Gladiator NXT EVO L turned into an R after resetting

[m1abrams]

I have a Gladiator NXT EVO L and R pair of joysticks. Today the left one was flashing, so I opened the device config utility and restarted the device. This didn't seem to help so I went to Tools and pressed the Default red button. After it rebooted, this joystick now shows up as "VKBSim Gladiator EVO R XT2 v2.165" even though it's lefthanded, and now none of the buttons or the twist axis register anything.

I followed all of the steps in this video to flash and calibrate again, but still no buttons or the twist work. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTZNUT8wmOA

[Ron61]

Show Global-External, Profile-Buttons tabs.

[m1abrams]

Hello, thank you for your quick response. Please see attached.

Also, even if I perform a calibration, after I press "End Calibration," the software simply asks me to calibrate again, as if it is not being saved?

[fallout9]

Click again the Default button, then make sure you click Yes at the popup asking to configure. Calibrate afterwards.

[m1abrams]

OK, I did:

Default -> stick reloaded -> "Do you want to configure" -> Yes -> stick reloaded -> "You need to calibrate" -> OK -> Start calibration -> I was able to calibrate axes X, Y, Z, but not RotZ -> End Calibration

This time it didn't ask me to calibrate again, but the lights are still flashing on the stick.

[Ron61]

Do not crop the configurator window in the screenshot. Try newer software and firmware from here.

[m1abrams]

OK, I downloaded firmware and software, not quite the latest as the website says.

I flashed the firmware, loaded the configurator in administrator mode, and performed the same steps as in my last post. Still the joystick only recognizes the 3 axes, no twist or buttons. And the lights are still flashing after calibrating.

If it makes a difference, the stick shows up red on Test -> External Devices. My other stick will be green here.

[fallout9]

Open up and check on the cable connecting the grip to the base, make sure it's properly plugged in and not damaged.

[m1abrams]

I checked that it was still plugged in and none of the cables (the red, black, yellow ones?) seemed loose or damaged. Should I try re-seating the connectors? EDIT: Re-seated both connectors. No fix.

Tonight when I plugged in the stick, the LEDs were not flashing, and the buttons were working again, but still the twist was not registering. The configurator window showed green on Test -> External Devices too. But as soon as I started moving the stick, the bars would fill up and turn red. Then about 30 seconds later I'm back to the same state as before: the LEDs are flashing and none of the buttons register.

[m1abrams]

Picture

[m1abrams]

It seems I can reliably reset the comms error by leaving the stick unplugged for a very long time (while I'm at work). But when trying to use it again, it will eventually return to the errored state.

[fallout9]

Pull out the grip and check the 3 wires. Be careful while taking out the grip and mounting it back. Check on the 3 wires. If you still don't see any damage open up the grip and pull the cable up and down through the twist module to make sure there's no damage along the wires (don't pull the wires completely out of the twist adapter!).

[m1abrams]

That was it! I also noticed that the connection error would disappear when squeezing the grip. Turns out the 3-pin connector *in* the grip was simply loose. Sorry for all the trouble, but I know more about troubleshooting now.