The Simucube 2 Sport is the most affordable wheel from premium brand Simucube, while the MOZA R12 offers incredible value. With over a $600 price difference, which wheel is a better buy?
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Using a Logitech G923 or Thrustmaster T248 is a fantastic way to get into the hobby of sim racing. Any budget-friendly racing wheel can offer you a taste of what sim racing offers. And you can even use a budget-friendly wheel for many years. In fact, I raced with the Logitech G27 for well over a year before even considering upgrading.
However, when the time does come to upgrade to a more powerful and more premium racing wheel, what is the best option? Should you aim high and spend a lot of money on a very premium wheel from a brand like Simucube? Or, can you get just as much enjoyment and immersion from a more cost-effective racing wheel like the MOZA R12?
In this comparison, I’ll be reviewing the Simucube 2 Sport and MOZA Racing R12 wheel bases head-to-head to see which is the better buy.
These are not two wheel bases that often get compared due to the large difference in price. The Simucube 2 Sport costs over double the price of the MOZA R12, and offers significantly more peak torque. So, asking why I would compare these two wheel bases is a fair question.
I have been lucky enough to use both the MOZA R12 since its launch a few years ago, and the Simucube 2 Sport for a few years. During my time with both wheel bases, I can pinpoint a fair few big differences.
Fundamentally, the question is whether the Simucube 2 Sport is worth more than double the price of the MOZA R12. I’ll answer this question in this sim racing buyer’s guide.
First, let’s examine both of these wheels and compare the MOZA R12 vs Simucube 2 Sport technical specs.
 |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Simucube 2 Sport | MOZA R12 | |
| Peak Torque | 17Nm | 12Nm |
| Price | €1275 / $1199 | £559 / $559 |
| Technology | Direct drive | Direct drive |
| Dimensions | 130 x 130 x 250 mm | 226 x 157 x 124mm |
Increased peak performance and higher torque levels can undoubtedly add to the immersion of sim racing. The higher the peak torque, the stronger the force feedback can feel, but it also opens up range for additional details and extra fidelity.
These positives all point towards higher peak torque resulting in a better wheel base. However, that isn’t always the case. When I use a wheel base, I very rarely tune it above around 10-14Nm of peak torque, depending on which wheel I’m using. Above this level, the wheel can become uncomfortable to use.
Racing for long periods of time with extremely powerful force feedback will wear you out, causing your arms, wrists and hands to cramp up.
I often race full-distance Grand Prix in F1 24 or long-duration races in Assetto Corsa Competizione. Racing for over an hour and often longer is more than long enough to trigger the unwanted side effects above. This is why I often detune any wheel base I’m using to the magic range of 10-14Nm.
Ultimately, higher peak torque can lead to a better wheel base. However, if you aren’t utilising all of the torque available, paying for the additional power can be a wasted investment.
The Simucube 2 Sport is the first wheel I’m going to give a mini-review for before I look at the cheaper MOZA R12. This is a premium wheel base from Finnish brand Simucube, who are incredibly well regarded for producing some of the best direct drive wheel bases, as well as the incredible Simucube ActivePedal (which I reviewed here).
The Sport wheel base is the most affordable of their three wheels and is considerably cheaper than the more powerful Pro and Ultimate wheels. Despite being the lowest-cost wheel, it is still a premium wheel, costing €1275 in Europe and $1199 in the United States.
All of Simucube’s wheel bases, including the Sport, utilise ultra-low-torque ripple direct-drive motors, and the Simucube 2 Sport is capable of a slew rate of 4.8Nm/ms. This is a measurement of how fast the motor can react to the in-game forces. In this instance, the motor can adjust its torque level at a rate of 4.8Nm every millisecond.
This allows for incredibly fast response times, letting you feel exactly how your car is behaving on track. The force feedback itself is among the smoothest available from any direct drive wheel base, and Simucube prides itself on this.
Simucube states on its website, “There is absolutely no hint of cogging, torque ripple, graininess, or notchiness in Simucube 2 wheelbases, resulting in a consistently smooth and immersive racing experience. The high fidelity of our wheelbases will allow you to feel every aspect of the road.”
