The Panzer Hall Effect System

Welcome to the future of Fight Sticks...

General Operating Guide

By default, the USB output is set to the fighting board so you can plug in and just play. All USB signals are handled through a proper USB switch to ensure no signal degradation occurs. In the past, some devices used electronic switches to toggle the data lines. While it didn’t cause issues, those are not designed for high-speed USB signals.

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Latency and Lag

The Hall Effect System is faster than any fighting board on the market. As such, reading the Hall Effect data and converting it to a digital signal occurs many, many times faster than fighting boards read input signals. We can comfortably state, backed up by rigorous testing, that the Hall Effect System does not add system latency or lag to your game play.

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HALL EFFECT System Modes

Holding HOME when you plug in the Panzer will place it in HALL EFFECT GUI mode. This shifts the USB switcher to the HALL EFFECT PCB processor and allows communication with the GUI.

Holding SELECT when you plug the Panzer in will place it in BOOTLOADER mode. This shifts the USB switcher to the HALL EFFECT PCB processor and places the processor in a state to accept new firmware using a separate software tool. When new firmware is required, JasensCustoms.com will release the utility required to accommodate user upgrades.

If you hold both HOME and SELECT when plugging your Panzer Fight Stick in, the USB switcher will default to the Fighting Board USB connection and does not interfere with fighting board update button combinations.

This is a USB A:

USB A

This is a USB B:

USB B

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L3/R3/Touchpad Click

The R3, L3, and Touchpad Click buttons are duplicated on the front panel of the Panzer Fight Stick. These are traditional arcade buttons and operate as such. They can work in tandem with their Hall Effect equivalents on the play surface of the Panzer Fight Stick 5.

You may omit installing magnetic switches at the L3, R3, or TP position on the play surface. If you do, you will not press any buttons during calibration of those specific inputs. It’s a good idea to omit those cuts in your plexi overlay if you do not intend on installing those switches to prevent things from getting into your Panzer case through those openings.

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Compatible Magnetic Switches

If you aren’t sure if a magnetic switch is compatible with your Panzer Fight Stick Hall Effect PCB, please check out our Discord for a compatibility list. As more users try different switches we will post the results there. Magnetic switches and Hall Effect sensors are polarity sensitive so it's possible a magnetic switch will have the magnet oriented in a way that our Hall Effect Sensors don’t operate as intended. This is not indicative of an error on the board, but a design decision in the hall effect sensors chosen for the system.

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GP2040-CE COMPATIBILITY NOTE

There are some timing issues with the GP2040-CE boards that we can't seem to effectively overcome for a flawless experience. The way the pin states are set on startup seem to be too long and inconsistent between the play field buttons and the aux buttons which likely stems from the way the firmware operates and the delays from the underlaying ecosystem on the RP2040 chip. To overcome this pull up resistors are required on the HOME, START, and SELECT button signals. You can accomplish this many ways if you understand electronics, but I recommend picking up a modified EZ Wiring Hat that has the pull up resistors in place:

https://jasenscustoms.com/products/panzer-fight-stick-5-replacement-ez-wiring-hat 

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Physical Installation

  1. The Hall Effect PCB is designed to be a direct replacement for all Panzer Fight Stick 5 panels that support MX buttons. Simply remove the caps, switches, and PCB (in that order) from your *HE/MX panel and screw the Hall Effect (HE) PCB in place.
  2. Connect the ribbon cable from the HE panel to the EZ WIRING hat on your fighting board.
  3. Connect one of the included USB cables to your Fight Board’s USB B plug. Connect the JST PHR-4 end of this same cable to the HE board where it says “Fight Board In”; this is the JST PH connector closest to the ribbon cable.

NOTE:  If you do not have a USB B plug on your PCB – you will need a custom cable to install the system. All USB signals must go through the HE PCB. We do not offer different cables at this time.

  1. Connect the second USB cable included with your HE panel to the remaining JST PH connector, furthest away from the ribbon cable where it says, USB OUT. Then connect the USB A plug to the passthrough adapter on your case.

  2. Connect the front panel buttons to the HE PCB using the included wiring harnesses. In the AEGIS 2 or ALL BUTTON case, both harnesses are the same length. On lever-based panels, one is longer than the other due to the position of the PCB relative to the front panel buttons. Once plugged into the board, make your connections to the front panel buttons. The silk screen on the PCB will show you which wire is which signal. In general, black wires are for GROUND and the white or red wires are for a button’s signal. Position on the button’s quick connect spades does not matter.

