jaaz...thanks for the tips. I am contemplating an ebay purchase from that very same vendor. Great pricing and availability. But at the same time Amazon has a $50 off coupon for Playseats (its on their website) which, combined with free shipping, will make it a tad cheaper. Also looking at the obutto ozone which has gotten rave reviews.
I will definitely look into the buttkicker with that coupon. I saw a discussion about that.
I'm hooked up to a 60" HD screen, still lacking a surround sound setup though. All this investment should be worth it with GT5 around the corner