Switching from pad to stick - advice needed.

[ant12292]

I got a HRAP in December but i sucked so bad with it I got discouraged. I should really start trying to use it again because frcs are a pain in the ass on xbox controlers. The buttons are too small.

[Master Chibi]

How do you FRC on a pad? :O

[rtl42]

^are you joking?

[9TNine]

I've been a stick player for awhile, and use a HRAP. Just curious if anyone's replaced the Stick and Buttons with Sanwa buttons (using the same shell) and if the difference is really that big. The only time I can recall using Sanwa parts, it really wasn't a good cabinent for them. -9

[Teyah]

^ I threw a bat-top on my RAP for increased height and manueverability; no more missing random 2/4/6 directions due to the low mounting height of the stick, now. Sanwa buttons just overall 'feel' better than the stock buttons, but the stock buttons aren't really that bad. I don't use a ton of force when I hit buttons so I did notice a very slightly quicker response with Sanwas.

[DandyStepper]

I want to get a HRAP. Here's some quick random questions for you arcade buffs. Simple one word answers will do. 1. Is shipping always gunna be like $50 for buying a arcade stick(Im thinking of getting it at play-asia) 2. What part of the stick tends to malfuction the fastest. Is it easy to fix? 3. I want to get a custom, but am i better off getting a test stick first? 4. Whats the lifespan of a typical "good" stick.(I can barely afford 1 stick) Sorry for asking here but...i hate asking in SRK. Ill do stick research but i wont ask questions. Thanks in Advance.

[Koozebanian Fazoob]

Shipping for a HRAP is always going to be about that high because you have to import it from overseas. An alternative is if they still sell those Tekken 5 bundled sticks, you can get one of those really cheap. There's a few main things that can go wrong with a sticks... 1) Wiring trouble. Usually caused if you use quick disconnects and they don't hold on well, or someone does a poor job soldering your stick. Not an issue with Hori sticks because they are manufactured. 2) Switch Failure. After using your sticks for a long time, the switches that get hit when you move the stick or push a button can wear out and become poor. This is very easy to fix, you just need replacements (they are very cheap) and tools to replace it with (usually just a soldering iron, but with quick disconnects you might not need anything). 3) PCB Failure. This can be caused by an electrical short hitting the board (bad USB converters can do this), or physical damage to the PCB (usually not a problem if the stick was designed well). The PCB can also just fail after a long time, but generally that isn't the issue. Hori sticks are a little different because their buttons are fused onto the PCB. That means that if something goes wrong with the stick, you might have to replace the PCB as well as all of the buttons. This isn't particularly difficult, but it will be time consuming. There are guides on SRK. You can get a custom Sanwa stick for 120$ and up. Consider this price when you consider getting a HRAP or not. HRAP is good quality, has decent parts, is very sturdy, and will last you a long time. They tend to be pretty big and heavy for Japanese sticks however. Custom sticks are made however you want them, but tend to be more expensive. A well made one will probably last as long as a HRAP before something fails, but will be much easier to fix (due to using all stock parts).

[pimp2303]

Thats not true at all g. blood u can buy a hrap2 from vgonetwork for only 100 dollars and no shipping. Also the part that tends to wear out the fastest is the buttons but with the quick disconnect all u have to do is unsnap the buttons and screw the new ones in and hook up the wires.

[Koozebanian Fazoob]

I'm pretty sure HRAP doesn't come with quick disconnects by default. And yeah, the buttons will be the first thing to die on a HRAP, but that's because of shitty HORI design. It's insanely hard to 'break' the button itself, unless you just use the thing for years and you kill the spring. The switch on it will most likely break well before that.

[Teyah]

HRAP and HRAP2 come with quick disconnects for every version, though the special versions do not. (See: http://www.shoryuken.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95713)

Though the QDs on the HRAP1 version2 (model without the mirror finish) are very hard to snap off and don't hold as well as the others once you do get'em off, as they've come off during mid-play for a friend of mine who's pretty forceful on the buttons.

[ava525]

Does anyone know where you can buy sanwa stuff?

[Darkhonor90]

Does going from Pad to Stick really help? I've been a pad user for ages and now since I'm seriously getting into fighting games I see alot of people using sticks and I wonder if its a better thing to get. What diffrences are there from going from pad to stick? and can anyone refer me a GREAT stick in the price range around 100 dollars or so Thxs

[Honnou]

I switched from pad to stick earlier this year and I think it has many benefits. Not only does it feel better, but FRCing is much more convenient. Many tournaments don't allow button binds for Roman cancels, so with a stick you never need to worry about that. You also have a much better chance to wiggle out of fake gay combos like Slayer 5hs-->PB.

[Koozebanian Fazoob]

HRAP and HRAP2 come with quick disconnects for every version, though the special versions do not. (See: http://www.shoryuken.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95713)

Though the QDs on the HRAP1 version2 (model without the mirror finish) are very hard to snap off and don't hold as well as the others once you do get'em off, as they've come off during mid-play for a friend of mine who's pretty forceful on the buttons.

Interesting. I've never seen the guts of a HRAP before, just from almost all the other HORI sticks. Most of the old ones just had fused on buttons.

