Our Verdict
Pros
- Great looking wheel
- Extremely high quality finishes
- Feels good to drive with
- Good amount of inputs
Cons
- Potentially pricey although justified
As with every Cube Controls product I’ve tested over the years, you will be able to notice the high level of quality from the first moment you open the box.
Just like the Formula Pro and Formula CSX 2, the GT Pro OMP comes well packaged, with a lovely draw string bag to store your wheel rim in. Along with this, you’ll find the usual screws, manual, and cables to get your wheel rim working. You even get a pair of tweezers included to allow you to apply and remove stickers easily.
There is also a sheet of Cube Controls stickers, which come with every wheel. These stickers are great as they allow you to customise your wheel. You can mark out which button serves a specific purpose, and create your own configuration.
The design of the Cube Controls GT Pro OMP
Once you remove the wheel from the box, you can really start to admire the quality of the GT Pro OMP.
This wheel features a gorgeous OMP Superquadro, wrapped suede steering wheel, which comes in larger than the Formula wheels. The diamter of the GT Pro OMP sits at 320mm, which feels just about right in your hand.
Adding to the quality appearance is the relatively thick 4mm carbon fibre face plate, which is mounted on a machined aluminium body. All edges are bevelled and chamfered to create a smooth finish, which really emphasises the precision and quality.
When you pick up the wheel for the first time, you will notice that it carries a bit of weight. Coming in at 1.6kg, this isn’t a light wheel. In comparison, the Cube Controls Formula Pro rim comes in under 1kg.
However, this wheel is larger than the Formula Pro, so when compared to a similarly designed wheel such as GT wheels from Fanatec. You’ll find products that are around the same weight as this GT Pro OMP, if not heavier.
Overall, when fully mounted to your sim racing rig, and your wheel base of choice, the GT Pro OMP feels just about right. If anything, this added weight, and the thickness of the Carbon Fibre and Aluminium body simply add to the sturdiness.
While I’m talking about mounting this wheel, the GT Pro comes with the standard Cube Controls Universal Hub. This allows you to mount the wheel to a variety of quick-releases depending on which wheel base you use. I’ll cover this a little more in my compatibility segment further on in this review.
The buttons and encoders
On the front of the wheel, you’ll find a selection of push buttons, rotary encoders and toggle switches. Each of these inputs are fully mappable and allows you to control aspects of your car while racing.
There are 5 buttons in total, all of which are backlit, allowing you to easily see them in any lighting. 2 of these buttons are flashing, allowing you to configure them to act as a pit limiter button, which flashes when engaged.
Just like the formula-style wheels, each button on the GT Pro OMP features a raised area around each button. This is great as it simply guides your thumb onto the button, removing the risk of a misplaced button press.
This addition allows this wheel, along with all other Cube Controls wheel rims to be extremely good to use with a VR setup. After a little time, you simply don’t need to look at the wheel to use any of its functions.
Also on the front of the wheel, you’ll find 2 out of the 4 rotary encoders. These are great for adjusting inputs with multiple settings. There is an extremely positive click between each state. This easily allows you to feel how much you have turned the encoder without actively looking at it.
The other 2 rotary encoders are found on each side of the wheel, and act as thumb encoders. These allow you to make very quick adjustments with your thumb. I found these great when mapped as brake bias and differential controls. It allowed me to make minor brake bias tweaks between corners, and became second nature for me.
Finally, there is a joystick on the front, which allows you to flick through menu screens quickly and easily.
Overall, despite having a lower button count than the formula-style Cube Controls steering wheels. There are just the right amount of inputs for racing with a GT car. Not too many to overwhelm, but enough to give you full mid-race control of your car’s setup.
The shifters
The shifters on the GT Pro OMP, use the same mechanism as other Cube Controls products, including the Formula Pro. However, the GT wheel rims do feature a different design to the paddles themselves.
They protrude out from the wheel body about the same, however are much larger in height. This is beneficial for a GT-style wheel rim, as sim racers often use different grip positions. Whereas compared to Formula-style wheel rims where most users are forced to hold the wheel in the same place.
The shifters themselves are constructed from carbon fibre, which feels great to touch. They are magnetically activated, giving extremely positive feedback when activated.
