Thanks bunches. Are you going to try to hack the triggers as well as the RB and LB?
Actually, Iām just going to use the LB/RB, start, back, guide and face buttons. For what itās worth you should only really āneedā 6 buttons max for any fighting game and I donāt know what Iād do for messing with analogs. I heard of some people just taking them off without thinking about it and they would randomly go off while playing, which Iād rather not happen.
The only truly difficult thing about this that I plan on doing is making new art (Kinkos seems to be popular for this) and Iām putting the guide button into the front side of the case, around where the cables come out, so it wonāt accidentally be hit. Iām thinking of moving the start and select button to there too for added ācomfortā of not accidentally hitting them during a match, but Iām not sure yet. I DO need to put at least 2 more buttons on the top side along with the guide button so Iāll have access to the 2 other PS2 buttons Iāll be covering with the new artwork Iāll eventually use.
I was the guy who bought that one - sorry Toodles.
Question - so apparently the madcatz stick has a common ground. Does this mean it can be used in a dual-PCB arrangement (or at least, much more easily)? Iāve read through most of the thread, and Iām thinking about trying to make a PS2/360 dual PCB, and using the Pelican converter for PS3 compatibility.
Iām running it dual-pcb in my Tekken 5 stick right now, actually. I literally have a single ground wire going from the 360 board to the Tekken 5 one and then a wire going to each button and directional input on the stick and I simply soldered them each to the corresponding soldered points that already existed. Works like a charm.
Okay, this is what I had planned, based on what I have read. If Iām making a horrible mistake, please let me know.
PSOne controller and Madcatz arcade controller. Both use a common ground so should be compatible.
Both pads wired to a barrier strip, which is in turn is wired to the stick/buttons (ground is daisy chained).
Both pads cords are attached to a DB15 connector. Both pads share the +5V pin and Ground pin, everything else is separate. Then I make two connectors, one for each system.
Sounds perfect. Make sure you use the right power line from the PSX cable; it only puts out like 3.3v. As long as you use the right power line from the PSX cable, your description sounds spot on.
Cool. Could you be more specific on the power line issue? Right now I can only find PSX pinouts (no PSOne dual shocks, go figure). Do you mean there are multiple power lines in it, and if so which one should I wire as common?
EDIT: Iām reading that there are two power lines, pin3 9volt for the rumble motors, and pin5 for 3.3V. Youāre saying to make sure I donāt use the 9volt line, correct?
Also, will the 360 5 volt be too much for the Dualshock, and conversely will 3.3v be enough for the 360 controller if theyāre both powered at the same time?
Finally, if the 9volt is strictly for the rumble motors, could I leave it unconnected? I could get down to a DB9 if I did that 
Thanks for the help, this is my first time dealing with multiple PCB hacks (or rewiring cords).
So is this step:
ā¦needed to fulfill the condition that both pads are powered? IE, would this not work if the original cords with no modifications were used?
Correct.
It has worked just fine in every example Iāve seen. If you want to verify the Dualshock will work with 5v, just use just about any converter; all of the xbox and PC USB converters Iāve seen power the controllers from 5v directly. Iām not sure how you could verify the 360 pcb would work with with 3.3v, but it only really needs enough power so it doesnt try to draw power from the button lines. Just do it, youll be fine.
Itās up to you whether to use it or not; personally, I wouldnāt. It cuts down on the work, has no benefit because you wont be using rumble in an arcade stick, and cuts down on the number of things that could go wrong.
If I were doing it, I would forget about the 9v line and stash it all in a DB-9.
.
Iām not certain I understand the question. With his DB-15 or DB-9 route, there is a single pin for +V, and a single pin for GND. Both PCBās would get power and ground no matter whether he was using it on PSX or 360. The same thing could be done with two cable coming out the back of the stick, as long as both pads were powered no matter which cable was plugged in.
The problem with the two cables is that if you connect both cables, itād be bad. So its usually recommended to put in a switch to select with cable is providing the power to both PCBs. Using the removable cables with the DB-15 avoids this neccessity since only one can possibly be used at a time.
Thanks, thatās what Iāll do then. Iām gonna be the worst player with the best stick ever!
