ASUKA 1.06 DualShock 3 Analog stick

[Freedy]

Hi, Unfortunately I bought an ASUKA 1.06 fake DS3. I am looking for replacement analog sticks, the closest I found is ps2 analog stick, but the ASUKA sticks has much smaller buttons on the side so the button's pins are closer to each other.

On the picture from top to bottom:
-PS2 replacement analog stick from ebay
-original ALPS from an original DS3, the metal casing is a bit smaller than the PS2 and ASUKA
-PS4 3 pin replacement analog stick from ebay, smallest metal casing
-ASUKA 1.06 analog stick, metal casing size is the same as PS2 but the smallest button one the side

I managed to bend the clicky button's pins of a PS2 ebay analog stick so I could install it, but it is quite ugly and doesn't sit perfectly flat because I can't push the button's pins through the board.
When the controller is assembled, it works surprisingly well, and hard to notice that the analog stick is not flat entirely.

 

[sandungas]

Why that fixation with the asuka ?, the official VX4 and VX5 are much better (latest dualshock3 models with 4 pins pots in the sticks for dual preccision circuits)
http://www.psdevwiki.com/ps3/DualShock_3

When reading your message i was thinking in what you did "bending up" the 4 pins of the small buttons, thats right
Actually, to make it easyer you can cut 2 of those pins... electrically you only need 2 pins in that button... so remove the other 2
And if there is still no room... heat the pins with a solder iron and "pull up" with plyers (so it will bend up and will melt the plastic)

If im saying this is because this small button at the side of the sticks is a separated button, and is very cheap and common (probably you can buy a bunch of them from ebay free shipping for 1 dollar... to make this experiment)

To replace that small button you need to "open" the metal "body" of the stick... at bottom with plyers there are 4 small metal corners you need to bend
When you bend that you can take all parts out (this is great for repairing them or recycling them by using parts from others, is easyer than it looks)

The annoying problem is to desolder the sticks from the board... it sucks monkey balls... it takes me half an hour each

 

[Freedy]

Thank you very much for your answer! Cutting two of the pins and melting the plastic seems like a very good idea.
I know original ones are betters, I have two of them. I just don't want to waste this ASUKA, I think it will be good for a spare controller or for a pc or something.
I think the same about desoldering. I don't have a proper desoldering pump yet, so yeah, It takes some time..

 

[sandungas]

Ok, to say something good.... the circuit board of the asuka is the best of the clones ive seen, the quality was very close to the officials made by sony, i dont remember right now all the differences, the officials made at that time was better, but the asuka was a very good clone

To me it takes half an hour even using a pump, lol... the problem is the pump doesnt "cleans" the hole completly, usually you need to repeat it a few times... and repeat it, and repeat it... for every pin until you are lucky that the pin is "freed" from the hole

About what i said about bending the pins up... is hard to me to make an idea of what is your problem exactly, and the meassures, etc... so i cant tell exactly what to do... but i guess you got the idea
The point is the first thing you need to do is to identify which pins does the "switch" (2 of them, with a multimeter).... you can cut the other 2
And the 2 you are going to keep... you can bend them up... and in the worst scenario you can use 2 wires (one of them is ground, you can solder it to any other alternative ground)

If you do what i mentioned about opening the metal "body" of the stick you can take the small button out to modify it.... and sandpaper it at top (to reduce his height)
Not sure if tthis could help you, but this can be made
I guess you can sandpaper it at bottom too

To make this sandpapering is better to place the paper on top of a table... and grab the button with yor hand and move the hand over the sandpaper
This way is easyer to create a "flat" surface when sandpapering it

 

[sandungas]

(one of them is ground, you can solder it to any other alternative ground)

Im looking at the photos of the circuit boards (in the wiki page) and im not so sure about this, better check by yourself

 

[toze3]

@Freedy I have the same problem did you find out a better fitting? I did bought the 3Pin PS3 replacemnte but they are too small for it.

regards

 

[Freedy]

@Freedy I have the same problem did you find out a better fitting? I did bought the 3Pin PS3 replacemnte but they are too small for it.

regards

Hi, I replaced the left one, not a perfect fit, but it works OK. I've put this type of analog stick into the controller:
https://a.aliexpress.com/_mPlU0Xv

I've cut two pins of the button diagonally out of its four. And I bent the remaining two so the analog stick can lay on the pcb. (Not perfectly lays on it on my controller, but its good enough for me. Probably if I playing around with it a bit more, would be better)

I think any ps2 analog can work, you may have to replace the potentiometers on the new analog stick with the old one.

