Why Standard Thumbsticks Drift
Stick drift is when a thumbstick reports movement while you aren't touching it. A standard analog stick senses each axis with a carbon film resistor, which changes its resistance as the stick moves.
Texas Instruments, which makes joystick sensors, says this design has a good linear response. It also says regular use can change the resistance, causing drift problems that limit the product's life.
How a Hall Effect Stick Works
A Hall effect sensor measures a magnetic field. In a Hall effect stick, a magnet moves with the stick. The sensor reads the change in its field to work out where the stick is.
- The sensor and the moving stick never touch. Texas Instruments calls this contact-free position sensing, and says it helps resolve the drift that builds up over a product's life.
- A 3D Hall effect sensor puts three sensing elements at right angles in one chip, so one sensor can track both stick axes.
- The same sensor can detect a press of the stick, as a step in the strength of the magnetic field.
Hall Effect vs TMR Sticks
TMR (tunneling magnetoresistance) sticks also read a magnet's field instead of a contact. 8BitDo, which uses TMR sticks in one of its Bluetooth controllers, says they offer higher sensitivity, greater precision, and better durability, and use less power.
Some controllers use Hall effect sensors in the triggers too. On that 8BitDo controller, you can switch between linear Hall effect triggers and tactile triggers.
Test a Hall Effect Controller for Drift
A browser reads every stick the same way, as a number from −1.0 to 1.0 on each axis. It can't tell which kind of sensor is inside, but it can measure whether the stick stays at center.
- Connect the controller and put it flat on a table.
- Run the stick drift test without touching the sticks. It reports how far each resting stick strays from center, as a percentage of its full range.
- Read the result: under 5% is normal, 5–10% is slight drift, and over 10% is drift that most games will show.
- Open the controller test and press every button, so a new controller is fully checked while you can still return it.
If Your Controller Isn't Hall Effect
You can still cut down drift with updates, recalibration, a reset, cleaning, and a game deadzone. The stick drift guide has each maker's steps.
On a PS5 DualSense Edge, a worn stick can be swapped out. PlayStation sells new stick modules separately, and the left and right modules fit either side.