Mag-Stik Plus joystick responsiveness

[MrXBob]

I've had my cabinet set up for months now, this was my first ever build and I personally think it turned out great but something about the Mag-Stick Plus joysticks has always bugged me.

The best way I can describe it is that I can move in a direction (say, right) and feel resistance in the place where I naturally feel it should connect and hit the switch. But it doesn't. It has to then be pushed a little further to actually 'click'. This little distance is really annoying, especially in such games where you need a quick response from one direction to another (Donkey Kong and Lode Runner are very annoying with this stick) - it basically means you've got to put more pressure into your movements to get the joystick to react.

It's especially worrying when my young cousins use it - they end up thrashing the stick around extremely hard.

Is there anything I can do? Swap out some different switches, maybe? Or even adjust their position so they're closer? I've had a look and I don't think that's possible but I am a total noob with sticks - these are the first ones I've ever purchased.

They just don't feel fast and accurate like a real arcade stick should. They feel soft, sloppy and a bit 'squishy' if that makes any sense at all 

I've read about restrictor plates but I don't see how that could help me? Surely that would restrict the distance the stick could move (that's a good thing) but it would mean, with the switches as they are, the stick would then be unable to hit them, surely?

[Typefighter01]

I found a similar "Feel" to my Mag-Stik sticks when I first played them and it turned out the reason was they were not fully retracting back to their normal bottomed out position after switching from 4 to 8 way unless I pushed them down. They got better the more I used them, but the tolerances where really tight for the first few weeks causing the stick to "Hang" a few millimeters in the air. This caused some erratic game play, so bad I feared having to rip the CP apart to diagnose the problem. Just double check the stick is fully seated (give it a good push down), and if that dosen't help, move on to the switches.

EDIT: I re-read the post after I wrote my suggestion and realized if you stated you were a noob to joysticks and in your final sentance you state "I've read about restrictor plates but I don't see how that could help me?", that you might not be using this sticks properly.

The Mag-Stick Plus joystick has a built in restrictor plate you engage by pulling straight up on the stick and rotating right or left to set it to 4 way or 8 way. Your stick might be set to 4 way and/or is just partially rotated causing you the problems. It is a little tricky to figure out the first few times, but give the stick a fairly good pull straight up, slowly turn (keeping good upward force on the stick) until you feel it catch. Once you feel it kind of grab, give it another slight tug and turn it either clockwise or couter-clockwise a qtr of a turn and then test it in a know game (like Pac-Man 4 way only). I can't remember off hand, but I think to the right is 4 way.

[MrXBob]

They're definitely pushed all the way down, and the 4/8 way change is the main reason I bought the sticks, so I know I was at least doing that right

Doesn't matter whether they're in 4 or 8 way (definitely "all the way in"), and pushed down to be seated correctly, the stick doesn't activate the switches without being pushed farther than I feel they should be pushed.

When looking underneath as the joystick is moved, I see the stick make contact with the metal strip that pushes the switch in. This is the point where I feel the resistance in the stick and want it to activate the switch - but it doesn't actually push the switch in without some more movement on the stick.

The travel on the stick is too long, is what I'm trying to say, I guess. But as the brackets for the switches are physically attached to the stick mounting, I don't see a way of moving the switches closer to get a faster reaction.

[Drnick]

Just tested on mine and they are micro movements to activate the switches.  You could put a bit of tape around the black plastic part that activates the switches, but as I said mine need very little movement to activate.

[MrXBob]

Mine might be a bit dodgy then... though I got a red and blue one and they're both the same.

That's a good idea though, I could put some tape around to make the contacts thicker. Thanks!

[keilmillerjr]

The travel on the stick is too long, is what I'm trying to say, I guess.

The travel on the (2) magstik plus I just received is ridiculously short. It does make contact and then you have to apply more pressure to activate the switch, but we are talking very little pressure to begin with. I would just make sure you apply a little more pressure when using them. The only thing I am not happy with is the loud clicking. Hopefully, I'll change them out for quieter ones.

[MrXBob]

But it's not short enough for my personal tastes lol, it doesn't feel quick enough and I don't want to have to push so hard. I have a Hori stick for my Xbox and the joystick on that is perfect. It's very light, very fast to use.

EDIT: Actually after playing around with it and thinking about it some more, the travel would be fine if the switches didn't need so much pressure to hit them. It's very loud and clicky and stiff - would softer switches help? Do they even exist?

[Drnick]

There is another thread round here somewhere from 2012 where someone said they swapped them out for switches from paradisearcade, 20gm switch very very quiet, but they had to bend the switch a bit due to different length.  I know that Andy chimed in to say that they had changed out the switches for cherry switches in the same thread.  Search Magstick & Switch I'm sure it will turn up.

[Drnick]

I found those sites where they modified their Magsticks

http://www.togeo.com/togeo/wordpress/?p=67
&
http://www.cosam.org/projects/magstik.html