| OVERALL VERDICT The Qanba Crystal is a decent mid-tier fightstick that boasts beautiful design, responsive buttons, and a unique LED light system. |
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| PROS + Good size and weight makes the Crystal comfortable to hold + Eye-catching design + LED lights look cool and have different modes + Qanba buttons and stick are responsive | CONS - Modding the stick is difficult - Plexi panel tends to squeak |
| Check on Amazon | |
After the moderate success of the Qanba Drone, Eightarc decided to release the Qanba Crystal, aimed at the growing mid-tier fightstick market.
The Qanba Crystal’s price range means it competes with the HORI RAP4 and HORI RAP N.
Two excellent sticks in their own right!
So how does the Qanba Crystal Fair? Is it worth getting in 2020? Find out in this review.
Unboxing and set up – what’s in the box and how to set it up
The Qanba Crystal is well packaged to prevent any potential knocks or bangs while in shipping. Included in the box are the fightstick and an instructions manual.
Like the Drone, the Qanba Crystal is officially licensed by Sony. Therefore it’s very easy to set up on PS3 or PS4. Just set the switch on the right side of the stick to the desired platform and plug it in and play.
The Qanba Crystal works on PC too. Just set the switch to PS3 (XINPUT), and it should download the relevant drivers and start working immediately.
This is a little easier than the Drone, which I understand had some issues connecting to PC.
The design and feel of the fightstick
The Qanba Crystal is noticeably bigger than the Drone. It measures roughly 17 inches across (43cm). I’ve had bigger sticks, of course, but its size pretty much fits perfectly on my lap.
The Crystal has a decent weight at 7 pounds (3kg). Rest assured, the stick doesn’t move around on my lap and feels comfortable to hold. There are 2 anti-slip strips on the bottom which further prevent it from sliding on a table, for instance.
The design of the Qanba Crystal is, in a word, awesome. Firstly, the case is made up of solid plastic and is translucent for that crystal-like effect. The artwork has been illustrated with some cool Chinese calligraphy.
Finally, the buttons and ball top are white with a translucent effect around the LED (more on that later). If I have one minor complaint, having the ball top translucent would have been nice to match the stick’s overall design. Although, this can be modded in, so no biggie.
The Crystal has a pop-out carrying handle at the top. This is useful for carrying the stick around, like in a tournament setting. In addition, there’s also a hidden compartment for cable storage. Unlike other sticks, this doesn’t have a flap to open and close the compartment door.
Instead, this is done by a magnet. This is a lot better and doesn’t feel cheap or flimsy.
What does it feel like to play?
Eightarc has used its joystick and buttons in the Qanba Crystal. Interestingly, this is different from the Qanba Obsidian and Qanba Dragon.
However, these are more expensive fightsticks, so it makes sense that Eightarc would choose to go with their parts.
So how does the Crystal Fair? Surprisingly good. First, the buttons are a bit heavy (probably because of the LEDs) and not light to touch like on a Sanwa stick. So you do have to press them a bit. At the same, however, they are very responsive.
I would probably compare them to Seimitsu buttons, which are not bad. The joystick isn’t too bad either and responds well.
As far as I could see, I didn’t get any missed inputs, like I sometimes get with the Drone, no matter how much I messed with it.
Would I prefer Sanwa parts? Yes, probably. But for a beginner, the standard Qanba parts would be more than sufficient and a lot better than a stock Qanba Drone or other budget fightsticks.
One annoying thing I noticed when playing was the stock plexi that comes with the stick does tend to make a squeaking sound, especially when resting my wrists on it. But, again, it’s not a dealbreaker, and you get used to it after a while, but it’s just something that’s a bit off.
In terms of the functional buttons, such as the START, OPTIONS, PS BUTTON, etc., you have these on the right side of the stick. These are slightly positioned downwards and away from the main buttons to prevent accidentally pressing these while in a match.
In addition, there’s also a handy PS4 touchpad on the top right of the stick.
LED Lights
Now for Crystal’s party trick. The LED light system. By default, pressing buttons or moving the joystick will trigger the LED system. That is, the buttons and joystick will light up.
There are different modes to this which are controlled by a button on the right. This button will change color depending on what mode the stick is in. The default mode is red, which, as mentioned above, triggers the LED system on an input.
In green mode, all LED lights will turn on whenever there is a vibration trigger in the game. Blue mode activates all the LED lights and keeps them on. Finally, you can turn off the LED lights if you don’t want them.
It’s a neat trick. Probably one of the more appealing features of the stick. Does it help you play better? Probably not. Therefore it is only a gimmick, in my opinion. But it looks cool, especially when playing in the dark.
Modding
Having the LED system in place means modding the Qanba Crystal is more difficult than a normal fightstick.
It’s not impossible, but you’ll require at least a tutorial to make sense of the LED lights and wires. Here’s a good one.
While the stock buttons aren’t bad, they could be better. That’s why I recommend putting in Sanwa buttons and a Sanwa JLF lever. Having Sanwa parts will instantly elevate the stick to match its higher-end brothers like the Qanba Obsidian and Dragon.
Another thing you might want to replace is the stock plexi that comes with the stick. This is to add your custom artwork and fix the annoying squeak the plexi makes when playing.
The Good
- Good size and weight makes the Crystal comfortable to hold
- Eye-catching design
- LED lights look cool and have different modes
- Qanba buttons and sticks are responsive
- Carrying handle
- Magnetic storage compartment for cable management
- Handy PS4 touchpad
- Reasonably priced mid-range stick
The Bad
- Modding the stick is difficult
- Plexi panel tends to squeak
Overall Verdict
The Qanba Crystal is a decent mid-tier fightstick with a beautiful design, responsive buttons, and a unique LED light system.
| OVERALL VERDICT The Qanba Crystal is a decent mid-tier fightstick that boasts beautiful design, responsive buttons, and a unique LED light system. |
|
| PROS + Good size and weight makes the Crystal comfortable to hold + Eye-catching design + LED lights look cool and have different modes + Qanba buttons and stick are responsive | CONS - Modding the stick is difficult - Plexi panel tends to squeak |
| Check on Amazon | |
Qanba Crystal
