Assetto Corsa Information

A collection of useful Assetto Corsa info I've gathered over time

Force Feedback

Force Feedback Settings Explained

Assetto Corsa's FFB settings control how the in-game physics translate to wheel force. The base steering force comes from simulated suspension and tire forces on the steering rack - it's grounded in the physics model, not just canned effects. Understanding what each slider actually does helps you dial in settings that feel right.

Gain

Overall strength of force feedback (0-100%). This is your main adjustment for how strong the wheel feels. Most people start around 80-90% and adjust from there based on their wheel's strength.

Minimum Force

Minimum Force is a slider that raises the lowest level of force feedback output that the game sends to your wheel. It essentially sets a floor - below which the game will not let forces drop.

Most wheels - especially older consumer ones like Logitech G25/G27/G29 or Thrustmaster models - have a deadzone near the center where very light FFB forces get absorbed by the wheel's internal resistance and you don't feel them at all. A tiny bump or small tire force might be calculated by the sim, but the wheel motor doesn't produce enough torque to overcome its own friction, so you feel nothing.

Minimum Force raises those tiny signals so that they are big enough for your specific wheel to actually actuate and become perceptible. Usually 0-5% works well, but it depends on your wheel. Direct drive wheels typically don't need this at all since they have minimal internal resistance.

Filter

Filter is a temporal smoothing filter applied to the FFB signal. It averages forces over time, reducing how quickly the FFB can change from one moment to the next. Essentially, it acts as a low-pass filter: high-frequency detail (sharp spikes, vibrations) is reduced while low-frequency forces (cornering load, steering weight) remain.

Low filter = raw, fast, detailed signal. High filter = smoother, slower, more muted signal. Filter doesn't add any force or change steering weight - it only alters how quickly the FFB reacts.

Filter primarily exists to deal with hardware limitations: gear-driven wheels can rattle on sharp spikes, and kerbs can feel unpleasantly harsh with raw FFB. The tradeoff is that too much filtering delays FFB response, reduces road texture detail, and makes understeer and oversteer less obvious. High-end wheels usually don't need much filtering. If your wheel rattles on kerbs or FFB feels noisy rather than informative, try adding some filter. If you rely on fast counter-steer cues and want maximum detail, keep it low.

Damping

Damping in Assetto Corsa is not "real steering feel" coming from the physics - it's a global force modifier applied at the FFB output stage. It acts as a velocity-dependent resistance on the steering wheel, opposing how fast the wheel is rotating rather than how much force the tires are generating.

At its core, damping simulates mechanical resistance in the steering system rather than tire forces. Turn the wheel quickly and you get stronger opposing force; turn it slowly and the resistance is weaker. This resistance is independent of grip, load, or suspension geometry - even if the tires are airborne or the car is stationary, damping still acts.

Assetto Corsa's damping is scaled by vehicle speed: at standstill it's strongest, making the wheel feel heavy and resistant (mimicking power steering at idle and tire scrub while parked). As speed increases, the damping effect fades out rapidly, allowing the wheel to respond mostly to pure physics forces like self-aligning torque and load transfer.

Kerb (Curb) Effect

This slider adds extra vibration when driving over kerbs. However, this effect is not from physics - it's the only effect that is 100% "canned." The base FFB already includes the suspension forces from real kerbs, so the Kerb slider simply superimposes a sine-wave rumble on top when a wheel is on a kerb. This is evident because it also happens on kerbs that are 100% smooth in the track geometry - proving it's not coming from the physics engine. It will vibrate the wheel purely to make kerbs feel stronger. Some people find it can feel exaggerated if set high.

Road Effect

This slider boosts the normal FFB forces generated by surface irregularities. Unlike the kerb effect, Road vibrations come entirely from the physics engine. It amplifies the effect of load changes on the force feedback - if the load doesn't change (i.e., the road is flat), you get nothing. It's not a procedural noise added over the surface. Turning it up makes minor bumps and texture feel stronger, but it remains a direct reflection of what the suspension and tires are actually experiencing on the road surface.

