Hi i’m interested into buying a new controller to play on my pc but don’t know very well what controller would be best price/quality or even worth it at all. Do you guys ave experience and or recommendations? Am looking for the best cheap controller but dont have much knowledge about it. Xbox seems pretty straightforward but is there any beter? and do any of you have any recommended place where to buy them (cheap)?
9 Likes
The xbox or xbone controller is likely to be your best bet. They are the standard almost everything is made to match. I wouldn’t call them exactly cheap, but if you go looking at off brand clones to find something cheaper you’re probably taking a risk in both quality and longevity.
The xbox vs dualshock question is going to mostly just be what you’re used to and what you want out of a controller. I couldn’t say one is inherently better than the other.
Logitech’s F310 might be the best controller you can find that is both going to be of a decently high quality while being very cheap. It’s a very basic playstation type controller.
13 Likes
Yeah a 360 or Xbone controller will definitely be your best all rounder.
I use an odd mix of controllers (mainly Steam Controller, Hyperkin Duke, Hori Pokken Pad) for different genres but if you can only have one you can’t go wrong with the Xbox controllers.
9 Likes
Okay. so for controllers you have the following options basically:
-
Xbox Controller
-
PS Controller
-
Gamecube/Switch Controller
-
“Universal” Controller
There are 3 classes of controller:
-
1st Party: Made by the hardware company
-
3rd Party: Made by a reputable company that is likely to have rights and privileges.
-
Knock-offs: Typically made by Chinese companies but rarely have rights and privileges.
The quality and price are typically linear downward down on the above list.
- Xbox
For first party, assuming you have Win10, I would get an XB1 controller. Be aware that you will need a cable or Wireless dongle for the controller unless your computer has bluetooth.
For third party the typical ones I see are PDP and PowerA.
I personally have a 1st party Xbox One Black with Cable and a PowerA mini. I find that the Xbox One controller is rather large. The Mini is rather nice but has been discontinued afaik. I would probably recommend the 1st party one nevertheless.
- Playstation
@YQMaoski uses a PS4 controller IIRC so he would know more about using them specifically.
The same things for 1st party and 3rd party are applicable here.
I’m not sure if the PS4 controllers are Plug and play. They may need a driver installed. I do not recommend trying to use a DS3 controller as the driver to make that work is obscure.
- Gamecube/Switch - An overall issue with most of these controllers is button style triggers.
For 1st party gamecube controllers you would need an adapter (Mayflash) if you could find the controllers reasonably priced. I doubt you will so I would not recommend trying to get them.
For 1st party Switch controllers, I think the only one that would support playing on the PC is the Elite controller, which by that price point I would suggest something else (unless you have a switch).
For 3rd party switch controllers, the options are HORI and PowerA. I think PDP also makes some as well, but I would recommend the other two options first.
- “Universal”
Sometimes referred to as PC controllers or the like. This also includes retro controllers with USB (except Gamecube) such as SNES controllers.
There really isn’t a first party controller per se.
I would recommend @Fraggles suggestion of the Logitech F310. If you want something Retro, I would look into 8Bitdo’s offerings.
- Knock-offs.
I would highly recommend staying away from these. They are much more likely to break and offer little to no support. Sure they are cheaper, but usually there is a reason for that. Generally if they are a company name you have never heard of before and isn’t carried in brick-n-mortar stores, it’s a knock-off.
My personal, overall recommendation is a XB1 controller with cable such as this:
But ultimately, it is up to your regional pricing and availability and how much you want to spend.
10 Likes
If you don’t have a price limit, get the Xbox One or PS4 controller (up to your comforts, both will work perfectly fine–I have both), or the Steam controller. Other options could be Logitech controllers, wired I would suggest, but wireless works fine too (Amazon is your best option or their website). They now come with profile switchers usually, and with base drivers inside of them.
If you get the Xbox controller, I would seriously recommend the kind that comes with the table (as posted above) rather than the wireless kind. Wireless will often interfere with other devices or disconnect.
8 Likes
I just bought an Xbone controller over the holidays for my PC, and I’m really enjoying it. It’s comfortable and works well.
8 Likes
I completely support the above recommendations to get a first party controller. You can opt for the XBox One or PS4 controller based on your preference.
