Table of Contents
Connecting an Arcade Joystick
Most of the arcade joysticks you'll ever encounter use either spade connectors (AT-187 Japan size) or a 5-pin JST NH-series connector. The 5-pin connector pinout is a bit complicated, because the function of the pins will vary depending on the stick's orientation on the panel. The only consistent pin is ground, and even that's opposite for Seimitsu and Sanwa, and in rare instances (Namco's Cyber Lead cab, and the Seimitsu LS-33) move it again, so even ground isn't reliable.
But you can't hurt anything by wiring these up wrong, so if you're not sure, go ahead and experiment.
The connector used for Sanwa and Seimitsu sticks is a JST NH-series 5-pin. The pinout for the LS-33 and the normal Seimitsu/Sanwa mechs are:
| Pin | LS-33 | Seimitsu | Sanwa |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Down | GND | Up (1 CCW) |
| 2 | Right | Left (1 CCW) | Down (1 CW) |
| 3 | GND | Right (2 CW) | Right (2 CW) |
| 4 | Up | Down (1 CW) | Left |
| 5 | Left | Up (2 CCW) | GND |
As a result, I can't claim this is definitely accurate, though I believe it is. There's a decent chance the Sanwa and Seimitsu pinouts are in reverse order, but since the connector can simply be flipped, it hardly matters.
The Namco pinout is correct, based on a connector on the RIGHT side, if you're looking from the top of the control panel. If you're looking at it from below, it'll be on the left side (P1 stick connector towards center of panel, P2 towards edge).
(Image shamelessly yanked from JST's documentation)
| Part No. | |
|---|---|
| Housing | H5P-SHF-AA |
| Contact (28-22 AWG) | SHF-001T-0.8BS |
| Contact (30-28 AWG) | SHF-002T-0.8BS |
Player Inputs
One thing that never changes is the orientation of the player's input. Consider the following diagram:
This won't change no matter what mech you use, or its orientation. This is the starting point for wiring up your sticks.
Seimitsu Mechs
Seimitsu sells sticks with both a 5-pin connector, and with spade connectors. Some are available with only one or the other, but some are sold both ways. Where a choice exists, the 5-pin model will have a -01 suffix. For example, LS-40 or LS-40-01.
Here's how the 5-pin models are configured. This is viewed from beneath the stick, with the control panel top at the top. When the player is seated, the bottom of this diagram is closest to them.
When you rotate this image to match your stick's orientation, you can see which switch coincides with the user inputs above, and which pin that is. If you're replacing a mech, and you've forgotten the orientation, tracing the installed wiring will help you work it out.