Gamepad test

How to test a controller properly

1. Connect the controller by USB or pair it over Bluetooth.
2. Press any button so the browser reveals it, then check the name in the readout.
3. Press every face button, bumper and stick click in turn, watching each one light up.
4. Pull each trigger slowly. The bar should rise smoothly rather than jumping straight to full.
5. Roll each stick right around its edge. The dot should reach the outer ring in every direction.
6. Let go of both sticks and leave them alone for ten seconds, then read the maximum deviation to check for drift.

Understanding stick drift

A thumbstick reports its position as two numbers between -1 and 1. At rest both should sit very close to zero. Drift is what happens when the potentiometers inside wear down and start reporting movement that is not there, so the game receives a constant small input.

The maximum deviation shown under each stick is the largest distance from centre recorded since you last reset. Leave the sticks untouched, then read it:

• Below 0.05 — healthy. Every controller has a little electrical noise.
• 0.05 to 0.10 — early drift. Most games have a deadzone large enough to hide it, but it will get worse.
• Above 0.10 — genuine drift. The camera or character will move on its own in games with a small deadzone.

Before opening the controller, try a can of electrical contact cleaner. A short spray into the base of the stick module, followed by rotating the stick through its full range a few dozen times, clears the dust that causes a large share of drift cases.

Buttons that do not register

If a face button lights up here, the hardware is fine and any problem is in the game or its key bindings. If it never registers, the contact pad underneath has usually worn through or collected dirt. Rubber membrane contacts are cheap to replace on most controllers, and it is a common repair.

Bumpers fail more often than face buttons because they take a harder mechanical hit, and on several popular controllers they are a known weak point. A bumper that works only when pressed at one end is a broken mounting rather than a broken switch.

Connection problems

If the controller never appears at all, work through the connection before blaming the pad. Try a different USB cable — many controller cables are charge-only and carry no data, which is the single most common cause of a controller that charges but does nothing. Over Bluetooth, remove the pairing and pair it again, and keep it well within a few metres of the receiver.