Although Asetek has been active in and dominates the global watercooling market for many years, it is a newcomer to the sim-racing segment. Several players are battling it out in the competitive sim-racing segment, and those that survive often have many years of experience behind them. Examples include brands such as Fanatec and Simucube for mid-range and high-end products. But we also have other names like Logitech and Thrustmaster who are much more focused on the entry and mid-range.

Given that Asetek is well known among gamers, and especially those involved in custom watercooling, I imagine that the option of offering entry-level or even mid-range products was quickly put aside. And that’s understandable too. As a result, Asetek, through collaborations, technology exchange agreements and whatnot with the company that owns Simucube, has developed a decent range of sim-racing peripherals. We have the entry-level La Prima, the mid-range Forte and the top-of-the-range Invicta. Don’t worry, Asetek’s products are all premium compared with the competition.

Today, we’re taking a closer look at the peripherals of the La Prima range, i.e. the Direct Drive base, the F1-style steering wheel and the Load Cell pedals.

Main and technical features of the bundle

• 12 nm torque Direct Drive base with Kill Switch button
• Load Cell crankset withstands up to 180 kg of pressure
• Crankset and chainstay made of high-end aluminum for their structure
• Composite steering wheel and aluminum faceplate
• 12 buttons, 2 switches, 3 encoders on the front and 2 more near the thumbs
• RevLED on top of front panel
• PC-compatible bundle only

La Prima bundle design

In terms of design, all Asetek peripherals look very similar, and I’d go so far as to say they’re almost identical, at least for the steering wheels and pedals.

As for the La Prima wheel, its design is quite sober, with an open shape. This means that the grips are not attached to the faceplate, which helps with ergonomics. Apart from a few orange accents, Gun Metan dominates the whole wheel. Overall, it looks good, and there are also backlit encoders, as well as a RevLED on the top of the faceplate.

As for the pedalboard, it’s sublime, closely resembling that of Asetek’s other ranges. Once again, the color Gun Metal dominates this device, with a few orange elements. I think the design is a success, especially the pedals and their CNC-machined structure. This gives it a very industrial, racecar-inspired look.

Let’s finish with the base. It’s a simple, minimalist housing, with the Asetek SimSports logo on the top. This base is identical to the brand’s others, except for the size: the more powerful, the longer.

Customized assembly

The steering wheel uses a QR similar to that of SImucube, with changes to the mechanism that disengages the wheel. As a result, the wheel is slotted directly onto the QR Base Side and stays nice and snug, not moving at all. What’s more, there’s a kind of push-button on the back of the wheel that unlocks the QR and removes the steering wheel at the same time. It’s very practical, by the way, and intuitive too.

The La Prima base uses two methods of mounting on chassis: a front-mounted method using a bracket or directly on the cockpit, and a bottom-mounted method. If you opt for the latter, you won’t really have any trouble finding a rig capable of accommodating this base, as the mounting is standard. What’s more, the power rating is just 12 nm of torque, so there’s no need to shop around for a sturdy chassis manufacturer.

However, the front mounting requires a special bracket, and you’ll also need to remove the front cover from the base. Construction-wise, it’s solid and the mounting is excellent. In terms of design, there’s a gap between the bracket and the plastic cover. It’s aesthetically pleasing and won’t affect mounting in any way, but it does look a bit ugly.

Manufacturing and finishing

The La Prima steering wheel uses a composite structure (carbon fiber and plastic) with a brushed aluminum front plate. It’s superbly well made, and the same goes for the finish, which is almost exemplary. I noticed that some of the controls were a little hard to use, but I don’t know if this is due to my steering wheel or if it’s general. This remains to be confirmed with further tests on the wheel.

The crankset uses an aluminum structure, with all parts made of the same material. It’s beautifully finished, structurally ultra-solid, as well as being beautiful, but I’ve already mentioned that. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a flaw, a burr or anything askew, and that goes for virtually every product Asetek offers. It’s premium, it shows and it feels too.

Getting started with the bundle

The La Prima steering wheel is very easy to get to grips with, just like the Forte range to be honest, and the reason is simple: only a few materials differ between the two devices. The 19 controls (buttons, switches and encoders), as well as the 2 rear paddles, are easily accessible on the fly, in the middle of a race. The only minor problem with the steering wheel I was able to test was that some of the controls, particularly the buttons and encoders, felt a little too hard for my liking.

Other than the controls, the downward-opening grips provide an excellent grip on the steering wheel, especially on F1 or even GT-type titles. The silicone provides a good grip, even when your hands are sweaty. And that’s perfect for long sim-racing sessions.