  3. Install the Magnetic Switches from the top side of the panel and into the metal plate / recessed areas on your *MX panel. The two plastic nubs on the bottom of the switch will friction fit into the PCB, but there is no electrical connections made. The switch is held in by clipping into the metal panel itself.

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First Setup and Calibration

Your Hall Effect PCB does not come calibrated. This is due to the magnetic flux tolerances in the switches and the tolerances in the hall effect sensors themselves. You must calibrate the Panzer before use. Additionally, please recalibrate for optimal performance if you swap switches; even if it's just one.

  1. Open the Panzer Fight Stick HE GUI.

Note: The GUI does not respond until a HE PCB is connected.

  1. Hold the HOME down and plug in your Panzer Fight Stick 5.

  2. The GUI should change from DISCONNECTED (red) to CONNECTED (green) and will not respond to user inputs.

  3. Press the button CALIBRATE to begin the calibration process and follow the on screen instructions. If you do not follow them exactly, your calibration will not be optimal and actuation points set will not be accurate.

NOTE:  In all cases, when you get the “Z” button calibration – just click next. This button does not exist on Panzer Fight Stick 5 devices. It was included during initial testing and for a single custom implementation.

If you are using a lever based panel, there are no hall effect sensors for the lever. You can click through the directional input portion of the calibration routine without holding anything down when prompted. The firmware will handle them appropriately and, by design, there is no connection between the Hall Effect PCB processor and the directional inputs on your fighting board.

  1. Once calibration is completed it will save settings to the HE PCB and notify you with an onscreen prompt.

At this point you can disconnect and use the Panzer Fight Stick 5 Hall Effect system. The actuation point of each switch is set to 1.75mm (halfway between 0 and 3.5mm). However, I recommend you spend time fine tuning the actuation points.

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Actuation Point Tuning

The slider bars associated with each button operate independently and can be thought of as the full range of a button’s throw. The top of the slider is when the button isn’t pressed at all and the bottom of the slider is when the button is bottomed out. Since the data sent to the HE processor is dependent on the switch and sensor combination, displaying numbers on the slider bar would cause confusion. Example, if a value of 100 represented halfway between the top and the bottom on PUNCH 1 it could represent 5/8ths of the way on PUNCH 2 due to the difference in top and bottom values on PUNCH 2. This variance, even though it's very small in reality, is important and why we use a calibration routine to optimize each system in use. All sliders are normalized based on the data each sensor/switch combination sends to the processor so you can be assured that if two buttons actuation points are set at the same spot in the GUI, the amount of distance you must press them down before actuation will be the same.

The Hall Effect system gives you an unparalleled opportunity to fine tune when each of your buttons actuate. Since there are over 1000 potential set points available at each switch, you can control each switch’s actuation point in nearly .002mm increments, well below the muscle control of a person. The closer the arrow is to the top of the slider for a button, the sooner along the button’s travel the button will actuate. Conversely, the closer to the bottom – the further you must press it to actuate the signal.  Since each can be set independently of each other, you can tune the Panzer Fight Stick 5 Hall Effect system to suit your exact play style. During beta testing, our test players remarked:

  • “I care little about how fast I can mash the buttons; instead, I am using the HE turning to overcome some of the shortcomings in my roll techniques.”

  • “I can focus on just playing clean and trust that as soon as I’m moving the button I’m getting my action. My inputs have been way cleaner and I’ve had so much more motivation to try to learn harder techniques removing the barrier between me and the game.”

  • “I am treating it like an instrument where I can mold the buttons to my form, instead of adapting to one that is proprietary.”

Rapid Trigger (R/T) Mode

Enabling Rapid Trigger (R/T) Mode ignores the actuation point and looks for changes in button direction to determine if its being pressed. This allows you to quickly activate and deactivate a button along any point in the switches throw. This is looking for FAST changes so if you're trying to be a turtle on your button - I wouldn't use R/T mode :) 

What did the beta testers say?

  • "RT has huge applications in leverless fighting game movement. The biggest one is fuzzy guarding, it is so much easier to quickly shift from crouch block to back walk in a quick fashion."

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Tuning

  1. Each slider has a small arrow, this represents when the button is actuated. Slide it up or down to the position you feel would be best suited for your playstyle. When you press a button, the GUI will provide real time feedback and an orange bar will track with your press. Once the bar is below the actuation threshold, the corresponding button image will light up indicating it’s been actuated.

  2. The MASTER SLIDER to the right allows you to sync all the actuation points to it using the “SET ALL” button under it. Simply slide the MASTER arrow to the desired position and click “SET ALL” – the remaining sliders will move to that position.