Slip Effect

This slider adds feedback when tires lose traction. Like Road Effect, Slip Effect is strictly related to what the tyres are doing - it comes directly from the physics engine. It vibrates the wheel as the tires begin to slip or lock up (during heavy braking or acceleration). It's based on the tyre model, so it's a real effect of the simulation, not a fake rumble. Practically, it helps you feel skids or ABS lock in the wheel.

ABS Effect

This slider simulates the ABS system's pulsing. When ABS engages under braking, the FFB gives a rapid vibration. Assetto Corsa "fakes" the ABS pedal pulse through the wheel - in a real car you'd feel the brake pedal pulsing, not the steering wheel. This is purely an added vibration to help you feel when ABS is modulating the brakes. Real cars don't send ABS pulses to the steering, but it's a useful driver aid.

Enhanced Understeer Effect

This toggles an extra force reduction when the front tires lose grip. With it on, the wheel noticeably lightens as soon as the car begins to understeer. You feel a big drop in steering torque the moment the front tires slide - making understeer very obvious. The game forcibly cuts the self-aligning torque on the wheel in understeer, so you instantly feel that the front lost traction. Lots of people report this can feel exaggerated at 100% - some find it fantastic for awareness, others find it a bit too much and wish there was adjustable strength.

Real vs. Canned Effects

It's worth understanding which effects are physics-based and which are artificial enhancements:

  • Physics-based (100% from physics engine): Road Effect and Slip Effect are strictly related to what's happening in the simulation. Road Effect amplifies load changes - no load change means no effect. Slip Effect comes directly from what the tyres are doing. These are not procedural noise added over the surface.
  • 100% Canned: Kerb Effect is the only effect that is completely artificial - it adds a synthetic vibration on any curb hit, even on perfectly smooth kerbs in the track geometry.
  • Driver Aid Effects: ABS Effect adds brake-pulse rumble to simulate pedal feedback through the wheel. Enhanced Understeer forcefully lightens the wheel to make understeer obvious.

The canned and driver aid effects are optional enhancements to improve driver feedback - they're not direct physics feedback, but the sliders let you dial them in as desired.

Cool story bro, just gimme the settings!

Force feedback is highly personal, and heavily depends on your wheel and if it's a direct drive wheel or not. Some guidance on settings:

  • Non-DD Wheels: Start with Gain at 80-90%, Minimum Force at 0-12%. These wheels have more internal resistance and need more force to actuate.
  • Road Effect: Start at 1-10%. (I use 1%)
  • Slip Effect: Start at 1-10%. (I use 1%)
  • Kerb Effect: Start at 1-10%. (I use 10%)
  • ABS Effect: Start at 1-10%. Personally don't use it.

Use the FFBClip app to test your settings. Use it to tune your gain to perfection, so you get the most forces out of your wheel without clipping.

Content Manager FFB Options

CM adds some extra FFB features worth knowing about:

  • FFB Post-Processing - Filtering and smoothing options
  • FFB Multiplier - Adjust gain per car or track
  • LUT Generator - Creates linearization tables for more accurate response

Honestly, the defaults work fine for most people. LUT files can help if your wheel has non-linear response, but it's a rabbit hole - only go down it if you're really not happy with how things feel.

FFB Clipping

FFB clipping happens when the forces the game wants to send to your wheel exceed what your wheel can actually output. When this occurs, the signal gets "clipped" - cut off at the wheel's maximum - and you lose the detail and nuance in the force feedback. Instead of feeling the difference between a hard corner and a very hard corner, everything just feels maxed out.

Clipping typically happens during high-load moments: heavy braking, hitting kerbs hard, or aggressive cornering. If your gain is set too high, you'll be clipping frequently and losing valuable information about what the car is doing.

The FFBClip app (enable it in CM → Settings → Assetto Corsa → Apps) shows you in real-time when your FFB is clipping. It displays a bar that fills up as forces increase, turning red when you're clipping. The goal is to tune your gain so you get the most force out of your wheel without hitting the ceiling too often. Some occasional clipping during extreme moments is fine, but if you're constantly in the red, lower your gain until you find the sweet spot.

Aim to tune it so your wheel doesn't clip for about 95% of the track. If it clips in 5% of extreme cases; that's fine. Otherwise if you optimize for that 5% of extreme cases, you'll end up with weaker, less detailed forces for the remaining 95% of your driving.