Any suggestions for a site to purchase the various bits like the barrier strips/DB9 housings? And any specific brands/part numbers? The amount of stuff is staggering, and I donāt know the difference between most of it.
I might well be asking a wrong question. Iām ok with wiring stuff up after getting a clear idea how to do it, but I donāt have much understanding of electronics beyond that. Let me start from the beginning for the sake of clarity.
Here is my stick for reference:
Basic PS1 DS pad hacked and in a project box, wired to barrier strips before the buttons/JLF. Iām considering making it X360 compatible as well.
The thing that always confuses me about doing the wiring job is when it is said āboth PCBs must be powered.ā
I figured merely hacking a universal ground X360 pad and running lines to the same places on the barrier strip used by the PS2 pad would mean that one pad, but not both, is powered when attached to a system, IE, both PCBs would not be powered. Or is it really that simple?
I figured the above setup I quoted would be a work around for that, but again, Iām not very knowledgeable about electronics. I might we just be very confused.
I never use barrier stips, so I cant help there. I do know Radio SHack carries them but theyāre damn expensive.
The DB-9 connectors can be gotten tons of places including Radio Shack. Just make sure they are solder cup, and youāll be fine. Crimp ones suck IMO. If you get solder cup ones, it doesnt matter where you get them, theyāre all the same. In case you take my shell advice below, hereās the Digikey part numbers for them:
209ME-ND (male)
209FE-ND (female)
This may sound weird, but buy the best damn hoods you can find, and thatās gonna mean ordering them online from a place like Digikey. Most of the hoods you may find at Radio Shack or Fryās are crap. They donāt hold the connector solidly, they wiggle around, they dont have thumbscrews. You WANT thumbscrews.
972-09SBE-ND
^^^ Thats the Digikey part number of the 9 pin black version of the D-Sub hoods Iāve been using and recommending with the UPCB. They come with thumbscrews, holds everything tight, very simple to use. Itās also almost $3 a piece, but its worth it.
The DB connector itself isnāt too important. The hood is kinda important. But the 100% most important thing is how you mount the DB-9 connector to the stick itself. Do not skimp on this. Donāt jury rig it. Come up with the cleanest, most secure way of attaching it to your stick. You use any kind of glue, itāll suck. You want a solid attachment, with bolts and shit. I ordered some long hex bolts for mounting DB connectors to sticks; I highly recommend you do the same. Seriously, if theres even a little wiggle in this, your confidence in your own stick goes down. Youāre going to want to know you can pick up your stick by the cord and swing it around.
Sadly, how you do it depends alot on the how the stick itself is made so I cant help too much on that.
That is correct, only one would be powered. If you did all of the stuff you mentioned in that quite, and then you opened up the project box holding the PSX pcb, soldered a wire to the +3.3v wire of the PSX cable, ran it outside the project box, and connected it to the +5v wire on the 360 USB cable, then theyād both be powered.
Youd be sorely fucked if you had it plugged into two systems at once, but itd work fine until then.
http://www.instructables.com/id/SWTO9POF54HJ3KP/
^^ Read that, see if it helps.
Awesome! Thank you much for all the help. Iāll give that article a go when Iām not up to my ears in Russian short stories.
So is there much use for the Back button on the 360? Cause I donāt want to make space for an extra button if I donāt have to, Iād rather just have space for the Home and Start buttons.
I happen to have one of the old PSX H-series controllers that didnāt have the analogs (the official first edition controllers which were made in 94/95). Anyone have a diagram of the soldering points?
OK I got my micro madcatz wired up. But I am not understanding this ordeal about the truggers. Can someone post pics of one someone has wired up and confirmed working. I have striped the pcb down to nothing. All buttons are wired and working except the triggers. Any help would be great.
When you take it apart it will be real clear where to solder for R1 & R2. There are three pins for those two buttons. R1 is labeled R1 and R2 is labeled R3. In between those pins is your ground. The rest of the buttons you can hack right at the button location on the PCB.
i have a psx h-series as well and i need help wit the sldering points.
If your controller becomes disconnected in SF2:HF, you have to hit the back button after you plug it back in to continue.
Can the ground for R1/R2 be used as a common ground for the other buttons?