Freedom V Wireless Guitar Controller

When you play as many games as I do, you usually end up on a first name basis with the employees at the nearest game store. This is great, because sometimes they’ll point you in the direction of something new and exciting that you may have overlooked. Take Larry, the manager at my favorite gaming outlet, for example. He’s a Guitar Hero guru and is well aware of my own love of the Red Octane/Harmonix collaboration.  On a recent visit to the store he pointed out the TAC Freedom V Wireless Guitar Controller to me. I was a tad bit skeptical of the “rock star” features that were splashed across the box and decided to ignore Larry’s sage advice. A few days later, thanks to a weird twist of fate, I ended up receiving a shiny blue Freedom V to review for GameZone. After banging out a few tunes I’ve learned my lesson. Larry, I’ll never doubt your judgment again.

My biggest doubt when originally sizing up the Freedom V was the wireless aspect of the controller. While, I’m a big fan of my Xbox 360 wireless controllers I’ve been burnt by third-party wireless peripherals on several occasions. I tried playing another Harmonix developed rhythm game, Amplitude, on a PS2 wireless controller and the lag was enough to lower my scores substantially. Luckily, the guys that designed the controller, The Ant Commandos, worked some rock-and-roll magic when they built the wireless connectivity into the Freedom V. If there is any lag in the connection between guitar and receiver I sure can’t tell. Even on the higher difficulties the guitar picks up and sends every fret button push and strum bar movement perfectly.

So, the wireless works far better than I imagined it would, the next key factor is how the Flying V compares to the official Red Octane SG controller. The SG is an incredible controller, but it has a few issues that the guys at TAC have tried to remedy in the Freedom V. First off is the strum bar. The Freedom V’s strum bar seems to be a little bit more responsive than the SG and also is almost completely quiet. The clicking sound the SG strum bar makes has always irritated me a bit so the silence of the Freedom V was a pleasant surprise. The fret buttons on the Freedom V feel a lot different than the SG. The buttons stick out further and require very little pressure to activate. After playing several songs back to back with both the SG and the Freedom V, I still have mixed opinions on the V’s fret buttons. I seem to be able to perform hammer-ons and pull-offs better with the V, but because the buttons stick out so much I tend to fat finger the buttons on fast songs causing some rather bad performances. Lastly, the whammy bar on the V is rock solid. Anyone who’s played Guitar Hero at a demo kiosk has seen what regular abuse does to the SG’s whammy bar. The Freedom V’s whammy feels like it could stand up to that sort of abuse and still show up working perfectly for an encore.

While the basic controls are splendid, the star power activators are a little touchy. The tilt sensor in the SG can be a bit sticky on some controllers. All three of mine require various degrees of jerking around to activate. The TAC Freedom V on the other hand requires a lot less effort. When I say a lot less, I mean the “Hey! I hardly moved! Why on earth did it just activate Star Power?” type of effort. You’ll get used to it after a couple of sets, but you’ll have to rein in the rocking out until you really want that Star Power. While we’re on the subject of Star Power, I’d like to talk about the “alternate” way to activate Star Power. If you’re in the middle of a finger-crunching solo, swinging the guitar controller around is an easy way to throw you off. What most hardcore players do is quickly tap the Select button on the SG controller because it can also be used to activate Star Power. The folks at TAC took this play style into account when designing the V by raising the Select button a bit higher than the guitar body and placing it close to the strum bar. It’s a great idea in theory, but for guys with big hands like me, it’s a little too easy to bump into.

Of course, all the technical stuff doesn’t amount to anything if the guitar controller looks horrible. Luckily it doesn’t! The Freedom V comes in both red and blue and both are modeled after the Gibson Flying V. The shape definitely sets it apart from the SG controller, but it doesn’t stop there. The strum bar has a metallic sheen to it and there is a LED that lights it up from behind when the controller is powered on. The guitar also comes with a high quality imitation leather strap. I’d read several things about the strap falling off on a regular basis and encountered the same problem. Then I read the instructions and realized that the strap is supposed to go on the mounting peg below the fret bar, not the one above the fret bar. This allows both left and right handed players to use the controller without the strap falling off. Problem solved.

The guitar looks great on its own, but what guitar hero doesn’t slap stickers and such all over his guitar. There is a sheet of rock themed stickers included with the Freedom V, but the folks at TAC also have worked a deal to make guitar skins available for their controllers. Gamer Graffix is the brains behind these skins and they have come up with several rock-and-roll related themes. Each skin is a two-piece affair with one piece covering the white pick guard and the other covering the rest of the front of the guitar controller. You might need a little help guiding the pick guard piece over the whammy bar, but once in position they are a cinch to apply and add an extra touch of style to an already great looking controller.

Pros:

• WIRELESS! Cutting the cord gives you the freedom to really rock out.

• Whisper quiet, responsive strum bar. No more clicky noise clashing with your jam session.

• Rock solid whammy bar. You can really rack up the star power on sustains now.

• Awesome Flying V body styling.

Cons:

• The raised select button makes sense, but players with large hands may bump it by accident.

• The tilt sensor, while much better than the official SG controller, is a tad too sensitive.

• The V shape, while super neat looking, is a little uncomfortable for some players.

Overall: 8.8
The TAC Freedom V Wireless Guitar Controller is a great third-party piece of hardware. It’s nice to have another option, especially a wireless one, because it appears that besides a color change Red Octane is sticking to their status quo controller for the Guitar Hero II release. If you’re a Guitar Hero freak you owe it to yourself to try out the Freedom V.