However, the story of good ergonomics can’t be applied to the La Prima crankset. As I’ve certainly mentioned, the pedals on this device are in a quasi-vertical position, which is really uncomfortable if you exceed 30 mins of use on a GT-type chassis. On an F1 cockpit like the Playseat Formula 1, you’ll have no problem, as your feet will be in phase with the La Prima pedals. But the good thing about this device, unlike the Invicta range, is that you can use it without shoes.

Sensations during play

The pedals

The accelerator pedal uses a 16-bit Hall sensor, and a resistance system that is more or less absent. It’s light, precise and reliable. However, some riders won’t like its exaggerated lightness, while others will swear by it. Personally, I liked Asetek’s gas pedal pedals, and I’m not going to complain.

As for the brake, it’s a rather standard LC with 2 stages and a maximum pressure of 180 kg. To be precise, this is virtually the same system used on the Forte crankset, so the Prima inherits the same shortcomings. You can adjust the hardware and software to suit your riding style, but the experience wasn’t a good one for me. The preload zone is too short, which means you only have a few millimeters to reach the second stage (LC). And the latter is too hard for my taste, hardly moving at all, which makes learning to use this crankset a bit tricky.

The base

The La Prima base is up against the Moza R12, Simagic Alpha Mini and Fanatec ClubSport DD, to name but a few. The competition is certainly tough, but Asetek comes through with flying colors. The power delivered by the base is superbly balanced, whether on light or heavy effects. You’ll have no trouble feeling everything with this device, especially when it comes to responsiveness. I’ve rarely seen a base with so little torque (12 nm) deliver such realistic sensations as La Prima.

The steering wheel

Even though the steering wheel uses composite (carbon fiber-reinforced plastic) and aluminum, its weight is still high, which is a constraint with a base developing less than 15 nm. Nonetheless, you won’t notice much clipping with the La Prima bundle, and the wheel turned out to be pretty good to use in sim-racing, mainly for its QR.

For feel, it’s great in GT, and in F1 you’ll clearly need more paddles. 2 really makes it short for motorsport’s premier discipline, and I hope that Asetek will release a module integrating at least 4 paddles in the future.

Bundle compatibility

Like the rest of Asetek’s peripherals, the products in the La Prima range are PC-compatible only, which is quite normal if you ask me. This brand is young on the sim-racing segment, and Microsoft and Sony aren’t going to supply it as a priority, leaving Fanatec and company behind.

Nevertheless, the Danish brand has emphasized its desire to offer console-compatible products in the future. We can only hope that this future will be near, not far.

Value for money

The La Prima bundle costs just under €1,500 on the Asetek website. The quality ratio of these peripherals is not the best, I must admit, penalized mainly by the crankset. They remain expensive products, which will only be adopted by a specific audience of sim-racing riders.

My verdict on the La Prima Bundle from Asetek SimSports

Just as I’ve seen with Asetek’s other sim-racing peripherals, the star of this bundle is undoubtedly the La Prima base. True, it only develops 12 nm of torque, but the sensations it delivers are simply sublime, perfect and ultra-realistic. It’s a real gem for everyday use in virtual racing, and I can’t recommend it highly enough to virtually all novice racers, amateurs and pros alike.

The La Prima steering wheel isn’t bad, but a bit heavy I find, and woefully understaffed in the palette department. I think you need at least 4 of them for F1 and GT titles, especially if you don’t have a clutch pedal. Okay, the plastic composite may make you cringe, but this steering wheel isn’t excessively expensive either (in the €420 range). It’s still a very handsome, premium device with a very good finish. So, as far as I’m concerned, it passes muster.

And now for the crankset. On a Next Level Racing F-GT Elite 160, the position of the feet is very uncomfortable over long racing sessions. And I think this applies to virtually all chassis that don’t have an F1-style riding position. What’s more, the LC isn’t really attractive, unless you like hard brake pedals that take a lot of getting used to.

Once again, this bundle is a mixed bag, just like the Forte; the base is superb, the steering wheel not bad, but the crankset not so much. If you don’t have an F1 cockpit, forget the La Prima crankset. Otherwise, it’s an option – if you can afford it, of course.

The best alternative to the La Prima bundle

For me, the best alternative to the Asetek La Prima bundle is undoubtedly the ClubSport DD F1 Esport bundle combined with ClubSport Pedals V3. Not only does this combo offer unrivalled steering precision thanks to its Direct Drive base, which guarantees ultra-realistic force feedback, and the V3 pedals, renowned for their robustness and exceptional sensitivity, it’s also more economical. The Asetek La Prima bundle costs €1,478.11, while the ClubSport DD F1 Esport bundle with V3 pedals costs a total of €1,299.90 (€899.95 for the base and €399.95 for the pedals). With a more attractive price and superior performance, the ClubSport bundle represents an extremely competitive option for racing simulation enthusiasts.