You are standing still, but your character walks off to the left on its own. Your aim slides away while your thumb is not even touching the stick. That is stick drift, and it does not go away by itself.
It is rarely down to the way you play. Below you can read what is inside a stick like that, why it wears out, and which fix keeps working.
The symptoms
- Your character or your aim moves slowly to one side while you touch nothing.
- In menus the list scrolls on its own, sometimes so fast that you cannot pick anything.
- It happens in every game, and in the menu of the console itself as well.
- One stick feels looser than the other, or comes back just off centre.
- On a test page the value keeps jumping around zero instead of standing still.
How an analogue stick works
Under every stick sit two potentiometers, also called variable resistors. One measures left and right, the other up and down. Inside such a potentiometer lies a thin layer of carbon, the carbon track, and a small metal wiper rubs across it. The further you push the stick, the more resistance, and the console turns that resistance into a number.
There is also a spring in there that pushes the stick back to the centre as soon as you let go. That centre should give the same value every time, and that value should be zero.
Why wear and dirt cause drift
Every movement rubs the wiper over the carbon. Fine carbon dust comes loose and stays in the track. At the same time the track gets thinner in the places you use most, and that is exactly around the centre. The wiper loses its springiness along the way.
The result is that the reading starts jumping around zero. The console reads a small signal while you are doing nothing, and that is drift. If the spring weakens too, the stick comes back just off centre and there is already a value on it at rest.
Dirt gets in from outside as well, through the narrow gap around the shaft under the rubber rim. Crumbs, skin oil and house dust mix with the carbon dust into a layer that makes the reading even more restless.
Causes, from most to least common
- A worn carbon track. By far the biggest group, and the reason drift turns up after many hours of play.
- Dirt and carbon dust in the module. Gives a restless signal that comes and goes.
- A weakened or shifted centring spring. The stick no longer comes back exactly to zero.
- A cold or cracked solder joint under the stick module, usually after a fall.
- Liquid or fizzy drink that has run into the module and attacked the contact surface.
- A fault elsewhere on the board. Rare, but we measure it before we replace anything.
Why calibrating or a firmware update only masks it
Calibrating and enlarging the dead zone come down to the same thing: the console ignores small signals around the centre. That hides light drift and gives you some peace for a while. It does not repair the carbon track, so after a while the drift grows past the dead zone and the problem is back.
There is a price to pay as well. The bigger the dead zone, the less finely you can aim. In shooters you notice that straight away: the first few millimetres of stick movement do nothing any more.
A firmware update only helps with a real software hiccup, for example after a failed pairing. Firmware changes nothing about a track that has grown thinner. If the drift gets worse quickly after an update, it is mechanical.
The difference per controller
The DualSense of the PS5 has no calibration menu on the console itself. What it does have is a small reset hole on the back, next to the screw by the L2 button. The sticks are potentiometers and they are soldered to the board, so replacing them takes soldering work. That is the same kind of job as replacing an HDMI port.
The Joy-Con of the Switch are a case of their own. The stick module is smaller than in an ordinary controller, and that size is exactly what makes it more sensitive to dust and wear. Nintendo does have a calibration screen in the system menu, and that only pushes the problem forward. A Switch that stays black on the tv is a different fault, see a console that gives no picture.
On the Joy-Con 2 of the Switch 2 that has not changed. Nintendo has confirmed that those controllers have been completely redesigned, but that there are no Hall sensors in them. Which technique is in there instead has not been made public. So do not assume that drift is ruled out on the Switch 2.
The Xbox controllers have used the same kind of potentiometer for generations. The difference is in the build around them: on the Elite Series 2 the stick caps can be swapped, but the reading is still a carbon track. Has a drink gone into the controller? Then the track is not your only problem, see liquid damage.
Models and what typically breaks
| Controller | Model number | What typically breaks |
|---|---|---|
| DualSense (PS5) | CFI-ZCT1W | Carbon track wears around zero, board versions BDM-010 to BDM-050 |
| DualSense newer version | CFI-ZCT2W | Different board and longer battery life, still potentiometers in the sticks |
| DualSense Edge | CFI-ZCP1 | Stick modules can be swapped, but they still measure with a potentiometer |
| DualShock 4 first version | CUH-ZCT1E | Drift plus worn rubber on the stick cap |
| DualShock 4 second version | CUH-ZCT2E | Drift, and a battery that swells on older ones |
| Joy-Con left | HAC-015 | Small module, drift and dirt under the rubber rim |
| Joy-Con right | HAC-016 | Same module, plus the rail contacts on the side |
| Joy-Con 2 left | BEE-012 | New design without Hall sensors |
| Joy-Con 2 right | BEE-014 | New design without Hall sensors |
| Switch Pro Controller | HAC-013 | Drift and the charging port coming loose |
| Switch 2 Pro Controller | BEE-008 | Still young, too few reports for a pattern |
| Xbox One controller | 1537, 1697 | Drift, and bumper buttons that break |
| Xbox One S controller | 1708 | Drift, and stick wear with heavy use |
| Xbox Series X and S controller | 1914 | Drift, and the USB-C port coming loose |
| Xbox Elite Series 2 | 1797 | Drift, and a battery that does not last as long |
Hall sensors as a replacement that does not wear out
A Hall sensor works without touching. There is a small magnet on the shaft of the stick, and the sensor underneath measures how the magnetic field changes when you move. Nothing rubs over anything, so no carbon track wears away. No carbon dust, no drift that comes back after a year.
