Mag-Stik Plus good or bad???

[BigDaddyE]

Have a Gauntlet Dark Legacy cab that is gutted and I am working to turn in into a MAME shrine. I plan to put in spinners and trac ball, was doing some reading on the Mag-Stik Plus, sounds good from the description, but what do these do in real life ( 8 way to 4 way with the flick of your wrist and then a stick change if you want).

I originally planned to have 4;8 ways and 1;4 way but with the Mag-Stik Plus I could get rid of the 4 way.

I am trying to keep the feel of the 8 and 4 way joysticks, so I am concerned that this hybrid stick would not be what I am looking for.

Anyones input is much appreciated!

Thanks.

Eric

[TheShanMan]

You can probably find a lot of opinions by just searching in here, but I'll share mine as I've done a number of times. It's not great at 8 way - it's strength is 4 way, and of course that it's switchable. The throw is really short, which is why it's not great at 8 way - you will find yourself hitting diagonals too easily. I love the stick for 4 way games though.

I would recommend the ultrastik 360 as a general purpose stick (get it with spring and restrictor). More expensive, but it is great for kids or people that you don't want to have to explain the whole 8 way vs. 4 way thing to (guests). And I love the stick too, although it does have it's own limitations.

[daywane]

I am a leaf switch person.
i have had to use the Mag-Stik Plus
Known to me as the "T' stick plus
I like it. even if it has the KLICKITY KLICKITY sound

[mrclean]

I hated my Mag-Stik Plus, While the concept rocks, the throw was terrible, Couldn't be happier with my other ultimarc product though which is the u360.. However mine is mounted on 3/4'' wood and I feel that my u360 sits to low. Even with the 10mm longer shaft that Andy from Ultimarc offers it's still not long enough imo for those of us that don't have metal panels.

That being said get a u360, and have someone cut you a custom shaft, get a restricted "circle" plate on the bottom and the joystick is digitally restricted with maps, hooks up via usb.

[XeviouS]

The mag stick is a mixed blessing. Great for four-way, but just ok for eight way. I replaced a "Zippy" joystick with the mag plus, and yeah the first think you notice is the "throw" of the joystick ain't that great.

If you do buy one I imagine you will be like me when I bought mine and go through the five stages of grief: denial , anger , bargaining , depression , and then finally - acceptance .

In short, you will hate it at first, but once the memories fade of your original stick you will think "hey, this ain't so bad...."

[shardian]

I do not like it at all. Have it on a 48-1 machine. The stick is so stiff and short of throw, that my 2 year old daughter can't move it left or right. The switches are junk, and I plan on changing them out. Hopefully that will help a bit on the stiffness and 'clickiness' front.

Aesthetically, the ball is way too small and the shaft is way too long for a metal panel.

[TheShanMan]

Hmmm. I recessed mine a bit to get the dust washer under the CP, but even when I didn't have it recessed I didn't think the shaft was too long (I have a ball top). I also don't find mine to be particularly stiff. Wonder if it's a personal preference thing or there's something different (wrong) with yours? And the short throw, while definitely too short for 8 way games, I think is great for 4 way games.

[Turnarcades]

You can probably find a lot of opinions by just searching in here, but I'll share mine as I've done a number of times. It's not great at 8 way - it's strength is 4 way, and of course that it's switchable. The throw is really short, which is why it's not great at 8 way - you will find yourself hitting diagonals too easily. I love the stick for 4 way games though.

I would recommend the ultrastik 360 as a general purpose stick (get it with spring and restrictor). More expensive, but it is great for kids or people that you don't want to have to explain the whole 8 way vs. 4 way thing to (guests). And I love the stick too, although it does have it's own limitations.

Couldn't disagree more. I love this stick and loads of customers now request tgis stick for their cabs too. Being a Brit I've never had much of a penchant for the 'sloppy' feel of long-throw sticks and as I commented elsewhere recently I found things like my fighting game performance improved with short-throw sticks as they tend to centre better and the short throw enables you to engage multiple movements with less effort and less time (ie 'fireball' motion etc.).

I've never been too bothered with 4-way games and hence 4-way sticks but do realise the importance of 4-way sticks when I do play them, so having a 4-way that switches from the top of the panel is very handy, eliminates the need for a random third stick on my panel and is sufficient for me to play those games that need it. I got 4 of these and found them great for marathon 4-player sessions of Super Bomberman.

[orion]

I do not like it at all. Have it on a 48-1 machine. The stick is so stiff and short of throw, that my 2 year old daughter can't move it left or right. The switches are junk, and I plan on changing them out. Hopefully that will help a bit on the stiffness and 'clickiness' front.

Aesthetically, the ball is way too small and the shaft is way too long for a metal panel.

I have to say that the 4 way to 8 way switching mech on these is what led me to purchase one and it works absolutely brilliantly. The throw doesn't bother me at all, but I do find it to be a bit stiff. I had the same idea as you in changing out the switches, though I am not sure if this will help with the stiffness in anyway, as I am thinking that the stiffness might be due to the design with the magnet. What switches were you planning on using with it? I was considering these http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=73&products_id=309 because they look like they will fit, and are probably the closest thing to a leaf switch that will fit in one,  but I was reading a post somewhere here that didn't seem very enthusiastic about them. I am curious to hear your ideas on modding the Mag stick

[TheShanMan]

You can probably find a lot of opinions by just searching in here, but I'll share mine as I've done a number of times. It's not great at 8 way - it's strength is 4 way, and of course that it's switchable. The throw is really short, which is why it's not great at 8 way - you will find yourself hitting diagonals too easily. I love the stick for 4 way games though.

I would recommend the ultrastik 360 as a general purpose stick (get it with spring and restrictor). More expensive, but it is great for kids or people that you don't want to have to explain the whole 8 way vs. 4 way thing to (guests). And I love the stick too, although it does have it's own limitations.

Couldn't disagree more. I love this stick and loads of customers now request tgis stick for their cabs too. Being a Brit I've never had much of a penchant for the 'sloppy' feel of long-throw sticks and as I commented elsewhere recently I found things like my fighting game performance improved with short-throw sticks as they tend to centre better and the short throw enables you to engage multiple movements with less effort and less time (ie 'fireball' motion etc.).

I've never been too bothered with 4-way games and hence 4-way sticks but do realise the importance of 4-way sticks when I do play them, so having a 4-way that switches from the top of the panel is very handy, eliminates the need for a random third stick on my panel and is sufficient for me to play those games that need it. I got 4 of these and found them great for marathon 4-player sessions of Super Bomberman.

Sounds like it's a cultural difference then, which would make sense since these sticks were made over there. I find precision to be more important than a short throw on 8 way games, and it's not as easy to be precise with the mag stik's. Although I suppose if I used it for 8 way games instead of my u360's for long enough, I might develop better precision and then might like it more (but I see no reason to change at this point).