Virtua Stick HSS-0136 Modding

[pook]

Hello!

I'm in possession of two HSS-0136 Japanese Virtua sticks on which I want to install Korean Taeyoung Fanta sticks and Sanwa 30mm buttons with a noir layout. I am aware that the whole front plate will have to be redone for that. I guess I’m more worried about the electrics.

Has anyone attempted anything like this before on one of these sticks?
What problems did you run into if any?

Thanks in advance!

EDIT(04.03.21):

This is the stick in question, so what we can keep any confusion out of the conversation.

Model 2 Sega Virtua Stick

 

This is the stick I’m going to mod. As you can see here the internals vary slightly between the two minor revisions of the stick. Left being ASCII and right is Seimitsu. According to this article on focusttack, the Seimitsu model is an earlier and less common variant before Sega replaced the manufacturer they used from the aforementioned to ASCII which inadvertently did shoddiest sticks. As far as I can find, the mounting on both Seimitsu and ASCII models is nonstandard so I’ll probably have to make a mounting bracket either way. The buttons on both models seem to be the same. Annoyingly being non-standard at 24mm. Standard Sanwa buttons are 30mm diameter. The Model 2 was only released in Japan.

PS: Sorry if I got any info here wrong, please feel free to correct me if you notice anything amiss. Sorry if it all sounds like I’m trying to educate people. I am not, just keeping this as my own little research diary as I think this is a fun little learning adventure. Also sorry for bad post editing, I’ll learn with time. It’s definitely been a few years since I have used proper forum boards. I think this is going to be a long term project as I’m at the moment just researching what this will take and the best ways to go about it. 

[davyk]

I picked one of these up a while back. The stick didn't feel great. I just added a few tiny spots of oil onto the contacts and it has worked great ever since.

It's only an asciiware stick (some earlier ones have Seimitsu parts in there) but it plays great. I'll be using it like this until something fails.

Sadly it's not like modern sticks that are all connectors (for example the Tatsunoko v Capcom stick for Wii is easy to upgrade with no soldering). You need soldering skills to mod or upgrade this which I don't have.

Here's a link you might find useful..it looks like a lot of work to mod these.

support.focusattack.com/hc/en-us/articles/360038645251-Frequently-Asked-Questions-About-the-HSS-0136-ASCII-Sega-Virtua-Stick-

[zyrobs]

That pad has the button contacts as PCB through-hole pins (not standard THT sized though), so you are limited in what you can do unless you discard the entire button pcb and solder directly to where the ribbon cable goes.

But that's not as easy as it sounds because you also have precious little space to work with, everything is very low profile. I tried modding it once and by the time I could get it working I realized that I can't even play any game properly with a stick (the only exception being Virtua Fighter which is far easier to control with a stick than a gamepad).

[davyk]

Sticks can take getting used to. I find that when it comes to dpad vs stick it depends on which you used first.

I prefer DoDonPachi games with a stick because that's what I first used but I prefer dpad with Futari and many Saturn shmups because I first played them with a dpad.

I prefer a stick for horizontal shooter too - not sure why. I love the stick with Dreamcast games like Virtua Tennis.

Changing can take some adjustment time and it isn't always worth the effort. If you have a very expensive stick with a super sensitive control then it's probably better overall - but again - it's a personal thing.

[pook]

Thank you both for the replies.

You found it he stick not very good? Interesting, I have a few different ones and I think Saturn's Japanese Virtua is up there. I have 3 at the moment, 2 of which will be modded into 1p and 2p variants. The lever on one of them actually feels kinda crappy and sticky. The other two are really clean and clicky. I would say they perhaps feel a bit too soft but I’m used to a fairly high resistance Korean stick so I guess it’s just coming from that is what's doing that. But yeah, I’ll open them up when I get home tonight, but perhaps the shitty one is an ASCII and the two others are Seimitsu parts?

I have seen a few Virtua stick mods that moved the button pcr across a bit and just soldered wires going from the button to the 8 button board that came inside the stick. I have also seen a few Dreamcast stick mods which just took a pcb out of a controller and stuck it inside the sticks body and then soldered all the buttons onto that. Reckon there is any drawback to that method? Asides from not being able to use the turbo switches, which I wanted to repurpose for lighting control anyway.

[davyk]

Sorry if I gave the wrong impression of my thoughts on the stick. I really like it. When I got it the stick felt awful but once I applied a drop of oil to the mechanism it has been silky smooth since - really clean and clicky. When I say "really good" stick I mean ones that cost far more and are custom built by top level players.

I also have the Euro version of the stick and I'm afraid it isn't all that good but it's fine for a P2 stick in a casual setup. It just uses pressure pads as in a traditional dpad while the JP one is switched. If I get a chance to pick up a second JP stick I will.

[pook]

Ah wait so the version you are talking about is the model 1 Virtua stick? I think it was grey in japan and black in America/Europe. I was talking about modding the model 2 which was released exclusively in Japan. I’ll add pics to my original post. Sorry I should have done that to begin with. I didn’t even know the model 1 was micro switched to be honest. Learn something new I guess.

[davyk]

Europe got the model 1. I have one of those. It's black in Europe. It isn't micro switched.

I also have the model 2 with the Astro City styling. My model 2 has the asciiware stick but it still controls really well. It is switched.

The model 1 isn't great I'm afraid.

[pook]

Yup. Heard it feels like rubber.

[davyk]

yeah - pretty cheap. It was released in the West as a Virtua Fighter controller and maybe it's good enough for that - it isn't a game I am any good at. But even then I doubt it - probably OK for casual play.

[deadlit]

I'm just with the same project as yours. Last year I bought a Sega Virtua Stick hss 0136, with ASCII joystick. I wasn't lucky that it was Seimitsu. Anyway, I plan to put a Taeyoung Fanta lever on it too, full collar, that is why I am writing to tell you about some details that I have had.

If you are going to change the button layout, you have 2 options:
1.- Cover the hole of the L button and make a hole next to the Z button (Not recommended)
2.- Ask a company that cuts metal parts to make the stainless steel control panel with the layout you want. There is a pdf model made in autocad with the measurements. You can modify it and have it done. (The best choice)

You will have to remove the artwork to remove the joystick from the control panel. The artwork will definitely be damaged and you will have to print new one. There are also people who have designed the same artwork so it can be reprinted.

If you are going to change the button layout, I would recommend not using the PCB that has the joystick. But if you want to use it, you would have to see if the button that will go in the top row fits in the panel and you would have to take out a couple of wires to solder them at the end of the L button.

If you intend to use the Virtua Stick for a sega saturn, I would recommend using the BROOK RETRO BOARD PCB. You don't need to solder, just place the cables where they belong. In my case, I bought the UNIVERSAL FIGHTING BOARD, to use it in current consoles.

If you are going to install a Taeyoung Fanta Lever, what type of collar are you going to install? The advantage of the low collar version is that you could place it in the hole of the joystick without any major problem. But if it is full collar, you will have to make a bigger hole and that is more work. Unless you define that in the control panel model you are going to make.


Tell me how you have done with the project, because I have not started it yet. I have some pieces, I only need the Korean lever and the UNIVERSAL FIGHTING BOARD, but I have had problems with shipping to my country. That is why this project has been on standby. If you need any help you can ask me.

[nam9]

Not mine, but here:

Custom panel for SATURN HSS-0136 and HSS-0151

[davyk]

Nice.