So the ferrite cores didn’t quite do the trick, I’m still keeping them on there though because they won’t harm anything, and it’s an added peace of mind to know they’re there.
So what do I try next?
The other thing I’d read about whilst trying to figure out what was going on is the notion of ground loops. Having been a DJ for many years, and using many different setups throughout, the ground loop hum is something I have plenty of awareness of—but this was the first time of applying the phenomenon to data signals…
First step was a quick reconfirmation of what was causing the drop outs. Whilst I was already pretty sure it was the servos that drive the motion at this point, having moved wires around it’s worth taking the time to check. After all, it only adds a couple of minutes to be sure.
On disabling motion in SimHub, the issue goes away. My wheel didn’t drop any inputs and the buttons box also stopped reporting ghost inputs. Something else I had been attributing to a bad HDMI handshake also went away. The TV on the rig would blank out and come back. I’ve seen this with an older HDMI cable over a longer length before, so I hadn’t attributed it to this issue, especially since restarting my amp usually solved that issue.
Armed with this information, I dove into a quick and easy test – moving where the servo motors were plugged in.
With a 3 meter single plug extension lead in hand, I hooked the power up for the servo motors into a completely different wall socket from those near the rig where it had been powered – aha! This seemed to do the trick. I had motion and the TV wasn’t blanking out. I’d tested this for a while, before moving the plug to a more sensible location on a different socket that I could access as leaving it plugged in with an extension cord draped across the room was never a long-term solution.
This, however, brought back the issue of the wheelbase dropping out. More digging was necessary.
It might not always be the most obvious things…
So I spent more time trying to chase down what might be susceptible to causing these dropouts. Which is when I recalled that I have a USB switch in the chain, which was there to support switching the wheelbase between PC and Xbox, without having to keep unplugging and plugging the USB cable. Since I haven’t been using the Xbox much recently, I’d kind of forgot it was in the chain.
So I bypassed it and hooked up the wheel direct (ish, on an extension cable) to the PC…
I proceeded to do some testing in Dirt Rally 2.0, a game where steering and pedal inputs are almost constantly changing, which highlights if it was still happening, and to my surprise, I got through the next few stages without seeing any of the same dropouts.
I’m not going to consider this a win just yet, not until I’ve done a bunch more races without seeing the issue pop up. But for now, I’m enjoying at least being able to get through a full stage without the technical hiccups. When I’m convinced that was the device causing the dropouts, I’ll be back with an update.