Making a Fighter Stick - What Do You Need? (post your pics)

[javeryh]

So what else do you need in order to make a stand-alone fighter stick that will work with PS3, 360 or PC?

- Wood (or other case material)
- Plexiglas
- 6 or 8 action buttons
- 3 "admin" buttons (start, pause, home?)
- 8-way joystick
- misc. supplies (wires, rubber feet, glue, paint/stain, etc.)
- ?? (the part/board that allows you to use a USB cable to plug into a PS3, 360 or PC)

Do you use the guts of old controllers or is there something commercially available that will take care of it?

NOTE: This is not a project for me but one of my friends wants to build a cabinet one day but for now he wants to start off with something small that will still require a little bit of skill.   

[Donkbaca]

Go to Shoryuken.com.  They do a ton of it.  Slagcoin has a nice little tutorial too.

Easy way:  Get a hori stick, swap out the stick/buttons/art

Otherwise, just approach it like you would a mini-cp.  Use a hacked control pad.  THere are pcb's like the akihsop one, but its sold out. and you can find controllers cheaper.

[somunny]

Here's pics of the two I built:

I used a couple of hacked wired 360 pads (courtesy of Haruman). Competition joys. Laminated MDF construction.  1/8" plexi over the top.  Admin buttons on the sides and back.

[Jack Burton]

lizardlick.com is a good place to start looking around. 

You don't need to hack a PCB from an old controller.  There are a few different custom pcb's with screw terminals for sale.  I recommend the Cthulhu board. 

[Donkbaca]

I think hacking a controller us the way to go. They aren't difficult to solder, and once you have them soldered to terminals they are just as easy to hook up, and they are way, way cheaper.  I would only get a custom pcb if I wanted the stick to work on both the ps3 and the xbox 360.

[javeryh]

I would only get a custom pcb if I wanted the stick to work on both the ps3 and the xbox 360.

Do you have a link or a name of such a product?  I I think a 360 compatible controller will work just fine but I'm curious.

@somunny: Nice looking sticks!  That's pretty much what I'd be going for...

@Jack Burton: Is that board universal or console specific (and is it expensive?)?

I found a thread over at shoryuken.com where people are posting their sticks - some SICK talent over there.   

[HaRuMaN]

I think the Cthulhu board only works on PC / PS3.  You still have to hack a 360 controller to add to it to get 360 functionality.  

(I'm at work, and can't verify what I said.  Lizardlick and Shoryuken are both blocked, here.)

[somunny]

I would only get a custom pcb if I wanted the stick to work on both the ps3 and the xbox 360.

Do you have a link or a name of such a product?  I I think a 360 compatible controller will work just fine but I'm curious.

@somunny: Nice looking sticks!  That's pretty much what I'd be going for...

@Jack Burton: Is that board universal or console specific (and is it expensive?)?

I found a thread over at shoryuken.com where people are posting their sticks - some SICK talent over there.   

Thanks!  It's a real simple design.  I have some measurements if you want them.  Just pm me.

[Donkbaca]

THe problem with xbox is that microsoft requires all its interfaces to be digitally signed and licensed by MS, so there aren't as many solutions for the XB.

I know the akishop pcb works, but I heard there were some issues with it, and they are sold out and in the process of waiting for v2 to come out.

I think the PCBs are a ripoff, they are like 40-50 bucks and can only handle one controller, so you would need to get 2 for a 2p pcb.  I would only get one if I could not solder at all.  If you want a 360 stick, just get these:

http://www.vpgames.com/p-3724-mad-catz-xbox-360-street-fighter-iv-controller-sf-4-turbo-fightpad-assorted.aspx

They are by far the BEST controllers to hack.  1) they are dirt cheap.  2) all the inputs are digital, which means simple soldering to points, no tricky analog to digital conversions needed for the trigger buttons 3) there is a switch on them that lets you trick the xbox into thinking that the dpad is the left analog stic; the controls are still digital, but it lets you control games, like limbo, that default to the left stick for movement and don't let you change controls.  4) THere is a common ground, so that means less soldering.

I had next to no soldering experience, and I hacked these, no problem.

Connecting to the PC is not a selling point, for custom pcbs.  Regular controllers connect to the pc via usb, and you can download drivers for them off the MS website.  So, you can get 2 of these for about 50 bucks and build a 2p cp that you can use on both your xbox and pc