b0xx-ahk VS pico-rectangle

If you truly cannot purchase a controller or an adapter, then I recommend learning on keyboard. There is a script that allows keyboard to emulate a boxx-style controller. It's honestly a perfectly valid way to play melee, and helped prepare me for a real boxx controller.

Have you actually tried the layout, or are you just reluctant? If you haven't, I recommend trying the b0xx ahk software to get a feel for it without having to buy/build a rectangle controller.

Hmm, very interesting. I think I am up going this route, I am very interested in ergonomic keyboards too, I can even make one myself. What is the difference between a b0xx/frame1/some new ones I see like the Superslab vs a keyboard, saw this https://github.com/agirardeau/b0xx-ahk, however I have no idea if rectangles differ vs keyboards by having analog keys?

Leffen has a guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU_Lge6ql9o More importantly it links to: https://github.com/agirardeau/b0xx-ahk

If you plan on dipping your toes by playing online you can try a gaming keyboard and use this program to basically get the functionality of a Frame1.

Hey, as somebody who started off on a PS5 controller, I gotta tell you that keyboard is significantly better. By using the b0xx.ahk script (which can be found here: https://github.com/agirardeau/b0xx-ahk/) you can turn your keyboard into an unnerfed B0XX, which has a lot more capabilities than a PS5 controller. Since Dolphin reads all buttons on modern controllers as analog inputs, things like lightshielding are impossible to do with a PS5 controller. On top of this, tilting is much, much harder since the space between the center of the analog sticks and the edge of the frame are interpreted as much larger, so you need extremely precise and subtle tilts of the stick to avoid dashing, jumping, and up-smashing. It's definitely possible to get started with one, but they're very limited and really hard to use, and switching to keyboard (until I get a real b0xx) was the best decision I could've made.

Definitely, if you are on windows you can install this: https://github.com/agirardeau/b0xx-ahk and if you ever want to attend a tournament in person, you’d have to get or make a boxx controller. Try to map your keyboard in a similar layout to a boxx. Don’t go too crazy far from the default b0xxahk mapping . And have the mapping open and visible for the first weeks :) get uncle punch ! Have fun !

For super smash melee we use an ahk script to use keyboard for controller. That might work for you. https://github.com/agirardeau/b0xx-ahk

Check out https://github.com/JulienBernard3383279/pico-rectangle

That you don't have to worry about that being the case. If you want to see the nitty gritty of how it functions, here is the pico rectangle ultimate DAC algorithm

My main concern is power. The rp2040+ supports simultaneous charging and use, but I also want to make sure I don't accidentally leak power back up the cable (especially to the gamecube, since this could break it). I followed the circuit diagram for the usb c breakout, but since I am using a battery pack I have some concerns. There is also the rp2040+ schematic available online.

if you're playing on console it's a different story, you'd have to either get a prebuilt that works on the gamecube or use something like pico-rectangle.

Pico Rectangle - Arte

It's easy enough to write your own firmware for a box controller, the software is already out there on Github. So it's not enough even if all of Hitbox, Hax, Goomy, Greg Turbo, and Panda are all on board.