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| Levered controller with 30mm attacks | Hitbox with 24mm everything except for up | Keyboard-style button box |
So you want to build a fightstick?
Buttons are your attacks, your menu buttons, and potentially your movement, if your controller is all buttons. Arcade buttons, no matter the brand, typically come in one of two sizes: 24mm or 30mm. On most fightsticks, the eight attacks are 30mm buttons and the menu buttons are either 24mm buttons or much smaller buttons specifically to their manufacturer. Hitbox style controllers tend to have all of their buttons 24mm except for up, which is usually 30mm. Especially small button box style controllers tend to have mechanical keyboard style buttons.
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|---|---|---|
| Levered controller with 30mm attacks | Hitbox with 24mm everything except for up | Keyboard-style button box |
Different brands of buttons will feel different due to variance in their casing and their switches. Most of them have about the same actuation force. The most immediate difference between them is feel. They'll all last a while, so just pick based on aesthetic and feel.
Arcade buttons are installed in one of two styles depending on the button: screw-in or snap-in. The names are intuitive! Basically, the screw-in buttons are threaded and come with a little threaded ring that keeps them in place, while the snap-in buttons have plastic tabs that ease them into their enclosure before snapping them into place. When choosing what kind of button you want, be mindful of the space available in your enclosure. Screw-in buttons are difficult to install in tight spaces. Make sure you have enough room for the rings!
Keyboard style controllers' buttons are usually keyboard switches; those would either be installed with hot-swaps that allow you to simply pull them out to uninstall them and push them in to install them, or they would be soldered to the controller. It varies between controllers.