How do I set up a CH Products yoke and pedals?

To set up a CH Products yoke and pedals, connect each USB device separately, calibrate both in Windows, then assign roll and pitch to the yoke, yaw to the pedal axis, and left/right brakes to the toe-brake axes. Remove duplicate bindings and tune small dead zones only if the controls jitter.

These instructions apply to Windows PC flight simulators such as Microsoft Flight Simulator, X-Plane, Prepar3D and FSX. Do not assume a CH USB controller will work on Xbox or PlayStation simply because it uses USB; console editions require explicitly supported hardware.

CH yoke and pedal set-up procedure

1. Connect the controllers: plug the yoke and pedals into separate USB ports. Use direct computer ports while configuring them; an unpowered hub can cause intermittent detection or disconnections.
2. Check Windows detection: press Windows key and R, enter joy.cpl, and confirm that both CH devices appear in Game Controllers. Select each device and open its properties to watch the axes and buttons respond.
3. Calibrate both devices: run the Windows calibration routine if available. Move the yoke through its full pitch and roll range, centre it, move the rudder fully both ways, and press each toe brake from released to fully applied.
4. Create a simulator profile: make a new control profile for each CH device rather than trusting every default assignment. Simulator presets often contain unwanted camera commands, duplicate axes or brake buttons.
5. Assign the flight axes: bind the yoke, rudder and brake axes according to the table below. Move only one control when using automatic input detection.
6. Remove conflicts: inspect every connected controller for second assignments to roll, pitch, yaw, throttle and brakes. Disable auto-rudder or simplified control assistance when using physical pedals.
7. Test before flying: verify the cockpit yoke, rudder and brake indicators move in the expected direction. Taxi slowly and confirm that each toe brake affects the correct wheel.

If Windows 11 does not recognise one of the devices, our Windows 11 configuration and detection checks for CH controllers cover USB ports, calibration and legacy software issues in more detail.

Which axes should I assign?

Each analogue control must be assigned to an axis command, not to separate on/off commands such as Aileron Left or Rudder Right.

Microsoft Flight Simulator users can follow our CH yoke axis and sensitivity set-up for MSFS for its device-profile workflow. In FSX, use the separate left- and right-brake axes described in our FSX rudder and toe-brake configuration.

How should I tune sensitivity and dead zones?

Start with a linear response and the smallest dead zone that holds the controls steady at their neutral positions. Large dead zones make small corrections difficult, while an aggressive response curve can make the aircraft feel twitchy around the centre.

• Yoke: add a slight centre dead zone only if the roll or pitch indicator flickers while untouched.
• Rudder: confirm the axis centres reliably before changing its response curve.
• Toe brakes: check that each brake shows fully released with your feet resting lightly on the pedals and reaches full application when pressed.
• Full travel: recalibrate if an axis cannot reach both ends of the simulator's input meter. Do not use sensitivity settings to hide incomplete Windows calibration.

CH yokes have less physical travel than many real aircraft controls, so simulator sensitivity is partly a preference. Tune it after flying a familiar aircraft, not merely by watching the settings screen.

Why are the brakes stuck or the aircraft veering?

Brakes applied at rest usually mean the toe-brake axes need reversing; unexplained veering is more often caused by rudder calibration, duplicate bindings or assistance features.

• Brakes remain on: reverse each toe-brake axis individually, then check the input meter again.
• Both wheels brake together: remove the generic Brakes assignment and bind separate left- and right-brake axes.
• Pedals behave like switches: replace Rudder Left and Rudder Right commands with the continuous rudder axis.
• Aircraft yaws while untouched: recalibrate the pedals, add a minimal dead zone and search every controller profile for another rudder assignment.
• Inputs work in Windows but not the simulator: check that the correct device profile is active and that the controls list is not filtered to show only assigned commands.
• Axes spike or disconnect: test another direct USB port. Persistent spikes visible in joy.cpl point to the controller, cable or potentiometer rather than the simulator.

For faults isolated to the pedals, use our rudder-pedal detection and axis troubleshooting checks.

Do I need CH Control Manager?

CH Control Manager is not required for ordinary yoke and pedal assignments in modern PC flight simulators. Windows can expose the controllers as standard USB game devices, and the simulator can bind each one directly.

The legacy utility may still be useful for specialised mappings or older software, but its combined or mapped modes change the devices presented to the simulator. If both virtual and physical controllers appear, do not assign the same axis to both. Direct USB mode is the simpler baseline when diagnosing a problem.

What if the CH controls have 15-pin gameport plugs?

Older gameport CH hardware cannot be configured like the USB models. A basic gameport-to-USB adapter may expose too few axes for a yoke, rudder and two independent toe brakes, so verify that any converter supports every required analogue axis.

If an old yoke and pedals were designed to connect to each other before reaching a gameport, retaining all functions may require specialised conversion hardware. The USB procedure above applies only after Windows can display the controls and every axis independently in joy.cpl.