You might balk at spending $130 on a joystick, but you shouldn't. Not when it's this good. Hori has been making great stuff for years, and this is simply a great joystick. Big, sturdy, and responsive, this is just the ticket for fighting games (Street Fighter IV anyone?) and action games of assorted varieties. It's also worth noting that this joystick works on Windows (not Macs, unfortunately), so that's another way to get some extra bang for your buck.

Overall: simply great and worth the money.

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I was fortunate enough to order one of these while they were still in stock, and I must say, I could not be happier with my purchase. Out of the box the stick is solid and really feels like it can take some abuse. The joystick (Sanwa JLF) is extremely responsive and the Hori buttons are nice as well. Another great thing about this stick is the sheer size of the cabinet. It allows for plenty of space to rest your hands on and it works well wether you place it on the coffee table or in your lap. I've used this exclusively since getting SF4, and even with the amount of use it's gotten already, it still feels solid. My friends say the same when I take it with me to video game nights. They love it as well.

With regards to customization - as others have said, this stick comes with great parts that will perform to most standards and types of playing. With that said though, some may choose to customize the HRAP, and it is very easy to do so. The buttons are all snap in, and it's easy to disconnect the wires since they use quick disconnects. The stick itself is also easy to customize. Sanwa offers many solutions for restrictor gates and bat tops. I myself, wanting the feel of an American arcade stick, swapped out the standard square gate for an octagonal one and put a bat top on the stick in place of the bubble top. I am extremely happy with the feel. A quick google search on-line will take you to a couple suppliers where parts can be ordered if you choose to go the custom route (I ordered my stuff from lizard lick amusements), and a visit to the forums on srk has plenty of info for everything. The only other thing I may do is add some weight inside the cabinet. It's pretty hefty already, but a little bit more wouldn't hurt. It's a personal perference.

All in all, this is a great stick. I am extrememly happy with my purchase and love using it with SF4. 30 years and I've finally realized my dream of having an arcade in my living room - no quarters required!

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This is a real gaming console. It's like having the best part of the

arcade machine on your lap. Very comfortable and natural to use. The

actual size of this console is large compared to the xbox standard

control, about 14" x 9" x 3" (w,l,h). The joystick is superb, overall

construction excellent - very sturdy. Makes playing SF4 just like the

old days. 10 out of 10 rating for this console. Worth the investment.

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The Matcatz TE stick is hard to find and I didn't want to pay 400 on ebay for one and I thought I was going to get the SE stick from Matcatz but heard many people are after a few hours of play the washer on the stick gets moves causing the stick to not function correctly. I brought this stick mainly for SF4 and so far I'm very satisfied. The ball top and button placement took a little bit to get used to cause I was use to the bat top in the arcades. The stick is Sanwa but the buttons are hori. I already orderd my Sanwa buttons from lizardlick.com. 8 button, 1 bat top, 8way direction came to about $40 with shipping. I highly recommend this stick if as alternative to Matcatz TE stick. Its about the same weight and dimension.

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the HRAP EX is one of the best sticks around period! i got it just in time before the prices skyrocketed. i got it for 129.99 and it is worth every penny.alot of people are waiting to the SFTE stick and probably won't get it until april why wait that long?this stick is just as good or better than the SFTE you are just paying extra for the logos on the stick and it has the same parts as the SFTE except for sanwa buttons. you can swap them for about $[...] from [...]. If you do swap them out you will void your warranty so i'm going to wait until it expires i think in 90 day. it is large enough for table top or lap play i prefer lap play.

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+++nice stick

+(2D fighting game)this stick makes special moves much easier than the analog stick of xbox controller

+(arcade shooting)moving in Ikaruga more precise than using the original controller

+(3D fighting game)the square gate enables more precise directional command inputs in Virtua Fighter 5 than the circular gate; also the square gate makes shoryuken faster cuz you can stop when hitting the right corner, personally I prefer square gate

+-button not sanwa or semitsu, but still great

+it is looser than sanwa buttons, thus making it more sensitive, single frame input is nice when using Akira to test in Virtua Fighter 5

-the back and start buttons too close to the main buttons

-not wireless

Summary: great for the following games

*XBLA:

Street Fighter II HD turbo remix

Samurai Shodown II

Ikaruga

R-type I&II

Metal Slug

even Castle Crashers.....

*Retail Games:

Virtua Fighter 5

Soul Calibur 4

Dragonball Z burst limit

*of course for the upcoming Street Fighter IV and Raiden Aces

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This is a great arcade stick. I am very please and it was well worth the money.

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I was really impressed with this arcade stick with how smooth the joystick was. I was able to pull moves off really easy. Especially since I haven't touched a fighting game in over 10 years.

A lot of people are taking this stick and replacing the buttons with Sanwa buttons. I was one of those people. I figured since a lot of people praised the Sanwa buttons that I would order some as well. I have to say, I don't see that much of a difference between the Hori buttons and the Sanwa buttons. I was pretty satisfied with the Hori buttons to be honest. I do like the way the stick looks now with my choice of colored buttons though. Matter of personal preference I suppose.

