The Hori PS4 VLX thread

[rygod]

So I’ve never owned a VLX before, and I’ve very tempted to grab one at evo. The only thing that Google and SRK search isn’t turning up too well is this:

What’s the custom art situation like on these things? To my knowledge, these things share the same build as former VLX Diamond and regular VLX as well. I can’t seem to find much information here on the forum regarding that either. Some posts have said I’ll need a replacement plexi panel, others have said that I’ll need a vinyl replacement.

Is anyone else looking at art replacement for their VLX Kuro?

but its a VEWLIX!!! its already limited edition, nearly one of a kind, right? one doesn’t pay for a Gucci branded fiat and then paint it white!

hahaha! I kid. I encourage custom art, I love going to evo and seeing all the unique pieces people have poured their love into. haven’t seen anything for the VLX yet though.

[Finest_KO]

? one doesn’t pay for a Gucci branded fiat and then paint it white!

Some men just want to watch the world burn, lol.

But yeah, I feel like the VLX Kuro would be the perfect case for a Ghost themed stick:

[singlongkuen]

Yes, you can simply unscrew the old stick and insert the new one. As far as I remember from my Vewlix F compared to my TE/VLX, the standard JLF-stick is 90 degrees rotated. You can unclick the gate, rotate the microswitch-block 90 degrees and re-assemble it. If the directions seem to be wrong after assembly, rotate the microswitch-block.

Is this a matter of orienting it differently in the VLX or actually disassembling it and rotating an internal component? Sorry again for the basic questions…Like I said, I’ve never done replaced a joystick before.

There’s only one way to mount the JLF on the VLX. A clear plastic gate is held onto the JLF with clips. You can easily remove the gate by carefully pressing the clips. Underneath it, there’s a plate with the microswitches mounted on it. You can slide out that plate, rotate it 90 degrees, slide it back in and put back the gate. That’s all.

[Tensho]

There’s some people that made their own plexi for the VLX and own lami-label or whatever artwork, they all most likely did the measurements themselves, lami-label definitely won’t be as tough as whatever the stock art has over it.

[Finest_KO]

So is the art glued on, like on other hori sticks? I’ve noticed on shots of the inside of the case that there are screws coming from the top, do those remove the whole top panel?

[Tensho]

The art is stuck on the metal panel with some sort of adhesive and the screws are under the art. I think someone earlier in the thread said the art can come off without ruining the art and placed back without getting messed up.

[Finest_KO]

Okay, so if I wanted to go about using a plexi and some cardstock art, I’d need to get plexi drilled and some longer screws? Just trying to understand the scope of this project.

[Tensho]

No clue, search through this thread might have good info:

Hori Real Arcade Pro Premium VLX Template Thread

Trace and scan the existing top panel, then compare to your measurements.

[Finest_KO]

Thanks, I never came across that thread in my searching.

[terrficspller]

Made a thread for this, then realized I should have started here beforehand

New member, been searching high and low to see if any other mods have been made to the newly released VLX Kuro other than cosmetic button/balltop swaps.

I’m looking to replace all my sticks with this beast and would like to add a PS360+ to the mix. I’ve brainstormed a few possibilities but at the moment I feel like the most optimal way to rock it would be with an alternate RJ45 output for Xbox360 (and the plethora of other consoles it support), keeping the PS4/PS3 functionality on the stock USB cable. Bear in mind I have been unable to find any schematics for the VLX PCB to go off of for the piggyback wiring.

If any one has attempted to do this or plan on doing so, which resources have you found for reference? Anything that would point me in the right directions is appreciated.

Just came to me to kind of bump this subject before anyone tries this and gets super frustrated.

@Gummo modded Sabin’s VLX at Combo Breaker and found that when the board is powered, the I/O are held low unless it detects a valid system. This means that just connecting the I/O between boards on a standard dual mod won’t work, you need extra steps and it’s not for the faint of heart.

Basically you need to put all the cable connections to a central point and then from there pop diodes between that and the VLX’s I/O, while the other side goes to whatever secondary PCB you have in the case. Gummo had to actually create an on the fly version out of perf board, and a few spare dual and single row headers, but it did work.

TL:DR, until a write up is done, or you understand the above paragraph and are ready to tackle that, don’t try a dual mod, you’ll just get frustrated.

Thank you for the write up! I’ll be holding off for a bit. Just the thought of tampering with the VLX PCB is already making me anxious.

[terrficspller]

*Pending: Sound dampening foam lining on inside of stick to further reduce sound. Made by PC party manufacturer Silverstone

Would you mind posting a link to this? I’m thinking of doing this myself.

Edit: I’m a scrub. Found it rather easily: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999222

[Reverend179]

*Pending: Sound dampening foam lining on inside of stick to further reduce sound. Made by PC party manufacturer Silverstone

Would you mind posting a link to this? I’m thinking of doing this myself.

Edit: I’m a scrub. Found it rather easily: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999222

I did it myself after hearing about it, and to be honest I do not hear that much of a difference. The foam is VERY thin- you’re not going to get a lot out of it.

[Tensho]

To get rid of the hollow sound you most likely have to fill it with thick dense material like some sort of sponge or foam or anything to get rid of the hollow echo sounds

[Reverend179]

To get rid of the hollow sound you most likely have to fill it with thick dense material like some sort of sponge or foam or anything to get rid of the hollow echo sounds

Auralex foam or sheetblok would work, but in general you’re right. The Silverstone stuff is intended to reduce sound created by vibration of components, and I’m sure it’s good at that.

