SF4 Standard Edition FightStick - Problem / Defect Thread.

[Kajiki]

EDIT by Kajiki - Step-by-Step guide to securing your washer and stopping your joystick from getting stuck. As well as more info on potentially repairing a damaged PCB.

EDIT by MarkMan - info added to OP

Mad Catz official response regarding the Arcade FightStick (standard edition)...

Hi there,

My name is Alex Verrey, Global PR & Communications Manager for Mad Catz.

In recent days, there have been reports of quality issues surrounding our Street Fighter IV range of products, largely focused on our standard edition Arcade FightStick.

Mad Catz is committed to providing quality products and we fully stand behind our product warranty. We are very proud of this range which has been met with overwhelming critical enthusiasm. We also wish to be honest and transparent with the gaming community. We are here to help and will not shy away from our responsibility thus, after investigating the issues mentioned on blogs, websites and forums, we would like to take this opportunity to relay our official position:

1. Some customers have reported issues with their standard edition Arcade FightStick. A very small amount of users have experience problems with the sticks responsiveness. Please note that this issue does NOT happen on each Arcade FightStick and has been reported on a small number of units. The issue is due to a metal washer shifting out of place and is easily rectified. The issue and the resulting fix have been extensively documented on several forums. However, to avoid voiding your warranty, we recommend contacting Mad Catz technical support who will be happy to assist. Mad Catz is committed to fixing all sticks that exhibit this issue. Our contact information lies below.


2. Some customers have reported scratches on the top of their Tournament Edition. This could have occurred during the pack-out portion of the manufacturing process. It is not the result of recycling old or used parts or the result of any kind of rushed manufacturing process. Mad Catz would never do such a thing. Mad Catz will replace tops with serious scratches caused by the manufacturing pack-out process. Again, in the highly unlikely occurrence of your Tournament Edition Arcade FightStick exhibiting serious scratches, please contact us and we will be happy to assist.

Mad Catz recognizes the enormous trust the Street Fighter community has placed in us. We want to make you aware of the known issues and our plans to remedy the situation. For all of the issues listed above, we encourage you to contact Mad Catz customer support by phone or email (see below). Your local retailer will not be able to repair or provide replacement parts. We have asked our retailers to direct you back to us for warranty repair and service. We would like to stress again that we believe this is a limited and isolated issue that may affect a small number of sticks.

When you call, Mad Catz support agents will diagnose the problem over the phone and based on their diagnosis, they will work with you to solve the problem including providing free shipping and repair. Please note all support agents are based in California (USA) or in Bristol (UK) and are die hard gamers that want to help you. Our contact info is as follows:

USA:
Tech Phone: 1-619-683-9830 ext. 3799
Toll Free (USA): 1-800-659-2287
Email: techsupport@madcatz.com

Web: www.madcatz.com (select support menu option)
Support Hours:
Monday - Friday: 8am - 4pm (PST)
Closed Saturday, Sunday and most major US holidays


UK/Europe:
Europe Support Number – 01454 451900 (UK Only 0845 050 8428)
E-Mail Address – mczsupport@saitek.com
Support Hours – 9 - 4.30pm Monday - Friday

Last, the Standard Edition and Tournament Edition Arcade FightSticks feature a ‘Turbo’ function which we specifically tested on beta/pre-release versions of Street Fighter IV and the retail release.


They perform as documented in the user guide and there are no known issues. If however, you should identify a game not compatible with our Turbo function, please email tech support (techsupport@madcatz.com) and we will investigate the issue. Currently, we are investigating reports of an issue with the Turbo function on the PS3 versions of both the standard and Tournament Edition Arcade FightSticks when playing Street Fighter HD Remix. As we learn more, we will post more information in an FAQ on our support site.

Mad Catz welcomes all constructive feedback and comments. Your feedback will help us make better products and identify unknown issues. For those of you that do not have any problem, enjoy the sticks. Those that have issues, call us. We want to fix the problem. Thank you for your time.


Yours sincerely,

Alex Verrey
Global PR & Communications Manager
Mads Catz Inc.
averry@madcatz.com

Original Post:

This thread is for standard edition stick owners. Discuss the condition that your stick arrived in as well as any problems you are currently having with your stick.[/B]

--

I picked up my two SE fight sticks today and they both have a similar issue. Its a small issue but somewhat annoying...

