Which joystick

[mlcampbe]

Looks like I am not going to have the time or money to put into building the cabinet I had hoped for so for now I am stuck playing games on a computer. I'd like to get a joystick to use for this but don't want to spend too much for one.

Any suggestions as to which joystick to get for the classic (pacman, qbert, etc) games?

[Shape D.]

ultimarcs t-stick, its easily switchable from 4 - 8 way.

[mlcampbe]

Let me rephrase it - I'm not going to build a cabinet so I need something I can plug into the computer. I know about the t-sticks and that is what I will use when/if I get to build a cabinet but for now I need a standard plugin joystick.

[elpresidente]

I really like the Logitech Dual Action controller (not a "joystick", I know). There are plenty of buttons to configure. Plays nice with mame. The analog sticks made robotron fun. Enjoyed Joust and many other games with it (Battletoads with my son). Sucks for pacman and probably quite few other games but if you're not partial against getting a controller instead of a joystick this is a good choice and not expensive.

[Gunstar Hero]

http://www.retroblast.com/hardware.html

Several models reviewed here!

[Minwah]

Let me rephrase it - I'm not going to build a cabinet so I need something I can plug into the computer. I know about the t-sticks and that is what I will use when/if I get to build a cabinet but for now I need a standard plugin joystick.

No regular PC stick will be good for 4-way games IMO, since all PC sticks are 8-way so you'll hit diagonals too easily.

[NoOne=NBA=]

The suggestion for the T-stiks was that you should build your own stand-alone controller--like the X-arcade/Slik-Stik/Hot Rod/etc...

I think you'll be much happier with a custom built stand-alone, than with anything you can buy off the shelf.

As far as price goes, you NEED an encoder ($20 at groovygamegear), a joystick ($25 for most of the good ones), and some buttons ($1.50 ea., or so).
Add some wood to that to make a box for it, and you're probably going to be in the $100 range, give or take, depending on how finished you want it.

The good side to this is that you'll have half the parts you need when you get around to building a cabinet, vs. the PC joystick which won't get you anywhere.

[Stingray]

The suggestion for the T-stiks was that you should build your own stand-alone controller--like the X-arcade/Slik-Stik/Hot Rod/etc...

I think you'll be much happier with a custom built stand-alone, than with anything you can buy off the shelf.

As far as price goes, you NEED an encoder ($20 at groovygamegear), a joystick ($25 for most of the good ones), and some buttons ($1.50 ea., or so).
Add some wood to that to make a box for it, and you're probably going to be in the $100 range, give or take, depending on how finished you want it.

The good side to this is that you'll have half the parts you need when you get around to building a cabinet, vs. the PC joystick which won't get you anywhere.

Keep your eyes on the buy/sell/trade forum and you can buy most of the stuff you need to build your own significantly cheaper than if you bought it new. You may even know a woodworker or a handman type who would be willing to give you some scrap material to build your box. Once you gather up the stuff you need you can put one together in a leasurely weekend. You'll find your home made controller to be vastly superior to any PC controller out there for playing arcade type games.