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Saitek/MadCatz X-55 flight stick

ejoiner

ejoiner

Charter Member
Hi guys, those of you who followed my other thread on this subject about 6 weeks ago may remember, I have a Saitek X-55 HOTAS set up. Worked beautifully then the stick died in December 2015. I returned it to madcatz for RMA replacement. They received the stick by USPS Dec 21, 2015. Follow up with them in mid January indicated that they were on back order and it would be MARCH 1 before my replacement stick would be sent. So, Ive spent the last several weeks without ability to enjoy my favorite hobby. Today I called to see where things were. was told now that no product replacement would be available until MAY 1, 2016.

This is the last straw. Im now going to spend the money and get a Thrustmaster set. MY ADVICE...and I say this reluctantly about any vendor..... DO NOT PURCHASE HARDWARE FROM MADCATZ. My personal experience shows that there customer service is unresponsive and will tell you whatever to get you off the phone. I am reticent to post negatively about anybody, but these guys are out of control. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY.

I should have bought thrusty to start with. I had a F-16/F22 HOTAS for years, upgraded to digital eproms. Only changed when I got a new PC that no longer had a 15 pin joystick port on it. Sucks anyway because I liked the saitek product when it worked.

Anybody want to buy a perfectly good saitek throttle? Its the stick that went tango uniform.
 
I have the Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog, and although it's very specific to the A-10, it's the best stick and throttle I've ever owned. Work those arm muscles, as the stick might be a workout for some. Still, the quality is top notch through and through. It looks fairly easy to maintain as well.
 
I hate to hear this. Obviously Madcatz customer service is a far cry from the original Saitek company. So far, my X-55 is working fine and coming up on the second year of daily use but with your experience and that of others, I have my concerns about dealing with them if something fails. I find it interesting that they gave you a May 1st date to get a new stick out to you because I have found tons of the full X-55 units at different vendors (plenty at Amazon as I type this). I have heard a rumor that Madcatz is redesigning this and other controllers (perhaps updating their internal & external hardware) and wonder if that may be the reason for the delay? Whatever the case, I'm leaning towards a Warthog if this one fails for any reason even though I've had friends who've had their Warthog units fail as well. Thrustmaster however did get them taken care of pretty quickly.
 
CodyValkyrie said:
I have the Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog, and although it's very specific to the A-10, it's the best stick and throttle I've ever owned. Work those arm muscles, as the stick might be a workout for some. Still, the quality is top notch through and through. It looks fairly easy to maintain as well.
Click to expand...


+1!

Works great in P3DV3.1 using a paid for copy of FSUIPC also..
Rick
 
I am grateful my Saitek X52 is still working. Am going to use it in conjunction with my Steam Link. The link itself will not recognize the controllers, so I ordered a 33ft "active powered" usb cable for it. I am determined to get back to flight simming on the Steam Link!!! Good luck with getting your new controllers though!!! I am envious! Hey, when are ya coming back down to Pensacola? Pete:very_drunk:
 
Unbelievable

After reading this most recent post, I too called Mad Catz support to check on my return (almost exact same circumstances as the author of this thread - joystick stopped working, returned it in december, got an email saying that it was on back order and my ticket was closed - no responses to my emails asking for any ETA on my RMA), and was told by the same guy who answers the phone EVERY time (Joel?) that it would be AT LEAST May until I could expect a return. That is unacceptable to me to wait 6 months for a return. When I expressed my dissatisfaction, I got nowhere. No one else I can talk to (he did offer to give me an email I can compose my complaint to, but seeing how they never responded to any of my other emails, I refrained from copying it down - I don't like my time wasted). DO NOT BUY MAD CATZ/SAITEK! They will screw you. Never, ever again. I'm absolutely amazed at the lack of anything resembling good customer service. I'm at a loss of words. I'm used to dealing with problems head on. This is beyond my patience.
 
I think it's time to show them the power of the internet. Spread the word. Let's put them out of business.
 
Allen said:
JAK_021
Mad Catz is looking all but bankrupt already. http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/02/rock-band-4-cant-save-a-struggling-mad-catz/
Click to expand...

Great. Looks like I'll never get my joystick replaced. Unfortunately, I'm not one of those guys who has a "spare" $300 - $400 kicking around to go buy another joystick. So at best, I'm unable to to do the one hobby I am able to enjoy for the next 5 months or so (May 1st my ass)... more likely, they're going to go out of business and all of us who purchased their products get stuck holding the short straw. *sigh*. This sucks.
 
Pretty much convinced Im F'ed. Going to buy what I should have bought all along. Thrustmaster A-10 Warthog HOTAS. I had a heavy metal thrusty set for years. I know that quality. What turned me onto the Saitek stick was the twist grip stick, which let me fly helicopters. My set up at home isnt really ideal for rudder pedals. I will miss that twist grip. Also the adjustable tension was nice.

Guys, just do not support these people. They are in trouble and if you send your stick to them, you will never see it again.
 
ejoiner said:
Pretty much convinced Im F'ed. Going to buy what I should have bought all along. Thrustmaster A-10 Warthog HOTAS. I had a heavy metal thrusty set for years. I know that quality. What turned me onto the Saitek stick was the twist grip stick, which let me fly helicopters. My set up at home isnt really ideal for rudder pedals. I will miss that twist grip. Also the adjustable tension was nice.

