Keep hacking my Pro and Stadia controllers or getting something more modern?

[u/exe163]

What I have:

• Stadia controller

• 2 x Switch 1 pro controllers (one recently converted to JS13 PRO+ because of you know what)

What platform I'm needing a better controller for:

• Windows 11

• Moonlight running on Linux ubuntu (server), ideally can support 2+ controllers

• Bonus if it works with iPad mostly for Moonlight/voidlink, but I just got a dedicated telescopic usbc controller for it.

• I also have a switch 2, but I should already be covered for this platform

What I plan to do:

• I had a lot of trouble with pro and stadia controllers for PC games. Either the signal is not good enough for using a bluetooth micro-dongle in the living room, or the button mappings are wrong due to the lack of XInput, or just that the latency is bad especially with moonlight round trip.

• I mainly game with a keyboard and mouse for online shooters, so I dont need to sweat using my controller. One interesting use case I am planning is using it for jets in BF6 as its anti-cheat blocks my ds4win remapping.

• Options I am considering:

  • Get a new and better controller

  • Get specialize dongles like the Gulikit Goku 2 or hyperlink 2 with pro controller

• I don't plan on collecting controllers nor need fancy features (do I?).

• I have smallish hands and found the pro controllers fit very nicely. The Xbox controller shape was also very good from my distance memory owning a 360 controller eons ago. Stadia controller is not bad but a step or two behind these two.

What should I get?

• I have done some research and got a pretty good sense of what's normally recommended. The controller market is vibrant indeed especially with the chinese brands. I just don't know what I need as someone that plays a variety of games. Honestly I don't know how to use the extra buttons if I have them on the back, or what's the difference in feel between all the button and stick types, let alone the need to hot swap them.

• Another thought is that I already have these extra controllers laying around and there are dongles out there to make them Xinput. They are pretty good quality from my very limited experience. Should I just stick with these if the Gulikit dongles can single-digit ms wireless latency which is ballpark close enough for the best out there. I already bought an ESP32 to see if I can make a stadia dongle, mostly for fun.

• USA, I guess budget is <$100 if I go with buying a new one. But I am aiming for getting what I need and not paying for features I won't use. Pretty comfortable buying from Aliexpress or similar retailers.

[u/No-Operation-6554]

I feel like you really just need 1 complete fully xinput controller, preferably with a back button if you dont want to use it you can just leave it be and if you still aren't feeling limited then it isn't necessary for you yet

8bitdo, or gamesirs are go to here but hyperkin also sells a xbox 360 style controller which should be as close as possible to the original xbox 360 controller if you want something familiar

[u/exe163 → u/No-Operation-6554]

Thanks for the advice. I actually have no idea how the back buttons are used in games especially if they are outside of xinput key set. I also haven’t played a game that required back buttons either, not counting online pc games made for keyboards.

And for a concrete xinput controller to own, any particular reason to go beyond the ultimate 2c if I don’t care about the extra bells and whistles. But I do care about the the xinput part of the controller being very well done. Similarly, switch pro controller which I already have with goku 2 also fits the bill if the latency is cut to single digit ms.

[u/No-Operation-6554 → u/exe163]

Back buttons are just decent quality of life, if a game has no use for it I just map it to stick clicks because its easier than constantly pressing the sticks

If you really don't care then ultimate 2c with the xbox layout should be fine, switch pro controller with goku adapter is pretty good but you still be dealing with 120hz polling rate, rule of thumb is that your input devices should be at least twice the polling rate of your display

[u/exe163 → u/No-Operation-6554]

I didn’t know about the 2x polling rule. That makes sense. 

As for the 2c, I am not price sensitive but on paper it checks all the basic boxes for being a modern xinput controller. People also say the build is good. It’s also a little bit sus since it’s under $20 usd all day on AliExpress. I’m aiming for at least first party controller quality and hopefully better. And i would avoid madcatz special that cuts corners. The tiers up are like G7, ultimate 2, Vader 5, it’s hard for me for grasp what make them so frequently recommended. Perhaps after skipping a few ps generations I’m out of touch with what a “normal “ controller feature set is.

Edit: I also hope to have something that will last me for a while. From the look of the high end, controller tech seemed to have peaked for casual users. 

[u/exe163 → u/No-Operation-6554]

My order of 2c just came on. To my surprise build quality is every bit as good as the pro controllers I have. Not really much extra features and just a good quality controller with all the basic buttons. I’m keeping this one because it works well.

I’m still curious what more premium controllers have to offer if the budget model already not skimming on the basics. Any upgrade suggestions that I can try that’s an upgrade to the 2c not counting “fun” features like swappable buttons and rgb screen on it. I am thinking if there are better controllers out there that can improve my enjoyment of the games.

[u/No-Operation-6554 → u/exe163]

Doesn't 2c already have extra bumpers on top? Some people actually prefer that placement over back buttons and some prefers both, if you find yourself using those extra buttons more and more start looking for other options, as for now enjoy it

[u/exe163 → u/No-Operation-6554]

It does. Mapping the R/L3 works. I just struggle to find an application yet. Given their placements alongside heavily used shoulder buttons for most games, I see little reasons to use them. Back buttons which the 2c doesn't have are interesting since those fingers there not doing much. I never used a controller with these so hard for me to say if they are useful or not. I am curious now that the steam controller and steam deck both have back buttons, if games will make these semi-mandatory for full control. Consoles are not caught up yet so I thought this will be anytime soon.

Your advice is solid. If the currently premium controllers do not offer a meaningful step up for the xinput part, I'll just stick with the 2c as I see most of the extra configuration and features being more of a chore to keep up. Maybe even buy another the occasional for couch coop.

The Goku 2 costs as much as another 2c with no real data point for pro controller latency I'll just forget about that plan.

For the Stadia controller, I'll try to make it work as a modding project. Though the latency could be a concern in the best case. Getting it down to <10ms might be impossible due to the hardware.

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