The "What Stick/Controller Should I Buy?" Thread

DarkSakul · October 11, 2020

The “What Stick/Controller Should I Buy?” Thread

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Warning: This thread is heavily opinionated as are the nature of any product review

As well all have contrasting views on what is good/acceptable, as rule from the moderators, we shall not devolve into a VERSUS thread.

Personal opinions are fine, trying to argue that your favorite stick is better will not be tolerated. Do not confuse opinion with fact and vise versa.

Your Results/Mileage will vary. And don’t ask for us to make a choice for you, I am not holding anyone’s hand.

When it comes to my own reviews, I will not go through and point out what is my own opinions from what is fact (as my prerogative), and I encourage everyone to do your own fact finding research before you make a final conclusion for yourself. That is what google is for, finding your own research and making your own decisions.

Don't ask about sales, promo codes, or deals for any products. As the time of writing, we don't have any known industry insiders on the forum.

Keep in mind I am purposely leaving out many limited edition and/or collectors sticks, as it goes outside the intentions of the guide. Collectors are going to collect.

And I also like to keep custom sticks off the thread entirely, Custom sticks are outside of the scope of this guide and is considered off topic. Want a custom stick, make your own or hire someone to do it for you. I am going to completely ignore All-button "sticks", Keyboard-"sticks", Hitboxes and the like. If you want to review them, then make your own.

And no this is not a carbon copy of the guide from Tech Talk, as that guide is out of date and I am leaving a lot of old stuff there.

Last but not least I ask readers to go outside of this thread and do your research. Read reviews here on MEGASHOCK and reviews on online stores and in magazines. Weigh the Pros and Cons before deciding which stick to get. And please don't make new threads on what stick you should buy, read the thread first. Don't see what you are looking for ask.

DarkSakul · October 11, 2020

Before I start with the cool part of this guide, we will first cover three more important objectives.
And what you need to consider above all else.

Needs
Wants
Budget

Needs: This covers what you absolutely have to have, strip down and basic. With any purchase this is what you should think of first. When it comes to Video Game controls this is usually covered by the Default game pad, only a few games require specialized controls or controls modified for those who have special needs. Example a One handed controller for a gamer who only have one useable arm.
I am assuming most people reading this guide now are hardcore fighter or arcade game fans who the regular d-pad is not cutting it for you (for one reason or another).

Wants: This is what you have your heart set for. For most people this is your end results.

Budget: This is how much money you have to spend. Budget is the more realistic and sobering part of the purchase process. Typically a stick will run you 60 to 250 dollars U.S and up. retail this figure will change with what the normal market price is in your region of the world. Don't ask me personally where to buy sticks in your home country, I wouldn't know from my location in the US.
Any stick you find** less than $50** is not worth your money and breaks easy.

Quote

General rule of thumb on these things: when in doubt, pass. I’d rather pay the few extra dollars and get one that I KNOW works than one that may or may not. My peace of mind is worth a few extra dollars.

Keep in mind if you are broke (Budget), and the default game pad works fine enough for you (Need) that these 2 will and should over ride your Wants.

Now I am also going to cover other features of each stick/ controller here. These factors are also important to cover but goes secondary to the above. I be using this on almost every stick I list here.

Quality
Reliability
Ease of Modification
Purpose or special use

Difficulty Scale for Modding
From a scale of 1 to 5. This will factor in installing Buttons, Joysticks and replacement panels, and to a lesser extend PCB replacement.

This will not factor actual Dual-mods, replacement art or any painting.

Easy: Standard parts drops right into place, reasonable access to all parts.
Medium Easy: Still uses standard parts, access can be difficult/ time consuming
Moderate Difficulty: Requires minor case modding or appropriate mount plates
Medium hard: Requires some physical tool use to fit parts into place.
Hard: Requires Heavy modding using tools to cut, grind or drill to fit replacement parts.

How to Win at eBay.

Keep in mind eBay is not an online store. eBay is a listing, and auction service, you are buying from that individual seller not eBay. And Every Seller is different.

For Experienced sellers who sold hundreds if not thousands, Look for sellers with a Feedback score of 99.5% rating or better. Huge time sellers with a 95% or lower are to be avoided like the plague. Pay attention to the text in the negative feedbacks, check to see if the negative feedbacks buyers actually have an issue or they are just jerks.

For people with a hundred sales or less, if they do not have a 100% rating, avoid them.

When Bidding:

Never, ever bid early. You only drive the price up higher.
Wait till the last possible minute (or less).
Also decide in advance the maximum you want to bid, unless you GOTTA HAVE IT do not get in a bidding war.

Also there is no such thing as a “BEGINNER STICK” so do not ask. There are no Training Wheels in the FGC.

DarkSakul · October 11, 2020

There are too many joysticks to list them all -- these are just some of the more important/historically relevant ones.

