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    Please do not post a support request without first reading and following the advice in https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/3/read-this-first

    Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?

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    • K
      kireol @mitu
      last edited by

      @mitu said in Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?:

      Yes, seems to be video related. Are you using the default video player or the hardware accelerated one (omxplayer) ?
      I can certainly try to reproduce the issue, but these kind of strange problems are quite often caused by bad power adapters. Are you using the Raspberry Pi power adapter ? Do you have any overclocking configured on the Pi ?

      I'm using the default video player.

      I think you may be on to something. I'm using a 2a power supply. I'll order a 3a micro usb and see if that fixes it. That would totally make sense.

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

        @kireol said in Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?:

        I'm using the default video player.

        Try switching to omxplayer, it uses less resources and is faster than the built-in (VLC based) video player.

        K 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
        • K
          kireol @mitu
          last edited by

          @mitu said in Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?:

          Try switching to omxplayer, it uses less resources and is faster than the built-in (VLC based) video player.

          Switched it over to omxplayer, it still happens. New Power supply ordered. Will report findings once it arrives.

          jamrom2J 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • jamrom2J
            jamrom2 @kireol
            last edited by jamrom2

            @kireol I've had this issue for years. It's been in every build I've had for the past 4 years. It only happens in ES. I don't use preview videos. I don't think it has anything to do with that.

            I have iBuffalo USB SNES controllers. I made a build for a co-worker...his does it too. He has Retroflag USB SNES controllers.

            It's annoying as hell, but I kinda got used to it. I don't think there was ever a fix posted for it. Hopefully there can be.

            It was only there when I moved up to the Pi3...same with tht sound cut-out problem.

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

              @jamrom2 said in Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?:

              I have iBuffalo USB SNES controllers. I made a build for a co-worker...his does it too. He has Retroflag USB SNES controllers.

              This kind of issue with the iBuffalo controllers has been reported and discussed multiple times in the past - it seems to be a controller issue. See for instance here.

              jamrom2J 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
              • jamrom2J
                jamrom2 @mitu
                last edited by

                @mitu you're spot on.. It is... and for the sake of closing this thread... it's not Retropie (as you already know)...

                I just bought the new "The C64" (full-size)... plugged in my iBuffalo SNES... and it does the same thing. Randomly moves.

                Thanks as always for the reply and thread reference.

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                • K
                  kireol @mitu
                  last edited by

                  @mitu

                  Got my new power supply (3.1A 5v). Issue still happens with new power supply

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

                    I'll try to reproduce the issue with my PS3 controller. I have one, but it's not connected.

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

                      That was easier than I thought.
                      After configuring the controller on my Pi3, tried to scrape for more videos and the issue appeared during scraping - I think producing any load on the system triggers this when EmulationStation is started. So instead of using the videos in ES, I just re-ran Skyscraper in a loop, re-generating gamelists to produce load.
                      The ghost inputs appear also in jstest or evtest - not only sdl2-jstest. Running evtest is actually easier to see the new inputs.

                      What fixes it is lowering the BT baud rate (as mentioned in https://retropie.org.uk/docs/Bluetooth-Controller/, but it's line 27 not line 22 as mentioned there). Modify /usr/bin/btuart and lower it from the 921600 to one of the values recommended (230400 or 115200). With 115200 set, I think I had only 2 or 3 ghost inputs with more that 30 min of continuous testing. Give it a try and see if that makes a difference for your setup.

                      K jamrom2J 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 2
                      • K
                        kireol @mitu
                        last edited by

                        @mitu said in Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?:

                        That was easier than I thought.
                        After configuring the controller on my Pi3, tried to scrape for more videos and the issue appeared during scraping - I think producing any load on the system triggers this when EmulationStation is started. So instead of using the videos in ES, I just re-ran Skyscraper in a loop, re-generating gamelists to produce load.
                        The ghost inputs appear also in jstest or evtest - not only sdl2-jstest. Running evtest is actually easier to see the new inputs.
                        What fixes it is lowering the BT baud rate (as mentioned in https://retropie.org.uk/docs/Bluetooth-Controller/, but it's line 27 not line 22 as mentioned there). Modify /usr/bin/btuart and lower it from the 921600 to one of the values recommended (230400 or 115200). With 115200 set, I think I had only 2 or 3 ghost inputs with more that 30 min of continuous testing. Give it a try and see if that makes a difference for your setup.

                        That worked perfectly for me. 10 minutes and no ghost movements.

                        I'll let the people in /r/retropie know. Should make a lot of people happy :)

                        Thanks for looking in to this. I know you all have to be doing this on volunteer basis.

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • jamrom2J
                          jamrom2 @mitu
                          last edited by

                          @mitu other than swapping transistors which that thread points to (I've already ordered them)... is there a null input value to set in a USB Joystick control file somewhere?

                          Maybe that could be added if not?

                          mituM 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • mituM
                            mitu Global Moderator @jamrom2
                            last edited by

                            @jamrom2 said in Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?:

                            Maybe that could be added if not?

                            Not sure if I follow - you mean to disable the button inputs for EmulationStation ?

                            jamrom2J 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • jamrom2J
                              jamrom2 @mitu
                              last edited by jamrom2

                              @mitu you know how some games allow you to set a 'null input' so that there is a little play in the input to the game? This is done with a lot of Flight Sim games so that you can make slight adjustments without the plane doing rolls or loops.

                              Maybe that's what it needs to void out the ghost inputs? I don't know if it's possible. Does ES just see an input value... or does it see an input based on a length of time or a set voltage value.

                              so if a ghost input is +.02 volts... and an actual press gives + 1.2 volts... you would set the null to ignore anything under +1.0 volts. Effectively ignoring the ghost input.

                              That's what the capacitor mod is doing to the controller. It's adding a higher filter to the input so more power is required.

                              mituM 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • mituM
                                mitu Global Moderator @jamrom2
                                last edited by

                                @jamrom2 said in Why does my 8bitdo and PS3 controllers randomly move?:

                                so if a ghost input is +.02 volts... and an actual press gives + 1.2 volts... you would set the null to ignore anything under +1.0 volts. Effectively ignoring the ghost input.

                                It doesn't work like that. There is no method to know how much 'volts' trigger the input, in order to ignore it or not.

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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