Reversing analog stick on a PS3 pad?

Tech Talk
1

Whenever I play a game that uses the right stick for camera control, I like the stick completely inverted. Left is right, up is down and so on. Though most every game will let you invert the Y axis, there are still plenty of games that do not allow you to invert both the X and Y axes. Basically I’m wondering how easy it would be to take apart a PS3 controller and manually invert the right stick so that I could always play on default with everything inverted. Has anyone ever done something like this before?

In the event this kind of mod is outside my ability, and I expect it is, I would be willing to pay a talented modder to do it for me. Inquire by PM if you’re interested.

2

It is possible, you need some soldering skills and some basic electronic knowledge

*Here is the inside of a PS controller (your pad may vary) Note the 2 thumb stick and the small green boxes on each one.
Each stick as these green boxes or potentiometers. Ignore the Switch lables in this image. *

They send a analog signal, think of them as a analog volume knob from a stereo or TV, turning them alows more or less current to pass though.

Each potentiometer Does a X or Y Axis movement (Left and Right, & UP and Down).
Each potentiometer as 3 solder points (six total per analog stick not including structural solder points).
The middle contact is your ground or “wiper” contact, the other two pins are your to extreams, in this case lets say Up and Down.

http://interactiondesign.sva.edu/classes/physicalcomputing/files/potentiometer_diagram.jpg

*the cross section diagram of a potentiometer *

Now what you can do is cut the trace or desolder the points and with thin wire reverse the 2 outter pins.

There you go you just inverse a Analog stick.

You can do this on 1 or both axis.

You could also install a small sub-miniature DPDT switch to switch between regular and inverted controlls

3

Thanks for the info, DarkSakul.

Anyone out there able to do this mod? It’s way beyond me.

4

I’d be able to do it.

5

Yeah gummo would be the person!

Now the question is, would gummo make a tutorial/guide for it??

6

It would be pretty much what I described but He actually do it and some step by step photos of the mod.

You are basically swapping out 2 wires on a potentiometer.
Maybe I will just dig out one of my dead PS2 game pads and demonstrate how its done, but I am lazy.

7

Yeah, pretty straightforward mod. I had a friend who needed it done because some Silent Hill game didn’t have adjustable camera axes, and defaulted to wrong, apparently. xD

It’s like a five minute hack, if the traces are easily accessible on the controller you’re modding, or the stick’s on a secondary board where you can just swap the connecting wires.

8

I have a bunch of broken sixaxis boards. I could make a guide showing how to invert the axis by using one of them.