Mad Catz

NOTE: Issues with early Mad Catz Sticks:

Xbox 360 version: Dual-modding with your TE with a Board for Dual modding, when you open up your stick, printed on the board should be its Revision Version printed on the board. If you have Rev A, that is the problem board. If you have Rev B you will be fine. Rev A = bad, Rev B = okay. I was also under the impression that Rev B boards are more reliable but at this point in time you are better off replacing the PCB.

PS3 Version: Because of the proprietary USB protocol encoding (UHCI) the PS3 versions of the original SE, Round 1 and Round 2 TE Mad Catz sticks, These early PS3 versions has issues operating on PCs with OLDER Non-Intel USB controllers chipsets (USB 1.1 and USB 2.0). The PS3 versions of the TE Round 1 and Round 2 are completely incompatible with USB 3.0 and onwards. Your best bet is to replace the PCB with something more Universally compatible. There no modern USB PCIe board that allows you to use theses sticks, so don't ask us to find you a PCIe expansion board for you. Mod your stick instead.

Street Fighter IV SE (PS3, Xbox 360)

Spoiler

A basic 8 button arcade stick controller.

Parts:

MadCatz joystick/buttons (Sanwa clones)

Known issues:

Earlier models may have issues with the PCB or Printed Circuit board.

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Sanwa parts are perfect drop in replacements and Seimitsu parts would also work well. PCB replacement is do-able because of the space underneath Only replacement art is for the top panel is difficult to replace due to the bent in the angle of the top panel, plexi is not an option here. Tatsunoko vs. Capcom (Wii) and the WWE Brawl SE are nearly identical but they have improved PCB quality.

Tournament Edition "Round 1" (PS3, Xbox 360)

Spoiler

(This stick got retroactively called the Round 1 to distinguish it from the later Round 2 TE)

Type 1, 1st gen TE. Wider layout than the SE, with a leveled flat top. Red IV artwork. This is the TE that had the most issues with the PCB. As with the Xbox 360 versions, they possess a Xbox 360 [2.5 mm audio jack] mic port, the PS3 version lack the mic port. On the PS3 TEs the mic area is filled with a plastic plug.

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

Has many issues with the PCB, this was improved with later versions of the TE. Cable compartment can break.

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Uses standard Sanwa parts so it easy to mod. Plenty of 3rd party options for modding such as replacement panels and side pieces.

Tournament Edition Round 2 (PS3, Xbox 360)

Spoiler

(called the Round 2 on the stock art/retail packaging)

Revision of original TE. Slightly more reliable PCB but still has minor issues.

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

Cable compartment door can break.

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Tournament Edition S (PS3, Xbox 360)

Spoiler

Updated shell with extra screw by the turbo panel. Possesses much better PCB. Uses the "extended size top Panel"

Parts:

Sanwa joystick / buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

TE 2 (Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS3/PS4)

Spoiler

Mad Catz' first entry into the 8th generation of consoles.

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

Earlier models have issues with top plexiglass fit.

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Opening the lid makes the stick easy to access, although the PCB is not common ground on the Xbox One version.

Note: The Xbox One Killer Instinct version of the TE 2 isn't a true Xbox controller and does not work on many games including other fighters. That particular model was originally intended to work only with Killer Instinct (2013).

Street Fighter X Tekken Fight Stick Pro (PS3/Xbox 360)

Spoiler

New body style that is wider than the TE series. The Guide area is moved to the right side of the stick. PCB improved over the TE models.

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 1.5 ]

Odd PCB placement compared to the TE.

Versus Series (PS3/Xbox 360)

Spoiler

New body style. Easily identified by the screws holding everything together. 2 separate sticks can be joined together into a single 2-player stick.

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

DarkSakul · October 11, 2020

Hori

Real Arcade Pro (PS2)

Spoiler

This stick has A and B revisions.

Parts:

Hori joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [2.5]

Removing top panel requires bottom panel to be removed first. Issues in mounting Seimitsu joysticks on Version B.

Real Arcade Pro 2 (PS2)

Spoiler

Parts:

Hori joystick/buttons

Sanwa joystick/buttons (SA version)

Seimitsu joystick/buttons (SE version)

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Fighting Stick 3 (PS3) / Fighting Stick EX2 (Xbox 360)

Spoiler

PS3 version has 8 buttons on the front, 360 version has 6. There is a DOA 3 variant of this stick.

Parts:

Hori joystick/buttons

Known Issue:

Reports of the PCB acting up.

Mod Difficulty: [ 3 ]

Fighting Stick Wii (Wii)

Spoiler

Parts:

Hori joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 3 ]

Real Arcade Pro EX (Xbox 360)

Spoiler

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/Hori buttons

Sanwa joystick/buttons (SA version)

Seimitsu joystick/buttons (SE version)

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Removing top panel requires bottom panel to be removed first. Non-common ground PCB. Buttons can be replaced with Sanwa or Seimitsu buttons easily. Universal stick mount.

