Here is my Hrap V4 mod
I just got one of these (I don’t have a PS4, but I plan to go there for next gen).
I really do like the Hayabusa lever. I’ve almost never been able to do OTGFs in Tekken. With the Hayabusa, it’s not a problem at all. I may just buy one for one of my old HRAPs.
Kuro buttons are cool. They’re sort of a middle ground, but they have this weird quality to them…
That 24mm Hori button (which they used to use on the old-style HRAPs) is just weird. Good that it’s only for the start button, a button I rarely press.
All the new Hori hardware is at least as good as the Seimitsu or Sanwa primary gear (LS-32, JLF, buttons). I definitely still think the Hayabusa’s more accurate with directional registration than the LS-32 or JLF. More comfortable over an extended time, too.
The thing that I DID notice with the two new Hayabusa’s I just got was a difference in the springs from the first one I bought in late January. Apparently, NONE of the Japanese hardware manufacturers makes springs that are consistent between batches! Had a heck of a time tweeking spring tension again to get the same feel that I have on the first Hayabusa lever I bought. You just have to experiment and reinvent the mod every time you get a new lever. The same spring combination I used on the first lever was TOO strong this time for the second batch of levers.
(I could have sworn the spring in the first Hayabusa I bought had a narrower diameter, too.)
It was the same spring tension junk I experienced with both the LS-32 and JLF.
As far as installing Hayabusa’s in older joystick cases – it’s fine for the most part unless you’re talking about the older PS3 HRAP 3 ‘classic HRAP’ style cases with the Astrocade button layout. The 5-pin prong does overlap a button in the HRAP 3 whether it’s a generic HRAP 3 case or the more limited production run HRAP 3 SA. You kind of have to ‘contort’ the ‘X’ button a bit to get the harness to go cleanly in the prong without it being completely mashed up against the button. This isn’t an issue with the HRAP N3/NX, HRAP A3/AX, or the HRAP V3/VX OR HRAP VLX because the joystick 5-pin prong orients on the opposite side (left and away from) of the buttons in those stick cases. Ditto with the Mad Catz joystick cases.
(IF you’re one of the lucky few that actually has an HRAP 3 SE, Hori reconfigured the HRAP 3 PCB for that production run so that the harness cable attaches to the joystick 5-prong pointing downward. There’s no button overlap issue there, period, unlike the generic HRAP 3 and HRAP 3 SA. Prong overlap only seems to be an issue with the Hayabusa. Doesn’t appear to happen with the LS-32-01, LS-40-01, LS-56 joysticks, or the 0.187-tab versions of the LS-joysticks regardless of the HRAP 3 production run/model.)
With the HRAP 3, you definitely have to rotate the ‘X’ button a bit so that the button terminals are oriented to the right… unless you want to do some surgery and actually resolder the harness cable lines so that the overlap isn’t an issue.
A plexi can help here, too. An Art Hong HRAP 3 plexi will lift up the buttons and create more space between the harness joystick lever harness cable and the ‘X’ button terminals. A 1/16" plexi is better here because the greater width lifts up the buttons more. Leaving the Hayabusa mounting plate on (for installation in the ‘generic’ HRAP 3) is also a good idea because it shifts the Hayabusa base assembly downward a bit. This gives an additional 0.75mm to work with.
I think the Hayabusa does tend to sit a bit lower in the HRAP 3 case than it does in the HRAP N3. The shaft looks longer on the HRAP N3 plexi or no plexi…
Spoiler
NOTE: You technically don’t need to leave the Mounting Plate screwed onto a JLF or Hayabusa to attach them to the mounting area on the HRAP 3 faceplate underside. The JLF and Hayabusa both have ‘wing areas’ that allow them to be screwed on directly to the mount sites in non-universal HRAP 3’s… That’s two fewer screws you have to use to secure the JLF or Hayabusa onto the HRAP 3, btw. A word of caution with wing area attachment of the Hayabusa should anyone choose to do this – the microswitches on the Hayabusa are wired together and unfortunately one of those electrical lines is a wee bit exposed in the wing area. You might want to secure the microswitch signal line with tape so that it’s out of the way and doesn’t potentially get insulation stripped by screw threads should you choose to install a Hayabusa without the Hori mounting plate…
Does the metal plate have the same dimensions as the V3’s?
