GBO Possum was nice enough to answer some questions and share some pics of his RIDICULOUSLY cool driving setup.  Aren't you guys jealous?

Thanks to GBO for sharing this info, we really appreciate it!

1) When did you first think about setting up the 3 screen view?

Back last December, Team 10 posted Che Chou's Pitpass 28 report at http://forzamotorsport.net/news/pitpassreports/pitpass28.htm with photos of a triple screen setup.  That caught my attention.  Much googling later, I found that FM1 has a hidden multi-screen capability.  It moved on to "gotta have this" when I tried an experiment on my old TV which does picture and picture side by side.  We had a second Xbox 360 so I bought 2 second hand copies of FM1 and hooked both 360s to the TV and drove up the hill climb in Japan with a front view and a left view.  Suddenly left hairpin turns were fantastic!  I could see right into the corners.  I was hooked.  So then I started digging for more information, ending up emailing back and forth with the Turn 10 guys (Aaron and Che) who took time out of their busy schedule to give me some tips.

2) How real is the experience compared to real life?

Need to add two things before I can give a fair answer - the Buttkicker to give vibration and the actual FM2 games.  FM1 running in compat mode on the 360 has some quirks that are a little distracting (the side views get out of synch, and lock ups occur).  But it feels really good running the FM2 demo (on one screen).  When it's working, the wide view is superb in FM1.

Also, the Turn 10 guys advise that in FM2, the angle seen in the screens can be adjusted (45, 60, 90 degrees), whereas the angle is fixed in FM1.  This setting will affect the experience I'm sure.

I forgot to say that it is important to have the screens positioned properly relative to the driver's eye.  A ray perpendicular to the center of each screen should pass through the driver's head. 

3) Are you in the automotive field or a car junkie?

I'm a car junkie.  I got my first car in about 1960 - a Ford Model A vintage 1929.  Wish I still had it. My next car was the original Mini, 850 cc's of neck-snapping fury that often could get to 60 in under a minute.  Nothing could catch it in the corners though.  Other highlights include a Mini Cooper, Renault R16TS, Volvo 760GLE, Porsche 993, Corvette C5.  Maxed out the 993 just north of 160 mph one day in the middle of nowhere on a good road and legally too (not in this country).

4) What do you drive in real life?

A BMW 330i is my current ride.  Less sheer visceral whoosh than the C5, but refined and practical with 2 more doors

5) How long have you been playing video games and what is your first memory of a driving game? 

If you don't count Pong, I started video games with the Xbox 360 about a month after launch.  The "360" message resonated with me, so I quickly got into the Media Center Extender thing when I wasn't playing PGR3.  Then I caught Oblivion fever.  Finally the Wireless Wheel came out and I was back to PGR3, and picked up FM1 along the way. 

My first driving game memory was not a video game, it was a multiplayer text-based game played on an extremely expensive IBM time-sharing system using golf ball typewriter terminals.  The players entered "G,B,A" (Gear, Brake, Accelerator) as percentages, the computer simulated  the next x seconds of play and told us all where we were and how fast we were going, and where our opponents were and we got to enter numbers at the G,B,A prompt again.  At mid corner, we got to choose B and A for the remainder of that time slice (no mid-corner gear change).  Sounds like crap, but it was a lot of fun, especially when played side by side, when there was a lot of yelling despite the slow pace of the game

6) Approximate cost for setup?  You don't have to answer this one, but figured I would ask.

You don't want to know!  But you can figure it out.  A lot less than the IBM system, anyway.

Three 360s (two Premium and one Elite), about $300 for the Bob Earl VRC racing seat after the $50 rebate and including shipping.  By the way, the $50 rebate check arrived from Bob before the racing seat - that's a first!  Bob was great and helpful over the email questions I had. The seat is very good - comfortable with a rigid post for the Wireless Wheel.

The HDTVs were really hard to choose, and for a long time I did not know if I should use large PC monitors or HDTVs.  I knew I wanted fast response (8ms or better) and a high contrast ratio (I think I got 7000:1).  The Team 10 people had 36" screens, and more money than me, so I went for 32" Samsung LCDs.  Lovely piano black supported by three black low cost 32" Ameriwood stands from QVC.  My original budget of $1,000 for the three was destroyed.  Big time.

The TVs are the big expense of course and this choice will have the biggest effect on your bottom line cost.  The Onkyo sound system was $400 all up including the 7.1 speakers

7) Time invested and location of setup?

 Probably 30 hours of researching, planning, measuring, calculating geometry, angles and sizes, and agonizing over the HDTVs and the total cost, and rationalizing the spending.  You see now I can set up TVs anywhere I like in the house (they are light enough to easily move) and even have a LAN party, so it's a multipurpose investment!    Yeah, right, it's still a lot of money!  I have an extremely understanding better half who also loves cars and technology.  That made it all possible.

Then it took maybe 6 hours to assemble the stands, wire up the components and test the result.  The location is in our basement along with many books, our desks and exercise things.

8) Can we come over to play?

It would be fun to meet AGE members in person.  Knock loudly, I'll be in the basement

Some More PICS with a disclaimer:

The photo was taken using three copies of FM1.  I intend to make a better photo, this was a little rushed in my excitement.  You may notice the lines on the road don't match across the screens - I have since fixed this.

Link to his Picasa Web Page