[The Orange Sven]

Does anyone know where you can buy sanwa stuff?

http://www.himuragames.com/home.php

[DandyStepper]

The more expensive button(screw) is better right?

[Shazay]

http://www.himuragames.com/home.php

Actually I'd recommend Ponyboy from Arcade Controls ~ http://arcadecontrols.com/arcade.htm

Click on msg boards > buy/sell/trade > Ponyboy is one of the stickies on the top.

Cheap, responds quickly, fast shipping ftw.

The more expensive button(screw) is better right?

They're pretty much the same thing except snap-ins tend to get loose after a while and screw-ins don't.

*Edit*

I want to get a HRAP. Here's some quick random questions for you arcade buffs. Simple one word answers will do.

1. Is shipping always gunna be like $50 for buying a arcade stick(Im thinking of getting it at

play-asia)

2. What part of the stick tends to malfuction the fastest. Is it easy to fix?

3. I want to get a custom, but am i better off getting a test stick first?

4. Whats the lifespan of a typical "good" stick.(I can barely afford 1 stick)

Sorry for asking here but...i hate asking in SRK. Ill do stick research but i wont ask questions.

Thanks in Advance.

From the way it sounds, you'd be fine with an HRAP2 ~ http://www.vgonetwork.com/article.aspx?id=181

$95+11 (shipping) = $106.

[dobiqwolf]

I've been a stick player for awhile, and use a HRAP. Just curious if anyone's replaced the Stick and Buttons with Sanwa buttons (using the same shell) and if the difference is really that big.

The only time I can recall using Sanwa parts, it really wasn't a good cabinent for them.

-9

hello,

I have a HRAP and i changed the buttons for sanwa buttons(no need to replace the stick bc it is sanwa ecxept if you want to use seimitsu stick), the difference is enormous , the Hori buttons fells cheap(remind me of virtua stick saturn) the sanwa are very sensitive you touch them , there is no need to press them hard so u can chain ur moves faster.

i used snap in sanwa like the hori but when snap in it is very hard to remove a sanwa button.

I still dont understand why Hori didnt use sanwa buttons.

Does anyone know where you can buy sanwa stuff?

that is where i ordered my parts

http://akihabarashop.com/

The more expensive button(screw) is better right?

wrong! sanwa snap-in buttons snap so hard that you will have a hard time to remove them so my first choice go to snap-in.

here are 2 links to customize HRAP

http://www.buffis.com/index.php?page=sanwamod

http://www.buffis.com/index.php?page=ls3201

hope that helps

[Koozebanian Fazoob]

There's an EDIT button for a reason. Put all of your stuff in 1 post.

[dobiqwolf]

I'm thinking about making the switch from pad to stick. For this purpose, I have borrowed a friend's Hori Fighting Stick II to test with.

Now, I know I shouldn't expect playing equally well the first time I try stick after having played with pad for a year and a half, but holy shit it's harder then it seemed. I only manage to IAD about 60% of the times (but sometimes in the wrong direction ), I constantly confuse P and K, I do MANY accidental jumps/superjumps, I can barely land the most basic of combos and I have many other issues. Also, my right wrist hurts. One of the things I do noticed got easier was RKys 5H FRC (Most FRCs, in fact).

Anyways, I know a lot of this will go away with tons of practice, but I'm looking for advice to easy the transition. How should I hold the stick? Is there anything to think about to make it easier? and such.

I'm using the standard GGXX button config for both pad and stick

Pad: (D and R on shoulders)
  S
 P H
  K

Stick:
  K S H
  P R D

like other people I will tell you to practice a lot with your stick.why?

bc PRACTICE MAKES YOU BETTER!!

now you have to focus on how to practice:

my advice is take your time, if a move is difficult to do , do is slower and make sure that you dont had extra direction , for example: 236+P is not 1236+P nor 41236+P

the advantage of the stick is the precision it gives you. the more precise you become = faster execution.

and if you got problems with long combos, break them in parts and work on each part separately until you master them , then practice the full combo.

ps: sorry for the crappy english but my 1st language is french and it is 3:30 am

"There's an EDIT button for a reason. Put all of your stuff in 1 post." sorry about that i am kind of tired but i will try to avoid it in the future.

[Koozebanian Fazoob]

No problem, just stick all of your replies together in one post like I did to yours. The easiest way is to just hit QUOTE for one post and post your reply. Then hit QUOTE to the next post you want to reply to, write out your reply, then select the whole thing, copy it, and then edit your last reply and paste the next part in. That way you can just quote > reply all in one post instead of making a lot.

[DandyStepper]

Octagonal Gates is mostly for 3D games(Tekken) and Square is for 2D(GG) right?

[Shazay]

Octagonal Gates is mostly for 3D games(Tekken) and Square is for 2D(GG) right?

Kinda, but its all about preference.

I like octagonal gates better because you can feel the corners for the inputs.

[Koozebanian Fazoob]

If you can't feel the corners on a square gate, you've got issues. Any kind of gate works as long as it works for you. I like circular and square, never really cared for octagonal.

[Shazay]

No, I meant how the corners slant from 3-6 and 6-9 etc. feels nicer :P