If you decide to go with the PS4 controller, I suggest you look into a controller mapping tool, because a lot of Steam games will recognize the XB1 controller as native but the PS4 support is lagging a bit behind.
@onLooSe and I use the DS4Windows software, it’s open source and completely free. It allows for mapping of the buttons directly and also custom mapping. So you can actually get more use out of the controller as well. You may encounter a game or two that will recognize the DS4 controller directly and you may end up having to turn off the software, but this is rare. I especially like to use to to map some keyboard-only controls for some restrictive games and play on my controller.
I used to plug in my controller to charge and then play it connected via bluetooth. Nowadays I just keep it plugged into the computer. This way I will never have a battery too low situation.
And to be honest, I like to use the D-pad for a lot of games, and I think the D-pad in the DS4 is the best there is.
I think the build quality of the first party Xbox controllers can also be spoken for. I think it would be just as good.
As for the 3rd party controllers, I blew through 2 PowerA controllers in a span of about 6 months, just not as reliable.
Even though the 1st party controllers may be a little bit more expensive, the increased amount of hours you can expect your controller to give you for quality play time will definitely offset the 3rd party controllers.
Last thing is definitely stay away from the knock-off controllers, they are not worth your headaches and expectations.
8 Likes
I just bough wireless xbox one controller after years of using wired 360. I havent much play time with wireless xbox one yet but so far so good, build quality feels nice and since it has batteries it has that weighty feel to it which at least for me feels nice in the hands.
Only gripe i had was with wired 360 one ( Wired xbox one ones wont have this probably most likely because they are connected via micro usb ) it’s cord there it goes into controller managed to break pretty fast and i had to fix it myself with some light soldering work.
Other than that you cant miss with xbox product here. They are windows 10 ready and requires basically nothing of you to make them work.
8 Likes
Throwing in a side option: If you have a PS3 controller lying around and like the PS controller shape, you can use that with ScpToolkit. No sense letting a nice controller go unused!
ScpToolkit makes the controller show up as a 360 controller in Windows, and translates the inputs into the corresponding 360 buttons/sticks. You have to set it up once and it’s only for a specific USB port (it also supports Bluetooth but I don’t have that), so you’d want to use the controller in the same port every time. Hasn’t been an issue for me, the controller just lives in one of my front USB ports.
This is what I’ve been using for the past… long time. Sometimes I’ve had to start the ScpToolkit service because it wasn’t running (through Task Manager/Services) because Windows is Windows, but I haven’t had trouble other than that.
9 Likes
Pad selection may actually depend game genre. I can’t speak for other genres but in fighting games PS pads are almost a standard for those who don’t want to buy sticks.
Few more words on PS4 pad. Note that PS4 pad needs a bluetooth adapter if you want to use it wireless. And in my experience those have trouble working when plugged into extension cord or a hub. It won’t work right out of the box but DS4Windows is a nice solution as was mentioned above. Steam has driver for them as well but it may lack some functionality - no charge indicator for example.
And speaking of other manufacturers I strongly recommend NOT to buy Logitech F710. I used to hold Logitech in high regard until I got this one as a present. It’s far from awful but it’s not good either. Here’s a list of my grievances with this model:
- It’s battery only (no wired option)
- It feels like some inputs are dropped
- It feels like some inputs are stuck for a while after I let go of the button
- Native driver stopped working after some Win10 update. Official FAQ says it gets fixed in next update but for me it doesn’t.
- Most my friends say battery container messes with their grip + it’s too heavy .
7 Likes
OKAY! First off TYVM everyone for all the in depth information and shared experiences! 
So from what I gather here I got convinced into buying a standard Original Wired Xbox One controller.
I’m not so fond of the pricetag they put on it but I still believe it to be worth it with +2yrs waranty and the Chronies approval.
Might try to give my old PS3 controller(s) a go as well like @eishiya mentioned.
Yall had me realy confused writing “XBONE” i’m thinking what on earth is an X-BONE 
Now all I need to do it browse different websites that sell the Xbox One controllers and order the cheapest one i can find 
Thanks guys! 