While the force feedback performance is outstanding, so is the compatibility that Simucube have included in their wheels. When the Finnish sim racing company launched many years ago, it didn’t offer any other products other than wheel bases. Instead, it relied solely on third-party brands to supply steering wheels and pedals.
This meant Simucube had to open its compatibility to a wide range of other branded products. While Simucube now does have its own range of steering wheels, including the Tahko GT-21 and Valo GT-23, as well as pedals such as the incredible ActivePedal, its compatibility with other brands is still incredible.
If you use the wireless antenna included with Simucube wheel bases, you can connect some wireless steering wheels, such as those from Cube Controls, directly to the wheel base. This lets you use the Simucube True Drive software to edit how your third-party steering wheel behaves. No other big brand sim racing brand is currently offering this feature.
The Simucube Link is a fairly new device that comes as standard with the ActivePedal. It serves as a central USB hub to connect all Simucube devices. It is a requirement when using the ActivePedal. However, you do not need a Simucube Link Hub to use Simiucube 2 wheel bases.
MOZA released the R12 wheel base mid-2023, and with it they introduced a new force feedback algorithm. This introduced new details to the force feedback which in turn allowed the R12 to become the most immersive racing wheel that MOZA had released to date.
This new force feedback allowed you to feel more vibrations, rumbles and other small details when your tyres slipped across the track, when you drove over a kerb and more. It wasn’t too long before MOZA introduced this new force feedback algorthim to its other wheel base.
Due to its size, the MOZA R12 draws a lot of comparison to the older MOZA R9 wheel base. It looks almost identical as you can see from the image above.
The big differences are the increase from 9 to 12Nm of peak torque, which for many will tip it over into the perfect range of force feedback strength, as 9Nm can at times feel ever so slightly underpowered. It also includes the updated force feedback algorthim that I mentioned enabling more detail and immersion.
During my full review of the MOZA Racing R12, I stated that “the force feedback has almost no granularity, allowing the steering wheel to glide throughout its rotation with ease“. Will Ford at Boosted Media, backed up this sentiment in his review, saying; “I’ve got to say that I’ve been impressed across the board with the R12“, “I would definitely spend the extra 150 to get the R12 over the R9 that little bit of extra Fidelity and strength I think is worth it“
Like Simucube who has third-party compatibility baked in to its wheel bases, MOZA has taken a similar approach. Their route isn’t quite as easy as Simucube’s as you cannot link any third-party steering wheels to the MOZA Pit House software.
With the introduction of the MOZA Universal Hub, you can attach any steering wheel with a 50mm or 70mm PCD to your MOZA wheel. This makes using a third-party steering wheel from Cube Controls, Ascher Racing, GSI or other popular brands incredibly easy.
We are in a golden age of sim racing where every new racing wheel or product that comes out seems to raise the bara slightly, or bring its own unique spin on sim racing. The MOZA R12 is in my opinion the best wheel base that MOZA has produced to date. And the Simucube 2 Sport is one of the most popular Simucube products currently.
Which wheel is right for you comes down to a few areas. How much force feedback strength do you need from a racing wheel? If you are only ever going to set your peak torque to around 10-12Nm, the extra price for the Sport wheel base may not be worth it.
During my testing, even when setting both wheels to 10Nm, the Simucube 2 Sport did produce a more well rounded sim racing experience. The force feedback was faster to respond and felt effortlessly smooth in comparison to the MOZA R12. However, at 10Nm, I’m not sure the price difference between the MOZA and Simucube wheels is justified.
It is however justified if you want to maximise the performance you get from your racing wheel. If you’re going to use the maximum potential of the Simucube 2 Sport wheel base, then it becomes a much more enticing prospect. At 17Nm, the Simucube racing wheel offers an experience that the MOZA R12 cannot match.
The really big selling point of the MOZA R12 when compared to the Simucube 2 Sport is the price difference. The R12 wheel bases costs just £559 or $559, while the Simucube 2 Sport costs €1275 or $1199. That is a huge difference in price. It is this price difference that may sway many sim racers towards the MOZA wheel, rather than the more premium, and arguably better performing Simucube 2 Sport.
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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.
View all articles written by Rich
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