  3. Once you finalize your actuation set points and are happy with them, hit the “SAVE” button to save your settings to the Panzer Fight Stick 5 HE PCB.

  4.  You can also opt to EXPORT your settings as a backup to IMPORT them later. This affords you the opportunity to save different profiles and load them up quickly within the GUI.

  5. Once saved, the GUI will notify you that settings were saved. At this point you can unplug and re-plug the USB cable and you will be ready to play.

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Flashing Firmware

The Hall Effect System runs on an STM32 Chip and requires drivers to flash. You can install the STM32 toolkit (too much time!) or use a simple driver installer. You only need to do this one time! Follow the below:

  1. Download and Open this Driver Tool: https://zadig.akeo.ie/
  2. Once opened, click Options: LIST ALL DEVICES
  3. In your device list choose STM32 BOOT LOADER and in the drop down to the right choose WinUSB (v6.1.7600.16385) 
  4. Click Reinstall Driver
  5. NOTE YOU WILL NEED TO REBOOT

When you enter boot loader mode you will see STM32 BOOTLOADER in the Device Manager. Use the Panzer Flash tool below!

Downloads

These are the only official download links for the Panzer Fight Stick Hall Effect System. Please note, they are not digitally signed at the moment. You should ALWAYS update to the most recent version of the Firmware and GUI. Assume the loaded firmware on your HE PCB is outdated on arrival because we are constantly adding new features.

User Interface

Version 2.0 Works with Firmware Version 2.0 and above. Previous versions deprecated.
(Adds mute functionality, recalibrate single buttons, calibration wizard skips muted buttons, adds right click on button icons for button specific tools, minor graphical updates)

PCB Flashing Utility
(Only Windows Available)

PCB Firmware (Works with all Hall Effect PCBs). Previous versions deprecated.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

I know you recommend Gatreon JADE and Gatreon JADE PRO hall effect switches for the system, but are any other Hall Effect Switches compatible with the Panzer HE System?

The short answer is it depends. Hall Effect sensors and the associated magnets that interact with them are POLARITY specific. Remember in high school physics where we all learned about the "north" and "south" pole of magnets? This concept applies here and is very important to the Hall Effect phenomenon overall. Hall Effect sensors respond differently depending on which pole of the magnet interacts with each side of the sensors. Voltage can go up in one orientation, or down in the other. Since the sensors are FIXED due to the physical layout of the board, the associated magnets in the switches have to be oriented the correct way.

Switches JASENSCUSTOMS.COM guarantees works:

  • Gatreon Jade
  • Gatreon Jade Pro

Switches community members have confirmed work (not supported by JasensCustoms.com or verified by us) can be found on the the following Google Sheet Document (Read Only):

Submit your findings to the Google Sheet using the form linked below:

2. I can't get into GUI mode, no matter what I press and hold!

99% of the time this is due to a corrupted or some sort of weird updated HID USB Driver. To make this easy and not rely on drivers and specially software (to keep costs lower), the HE system uses standard HID drivers included standard with Windows. Sometimes, these can be "upgraded" creating incompatibility. It's easy to fix though and thanks to Hak from our Discord, he wrote this up to help:

Step-by-Step Instructions:

  1. Open Device Manager:
    • Press the Windows key, type Device Manager, and open it.
  2. Locate the STM32 Custom Human Interface Device:

    • In Device Manager, expand the Universal Serial Bus Controllers section by clicking the drop-down arrow.

  3. Uninstall the Unnecessary Driver: 
    • Right-click on the STM32 Custom Human Interface device and select Uninstall Device.
    • In the confirmation dialog, make sure to check the option "Delete the driver software for this device".
    • Click OK to proceed.

  4. Unplug the Stick:
    • After uninstalling the driver, disconnect the device (stick) from your PC.

  5. Reinsert the Stick While Holding the Home Button:
    • While holding the Home button on the device, reconnect it to your PC.

  6. Verify the Driver Removal:
    • To check if the driver was removed successfully, open Zadig (a driver management tool).
    • Click on Options, then select View All Devices.
    • Find the STM32 Custom Human Interface device in the list and check the driver name next to it.
    • Ensure the driver says "HIDUSB". If it shows "WINUSB" or "LIBUSB", repeat the process to remove the drivers.

Important Notes:

  • It’s crucial that the driver for the STM32 Custom Human Interface device is listed as "HIDUSB" in Zadig.
  • If the driver hasn’t been removed after the first attempt, repeat the process until the device is correctly recognized.