 

[Fanhais]

my super sim have this asuka controller and guess what he die lol

 

[toze3]

Hi, I replaced the left one, not a perfect fit, but it works OK. I've put this type of analog stick into the controller

I've cut two pins of the button diagonally out of its four. And I bent the remaining two so the analog stick can lay on the pcb. (Not perfectly lays on it on my controller, but its good enough for me. Probably if I playing around with it a bit more, would be better)

I think any ps2 analog can work, you may have to replace the potentiometers on the new analog stick with the old one.

thanks, I already ordered some to test, also have some DS2 needing so i ordered the PS2 version to check already.

Thanks

 

[blckbear_]

Ok, to say something good.... the circuit board of the asuka is the best of the clones ive seen, the quality was very close to the officials made by sony, i dont remember right now all the differences, the officials made at that time was better, but the asuka was a very good clone

Maybe a little bit OT here but, why are the ASUKA controllers considered clones?
Mine came with my SuperSlim, and I am pretty sure I was the first one to open the box, so it is pretty unlikely that someone put a fake DS3 in there, and also the plastic case of the DS3 and the label seem pretty legit.
It also came with the official Sony DS3 battery.

I ended up on this thread because I'm facing the same issue regarding the replacement of the analog stick and it surprised me that the controller that came with my brand new console is catalogued as clone lol

 

[sandungas]

Maybe a little bit OT here but, why are the ASUKA controllers considered clones?
Mine came with my SuperSlim, and I am pretty sure I was the first one to open the box, so it is pretty unlikely that someone put a fake DS3 in there, and also the plastic case of the DS3 and the label seem pretty legit.
It also came with the official Sony DS3 battery.

I ended up on this thread because I'm facing the same issue regarding the replacement of the analog stick and it surprised me that the controller that came with my brand new console is catalogued as clone lol

All the other circuit boards from the DS3 shares lot of things in common, the location of the components, traces, even the name of the test pads printed in it, etc... it can be seen all them are different revisions of the same circuit
But the circuit of the asuka is completly different than the others, and there are not more revisions of the asuka
The sticks (using pots with 3 pins) doesnt matches with the others, most of the others have pots with 4 pins
The asuka is several years older than the PS3 superslim

 

[blckbear_]

All the other circuit boards from the DS3 shares lot of things in common, the location of the components, traces, even the name of the test pads printed in it, etc... it can be seen all them are different revisions of the same circuit
But the circuit of the asuka is completly different than the others, and there are not more revisions of the asuka
The sticks (using pots with 3 pins) doesnt matches with the others, most of the others have pots with 4 pins
The asuka is several years older than the PS3 superslim

The only explanation would be that someone in BestBuy changed the controller for a brand new asuka clone and then sealed the PS3 box again which is weird. As you say, the controller is older than the SuperSlim, I checked that before with the model number, but I'm not kidding, the effing controller came with my brand new PS3 in 2013.
I'm pretty sure it never got swapped, but well, I guess some weird stuff happened in order to get this controller with my PS3 lol

 

[sandungas]

The only explanation would be that someone in BestBuy changed the controller for a brand new asuka clone and then sealed the PS3 box again which is weird. As you say, the controller is older than the SuperSlim, I checked that before with the model number, but I'm not kidding, the effing controller came with my brand new PS3 in 2013.
I'm pretty sure it never got swapped, but well, I guess some weird stuff happened in order to get this controller with my PS3 lol

Which region is the PS3 ? (the last 2 digits after CECH-...)
https://www.psdevwiki.com/ps3/SKU_Regioning

The asuka is a mistery, but you are making it more intriguing by telling it came boxed with your PS3 superslim
My guess is sony was ordering the other official DS3 circuit boards from other factory/manufacturer, and whoever made the asuka was either directly or indirectly related with the factory who made the officials
To me it looks whoever that made the asuka was trying to bypass the sony patent (because it have too much differences), and the quality of the circuit board is pretty much the same, so i guess was made with the same machines/technology

 

[blckbear_]

It's a CECH4001B bought in the US.
And the controller is an asuka 1.06 board and the controller shell says CECHZC2UB1.