The sticks feel the same afterwards and your console notices nothing, because the module gives the same kind of value as a potentiometer. What stays are the mechanical parts: the spring and the bearing. Those last a long time, but not forever. Heat and dust wear parts down inside a console too, see a console that gets too hot.
What you can safely try yourself
- Connect the controller with a USB cable and install the firmware update.
- Press the reset hole on the back for five seconds with a paperclip.
- Move the stick calmly in full circles for a minute. Sometimes loose dust shifts out of the track.
- Wipe around the edge of the stick with a dry soft brush. No liquid in the opening.
- Test with a second controller. If the drift stays away, it is not the console or the game.
- Set the dead zone a little higher in the game if that setting is there, or adjust it in Steam on a pc.
- Note down which stick it is, which direction, and whether it happens always or sometimes.
When to stop
Stop before you unscrew the controller. Inside there is a lithium battery that is glued down. If you pierce or bend it, it can swell or catch fire. The flat ribbon cables tear at the slightest pull, and the plastic clips often break the first time you open one.
Opening it also means the end of the warranty. If your controller is still within the warranty period, go back to the shop where you bought it first. The same goes for the console itself, see a console that lights up briefly and shuts down.
Finally, do not spray contact cleaner, oil or degreaser into the module. Those leave a film that attracts dust, and the liquid creeps down to the little circuit board underneath. Liquid on a board with voltage on it is the fastest way to turn a worn stick into a dead controller. If a drink has already gone in, do not charge it.
How we repair it
We start by measuring. The controller goes on a test rig where we read the raw value of both axes, at rest and in motion. That shows us whether it is the module or whether something else is going on, for example a cracked trace after a fall.
Then the module comes off. A module like that is held by fourteen solder points, and we take it out with hot air and a desoldering tool, not by levering it. The board is cleaned with solder wick and flux, and the new module goes back on under the microscope. With Hall sensors the work is the same, only the part is different.
While we are at it we clean the button contacts and the triggers and we check the battery and the charging port. Then we test again and see whether the value at rest really does stand still.
What it costs
Stick drift repair costs 59 euros for both sticks, the same price whether you choose an ordinary module or Hall sensors. If both sticks need doing, you hear the total price in advance.
If you are not sure it is the stick, the controller can go into the diagnosis, which costs 49 euros. If there is more going on, liquid damage for example, that starts at 99 euros and we tell you beforehand. You get twelve months warranty on every repair, turnaround 2 to 5 working days.
Send it in from anywhere in Belgium
A controller is light and small, so posting it is cheap. You register it, you get the shipping instructions, and the parcel goes by post.
From the province of Antwerp controllers come from Antwerp itself, Mechelen and Turnhout. East Flanders sends from Ghent, Sint-Niklaas and Aalst, West Flanders from Bruges, Ostend, Kortrijk and Roeselare. Hasselt, Genk and Sint-Truiden are regular names from Limburg, in Flemish Brabant we see Leuven, Vilvoorde and Halle, and from Brussels parcels come from Brussels itself, Schaerbeek and Anderlecht.
Wallonia works just as smoothly: Liege and Verviers, Namur, Charleroi, Mons and Tournai, and even from Arlon a parcel takes less than a day. Does your console give no picture either? Then it can travel in the same box, see a console that gives no picture.
Ready to be rid of it? Register your controller and add which stick drifts and which way it goes. Then the right part is ready when your parcel arrives.
Frequently asked questions
Can I fix stick drift myself by calibrating?
Calibrating and a bigger dead zone make the console ignore small signals around the centre. That hides light drift and gives you some peace for a while. It does not repair the worn carbon track, so after a while the drift grows past the dead zone and the problem is back.
What does stick drift repair cost?
Stick drift repair costs 59 euros for both sticks. That is the same price whether you choose a normal stick module or Hall sensors. If both sticks need doing, we look at that together in a quote. You get twelve months warranty on the work.
What are Hall sensors and do they really not wear out?
A Hall sensor measures a magnetic field instead of a resistance. There is a small magnet on the shaft of the stick and the sensor underneath reads the movement without touching it. Nothing rubs over anything, so no carbon track wears away. The bearing and the spring are still ordinary mechanical parts.
Do the Joy-Con 2 of the Switch 2 have Hall sensors?
No. Nintendo has confirmed that the Joy-Con 2 have been redesigned but do not use Hall sensors. Nintendo has not said which technique is in there instead. So do not assume that drift is impossible on the Switch 2.
Do I have to send my whole console along for a controller?
No, you can send a controller on its own. That saves postage and weight. If you would like the console checked as well, send both by all means and note in your request what is wrong with each one.
Ready to have it repaired
Describe what your console is doing in your own words. You get an answer within one working day, with shipping instructions and a guide price. The diagnosis costs 49 euros and comes off the bill if you go ahead with the repair.