So I like to use Xbox controllers (doesn’t matter if it’s first- or third-party) because I like the layout, it’s just comfortable to me. However I’ve noticed that on all my controllers in the past few years, the left thumb stick will start to “give out” over the course of a couple months. For instance I’ll be pushing it forward all the way, but it won’t register for some reason and my character will only move a little bit. Sometimes wiggling it a bit will fix it, sometimes it doesn’t. And it’s not like I’m squeezing the hell out of the controller or mashing the stick constantly; in fact it’s made me try to be more delicate with my controllers, even though I’m just playing the games normally.
Is it just how controllers are, or am I just getting the shit end of the stick?
Many don’t require any soldering since they use ribbon cables.
I’ve seen those in disassembly videos of the steam deck and the switch maybe. But all the standalone controllers I personally have taken apart were soldered in place. eg. xbox360, dualshock4, some generic third-party ones.
I can confirm in the case of switch joy-cons, sticks (and also rails, another weak part of those) can be replaced without any kind of soldering. It’s all ribbon cables.