Here is a detailed comparison of the two newest Sim-Lab cockpits, the mid-range GT1 Pro and the premium P1X Pro. Is the P1X Pro worth the extra cost over the GT1 Pro?
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Sim-Lab has refreshed its sim racing rig lineup during 2023, heading into 2024. This consists of two of its most popular cockpits being completely redesigned after years of being among the best sim racing rigs.
I compare the premium Sim-Lab P1X Pro in this guide against the mid-range Sim-Lab GT1 Pro. The GT1 Pro is a sim rig which punches well above its weight in terms of performance. So how does it stack up against the mighty P1X Pro? I’ll compare price, rigidity, customisation and more in this sim rig comparison.
There is a pretty big difference in the price of the P1X Pro and GT1 Pro, around €200 / $150. This is due to the much thicker lengths of aluminium profile used in the P1X Pro and increased rigidity. Theoretically, the P1X Pro is the better sim rig, but is the large price gap worth it when deciding which Sim-Lab sim rig to buy?
Below is a brief overview of both sim rigs to quickly see the differences. Both share the same footprint, although the P1X Pro actually requires slightly more floor space due to the protruding adjustable feet that are included.
 |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Cockpit | Sim-Lab P1X Pro | Sim-Lab GT1 Pro |
| Price | From €785/$849 | From €589/$699 |
| Profile | 40 x 160mm profile | 40 x 80mm profile |
| Dimensions | 1350 x 580 x 770 mm | 1350 x 580 x 770 mm |
| Buy the P1X Pro | Buy the GT1 Pro | |
The main difference is in the thickness of aluminium profile. The Sim-Lab P1X Pro uses 160 x 40mm aluminium profile around its base and 120 x 40mm profile for the uprights. While the GT1 Pro uses a maximum size of just 80 x 40mm profile.
There are also differences in the overall design and compatibility which I’ll touch on in much more detail in this comparison guide. So let’s get started by looking at the P1X Pro in more detail before moving on to the GT1 Pro.
In years gone, the Sim-Lab P1X was seen as the pinnacle of Sim-Lab’s lineup of cockpits. However, that title has now been given to the insane X1-Pro that was revealed at the end of 2022.
However, with a price of over €1,470 / $1,599 for the frame alone, that cockpit is targeted much more at professionals, companies and showfloors. The Sim-Lab P1X Pro remains at the top of the tree for sim racers with a rig at home.
Sim Rig – Sim-Lab P1X Pro
Price – From €785/$849
Where to buy –
Buy from Sim-Lab
The Sim-Lab P1X Pro costs a fair chunk more than the other sim rig I’m looking at in this comparison. The P1X Pro is available from £706 / €785 / $849 for the frame alone. Adding a seat and monitor mount will see you quickly breaking the €1,000 / $1,000 mark.
This is a lot to pay for any sim rig, no matter your budget. However, you can see right away from the thickness of the profile used that the P1X Pro isn’t just any sim rig, it really means business.
The Sim-Lab P1X Pro is designed to be a completely zero flex sim rig. That means, it is targeting perfect rigidity even when used with high-powered direct drive racing wheels like the Simucube 2 Ultimate and Fanatec DD2.
You can see right away that the Sim-Lab P1X Pro means business. Its thick 160 x 40mm and 120 x 40mm frame makes it really tower above other sim rigs like the GT1 Pro. However, the Dutch sim racing brand has done a great job of making the P1X Pro look as appealing and modern as possible.
A lot of this is down to the choice to cover some of the grooves in the profile. Typically, aluminium extrusion has slot gaps spaced evenly every 40mm. This allows for peripherals and mounting solutions to be attached almost anywhere.
Sim-Lab has made the decision to remove the inner slots on both the 160 and 120mm pieces of extrusion. Instead, they have left just two outer grooves on these pieces. This makes the strips of aluminium look cleaner and more “designed”. It does however leave the question of mounting and compatibility.
This choice means that there are larger gaps between the slots on these pieces, which can make mounting to them a little trickier. Sim-Lab has made sure all of its peripherals can be mounted, but third-party gear and mounts may be harder to mount.
Despite these thoughts on the design, there is no doubt that this is one sturdy sim rig. It performs incredibly well with my 27Nm Simucube wheel base with almost zero noticeable flex. In fact, I gave in before the sim rig, having to turn my racing wheel down from 27Nm due to fatigue!
If you are after sheer performance from your sim rig, then the P1X Pro has to be up there as one of the very best.
The Sim-Lab GT1 Pro isn’t designed to have zero flex like the mighty P1X Pro, however, it is designed to be as rigid as possible within its price point. It can cater for a wide range of racing wheels including powerful direct drive wheel bases.
The design of the Sim-Lab GT1 Pro is completely new and is a redesigned version of the incredibly popular GT1 Evo. The GT1 Pro was the first Sim-Lab cockpit in their new lineup to utilise slanted strips of profile to increase rigidity. This is a sim racing cockpit which really excels when compared to other sim rigs within its price range.
Sim Rig – Sim-Lab GT1 Pro
Price – From €589/$699
Where to buy –
Buy from Sim-Lab
The Sim-Lab GT1 Pro costs from £529 / €589 / $699 for the frame alone. If you already have a racing seat, you can skip the additional cost of buying a seat from Sim-Lab. However, if you’re looking to buy this as your first sim rig, adding a seat, seat brackets and an integrated monitor mount will see you spending over £900 / €999.
