Xbox controller no longer working properly on Windows 10 PC
Thirith
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I've been using an Xbox controller on my PC that's connected wirelessly via an Xbox dongle. Over the weekend, I've been having the following problem: where before I was able to connect normally by pressing the Xbox button, the controller now blinks twice, then it disconnects (or stops connecting).
At first I thought that I'd simply have to update the firmware on the controller, since that's what a bunch of pages said, but this didn't change anything. The controller still won't connect properly. However, if I connect the controller with a USB cable, activate it and then disconnect the cable, the gamepad stays connected wirelessly. Next time I switch on the PC, however, we're back to the controller simply not connecting but switching off after two blinks.
Any idea what could be the problem - and, more importantly, how I could solve it?
P.S.: I've tried the dongle in different USB ports, but this doesn't seem to make any difference. Anyway, I don't think it's a case of the controller not finding the dongle, because in that case it would keep blinking and looking to make a connection for about half a minute before giving up.
At first I thought that I'd simply have to update the firmware on the controller, since that's what a bunch of pages said, but this didn't change anything. The controller still won't connect properly. However, if I connect the controller with a USB cable, activate it and then disconnect the cable, the gamepad stays connected wirelessly. Next time I switch on the PC, however, we're back to the controller simply not connecting but switching off after two blinks.
Any idea what could be the problem - and, more importantly, how I could solve it?
P.S.: I've tried the dongle in different USB ports, but this doesn't seem to make any difference. Anyway, I don't think it's a case of the controller not finding the dongle, because in that case it would keep blinking and looking to make a connection for about half a minute before giving up.
"Nothing is gonna save us forever but a lot of things can save us today." - Night in the Woods
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(I just came from your other, presumably unrelated thread.)
How old is this gamepad? I presume it's not one of the ones issued since the Xbox Series revision (those gamepads are smaller, and they have a dedicated media button in the middle; but more relevantly, they can switch between Xbox RF and Bluetooth, which if they're not synced to an Xbox, means they won't do anything until they're switch back which can be finicky). I assume this is an older controller, given you were using a wireless adapter (I have the same first-party adapter from Microsoft). Two blinks, as you're describing it, usually means the Xbox is searching for a device but giving up (it can also sometimes result from the batteries being too depleted, so the controller gives up trying to re-sync itself). I assume you di replace the batteries?
"Nothing is gonna save us forever but a lot of things can save us today." - Night in the Woods
Try and determine if it's one of the controllers that has BT support; those became available even before the Xbox Series launched (keep in mind, the original Xbox One gamepad standard launched almost ten years ago, and effectively all Microsoft Xbox game pads conform to the same standards and have the same general shape, they just added functionality over time, like BT as well as Xbox RF). It really sounds like you might've been stuck in the wrong mode for what you were using it in, and the controller has no way of switching itself to the other mode; it instead thinks your device is just missing or unreacheable, checks for a bit, then gives up.