RetroPie forum home
    • Recent
    • Tags
    • Popular
    • Home
    • Docs
    • Register
    • Login

    What controller do you use in Retropie?

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved General Discussion and Gaming
    retropiecontrollercompatibleuserusb
    55 Posts 33 Posters 14.1k Views
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as topic
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
    • M
      mat
      last edited by

      @niculinux said in What controller do you use in Retropie?:

      Logitech F310

      I have been looking for a possible new controller. I currently use the Buffalo USB SNES controller and I am on my third one. I find the cross pass tends to wear out and eventually get stuck.

      I have never been hard with controllers. I just can't play fighters like Darkstalkers or SF types that require pad combos or the cross pad breaks down faster.

      I do also have to have a "Turbo" button as it's nice to have to press only a button down once and let it go, I.E. for side scrolling brawlers or MAME games, then to continue to press a button over and over.

      I don't see too many 3rd party controllers with a "Turbo" button.

      I see SNES30 Pro has one but reviews seem mixed on it.

      KN4THXK 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • KN4THXK
        KN4THX @mat
        last edited by

        @mat I use iBuffalo and PS3 controllers. I didn't care for the XBox dpad but it works really great with systems that need analog sticks. The logitechs get a lot of love everywhere I read and 8bitdo is 50-50 in reviews though I bought some of the sn30s and they worked pretty well.

        In case you didn't know, you can set a turbo button in retroarch very easily. So let's say you have a SNES style controller with 4 buttons available, you could do something for NES/arcade like use the bottom two as regular buttons and set the top two as full time turbos. Worked great for me in Contra.

        "If you're gonna play the Game Boy, You gotta learn to play it right" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYLGl92ETNQ

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • CyborgbobC
          Cyborgbob
          last edited by

          0_1536198537222_Powera.PNG

          Not bad and if you can find last years model it is cheap.. This one is by powera

          0_1536198570375_nes30pro.png

          I love the NES Classic by 8bitdo.

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
          • KleenaxK
            Kleenax
            last edited by

            Depending on the game I play I use either a SN30 Pro
            alt text

            Or a Ratro-bit Sega controller
            alt text

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
            • V
              VictimRLSH @niculinux
              last edited by

              @niculinux I also use the EasyMSX. I like the hands-free turbo button mode, I just have to remember to turn it off before I try and save state or all hell breaks loose.

              System Config: Retropie 4.4 with full desktop, RPi 3B, 256gb SD, 5v 2.1A 5,200 mAH USB battery. EasyMSX controller mounted with Pimoroni Hyperpixel 4 (non touch). Also running 4.6 on a 4gb Pi 4 serving as my primary desktop computer now.

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • N
                NightShadowPT
                last edited by

                I'm using proper arcade controllers with a Zero Lag USB controller.

                alt text

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • N
                  niculinux @mulder79
                  last edited by niculinux

                  @mat said in What controller do you use in Retropie?:

                  I have never been hard with controllers. I just can't play fighters like Darkstalkers or SF types that require pad combos or the cross pad breaks down faster.

                  Weel actually i'm more of a "plug and play guy" instead of "plug and pray", since i like havin Always all stuff lock and load since i don't have much time for experimentation :) the f310 as far as i've seen is the most compatible gamepad so far, pheraps the Retropie wiki under the "controller" section needs to be updated. EasyMSX gave me no problems in recalbox, while in retroie i had some issues. Gonna eventually give up usin it in retropie, i'll give away as a gift… ;) Gonna take a second f310 as soon as i manage

                  Yesterday i stumble across aan Xtreme force shock pad (USB wired gamepad) mod 94270, very very cheap, i paid 10 euros only, not extremely compatible with retropie; emulationstation detected it as "microntek USB joystick", and thoug all key were recognized, i was not able to configure analog sticks because these are reporte as "already taken" by emulationstation (seens as the dpad i suppose). Though the gamepad seems to have nice quality seems to work but with variuous flaws, in some games and systems analog sticks have configuration swapped (in carmageddon for ps1 up/down left/right) and sometimes act weridly (in gryzor for c64 using the right one causes game to reset at the title screen). Usually the more cheaper they are the more problems are likely to give, especially in linux based systems (don'tknow if/how android may handle them), so i would not advice these.
                  Screenshots:

                  alt text

                  alt text

                  I've heard also that linq usb wired gamepad are not very compatible with retropie, can anyone confirm please?! Edit: bigger picture of the controller

                  bigger picture of the controller

                  V 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • V
                    VictimRLSH @niculinux
                    last edited by

                    @niculinux Does your EasyMSX mysteriously register presses of the Y button at the most inopportune times? Mine had that issue for a while, but went away as mysteriously as it started.

                    System Config: Retropie 4.4 with full desktop, RPi 3B, 256gb SD, 5v 2.1A 5,200 mAH USB battery. EasyMSX controller mounted with Pimoroni Hyperpixel 4 (non touch). Also running 4.6 on a 4gb Pi 4 serving as my primary desktop computer now.

