Topic: Dualshock 4 - wear & tear

I keep thinking about investing in a scuf 4PS controller, would you guys ever review something like that?

I've had no issue with mine so far but the principal is still the same - put some thumb grips over it. It will stop the rubber wearing further or prevent the rubber from wearing off in the first place. It can also add a bit more height to them too - like KontrolFreeks - maybe not that much extra though. Any thing that covers the top of the thumb sticks though will obviously prevent additional wear and a lot cheaper than buying a new controller or even new thumb sticks too

I changed the sticks over on mine at the weekend for my second pad, only a couple of quid off Amazon, takes the removal of 5 screws and 15 minutes! Bit of a pain to keep doing it every 6 months though.

Nah, the plastic doesn't dig into my thumb or anything like that, but I have noticed that on just a couple of games — Dragon Ball XenoVerse is one of them — my character will sometimes move ever so slightly when I'm not touching the stick.

I'm pretty sure that my PS4 and controller are the first version because I got my console a few months after launch and the model number is the first released in Europe. The battery life of the controller could be better but I have no problem with the rubber of the sticks, am I the only one? I wonder if heavy usage will corrode them soon (Street Fighter V). :S

@VanillaLake: I've had my PS4 for just over a year. My original controller had the 'rubber' around the edges but I bought 'Orb' thumb stick covers to protect them having heard about the problem of those. However the left thumbstick has 'broken'. Every time I press it in to run, it doesn't come back up - even if I don't run or press it in, after a few minutes use, it has dropped/sunk back into the socket - basically the thumb stick drops a few mm's on the stalk inside and so doesn't 'click' or have the same range of movement. My new controller doesn't have the same 'rubber' around the thumbsticks but I don't know if it will succumb to the same issue. It seems its a fairly common issue as I looked on the internet to find out what was causing my 'running' issue and there was a number of people suffering the same. I don't know what you consider to be 'heavy' usage but this happened to mine in less than a year - although that still amounted to hundreds of hours - a lot of that time in FPS style games which required quite a bit of 'running'

I purchased my ps4 in November of 2014. Having heard about the thumb stick issues, I purchased 10 pairs of covers for 3.50 CDN on Amazon. I've never had an issue with them and was quite used to them within a day or two. I've also had the same pair on both my remotes since I bought them.

@BAMozzy: I also have read lots of problems on the internet regarding the controller, probably I haven't used it much yet. It's a shame that Sony didn't test the materials well, because Dualshock 4 controllers are quite expensive if you need a new one and the guarantee has expired.

@VanillaLake: I do feel that despite the improvements, the overall quality and durability of the DS4 is not even close to its predecessor, the DS3. I do think that the DS4 uses sub-standard parts - maybe to keep the overall cost down as the additional lightbar, speaker and of course the Touch pad can't be cheap - the difference in cost to the DS3 and DS4. The overall build quality isn't as sturdy (or at least doesn't feel as 'solid' - the plastic casing feels 'thinner' and doesn't fit together quite so perfectly. My new gold controller for example, I can feel the edge where the gold meets the black - one is higher than the other - and the left grip has a much bigger edge than the right grip - its not a consistent difference. In some places there is a bit more of a gap between the two parts than others albeit only by micrometers but its still visibly different. In some places the black bit is higher than the gold and vice versa in others but its not symmetrical - ie the same on both sides.

The old DUALSHOCK 4 had this issue. I returned mine and I was given the new controller which has much better rubber on the sticks. That was around a year ago and I haven't had any problems since.

@BAMozzy: I have a red DUALSHOCK 4 and I haven't noticed any of the issues you've mentioned.

@WARDIE: I have the same issue with my black original one too - its just easier to see on my gold one with the colour difference....

@BAMozzy: That's right, the grip parts are not perfectly assembled in my original DS4. that reminds me of the original 3DS XL assembly, which is actually quite worse and feels very cheap, that handheld even creak when you press the buttons, but I sold it and bought the small New 3DS which is much better.

