MAYFLASH Arcade Stick F500 Elite with Sanwa Buttons
MAYFLASH Arcade Stick F500 Elite with Sanwa Buttons and Sanwa Joysticks for PS4/PS3/Xbox One/Xbox 360/Nintendo Switch/Android/PC Windows/Neogeo mini
Two pieces of metal panels (metal cover and metal base) increase the arcade stick’s weight for a solid, secure feel.
Arcade Stick Size: 360X231.3X118.3mm
Arcade Stick Weight: 3kg
Top Metal Panel Weight: 320g
Bottom Metal Panel Weight: 920g
| Dimensions: | 42.01 x 29.59 x 14.3 cm; 3 Kilograms |
| Dimensions: | 42.01 x 29.59 x 14.3 cm; 3 Kilograms |
| Origin: | Taiwan |
| Reference: | F500 Elite |
That said, my only gripe is the weird filing cabinet color for the body, which is far less preferable to almost any other color out there. Fortunately a friend of mine swapped the body for that of an F500 V2, and then modded virtually everything else, right down to replacing plastic washers with metal ones, replacing the default stick with a metal Seimetsu, 3D printing an octagonal gate for pinpoint accuracy when playing 2D shooters, and upgrading the springs under the buttons for superior feedback. He even did a custom etched dustwasher for the bade of the joystick. This is all to prove the point of how endlessly customizable the F500 Elite is.
TLDR: Excellent arcade-style joystick right out of the box, but can be made far greater with a little modification.
Setting up the arcade stick was a bit tricky because the supplied USB cable wasn’t type C so it doesn’t actually fit into the current generation of XBox controllers (ones that have the third (share) button) and the unit refused to work with a type C cable that I used to charge the battery with. In the end I used an old Afterglow pad and that worked fine. Having to do it this way also confirms that you don’t necessarily need an official controller to get the device to work correctly.
I also tried it with an X360 Elite using an unofficial controller and the only minor problem I encountered was having to change to “LS” mode for the joystick to work.
The arcade stick itself is very, very good and as of yet I haven’t encountered any compatibility problems playing the games I purchased it for. It’s also quite big (14″ x 9″ in old money) and heavy, which means that if (like me) you’re planning on buying it to use on your knee in front of the TV then it’s more than sturdy enough to find a comfortable position to do so. One other positive is that there’s plenty of space around the joystick, so your hand will never encroach the edges of the unit during useage
The joystick itself is highly responsive and comes with both a 4 and 8 way restrictor which can be easily swopped to suit your own personal taste. The 4 way (square) one also has 45 degree rotation so you can position it in a diamond shape to better suit U-D-L-R movement. Buttons are equally as responsive and require the merest of touches to register an input. There’s also a ‘turbo’ (autofire) option that’s dead easy to implement on any of the 8 buttons.
My only real negative is that a high level of dismantling is required if you want to add some custom artwork under the transparent face-plate. Also (less of a negative and more of a personal preference) it would have been nice to have a slightly wider sleeve included to reduce the joystick deadzone.
All in all though, the F500 elite is a great entry level arcade stick and once I overcame the hurdle of adapting to a joystick I had absolutely no regrets about making the purchase. Yes, it did take me a while to convince myself that 97 (a “used, like new” purchase) was justifiable but once I’d used it a few times all doubts were completely removed. So much so that my A+B buttons do have a tendency to self-press (due to the level sensitivity) but I was reluctant to send it back because I won’t get another one for the same price….so I’m just going to purchase x2 replacements and keep what I have.
One final point. Apart from games that need both sticks (Smash TV, Robotron etc etc), the F500 Elite is fully compatible with Antstream.
Not the cheap product, this one is expensive but for all the good reasons. Stable, heavy base solid architecture, just the right arcade feel overall. More than I could ask for but I know it will not let me down over the many years of use. High quality build and components, for professional players only.
Title says it all really. Great value arcade stick! Works fantastic with all my systems, Switch and Pc (without controllers and Xbox One X and Series X (with controllers). Honestly I had no problem having to connect controllers to it for some systems. But if that bothers you there are ways around this (but they will require extra money). Personally I don’t feel the need to do so. Awesome quality Sanwa buttons and joystick. Has two metal plates inside so has a nice weight to it which is nice. Easy to customize the top faceplate. In my case I just brought a cheap poster from Kmart and removed the buttons/joystick/clear plastic top, then traced around the plastic top and cut out with hobby knife/sessors. Love having the ability to do that! THANK YOU Mayflash for a great unit!!
Works great for bigger hands ,for the stick and buttons, quality Sanwa parts.
Came with Octangle plate,none Sanwa and 4 rubber feet & screws,also 2 cables and instructions,as expected,well boxed and protected.
So far,I’m loving the comfort from this stick.Have an 8bitdo arcade stick and was going to return it, as this is more comfortable and better for gaming out of the box.Have decided to keep my 8bitdo and send this back now.As I only use it on my Switch and the 8bitdo works on my Snes mini but not the Mayflash.
4 Stars from me, because it’s a bit dull and not being wireless,apart from that it’s a great stick, don’t be put off with my opinion.
Excellent stick and buttons, good weight to the unit for more aggressive play. Have used with ps4, pc steam, raspberry pi and neo Geo mini console. Really happy with it and gives a true arcade feel
La leva direzionale e i pulsanti, enrambi Sanwa, restituiscono un ottimo feeling e garantiscono affidabilit e durata nel tempo. Le dimensioni generose permettono di appoggiare entrambi i polsi riducendo l’affaticamento in caso di sessioni di gioco prolungate, mentre il peso notevole assicura perfetta stabilit.
