AYN Odin Analog Stick Upgrade Guide

I've always felt the AYN Odin analog sticks were a tiny bit too small, recessed, and wobbly. This simple upgrade will give you taller sticks, grippier caps, and smoother overall gameplay.

Note that for the Vita caps, you will need to buy TWO sets if you want matching patterns (each set of six has different patterns). Once you have swapped your analog sticks, be sure to use the Joystick Calibration tool in the system settings to properly calibrate your sticks.

Timestamps:
00:00 introduction
01:41 testing grip caps
03:39 Odin teardown
04:57 stick replacement
05:59 adding caps
08:45 testing & conclusion

Theme song written by Jim Gray of Our Ghosts:

Note that this description may contain affiliate links. By clicking on an affiliate link and buying something, I may earn a small commission of the sale at no extra cost to you.

This video is for entertainment and educational purposes only.

#AYNOdin #retrogaming #retrohandhelds

[ZackMorris]

I don't own an Odin, don't plan on it, but I still watched all this video because these videos are so thorough and chill that I can't help but watch it all.

[the_mystical_pigeon]

Thank you so much for this. I very quickly developed a jittery stick making any games relying on the right stick unplayable. This mod was super easy as you showed, saved my console and I've got better joysticks to boot.

[travishamiltontattoos]

I just switched my sticks thanks to your guide. Man, its making High on Life much better. You're doing the lords work.

[HollyriousYT]

I've done this mod and after about a week it's just been night and day. It's so good.

[BlaneStroud]

For the record, you can put those vita caps directly on the tops of the sticks. I have the exact same set, and managed to get it. It's not easy, especially if you're fat fingered, but if you flip them inside out, place them directly on the center of the stick, then press down, they'll flip back the right way and attach to the sticks. If you're off-center, they won't attach though, and it's basically impossible to just slide them on, like you tried in the video. But, you can 100% get them on the Odin Pro's analog sticks, and they don't interfere with movement in games like Halo.

[slarouche]

I LOVE the Odin, the only current downside is the sticks. Thank you very much for the video!

[Steven-phpp]

So just a heads up as I just had this happen to me recently, but if the spring goes in the trigger buttons (L2 and R2) just buy PS4 trigger buttons and just cut the bent top off and it'll work and fit perfectly. You can get them cheaply off Amazon and most times they sell them in a 10 pack.

[anthonyhca]

Tried the exact combo as you did at the start. I thought it was the Odins fault. Took them off and went back to normal. Good thing to come across this video.

[YunGrey]

Just did this mod to my Odin, and can say from personal experience that doing this is an upgrade.
One dispute I do have, is at 5:21 when Russ claims that the caps on the aftermarket Switch sticks he ordered are too big to fit through the hole, they will actually fit through with a mild squeeze. But they do fit through undamaged. I used the links provided in the description, so I believe I ordered the exact sticks. However, because of the larger diameter of the caps on the aftermarket Switch sticks, you might run into the stick caps bottoming out on the shell before full tilt. I would only do this if you REALLY liked the stock caps. The Vita caps are clear choice here.
One thing you can do if you really just dislike the stock Odin caps, and don't really care about having a slightly taller stick, is you can just take the caps off of the stock Odin sticks and the Vita caps fit on perfectly fine. I did not test using them in this way in any games, so I cannot say for certain if they bottom out, but the aftermarket Vita caps are slightly thicker on the bottom than the stock Odin ones, so it's possible that they will bottom out before full tilt. The stock Odin caps will fit back on, but will only fit correctly if perfectly rotated with the nubs point in each cardinal direction, and might be permanently loose.

[NOMORESNAKESMUSIC]

This was a great video on how to change the sticks over if you have complications with the stock ones or fancy upgrading to the new switch style ones. I was very sceptical about opening it up with the odin being a £300+ unit however this video is very well put together giving you each step of the process.

I have done the exact stick swap mentioned in the video and I have found it to be a better upgrade than the stock sticks. You can also if you persevere get the sticks through the holes in the odin when swapping them out if you don't want to use the vita caps, but do that at your own risk. This took my odin from being average to what I think is a great upgrade, (again personal preference).

RGC with another cracking video

[MrCapHammer]

Actually I didn't want to replace the analog sticks on my Odin because they worked fine for me. Until yesterday.
The right analog stick had some minor drifting issues since my Odin arrived, but I could fix it with the deadzone parameters, it worked for me. But yesterday the stick didn't want to recognize any input from me, so I replaced both sticks.
Thankfully I ordered some Switch sticks and Vita caps before my Odin arrived and with your guide it was way easier than I expected it to be.
Thank you very much for your great work!

[LessonsOnTheWeb]

Now if you could upgrade the sticks in the RP2+, I'd be super interested. This upgrade on that device would be more worth it I think.

[richardmunn]

After suffering two thumbsticks with drift, I tried this and it’s brilliant. The one big improvement is that Switch sticks have a little more resistance to the stock Odín ones.

[Sam-rozt]

Thank you so much for this video. I followed it as shown and now my Odin has zero drift issues!

[malsisko]

I flippin love you, Russ... Having problems with the caps I had been using for my 351mp. Can't wait to see you're face button replacement video!

[Phoenix]

Did this myself earlier today, took like 10mins. Good call my friend. It’s deff an improvement 👍🏻

[bonepileofficial]

i 3d printed new sticks 5mm taller, it rocks! just take apart a switch joystick, and replace the whole stick part. works like a charm.

[Blackbird]

I just did this last week and think it’s a worthy upgrade. It’s not a night and day difference, but I can tell a difference in general. Definitely looking forward to the gulikit sticks though. Gonna drop those into my Odin and all my joycons!

[samharing]

Finally Gulikit's Hall sensor sticks for the Joycons are available for purchase.
On paper, it's the perfect replacement. Hall sensing technology, removable caps (so it can be dropped right into the Odin with ease).
Following Russ's guide the entire process is done within minutes, but... alas, here I am, having reverted back to the original Odin sticks.

YMMV, but the Gulikit sticks I had tried, did not have a clearly defined neutral position. This caused the calibration process to be wonky
and you ended up with stick drift the Hall sensing technology was supposed to eliminate.
I have not tried using a magnet to counter the offsets, but, IMHO, you shouldn't have to do that with an "official" product.

The analog sticks also don't run in a perfect circular motion inside their own housing. It's more of a square pattern.
(Anyone remember the Quickshot QS-113 Deluxe?)
I have never owned a Nintendo Switch, so I can't tell if it's supposed to behave like that.

With the Gulikit sticks installed, when ingame, the Odin's screen also would not reliably detect swiping from the edges anymore,
without having to "Alt-Tab" to the homescreen via menu button first.

On top of that, one of the stick also made clicking noises, but at that point my disappointment was already immeasurable.

All in all I wasted twenty minutes and also scarred the pristine edges and clearances of my white Odin Lite with the prying tool.

So, if you ever felt the need for higher sticks, I'd recommend going the cheaper way with the normal Switch sticks.
Just chuck them out again if they start to get bad.

But feel free to share any positive experiences you have if you ever try the Gulikit Hall sensor sticks. :)

[lotsati]

Ever think about streaming or making non-retro handheld videos? I don't own many of these devices you review/mod but I still watch your videos because you've got a really nice voice to listen to in the background lol.