Looking to buy a great Mac/PS3 Arcade Stick for Shmups only!

[Christoph]

I've been a long time console gaming shmup lover, never really played any with an arcade stick. I've been wanting to pick up a really nice one for use on my PS3 and on my MAC.

It will be used exclusively for shmups, I'd like one that I can mod/swap parts - I've seen some of your guys's mods and I'd love to learn how to do some of the cool stuff I saw.

So yeah, really don't know much about different joysticks, buttons, or anything arcade for that matter.

Don't know if these are good, but I was looking at these:

- Hori Real Arcade Pro 3

- Mayflash Universal Fighting Stick

[spongdangly]

I've also been looking at buying a quality arcade stick except for the Xbox 360. I've found the Shoryuken forums to be an excellent place full of info. Cheak out there noobie thread for some general arcade stick info. For more in depth info about specific parts/brands check out slagcoin's guide.

From what I've read Seimitsu parts seem to be the choice of shmuppers while Sanwa is used for fighting games.

The sticks I'm looking at are:
Mad Catz Official Street Fighter IV FightStick TE Round 1 or Round 2 (uses Sanwa parts)
Mad Catz Marvel vs Capcom 2 TE (uses Sanwa parts)
Hori Real Arcade Pro VX SA (uses Sanwa parts, comes out oct 11)
Hori Real Arcade Pro EX SE (uses Seimitsu parts, has rounded edges in it's square gate [i'm not sure how this affects movement])

All these sticks are in the 140$ price range and use authentic quality arcade parts.

[Christoph]

Nice, exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for the links.

That Hori Real Arcade Pro EX SE looks pretty sick. I assume that these sticks are mod-able in all ways?

EDIT: Damn that stick is only on the 360, it doesn't look like Hori even makes an alternative for the PS3 like that one!

[spongdangly]

Nice, exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for the links.

That Hori Real Arcade Pro EX SE looks pretty sick. I assume that these sticks are mod-able in all ways?

No problem and welcome to the community.
From what I've read all these arcade sticks should be mod-able in all ways. You can swap out the joystick and buttons (might need to do some cutting if the joystick's mounting bracket doesn't fit), you can also add you own custom artwork to your stick. Check out the Custom Sticks Thread!! here at shmups.com as well as the Check out my new arcade stick over at SRK to see what people have done (they've also got plenty of templates for specific arcade sticks).

EDIT: I found the same stick for the PS3: Hori Real Arcade Pro 3 SE

[Christoph]

Awesome, I think I'm gonna buy that one (Hori Real Arcade Pro 3 SE for PS3) since it has all Seimitsu parts!

I bet eBay is the only place to find one, or is there another good place to check?

I did find another cool one - HORI REAL ARCADE PRO SA - http://www.amazon.com/Real-Arcade-Pro-3 ... B002FL0T8U

Thanks for the info again.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Yep, that Hori Real Arcade Pro SA will work just fine on the ol' PS3 and PC setups. It's endowed with all Sanwa parts for the joystick and push buttons indeed. Plus autofire capabilites on the fly if you wish to utilize it during your shmup sessions.

There was no Hori Real Arcade Pro SE variant joystick released either for the PS3 platform -- of course, it would've been endowed with all Seimitsu arcade parts instead of Sanwa.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[Christoph]

Spongdangly pointed out that was a Hori Real Arcade Pro 3 SE released and all with Seimitsu parts too! I just don't know where to find one!

You guys think its really essential to get a Seimitsu set up for shmups over Sanwa? Thats what I'm looking for right now.

If I could find the Hori Real Arcade Pro 3 SE that'd be ideal.

If not couldn't I pick up a Hori Real Arcade Pro SA and swap buttons/joystick?

[spongdangly]

I bet eBay is the only place to find one, or is there another good place to check?

As far as ebay goes I have absolutely zero experience with them. I just know to make sure that the seller has a ton of positive feedback but even then you still might get screwed.

Since I live in Canada I was thinking of ordering the Hori Real Arcade Pro VX SA from amazon.ca since they offer free shipping.
Or I might get the Hori Real Arcade Pro EX SE from PNP Games ebay.ca store, although I doubt this since they don't offer local pick-up and for some reason want 200$ for this stick in store.

If not couldn't I pick up a Hori Real Arcade Pro SA and swap buttons/joystick?

Yes you can swap the buttons/joystick. However, if you're unable to find stick with full Seimitsu parts you might want to consider buying a Mad Catz Official Street Fighter IV FightStick SE (standard edition) and then swap out the crap stock parts for the quality Seimitsu parts. Assuming you can find one of these sticks they're only around 50$ and the the parts will end up costing you around 50$ as well.
Check out this guide: The how to mod your SFIV SE Fightstick FAQ for any questions you may have.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Yes, you could pick an Hori Real Arcade Pro 3 SA variant joystick and simply replace all the parts with Seimitsu ones. I've got an Agetech DC arcade stick that has been further modded with all Seimitsu parts. It's perfect for them serious shmup sessions indeed.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[Christoph]

Nice, I don't think i'm going to be able to find the SE PS3 stick anywhere since it was a limited edition, that is unless someone has one thats willing to sell..

I think the modding that streetfighter IV with all the Seimitsu parts is probably the best bet. Once you swap out all the buttons and joystick, is there really any big deal for the case its in? I mean its just cosmetics from there on out right? Even so you can just mod it with custom artwork and so on, so for playability case doesn't matter, right?

Thanks again.

[spongdangly]

I think the modding that streetfighter IV with all the Seimitsu parts is probably the best bet. Once you swap out all the buttons and joystick, is there really any big deal for the case its in? I mean its just cosmetics from there on out right? Even so you can just mod it with custom artwork and so on, so for playability case doesn't matter, right?.

I think that once you've swapped the parts the only main difference is the size and weight of the case.

According to amazon.com the size and weight of the Street Fighter IV sticks is:
TE - 8 x 13 x 20 inches ; 9.7 pounds
SE - 6 x 12 x 14 inches ; 5.4 pounds

[Christoph]

This is the SE, right? One last question, this will work on my MAC with emulators right?

[spongdangly]

This is the SE, right? One last question, this will work on my MAC with emulators right?

Yes that is the SE (nice price too).
As for working on your Mac I'm not to sure. I did a quick google search and found this, so it seems it does work after doing some customization.
Also, be sure to post your stick in the custom arcade sticks thread once you've got it all customized.

[Christoph]

sweeeeet

I will definitely post it when its done, I'm gonna order everything now!