Sim-racing has taken off in leaps and bounds in recent times, not least thanks to the advent of racing simulation peripherals. It’s become very easy to set up a simulation setup, and not too expensive either, depending on how immersive you want to be.

For many gamers, sim-racing means having a Direct Drive base, a quality steering wheel, a Load Cell pedal unit and a cockpit with a bucket seat. The main objective is realism, immersion in the race, and this is achieved with quality peripherals and a coherent setup.

You’re certainly not going to get much immersion playing on a table with a belt-driven base. Admittedly, it’s more realistic than an Xbox or Playstation controller, but it’s still a long way from the degree of reality that a cockpit with quality peripherals, making excellent retranscription of effects.

Speaking of effects, there’s one that’s rather difficult to reproduce in an enclosed environment, and that’s wind. It’s true that the solution that comes to mind is to buy a standing fan and put it in front of you, but this remains a very rudimentary approach, providing little effect, and even less immersion. But fortunately for us, there are always ways of achieving certain goals, and Alpha Wind Simulator is one of them.

What is Alpha Wind Simulator?

As the name suggests, this is a device for simulating the effects of wind in a sim-racing setup. The principle is rather simple, but perfectly executed: we have two turbines that mount on your chassis, and 2 pipes are attached to each turbine to direct the airflow. A control module completes the solution for dynamic management of wind speed, direction, curve, intensity, etc., all supervised via software(SimHub).

How to use Alpha Wind Simulator

Using the Alpha Wind Simulator involves a few fairly DIY steps, not least its installation. The kit includes 2 turbines with their tubes (available in several colors), the control module and all the hardware for mounting on a chassis.

Once in place, you’ll need to connect the control box to your PC and configure the wind effects via SimHub. This is the software that will enable you to manage the turbines according to the effects the car undergoes, such as changes in trajectory, speed, and everything else related to wind in general.

Cost of Alpha Wind Simulator

Currently, the kit retails for around €250, which is honestly not that expensive. Admittedly, it’s not really essential to have the effects of the wind on your sim-racing setup, but it does add a good layer of realism and immersion, making it a must-have for some racers who are in pursuit of the ultimate setup, blurring the barrier between reality and virtuality. And that’s priceless.

Is it worth installing such a kit on your setup?

Answering this question is much more subjective than objective. Some racers will find it useless and prefer to put that money towards upgrading their setup to a more powerful sim-racing peripheral, such as a more powerful DD base.

However, there are some racers who seek the ultimate in immersion, and wind effects remain a key element in making you feel like you’re behind the wheel of a race car on the track. With the sensation of speed heightened, the wind swaying from side to side and the noise, the line between sim-racing and reality becomes blurred, making such kit essential for some virtual drivers.

My review of Alpha Wind Simulator

In my opinion, the Alpha Wind Simulator kit will find takers among a rather niche category of sim-racing racers. It’s certainly not going to be adopted by the masses, if only for the price, even if the latter is affordable in absolute terms.

If you’ve got the money and all you need to integrate into your setup are wind effects, then Alpha Wind Simulator is a good choice. If your setup is under construction, it may be worth considering if you still have some money left over.