thinking of getting into arcade stick modding

[Edmond Dantes]

So lately, I've been into fighting games, particularly SNK's King of Fighters, Fartal Fury and I might get into Art of Fighting soon too.

This, naturally, leads me to want to play with an arcade stick.  But I only have three, of them, one (a Hori Tekken 5) seems to be going bad (one button has bouts where it won't respond) and the other two, a pair of Pelican Real Arcade Universals, are known to damage consoles.  I've heard I can fix this if I switch out the PCB with that of a normal Playstation controller, but I have absolutely no idea how to do that.  And then there's all this stuff about the different manufacturers--Sanwa, Happ, some euro guys I can't remember, whoever else... and it all gets confusing.  I don't even know what a "dremmel" is.

So, should I even try to do this myself, or should I just find someone to do it for me?

[Samurai Ghost]

I made an arcade stick myself some years ago and it is AWESOME. Way better than any stick I could buy because it's made EXACTLY how I want it, fits my hands perfectly, and uses the real arcade parts of my preference. Unfortunately I don't have any pics to post at the moment, but the process of making a stick isn't that hard, and modding one should be pretty easy.

Basically what you'll need to do is buy the cheapest/crappiest PS1 controller you can find. Think a $5 Madcatz controller. The reason being is they use cheap PCBs with wide tracks which are easy to solder to. The official Sony PCBs are too small to work with. Then you'll need to crack open your stick and find the leads that go to each button and direction of the stick and solder those to the appropriate spots on the controller's PCB. It will be obvious where each button contact is, and if the leads are too are too short you might have to extend the wires a bit. Then you'll have to make sure to wire each ground wire to the PCB ground as well. After that it should just be a matter of screwing the stick back together!

This probably sounds harder than it really is. Before making my arcade stick I had no experience soldering anything before and it was a lot easier than I expected. There are plenty of detailed tutorials on the net, and although most of them deal with making a new stick from scratch if you like your current sticks and just want to fix them you can use the wiring sections of the tutorials to help you along.

[Duo_R]

There are several good websites with info on how to do this. I will post some up later but if you Google you should find them easy

[Edmond Dantes]

Go ahead and post your links, Duo_R, though I probably have seen some of them before.  I used to lurk at the Shoryuken forums but I hate how they've become (really hate that banner thing at the bottom of each page).

I'm feeling a lot more confident after reading Samurai Ghost's post.  Question:  I have an Intec PS2 controller that I took apart to clean once, and never put back together, would this be a good replacement PCB?

[Duo_R]

K and I will post up some sticks that i have put together. Its like a Jedi constructing a lightsaber, every arcade fighting gamer should do this at least once

[Duo_R]

Ps2 pads are trickier because of analogue buttons, I believe those started on PS2 ya? I used ps1 controller and adapters for use on PS3, works fine on PS2.

[allyourblood]

If you have a steady hand, patience, and a few marbles rattling around upstairs, you can mod a joystick without too much trouble. Really, it just takes a little time and forethought. I also have a Pelican Universal stick (as does my bro-in-law) that I've been meaning to mod with Happ parts for ages. It's a nice enough base but the buttons and stick are pretty crappy (as you probably know). There's a lot of room inside (tons, actually), so fitting the PCB and wires will be cake.

That Intec controller you've got would probably be a good choice, as long as the traces are reasonably spaced so you can get to each line you need without being too cramped.

Your Tekken 5 stick's button can be replaced, but if I recall, the buttons don't use quick disconnects, in which case you'd have to desolder the original button and solder in the replacement -- in your case, you might just need to resolder or reflow the solder connecting the button to the PCB inside, as it very likely has just come free over time. If you wanna go with a different brand of buttons, you might have to modify the case itself to fit them. I've seen lots of them modded with all new parts though, so I know it can be done.

[Duo_R]

I have gone the HAPP route, some like the Japanese arcade parts but unfortunately I have never used one before, so I went old school.

[Edmond Dantes]

I heard about the size issue with buttons on the Tekken 5.  What size buttons does it take?

Honestly I might just sell it and put the money towards getting some Happ parts, but I did kinda like the stick and I was getting used to the Japanese style.

[Duo_R]

Are you building a stick for PS2?

Here are some sites that helped me start out:

http://wrongcrowd.com/arcade/joystickp2.shtml
http://arcadecontrols.com/arcade.htm
http://www.subdiv.net/articles/joystickhack/joystickhack.htm
http://www.spiffyshoes.com/dualshockhack/

[Edmond Dantes]

PS2 primarily, and I'm probably just gonna get adapters for other systems.

[allyourblood]

I have gone the HAPP route, some like the Japanese arcade parts but unfortunately I have never used one before, so I went old school.

I've got two SFIV TE sticks; one with Sanwa and one with Seimitsu, which I use for fighting games and shooters, respectively. For old school games, I much prefer the old school US bat and buttons, but for the current gen arcade games, the Japanese buttons and sticks work very well, and don't take much transitioning. I definitely prefer Seimitsu when it comes to shooters; very fast movement and action.

[munchiaz]

also check the tech thread on www.shoryuken.com Not only good for sticks, but its a fighting game forum.

[Duo_R]

Agreed great resource

also check the tech thread on www.shoryuken.com Not only good for sticks, but its a fighting game forum.

[Samurai Ghost]

I like the American style bat stick and convex buttons. Granted I'm not a tourney level player, but I never have any problems controlling fighters with one of them... In fact due to the way I hold the stick it works a lot better for me. And I just like the feel of the convex buttons. The Japanese-style ones just feel flimsy to me.