Stephen Posted February 6, 2016 Report Share Posted February 6, 2016 Aircraft Update Review - Embraer E175 v1.1 by X-Crafts No matter how many t's are crossed and every i is dotted it is impossible to cover every single aspect of a first release of a quality aircraft. So the speed of an update and the spread of the coverage to clear those unforeseen bugs and fix those missed items and even add in a few extra new features is really the point an aircraft really starts to shine and you can see how good it really is. This is the first update for X-Craft's excellent Embraer E-175 which was released in early December 2015. This v1.1 release certainly does cover a lot of ground and there are a few changes to the actual way you operate the systems of the aircraft, all in the name of refinement. X-Craft's E-175 is certainly a big step forward from this progressive developer. Modeling and design wise it is overwhelmingly a lovely aircraft, you simply can't fault that aspect of the machine. Internally the E-175's cockpit it is a great place to fly an airplane. But there was something just slightly missing when you flew it. The word that comes to mind is clunky, not a big clunky but a quality refinement missing clunky, small almost non-existent items jerked or activated with a bit too much sharpness and no matter how great everything else worked and looked you felt it was just slightly missing the mark. It is what I call the missing 5%, that ever small gap that brings the aircraft to the high standard we all expect for our payments. But that 5% is also the most hardest if impossible margin to close, and I will make it clear that no aircraft will every be 100% perfect but you can get close, very close. And you really feel that in this v1.1 E-175 update that a lot of that gap has been well and truly closed. Certainly it is a far more smoother and competent aircraft, not that I stress again the base release aircraft was bad or awful in the first place because it wasn't. but this version has a greater refinement now as part of the package. There are a few changes as well and a couple of new features of where we will start. The release aircraft did come with this "Enhanced Winglet" design but the operation to change them was messy. Now they are just a menu choice selection away as there is a new menu selection to switch them over in the plugins list. Menu selections on the left lower of your screen are still very good, The GPU can now also be disabled on the OverHead Panel (OHP) as well. Startup your "Pushback" and now when you "Accept" the menu's disappear except for the "C" Checklist tab. Weird at first but you get used to it. On the other end when you park the aircraft and set the "Brake" and the aircraft is below 100ft AGL the menu's reappear. I found that originally they didn't come back correctly and when I needed the external GPU to power the aircraft when I shut the engines down, that is now fixed. On engine startup you really notice a big change... the sounds. The sounds have had a significant overhaul and they are seriously better, deeper and with far more variation, besides a third party addon package they are now very good to excellent. The sounds have been refined in volume as well in the flaps were too loud, and the startup sounds were (really) average. You really notice or know the undercarriage is in the (going) down position in flight because the wind sounds have been refined and heightened, and so a significant upgrade there. The main landing and taxi lighting has been refined to meet the X-Plane 10.50 conditions, still just slightly too large but far better than the large globules of light before. Wingtip lighting has also been adjusted and tightened to make them more realistic. A small note on that the engine fans are now running in the right direction... did you notice that? The FMS has had some attention as well. There was an issue of a warning that a flight plan .fms file exists when selecting a file-name to use when saving the current route that warning has now been overrided. The coding has been corrected in that now it does not properly detect and reject waypoint misplacement if the waypoint is an NDB, and a VOR with the same NAVID that is found before the plugin finds the correct NDB waypoint. The display of the FLT PLAN page when no waypoints have been loaded is now correct. You now also have the ability to read tail.txt files, placed in livery folders. This change allows the RADIO 1 page to display the actual tail number for the aircraft depicted in the livery. The maximum number of characters that can currently be displayed is eight (8). The Default is "ERJ-175". Your choice if you like the new enhanced winglets is to your personal preference. But I think it is all very Batmanish and they make the aircraft very wide in manoeuvring around tight airport ramps. If you read the release review you would know the E-175 requires a set procedure to takeoff and climb correctly and needed a little practice to get the right rhythm to get it perfect. No doubt this update makes that procedure far smoother, better and you can't now use the ATHR (Auto Throttle) until you are airborne. This stops you from setting the ATHR on the ground and letting it power up the engines and sending you cascading through the scenery. A welcome addition. There has been a lot of adjustments to the Primary Flight Display (PFD). The artificial horizon was wrong in value and that has been corrected (it was terrible in the pitch) and the Vertical Speed (V/S) indicators are now correct. And that annoying vertical black line has also been banished. The CRS (Course) indicator now works. On the MAP display there is now a VOR pointer (I still would like one on the lower rose on the PFD) and NDB arrow. The clicking areas have been enlarged (way too small before) and the range + & - was the wrong way round, and replaced by a finger manipulator. You can now actually change the range by using the range indicator on the main MAP display which is very handy and easier than fumbling around menus. A few items around you in the cockpit have been touched up... The windshield is less shiny now in the center for better visibility. (and the glass stays in the window frames when you open them), and there is a new chrono clock. But the biggest changes are the ones in the movement and actions. The aircraft feels so much more refined in the actions and controls, and I found the flying process far more easier and certainly better. It is the small stuff, the tweaks you can't see or touch that can give you the better feedback that the aircraft is just that... better. Liveries More new liveries have been added to the package, including a sensational Embraer house paintjob. Others include Lufthansa Regional, Two Star Alliance in LOT and U.S. Airways Express and a Tulip United. The Alitalia Livery has had some attention with more detail as well. This aircraft looks great in any livery and there are now 22 to choose from from donators of their excellent work. Highlights are... British Airways CityFlyer, HOP! (Air France) and two variations of the KLM "Cityhopper". There is now an excellent paintkit available. This is an aircraft that you never tire of looking at. In this regional design it looks great at any angle, just a nice looking aircraft. This was the same route as with the review from KRSW (Florida Southwest) to KATL (Atlanta) and you just power there is a regional. It is an aircraft to enjoy and just do your job of flying point to point and doing the flying as efficiently as possible, get in groove with the E-175 and you really enjoy the aircraft. But it does demand you fly it well, and give it a lot of professional attention. 