Xbox 360 Evil Controller Review

At first glance, the Xbox 360 controllers modified by Evil Controllers will look mostly like their unmodified cousins. This makes sense, since Evil isn’t completely revamping these controllers. Instead, they institute in small but possibly major significant changes that enhance the gaming experience.

They have a mod, for example, that allows for rapid fire, making it great for first-person shooters. There’s another controller modified for Tiger Woods Golf where you can get full power with the press of a single button.

The Evil Xbox 360 controllers that we received both include the same two modifications. They were equipped with Evil Sticks and they were given a “ring of light” mod for an added dash of style.

Evil Sticks for Added Performance

Those two controllers don’t look like anything special, but they have been personalized by Evil Controllers. The Evil Sticks, as they call them, are just a little bit different from the thumb sticks that you would get with a regular Xbox 360 controller.

Regular thumb sticks have a concave shape and they have four raised points to indicate the four cardinal directions. The Evil Sticks, by contrast, have a convex shape and they abandon the raised points in favor of a completely textured surface. This “non-slip technology” really does provide better grip, since the tops of regular thumb sticks can be quite slippery.

The guys at Evil Controllers go on to say that these Evil Sticks will provide force feedback, amazing accuracy, and maximum durability, but I’m a little more skeptical. The Evil Sticks may make for a better overall experience, particularly for FPSs, but I’m not sure about the added accuracy.

Just a Little Dash of Evil

As I’ve mentioned several times in this review, controllers personalized by Evil Controllers will look a lot like their OEM cousins at first glance. Where can you find their branding? It’s subtle, but it’s there.

Until Microsoft further opens its licensing for third-party controllers, the modifications from Evil Controllers could be your best bet for enhancing the gaming experience. It doesn’t matter if you’re playing casual XBLA titles or hardcore first-person shooters, because these relatively minor mods can be quite valuable.

The Ring of Light mod is great for customizing the look of your controller, but the Evil Sticks are a nice little upgrade as well. The added grip makes for a more comfortable and non-slip experience, especially for gamers with sweaty palm syndrome. It’s not a radical difference, like the rapid fire mod, but it’s a good one.

If you’d like to order a brand new controller, Evil Controllers can pre-install the Evil Sticks for you and ship a completed unit. Alternatively, you can order the Evil Sticks on their own ($20) and install them yourself.

Pros

  • Evil Sticks provide excellent grip for sweaty thumbs
  • Original MS controller gives quality peace of mind
  • LED mod looks great

Cons

  • Textured surface can cause minor thumb chafing
  • Relatively minor difference in gaming performance
  • Black Evil Sticks don’t match white controller

For more information or to buy please visit the Evil Controllers website.

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Learn How To Fix An Xbox

Saving money wherever you can is always a good idea.  Especially in today’s world where we see expenses raising all around us and the economy is in such a bad state, it is always better to do something yourself when you can.  The Xbox 360 video game system is one of the most popular out there today, but at some point you are probably going to need to learn how to fix an Xbox so you can do it yourself.  All video game systems have glitches and problems here and there, but as long as you learn what to do you can learn how to fix an Xbox quite easily.

 Most computer repair stores will charge at least $150 and take a month to fix, so you will not be able to play your games that whole time.  One of the most common issues that gamers have with their Xbox 360 system is what is known as the red ring of death.  If you see the red ring your first instinct may be to get it fixed by a professional but then you have to pay a couple hundred dollars and wait for over a month to get it back and play your games again so why not do it on your own?  If the problem is that there is a red ring which is one of the most dreaded Xbox 360 problems, the fastest fix is to check and see if you are still under warranty because if you are you can send your system away and get it fixed for free.

 First you will need a fine tip screwdriver and then you need to start disassembling your Xbox console.  Make sure that you are extremely careful when removing the motherboard.  You drop the motherboard and break anything and you are going to see a lot more than just a red ring when you turn it back on.  Snoop the X-clamp then unscrew the heat sink so you have access to the CPU and GPU.

 Be patient when you are unscrewing parts off the motherboard because you do not want to bend or dent anything.  You need to clean both the GPU and CPU, and this is a very critical step to getting rid of the red ring so make sure you do it right.  You need to be delicate and yet make sure you clean them well at the same time.  This is really the only supply that you will need for this repair, and it only costs a couple of bucks.

 You can find Arctic Silver thermal compound at any basic computer hardware shop.  Once you let this set you want to follow up by playing two nylon washers on each screw and then two more.  Add two more nylon washers and then you can piece the system back together.  Now you are finished and you can start playing your favorite games again, all for just a bit of your time and a couple of dollars.

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