Arcade Joystick wont move left, is this broken or grounding problem?

[bb_hood]

So I have 2 Neo-Geo/SNK Gameroom classic machines, and one has a problem with the 2nd player joystick, it wont detect left movement. Otherwise it works fine in the other 3 directions. Ive read online that this could be a grounding problem. I opened up the back and I cant see any loose wires on the jamma harness. The machine does have a bit of wear/damage on the case and 2 of the buttons are broken. Now I know that the buttons are broken because when I unscrew the control panel I can see that they are broken. Anyway, I have already ordered a new set of mame controllers and buttons that match the ones on the panel. So my question is, is the joystick more likely broken or is it more likely a grounding problem? If it was a grounding wire problem would the stick have hindered movement in more than one direction? Do these types of joysticks break often? Im hoping that its just broken because I could easily swap it out with the new stick, but if its a wiring problem I really have no idea how to go about fixing it because no wires are loose. The fact that it has broken buttons and wear on the sides leads me to believe that the stick is just broken. Id just like to hear some opinions about this,

[XYXZYZ]

What kind of joystick does that thing have? Does it look like either of these?
http://creativebastard.com/images/mame/091104/3.jpg

In my experience it's most likely the microswitch has gone bad. Swap the colored wire with another microswitch (those white things with the clicky button) and see if the new switch registers the left function. If so, you've got a bad switch. For a new one just search for "cherry microswitch" on eBay or wherever. You may even have a local electronics shop that carries them.

By "Mame controller", do you mean joystick? If it's a joystick like the one above, that should solve your problem. And yes, if it was a grounding issue there should be more going wrong than just the left switch.


Do these types of joysticks break often?
I think cheap microswitches do, I've been through several of them. Cherry switches are a good quality microswitch to go with.

[bb_hood]

Yes, the joystick is like the one on the right.

Thanks for the input! I have another joystick coming along with new buttons. I guess it would probably be easier to replace the microswitch. Its a relief to know its not the grounding. Thanks again!

[Satoshi_Matrix]

I dount that it's a microswitch issue if you're only experiencing problems with one of them and not all of them.

the best and cheapest solution is to check all connections with a multimeter. As people have told you, such a problem probably IS caused by a grounding issue.

Microswitches are designed to be pressed something crazy like 10,00000 times before wearing out. Its very common for arcade cabs like Pacman or Space Invaders to still have their original microswitches in working order.

[TripppsK]

It probably is a microswitch which is the cheapest and easiest fix. If the connections arent sodered try you can easily check by switching the wiring with one of the adjacent microswitches and see if you get left movement and lose the other. If that is the case just order yourself a few microswitches and keep them on hand.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

I got one of those cabs brand new and one of the micro switches was faulty right out of the box, so, try swapping out the micro-switch, that's probably all it is.

They unscrew/pop right out and all the wires have slide off contacts, no soldering required.

[Arcade Antics]

I dount that it's a microswitch issue if you're only experiencing problems with one of them and not all of them.

the best and cheapest solution is to check all connections with a multimeter. As people have told you, such a problem probably IS caused by a grounding issue.

Microswitches are designed to be pressed something crazy like 10,00000 times before wearing out. Its very common for arcade cabs like Pacman or Space Invaders to still have their original microswitches in working order.
Neither Pac-Man nor Space Invaders used microswitches.

[bb_hood]

multi post

[bb_hood]

Switched out the microswitch just now and it works perfectly! So awesome when things get fixed so easily! Thanks everyone for the input!

Time to play some 2 player bubble bobble!