YES, it is. Its already stated with the exception of minor, minor changes (1 additional switch) the V4 has the same case as the V3.
Excellent, thanks for the information Darksakul. I have a V3 as is, so now that I know this bit, I can go ahead and get stuff prepared for the Sept. 30 NA release. Really appreciate the detail in your explanations throughout this thread.
Pretty nice, but not a fan of that particular case. I love the Hayabusas in my sitdown arcade panel.
Still praying they find a way to fully adapt my PS360+ PCB’s to PS4 in the future.
Yep. I ordered 2 Hayabusa’s the other week, and they had somewhat different tension levels. I had to do some manual spring adjustments and now I’m happy.
Nevertheless, I do think they are the best Japanese style sticks (for me). I also like Seimitsu, but not a Sanwa JLF fan.
Hi i was wondering how hard is it to insert this one’s pcb into the VLX premium? since it could be the only reason i would buy this over the TE2 because i just hate the Hyabusa stick.
The PCB in this does not fit into the VLX without much. The control panel alone is a different size.
The Hrap v4 board will not be a drop in replacement for the TE2.
Also it is not hard to swap out the joystick, I had removed the Hayabusa and installed a Sanwa JLW.
The fact that this stick is 150 and the TE2 is 200 is enough for me to pass on the TE2. I have a KI TE2 and feel it was worth the 200 due to the clear buttons and the LEDs. The USF4 sticks do not have either of those features so i don’t feel they are worth the money. Also the TE2 is damn heavy, I don’t mind it that much but I don’t like having it on my lap for extended periods of time.
I have a VXSA and really like it so i may end up just buying one of these. Never touched Kuro or Hyabusa parts but I have plenty of extra stuff lying around if I don’t like em. Might even just swap my 6 button Astro panel and plexi from my VX to this. I’m going to wait until Guilty Gear comes out before buying a PS4 stick but I’m def leaning towards this one.
Well, the recent trend in pricing seems to be that the extra mod functionality (top open case, built in acrylic, etc.) is what they’re charging for, as we’ve seen with the Atrox and the TE2. That said, it seems what’s really driving the price up is all the cost of all the tooling and dye for the new cases. The question then is, would people simply have been happy had MadCatz simply just continued to use the old TE shell and simply dumped all the stuff they added to the TE 2 (top opening clamshell, acryllic cover that can be removed without taking the buttons out, attachment points for the strap, detachable cable, etc.), especially considering that Razer stole their thunder and got the Atrox out even though the TE had been in planning for longer.
The Atrox had been in public beta for like two years and then released for a year after that, so it’s a bit silly to say that it stole the TE’s thunder in the open case design. Not to mention that the Joytron EX-Changer did the flip top part well before all of them.
Sorry, forgot that not everyone has the same level of insider info that I do. But the TE2 was in planning way before the Atrox even hit beta.
Aesthetically, I’d have been delighted - I appreciate a lot of the features the TE2 has, and have been more than happy with my MadCatz sticks, but it’s a very ugly stick (that I find myself disliking a lot more after seeing one in person).
To be honest, that’s the main reason I went the V4 route*…
*YMMV, of course.
Well that’s great that you are asserting this but again, it’s quite silly to call this “stolen thunder” when there was no thunder (ie. Hype, excitement, etc) to be stolen in the first place relating to the new design. It had already been released years earlier by Joytron and Razer.
Stolen thunder would be if Mad Catz would have actually announced this open design before everyone else (it didn’t) only to have Razer step in and release a similar product months (not years) before Mad Catz could.
I almost want to agree and disagree on this. Razer didn’t steal anything intentionally. They just got their product out first and the two ended up having similar features. That said, people were doing easy open cases in the customs world since day 2.335 precisely. Retail sticks are always playing catch up to the crazy and innovative things people do with customs. If anything, Mad Catz and Hori stole the thunder of all those who have done those things before them.
Hi! Has anyone ordered one to Europe and from where? Amiami has sold out atm.
Thanks for the tip! Unfortunately they have it on preorder at the moment. Play-asia had some and on a discount too so I ordered one! With added 60$ shipping plus taxes on our end, still not cheap ;(