Review of some items from Suzo Controls

Part 1 - First Impressions

Well, I just got the hardware I ordered from Suzo Controls! That is, I've been looking, feeling, dissecting and so on, and I must say I like what I see. Simple and sturdy designs that supposedly could take a great deal of abuse. So far, I haven't tried them in real action, so I'll have to get back to the feel and responsiveness part - all I can say now is that most of the stuff feels solid and accurate, like one would expect from serious arcade controls. Oh, and all of it indeed seems to be designed and manufactured by Suzo - their logo and patent numbers are all over the place.

I currently have three different types of sticks; the universal 2/3/4/5/8-way (got two of those), the low cost euro style stick, and the top-of-the-line model, "The universal inductive control system" as they call it.

Unfortunately, the tulip style top fire stick got back ordered, and I had to cancel it for various reasons. So, I'm still wondering whether or not that's a *real* stick, or just another crappy crane controller. (It *looks* like it's based on the euro style parts - which would be quite ok - but I'm not sure about that...)

Note that I'm being *very* picky in the Cons sections below! I have yet to find any significant issues. (I'm judging from my own experience with various stuff I've built from scratch, using industrial strength parts and solid machined plastic and metal... Don't expect to see that kind of quality in anything but high end military controllers. :-)

Suzo Universal Joystick (29-0501-XX)

Probably the most interesting Suzo stick for most people. Solid design and accurate feel - no PC joystick feel here, I can assure you! It's a fast, short stroke, ball top stick, which was exactly what I was looking for, so I'm happy about that. Fighting game fans that prefer the standard fighting stick feel *might* be more interested in the Eurostyle stick - although this one will probably work well too, if you get used to the shorter stroke.

Type	Digital, micro switch based.
Sensitivity	4-way: 6 mm "from center to click". 8-way: 3 mm "from center to click".
Stroke	5 mm in each direction, measured at the center of the ball top.
Restriction	4-way: Square 8-way: Square with corners cut off.
Spring	Relatively stiff.
Cons	Slight "hang" tendency in the spring/joint assembly. I hardly think it's noticeable in normal use, though. I also suspect that this may go away after some break-in time. A bit of sanding paper feel on the surface of the ball. Firm grip, almost a bit too firm, IMHO.
Pros	Sturdy 10 mm steel stick! Accurate and clean feel - as far as I can tell without actually playing it! Easy 2/3/4/5/8-way reconfiguration - just untighten 4 screws and turn the red "disk" to switch between 4-way and 8-way. Unscrew one or two screws a few turns more and flip the respective lock pawls to get 2-, 3- and 5-way configurations. Both diagonals and up/down (or left/right) restriction is done by physically restricting stick movement - reliable and feels nice. Way Cool Feature: The switches move when you turn the diagonals lock disk, in order to make the stick less sensitive in the "no diagonals" modes! Dunno if this is improves feel - but it sure looks cool... :-) The lock disk and lock pawls are all the way down in the bottom of the construction (as opposed to somewhere inside the spring/joint assembly), which means that the force they have to take is as low as it can get. Generally simple and solid design. 2.5-3 mm plastic construction with a thick aluminum plate to tighten up the diagonals lock disk.

Suzo Eurostyle Joystick (22-1076)

The cheapest one of the sticks, but I wouldn't say you can tell by looking at it - even less by trying out the feel! It looks *very* rigid, and somehow fees even better than it looks. Impressive. As to the type and feel of this stick, I think it's better suited for fighting games than the universal stick I wrote about above, but of course, that's a matter of personal preference.

Type	Digital, micro switch based.
Sensitivity	7 mm "from center to click".
Stroke	14 mm, measured near top of handle.
Restriction	Square with slightly rounded corners.
Spring	Soft.
Cons	Primitive plastic washer lying around the stick base, to cover the joint opening. (Though most of the Happ Controls sticks seem to have this as well, I just don't think it's a very sexy solution...) The micro switch housings get to take some force from the combined actuator/stopper. The actuator/stopper is indeed square and properly slanted, so there's quite some area, but still... Not reconfigurable for 4-way. (Although it would of course be possible with some extra and/or replacement parts. However, I think this stick is too long stroke for most 4-way games anyway.)
Pros	Very solid, with 10 mm steel stick. Rigid plastic base and housing. Distinct and accurate return-to-center feel; almost as if it was an all metal construction! Nice stick finish - surface looks and feels great. Low cost. (Less than 8 USD, I think.)

Suzo Universal Inductive Control (29-0208-XX)

This is the most expensive of the Suzo Controls digital sticks. It's a totally electronic stick, so there's no clicking or any switches that might eventually wear out. It's based on the same base plate and stick as the Universal stick, but has an electronics box where the lock disk, lock pawls and switch assembly would be.

Movement restriction is implemented as a part of the electronics box, in the form of a concentric hole with 8 tiny ribs in between the 8 directions. Don't know what I think about this yet from the feel POV, but at least, the construction is pretty rigid.

Type	Electronic with inductive sensors. (8 little coils + one big coil around the stick, printed on the PCB, and a ferrite cylinder mounted in the end of the stick.)
Sensitivity	Don't know yet - I'll have to hook it up to find out. (It doesn't click! ;-)
Stroke	7 mm in each direction, measured at the center of the ball top.
Restriction	Circular, with 8 small "ribs".
Spring	Medium.
Cons	Needs 5 V TTL power. (50 mA max - like a LED!) Minor "sliding rubber" feel around the center position, as if something in the spring/joint assembly is sliding around ever so slightly. Somewhat harsh surface on the ball. Firm grip, feels OK, but...
Pros	Distinct return-to-center spring action. The usual indestructible 10 mm steel stick. Easy wiring - electronics box and connector marked A, B, C and D for the directions. Only one 6 pin connector. TTL level outputs. 4/8-way adjustable via potentiometer. Nice and clean design. Smooth and clean feel. Simple and solid mechanical design. Only moving part is the actual stick!

Suzo Arcade Pushbutton (22-2086-X)

Your average horizontal micro switch button. For some reason, about half of the buttons I ordered came with a different kind of micro switches, which have a much louder and "noisier" click. Sounds cheaper, IMHO.

Type	Horizontal micro switch.
Sensitivity	Clicks after 1.5 mm.
Stroke	2 mm.
Restriction	By button assembly; not switch.
Spring	Soft.
Cons	Sounds a bit cheap and hollow. (Might be less of a problem when mounted in a sturdy panel - don't know.) Slight springy sound if you hit it. (Not that you'd hear it unless you're in a quiet room, though! Remember, I'm being very picky here.)
Pros	Traditional, clean design. Nice finish. Feels a lot better than it sounds!

Suzo "Triple Button", red/green/yellow, 66 mm (22-0696-254)

Fun item. I didn't really expect this one to be useful as a triple fire button for an arcade control panel - and it probably isn't. It *might* work, as it's still a horizontal micro switch button, but it feels way too flaky for my taste.

Type	Horizontal micro switches.
Sensitivity	Clicks after 2 mm.
Stroke	2.5 mm.
Restriction	By button assembly; not switch.
Spring	Medium.
Cons	Buttons feel rather weak and flaky. Plastic switch actuators that are less than 5 mm dia! They're not part of the buttons, but still, I'm a bit worried about life time if you keep hitting the buttons off-center...
Pros	Looks cool... Ok, looks funny, at least. Three buttons in slightly less space than 3 standard buttons. Uses real micro switches, as opposed to most other buttons that aren't "real" arcade game buttons. Fits in a standard arcade button hole. At least it's not flimsier than some PC and multisystem joystick buttons I've seen! ;-)