Vectrex Controller

[MinerAl]

I would like to make an arcade stick/button controller for a Vectrex system (eventually for a "drop in" mini-cab project).

The buttons are just buttons, but the joystick is analog, supplying +3.4V to -3.4V (centered at 0) from the two axis pots. It's actually supplied 5V, but uses resistors to narrow the range.

I have been away from the hobby for a while, and haven't kept up on joystick varieties like I used to.  I know there is the US$180 Happs trigger analog stick, and there are the micro ones you use to repair broken PS3 controllers.  One is too expensive and the other not big enough, and neither really gets to the ball-top traditional arcade machine vibe I'm looking for.

Is there a reasonably priced (< US$75) regular arcade stick looking solution for me?  Would one of the digital/pseudo-analog ones be capable of what I'm trying to do?

Any advice?

[ChadTower]

There is only one original game that actually needs the analog stick.  Most of the others don't even support it and treat it like a digital stick.  Most of the homebrews in recent years do support analog movement.


You could easily get away with a digital stick for the original games.  I have always used a Playstation->Vectrex adapter with an original PS1 controller in my Vectrex setup.  No analog there though the adapter does support it with a Dual Shock controller.

[ChadTower]

A quick Google turned this up:   http://www.instructables.com/id/Modify-PSX-Controller-for-Vectrex-Games-Console/




It might be worth considering using a Playstation arcade joystick and modifying it like that. 

[MinerAl]

That's where I'm looking right now.  My other idea was to find an old PC flight stick and hack an arcade ball/bat top shaft to it.  I was hoping there was an off the shelf solution though.

[ChadTower]

There is a Genesis controller mod out there too.  That's digital too, though.


Even the few coin op Vectrex bartops I have seen all have regular Vectrex controllers embedded in the CP.

[Gray_Area]

I think the Vectrex controller is a rare example of something that really worked for the system designed for. Most of the games may not've been analog, but that stick works the best with them. It's why I don't play Vectrex games on my cab.

[ChadTower]

Actually, it didn't work all that well for the Vectrex.  One game supports the analog stick.  A simple digital controller would have suited the system a whole lot better.


Try playing those same games with a PS1 or Genesis controller.  They are a whole lot more comfortable.

[Gray_Area]

Actually, it didn't work all that well for the Vectrex.  One game supports the analog stick.  A simple digital controller would have suited the system a whole lot better.


Try playing those same games with a PS1 or Genesis controller.  They are a whole lot more comfortable.

I kicked ass at games with that controller.

[compute]

A few years ago I wanted to build a rugged 'arcade' controller for Vectrex, but I shut down pretty quickly when I realized how much I would need to spend before even interfacing the damn thing.  I had figured an industrial analog joystick (we had one on an x-ray machine, otherwise you'll find them on wheelchairs as well).  If you don't NEED the analog control, switching to digital is so much cheaper and it's been done.  No need for extra work.

[ChadTower]

You could start with one of these instead.  Do the regular analog PS1 mod and optionally relocate the controls to a different housing that better emulates the Vectrex CP.