good wingman here, too. The MH16 flightstick utilises detachable expansion modules that are extremely easy to remove or attach via a system of pogo pin connections. I also appreciate that there's an adjustable wheel to raise the mini hand rest up as well, and in terms of comfort, I had no complaints after hours of intense dogfighting.

If you're not an ace out to scratch off bogies, your next best option is the MA3X Side Stick. Obviously, it's more based upon traditional passenger aircraft controls with a smooth resin-like finish (which means fingerprints aplenty), and you're down from 30 input signals to a more manageable 12.

The MA3X's simple good looks are matched by its reasonable comfort. Much like its fancier dogfighting brethren, I couldn't find a bad input in this bunch either—everything is lovely and clicky, though the responsive trigger, expectedly, only has one stage of fire when you yank it.

Logging Flight Hours In

When I snap on the MH16 and strap into an FA/18 in DCS World, I'm pretty impressed with the feedback. The shake of the cockpit is communicated quite decently through both the base and the stick during takeoff; both the rumble of the wheels and throttling up make their presence known. There's also a pretty magical moment when you shake off the surly bonds of gravity, the ground vibration and thrust falls away, and you feel the manipulation of control surfaces like ailerons and/or elevators as your bird levels and the AB9 stops trying to vigorously shake hands with you.

Flying through feel. Oh, how I've missed this.

Obviously, when you tilt and bank into a sharp turn from there, that G-force pressure comes right back as the servo motors tighten around the stick. That expected result might sound like a simple and obvious thing, but it's also satisfying and long overdue. FFB is a sensation I've missed in flight sims since my Sidewinder Force Feedback 2 died about a decade ago. Hell, even just having a subtle cruising speed engine rumble coursing through the AB9, against my forearm, and through my fingertips is a treat.

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I decide to shift gears by trying something less military and more sedate (but with a twist for optimal force feedback testing). I boot up MSFS2020, clip on the MA3X Side Stick, pick an appropriate aircraft to suit it, like an Airbus A320, and then go trying to recreate Sully Sullenberger's water landing in the Hudson River. We can blame

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for putting that film in my recommendations for this unorthodox testing idea.



Again, thanks to some preset selections beforehand, MSFS2020 instantly plays nice with the AB9, and taking off from LaGuardia in a 75-ton beast (instead of a nimble fighter) feels as weighty and colossal as I'd hoped. Even though this is a fly-by-wire aircraft, I still marvel at the tension on the stick and the FFB accents that are coming through; things like stall buffeting, elevator drop, deceleration effects, flap rotations, gear motion/buffeting, and, of course, damage (in this case catastrophic, because I'm not skilled enough to repeat the miracle that was).

At the end of the day, I was left extremely impressed with the Moza Flight Simulator Ecosystem. Now that those opportunistic patent trolls have moved away from FFB flight sim materials and the door's reopened for moderately priced peripherals to re-enter the space, the AB9 represents a game-changing bit of kit. Also, if you combine this long-missed, "prodigal child returns" tech with more modern hardware advancements, like VR, the immersion level can truly go stratospheric.

Adam Mathew is our Aussie deals wrangler. He plays practically everything, often on

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