                    N 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • N
                      niculinux @VictimRLSH
                      last edited by niculinux

                      @victimrlsh said in What controller do you use in Retropie?:

                      @niculinux Does your EasyMSX mysteriously register presses of the Y button at the most inopportune times? Mine had that issue for a while, but went away as mysteriously as it started.

                      No, i sat it up varous times in emulationstation but nothing, but i already gave it away so it doesn't matter.

                      As for the thing, also with the xtreme gamepad it' a kernel issue i think, because retropie it's raspian based so it does not roll frequent kernel updates; on the other hand the easymsx never gave me trouble on recalbox, probably because of that.

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • N
                        niculinux
                        last edited by niculinux

                        Hello there, a quick update: i've noticed actually that it is the "wrong" way to update: if i do that by quitting enulationstation and get the job done in terminl via

                        sudo apt update && upgrade
                        

                        there are some glitches in the trigger setting in the emulationstation input configuring screen, while if the kernel and drivers are updated via setup (the ncurses-like interface) everything works fine. Please don't hesitate to share other pics of you controllers!

                        Edit: sorry, i don't have the easyMSX anyomore, it's broken and gone :,(

                        DarksaviorD 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • DarksaviorD
                          Darksavior @niculinux
                          last edited by Darksavior

                          @niculinux Yes, I've had issues with one of my triggers on my xbox joystick to not register until I go build the xpad driver from source, then it works.

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • ClassicGMRC
                            ClassicGMR
                            last edited by

                            I picked up one of these a month or two ago and finally tried it out on the Pi. Excellent controller!

                            alt text

                            Growing older is mandatory. Growing up is optional!
                            Enjoy the ride!

                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • IanDaemonI
                              IanDaemon @niculinux
                              last edited by

                              @niculinux said in What controller do you use in Retropie?:

                              Hello, i thought i would have been nice if we users shar some impresisons/experience/feedback on the controllers used by us,

                              I use an X-arcade Tankstick. I have some generic SNES pad clones, but I actually don't use them. I replaced some of the buttons on each side with LED lit buttons and I'm thinking of customizing the trackball. I play arcade titles mostly so this works best for my build.

                              2261a63e-8de2-465f-872e-cf63308c2faa-image.png

                              • 5 Favorite Arcade Games in MAME
                              • Cocktail Cabinet Games
                              • Check out the MAME RoW
                              W J 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                              • W
                                werpu @IanDaemon
                                last edited by

                                @IanDaemon alt text

                                This one, not kidding, I even wrote my own driver/multiplexer for it.

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                • J
                                  JeremyXgaming @IanDaemon
                                  last edited by

                                  @IanDaemon Good choice! ;)

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • UDb23U
                                    UDb23
                                    last edited by

                                    Multiple: buffalo classic, genuine sony ps4 controller, Logitech F310 + control panels built by myself: 2 player (ipac), 4 way stick ikea based and finally this for spinner & trackball games:
                                    alt textalt text
                                    More info here.

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • simpleethatS
                                      simpleethat
                                      last edited by

                                      I primarily use the Hori Fighting Commander.

                                      I also have both Sega and Nintendo only builds and really like the respective Retroflag paddles for authenticity (Genesis/Megadrive & SNES)

                                      For my XU4 build I have the previously mentioned Logitech F310.

                                      At the end of the day it really depends on what you want to emulate.

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                      • BobHarrisB
                                        BobHarris
                                        last edited by BobHarris

                                        I still think the Dual shock 4 is the perfect controller. Lots of buttons (comes in handy when assigning buttons in dosbox), analog sticks, great ergonomics, fantastic dpad for fighting games, wired/wireless use, very durable.

                                        I was planning to buy the Retro-Bit Sega Saturn controller (for the 6 button layout), but I'm glad I waited as the Amazon reviews are critical about the durability after a few weeks of use.

                                        Pi 3B , 64 GB Sandisk ultra flashdrive, 19 systems, 872 hand picked classic gaming gems :-) Dual shock 4v2

                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • E
                                          ecophreak
                                          last edited by

                                          Currently using speedlink competition pro - mainly emulating amiga & c64

                                          alt text

                                          However I'm looking for something more suited to general emulation that won't break the bank, F310s seem to be good on compatibility and price

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • D
                                            drake999
                                            last edited by

                                            I use a pair of wireless Logitech F710 controllers. I still think it was probably the best choice given the options I was aware of and you can essentially map any game controls up to modern systems on them. I also don't like to be tethered to the game machine which is why I went wireless. However, I find the F710 controllers have some pretty serious wireless range issues. Sometimes I'm only about 5 feet away from the RetroPie console and the controller will cut out due to interference or range issues. Sometimes it seems like they are actually IR controllers rather than radio based wireless, lol. This could be the result of a noisy wireless environment however as I live in a condo complex with a completely saturated 2.4 GHz band. In any case I would like to know if there is an alternative that doesn't have a huge bulky receiver half the size of my NesPi case (referring to Xbox One bulky USB receiver mainly). I don't really want to use Bluetooth PS4 controllers either.

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                            • First post
                                              Last post

                                            Contributions to the project are always appreciated, so if you would like to support us with a donation you can do so here.

                                            Hosting provided by Mythic-Beasts. See the Hosting Information page for more information.