Update: 1UP has an interview with Alex V. of MadCatz concerning the Standard Edition stick problems.
I pre-ordered the MadCatz Standard Edition FightStick a few days ago in hopes that I will get them soon. Now I hope it doesn’t arrive until MadCatz fixes the problem with them. I have the patience to wait for a proper stick. Tournament Edition sticks, which cost around $180 CAD, have minor aesthetic issues such as scratches. The real kicker is the problem with the Standard Edition FightStick.
Here’s the gist of it courteousy of Shoryuken.com and NeoGAF:
This defect is a design issue that would appear to effect all $80 MadCatz Fight Sticks.
It has a washer on the stick that scrapes against the PCB (circuit board). This eats away at the connections and destroys the stick, rendering it useless.
If you have this stick and you notice the stick “sticking” or not responding… this is probably the reason why.
Apparently MadCatz will take care of the defective stick. Even the shipping costs.
Hi there,
My name is Alex Verrey, Global PR & Communications Manager for Mad Catz.
In recent days, there have been reports of quality issues surrounding our Street Fighter IV range of products, largely focused on our standard edition Arcade FightStick.
Mad Catz is committed to providing quality products and we fully stand behind our product warranty. We are very proud of this range which has been met with overwhelming critical enthusiasm. We also wish to be honest and transparent with the gaming community. We are here to help and will not shy away from our responsibility thus, after investigating the issues mentioned on blogs, websites and forums, we would like to take this opportunity to relay our official position:
1. Some customers have reported issues with their standard edition Arcade FightStick. A very small amount of users have experience problems with the sticks responsiveness. Please note that this issue does NOT happen on each Arcade FightStick and has been reported on a small number of units. The issue is due to a metal washer shifting out of place and is easily rectified. The issue and the resulting fix have been extensively documented on several forums. However, to avoid voiding your warranty, we recommend contacting Mad Catz technical support who will be happy to assist. Mad Catz is committed to fixing all sticks that exhibit this issue. Our contact information lies below.
2. Some customers have reported scratches on the top of their Tournament Edition. This could have occurred during the pack-out portion of the manufacturing process. It is not the result of recycling old or used parts or the result of any kind of rushed manufacturing process. Mad Catz would never do such a thing. Mad Catz will replace tops with serious scratches caused by the manufacturing pack-out process. Again, in the highly unlikely occurrence of your Tournament Edition Arcade FightStick exhibiting serious scratches, please contact us and we will be happy to assist.
Mad Catz recognizes the enormous trust the Street Fighter community has placed in us. We want to make you aware of the known issues and our plans to remedy the situation. For all of the issues listed above, we encourage you to contact Mad Catz customer support by phone or email (see below). Your local retailer will not be able to repair or provide replacement parts. We have asked our retailers to direct you back to us for warranty repair and service. We would like to stress again that we believe this is a limited and isolated issue that may affect a small number of sticks.
When you call, Mad Catz support agents will diagnose the problem over the phone and based on their diagnosis, they will work with you to solve the problem including providing free shipping and repair. Please note all support agents are based in California (USA) or in Bristol (UK) and are die hard gamers that want to help you. Our contact info is as follows:
USA:
Tech Phone: 1-619-683-9830 ext. 3799
Toll Free (USA): 1-800-659-2287
Email: techsupport@madcatz.comWeb: www.madcatz.com (select support menu option)
Support Hours:
Monday – Friday: 8am – 4pm (PST)
Closed Saturday, Sunday and most major US holidaysUK/Europe:
Europe Support Number – 01454 451900 (UK Only 0845 050 8428)
E-Mail Address – mczsupport@saitek.com
Support Hours – 9 – 4.30pm Monday – FridayLast, the Standard Edition and Tournament Edition Arcade FightSticks feature a ‘Turbo’ function which we specifically tested on beta/pre-release versions of Street Fighter IV and the retail release.
They perform as documented in the user guide and there are no known issues. If however, you should identify a game not compatible with our Turbo function, please email tech support (techsupport@madcatz.com) and we will investigate the issue. Currently, we are investigating reports of an issue with the Turbo function on the PS3 versions of both the standard and Tournament Edition Arcade FightSticks when playing Street Fighter HD Remix. As we learn more, we will post more information in an FAQ on our support site.
Mad Catz welcomes all constructive feedback and comments. Your feedback will help us make better products and identify unknown issues. For those of you that do not have any problem, enjoy the sticks. Those that have issues, call us. We want to fix the problem. Thank you for your time.
Yours sincerely,
Alex Verrey
Global PR & Communications Manager
Mads Catz Inc.
averry@madcatz.com
I haven’t been burned by MadCatz personally, but with folks like the arcade stick guru, Markman, helping out with these sticks, I’m sure everything will sort itself out.
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