T-Stik Plus ???

[Taborious]

Has anyone used the ultimarc T-Stik Plus? Just wondering if it is any good. I like the switching option for 8way to 4way. Not sure if this affects the feel of the controller. Building my first cab and will have a website up shortly...

[Hoagie_one]

it has a very short throw.  I like it but many do not like the feel of it.  the 4\8 way switching is easy and awesome.

[koolmoecraig]

They are stiff with a really short throw. Precise as all hell, but feel is not their strong suit. I wish their throw was doubled. That's how short the throw is.

Unfortunately, they are pretty much the only quality option. They are built like a tank.

I wish someone, someday would build a 4/8 way switchable leaf switch stick!

[rnoonan]

I've got two on my CP.

[Hoagie_one]

here's a review from Kev steele

http://www.retroblast.com/reviews/joysticks/ultimarc_tstik.html

[PaulG]

I've got two on my CP.  I love them.  They are easy to switch, but it won't happen by accident during gameplay.  They are built very solid.

The only downside would be that there is no indicator to let you know when it is in 4-way and when it is in 8-way mode.  If you aren't sure you have to pull up the stick and try to change it one way or the other (and remember which way is 4 and which is .  Some kind of indicator would be great.

Overall I think they are definitely worth it as opposed to putting a separate 4-way on the panel or having to mess with the joystick from the bottom side.

To determine what mode you're in, all you have to do is push diagonally and feel if you're hitting the restrictor plate or are getting clicks.

I also love them, but I'm more old-school and rarely play fighters (And when I do, it's button masher a-hoy.  No skill on the player's part.  So I can't comment on how they are for that.

[ras2a]

Yeah agreed, they do have a really short throw indeed, but the upside as other's have said, is that they feel so responsive (i.e. shorter distance to move before microswitches are actuated).  Personally, I love em!

Craig

[Taborious]

So how about the Happ Super? I have read a lot of reviews and they seem to be top of the list for microswitch joysticks. Though I was thinking screw it I'll send a couple of extra bucks and get the Happ360...

[microwrx]

I love my T-Stick Plus'.  The only thing which I find strange, although not a complaint just an observation, is because of how the stick is designed the handle (whether it be bat or ball top) will rotate freely in your hand whereas most other sticks the rubber grommets (or whatever they are) tend to hold the shaft still.  Not an issue but it feels strange at first.

[NoOne=NBA=]

...whereas most other sticks the rubber grommets (or whatever they are) tend to hold the shaft still.

I don't know what type of other sticks you are used to, but ALL my sticks rotate like that--with the exception of the triggerstick type (Tron/Happ Trilogy/etc...)

I've got Happ Supers and Comps, Wicos, Joust sticks, no-name leafsticks, and some others I can't think of at the moment, and they all turn.

[mahuti]

Yeah, all my sticks rotate like that too. Pretty easily in fact. I have some t-pluses... Love em. Some people say it has a short throw like that's a bad thing. I don't really like the extra mush of the long throw sticks.

[microwrx]

The others I have (including regular T-Stick) turn, yes.

[LeedsFan]

I had two T-Sik plusses on my cab when I first built it. However, I found them a bit stiff for my tastes and my hand actually started to ache after a while when playing fast games like Pac-Man etc. Those type of games are not suited to this joystick. I was forever missing movements with this stick. Shoot-em-ups were fine though, and the switching method between 4 and 8 way is the best of any joystick on the market.

It's down to personal choice I suppose. I ended up swapping them out for X-Arcade joysticks. They have a longer throw and are nowhere near as stiff. They are also really excellent for playing 4-way games even when in 8-way mode. Purists may pour scorn on this remark as the only true way to play 4-way games is with a real 4-way stick. But I have no trouble at all playimg Pac-Man and Ms.Pac-Man speedup hacks with this joystick. Very responsive indeed, smooth feel and a decent throw.

[Stu_C]

How are they at producing dragon punches?   

[LeedsFan]

How are they at producing dragon punches?

[Minwah]

I had two T-Sik plusses on my cab when I first built it. However, I found them a bit stiff for my tastes and my hand actually started to ache after a while when playing fast games like Pac-Man etc. Those type of games are not suited to this joystick.

They are very stiff.  But replacing the microswitches makes a *massive* difference.  It is the resistance in the stock switches that make them feel so hard.

Cherry switches (as used by Happ) make the stick feel a lot lighter - at a guess I would say half as stiff or even lighter.  A big improvement IMHO.

[Stu_C]

Sorry LeedsFan, you are right, Street Fighter was what I was talking about and dragon's are hard to do.

[Hurray Banana]

I have 2 on my cab as well.

I have pulled off dragon punches but the short throw makes it a little tricky. You need to get used to them.

I may try the replacment cherry switches that MinWah talked about as it's not an expensive upgrade.

[Minwah]

I may try the replacment cherry switches that MinWah talked about as it's not an expensive upgrade.

Depends where you get them...they are pretty pricey from Happ (to the UK anyway).  I can tell you how much if you need as I ordered some recently...

[Hurray Banana]

Yeah that would be helpful, thanks

[Minwah]

Yeah that would be helpful, thanks

OK I'll find out my invoice tonight...

[Shape D.]

