Wireless 360 Controller not working? Try this

Firstly if you have a 3rd party wireless receiver -  forget it, I have 2 and have had nothing but issues with these devices.  Getting them to install by force loading the driver is not the only bug and the problems just multiply from there ranging from dropouts and constant connectivity issues.

Since I bought an official Wireless 360 controller for Windows I have had not one single issue though certain games like Dark Souls appeared not to work at all.

I  purchased Deadly Premonition on Steam which had a patch added recently for controller support - this is the way the game should be played but after launching, just like Dark Souls I could not get my 360 controller working at all, other games like Tomb Raider were fine mind you.

The Solution

After an extensive troubleshooting crusade which involved disabling things like my G13 and various other USB input devices I stumbled on a legacy controller setting within the Advanced controller properties for my device - which I must highlight, will only be seen if you have the controller turned  on.

For Windows 7:

  1. Turn your 360 controller on (important)
  2. Navigate to Control PanelHardware and SoundDevices and Printers
  3. Right click on Xbox 360 Wireless Controller and select Game controller properties.
  4. Select Controller (xbox 360 Wireless Reciever for Win) and then click Advanced.
  5. Now select your 360 controller as your Preferred device for use with older programs.

Older-programs-360

Games like Deadly Premonition and Dark Souls should now work without issue.  This issue appears to arise when you have more than one input game controller.  In my case my Logitech G13 was the default legacy device.  Changing this fixed my problems and I hope this method works for you too.

 

 

Media Room Update: Denon 2313 and Steam Big Picture

Since my old Denon 790 decided to self combust (my fault), I decided it was time to finally finish our media room.  The TV is the excellent Panasonic ST50 which I wall mounted a while ago.  The extendable arms are a godsend when you are messing with wires and plugs highly worth it over the standard mounts.

From my Study I ran a 15 meter HDMI cable and a 15 meter USB cable which is connected to the TV.  As you can see, poking through the wall here is a powered HDMI splitter/extender which was required to eliminate Sparkle caused by loss of HDMI signal strength:

Wall plate behind ST50

Unboxing the Denon 2313.

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Shiny new Denon 2313.

Denon 2313

The new AUDYSSEY XT Calibration is even better than on the 790 model, I didn't have to tweak anything.

AUDYSSEY Calibration

The Study acts as the information hub with network cables running all through the house, during the build stage I also ran a 15 meter HDMI cable and a 15 meter USB cable (with booster) specifically for PC connectivity.  These keystone wall plates accept standard cables and can be interchanged simply by replacing the type of connection insert.

Study Plugs

And the end result is a seamless Steam Big Picture console type experience for under $50 for the wall plates and cables:

Steam Big Picture HTPC