Gear Talk

Off-Topic
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Hello there, KI community!

I wanted to start a thread for general discussion of gear related to fighting games: pads, arcade sticks, PCBs, converters, buttons, joysticks, etc… so here it is! I’ll begin:

I just put an oversized actuator and a 2lb spring in the stock Sanwa JLF that came in my TE2 (KI Edition). I am really digging the Kowal Actuator (1mm), the dead zone is significantly reduced… but I’m not sure I’ll keep the spring as-is. I do enjoy that the increased tension makes your movements a lot more deliberate, but I have had some inputs slip in clutch moments. Perhaps I just need to keep at it, and I’ll adjust… but if not, I’ll likely end up snipping a bit off of the spring to reduce that tension.

I’ve got 2 Qanba Q1s that I am getting ready to install new sticks (Sanwa JLF) and buttons (assorted; mostly Sanwa) into. All and all I really dig the Q1 design; small, lightweight, and able to clamp to a table. But that stock joystick just felt too imprecise and wiggly. The buttons were honestly OK, but I have some durability concerns so I used that as an opportunity to grab something tried and true, as well as something more interesting than all-bone-white buttons.

Some questions, for those more tech inclined than myself:

  • Does the Q1 have room for an additional PCB? I was thinking about getting a PS4 PCB installed.
  • Will a 1mm Kowal Actuator fit into a Hori Hayabusa joystick?
  • Does a cat really generate perpetual energy with buttered bread strapped to its back?
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@KrizmKazm - Gonna tag you proactively :wink:

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I’m sort of an enthusiastic noob when it comes to gear. I have always used sticks, starting with the ASCII models on SNES (terrible in retrospect, but so much better than a SNES pad- and they never broke no matter what you did to them), moving to Hori on Dreamcast (so good), PDP on Xbox/PS2, back to Hori and then to MadCatz on 360/ps3 and of course I have a TE2. I have re-soddered switches in the past and swapped out buttons to “mod” my TE2, but otherwise that’s it.

The only one of your bullets I can answer is the third, which is definitely “yes.”

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I’m digging on the Hori gear I’ve managed to play with as well! I ended up picking up a Hori RAP (Xbone Verison) for my wife, and I like it almost as well as I do my TE2! That Hayabusa joystick is pretty sweet. I’m probably going to go that route for a PS4 stick if dropping a PS4 PCB into my Qanba Q1s isn’t possible (or less cost effective). I’ll likely drop some Sanwa or Semitsu buttons in mine though; not that the Kuro buttons are bad, but I enjoy the feeling of the Sanwa and Semitsu buttons a bit more.

I’ve heard good things about the GamerFinger buttons, might end up giving those a spin at some point.

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I was really happy to get my TE2 for Christmas last year! I don’t use it all the time, but it’s still awesome.

So… I guess I have whatever that has, stock…?

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The TE2 comes with good stuff right out of the box… Sanwa JLF joystick and Sanwa buttons. Did you get the KI edition, or just the original TE2?

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I’ve always loved the HORI products. Interestingly, it was the need for easier access to the shoulder buttons on MK games that made me jump to a TE stick on 360, since most of the HORI sticks have a 6 button layout. The overall quality is probably less on an out of the box HORI stick, but frankly they have always served me very well. Never had to replace a part or change a button and I’ve owned probably half a dozen for different platforms. If it wasn’t for the fact that I have too many darn fightsticks lying around for old systems I would probably pick up one of the newer Hori sticks for X1.

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The standard one, I think the KI one was already sold out.

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Same here, except that the game was KI and the system was Xbone. Right about the time I got super frustrated with the pad, the KI TE2 became all-of-the-sudden available on the MadCatz website. I jumped all over it.

That’s pretty much my feelings on the Hori sticks; not quite as sweet, but they get the job done and done well.

Do any of them have an 8-button layout? If so, maybe you could mod one for a newer system?

Just as well… the only real difference is the artwork and the glowing buttons. If you’re really into the glowing button thing, there’s an LED board available that fits the TE2’s button layout. @KrizmKazm has a sweet video on his youtube channel on the installation process.