This is my first PS and DS so I can't compare this to the DS3, but I think the DS4 is very comfortable, the face buttons, bumpers and directional pad are all easy to push and are in a good position. The way you hold the controller is great, fits perfectly in my hands (this is my favourite thing), and when you press the buttons you get a nice feel. The sticks have the right height and are well positioned. The triggers are slightly low for me but they couldn't be higher anyway. The touch pad it's a nice addition which I use except for typing, but the light and speaker are not necessary additions and seem to be responsible for the short battery life of this controller. The buttons are much better than those on the Wii U pro controller and the DS4 is much more comfortable to hold and use. The DS4 has impressed me except for some minor flaws. The best controller I have used this far is the Xbox One Elite controller, which I also have, but overall the DS4 is really comfy, responsive and nice. The fact that it's the stock controller you get with any PS4 model makes me appreciate it even more, although Sony had to improve some materials after issues with the sticks and it probably could be without the light and speaker, although I understand the light is related to PlayStation Move and probably to PS Virtual Reality too, but if only you could turn them off, battery life would be better.

@VanillaLake: I have used every PS controller and the DS4 is by far the most comfortable to use. In racing games on the PS3, I found my hands would cramp up and felt like a very unnatural position because of the 'trigger' position. FPS games tended to use the shoulder buttons for ads and shooting which in my mind was indicative of the unnatural position these were placed and to me seemed 'odd' as shooting should use 'triggers' but its not a deal breaker as such.

The DS4 has much more bulbous grips and the trigger angle is much more natural a position. Both of these for me makes the DS4 significantly more comfortable and usable for longer periods. I used to find the symmetrical thumbstick arrangement less comfortable (I have double jointed thumbs) and as you rarely take your thumb off the left side, it caused me some discomfort but with the DS4, I don't get this problem so it can only be attributed to the shape of the grip. The more tapered DS3 grips caused me more issues than I originally thought.

I do find that both the DS4 and standard XB1 controllers 'creak' and don't seem to have been built as sturdy as their predecessors. Both plastic casings feel 'thinner' and not fit together quite as well either. I too have the 'Elite' XB1 controller and that feels a lot more sturdy and the build quality is excellent. It feels substantial with no creaking and the parts fit together a lot more flush. It does remind of the way the XB360 and DS3 controllers are built but with added strength of the metal thumbsticks. The brushed metal parts also make it look more classy against the velvet matte black plastic and rubberised grip. I would certainly buy a DS4 equivalent!

I can't criticise the DS4 in terms of how its buttons feel and respond. I do find though that sometimes I 'touch' the touchpad or 'Options' button accidentally when going for 'Square' or 'Triangle' - mainly because I have big fingers rather than a design fault. I would prefer it to be a bit bigger - mainly wider so those parts weren't as close or maybe having the square, triangle etc buttons raised up a bit more but that would be my personal preference and appreciate that for others it would not be ideal. I do prefer a slightly higher Thumb stick too - particularly the right side. With my XB1 Elite, I have the highest thumb stick for the Right and a medium on the Left. I don't use the smallest which is the 'standard' height.

Battery life is 'poor' but I do use a headset so that drains power but even so, I would expect to get more than 2-3hrs worth from a full charge. You can turn the lightbar brightness down and I believe turn the speaker off too but these features are very low drain anyway that it will make a negligible difference to the overall battery life. You would save significant more time by turning the rumbles off. The touch-pad (so far) feels more like a gimmick to me. In the majority of games, its used as nothing more than a button and other games (like Killzone), it feels like its shoehorned in to make use of it - I think the features could easily be used by buttons and in truth be better. I can't say that using the Controller as a 'Spray Can' in Infamous makes me feel more immersed - if anything its more frustrating, shaking it first, trying to get the controller in position, spraying it in the right places etc. I didn't think much to the six-axis use in Uncharted with the DS3 either. That being said, its the only controller that could do both of these things and probably more so its versatile and offers something 'unique' to Playstation. Even though I may not appreciate these features to the fullest, I am glad that Sony have them as it could lead to something special.

From my perspective, overall the DS4 is by far the best Playstation controller. It may not feel as well constructed and creak occasionally but I am not likely to throw it around. Its more comfortable for my hands and I have not hadany issues with responsiveness. My issues are either very minor or particular to me. Obviously I would prefer a better constructed, 'almost' indestructible but equally as responsive controller - I don't want to have to keep buying controllers every 8-10months because they 'fail' or get worn out. I have noticed that my thumbsticks - particularly the left do get a groove worn into them very quickly and that obviously generates dust that gets down inside into the switches and that's not exclusive to playstation - one of the main reasons I bought the 'Elite'. I have already gone through a couple of XB1 controllers. I still have all my DS3 and XB360 controllers and all have many more hours use than this gen controllers but still feel just as 'solid' and functional as new - they don't need replacing but I have already had to replace some this gen.

