How to Fix Analog Drift or Analog Stutter on PS3 / PS4 / PS5 Controller (Cleaning Solution)

In this video, I show you the causes of analog drift or analog drift on a PlayStation 4 PS4 controller. This solution just requires you to disassemble your controller and to have 99% isopropyl alcohol on hand to clean the part.This tutorial is more than just blowing pressurized air into the analog stick, and it is probably going to solve your problem or at least tell you what you have to do to fix it. I hoped this video helped you out!

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - Explanation of the Issue
00:05 - Video Begins
00:22 - The Problem
00:59 - Opening the Analog Stick
01:24 - Rotational Contact
03:37 - Residue
05:22 - Putting Back Together
06:07 - Testing the Controller

[dennis]

My 13 year old son fixed his controller using your video. One of our better bonding moments over a video call while miles apart. Thank you!

[nicoh]

My ps3 controller has lasted for like 5 years with no problem, but my ps4 controller has this problem only after half a year

[flamespro]

make sure you quicksave before taking apart your controller

[Systemsquirrel]

Those sensors as you call them are called potentiometers which are variable resistors. When the wiper those pieces that you took out is moved across a carbon track it changes it's electrical resistance which is what the controller reads. Dust and dirt can find it's way onto the carbon track which causes a bad electrical contact between the wiper and the carbon track. If you ever had a radio that crackled when you adjusted it's volume control it's the same thing.

[mrgbomb]

Man I have watched 100s of videos and people tell me just to blow on the analog thanks man your the best

[HavocHank]

For others who try this, take care when re-seating the white contact disc. The face of the disc has two plastic teeth that lock it to the green gate flap. If you're not mindful, then you can end up malforming or braking one of those plastic teeth as you close the gate, and it can wedge against the metal contact. When I reassembled my controller one of my analog sticks was constantly reading a downward input and I didn't realize what happened until I disassembled it again.

[obamacheck]

This trick fixed just about everything but it still doesn’t solve the problem of liking this video twice

[Lomniko]

Good call on cleaning the green knobs, had the same issue.
However... the said green knob just came off instead of bending, and now instead of slight drift the stick always points left.
The whole mechanism is soldiered on too, so no easy replacement is possible. Be careful when cleaning these, people!

[JamesMorningstar]

That graphite contact could have been fouled by the cleaning being a bit too harsh, or simply excessive wear on the controller. I usually avoid using too strong of an alcohol on conductive graphite because you could actually wipe off some of the graphite itself, making it less conductive, which can offset the centering value, or cause the joystick to no longer work at all. Any regular alcohol even strong, can be used, just don't scrub it too much. Be gentle. That's also why you should never use something quite as hard as a screwdriver wrapped in cloth, to clean them. You'd be much safer using something soft like a Q-tip, and wrap it in a small piece of paper towel to prevent cotton fibers from sticking to the graphite.

That bluish coloring on the copper contact is just copper oxide (same thing as rust, except for it being on copper). It can be reused, is you simply make sure there is no oxidation on the small part of it that touches the conductive graphite (black part). Sometimes worn graphite contacts can be improved by simply getting some graphite dust on them using a common pencil. Just be sure to gently blow out any excess graphite dust before reassembling.

Otherwise, an excellent video. I came here mainly to become more visually familiar with how the potentiometers are set up on a PS4 controller, since I do not have many to risk breaking apart at the moment, and wanted to get an idea of what to expect.

[xxhoopgawdxx]

This guy knows what he’s talking about, i cleaned it and my drift was gone. However don’t make my mistake. Be careful, I was to rough and pulled out the wires that made my controlller vibrate,

[denalitherrien]

I didnt think this would work, but it actually did! I've done it on 2 controllers now, one of which was CONSTANTLY drifting upwards and the other was stuck in the middle and it was physically hard to move down. They both work perfectly now. Really appreciate it!

[HiGhRoLLeR]

Honestly Man, Thanks a lot. I rescued an actually “dead“ controller with your advice and it works surprisingly better than ever before. I was sceptical because it seamed kinda too easy and simple to maybe promise a huge effect but I was wrong.
Thanks Mate.

[lofentsemashego]

Bless your soul. I’ve been plagued with this problem for about a year now. It took me only like 10 minutes at most to fix it. You deserve a PS5 for this video alone bro. Godspeed

[brianna-ashtonroelfsema]

In my controller one of the white disk components was damaged and covered in a greesy black substance. The white disks have metal half ring sort of looking parts and a little metal arm on each side. One of the arms was broken off at the tip so I bent it up quite a bit so the height sort of matched on each one. I bent them all up a bit more then they were when I opened the sticks also. Works like new now. Thank you so much and to anyone doing controller surgery if those disks are damaged you may still be able to get it to work!
I’m not working and pretty broke so this video saved me 50 bucks and from boredom.

[ZaRappaBuilds]

Literally fixed my problem! Always good to maintain your equipment, While your working on your analog sticks, clean the buttons and the casing too! I feel like a professional after 20 minutes of YouTube videos lol thanks dude!

[mgansta]

You can also use a DualShock 3 analog rotator sensor as a replacement also. I tried it about a year ago and it worked without any issues. Great vid btw.

[darkrcn]

First try I messed up. Left analog stick kept going up forever. Damn!
A few days later I try again, this time I swapped the white piece with another broken controller I had lying around. Bam! It worked! Thanks so much!

[CammosFluffy]

"im assuming you know how to take it apart"

[Nate_the_Seeker]

I literally just got a brand new controller on Chirstmas and now it's already got sticky analog sticks.

[goodfinale]

This worked wonders for me (I have an Xbox One controller). Thanks a lot!
Just remember: don't scrub the carbon contacts too hard or too much with alcohol (especially if you're using isopropyl alcohol, which was the one I used), since it removes the carbon layer. I very gently scrubed the contact in a circular motion about two or three times with a q-tip/cotton swab and removed all the dirt.
Also, the green "door" or whatever it is wouldn't click back and shut in, so I found out the issue lied on the green pin on the bottom (the one that's below the upper two green pins), which wouldn't click in place for some reason. The only solution I found was to outright remove it by applying some pressure down on it with the tweezers. After I "broke" this bottom pin (and after I aligned the potentiometer with the rotating thingy, obviously), the green door shut fine.