Simrig SR3

June 2020... We installed Simrig SR1 and started a journey that I never in my wildest imagination thought would lead me to where we are today, with a dedicated sim-racing room and a rig worth over €38,000. But it was there that much of what we use today began, thanks to how durable the Swedish Gothenburg gang Simrig's 3DOF motion systems really were. "Could they be placed on top of another motion system to simulate full motion?" After weeks of measuring and discussing with the guys behind the SR products (which are hand-built in Sweden), the answer was yes, and the rest, as we say, is history. The SR1s were replaced by the SR2s, which were a clear step up in quality and detail in terms of emulated car movements, and now it's time again.

The major difference between the SR1, SR2 and the newly released SR3 is the strength of the engines. Simrig has put 1000 Watt Italian motors in the SR3s, which is their most powerful electric motor ever, and it allows them to move a rig (plus driver) of 250 kgs rather than the 225 kgs of the SR2s (SR1 can handle 175 kgs). The stronger motors also mean that, like the comparison with a pre/post combo versus an integrated receiver, the SR3 feels a little more controlled than its little brother. If you feel that the SR1 and SR2 are a bit too "soft" in the way they convey bumps and unevenness in the road, the SR3 is the right choice as it feels stiffer without being too hard.

When it comes to 3DOF motion simulation of this kind, there's a lot of peculiar things going on across the board if you ask me, as most of the big name manufacturers either only offer motion systems that appear to be rumble motors without a sufficiently long travel path, or motion legs that hit so hard that you need a safety belt and mouth guard to use the rig in question. For example, at one point I tested the Dbox D5, which on the whole mostly just vibrated (if I only want vibrations, I buy bass shakers for one per cent of the Dbox price). In 2022, I also tested Sigma Integrale's system, which hit so hard and generated such violent motion that my kidneys hurt, and even though a fair simulation of real-life racing is what we all strive for when pursuing this expensive hobby at this level, I want to be able to play for a couple of hours without having to take painkillers afterwards.

With SR3, Simrig has found a brilliant balance between a system that creates empathy and lots of movements in a convincing and detailed way without "punishing" me as a user with far too hard blows that basically only emulate suspension at the bottom. Like the SR2s, the SR3s work with seven milliseconds of input lag and at a speed that measures 100 millimetres per second. They can travel seven centimetres up and down, which makes them ideal for rallying or rallycross. Here at Gamereactor we mostly play EA Sports WRC, Richard Burns Rally (with Next Gen Physics 7.12) and especially Dirt Rally 2.0 and in all three of these games this system performs wonderfully well. There is no delay whatsoever between what happens in the game and what SR3 does and via Simrig's own software, it is super simple to set exactly how much motion you want.

One of the innovations with this system is that Simrig has moved away from the old mounting system where we attached two 20x20mm rails under the aluminium profile rig and on top of these we mounted the SR2s. The SR3 comes with four aluminium brackets that are basically just a horseshoe bracket that is mounted at the waist of the system and directly on the side of the profile rig. Smooth and super simple, it also looks better than before and tidier. All four legs are still connected to an ECU box that is the smallest and most convenient to handle on the market. Forget four large metal boxes (one for each leg) as in the case of all competitors, forget cables as thick as garden hoses (as is the case with all competitors, too), here it is narrow, fine wires and a single box that is easily screwed to the underside of the rig.

If you've never done sim-racing with a 3DOF system like this, it's probably hard to grasp how much better the experience really is. I quite often hear those who drive without a motion system say that motion is "just confusing and still doesn't feel like real movement in a real car", but nothing could be more wrong. In many cases, it is hardly the same thing and for those of you who are thinking of buying here, we can only give the SR3 our best recommendations. If you perhaps prefer GT4 racing in iRacing and only want to emulate what happens under the tyres when you step over the curbs and the "rumble strips" that surround the curves at Seabring, it is of course perfectly possible to set the Simrig SR3 system to, say, 25% and let the detail of the motion emulation take your gaming to the next level. In the same way, you can make your entire rig bounce up and down like a roller coaster if you set it to 100% in all possible directions, which makes these motion systems optimal even for those who spend most of their gaming time in Microsoft Flight Simulator or similar titles.

Swedish Simrig offers the best performance for price in the entire global market currently, and with SR3 they have taken another step forward. With a smart form factor, quality engines, brilliant mounting options, easy instructions, fantastic customer support and great software, it's easy to once again give high marks to a new SR system.