You won’t find yourself accidentally pulling a shift, as there is a nice bit of weight to them. You need to put a little bit of force into the paddle when you pull it, which again feels great.
Cube Controls describe their shifters as “zero play”, and as being a custom-designed short-throw magnetic switchless shifter paddles This essentially means there is little to no movement when you put force through each paddle until it activates.
Essentially, you put a reasonable amount of force into pulling a shift, and it will be pulled towards the sensor via a magnet, before returning to its original position. This whole process of pulling a shift is extremely positive and tactile. You need to exert a reasonable amount of force, and when the shifter does move, it feels fantastic. Flimsy, it is not!
Both paddles are adjustable via an Allen key, allowing you to move them horizontally to find the perfect position. Unfortunately, unlike the Formula Pro or CSX 2 wheels, this GT Pro OMP wheel doesn’t have clutch paddles.
This is a slight shame for the price, although the rest of the build quality does make up for this missing feature within this price point. To find extra clutch paddles on a GT rim, you’ll need to step up to the Cube Controls GT-X, which comes in at double the price.
The build quality
As mentioned in the previous sections above, all of the materials used throughout the GT Pro OMP wheel are of the highest quality. There is machined aluminium, Carbon Fibre and suede throughout.
This heavy use of high-end materials, allows this wheel to stand out of a reasonably crowded sim racing wheel market. The price is certainly higher than other offerings from companies such as Fanatec and Thrustmaster. But the build quality is just that much better.
The strong aluminium and Carbon Fibre base doesn’t allow any flex to creep through. The wheel remains rigid and stiff, even when driving with a strong direct drive wheel base.
I tested this wheel with both my Fanatec DD2, and SimuCube 2 Ultimate, and it held up amazingly. In fact, I’d go as far as saying it was one of the sturdiest wheels I’ve raced with in a while.
Cube Controls certainly know how to build their products with quality in mind. Even down to elements such as the shifters which are constructed from Carbon Fibre.
What it’s like to drive with
This quality echoes through to the performance. As mentioned there is zero flex throughout the wheel. It feels weighty, but not too heavy. It certainly doesn’t hinder your ability to turn the wheel and feels just about the right weight for a GT wheel.
The button and encoder placement are great, as most inputs are accessible without removing your hand fully from the wheel. The button moulding around each button ensures that you know where every button is. When it comes to VR racing, this is invaluable.
I raced almost solely while wearing gloves, but I can imagine the suede wearing over time, especially if racing without gloves. It does feel great to hold, both with and without gloves. The grip itself is reasonably chunky, but not too much. I would have preferred it to be ever so slightly chunkier in my hand, but it didn’t really hinder my experience.
Cube Controls Formula Pro compatibility
Compatibility is an area where all Cube Controls wheels excel. All current wheels in their lineup, including this GT Pro OMP, come with the Universal Hub. This allows you to attach the wheel to a variety of quick releases, for a wide variety of wheel bases.
The GT Pro OMP is fully compatible with Fanatec, Thrustmaster, Logitech, Simucube and AccuForce wheel bases. You will however need to purchase the relevant quick-release adapter for your chosen wheel base.
When buying the GT Pro OMP, you will have the choice between a fully wireless setup and a wired USB setup. And this choice is entirely based on your preference. If you go with a wired setup, then a USB cable is included in the box.
Conclusion
When you look to purchase a high-end wheel such as the GT Pro OMP from Cube Controls, you almost expect a high level of quality. And on this front, Cube Controls do not disappoint.
Every part of this GT wheel oozes quality. This quality goes a long way to justifying its price tag. Talking about the price tag… It is on the higher end of the market.
Priced at around €700, this wheel rim is much more expensive than comparable rims from brands such as Fanatec. However, the overall design and quality of the GT Pro OMP is elevated above the direct competition.
This is certainly not a budget wheel, but in the Cube Controls roster of wheel rims, it is one of their mid-range wheels. Sitting at the top of the tree is the Cube Controls GT-X, which is an all-singing and all-dancing wheel. However, the GT-X elevates the price, just as much as it raises the bar for a sim racing wheel.
With that in mind, this GT Pro OMP is priced very well for the pure design and quality that you’re receiving. And for this price, it is without a doubt one of the best all-round GT sim racing wheels that you can buy today.
Technical Specifications
Review written by Felix König