8 Likes
If they have the Steam Overlay on in Steam it doesn’t matter if they have an XBone or DS4/Playstation controller as Steam will allow you to configure it for ANY game. I have never really bothered with it until I got a Steam Controller recently, and I’m kicking myself for missing out on a great feature of Steam. I’ve even got to adding non Steam games into Steam so I can have access to the configuration tool. It’s magic! 
6 Likes
Oh! Are there any Steam Controller master Jedi’s at Chrono. I’ve only had the controller 3 weeks so in the early stages of learning how to get the best from it (Had my money refunded from Valve but had my heart set on having one so went to ebay and paid £30 sigh )
I’m even trying to play FPS with it, with the gyro as an assistant and the right pad as mouse. It works surprising well. Oh!, @YQMaoski, haven’t you tried gyro aiming with your DS4? Saw a couple of vids on YouTube. Looked very good!
What I can’t configure, and I’ve followed lots of instructions, is getting the gyro to steer in driving games. No matter what settings I fiddle with, I haven’t got it to work yet. The gyro works fine. Especially in Portal 2. Even used to play Ion Fury. So…HELP!
4 Likes
I use my PS4 controller for pretty much everything, But I recommend getting DS4 Windows for other launchers. Games on the Microsoft store don’t seem to work with a PS4 controller even with DS4 Windows. The buttons have to be spammed to work, at least in Forza Horizon 4. I’m looking at getting the following controller, might be worth it but I have no idea. I saw the price and thought, how bad could it be. Wow thats a long link.
4 Likes
I can’t recommend anything else in comparison to DS4. For me it’s one step above Xbox controller. The D-Pad is unmatched and the ability to use double claw grip hold of it for something like Dark Souls where you can move/run and swap all of your gear at the same time is really handy and all that because of the pretty nice and slim design. I’m pretty tall, so I have big hands and (opposite to what I was expecting) this feels way more comfortable for me compared to the more bulky xone thing.
Here are few words I shared about it more than a year ago and this controller still serves me right and helped me to top score on plenty of games
Shouldn’t forget that the touchpad might come in pretty handy for some particular games… on the top of my head is Trine series - playing with the magician.
I’ve tested the gyro on few occasions in FPS and for racing in Dirt Rally and it works pretty good, but of course requires way more practice to get good precision than I’m willing to give it 
6 Likes
I use https://alia5.github.io/GloSC/ to import games from Windows store/Games Pass/UPlay etc. I know it’s for the Steam Controller, but all it does it let you run the games through Steam. I bet you could use a DS4 controller with the imported games. It has worked well so far.
5 Likes
I would recommend testing a DS4 before getting one. I know most people here like it but I can’t use it for more than 10 minutes before my hands start to hurt a lot. That wasn’t an issue with the old basic playstation controllers.
it is a fine option if you’ve already tested it and it works for you.
5 Likes
If you’re using it on Steam then Big Picture mode supports most controllers. I usually use my DS4 but recently I’ve been using my Nintendo Switch Pro Controller.
6 Likes
Aight so basically, for platformers such as Hollow Knight, Celeste, Dead Cells, etc., or for fighting games such as Tekken, you’ll want a DS4 controller.
For other shit like GTA or racing games or A Hat In Time, etc., you’ll want either an Xbox or Switch Pro controller.
I would recommend one of each, so you’ll be set for all games.
Why do I recommend all of them? It’s because of ergonomics. DO NOT play an FPS with a DualShock 4. You will hurt your fingers. However, DO play platformers with it, since it’s more ergonomic for those.
The opposite goes for the Xbox and Switch Pro. ALSO!!! The Switch Pro is basically a better, and much more comfortable, version of the Xbox Controller, BUT! Apparently it can “break” fairly quickly, such as developing joystick drift after a mere 100 hours of gameplay. You’ll have to look this up more. I have one, and I love playing with it, but I haven’t used it as my main controller due to the aforementioned possible future issues.
Anyway, in summary, get one of each, so you’ll be set for every type of game. This may break your bank, but it’s worth it. All of them are NATIVELY supported by Steam, so do not worry about any compatibility issues whatsoever. I use all three in local-coop sessions with my family, and everything goes well.
I hope I helped!
6 Likes