On both of my sticks the joystick tends to get stuck occasionally in a certain direction. (stick1: tends to get stuck in the down-right position... stick2: tends to get stuck in the left [slightly up-left but not enough to jump] position.) -- It seems that the stick itself is getting snagged on something, somewhere inside. Its easy to fix and pull back into place but i would much prefer it to return to perfect neutral when i let go of the stick. -- I dont want to open the stick yet because i would prefer not to void my warranty so soon.

Other than that my two sticks work fine on my PS3 and PC. The buttons are fine, feels solid and durable, nice long wire, came in good shape aesthetically. I'm very please with my first stick and now i just have to get used to playing with it . (and i cant wait to get some sanwa buttons and sticks to stick in them)

----

Post any issues you are having with your MadCatz SFIV Standard Edition FightStick here. If you have a problem with a TE fightstick, please refer to the other thread for TE sticks only.

----

Common Issues List: (will be updated as posts come in.)

1.) Joystick gets stuck/caught. (Using strong glue, secure the large metal washer in the middle of the stick. It is located right above the PCB.)

2.) PCB is damaged from friction with the loose washer. (Possible solution: Redraw the damaged traces on the PCB with #2 Pencil lead and cover with tape/hotglue/other. This may work to some damage caused by the washer.) **This problem can be avoided if you glue down the washer before using the stick... The loose washer in many sticks is grinding away at the PCB, so the more you use the stick without gluing down the washer the more damage will be done to it.**

---

**Basic Guide to Fixing the Joystick Sticking Problem**

1.) Remove the Joystick component from the case. - Unscrew the bottom panel from your FightStick. Next unscrew the four screws connecting the Joystick component to the case. Disconnect the 5pin connector from your joystick and unscrew the balltop by inserting a flathead screwdriver into the bottom side of the joystick and turning the balltop until it screws off of the stick. At this point you should be able to lift the stick out of the case.

2.) Remove the clear plastic restrictor from the bottom of the stick component. - You can take off this clear plastic disk by pushing in the four black tabs on each side and pulling upwards. The plastic restrictor on the madcatz stick is physically hard to remove and you may need pliers to push in the tabs, compared to a sanwa JLF that you can easily remove with your bare hands. I would recommend pushing in each tab on each side slightly instead of trying to take it off on one side before doing the other sides.

3.) Now you can easily slide the PCB/microswitches off. - It isn't held down by anything and you can just pick it up and put it to the side somewhere. **If you can see visible damage to your PCB caused by using the stick while the washer has been loose you may need to fix that also. If so, now would be a perfect time since you have the PCB right in front of you.**

4.) Time to glue down the washer! - Notice the metal washer near where the stick is attached to the mounting plate. This washer is causing both the sticking problems and is also badly damaging the PCB of your stick. Also notice the small indent in the plastic base where the washer is meant to sit firmly. - You should now use superglue to adhere the washer into that indentation. (Make sure that the washer is resting in the indentation, and is centered.). Apply the adhesive evenly around the washer, apply pressure and allow it to dry completely before you do anything else with the stick.

5.) After the washer is securely glued down you may now re-assemble the stick and secure it back into the case of your MadCatz SE FightStick. If you did the process correctly, it should no longer get stick in any direction. If your stick is not registering inputs in a specific set of directions it is likely that your PCB has been damaged from contact with the loose washer. If that is that case, you will need to repair your PCB.

---

**Basic Guide to Fixing a Non-Responding Joystick**

1.) Remove the Joystick component from the case. - Unscrew the bottom panel from your FightStick. Next unscrew the four screws connecting the Joystick component to the case. Disconnect the 5pin connector from your joystick and unscrew the balltop by inserting a flathead screwdriver into the bottom side of the joystick and turning the balltop until it screws off of the stick. At this point you should be able to lift the stick out of the case.

2.) Remove the clear plastic restrictor from the bottom of the stick component. - You can take off this clear plastic disk by pushing in the four black tabs on each side and pulling upwards. The plastic restrictor on the madcatz stick is physically hard to remove and you may need pliers to push in the tabs, compared to a sanwa JLF that you can easily remove with your bare hands. I would recommend pushing in each tab on each side slightly instead of trying to take it off on one side before doing the other sides.

