Controller Drifting Fix

[Karmen Mcarthun]

MyRH controller has drifted since day one of buying. Spoke with customer services who have agreed to replace. But they want me to post controller to them to check before sending a replacement, which may be a refurbished controller. Not happy with this as this was bought new 4 weeks ago, and dont see why i should accept being unable to use my Oculus whilst i wait for faulty goods to be replaced and also potentially get a second hand controller. Very poor customer service im afraid !!!

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Controller drift is a curse that befalls every gamer at one time or another, but few feelings are worse than when it occurs mid-play session. For the uninitiated, controller drift is the terminology for joysticks that take on a life of their own, wrestling control away from the user. Sounds familiar?

Ironically (and frustratingly), it's a modern issue, as it rarely occurred in older consoles. In conjunction with how much more expensive every facet of gaming is in the present day, it can easily be the last straw. Fortunately, there are a few options for overcoming drift. Here are a few options that can mitigate the damage.

Updated October 28, 2023 by Jacqueline Zalace: Controller drift is an ever-present problem that can bring down the experience of playing a game. As such, we've added a bit more information on some quick fixes if you have stick drift. Additionally, we've included how to reset your DualSense and how to troubleshoot controller drift for Meta Quest users.

Some controllers are more well-built than others. Nintendo's Joy-Cons, for example, aren't exactly designed to handle much stress. All that protects the joystick component from outside agents, like dust particles or grime, is a thin flap of soft plastic. If that flap is lifted, even briefly during gameplay, all sorts of stuff could get inside the controller and ruin functionality.

If drift occurs, the first line of correction should be to rule out possible factors. The Nintendo Switch has a handy calibration function in its settings, which will help the controller figure out where the stick's neutral point really is.

Unlike the Nintendo Switch, the PlayStation does not have a built-in calibration system. Some games offer dead zone calibration settings, although such features are rarely marketed.

Drift isn't just caused by rough gameplay or bad design, but also by the environment. While dust and grime were previously mentioned, environmental containments might look like greasy, salty snacks, or otherwise the fur shed by a pet.

Has the controller been improperly stored during a trip, or have unwashed hands used it? Both might cause contaminants to enter unwanted areas. Whatever the case, external agents can easily cause even the best-designed controllers to drift.

The best way to prevent stick drift is to make sure the controller isn't passively exposed to stuff that might be floating in the air. Additionally, we recommend not snacking while gaming. While this may be tempting, you could get bits of food stuck in your control.

If there are particles stuck in your controller near the joystick, you can also try to use pressured air to blow them away. Pressured air can be purchased at any office supply store, as well as online.

If you have never used it before, be cautious! Heavy use of a pressurized air canister can cause it to become really cold. If you spray the cold air on your skin, you can easily get frostbite.

A common reason for why controllers run into drift problems is that they are prone to deterioration, which will naturally occur with use. In more recent years, the life cycle of technology has shortened dramatically to promote further purchases, thereby further exacerbating the issue.

Take the DualSense, for example; the joystick component, responsible for the controller's longevity, has an operating life of about two million input cycles. That translates to about 400 hours of Call Of Duty gameplay.

The best way to postpone drift is to treat the controller like a brand-new car every time it's used. Tossing your controller, whether out of boredom or anger, is a bad idea. A good idea, on the other hand, is to treat the joysticks with extreme care. Dutiful kindness may not prevent eventual drift entirely, but it will prolong the golden days.

Yes, wear and tear are expected to occur with time, even on the sturdiest controllers, but the longevity of the joystick can heavily depend on the games being played. Most games allow for normal wear upon the joysticks (specifically the right one, or whichever a player uses to control the camera) but there are some games that will put a controller through grueling paces.

Consider Enter The Gungeon; the twin-stick shooter title puts a lot of emphasis on constant movement and aiming. Players who find themselves loading up these types of games often will likely see drift issues far sooner than someone who is playing a turn-based RPG.

If you have a DualSense controller for your PlayStation 5, you can try to reset it. The easiest way to do this is to turn the controller off and then on from the Accessories menu of your PS5.

This isn't guaranteed to work, but you can also perform a hard reset. To do this, flip your controller over. On the back, you should see a little hole. Using something thin and pointy (like a paperclip), press the button found within this small hole. Hold down for at least five seconds, and your controller should do a hard reset.

Controller drift can also occur in your Meta Quest. Thankfully, there is a recalibration feature right in the Settings menu. From here, head to the Controller Setting option, and then select "Joystick Deadzone and Range". You can recalibrate the joystick that is giving you problems here.

Although it may seem intimidating at first, changing out the joysticks on a controller is simple enough once the information is digested. Thankfully, there are tons of easy-to-follow and helpful step-by-step guides on YouTube for every possible controller type. Even better, there are inexpensive kits available that have everything a gamer needs to effectively fix their drifting issues.

It's incredibly important to remember that replacing any component yourself could void the warranty. For example, if you replace a joystick for your Nintendo Switch, the warranty will be void and you will no longer be able to get it repaired by Nintendo.

If you are still under warranty for your given console, then we suggest contacting the company. They may repair your controller free of charge, which is definitely better than watching a YouTube video to figure it out yourself.

That's all there is to it! Overall, the main takeaway is that controller drift will happen eventually, especially if you've had a controller for a while. Ultimately, the best solution is to buy a new controller, but this isn't always practical, so be sure to problem-solve and take care of any other controllers that you have.

No. Well, not any true fix, anyway. You could always adjust the deadzone for the sticks, but the situation will simply continue to get worse over time. The only real option seems to be to RMA them ad nauseam back to Valve. It truly is a shame.

I had experienced stick drift for a couple months but put up with it because when I moved my thumbstick a bit, the drift would stop. Eventually the thumbstick stopped detecting up/down movements and only worked left/right.

I never had an issue with the index controllers until i connected them to the pimax 5k+ via pitool yesterday. Is there maybe a different process to connect them or do i just connect them in pitool? Should i connect them in SteamVR settings also, like i normally did with the Valve Index?

Before I dive into the details I would like to reiterate that this mod was mainly to prove an idea and while it works as intended it is complete overkill since replacing the drifting stick or parts of it usually remedies the issue. This was a fun project and I felt like sharing the results as it could be improved upon in the future! Stick drift happens as the resistance of the analog sticks potentiometers change over time or in some cases right out of the factory. The resistance can change due to use, break down of the material inside the potentiometer or just by being unbalanced. This mod uses external pots that are wired in parallel with the stick pots wipers that allows for the overall resistance to be calibrated by using the magic of parallel resistance for a perfect stick. This mod focuses mainly on unbalanced pots and change overtime, it can work on pots that are breaking down but I would advise that those just be replaced as it'll only get worse from there.

If you look at the schematic provided you will see 8 potentiometers. The value of the pots I'm using are 50k but other values higher than 5k should work. That's 8 per controller. 4 per stick and 2 per controller potentiometer. Two potentiometers are needed to calibrate one potentiometer on the joy stick. The wiring for them is pretty straight forward. Two pots have their wipers wired together and from there that junction will connect to one wiper for one pot on one analog stick. One of the outputs for one the pots that are tied together by the wiper is going to the analog stick positive side and the other pots output is going to ground. This wiring allows us to run a potentiometer acting as a variable resistor in parallel with the wiper to high and in parallel from the wiper to ground. For those wondering I did experiment with one pot per controller axis pot and the controller acted really weird so unfortunately 2 pots are needed for 1 pot on the controller and if you're looking to calibrate both sticks that would be 8 total.

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