This price allows the GT1 Pro to sit underneath the P1X Pro in Sim-Lab’s ecosystem. It is the cheaper sim rig of the two by a fair amount. Despite this, from my time with the GT1 Pro, I can say it firmly punches above its price point, giving the P1X Pro a good run for its money.
This sim rig from Sim-Lab is one of the very best mid-range sim rigs you can buy currently. It offers pretty much everything you would want out of an aluminium profile sim rig.
The design looks contemporary is sleek which is something that older or more traditional aluminium profile sim rigs cannot say. The performance matches the design as well by being very stable for the majority of racing wheels.
Flex is present in this sim rig, but only starts to creep in once you start using high-performance direct drive racing wheels. Compared to the older Sim-Lab GT1 Evo, this GT1 Pro is a big improvement.
This redesigned sim rig improves the stability of the wheel mount and the shifter mount which were two big areas where the older GT1 Evo struggled to keep flex down. The pedal plate has also been redesigned to be more versatile and adjustable.
These improvements all make the Sim-Lab GT1 Pro one of the best mid-range sim rigs around. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this sim rig for anyone looking to upgrade or buy a new cockpit.
Both the GT1 Pro and P1X Pro are incredibly similar sim rigs, but both have very big differences. The overall dimensions are the same, and the design principles of using slanted aluminium profile run across both sim rigs.
However, the P1X Pro utilise much heavier-duty pieces of extrusion which results in a much sturdier sim rig. It looks chunkier and slightly more industrial than the GT1 Pro, but it does outperform it in pretty much every category.
The Best F1 24 Racing WheelsWith the P1X Pro being the more premium of the two sim rigs, it’s no surprise that you can opt for mounting solutions that offer increased rigidity and adjustability. Both sim rigs can be purchased with a variety of wheel mounting solutions.
Both have a wheel deck which are very similar, but the P1X Pro offers side and front mounting solutions for specific wheel bases. These additional options give you as a sim racer the ability to really tailor your sim rig to the racing wheel you are using.
The pedal tray on the P1X Pro is also a big upgrade over the GT1 Pro pedal tray. On the GT1 Pro, the pedal tray is mounted to a couple of strips of aluminium profile which in turn is mounted to the cockpit via a couple of custom-made brackets.
On the P1X Pro, the pedal tray is one complete custom design that is mounted directly to the base of the cockpit. This approach allows for a lot more adjustments to be made over the position of your pedals as it sits independently to the vertical uprights.
In terms of compatibility with various sim racing products, both the GT1 Pro and P1X Pro are very similar. The wheel and pedal mounts offer a old of pre-drilled options which should be enough for almost all sim racing peripherals. The extra dedicated wheel mounts for various racing wheels that the P1X Pro offers do make it more customisable to each sim racer’s own setup.
The Sim-Lab GT1 Pro is incredibly impressive at just how little flex there is when using higher-powered racing wheels. The new design does a really good job at removing flex and the positioning of the wheel deck goes a long way to aiding this.
However, if you utilise a direct drive wheel that has 15Nm or more of peak torque you will start to notice flexing. This flexing comes from the frame itself rather than the wheel deck. The entire sim rig will start to vibrate and the vertical uprights will vibrate under heavier loads.
This is mainly due to the thinner 80 x 40mm aluminium profile compared to the thicker 120 and 160 x 40mm frame that the P1X Pro uses.
The P1X Pro is designed to be completely flex-free, and it does an incredible job of completing this promise. The incredibly sturdy profile is mounted much more securely than in the GT1 Pro. This is due to the 160 x 40mm frame around the bottom of the P1X having wider slot gaps. This gives the vertical uprights a larger surface area to be mounted to which will always reduce flexing.
Without a doubt, the Sim-Lab P1X Pro is a better sim rig than the GT1 Pro in terms of performance. It eliminates flex much more successfully and there is more adjustability around how you mount elements.
However, this doesn’t necessarily mean it is the best choice for you. There are two things that swing in the favour of the GT1 Pro. It is around €200 / $150 cheaper than the P1X Pro which is a considerable amount.
It also looks less industrial in my opinion. The thinner aluminium profile used allows it to look more compact despite actually sharing the same footprint as the P1X Pro. If you prefer this minimal styling or your sim racing rig budget is lower, the GT1 Pro may well be a better choice.
| | |
|---|---|---|
| Cockpit | Sim-Lab P1X Pro | Sim-Lab GT1 Pro |
| Price | From €785/$849 | From €589/$699 |
| Profile | 40 x 160mm profile | 40 x 80mm profile |
| Dimensions | 1350 x 580 x 770 mm | 1350 x 580 x 770 mm |
| Buy the P1X Pro | Buy the GT1 Pro | |
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Rich is the co-founder, and one of the main F1 setup creators and content writers for SimRacingSetups. With over a decade of experience as a graphic designer, marketing director, competitive sim racer and avid motorsport fan, Rich founded SimRacingSetup.com to share his passion and knowledge of sim racing and Formula 1 with other sim racers. Regularly writes for sim racing website SimRaceReviews.com
View all articles written by Rich
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