3.) Now you can easily slide the PCB/microswitches off. - It isn't held down by anything and you can just pick it up and put it to the side somewhere.

4.) Pay attention to the conductive traces/wires on the face of the PCB. - If you have an unresponsive stick component, it is likely because the loose washer has done minor grinding damage to the traces on your PCB. Depending on the severity of the damage, you may be able to fix the severed traces on your own.

5a.) This first method of fixing light damage is to draw the broken traces with a #2 pencil. Make sure not to connect two different traces. Each trace corresponds to each directional microswitch. - Apparently, the "lead"/graphite in common pencils is conductive enough to repair light damage to your PCB. - One you can verify that your joystick is working correctly, make sure to cover the exposed portion of your PCB with non-conductive electrical tape, in order to protect the new connections from getting rubbed or ground off.

5b.) ** Second method to be added a.s.a.p. **

---

Remember: Opening your stick will void the warranty and you will not be able to send your stick back to have it fixed for any reason if you do that. So do so at your own risk. If you intend on opening your stick, check it thoroughly for any other problems that might be return-worthy before voiding your warranty.

Also, many of these problems can be easily fixed by replacing the sub-par MadCatz parts in your stick with high-quality parts made by reputable companies. (Sanwa/Seimitsu/etc.) -- Remember your options. You can send it in to MadCatz for warranty repair, fix the problems yourself with a little bit of effort, or replace the low-quality parts with better ones.

I'm hopeful that everyone will be able to find a solution that works for them and begin to use the sticks that they have spent their hard-earned money on. Good luck everyone!

[Antman757]

Yea my stick has the same "stuck" problems as well

what should i do guys?

this is my first stick and i really don't want to return it

[ShYtFaCe]

I had an Agetec with the same problem, unfortunately not sure what caused it.

[gl0ry]

My agetec had a similar problem, it's most likely the spring. I opened mine up a while back and repositioned the spring and it never stuck again.

It's never happened to my sanwas, only my agetec.

I'd suggest trying that out.

[Kajiki]

Yea my stick has the same "stuck" problems as well

what should i do guys?

this is my first stick and i really don't want to return it

I'm definitely not a stick expert and i dont know how to fix the problem completely, but until we do find out how to fix it, i would recommend keeping your hand on the stick at all times. So don't just let go of the stick when you want to put it back into the neutral position.

This seems to be a very common problem so far, as both of my sticks suffer from it.

I can still play the game, but its just you have to remember to manually center the stick again. Hold tight (literally and figuratively) until we find a fix/work-around.

[Kajiki]

My agetec had a similar problem, it's most likely the spring. I opened mine up a while back and repositioned the spring and it never stuck again.

It's never happened to my sanwas, only my agetec.

I'd suggest trying that out.

Remember: Opening your stick will void the warranty and you will not be able to send your stick back to have it fixed for any reason if you do that. So do so at your own risk. If you intend on opening your stick, check it thoroughly for any other problems that might be return-worthy before voiding your warranty.



**edit: im sorry for the double post, i thought i was editing my last post. =(**

[Antman757]

I'm definitely not a stick expert and i dont know how to fix the problem completely, but until we do find out how to fix it, i would recommend keeping your hand on the stick at all times. So don't just let go of the stick when you want to put it back into the neutral position.

This seems to be a very common problem so far, as both of my sticks suffer from it.

I can still play the game, but its just you have to remember to manually center the stick again. Hold tight (literally and figuratively) until we find a fix/work-around.

cool

yea its really not that bad as long you keep it constantly moving

hope to see a solution soon

[spark1135]

Count me in...

So I just tested out my new SE. The first one had major problems with the stick sticking in the down and left and right directions (like other people have reported).
So I exchanged it for a new one today...

Guess what, same problem, but now it's down-left and left sticking...awesome. On top of that the light kick button sticks as well, and I get random phantom button inputs when I move just the stick!!!

This is so frustrating. I ordered a new stick and buttons from lizardlick but I may just return this one again and go with a HRAP EX. =(

WTG Madcatz...

