Thanks man. Just bought one.
Man I’m excited to get my hands on this.
I’m still waiting for the inevitable US V-SA (re-)release! :china:
Otherwise I’m keeping my eyes and ears open to observe what people are saying about the stick. I’m getting a mixed vibe at the moment. I frankly don’t think the redesigned Hori HRAP has much of a chance of toppling the current Mad Catz TE stick as the current mass-market king of joysticks. There are just too many inconveniences designed into the new case.
I frankly think the Viewlix stick coming up next from Hori may be a bit too long to be practical for most of us to carry to tournaments but I wouldn’t surprised to see it get a higher rating from modders. At least that stick looks easier to mod and service.
In the meantime, I’m sure there’ll be at least a half-dozen anime-themed classic-style HRAPs in the interim and at least 2-3 Mad Catz TE art variants… Unless Mad Catz has a re-engineered stick case coming out next year.
As much as I don’t think that’s necessarily a good move on Mad Catz’s part I wouldn’t be surprised if they altered the case style a bit.
hadizzle is right. i got on in hand and the top plate is kept in place by 6 bolts hidden under the graphic.
and for future reference, it’s a lot easier to mod than the RAP3. 6 screws off the bottom plate and you’re right at the pcb and buttons with quick disconnects. i forget if the RAP3 pcb was the same, but this one has every lead labled with corresponding buttons.
the footprint is just about as wide as the RAP3, and maybe half an inch shorter than the TE on either side, but looks wider because the top comes out about 1.5 inches on either side for the handles.
i like this one a lot, but a little bummed because i didn’t know about the viewlix one. i thought that was just the proto or mock up to show the inspiration for this one.
Thread title changed.
Also, new pictures from impress gamewatch/and their review…
http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/series/ggl/20091228_340276.html
Added a testimonials section 
Reading the review, I found a couple of potentially big minus points of the V3 SA. For one, you can’t open the stick without voiding the warranty because there is a screw hidden underneath the warranty sticker. Also, there is apparently no easy way to change the top panel.
By the time I clicked on “Pay”, the stick was already out of stock on Play-Asia.
Found it on Renchi.com for the same price (149$, 60$ shipping fees for France)
http://www.renchi.com/renchi/PS3_Accessories_PS3_Real_Arcade_Pro_V3_SA_Hori.htm
Not sure why everyone is hating on the start button placement. Obviously you’ve never played on an arcade cab. Pretty much all blast city, astro city and vewlix cabs have their start button there. If you think you’re likely to hit it during play then I think you need to take some control of your hands cause it’s not in a convenient place to mistakenly hit.
I’ll be removing the L1/L2 buttons as soon as mine arrives in two days though. I’m getting increasingly tired of those buttons being there.
Well, it’s even safer on the front side, and it makes the panel look cleaner…
edit : HRAP V3 is back in stock on Play Asia, rush rush
Funny thing about arcade cabs though: they don’t pause the game when you press Start. 
Shit happens, and that sensitive Sanwa button in, say, a tournament, might as well be labeled the “disqualify” button.
The ideal place for the Start button on this stick might be on the right side under the wing. Given the location of the actual Start button, a neat mod might be to put another 24mm button there on the side, and only actuate Start when both are pressed simultaneously. Or make it an in/out toggle button for the Start button.
While you’re right that Start doesn’t pause in arcade, I’ve never once found my hands or arms ever getting slightly close the button when playing.
Of course, when a stick is on your lap accidents are probably more likely, but I guess I’ll see when my stick actually arrives.
If it is a problem then I’ll just keep my TE for tournament play and use this one as my home stick.
What’s up with the quick disconnects covered in white plastic? Does it make it easier/harder to take out?
^ No, it’s just a cover over the actual QD.
Got one today at hyper game for $149 + tax.
After seeing the pictures of another V3-SA with button plugs, I think I am going to cover 7 and 8 too but haven’t decided on the other 6 buttons. Not sure if I want to keep them white, black, or some other combination. I really like the edges for picking it up easily but it feels light compared to the VSHG.
looks nice will these sell in any us stores or amazon?
Excellent price for that stick.
No announcements have been made for the US markets yet. Looking at the past history, it’s not unlikely that they will be available in the US at some point. (It was the same story for the HRAP3 SA, for instance) But nobody can tell for sure when that will be.
any idea if a seimitsu stick would fit?
Not an LS-32-01, not at the right height at least.
BTW, SOCAL SRK, if you’re looking for one, as lacker mentioned, Hyper Game has em.
11301 W Olympic Blvd #104
Los Angeles, CA 90064
TEL: 310-444-1907
Okey, I’ve had mine since christmas now and I’ve decided I wanna kinda of mod it. Since I only play Tekken, I only need four buttons. I also think it’s annying when my finger touches the sides of the buttons. Not a good feeling. So therefore, I wanna take four buttons away. But, I don’t wanna use something like this: http://lizardlick.com/images/for_sale/pushbuttons/obsm_30.jpg
So how should I do? Completely new background art, with only holes for four buttons. I wanna make them disappear, thinking there never where more than four buttons in the first place.
i hate you mark
so tempted!!!