The VelocityOne Race KD3 racing wheel and pedals set is the most recent bundle of driving sim gear from Turtle Beach, and each part of it is an all-new piece of kit for the company’s small-but-growing racing ecosystem. The KD3 wheelbase itself is less potent than the original VelocityOne Race, but it’s also markedly cheaper. Overall, in terms of torque, it’s actually a more level competitor to the similarly-specced Moza R3 bundle (the original Velocity One, for reference, has more than double the force feedback power of the KD3).
With a 3.2Nm wheelbase, a swappable, 300mm/11.77’’ rim, and a two-pedal accelerator and brake assembly, the KD3 is a competent, ready-to-race package that far eclipses similarly-powered gear- and belt-driven alternatives (that are becoming increasingly outmoded as the prices of starter direct drive wheels trend lower) in terms of driving feel and performance. However, the caveat is that the upgrade environment for Turtle Beach racing equipment is nowhere near as extensive as it is with Moza right now so, while there’s a lot I like about the KD3, it can’t represent my first recommendation at this time.
Turtle Beach VelocityOne Race KD3 Racing Wheel & Pedals – Design and Features
The VelocityOne Race KD3 racing wheel and pedals set is a complete, plug-and-play racing system that’s ready to rock, right out of the box – and all the gear inside is new to the Turtle Beach racing line-up. The package comes with the new 3.2Nm KD3 wheelbase, a round, 300mm Xbox-compatible steering wheel that’s very different from the one that comes with the original VelocityOne Race, and a new pedal set with a throttle and brake (two pedals, so no clutch). A table clamp is also included for those without dedicated racing rigs to bolt it all into.
The design of the wheelbase itself is a lot sleeker than the original VelocityOne. The plastic shell around Turtle Beach’s first wheelbase was admittedly pulling multiple duties (housing the integrated display, disguising the built-in table clamps, and even providing a storage cubby for the multitool it ships with to put it all together). However, that’s a bulkier unit that resembles older (and larger) gear- and belt-driven bases, even though it’s actually just a plastic shell housing a direct-drive system. The KD3 is small and compact in comparison (185mm x 133mm x 291mm/7.28” x 5.24” x 11.46”, 3.3kg/7.28lbs), and its cylindrical design is modern and effective.
The base and separate table clamp are metal and feel nice and sturdy. The clamp does not bolt to the KD3’s base, and instead holds it down by pinching it against the surface of your table or desk. This was actually a little fiddly to initially slide in, as it won’t be jimmied in while the KD3 is at 0° elevation (the instructions could’ve been a little clearer about that), and the adjustable knob used to tilt the unit back wasn’t entirely cooperating out of the box (it didn’t want to budge).
However, after loosening the adjuster it’s all quite straightforward to install. The angle adjustment has three preset slots at 0°, 10°, and 20°. It’s nice to be able to run the wheel at 0° when I clipped on the new Turtle Beach FR-X Formula Wheel (which is a separate add-on) to race GT cars in Assetto Corsa Competizione, but tilt it back a little when driving more conventional production cars in something like Forza Horizon 5. For comparison, the Moza R3 has a very good (and extremely strong) table clamp, but it does have a fixed, 15° lean on it.
The wheelbase features five USB-C ports on the rear (for the pedals, plus other accessories you may acquire separately), an emergency stop on top, and a light ring and small display. The display can feature telemetry for supported games (which is largely a PC thing rather than Xbox, where live telemetry is mostly unsupported). I personally don’t really find this kind of thing massively useful because realistically I just look at my dash and/or HUD display on screen and not at the wheel itself while driving. However, the screen means you can access and change certain settings without going into the Turtle Beach VelocityOne tuning app, so there’s certainly no harm in it.
The wheel that comes with the KD3 is 300mm (11.77’’) wide, which is actually a great size (and a fraction bigger than the Moza rim that comes with the R3. It’s also round, rather than D-shaped, like the wheel with the original VelocityOne (it’s not perfectly round and there is a slight flat spot on the bottom of the wheel, but it’s very, very close). This makes it way more suitable for rallying and drifting.
It does feel pretty cheap, though, and there’s a lot of hollow plastic that’s screwed together from the rear. I don’t love the noticeable screw holes; thankfully there aren’t any directly behind where my hands naturally sit at nine and three o’clock, but I have a habit of finding the holes right above my forefingers when rotating, and they feel odd being there. That said, it doesn’t feel flimsy or creak in the hands, which is obviously important. The flat buttons on the face of the wheel are all pretty close together, so I needed to be deliberate with my thumb presses to not mash multiple ones accidentally. The shift paddles are a great size, and they have a soft but suitably clicky action.
The pedal box is nice and large (it’s a little over 400mm/16’’ long) and comes with an accelerator and brake. It’s a bespoke, two-pedal frame in a plastic shell and there would be no scope to add a third pedal to this box for a clutch. The brake pedal can be shifted laterally slightly, and the resistance on both pedals comes from a pair of springs (rather than a more expensive load cell like on the original VelocityOne Race). These springs are adjustable; I left both on how they came out of the box, but if you want more resistance you can tweak it.
You can switch out these pedals on the KD3, but the three-pedal Turtle Beach set with the load cell brake is only available in the original VelocityOne Race bundle right now.
Turtle Beach VelocityOne Race KD3 Racing Wheel & Pedals – Performance
3.2Nm of torque is admittedly about as mild as you’ll get from a direct drive wheelbase, but it is an entry level product. It otherwise sits around the level of old gear- and belt-driven wheels like the Logitech G29 and G923, and the Thrustmaster T128 and T248. The Moza R3 (which is also a direct drive wheelbase) has 3.9Nm.
The feedback quality, however, is pretty good for this level of price and power. Curbs buzz, bumps feel decent, and there’s enough resistance to communicate enough cornering force to get by. I’d love it to do better at translating the front end scrubbing and clawing through corners, although I don’t always know whether that’s something I can dial in better at a setting level, whether in the wheel itself or in my sims.
Above everything, however, the feedback is silent (and instant). At the risk of repeating myself, this is the massive benefit of direct drive, and why I find it very hard to go back to gear- or belt-driven alternatives.
As mentioned, the 300mm/11.77’’ rim is a great size, and probably a little bigger than I might have expected given the low torque KD3 wheelbase. However, it is very light (1.21kg/2.67lbs) so we’re not losing feedback through a heavy rim. The rim snaps on with the same, ball bearing-style quick release collar that’s bespoke to Turtle Beach’s VelocityOne gear, and there’s minimal wiggle.
The Hall Effect pedals don’t require a ton of force to activate, but at this price point that’s really to be expected. I do like the size of the pedal box, as it’s easily big enough to get both heels on. This prevented it tipping up under either hard acceleration or braking, and I had no problems using the pedals totally unattached to the floor of my sim seat (which just has a rail at the front to stop them sliding forward). The pedals are connected to the wheelbase from a port on the side of the pedal box, so you won’t have to worry about smooshing that connector against a wall if you were to use this set-up under your desk.
Connexion