Also just FYI, the first stick I had had no seal/sticker on the bottom at all. I opened it up before returning it, the second stick I have now actually does have a sticker at the bottomwhere the metal meets the plastic.

[ErcsYou]

I picked up my fightstick today ( no TE yet ) and found a major problem with the madcatz joystick... I was experiencing the same " stuck joystick" problem that others have mentioned in this forum and decided to take it upon myself to find the issue. Since my local gamestops didn't have anymore sticks left i decided to say "F" the warranty and rip this S.O.B apart.

After removing the gate and the PCB i immediately found the problem. there is a small metal washer in between the body of the joystick and the spring cap. the washer moves around and the plastic spring cap gets stuck on the grooves where the washer is supposed to sit. this was a minor problem until i noticed the washer lifting up when the joystick was moved in any direction. i decided to check the joystick PCB and noticed the the washer was rubbing the contacts away. This washer was eating my joystick

^the crooked washer

^the scratched PCB

The fix? i just super glued the washer down and sanded down the edges of the spring cap so it wouldn't get stuck any more... i wonder how long the stick would have lasted with that washer rubbing my joystick to death?This is probably the reason for anybody having directional input issues. the washer is probably touching two contacts at the same time..

[Gambit Ace 61]

My stick doesn't register my up/left and down/left diagonals correctly. They come out as if I were just holding up or down.

[_Snake_]

My stick doesn't register my up/left and down/left diagonals correctly. They come out as if I were just holding up or down.

Same here. It doesn't register any diagonal inputs on my PC. Left on the joystick doesn't register at all. Haven't tried on my 360 yet. I'll see what I can do.

EDIT: I tried it on the 360 and it works flawlessly. I'm guessing it's having some issues with the drivers on my PC. Eh, I'll mess around later. I'll probably switch the stock parts and go to sleep.

[FluxWaveZ]

I'm wondering if I should get the stick with all these problems now. I already pre-ordered mine and it was said to be at my EB Games the 18th... I already ordered 91$ worth of arcade parts to mod it too .

[Ronnie23246]

my stick returned to neutral slowly, but i modded mine with a ls-32 so im all good :)

[Okiifresh]

wow I feel lucky now I ordered two Se Sticks and both are flawless they dont stick and they are fine

My only concern is the madcatz buttons there nice but not sanwa so im thinking in 90 days im going to replace the buttons :)

oh and possibly the joystick

[FluxWaveZ]

wow I feel lucky now I ordered two Se Sticks and both are flawless they dont stick and they are fine

My only concern is the madcatz buttons there nice but not sanwa so im thinking in 90 days im going to replace the buttons :)

oh and possibly the joystick

Now I'm wondering if I should also wait for the warranty to end before doing any mod. I'll probably use the stick for a week and then decide on modding it if nothing happens.

[Hypnotoad]

I got the 360 SE stick. I've been using it to play STHD and twice now it's spontaneously stopped reading any inputs from the stick. The joystick, buttons, back/start, and guide button stopped working entirely, though the green guide led was still lit. The only way to get it working again is by unplugging and plugging it back in.

Anyone have any ideas?

[Antman757]

I got the 360 SE stick. I've been using it to play STHD and twice now it's spontaneously stopped reading any inputs from the stick. The joystick, buttons, back/start, and guide button stopped working entirely, though the green guide led was still lit. The only way to get it working again is by unplugging and plugging it back in.

Anyone have any ideas?

i had the same problem

it has something to do with the switch near the turbo fucnctions

if u put it the "dp" position

you shouldn't have any problems

lol i don't even know what "dp" means

maybe i should read the manual

[Hypnotoad]

I keep it on dp (which is for the d-pad) when I play though, and I don't think I'm hitting or touching the switch on accident.

[Inverse]

I'm wondering if I should get the stick with all these problems now. I already pre-ordered mine and it was said to be at my EB Games the 18th... I already ordered 91$ worth of arcade parts to mod it too .

Er, if you got the arcade parts you're replacing the stick anyway, meaning you won't be getting these issues.

