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Intermittent button issues on Thrustmaster TCA Yoke Boeing E

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Hi everyone,

I am experiencing a very strange and frustrating issue with my Thrustmaster TCA Yoke Boeing Edition, and I’m hoping someone here has encountered this or knows a fix.

The problem is that the buttons on the yoke itself work only intermittently. Sometimes they work perfectly, and a few moments later, they completely stop responding.

Here is what makes it unusual:

  • The axes work perfectly: Pitch, roll, and the dual sliders on the base have absolutely no issues and remain 100% accurate.

  • Connected peripherals work fine: My Boeing Throttle Quadrant and Rudder Pedals are routed through the yoke's built-in USB/connector ports, and they work flawlessly without any dropouts.

  • In the air vs. on the ground: I noticed that when I am parked on the ground, everything usually works fine. However, once I get airborne, the buttons start acting up or stop working altogether. Most of the time, they only work "halfway" or register inputs randomly.

What I have tried so far:

  • I tried plugging the USB cable directly into the motherboard ports at the back of the PC.

  • I tried using the front ports on the PC case.

  • I have tried multiple different USB-C cables to connect the yoke, but the issue remains exactly the same.

  • The issue persists regardless of the USB port or cable used.

I have recorded a short YouTube video to show exactly what is happening. You can see the behavior here: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DZqJssQz9Ss

Has anyone experienced this specific issue where only the yoke buttons fail while the axes and daisy-chained peripherals keep working? Could it be a Windows USB power saving setting, a firmware bug, or an internal hardware/ribbon cable issue?

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated!

There's a handy utility called DIView on the Leo Bodnar website that shows you the hardware-level inputs your HID devices are making. I would get that and monitor the yoke while exercising the buttons/axes, and see if those spurious inputs are, in fact, coming from the controller. If they are, and occur randomly without moving the yoke, then I'd try re-flashing the firmware (see: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Flash+and+re-install+the+firmware+of+TCA+Yoke/177099 )

If moving the yoke makes the button issues appear, then I'd strongly suspect a loose connector or broken/pinched cable between the yoke head and the USB module inside the unit. That might be user-repairable. I've done mods and repairs on their joysticks a bunch of times, but haven't yet had occasion to open up my yoke.

Bob Scott | President and CEO, AVSIM Inc
ATP Gulfstream II-III-IV-V

Sys1 (MSFS20+24/XPlane12+11): AMD 9800X3D, water 2x240mm, MSI MPG X670E Carbon, 64GB GSkill 6000/30, nVidia RTX4090FE
Alienware AW3821DW 38" 21:9 GSync, 2x4TB Crucial T705 PCIe5 + 2x2TB Samsung 990 SSD, EVGA 1000P2 PSU, 12.9" iPad Pro
Thrustmaster TCA Boeing Yoke, TCA Airbus Sidestick, Twin TCA Airbus Throttle quads, PFC Cirrus Pedals, Coolermaster HAF932 case

Sys2 (P3Dv5/v4): i9-13900KS, water 2x360mm, ASUS Z790 Hero, 32GB GSkill 7800MHz CAS36, ASUS RTX4090
Samsung 55" JS8500 4K TV@60Hz,
3x 2TB WD SN850X 1x 4TB Crucial P3 M.2 NVME SSD, EVGA 1600T2 PSU
Fiber link to Yamaha RX-V467 Home Theater Receiver, Polk/Klipsch 6" bookshelf speakers, Polk 12" subwoofer, 12.9" iPad Pro
PFC yoke/throttle quad/pedals with custom Hall sensor retrofit, Thermaltake View 71 case, Stream Deck XL button box

Sys3 (DCS/P3Dv4/ATS/ETS): AMD 7800X3D, MSI MPG X870E Carbon, Noctua NH-D15S, 64GB GSkill 6000/30, EVGA RTX3090
Alienware AW3420DW 34" 21:9 GSync, Corsair HX1000i PSU, 4TB Crucial T705 PCIe5 + 2TB Samsung 970Evo Plus,
TM TCA Officer Pack
, Saitek combat pedals, TM Warthog, TM RS300 FF wheel/pedals, Coolermaster HAF XB case

  • Author

But the quattrant is working fine? So i dont think its the corrupted driver

I''ve had the same problem and found a peculiar way to solve it. I removed the front cover (6 screws) as shown in this video: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5z1ndJ2SBi0.

That's all I had to do. Since I removed the cover (and replaced it without screws) the problem didn't occur anymore.

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