As for their sticks, I bought a Marvel vs Capcom Tournament Edition stick straight from Mad Catz's online shop, which not only would get "stuck" in random positions periodically even though the stick was centered physically, but would be recognized by the PS3 about half the times I plugged it in(again, this was a brand new item straight out of the box.)

I have bought four Mad Catz officially licensed Street Fighter 4 Fightpads.

This stick is easier to handle, more reliable, and even significantly cheaper that what Mad Catz offers.

I'm far from being a conspiracy nut, but I'm amazed that Mad Catz is so widely preferred by most pro players I watch clips of, and wonder if they're not deliberately making mostly shoddy products but making a few good ones for the pros that constantly endorse their sticks in videos and by using them in tournaments.

While it's only anecdotal on my part, it seems likely that rather than a coincidence, my bad luck with four out of five Mad Catz products is a result of bad design, bad Quality Assurance, or both.