Lemme preface this by saying I played fighting games in and out of the arcades as a kid, but I grew up pretty poor so I didn't get to have as much arcade experience as I would've liked. I've since made up for this by buying the Hori FightStick VX and later the MadCatz Tournament Edition 2 and both are good, but the TE2's definitely the superior stick between the two. That being said, I mainly play on PC and the TE2 was a poor choice for that 'cuz the trigger buttons don't work at all on PC. I realize that my preference for fight pads stem from having more experience with fighting games on gamepads 'cuz I got the bulk of my real practice on consoles like the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis and later PlayStation and PlayStation 2. My thumbs are simply faster than the rest of my hands.
With that said, I own a MadCatz Street Fighter X Tekken FightPad, a MadCatz Street Fighter IV FightPad, a Sega Saturn (generation one; I really need generation two) controller and I recently bought a Mortal Kombat X FightPad. I'll go ahead and cover what I think of all of these pads so far.
Sega Saturn controller
Pros: Built to last, great d-pad, since it's basically button presses instead of a d-pad on a stick (I personally hate those, but to each their own).
Cons: This is a personal con and definitely not one that applies generally or to everybody, but I'm not a fan of the top buttons being smaller than the bottom buttons.
MadCatz Street Fighter IV FightPad
Pros: Face buttons are all the same size, making grabs, focus attacks and taunts real easy to do (I play a lot of USF4), d-pad mode is good for shotos and characters without charge moves or command grabs, left stick mode is essential for grapplers.
Cons: Charge moves are almost impossible to do on this pad because it doesn't handle diagonals well.
Note: The Street Fighter IV FightPad is bigger than the Street Fighter X Tekken FightPad SD, transition between them takes some getting used to.
MadCatz Street Fighter X Tekken FightPad SD
Pros: I never really had any problems ever doing anything on this pad until I got more used to the SF4 FightPad, but that's a transitional issue adjusting to the difference in size between the controllers. It works just as well for grapplers and charge characters as it does for shotos. Easily the best fight pad I own.
Cons: The d-pad on these are raised higher than the ones on the SF4 FightPads and it makes me nervous 'cuz I feel like it could just break off at any time. It hasn't, and I've owned it longer than any other fightpad I have, but the concern is still there. This might just be more of a personal thing than anything else, though.
PDP Mortal Kombat X Fight Pad
Pros: I can't wait to tear this controller a new asshole. The d-pad is mostly very good. The shoulder buttons are great and even work in Rayman Legends (too bad that's all I'll be using this pad for). The home/guide, start, select, menu, whatever buttons are all out of the way and almost impossible to hit accidentally (or intentionally). The face buttons have microswitches (too bad they suck).
Cons: Someone else pointed out in a video review that if you hold left or right long enough and then neutral jump, it registers as a jump in whatever direction you were just pressing. Doesn't happen every time, but definitely often enough to screw you over in a match. The face buttons register twice virtually every time you press them once. I can't input my password to log into my account without using the Xbox One wireless controller to do it instead, and when I attempt charged focus attacks in USF4, more often than not, it just lets a level 1 focus attack rip without seeking my permission first. The material is so light and cheap, I feel like I could snap it in half if I ever raged hard enough (thankfully, I'm not that kind of gamer). Overpriced.
If anyone has suggestions for some fight pads I don't own and wanna list their pros and cons for me, that'd be awesome and very much welcome. I've heard good things about the Hori Fighting Commanders. I'll likely order a Fighting Commander 4 soon.
With that said, I own a MadCatz Street Fighter X Tekken FightPad, a MadCatz Street Fighter IV FightPad, a Sega Saturn (generation one; I really need generation two) controller and I recently bought a Mortal Kombat X FightPad. I'll go ahead and cover what I think of all of these pads so far.
Sega Saturn controller
Pros: Built to last, great d-pad, since it's basically button presses instead of a d-pad on a stick (I personally hate those, but to each their own).
Cons: This is a personal con and definitely not one that applies generally or to everybody, but I'm not a fan of the top buttons being smaller than the bottom buttons.
MadCatz Street Fighter IV FightPad
Pros: Face buttons are all the same size, making grabs, focus attacks and taunts real easy to do (I play a lot of USF4), d-pad mode is good for shotos and characters without charge moves or command grabs, left stick mode is essential for grapplers.
Cons: Charge moves are almost impossible to do on this pad because it doesn't handle diagonals well.
Note: The Street Fighter IV FightPad is bigger than the Street Fighter X Tekken FightPad SD, transition between them takes some getting used to.
MadCatz Street Fighter X Tekken FightPad SD
Pros: I never really had any problems ever doing anything on this pad until I got more used to the SF4 FightPad, but that's a transitional issue adjusting to the difference in size between the controllers. It works just as well for grapplers and charge characters as it does for shotos. Easily the best fight pad I own.
Cons: The d-pad on these are raised higher than the ones on the SF4 FightPads and it makes me nervous 'cuz I feel like it could just break off at any time. It hasn't, and I've owned it longer than any other fightpad I have, but the concern is still there. This might just be more of a personal thing than anything else, though.
PDP Mortal Kombat X Fight Pad
Pros: I can't wait to tear this controller a new asshole. The d-pad is mostly very good. The shoulder buttons are great and even work in Rayman Legends (too bad that's all I'll be using this pad for). The home/guide, start, select, menu, whatever buttons are all out of the way and almost impossible to hit accidentally (or intentionally). The face buttons have microswitches (too bad they suck).
Cons: Someone else pointed out in a video review that if you hold left or right long enough and then neutral jump, it registers as a jump in whatever direction you were just pressing. Doesn't happen every time, but definitely often enough to screw you over in a match. The face buttons register twice virtually every time you press them once. I can't input my password to log into my account without using the Xbox One wireless controller to do it instead, and when I attempt charged focus attacks in USF4, more often than not, it just lets a level 1 focus attack rip without seeking my permission first. The material is so light and cheap, I feel like I could snap it in half if I ever raged hard enough (thankfully, I'm not that kind of gamer). Overpriced.
If anyone has suggestions for some fight pads I don't own and wanna list their pros and cons for me, that'd be awesome and very much welcome. I've heard good things about the Hori Fighting Commanders. I'll likely order a Fighting Commander 4 soon.