Great - so you only have to do “a few modifications, mainly cardboard inserts” and then you can play right away! 
Good to know when mine arrives in a few days…
It sucks that those minor changes had to be made. Trust me after I inserted the cardboard pieces the control responds like a dream. You must still remember the controller has 2 set of R1/R2 on the face as well at the right shoulder. I would leave the modding to someone trained with soldering tool. The overall grip is far better then the Mad Cats fight pad.Just a head up. When you cut the cardboard for the D-pad do not cut the cross shape. Cut the cardboard to the shape in side the controller. If will be a full circle with some minor little spaces. once you get it to the correct size insert the entire cardboard behind the D-pad on top of the rubber triggers. Then cut 2 rectangle like piece to place behind the motherboard. You will see 2 white circles representing the face buttons and D-pad. Tis will apply extra pressure to those 2 and then close up.
Well, I still hope I won’t have to do any modifications. The TC doesn’t seem to have encountered your problems…
But should it be unresponsive after all I now know what to do. Thanks.
That’s odd that you seem to have problem with yours. Mine made my Saturn pad feel like crap
At first I thought it was because it was brand new and needing breaking in. But after a week of hard-core playing in it I just felt off. I?m not great but I am a solid Fei player and I couldn?t hit a link for my life. I then went back to my Xbox and tried the mad catz and I was landing every link I can think of. I then put both controllers side by side and pressed the face buttons and to me it felt that I needed to press the Hori pad just the smallest of fractions more then the madcatz. So I opened it up cut some cardboard and placed it under each key. Tried it out and all my links were landing. I even was able to land links with my eyes closed because I practice them so much I just need to hear the sound of the hit confirm. I guess it?s just me but I love it now. I will pick up another and have that one dual modded. I opened that controller over 5 times yesterday and I fear if I open it some more the plastic may be stripped and the controller is then worthless.
Got mine now. It’s responsive (no need for modifications), but I can’t use it properly. Saturn-pad is better in every way for me.
It’s too bulky. I need to have a very tight grip on the left side to be able to have full control over the dpad.
I also still prefer the free-moving Saturn pad’s dpad. Maybe slightly more error-prone but I’m accustomed to it.
I had input display on, so I saw the FC3 is very responsive. But for some reason after a couple of hours I still couldn’t do c.lp xx LP Rekka (a breeze on Saturn pad), couldn’t do HP xx flamekick from the left side (no problem on the right side).
Flamekick FADC HK Chicken Wing (-> Ultra) seemed to work good in the first half hour - but then my execution got worse and I almost never could perform it (mostly ended doing c.mk FADC).
Guess you just have to press the diagonals harder on this dpad - but as I’m very comfortable with the Saturn pad I don’t want to go through this tiresome process of maybe one day becoming good with this pad.
Hey my pic :), I always felt better doing rekka on the Dpad but it was the rest of the moves that keeps me playing on the TE
I told you brotha. Same thing happened to me. After a few hours you start losing execution. I too couldn?t do a cr.lp into a rekka as well. I can?t really speak on the Satan pad but from I have read it?s the best pad ever! This pad has issues with diagonals. I think the reason to this is behind the D-pad instead of it being a solid flat surface. There is a circular peg that sticks out at the end of each point. I?m guessing sometimes pressed down the peg doesn?t hit the command rubber on point each time.
A friend of mines who is a pro and I throw his name around far too much so I won?t mention his name. He too is having problems with the diagonals. I told him of my cure and today we are going to do the same to his controller. We have to be more careful with his as its dual modded so it will look like a bomb with all the wires in side.
Well, if I had no Saturn pad I’d try your cardboard-fix. But as I’m almost completely satisfied with that (only thing missing is a second R-trigger for Ultra II) I’ll put the Fighting Commander III on eBay now…
I’ve heard about your friend. His Fei is quite solid.