Real Arcade Pro 3 (PS3)

Spoiler

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/Hori buttons

Sanwa joystick/buttons (SA version)

Seimitsu joystick/buttons (SE version)

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Removing top panel requires bottom panel to be removed first. Buttons can be replaced with Sanwa or Seimitsu buttons easily.

Wireless Fighting Stick 3 (PS3) / Wireless Fighting Stick EX (Xbox 360)

Spoiler

Tekken 6 came bundled with a Tekken-branded variant. PS3 version uses a 2.4GHZ dongle.

Parts:

Hori joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

Some users report input drops and lag.

Mod Difficulty: [ 3 ]

Fighting Stick V3 (PS3) / Fighting Stick VX (Xbox 360)

Spoiler

Parts:

Hori joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Common ground PCB. Hori buttons are soldered to a PCB, but the PCB that the buttons are soldered to are not the main PCB but a secondary board that does not need to be saved for button swapping.

Real Arcade Pro.V3 SA (PS3) / Real Arcade Pro.VX SA (Xbox 360)

Spoiler

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

Cable compartment door can fall off.

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Common ground PCB. Buttons are connected with quick disconnects.

Real Arcade Pro V4 (PS3/PS4)

Spoiler

There are variants of this stick with special silenced parts.

Parts:

Hori Hayabusa joystick/Kuro buttons

Known Issues:

Cable compartment door can fall off.

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Common ground PCB.

Real Arcade Pro Hayabusa (XBO)

Spoiler

Parts:

Hori Hayabusa joystick/Kuro buttons

Known Issues:

Cable compartment door can fall off.

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Real Arcade PRO V3 VLX (PS3)

Spoiler

Also comes in a blue 'Diamond' variant.

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Easy-access top panel.

Real Arcade PRO Premium VLX (PS3/PS4)

Spoiler

Parts:

Hori Hayabusa joystick, Hayabusa buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Easy access top panel.

Hori Real Arcade Pro N (PS3/PS4)

Spoiler

Has Gundam, Tekken, Soul Calibur, and Dragon Ball FighterZ variants. Start button can be hidden behind a sliding door.

Parts:
Hori Hayabusa joystick, Hayabusa buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Common ground PCB.

Hori Fighting Edge (PS4)

Spoiler

Premium stick with aluminum finish.

Parts:

Hori Hayabusa joystick, Hayabusa buttons

Known Issues:

No issues

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Touch panel is a pain to mod, but the board is common ground.

DarkSakul · October 11, 2020

SEGA

Virtua Stick HSS-0130 (Saturn)

Spoiler

Large 2-player stick mimics the panels found on SEGA Astro City arcade cabinets. Uses the same metal top panels as the actual cabinets.

Parts:

Seimitsu joysticks/SEGA buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 3 ]

Sega Virtua Stick HSS-0136 (Saturn/PS2)

Spoiler

Similar in visual style to the HSS-0130 stick. Mimics Astro City arcade cabinet. Was later re-released for PS2, and an unofficial off-brand version was made for the Dreamcast. Was only sold in Japan.

Parts:

Seimitsu or ASCII joystick/buttons (differs from unit to unit)

Known Issues:

Dreamcast variant of the stick has an internal Saturn to Dreamcast PCB that is poorly secured inside. The Adapter’s PCB is wrapped in bubble wrap and stuck on with double sided tape.

Mod Difficulty: [ 3 ]

Common ground board.

Sega Virtua Stick HSS-0104 (Saturn)

Spoiler

First joystick released for Saturn. Inferior to the HSS-0136. Uses poor quality parts. Only recommended for collectors and not suitable for modding due to limited space.

Parts:

Unknown

Mod Difficulty: [ 5 ]

Virtua Stick High Grade (PS3)

Spoiler

High quality joystick with metal body.

Parts:

Sanwa joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

Serious reported issues with First run PCBs.

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Agetec SEGA Dreamcast Arcade Stick (Dreamcast)

Spoiler

Excellent case and one of the better PCBs for Dreamcast controllers. The stick and buttons are below average.

Parts:

Agetec joystick/buttons

Known Issues:
None

Modding Difficulty: [ 5 ]
PCB is common ground. Modding the case to accept modern arcade parts is not easy. Top panel and shell have to be modified to accept 30mm buttons and Seimitsu/Sanwa joysticks.

SNK

Neo Geo AES Stick (Neo Geo/Neo Geo CD)

Spoiler

Standard controller for the Neo Geo AES. Uses a 4 button curved layout and a Seimtsu joystick. Later variants using clone parts were made for the PS2, PS3, PC and Neo Geo X Gold.

