Help Me Choose the Best All Around Joystick

[Punisher]

I'm new to MAME and I need some help in choosing the best all around joystick for my first cabinet.  From what I think I have gathered the Ultimarc 360 or the Happ P360 are my best options.  I know it is going to be some what of a matter of personal preference but I just want to make sure I'm not missing something here.  Originally I was going to just go with a Happ Super or Competition but I read some reviews that got me thinking about the 360's.  Any insight would be helpful or suggestions of a different stick to look at.

Thanks

[cmoses]

New to building myself, acquired my cab and knew that I would be replacing my joysticks, have a small control panel so no room for extras.  I did a lot of research and decided to go with the Ultimarc U360's.  I am 100% pleased with them.  I use MALA and downloaded the plug-in that uses the maps.  They work flawlessly in everything that I can throw at them, 2 way, 4 way, 8 way, analog, etc.  I had Wico 8 ways in the original control panel and although nice, would occasionally get stuck in 4 way games.  I have had no such problems with the U360's.

I think that you will find that they are the most versatile joysticks out there and if you are limited on space they can do everything you ask.  I hope this helps you decide.

Although you still have to decide on ball top or bat top.  I went with ball top as they fell more natural to me.

[Punisher]

Thanks For the advice.  What made you choose the Ulitmarc over the Happ?

Bat Tops that is actually an easy choice for me.

[CheffoJeffo]

Thanks For the advice.  What made you choose the Ulitmarc over the Happ?

The Perfect 360 is just a digital joystick ... other than having optical switches, it doesn't do anything remarkable.

The U360 is whole different creature.

[Jack Burton]

a few notes:

-You can get bat tops for the Ultimarc sticks.  This makes them feel much different in my opinion.  Not worse, just different.

-The P360 has a completely different feel from a microswitch based joystick.  Apparently the Wico P360 is better than the Happ one.

-The Competition stick is usually considered equal to the P360 in the fighting game community.  Some like the smooth operation of the optical stick, others want the tactile response and corners of the competition.

-Make sure you mount whatever stick you get at the correct mounting height.  It pains me to see Japanese sticks going through 3/4" of wood, or seeing a Happ stick mounted to 2mm of steel.

I recommend you buy and install whatever stick is appropriate for your favorite type of game.  Cause if you can't play at least your very favorite game correctly the you will never be happy with your cabinet.

Classics: U360

Racing/Flight: U360

Fighting games: Competition or Japanese joystick

Capcom Vs. series: Perfect 360

Some classics will play just fine with a Happ joystick.  No problems playing Defender, Donkey Kong, or Galaga on my competition stick.  But a serious game of Pac-Man is an exercise in frustration.  Most of the time it's fine, but every once in a while I'll slip up and not quite hit the full direction, sending Pac-Man face first into a ghost.



Also, nothing stops you from installing a dedicated 4-way stick between your two main control clusters if you have enough space.

[Punisher]

What if my favorites are both the classics and the fighters and I don't have room for an additional dedicated 4 way.  Would would be my best option?

[Ginsu Victim]

UltraStik 360 would definitely be the best option.

[protokatie]

Esticks (and DONT laugh!) as they are cheap, easy, and work well (sorta like wundercade's mexican whores). Also, dont have to worry if your friend is beating the crap out of them, as they cost next to nothing, and can take a beating (see above parenthesis). Also, they fit into a normal hole, and do not need a custom slot cut out (see above-above parenthesis).

[divemaster127]

For the money($7.90 each)  the happ comp sticks are your best all around stick.  The ultimarc u360 are the best premo sticks out there.

[shardian]

A high quality 8-way is your best all-around joystick. I prefer Wico 8-ways in leaf or micro form - spring or grommet centered. Those sticks are designed to allow a 5 year old to hang from...or me to hang from. 

[NoOne=NBA=]

The absolute deciding factor to me is the per game mappability of the U360.

I spent days trying different sticks, and ended up piecing together parts from a few different joysticks, to make the "perfect" joysticks for my dedicated Crazy Climber.
I did all this so that the final sticks would be tighter on the up/down movements, than on the left/right movements.

You can tweak all those settings in software with the U360.
That is what sets it completely apart from the competition.

[Punisher]

How difficult are the U360's to mapp for each game?  Would I still want to use a IPAC and run the joysticks through or around it?

[NoOne=NBA=]

They are really easy to program.
Check out Ultimarc's site for a really good page on it.
You don't have to do mapping for each game, but it's there if you want to tweak something for a particular game.

The U360 is a USB analog joystick, so it hooks directly to the computer, not to an encoder like the others.
It supports 8-button inputs per stick.
If that's enough for you, you're good, and won't need an I-pac, gamepad hack, or whatever to get more inputs.
If not, you'll need to hook up something that will give you the additional inputs.

[Punisher]

I think I have finally made my decision to buy the U360's.  Now my CP is 3/4" think and I want to bottom mount it (and have no screws showing) so I need to know how much I need to router out.  Can someone tell me what the recommended height is to mount the top plate of the joystick from the top of the of the CP?