What bugs me the most is the fact that they used the same batteries that sony uses, so it fits your theory about being made in the same factory.

 

[Coro]

It's a CECH4001B bought in the US.
And the controller is an asuka 1.06 board and the controller shell says CECHZC2UB1.

What bugs me the most is the fact that they used the same batteries that sony uses, so it fits your theory about being made in the same factory.

i had a third party controller that did not even try to look official but it had a real sony battery.

 

[sandungas]

Maybe is semi-official, made under license but for some reason different than the others (by region/factory ?)

 

[blckbear_]

I think there are a few possibilities:
1) It is a clone. (It still seems weird to me as I wouldn't expect a clone to be so similar in terms of quality, I have a few other clones that are utter shit).
2) Sony had a high demand and decided to license and buy clones from one of their factories or something like that just to be able to meet the demand.
3) They for some reason decided to do something similar to what happened with Nintendo and the GBA and decided to completely change factories and location and thus this new one was born (not that probable as they would have just stuck with their own designs i guess).

 

[sandungas]

In the last days, while reading about the dualsense from PS5 there was a couple of details that called my attention, take a look at the links i posted here:
https://www.psx-place.com/threads/some-of-the-playstation-5-dualsense-features.28990/#post-260871

The shocking thing for me is to see that there is a company named EVZEN that already have some dualsense prototypes in the works
You know... the only posible way for this to happen is because sony gave some dualsense prototypes to EVZEN many months ago
I guess this is some kind of licensing, or maybe EVZEN is working for sony and they was involved in the official dualsense design... or dunno... but it surprised me a bit

 

[blckbear_]

In the last days, while reading about the dualsense from PS5 there was a couple of details that called my attention, take a look at the links i posted here:
https://www.psx-place.com/threads/some-of-the-playstation-5-dualsense-features.28990/#post-260871

The shocking thing for me is to see that there is a company named EVZEN that already have some dualsense prototypes in the works
You know... the only posible way for this to happen is because sony gave some dualsense prototypes to EVZEN many months ago
I guess this is some kind of licensing, or maybe EVZEN is working for sony and they was involved in the official dualsense design... or dunno... but it surprised me a bit

Being the ASUKAs pretty old it wouldn't surprise me that they're some kind of prototype or something similar, it would make sense seeing this also happening with the dualsense. Pretty interesting stuff...
I think it is also recognized as an original PS3 controller by SCP Toolkit, idk how hardware identifiers work and if they can be faked (I guess they can) but that was something that lead me to believe this was made by sony.

Now my only concern is finding a suitable analog stick, I've tried PS4 ones and they are samller, and PS2 ones fit but the button is bigger as @Freedy said, I guess I'll do as him and try to modify the button to fit the pads.

 

[sandungas]

Now my only concern is finding a suitable analog stick, I've tried PS4 ones and they are samller, and PS2 ones fit but the button is bigger as @Freedy said, I guess I'll do as him and try to modify the button to fit the pads.

Dont get scared in "opening" them (the metal body), is just needed to bend a bit of metal with plyers and it will "pop" out (pushed by the spring)
The internal parts are not going to break and after an inspection of them you are going to realize is not so tricky
At that point, the "press" button is completly loose, is very easy to replace or mod it... pretty much you need to adjust his "pins" (or use wires soldered to his pins to make them longer)
And later, when you "close" it (the metal body) the result is nice, solid
So there is no danger really.. you just need to be a bit carefull with the pots outside, and with the internal "orbital" parts


*Desoldering the original sticks could be a pain in some DS3 models though, because the "metal body" of the stick is "grabbing" the circuit board from behind + soldered