Lo utilizzo prevalentemente su PC per retrogaming ed emulazione, ma l’ho testato con successo anche su tablet Android e Raspberry P4. Nella confezione presente anche un restrittore ottagonale da sostituire, se preferito, a quello a 4 vie montato in fabbrica. Connessione alle varie piattaforme compatibili solo via cavo.
Un paio di mesi fa ho acquistato anche un arcade stick della 8BitDo e devo dire che la differenza, a favore del Mayflash F500 Elite, notevole, soprattutto per quanto riguarda la qualit dei pulsanti. L’unico plus dell’8BitDo la possibilit di utilizzarlo senza fili, mediante connessione Bluetooth o WiFi 2.4 GHz.
Nice overall feel, button and stick
Could just really do with another couple (or more) extra buttons, not main one’s just for quality of life like in some fighting game training modes
Pros:
-works on everything
-Sanwa parts, super easy to mod and self-repair
-If you’re used to cheaper sticks you will never have DP’d this easily before
-sturdy, solid weight, suitable for tabletop or lap use
-comes with an octogate in the box
-still getting firmware updates, most recently a new one to reduce latency
Cons:
-It’s pretty ugly. I’m going to put some decent art in there but it’s still just a big, boring, grey block
-Expensive. If you already have a stick you can mod you may be better off getting buttons/paddle elsewhere and keeping what you have as a base
-A little clunky setting up for consoles even if it is quite a clever way of working around licensing
-comes with an octogate in the box (you heathens). It is not, however, a Sanwa gate. The stock square gate is.
After evaluating this and the HFSA, being a bit of an idort I opted for this. While the old TE had Sanwa buttons, it was a clone stick. Now that I have a real one it’s just so much better. Tested on PC (GGST, MvC3, old arcade games) and Xbox SeX (Killer Instinct) and both worked fine so I’d expect similarly for the rest of the console crew.
I originally bought this arcade stick to use with my PC, but I now also use it with my Nintendo Switch and PS4. The controller is very responsive, and the Sanwa switches and buttons feel great. I thought it would take a while to get used to this after playing with controllers for years, but I found that fighting games were much easier for me as soon as I switched to the F500 Elite. If you’re big on modding, the standard F500 would probably be fine if you’re going to change the sticks and buttons anyway. But I wanted it to be perfect right out of the box, and the Elite definitely is that. The customer service is excellent too. I can’t recommend this highly enough.
I felt the price of this was a bit high and I was inclined to go for a cheaper model (of Mayflash) but went with this due to reviews of the others not being as good. I like the fact it supports every system around and hopefully the next gen consoles too with firmware updates.
I’m happy with it. The build quality is good and it feels like something that will last a few years with metal plates top and bottom. The lead is nice and long and which gets stored in a section at the side. With the lead coming out of a compartment at the side it should prevent accidentally damaging it by pulling too hard on the cable (though it looks like spare cables can be bought). There is a wrist strap for rumble feature on there but I can’t imagine who would want that.
I’ve owned a few arcade sticks in the past going right back to the Dreamcast one and this feels the nicest I’ve had. I can’t imagine I will feel the need to ever change buttons or stick as they feel pretty much perfect but it’s good to know I can just in case anything ever wears out. It’s also possible to customise the art work by taking off the top clear panel (held in place by magnets) but that would require removing all the buttons and stick so it’s a bit of effort.
I’ve already beaten all my high scores on shooters on MAME so the investment is paying off. I can’t comment on the cheaper Mayflash sticks as to whether or not this is worth the extra but if you’re a keen player of fighters or arcade style shooters and want something that feels sturdy then I recommend it.
A great stick for the price. Nice and heaven for tabletop play and a long cable for sofa play. Compatible with all my consoles. Very responsive and great looking. Can be customised if desired.
The 8 way joystick is ironically too good for some games which are hard to control. Would be better for older games with a 4 way joystick.
After doing a fair amount of research into gaming pads and joysticks, I looked at many brands, including but not limited to, 8bitdo, console controllers, x arcade, hori, razer panthera, mayflash standard models, and others. I also looked at the design of the Mayflash compared to other gaming pads and joysticks to find the best ergonomic design, dimensions, and weight. Once I found I found the mayflash F500 elite I was quickly sold. Even though the price tag was at the higher end of what I wanted to spend, I am extremely happy with my purchase.
I like the bigger design of the F500 elite compared to the F300 elite since it helps prevent joint problems that I have experienced getting back into gaming more recently. There is more space around the stick portion on the left hand side when compared to the other mayflash models which helps prevent joint problems.
I can use this stick while gaming in my living room chair or at my desk without feeling like the stick with break easily or be jerked around because of its solid heft. It weighs in at 11 lbs, which is the size of a small infant. In other words, the unit is not going to slide around on you in your lap or on your desk. The case build is solid and high quality as well.
The size of the stick is important as I have the real estate on the gaming stick to rest my hands when necessary to prevent joint fatigue.
The sanwa buttons provide quick response and the plug and play functionality is great too. I like the elite because it came with the Sanwa buttons so I didn’t have to swap them out like I would have in the standard F500 model. I am not into competitive fighting games where I would use this to enter a tournament so I can’t speak to it’s effectiveness in that realm.
I also like the ability of the stick to work with other controllers (adapter purchase is separately required for this to work). The Dinput feature works great to game on PC and Raspberry Pi too.
The turbo buttons are nice for games where you would otherwise repeatedly press the same button to keep firing.
The potential to customize the artwork is a plus should I decide to do so in the future.
The only feature I wish this joystick would have is wireless functionality built into the product. If you buy a separate dongle you can hook up an xbox or playstation controller directly to the stick and have wireless functionality. I would like wireless Dinput build into the stick.