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What joystick(s) should I get?

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NOP:
I own 2 of the t-stick pluses (4/8 way switchable) from ultimarc, and I am sad to say they are *not* what you want if you want to play ms pacman.

The throw is extremely short on these joysticks and the springs are extrememly resistant.  You'll wear your arm out trying to get the ole chomper moving around in the maze.  I also had a hard time moving around in the maze even though I was in 4 way mode.  

They are quite good for frogger and kangaroo, probably for robotron too (I only have a vertical screen) but for donkey kong, mario bros, ms pacman and anything else that required a joystick that moved more than 1mm in any direction, the t-sticks just won't feel right.

I will probably be purchasing a replacement ms pacman true 4 way joystick to solve this problem.

Don't get me wrong, I do like the t-stick's, but they don't feel quite right on the oldies.

-jeff!

spauldingd:
Would the dedicated 4-way in the middle offer any improvement over a 4/8 T-Stick Plus in the 4-way position?  I may go that route, but in trying to keep the panel elegant, if I can get away with 2 sticks with a spinner and trackball in the middle, I think that would look the best, but I don't want to give up good gameplay.  Mainly I want to know if the 4/8 switchable offers no compromises in performance.

I always play with the spinner and trackball with my right hand, so I think re-using the player 1 buttons on the left of center would work well too.

Those ball-top replacements for the T-stik plus don't come cheap do they!

spauldingd:
Thanks Jeffly, I really need something good for Ms. Pacman and other maze style games.  Perhaps the dedicated center 4-way is the only really good option.  So, perhaps a pair of Happs Competition or Ultimarc T-stiks and a dedicated 4-way, but exactly which 4-way?

I really appreciate all this advice.  I've played the games for 25 years, but I never knew what brand or style of stick each game had, so I am in the dark.

Dave

Nailz:

--- Quote from: jeffleyda on March 12, 2004, 11:41:38 am ---I own 2 of the t-stick pluses (4/8 way switchable) from ultimarc, and I am sad to say they are *not* what you want if you want to play ms pacman.

The throw is extremely short on these joysticks and the springs are extrememly resistant.  You'll wear your arm out trying to get the ole chomper moving around in the maze.  I also had a hard time moving around in the maze even though I was in 4 way mode.  

They are quite good for frogger and kangaroo, probably for robotron too (I only have a vertical screen) but for donkey kong, mario bros, ms pacman and anything else that required a joystick that moved more than 1mm in any direction, the t-sticks just won't feel right.

I will probably be purchasing a replacement ms pacman true 4 way joystick to solve this problem.

Don't get me wrong, I do like the t-stick's, but they don't feel quite right on the oldies.

-jeff!

--- End quote ---

Hey Jeff, a question for you on the T-sticks, you mention they have a short throw, don't the Pac-Man/Ms. Pac also have that short throw?  I had a Pac-Man up until about 6 months ago, and it always felt like it was less that the 8 way Wico on my Mame cab.  Admittedly, I am waiting on T-sticks so I can't compare....  so you are saying that the throw of the Pac is somwhere between a T-stick and say, a Happs ultimate?

Thanks

NOP:

--- Quote ---
Hey Jeff, a question for you on the T-sticks, you mention they have a short throw, don't the Pac-Man/Ms. Pac also have that short throw?  I had a Pac-Man up until about 6 months ago, and it always felt like it was less that the 8 way Wico on my Mame cab.  Admittedly, I am waiting on T-sticks so I can't compare....  so you are saying that the throw of the Pac is somwhere between a T-stick and say, a Happs ultimate?

Thanks

--- End quote ---

Unfortunately, I'm in no position to answer that.  This is my first MAME project and I don't know what happs ultimates or wico sticks feel like.  (unless you can point me to a game that uses 'em, then I'll head down to my local gameworks and compare)

The only thing I have to compare the t-sitcks against is the original leaf switch sticks that came with my galaga cabinet!

It might not be so much the amount of throw of the stick, but the stiffness of the centering springs that make it feel weird vs a real pacman stick.  T-sticks are very tight.  It might be simply that they are new or I need to find some adjustments to make them easier to work with.  I'm also using them on a cocktail machine, so it's not easy to get your entire hand around the ball top to move the thing around. (not much room between the glass and ball top)

So now I'm interested in getting your comparison when your t's show up vs your wico.   ;)

-jeff!

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