@BAMozzy: Oh well, I have used the DS1 on PS, DS2 on PS2 and DS3 on PS3 at friends' place, but I've never owned a PS until PS4 so DS4 is the only PS controller I can examine now. The DS4 slightly creak but it's not like the biscuits chewing that original 3DS XL is. As you said, the Xbox One Elite is absolutely perfect. I've read that both DS4 and Xbox One controllers micro USB port can break if you play wired often so don't do it with your Elite controller!

In my case, to find the Share and Options buttons I have to look at the controller. Sometimes when wanting to press the touchpad I touch one of those buttons and vice versa. The touch of them feels like the first part of the touchpad, I think those are the buttons that could rise up.

I have set the light to go dimmer but I think it still uses its communication feature that drains the battery, if only we could turn it off unless we're using the camera, VR or whatever. Basically, its only function is to turn red when your health is low, honestly I could live without it. The speaker is currently set to be at a low volume which I still hear and I don't think that drains the battery. The rumble feature I do like so it's always on. You're probably right about the touch pad, after all I remember using the right part for one thing and the left part for another, much like two buttons would do. I'm thinking of The Last of Us at the moment.

I'm not a fan of motion controls either, I think they might be fun on arcade or sports games like Wii Sports, Kinect Sports but overall they are less accurate, more tiring and more frustrating than normal inputs for every other game. The only motion controls I liked when I got my Wii in 2006 was when playing Wii Sports and the pointer for action games/shooters like Metroid Prime and Resident Evil. I'm happy motion controls are not abused any more.

It's clear I don't play as much as you do, I only have a few PS4 games this far. It's great that you can choose the stick height on Xbox One Elite controller for the particular reasons that you have explained and I'm happy that, overall, the DS4 is more comfortable for you than the DS3.

About the headset, I just tried it once and the game sound was poor, is it because it mixes microphone input and game sound? I haven't played PS online yet (before buying a suscription I need a game I will be playing online), so I don't know. Is there a way to listen to the game sound only via controller's earphones plug like you can do on Wii U GamePad (which has by the way the worst battery life ever)?

@VanillaLake: I guess it depends on your Headset. I use a Turtle Beach Headset and the sound is awesome. I get a much better feeling of surround sound than I do from my TV because of the speakers are over both ears instead of directly in front. Obviously this helps when playing games like CoD online as I can hear exactly where enemies are based on the sound of their footsteps or shots. I just plug my headset in directly to the controller (I use the Turtle Beach XO7's - I know these were 'designed' for the XB1 and came with the adapter but they work perfectly well on my PS4 too). However that does mean that the 'power' to drive the speakers is coming directly from the controller. Its no different from plugging in headphones to a hi-fi, iPod or something like that except this also has a microphone too. Being an over the ear style and therefore relatively big speakers compared to in the ear styles, it must use more power. The sound quality is excellent and sounds better than my TV because its that much closer to my ears and gives a better surround sound.

I don't know what headset you use so I can't comment. I do believe there are settings so you can adjust the volume and balance between voice and game sounds as well as adjust the type of sound - like Dolby for example - so maybe you need to adjust those to get a better audio from your headset.

I tried the PS4 included set and regular earphones too. Do you know how do I adjust the volume and balance between mic and game sounds?

@VanillaLake: You have to go to the settings. I believe its under Sounds although it could be under devices. It maybe that your headset may not be the best for 'gaming' in terms of sound. I know the PS4 included headset is awful and only suited to chat
To get the game sounds through a headset, you need to go to the PS menu, go to Settings > Devices > Audio Devices > output to Headphones > With your headphones plugged in select "All Audio" as opposed to "Chat Audio." for example. Adjusting the Sound (volume, balance etc) is also done through the 'Adjust Sound and Devices' menu.

Okay, I just did it and it sounds good with my best headphones. Not that I do this all the time but I thought the phone connector was broken or something. Now I see it's just the Sony set. Thank you.

@VanillaLake: cool - hope that helped...