Gentoo Forums

I was wondering if anyone has tried one of those ps/ps2 controller to usb converters. I don't like buying controllers for my computer because they aren't that well made in my experience, but I love the ps/ps2 controllers. I want to find an adapter that has 2 control ports that will work in Linux and OSX, hopefully with an open-source driver.

So anyone had any experience with these? How well do they work, is there any lag, which one is best, etc.

Thanx,
Stan

Hmm, I ended up getting the SmartJoy PLUS. In comments on lik-sang.com and a few other places Linux users said that it worked perfectly, so I decided to get 2 of them. I wanted to get one that had 2 controller ports but it looks like they don't work under Linux or OSX, and it wouldn't be too much trouble using 2 USB ports. It cost like 5 bucks more but oh well, I know these will work.

Anyway, I'll post a review when I get them.

Thanx,
Stan

I've been using EMS USB2 from Lik-Sang, on my old hardware it worked perfectly on Linux and occasionally on Windows, unfortunately on my current hardware it's vice versa. In general it's quite good 2-port USB ps joypad connector as well.

Why do you think new hardware made a difference? Do you think it's because your new hardware was USB 2.0? That sucks that it doesn't work perfectly on Linux anymore. Although I couldn't find any real reviews on the SmartJoy PLUS the comments on a few stores were promising. Oh well, time will tell, I expect them by the end of next week as I didn't order them from lik-sang but a smaller place here in the US that stocks them.

Thanx,
Stan

I just bought a generic cheap £10 PS2-to-USB adapter from GAME, and it works perfectly fine with bog standard joydev kernel modules, as well as the force feedback shebang.

Very nice, and I agree that most PC gamepads seem to suck quite a bit, and why buy a new pad when you've got several just lying around?

second_exodous wrote:Why do you think new hardware made a difference?

I'm actually quite surprised about this thing. I suppose it's all result of cheap hardware both on mother-board and in converter. As far as I've heard, the converter doesn't really behave up to specs neither as HID device nor as USB device.

Do you think it's because your new hardware was USB 2.0?

That shouldn't be a problem on any side, since both USB 1 and 2 support will get compiled in kernel, but I'm no hardware nor kernel expert.

Just wanted to say I just got my SmartJoy Plus earlier last week, and it works really well. Just enable the usb hid and joystick stuff in the kernel, and then you should be good to go.

John

Yep, my EMS USB2 works great with just the standard kernel stuff (from the joystick HOWTO on gentoo-wiki). It also works great in OSX, although it can't be daisy chained (like plugged into monitor or keyboard USB slots) on my mac, because it needs a good bit of power. Sadly, it only supports one controller, despite the fact that it has two slots. >_<

<3 SNES games with analog sticks.

I have the [ Super Box4 ] ps/ps2 to usb adapter left over from my Windows days (and it worked almost beautifully in Windows)... I have yet to get it to work under Linux, and it doesn't look like I'm going to be able to... another site I found it on indicates that it is not Linux compatible, so I'd suggest staying away from this one if you're looking to buy one

I just want to say that I've been using the SmartJoy PLUS for months now and it has always worked great with both PS controllers and with my dance pad for stepmania.