It seems most of the problems reported are due to hardware issues on the parts themselves. If you're just upgrading to full Sanwa/Seimitsu it shouldn't be an issue. Enjoy the stick. :)

[Antman757]

I picked up my fightstick today ( no TE yet ) and found a major problem with the madcatz joystick... I was experiencing the same " stuck joystick" problem that others have mentioned in this forum and decided to take it upon myself to find the issue. Since my local gamestops didn't have anymore sticks left i decided to say "F" the warranty and rip this S.O.B apart.

After removing the mounting plate, the gate and the PCB i immediately found the problem. there is a small metal washer in between the body of the joystick and the spring cap. the washer moves around and the plastic spring cap gets stuck on the grooves where the washer is supposed to sit. this was a minor problem until i noticed the washer lifting up when the joystick was moved in any direction. i decided to check the joystick PCB and noticed the the washer was rubbing the contacts away. This washer was eating my joystick

^the crooked washer

^the scratched PCB

The fix? i just super glued the washer down and sanded down the edges of the spring cap so it wouldn't get stuck any more... i wonder how long the stick would have lasted with that washer rubbing my joystick to death?This is probably the reason for anybody having directional input issues. the washer is probably touching two contacts at the same time..

Hey thanks for the solution

is there any way u can give a more detailed

step by step process on how to fix this

im totally new to this

and if i were to open it up

i couldn't tell a washer from a pcb

[J.Garcia]

I picked up my fightstick today ( no TE yet ) and found a major problem with the madcatz joystick... I was experiencing the same " stuck joystick" problem that others have mentioned in this forum and decided to take it upon myself to find the issue. Since my local gamestops didn't have anymore sticks left i decided to say "F" the warranty and rip this S.O.B apart.

After removing the mounting plate, the gate and the PCB i immediately found the problem. there is a small metal washer in between the body of the joystick and the spring cap. the washer moves around and the plastic spring cap gets stuck on the grooves where the washer is supposed to sit. this was a minor problem until i noticed the washer lifting up when the joystick was moved in any direction. i decided to check the joystick PCB and noticed the the washer was rubbing the contacts away. This washer was eating my joystick

^the crooked washer

^the scratched PCB

The fix? i just super glued the washer down and sanded down the edges of the spring cap so it wouldn't get stuck any more... i wonder how long the stick would have lasted with that washer rubbing my joystick to death?This is probably the reason for anybody having directional input issues. the washer is probably touching two contacts at the same time..

lol i posted this earlier today. mine wore away in 1 day!!!! i just put some sodder to fix the points as a temp fix till my jlf comes in.

[Veri7as]

Bought my SE stick yesterday and within 10 minutes my character was jumping none stop and i wasn't even touching the stick. It was working amazing for about 2 hours and then all went to hell. It would start getting stuck more often and also the down/right inputs weren't registering.

On top of that two out of the eight buttons stick. When pushed down they don't come back up. I literally have to pull them back up. At first they felt sticky but now they don't even come up.

I'm very disappointed in this stick. Especially because i'm not going to be able to get a replacement any time soon. grrrrrrrrrrr

[Kajiki]

I'm wondering if I should get the stick with all these problems now. I already pre-ordered mine and it was said to be at my EB Games the 18th... I already ordered 91$ worth of arcade parts to mod it too .

The problem seems to be with the madcatz knock-off joystick. If you ordered a sanwa/seimitsu joystick you wont be effected by these issues. -- Personally my buttons on my two sticks work fine, and all the diagonals register perfectly. Eventually i'll be getting sanwa or seimitsu buttons and sticks for mine anyway.

[lbe]

got my se stick 3 days ago and i am very unsatisfied with their poor QC.

1.
upon receving the unit, balltop was loose. I tried to hand tighten it but it get loose again after 5 minutes of use. I had to break the warranty and stick a flat head to the bottom of the joystick to tight it properly.

2.
joystick was sticking in lower left hand corner alot , and very inaccurate. The bottons are fine, it just makes a lilttle more noise than i like.





edit: sorry my mistake on no headphone part, thats the xbox version. thx for correct me mark

[MarkMan]

yo. you bought the PS3 stick, and you think there is a headset port? You know the PS3 version (69.99) which you got, does NOT have one.

Also, this joystick issue was brought up last week with the factories and I hope to have an answer. Fear not, if you DID open it up, we will still take care of you. Just call our tech support line, check first page of sticky in this forum.