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    Game pad to buy

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved General Discussion and Gaming
    game padrommodel
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    • R
      Robinson
      last edited by

      Thanks.
      I have just realized I would rather use a wireless gamepad, Bluetooth type, not RF because for RF dongles would have to occupy USB ports on Pi4.
      I understand I can use 2 Bluetooth gamepads at the same time to play any 2-player game, right?
      Are there perhaps any Bluetooth gamepads which are confirmed to work well?
      Will they work from a distance of 5 metres?

      lostlessL 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • lostlessL
        lostless @Robinson
        last edited by

        @Robinson the ps5 and ps4 controllers function over Bluetooth. yes, you can use 2 Bluetooth devices at the same time. Basically any Bluetooth controller or usb controller will work on the pie. You can go as cheap or expensive as you want. As far as that much distance, your mileage may very. The pi’s Bluetooth strength Is decent, but not great. Depends on location and your case. Might have better luck with an external usb Bluetooth adapter. But give it a go and see how well it works.

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
        • R
          Robinson
          last edited by

          Thanks. I will probably go for DualShock 4 then.

          R 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • R
            Robinson @Robinson
            last edited by

            Update:
            DualShock 4 is hardly available anywhere.
            I assume Dualsense (of PS5) runs equally well with Raspberry Pi 4 on Bluetooth.
            And probably the same goes for Xbox Series S/X controllers?

            mituM 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • mituM
              mitu Global Moderator @Robinson
              last edited by

              DualShock 4 is hardly available anywhere.

              Even used ones ?

              I assume Dualsense (of PS5) runs equally well with Raspberry Pi 4 on Bluetooth.

              It should be working, though I don't think it's full functionality is supported by RetroPie (i.e. new rumble types, microphone/headphones).

              And probably the same goes for Xbox Series S/X controllers?

              They're supported, you'll need the xpadneo driver installed before pairing it via Bluetooth (available from the RetroPie-Setup drivers section of the packages).

              R 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • R
                Robinson @mitu
                last edited by

                Thanks.

                @mitu said in Game pad to buy:

                Even used ones ?

                I am not convinced to buying a used one. We'll see.

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • AddisonA
                  Addison
                  last edited by Addison

                  If you can wait a month.

                  alt text

                  $29.99 to pre-order.

                  https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Wireless-Controller-Windows-PC-Raspberry/dp/B0C2V3QPN7/

                  R 3 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                  • R
                    Robinson @Addison
                    last edited by

                    @Addison Thanks.
                    I think I can wait. :)
                    It is not Bluetooth but wi-fi dongles will be OK too, I hope.
                    I just wonder if my Pi 4B will have enough power for an HDD and two game dongles. Or will a self-powered USB hub be necessary?

                    AddisonA mituM S 3 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • AddisonA
                      Addison @Robinson
                      last edited by

                      @Robinson

                      I've had horrible response times and complete dead moments with bluetooth, using many different premium controllers.

                      It's either WiFi or wired for me.

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                      • AddisonA
                        Addison
                        last edited by

                        Also, I use all 4 USB ports with no troubles.

                        WiFi adapter.
                        Wireless controller.
                        Wireless keyboard.
                        Wired controller.

                        You'll be fine. :)

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • mituM
                          mitu Global Moderator @Robinson
                          last edited by

                          @Robinson said in Game pad to buy:

                          I just wonder if my Pi 4B will have enough power for an HDD and two game dongles. Or will a self-powered USB hub be necessary?

                          What kind of HDD do you have and how much power does it need ? The Pi4B can supply at most 1.2A from all USB ports, so if your external disc needs more than that, it won't be working properly without being externally powered.

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                          • R
                            Robinson
                            last edited by

                            Thanks.
                            I do not have a HDD yet.
                            I'm still thinking what to get:

                            • 2.5" or 3.5" HDD
                            • external (USB) or internal + USB-SATA converter
                            • one with enclosure (such as WD Elements) or not
                            • one with its own PSU or perhaps it is better to buy a separate self-powered USB hub
                              So many doubts.
                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • R
                              Robinson
                              last edited by

                              One more question.
                              Is there any difference in playing games (Raspberry Pi 4B) using USB 2.0 and 3.0? Any advantage of 3.0 for playing retro games?

                              lostlessL 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • lostlessL
                                lostless @Robinson
                                last edited by lostless

                                @Robinson with a USB controller, defiantly no. With games on an external drive, there is no advantage. these games load slow and USB 2 can handle the bandwidth with no issue.

