Finally got the tools I need and found out how to open this stick up. I’ll be getting some pictures up soon, but it’s with my PS Vita’s camera because it’s the only camera I have. I am taking the photos outside when it’s good weather out to get better lighting (my home is fairly dark inside). Here are the official specs from Sanwa:
Lever: JLF-TP-8YT
Action buttons: OBSF-30
Start/Options/R3 and Share buttons: OBSF-24
Turbo and PS Buttons: OBHS-24
Total length: ~360mm (mine measures 36.5 cm)
Width: ~280mm (mine measures 28.5 cm)
Height: ~110mm (includes stick unit) (not including buttons, lever, or plexy, mine measures 6.5 cm)
Weight: 2.2 kg
Cable: 2.5 m
Noir button layout
So, what I do like about this stick:
+PS3 and PS4 compatible.
+Has a good plexy, nice and solid when installed.
+Swappable artwork and comes with three art panels (You can see them here). The art goes around the buttons like the TE2.
+Allows use of R3, if a game ever needs that.
+The lever, for some reason (which I’ll get to soon).
What I don’t like:
-Cable is a touch short. It could have been 3 meters instead, at least.
-Speaking of the cable, the cable housing just plain sucks. It’s an open niche in the case you tuck the cord into. The cable keeps falling out as a result. At least it comes with a little velcro thing to keep the cord wound up.
-The constantly changing colors from the PS button’s LEDs can get a little distracting.
-The toggle only allows LS and RS, but no D-Pad. If they were only going to allow two choices, it should have been D-Pad and LS. Okay, there are three options. Put the switch in the middle to get D-Pad. Not very intuitive though.
-As said by a previous poster, the switches for the functions look ugly. Sanwa really could have made them smaller and sleeker.
-I still have no idea what the Min/Max knob does, and it seems like a useless addition. There are no speakers inside the unit.
On a side note, I’ll need to get some replacement screws for the mounting plate. I got distracted and turned one the wrong way, stripping it a little in the process. :s
Once I finish my tests on the levers, I’ll start getting those pics up of the inside (and outside) and post my findings. With my schedule, I should have something up by Monday at the latest (depending on the weather).
You mean, once engaged? I don’t have anything I know of to test that out.
Even when the stick isn’t plugged in there is a noticeably shorter engage distance for diagonals compared to the TE2. I’m talking about remaining space to the restrictor gate. With this one, there is a good visible gap between the lever shaft/actuator and the restrictor gate; when a diagonal is engaged on the TE2, there is no gap (it’s right up against the gate). I even made sure I was at the minimum engage distance and not pushing too far. I want to get some hard numbers though.
The mounting heights are essentially the same (difference of only 0.5mm). This stick has a smaller lever hole than the TE2 (20mm vs. 25mm).
Edit: without taking the levers apart, I spotted something. There looks like a size difference in the actuators. One shaft also sits a little lower than the other (slightly). Let me get a pic up. Can’t get a good photo with such a crappy camera. Plan B then.
Do you have an seimitsu sticks such as a Ls-40 or an ls-56? I would like to know if they could fit but based on another thread of the same ebten body type it seems that they don’t. I’m hoping maybe they would change that but I am not holding my breath.
No, I have no other components. I’ll probably order some new parts at some point and try them out, like a Hayabusa lever, Myoungshin Fanta and airbag (if I can find a reliable store that sells them), Crown Fantas, and Seimitsu parts.
Anyway…
So some of the components are slightly different in size, and combined, they made the difference I notice. It was actually smaller than I had previously guessed: only by a few degrees and a few millimeters when it came to engage and throw. I’ve just been very sensitive to that difference. It was an easy fix: swap the components between levers and make everything balance out. Swapping the PCB was what did it.
Now that everything is put back together, I’ll get those pics up soon.
And I fixed some info in my previous post about only having LS and RS. Turns out that wasn’t completely accurate.
The plexi and art panel are held down by four rubber/plastic rivets. Use the metal rod pictured here and push the rivets up from the bottom. You can then pry them off with a flathead screwdriver.
After removing the ball top (it doesn’t come tightened), dust washer, plexi, and art panel, you can see the face plate. It looks like it’s made of lightweight metal. Aluminum, perhaps? Here, you can see the screws holding face plate in place (three in total).
So, I was reading the Famitsu website and it seems Sanwa will release a new version of this arcade stick in May. It will be PS3/PS4 compatible, will have pretty much everything the older version had and a new art (that can be downloaded as a PDF file from the product page if you have the original stick and want the art).
Release date: May 26 2016
Price: 22000 yen + taxes (about $195, so probably around $200 after taxes)