Qanba Q1 PS3 & PC Joystick (Fightstick)

Do you like fighting games? Beat 'em Ups? Shoot 'em Ups? Arcade classics? If you played them on the original cabinet, you know that it just isn't the same experience when you play the home versions, especially when you have to use your home system's controller. But there have always been options for your home machine to replicate the feel of the controller. The NES Advantage. The SEGA Control Stick for their Master System. The Genesis had one, the Super Nintendo had one, the PC Engine/Turbografx had one... But all of those were of varying quality, and there were times where your home console had one of the bad ones. If you didn't like the one that worked with yours, you were out of luck.Fortunately, things have changed for the better. The home versions look just as good now as they did on the cabinet back then. It no longer matters what you own, you can get arcade quality controls for it. Madcatz, Hori, and Eightarc all made great sticks, some of which have multi-console functionality (though that makes the product more expensive). You can also build your own using arcade parts and a controller board, along with a box to hold it all.This stick here is made by Eightarc under the Qanba name. It's a budget stick, so it doesn't have some of the nice features of its premium counterparts, like silent buttons or multi-console compatibility. The buttons will clack and occasionally squeak. It's only meant to work with a PC or PS3, but there's probably a way to modify it to increase its usability. It also doesn't use Sanwa or Semitsu parts, but clone parts. They seem to be of decent enough quality at this price point, but it's good to know that they can be replaced with real deal parts from those two manufacturers.Speaking of build quality, it has a good amount of heft to it. When combined with the non-slip pads, it does a good job staying in place on a desk or table. Speaking of desks and tables, it does come with a set of adjustable clamps, which can be attached or removed without tools. Not something I would personally use, but it's cool that they're there. It is also of a comfortable size for lap play (this is how I've been playing P4AU and MK9). The button layout is quite good. Square, Triangle, R1, and L1 all take up residence on the top row, while Cross, Circle, R2, and L2 all hang out below. The control buttons and stick are just far enough apart to be comfortable to me, and the buttons are spread out just right. Since this is relative to hand size, it is important to tell you that I have somewhat small hands and somewhat short fingers (medium size gloves are usually a great fit). In case you're wondering, yes, it does have Start, Select and Home buttons, as well as a Turbo button and a Mode button (I haven't bothered with these, but it's cool that they're there). These are located in the top-left corner of the device. The Start button is the largest (maybe 24 mm?) and lives in a recess to keep you from pressing it accidentally, while the other four function buttons are tiny little rectangular buttons that are flush with the surface. The Start Button can be reached with your left pinkie, and you would have to have a very specific grip style to hit it unintentionally. The other four buttons require a very deliberate press, as they need to be hit by the tip of your finger because they're so dang small. Combine all this with their distance from the stick, and you'll probably never hit them when you don't mean to. All in all, good layout.Something that older reviews may not mention (because this is somewhat new information) is that many PS3 arcade sticks can be made compatible with the PS4. Lab Zero games has developed and released their own driver software that any game developer can use to make their game accept input from a wide range of PS3 sticks (check Lab Zero's website to see if yours in compatible). However, you will still need your Dualshock 4 for system control, as these older sticks were not made with the DS4's touch panel in mind. Also, it's up to the developer to make use of LZ's software.The final point to this review is: do you need this? Are you already used to playing games on this kind of controller? Does it look more comfortable? Does it look like it would be easier for you to use? Because there's no guarantee that it, or any other stick, will make you better at any game. If you've already gotten used to playing on a different type of controller, you'll actually play worse on a stick until you've relearned the game with a stick. I can attest to this, as I am currently a little worse at P4AU on this than on a Dualshock 3. I occasionally find that my right hand has migrated to the right, when I would rather have it stay at its home position. But I am having fun relearning, and I have found that some moves are easier to pull off with a stick (double quarter-circles and Zs, for example). The best way to find out if you want one is to try one. Ask your friends if you can try theirs, or hang out wherever people play fighting games. Or, if you're lucky, you might still have an arcade in your area with more current games, or games comparable to the one you want this kind of stick for.Too long; didn't read? It's a good enough arcade stick for the money that will work for anything on PS3 and on PC (so long as it doesn't ask for more inputs than this offers), and at least a handful of games on PS4 that make use of Lab Zero's driver kit (though it may not work for that game you like). You may not need this, or even like playing with this, so see if you can try a stick out before shelling out your hard-earned cash.

I hook this up to my PC and love it for playing SSF4-AE. The only thing that keeps me from giving it 5 stars is that one of the buttons does not consistently register when pressed (R2). Other than this defect, there is no stick in this price range that comes close to what you get for the price. I am simply going to replace the defective button with a black Sanwa OBSF-30 button, which this stick readily takes, when I change out the square gate for the octagonal gate (included). The stock Qanba joystick is not bad at all. The chassis is nice and the desk mount is great, very solid. The USB cable is about 4 feet long, which is good enough for a PC set up, and even has a stow-away compartment. I figured that if I had gotten a PCB and chassis with wiring harness to build my own, the cost would be well beyond $69 before I add the choice of joystick and buttons. This gives me a great platform to upgrade from.The item was also packaged well, triple boxed with the rest of my order. No manual was included with my unit. I also find that the plastic chassis has a strong smoky smell. They probably allow smoking where they make these things. BTW, this item was made in China.UPDATE: The stock R2 button now works consistently. It just needed some break-in use. I am still amazed at how well this stick performs. On the PC, the stick registers like the hat control on a flight stick. They are either on or off and do not have proportional inputs. This is a great fight stick no less. I can pull off ultras with little problem. The way it mounts to the desk is one of the best features for me.UPDATE2: I had the Q1 apart and can tell you that the Qanba square gate was not as easy to remove as I had anticipated. You will need strong fingers to take it off. It simply does not pop off. You will need to push the tabs in and ease the gate off at the same time. For me, it was easier to take the ball off and the joystick out of the case first. Once the square gate was removed, I noticed that the switches inside the Qanba joystick are the same as what is used in the Sanwa JLF, being Omron switches that are made in Japan. This was a nice surprise. Also, the Qanba octagonal gate feels good. The pin headers are the same as that of the JLF. And, the mounting plate is metal on the Qanba stick. The only thing that is unique with the Qanba stick is that the ball is not interchangeable with one from a JLF. The threading is just not the same nor does it have a metal insert in the ball. The reason that I know this is that I ended up buying a Sanwa JLF (JLF-TP-8YT-SK) and Sanwa Octagonal gate anyway when I purchased the Sanwa OBSF-30 buttons. Since I had it all apart, I put in the new Sanwa parts and fully customized the colors on my fightstick. Everything inside the chassis is completely interchangeable with the Sanwa parts. No soldering or cutting is required at all. The JLF header is the same as that for the Qanba wiring harness. The Sanwa buttons seem to be more responsive than the Qanba buttons. They do not take much pressing to get a full signal. Yet, in looking at the stock Qanba parts, the unmodded Qanba Q1 is still a great value. I now have a bunch of quality spare parts that I can use for future projects.

it works

my brother loves it