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I got this for Street Fighter 4. I've never used a joystick much before this but the 360 controller was no good for SF. I couldn't find either of the MadCatz sticks so I went with the HRAP. I'm actually glad this happened as I've had a chance to try the standard SF4 Fighstick (still haven't seen the TE) and the HRAP has smoother and more solid-feeling buttons and stick. It looks professional with the glossy black plate and is convenient to use with the colored buttons. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking to get a joystick. If you're playing SF4 on a 360 and want to be good this is the way to go.

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I bought this having never even bought an arcade stick before. This is my very first one. With Street FIghter IV just around the corner and me just getting into the series finally I decided to go big. This is an EXCELLENT choice for an arcade stick. Its giant, so you can easily rest your hands on it while playing, the buttons are big and easy, and very responsive. Although they have weird positioning as you can see, you can just simply go into the options and change which buttons do what, so that isnt a big deal in the least.

Ive used it pretty adamantly since Street Fighter IV came out (and even a bit before) and still no issues with it whatsoever. Im extremely happy with my purchase and I EASILY recommend this stick to anyone looking for a good one.

Like I said, this was my first stick and as pricey as it was, Im not looking back. This is a great choice.

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I also purchased a couple of fightpads from MadCatz (Blanka and Chun-li) so I can have local challengers - plus the artwork is cool. The fightpads were definitely better than the standard controllers, but once my Hori arcade stick arrived, I experienced real arcade feel!

I have to agree with the other reviews here. Excellent build quality. Joystick is perfect. The buttons could be slightly tighter, but they work great. I might upgrade them later. Street Fighter IV has a fight stick controller setting which maps the buttons exactly as they should be.

I've played several hours a day for nearly a week and it still looks brand new. I can't see it having problems anytime soon. And if it ever does the parts appear easy to replace inexpensively.

One thing I notice is after playing for a while the knuckle on my left pinky starts getting sore. This is in no way a negative comment about the hardware. I'm sure I should be holding the joystick differently and I shouldn't be playing that long anyways. I'm thinking about putting some sort of padding to the left of the joystick where my hand rests (or taking breaks more frequently).

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Edit:

After 6 months of ownership of both the HRAP and the TE, I would just like to add some pros/cons for those curious.

Pros: Extremely durable feel in comparison to the TE, mods easily, going to be a comfortable purchase for previous HRAP owners on past systems.

Cons: Hori buttons out of the box are not great and should be replaced, lack of a locking mechanism for the guide button, start and back on top.

Note: I stand by my five star rating, but these are just some things to think about. I own the TE as well, and for what it lacks (build quality) it makes up for by having a full sanwa layout, a lock for the guide button (to avoid pressing it at the wrong time by accident) and rear placed back and start.

If you have been teetering on the idea of getting this stick, you will not be disappointed when you do.

Easily the best stick available for the 360 RIGHT NOW, and arguably best stick for the 360 FOREVER. There is of course the TE SF4 stick due out late this month, but I have played with one recently, and I personally prefer the HRAP EX which I own. this is a super solid stick, legendary quality of past HRAP's.

Works with XBOX and PC. Great for MAME. Easily moddable. Comes with Sanwa JLF stick installed... buttons are Hori, but easy to change as hooked up to quick disconnects. I immedeately threw in some black/clear Seimitsu buttons with custom art, but thats me.

Do not hesitate. Buy this stick !!!! a must have for hardcore and budding fighting game players alike!!!This stick will far outlast the cost!

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I ordered this stick right before streetfighter4 came out. The stick is quite satisfied, except the buttons are not quite sensitive, but you can change buttons by yourself, they're cheap and it 's easy to do. I'm playing streetfighter4 and soulcalibur4 using this stick, and I really like it.

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This is one solidly built controller. It feels like a genuine arcade cabinet.

Joystick is nice, top of the line Sanwa Stick, standard in Japanese cabinets. Features square restrictor plate. Takes some getting used to especially after a extended hiatus from arcade gaming. Just hit the training modes and drill drill drill, it's not a good idea to jump right into online play with this thing until you can play up to your full potential. Right now I shoryuken when I really meant to hit a super.

Buttons are responsive. I'm jabbing like never before in SFIIHD Remix. But they are loose, you place your finger on one and you can wiggle it around, feels kinda cheesy so I'm gonna go for the full Sanwa swap. Also the button layout is inconvenient but could easily be remedied.

This thing works beautifully with Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection or any old school titles for that matter.

Well worth the retail price of $129.99. Buy one if you can find one for that price. I lucked out and got one of the last few ones from here. YES!

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This stick is great out the box however if you are a hardcore gamer then it's easily moddable with sanwa buttons. I have the mad catz tournament stick and I play my hori sticks more. It's a nice solid stick, easy to mod and is made by hori!

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