I hate to preach to fellow Fei Long users and I respect that you use pad but cany you try a stick? I feel stick has made me improve so much. I was good with pad but now im even better with stick. Anyways its ultimately your choice and go with whatevers comfortable for you. But id imagine your only still on pad because you havent given stick enough time to improve on. And no a month just using stick doesnt count! Use it until you are good with it and you will see what im talking about.
you are selling yours? No way? I will purchase it from you PM me
Seems like they fixed all of its problems with the FC3 PRO:
You can swap L- and R-buttons now so you’ll have access to 8 buttons with only your right hand. Also the grip for the left hand seems like it’ll improve your control over the dpad significantly.
Finally this might be the ultimate Street Fighter gamepad! Just ordered two.
edit: Was reviewed by Jason last month already: http://dominionmethodgaming.com/2011/08/22/fight-pads-review/
The MadCatz Fightpad is rated surprisingly high there. Personally I disagree with that rating - I had two Sagat fightpads for Xbox 360 and I couldn’t do rekkas consistently (which I can without problems with the Saturn pad on PC and PS3). The MC fightpad’s dpad felt mushy and diagonals difficult to hit.
Are you sponsored by MadCatz now, Jason?
I would only really buy a fight pad if it was easy to do lightning leg loops and gen hands lol.
I can’t play that way but some pad-players can use gamepads like arcade sticks by putting the right part of the pad on their right leg. Pianoing should be possible with fightpad and FC3 as both have relatively huge buttons.
Yes I am sponsored by Mad Catz. That in no way changed how I rated the pads. I rated the pads as if I was a complete noob and new to the FGC. I also rated the pads as if they came right out of the box. MY fav pad the FC3 to me is the best pad ever but so much work has to go into it to get to that point. The FC3 Pro did correct some of the flaws from the FC3 but it still didnt match up. The PDP is a great pad but the D-pad wasnt for me.
And again as I said, “its all up to the user” we all have a different fell or preference but I put it together as a guide to help newer users.
Ah, okay. Yes, for casual players who like you said just want to “mash dragon punches and hundred hands slaps” the MadCatz pad might be better suited.
Now what is it that’s still wrong with the FC3 Pro? Do you still have to do that cardboard insert or is the dpad too stiff?
To me the pads design is not for me. It feels off in my hands. I guess playing on the FC3 for a yr now it just has become part of me. The cardboard insert isn’t needed as the spring inside the pads acts as if it was the cardboard. I sti would like to have seen the pad made for both systems as Dual modding is costly and modding a pad is not as stable as a TE stick. Mad Catz may come out with a new fightpad. This is not official as I don’t know what Mad Catz plans are but if they revamped there FPS pad I’m sure they will revamp there fightpad.
Then I’m glad I haven’t grown accustomed to the standard FC3 so the new design won’t put me off.
Great.
Yeah let’s hope they’ll release it for Xbox, too.
The TE stick is pretty awesome. But it’s made by Sanwa parts. I’ve yet to see a satisfying controller completely made by MadCatz. The buttons of the fightpad are good, but I don’t like its dpad. Still looking forward to a new fightpad if it’ll be made.
Took a long while until I finally received the FC3 PRO.
Been playing for 2 weeks now with it (replacing my old genuine Saturn pad).
After rotating the dpad about 8° clockwise and setting its dpad sensitivity to “L” it really feels like the perfect Street Fighter pad now - at least for Fei Long players.
Dpad is very precise.
The buttons are perfect - much better than the Saturn pad’s and larger than the DS3’s.
FADCs are much easier to perform than on the Saturn pad.
The long grip on the left side really gives you full control over the dpad as you can use your middle, ring and little finger to have a tight grip (which I missed on the standard FC3) while the index finger rests comfortably on the top of the pad - without ever having to press anything because you control 8 buttons with the right hand.
Everything about the pad feels really sturdy and top quality.
Only remaining drawbacks of the FC3 PRO:
[LIST]
[]can’t turn on PS3 with its PS-button
[]no world peace mode
[*]doesn’t cure cancer
[/LIST]
I’d rate it 9.5/10.