5000ft on the money and a turn to finals for RWY 27R. The ILS vertical diamond has been corrected and looks correct now, which I found annoying before. Gear down and the better sounds tell you enough that you don't have to look at the indicators to know they are down in the slipstream. Over the fence and a nice smooth landing on 27R gives you good feeling... As noted once you brake up you get your menu's back and and can shut down the aircraft... There is a GHDHanding set for the E-175 at the JARDesign site to add in more ground handling animations. Summary E-175 1.1 update No doubt a lot of tuning and ground was covered with this update. Not that the E-175 from X-Craft's was in need of attention on its release. But there is a lot of nice changes and just an overwhelming feeling that the aircraft is now much more complete and more refined for the changes. I ran many runs between KRSW to KATL (five actually) and loved the aircraft more and more each run, and compared to the release version it is certainly more smoother and more professional in the way it is controlled and activated... so all in all a really great update. _________________________________________________________________ Yes! the Embraer E175 v1.1 by X-Crafts is NOW available from the new X-Plane.Org Store here : Embraer E-175 Price is US$34.95 If you have already purchased the Embraer E-175 from X-Craft's at the X-Plane.OrgStore then go to your account and upgrade to v1.1 for free. The update is online for download now. Full release X-PlaneReviews E-175 review is here: Aircraft Review - Embraer E175 by X-Crafts Features Accurate dimensions based on drawings and documentation provided by Embraer © Windows, Mac and Linux compatible Custom FMS Custom pushback plugin with animated tug On-screen checklist plugin - Plugin menu for door control, ground objects or GPU Tested by a real Embraer E175 pilot CUSTOM FMS both the custom and stock FMS are available on the pedestal or as popup panels More details about the FMS below INTERIOR: Amazing 3D modeling of cockpit and cabin High resolution textures High resolution Embraer style PFD, MFD, EICAS displays Pop-up screens, pop-up radios panel MFD with 8 synoptic pages and a new improved Navigation displa High resolution textures on panels - Text is crisp and clear to real Intuitive cockpit manipulation - I have always taken great care to make the cockpit as easy to use as possible. This means all clickable areas in the cockpit are very big so that you can easily click on any button, knob or lever in the cockpit Each switch, lever, knob, and handle is animated Detailed cockpit lighting - All cockpit lights are controllable Cargo area modeled HUD equipped EXTERIOR 4K High resolution textures (fuselage 10000px/meter squared) Highly detailed landing gears Flap and speedbrakes mechanisms modeled Realistic Wingflex animation 2 versions of winglets available 9 Liveries included so far and more are on the way! OTHER FEATURES compatible with UFMC, X-FMC compatible with JAR's Ground Handling Deluxe Night lighting, Nav and Strobe lights cast light on the surroundings Obviously a set of custom sounds 10 Liveries available ______________________________________________________________________ Requirements : Windows, MAC or Linux. X-Plane 10.40+ (any edition) 4Gb RAM - 1Gb VRAM Current version: 1.1 (last updated February 6th 2016) (Note aircraft is very good on framerate, playback is current with similar sized aircraft and features) ______________________________________________________________________ X-Crafts Developer Support : ERJ - 175 by X-Crafts - X-Plane.Org ______________________________________________________________________ Review by Stephen Dutton 6th February 2016 Copyright©2016: X-Plane Reviews E-175 Full 1.1 changlog is: - Ground equipment and pushback options are now restored after landing - The winglets can now be changed through a plugin menu - There are now 12 liveries included in the package and 21 additional liveries available at the x-plane.org forum (http://forums.x-plane.org/index.php?showtopic=91249) - More details and dirt added to all liveries included in the package - Engine start sounds fixed - Cockpit windows are fixed (the glass of the windows wasn't moving) - New avionics sounds - New chrono clock - Reverse now works separately with hardware throttle - Clicking spots on the MFD are all bigger now - very easy to click on all the buttons - Vertical ILS diamonds fixed - CRS indicator in PFD is now working - GPU can now be turned on and off on the overhead panel - ATHR can only be engaged after takeoff - Cursor changed when changing the range in MAP Options menu. (TIP: You can also change the range directly from the range indicator in the map!) - windshield was shiny in the middle - VOR bearing pointer added to the NAV map - Alitalia livery has many added details - Flap sounds inside are too loud - Updated xfmc and xchecklist config files - Fans were rotating in the wrong direction - The lights on the new winglets also illuminate the surroundings now - Big misplaced nav lights on winglets corrected - Artifitial horizon was showing wrong values - N E S W highlighted on the FMS - The little black line on the EFIS horizon is gone FMS changelog: - Corrected ability to override warning that a flight plan .fms file exists when selecting a filename to use when saving the current route. - Corrected coding that does not properly detect and reject waypoint misplacement if the waypoint is an NDB, and a VOR with the same NAVID is found before the plugin finds the correct NDB waypoint. - Corrected display of the FLT PLAN page when no waypoints have been loaded. - Added ability to read tail.txt files, placed in livery folders, allowing the RADIO 1 page to display the actual tail number for the aircraft depicted in the livery. The maximum number of characters that can currently be displayed is eight (8). (Default is ERJ-175). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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