[dakidukno]

I’ve been searching the threads a bit and…it seems like no one has attempted an LED button/stick mod on a Vewlix? Is it because everyone is scared to mess with the PCB? I can’t seem to find an example anywhere. All I could find were old threads regarding the Kitty boards, which don’t seem to be available anymore either.

[teleute]

I have been thinking about putting some LEDs in. As a first step I put in Phreakmods USB Repair pcb so I could run cables off of vcc and ground without soldiering or messing with the VLX pcb. I guess something went wrong though, as neither PS3 or PS4 recognize the stick. It is definitely getting power, as a green light turns on when toggling the assign switch (it shines steadily in PS4 mode and flashes on PS3 mode) and the wires match with the colors labeled on the PCB.

Anyone have an idea of what could be wrong? I’d hate to have bricked a $300 stick.

[yoooooon]

Hi guys,

I finally got around to dual modding this for Xbox 360. Man, it’s a pain in the ass.

Here’s some things to keep in mind if you give this a shot.

Spoiler

1. As mentioned previously, you’ll need diodes. I found a suggestion somewhere on SRK saying to use 1N914B diodes, which I bought 300 on eBay for like $8 dollars. Try to avoid overpaying for them since you need at least 15 for one dual mod. Here’s an example of ones I’ve used and they’ve worked. Someone may have better suggestions. Here’s a pic of the pack I bought.

http://www.livingwithjohnchoi.com/pics/1diodesmall.jpg

2. The anode (side without the line marker) needs to go towards the hori pcb, and the cathode (the side with the marker) needs to go to a central barrier strip. You’ll need I believe 15 of these wires with the diode in line. I would suggest not putting the diode in the middle of the wire and towards one of the sides so that when you cover it up, you’ll know the orientation by the placement of the diode. Here’s a pic of one I made.

http://www.livingwithjohnchoi.com/pics/2diodesmall.jpg

3. Here’s how the PCB works. I did this from memory so I need to double check this, but I believe it’s correct. One thing to note, the row of pins that are closer to the middle are the signal lines (the points at which you use your diode wires), the grounds and other wires you will not need wires with diodes. Back and PS home you will need diode wires. (Those might be reversed in the picture, but I’m sure it’s those two pins.)

http://www.livingwithjohnchoi.com/pics/3horipcb.jpg

4. Instead of wiring to the pins on the PCB, I used a 30-pin header to wire to instead. I personally try to do minimal mods to the actual stick so everything can be reversed back to stock if need be. I know, weird. Here’s a sample of what it looks like. I had to use an exacto knife to get this one to fit, but it wasn’t too much work.

http://www.livingwithjohnchoi.com/pics/4extrassmall.jpg

5. Some in progress wiring. The way I had it wired is to have everything lead to a central barrier strip from the two pcbs. This includes signal lines from the HORI pcb (with diodes) and signal lines from the xbox pad linking to the new button and joystick wiring I hooked up. One thing to remember is that for back/select and PS Home to work, you’ll have to intercept the signal from the hori pcb from the 4 and 6 wire headers at the top of the pcb. I used a jewelers sized flat head screwdriver to lift up the tab on the wire and pull it out. I then hooked up wire to that and had it go into the button array. Here’s some in-progress wiring.

http://www.livingwithjohnchoi.com/pics/5wiringsmall.jpg

6. Getting close. My wiring is still a rats nest, but something I will eventually clean up. However, EVERYTHING IS WORKING! If you noticed, I used pin headers to wire up the usb cable so I didn’t have to cut anything up.

http://www.livingwithjohnchoi.com/pics/6wiringsmall.jpg

The main reason why I wired it this way with a barrier strip was so that I could easily change out the Xbox 360 pad to any future dual mod pad that I need to without too much headache.

The mod in a nutshell - I believe - you need diodes on the signal lines from the hori pcb, you need a central point at which the two padhacks connect, and you need to do special wiring to the PS Home and back/select button to get those to work. If you don’t care about those then you can just leave it as is.

Hope this helps anyone that’s looking to give this a try.

[Gummo]

Yay I’m not the only one who got to go through the hell of modding it.

[rygod]

hi team. I have finally emotionally disconnected myself from my VLX Kuro such that I am now prepared to rip its guts out!

I’m going to avoid the diode troubles all together. we will take out the current pcb and install a tri-pad mod (ps360+, crossbone, ggxrd).

we are going to up the ante by doing a six button layout and install the missing two buttons in the case itself next to the dpdt switches.

I also have a PDP MKX Xbox One/360 pad. I haven’t read any reports about input lag for this pad, but maybe it’s better for 360 than the ps360+ (new build)? so use that instead of the crossbone? trying to not let those milliseconds in the teyah thread bother me (I’m no pro), but if I can get a faster pcb from the start, why not!?

If anyone has any advice about this type of mod, please let me know!

I’m going to my local arcade to get this done.

at the end of the day, I paid 300 for a very sweet case, as every internal part will soon have been removed! hahaha!

BUT once done this will be the Ferrari of arcade sticks!

wish me luck!

[shaunLEGEND]

Wow, that’s pretty hardcore. Good luck with the tri-mod!