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • windgW
                                  windg
                                  last edited by windg

                                  I am running roms from a usb 2 and i never had issues with the read/write speed.
                                  I have the WD Elements 2TB 2.5'', without separate PSU, connecting to the Pi usb ports and it is working without issues (tested with RPi3/RPi4 with official PI PSU).

                                  My English isn't at a good level.

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • R
                                    Robinson @Addison
                                    last edited by

                                    Has anyone already tried it with Raspberry Pi Retropie?

                                    https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Wireless-Controller-Windows-PC-Raspberry/dp/B0C2V3QPN7/

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • S
                                      Skibumwi @Robinson
                                      last edited by

                                      @Robinson said in Game pad to buy:

                                      @Addison Thanks.
                                      I think I can wait. :)
                                      It is not Bluetooth but wi-fi dongles will be OK too, I hope.
                                      I just wonder if my Pi 4B will have enough power for an HDD and two game dongles. Or will a self-powered USB hub be necessary?

                                      I've tried two externally powered USB hubs and neither worked for me. A USB powered hub seems to work just fine.

                                      Ski

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • R
                                        Robinson @Addison
                                        last edited by Robinson

                                        @Addison said in Game pad to buy:

                                        If you can wait a month.
                                        https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Wireless-Controller-Windows-PC-Raspberry/dp/B0C2V3QPN7/

                                        Yes, I have waited and bought two. :)
                                        Now it seems I need to learn some bacics because I have not managed to configure neither of them yet. :(

                                        1. When the light on the dongle stays solid, does it mean the dongle and the gamepad have been paired successfully?

                                        2. I wonder why ABXY keys are arranged differently than what I mainly see on the internet. X and Y are swapped. Same as A/B.

                                        3. When I connected the first dongle and started to configure it, it was going well until HOT KEY configuration. I pressed various keys but there was no reaction and so I could not get to "OK" to finish the configuration process. Does anyone know why?

                                        4. Then I connected the other identical dongle but pressing keys did not produce any effect on the configuration screen. I assume there is a way to configure the keys using an alternative method?

                                        5. Which keys would you configure as SELECT, START and HOT KEY?
                                          https://download.8bitdo.com/Manual/Controller/Ultimate/Ultimate-C-2.4G-Wireless-Controller.pdf

                                        Thanks for anybody's help.

                                        mituM 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • R
                                          Robinson
                                          last edited by

                                          I have again run through the configuration procedure but again, no luck.
                                          This time I stopped at "OK" button even though I did as suggested:

                                          When you get to OK press the button you have configured as "A".

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • mituM
                                            mitu Global Moderator @Robinson
                                            last edited by mitu

                                            You should have started a separate topic for the issue regarding the controller configuration.

                                            Now it seems I need to learn some bacics because I have not managed to configure neither of them yet. :(

                                            You can look in the docs to get the basics first.

                                            When the light on the dongle stays solid, does it mean the dongle and the gamepad have been paired successfully?
                                            

                                            Usually yes.

                                            I wonder why ABXY keys are arranged differently than what I mainly see on the internet. X and Y are swapped. Same as A/B.

                                            There are 2 different layouts for controllers on the market regarding the right buttons - the original Nintendo SNES arrangement or the XBox style naming, which has the button names switched.

                                            When I connected the first dongle and started to configure it, it was going well until HOT KEY configuration. I pressed various keys but there was no reaction and so I could not get to "OK" to finish the configuration process. Does anyone know why?

                                            This usually means you're either trying to map a button you already configured or the button produces no input in EmulationStation - it functions internally to the gamepad to trigger other functions. Which button are you trying to map as Hotkey enable and it's not working ?

                                            Then I connected the other identical dongle but pressing keys did not produce any effect on the configuration screen. I assume there is a way to configure the keys using an alternative method?

                                            Is the dongle properly connected with the USB port and the controller ? Did you connect the controller in the same mode (wireless vs. wired).

                                            Which keys would you configure as SELECT, START and HOT KEY?

                                            Whichever you feel more confortable - looking at the diagram of the controller, you can configure the + (Menu) button as Start and the - button as Select. If the Star button is read properly, you can use it as a Hotkey Enable button, otherwise just skip the button and accept the Select button as Hotkey Enable when asked.

                                            I have again run through the configuration procedure but again, no luck.

                                            Are you sure you're pressing the A button or the one you mapped to the A button ?

                                            R 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
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