Parts:

Seimitsu Stick, proprietary buttons

Known Issues:

Plastic balltop on the joystick can crack with age

Modding Difficulty: [ 5 ]

Limited space can make it difficult to fit standard-sized parts

American/ European Style Sticks

Sticks in this category are meant to be used with American style parts (Suzo/Happ).

X-Arcade Joysticks (PC/Multi)

Spoiler

Come in multiple configurations for one or two players.

Parts:

Happ-like joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

PCB not the greatest but there are worse on the market. Compatible with multiple consoles through the use of adapters. Adapters don't always work well.

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Pelican “Real Arcade” Stick (PS2/GameCube/Xbox)

Spoiler

Parts: Happ-like joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

PCBs starting to show problems with age

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

MAS Systems Stick (Multi)

Spoiler

Custom made-to-order American-style sticks. Made for various systems.

Parts:

Mostly Happ Parts. Newer Models may have Perfect 360° joysticks. Some models support Sanwa buttons.

Known Issues:

Earlier sticks used a custom PCB. Later model sticks ditched the PCB for a hand-wired PIC chip taped down with scotch tape. The most recent models use actual PCBs again.

Mod Difficulty: [ 1 ]

Mortal Kombat Tournament Edition Arcade Stick (PS3, Xbox 360)

Spoiler

Has MK-specific layout. Not really useful for playing other games.

Parts:

Uses custom Happ parts.

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [3.5]

Accepts Happ and IL parts. Dual-Mod not possible with stock PCB without some electronic isolation.

NubyTech Official Street Fighter Anniversary Edition Arcade Stick (PS2, Xbox)

Spoiler

Parts:

Happ-like joystick/buttons

Known Issues:

None

Mod Difficulty: [ 2 ]

Accepts Happ/ IL Parts.

DarkSakul · October 11, 2020

Reserved Space for Guide

DarkSakul · October 11, 2020

Reserved Space for Guide

Hawkingbird · October 31, 2020

I noticed that you excluded the Razer sticks. I know you don't like Razer but they need to be on here.

https://www.razer.com/console-controllers/razer-panthera/RZ06-02720100-R3U1

https://www.razer.com/console-controllers/razer-atrox/RZ06-01150100-R3U1

KingTubb · January 21, 2021

Didn’t know where to say this, but I’ll say it here: Alpha Sticks are nice. I like em a lot, might just be my favorite stick.

misterBee · January 22, 2021

10 hours ago, KingTubb said:

Didn’t know where to say this, but I’ll say it here: Alpha Sticks are nice. I like em a lot, might just be my favorite stick.

The little Madcatz ones?

KingTubb · January 22, 2021

12 hours ago, misterBee said:

The little Madcatz ones?

My bad, the actual level, like the korean joystick.

Knew a guy that used to rock the little madcats one and seemed to really like it

misterBee · January 22, 2021

3 hours ago, KingTubb said:

My bad, the actual level, like the korean joystick.

Knew a guy that used to rock the little madcats one and seemed to really like it

Ah gotcha.

I play on a Korean stick too. They're the best. 😛

Emptyeyes · March 9, 2021

I've bought the latest Mayflash F500 Elite that supports Sanwa Button Modding not too long ago. I'm not sure how reliable these arcade sticks are, compared to the others you've posted. The basis of them, going further in depth prior in your original posts are noted. I don't know much about this subject, but I'll put my trust in you.

DarkSakul · March 9, 2021

I don't really have it on the list, this is mostly old stuff ported over from SRK.

hanzohattori12 · November 28, 2021

SF5 TE2 or SF5 Razor Panthera? What do you guys think?

misterBee · November 28, 2021

49 minutes ago, hanzohattori12 said:

SF5 TE2 or SF5 Razor Panthera? What do you guys think?

These days most sticks in that price range are the same. Just buy the one that looks nicer to you/has the better price.

elliephil · November 28, 2021

30 minutes ago, misterBee said:

These days most sticks in that price range are the same. Just buy the one that looks nicer to you/has the better price.

At this point, you're probably just paying for the different case? With the exception of a few sticks like etokki and mayflash, I feel like they all use sanwa buttons and jlf levers. So yeah, ditto.

waiting on that mas stick reboot tho lol

hanzohattori12 · November 28, 2021

2 hours ago, misterBee said:

These days most sticks in that price range are the same. Just buy the one that looks nicer to you/has the better price.

I have the opportunity to get either one for $150, so I’ll probably go with the Razor.

elliephil · November 28, 2021

2 hours ago, hanzohattori12 said:

I have the opportunity to get either one for $150, so I’ll probably go with the Razor.

I have the Razer panthera and I like how easy it is to fix or swap out parts. $150 is a steal. If you need replacement parts such as the usb cable, it's really easy to get a hold of those as well for a decent price.