Wouldn't using the longer hande available for the t-sticks adress the short throw problem?

[mr.Curmudgeon]

The others I have (including regular T-Stick) turn, yes.  But the Plus' almost spin!

You can use that spin to your advantage: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,20018.0.html   

mrC

[Hurray Banana]

The others I have (including regular T-Stick) turn, yes. But the Plus' almost spin!

You can use that spin to your advantage: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,20018.0.html

mrC

Yeah I saw that a bit back and copied the instructions down. Don't know when I'll get around to doing it tho'.

[krick]

They are very stiff.

[LeedsFan]

I had two T-Sik plusses on my cab when I first built it. However, I found them a bit stiff for my tastes and my hand actually started to ache after a while when playing fast games like Pac-Man etc. Those type of games are not suited to this joystick.

They are very stiff.

[seanp]

I just swapped the microswitches out for some Cherry micros from some buttons I don't use in gameplay (ie player 1 start/ player 1 coin).  There's a pretty huge difference - I wouldn't want to push down those buttons in Galaga, for instance - your finger would definitely get tired from the very stiff switch. 

It's still a pretty short throw, but you can't beat the 4/8 way switchable.

-Sean

[spiffyshoes]

I tried some T-Sticks and tried replacing the microswitches with some softer ones but they were still too stiff.  If your gona have the a short throw you need to have a softer spring.  It might be possible to replace the spring with a softer one but it seems doubtful as the springs were kind of odd in that they were short and fat.  I haven't tried the Onisticks they might be a better choice if your wanting something that is switchable from above the panel.  I would recomend just sticking to keeping a seperate dedicated 4-way and 8-way joysticks though.

[IreM72]

Were these joysticks ever actually used in the arcades?

or are they specially made for home cabs for certain games like shoot-em-ups because of the short throw and stiff spring?

[krick]

While we're talking about the T-Stik Plus, is anybody out there using the optional ball-top handles?

I ordered the ball-top handles and I'm having a trouble trouble swapping the handles.  There's a rectangular washer that has to go on first, followed by the spring and the other two parts.  The hole in the rectangular washer doesn't seem large enough to fit over the shoulder on the stick shaft.

Did anyone else encounter this problem?
I haven't emailed Andy about it yet.

[microwrx]

It's been a while since I changed mine over (plus I don't have it in front of me) BUT, the rectangular washer doesn't go over the shoulder, it sits on it with the spring behind it.

[rnoonan]

To determine what mode you're in, all you have to do is push diagonally and feel if you're hitting the restrictor plate or are getting clicks.

That's true, but I was thinking it would be cool if they had some kind of LED indicator or something.

[krick]

It's been a while since I changed mine over (plus I don't have it in front of me) BUT, the rectangular washer doesn't go over the shoulder, it sits on it with the spring behind it.

[microwrx]

Ahh, now I see, good quality pics by the way.  I do remember mine being tight but not that tight.  Personally, I'd just get a pencil or whatever else will fit wrapped in a piece of sand paper and open the hole up a little.

[krick]

Thanks.  The pics are from my trusty Sony MVC-FD73, reduced in size 50%.
It only does 640x480 (that's like 0.3 megapixels).  I've thought about getting a new camera but my sony has an incredible macro capabilty and it takes fantastic close up pictures as long as you can get it lit correctly.

Anyhoo...  I bought 4 T-Sticks and 4 replacement ball top shafts.  I probably should check them all.  Maybe some of them aren't this tight.

BTW, are you using the stock switches on yours? 

[Minwah]

I thought that standard Cherry switches didn't fit because the switch mounting was different.

No, they fit fine, exactly the same hole spacing etc.

[Minwah]

Anyhoo...  I bought 4 T-Sticks and 4 replacement ball top shafts.  I probably should check them all.  Maybe some of them aren't this tight.

I've fitted the balltops...I seem to recall mine were quite tight (the squarish plate had a slight curve to it making the hole slightly smaller).  I'm sure I was able to push it on with my hands tho.

[jfunk]

That freaked me out for a bit, too..  Thought I'd messed up.  I eventually just had to push a little harder than I thought I should, and it worked..  I guess I'd rather have it too snug than too loose..? 

[krick]

I tried all 4 balltop sticks last night.  On 3 of them, the washer is snug but goes on fine.  On the other one, it is impossible to get on.

I'm going to try taking some emery cloth to the bottom of the shaft to see if maybe there's just some burrs from manufacturing or something that's stopping the washer from going on.

[Grasshopper]

I noticed with my T-Stik that there is a lot of play between the metal shaft and the main plastic body of the joystick that it goes into. This means that you can push slightly in any given direction before meeting any resistance.

I found that by wrapping some sellotape around the shaft before putting the joystick together I could get rid of the play, and significantly improve the joystick's feel.

Unfortunately, this might interefere with the lift and twist mechanism but this is not a problem for me as I own a standard T-Stik (not the plus variety).

With regards to fitting a longer shaft (maybe from RandyT or the Tron guy?) theoretically this would increase the throw AND reduce the resistance at the same time.

I'm also interested in how much the Happ microswitches cost as Ultimarc's minimum shipping cost is too high for me to contemplate buying the quiet microswitches from them. Do Happ sell microswitches with the correct length actuator?