Guys, just do not support these people. They are in trouble and if you send your stick to them, you will never see it again.
Click to expand...

I second this opinion. I have no doubt I'll never get my joystick returned, my money refunded, or any satisfaction from this. I'm so upset. I am going to spend the rest of my time spreading the word about this company. I suggest everyone else do the same.
 
I'm not exactly surprised. Mad Catz had missed the boat marketing wise for years, and other than Saitek, their QA has always been lacking as long as I've been in gaming. I've seen that company time after time make serious missteps when predicting trends. This is even more sad because I've known a few people who were involved in projects over there that got seriously burned. Of course, perhaps the management will get things under control.
 
JAK_021 said:
I second this opinion. I have no doubt I'll never get my joystick returned, my money refunded, or any satisfaction from this. I'm so upset. I am going to spend the rest of my time spreading the word about this company. I suggest everyone else do the same.
Click to expand...

As with the [crap] wonders of Facebook, Twitter and other social media .... I'd STRONGLY advise against public venting of one's spleen.

Laws relating to Libel, Slander, and/or Defamation have been successfully tested on the World Stage of the Internet.
People think they are anonymous and thus bullet-proof. They're [usually] not.

If the US has an equivalent of Australia's ACCC [Consumer Protection] you can demand a replacement or refund for goods found to be non-merchantable [failing expected use].
 
A shame, really. Different story about 18 months ago. I had a warranty claim with a Saitek flight instrument panel. Counting shipping, the entire replacement cycle took about 3 weeks. These days it’s not as if they are focusing on filling new orders at the expense of warranty claims. I've been looking to add a second quadrant (of the USB variety) for the last 8 months, give or take, but every single retailer has continued to show the quadrant as being on backorder. The estimated ship date is constantly being extended (currently sometime in March. Yeah, right). I agree their financials don’t paint a very promising picture. Being thin on credit lines while trying to meet orders means something has to give, so a sort of financial triage develops (I'm a corporate BK attorney in R/L--please no pitchforks and torches). I suspect priority has been given to a product line other than flightsim controllers. Or maybe they are just burning the furniture at this stage in the game.

I'm not holding my breath for any near term turn-around for MCZ, but you never know. EJoiner and others that have open warranty issues are in a different (i.e., worse) position than I am and I think they have every right to be pissed. Not sure what the legal fallout would be for rants made on the internet (not my practice area), so I won't weigh in on that issue. As for me, I happen to like their stuff, so I hope MCZ gets its finances straightened out so they can start shipping product--warranty claims included.
 
Jafo said:
As with the [crap] wonders of Facebook, Twitter and other social media .... I'd STRONGLY advise against public venting of one's spleen.

Laws relating to Libel, Slander, and/or Defamation have been successfully tested on the World Stage of the Internet.
People think they are anonymous and thus bullet-proof. They're [usually] not.

If the US has an equivalent of Australia's ACCC [Consumer Protection] you can demand a replacement or refund for goods found to be non-merchantable [failing expected use].
Click to expand...

Libel, Slander, and/or Defamation... hmm... interesting assessment of my opinion. Bullet-proof you say? Well... I've been shot at 3 times. I'm still here. If they want to sue me for my opinion of their customer service, or, for that matter, if people on this forum wish to take issue with my opinion of their customer service, I'd suggest a better use of their time... but hey, what do I know? Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's not realistic anymore to expect anything out of anybody anymore. I paid good money for their joystick. It stopped working due to manufacturer defect (their own admission, Counselor), and now they've advised me they won't refund my money, and *MIGHT* be able to resolve my issue sometime this year, with the soonest being possibly by May - 6 months after I opened a ticket, returned my joystick, and waited. They didn't even notify me of any of this. I found that out on THIS forum (after reading the original post, I called their customer service and was told the same time frame: i.e. "Possibly by May 1st", though the gentlemen I spoke to assured me that was the best case scenario - and not likely). I would have appreciated if they could have notified me - but they didn't. I'd have appreciated it if they'd emailed me back and let me know any of this, or EVEN RESPONDED TO ANY OF MY EMAILS - but they didn't. And now, I come to this forum to back up the original poster of this thread and tell my story... only to be cautioned about American laws on slander. Slander, Defamation, etc. only apply if the information you're sharing ISN'T TRUE. Otherwise, it's called "Free Speech".

Amendment I. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the FREEDOM OF SPEECH, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

It's my sincere hope that my efforts (and others) help to influence their company policy and improve their products, and the service they provide for those products... or warn others if they're going to refuse to improve. That's it. So folks... SUE AWAY.
 
Personally I couldn't care less what you do. I'm no-one's father.
Just don't get all caught up with what you'd like to think 'free speech' actually means..... in A Constitution...or otherwise.

All a complainant has to do is demonstrate a 'loss' from what someone says or does and that idiotic thing known as the 'Great Litigious American Legal System' will kick in and have your gonads on toast.

Personally...I have a Saitek X65F and swear by it....simply because it's a STATIC joystick... so there is exactly nothing to wear out... or go wrong with it....;)
 
Jafo - You've got me there. Our legal system is a joke without a punchline. In California there are billboard signs along the interstate freeway advertising lawyers who will help you sue... whomever. Only in America...
 
Unfortunately, I've decided to cancel my order and instead ordered the CH Products Throttle Quadrant. I'm simply not waiting until April to get these throttles, no matter how good.
 
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