Mouse Pads?

So I always used trackball mice before like 3 years ago when I got my first laser mouse, a g5. I've never gotten a mouse pad for it, though, just used my desktop. I've been wondering if a mouse pad really makes a difference. My desk is just finished wood, nothing special. I've been considering the func 1030 mouse pad...not gonna get a razer pad cause i just dont like razer in general. So what are your guys' opinions on mouse pads? Do they work really well or just a little or what? Please don't bother endorsing getting one if you've always used one and never played without one on like a wood veneer desktop. Thanks

I guess a Qck+ or a 5L should work fine for a G5

Like yourself I never used a mouse pad thinking they are a waste and do not do anything but when i got a mx518 a friend recomended a Func 1030. Upon installing (lol) I noticed a huge difference in the smoothness the mouse moved accross the mat compared to the table surfac also it will protect your desk from wearing out.
I initially used the smooth side of the func but have since worn it even smnoother, I can see light reflect off it more in the middle than the edges. well it is 3 years old.

exactmat+G5 = a great combination
trust me get a razor mouse mat they don't build their mouse mats like they do with their mouses and i have no idea how you can break mouse especially this gunmetal mat i have.

I have been using a G5 since it came out (V1 with one side button, now using a V2 once it came out) Like you I just used my desktop at first until about 3 months ago. My desktop wore out in the mouse area quite sometime ago, it was like the top layer of veneer wore off and a white surface below was showing through. When that happened I noticed inconsistency in the way the mouse was responding to my input so I decided to get a mat.

I tried a few of the various ones on the market but did not like them for various reasons. I am a fairly low sensitivity user so first thing I noticed was most mats just were not big enough, and I would be going off the mat or constantly having to adjust it. Second thing I noticed was that most of the slick surface types were just way too much for me, it felt like I was now a high sensitivity user even with a in game sensitivity of 1.5. The slick surfaces types just made my movements to fast, and the control sides didn't seem much better. The third thing I found irritating was that most of them made my wrist or arm uncomfortable as I was used to it being level with the desktop and now it was raised 1/4 inch or more depending on the mat.

After trying 3 or 4 different pads or mats I settled on a 10.00 supermat (http://www.handstands.com/retail/mouse- ... usemat.php). It's made of the same type of material that a standard mouse pad is and is extremely large and is only about 3/16 inch thick. I find my aim and control is as good as it ever was if not better using this pad. After getting used to it and liking it I got to thinking about something else, since I use my desktop and not a tray for my keyboard and mouse my elbows rest on the desktop while playing and after extended periods they tend to start hurting on the inside from contact with the wood. I went and bought two more of these pads and placed one on each side where my elbows rest and that made a very comfortable surface for my arms to rest on and it also elevated the right arm to feel like I'm at the same level as the mouse, just like before on the desktop.

Another thing I forgot to mention is you can customise your func mat with any picture you like thats if you can be bothered or are good a photoshop stuff.

Razer Mantis XL ftw!

2 versions available- Mantis Control and Mantis Speed, very large and the material doesn't outwear your mouse feets.

I'm using the Mantis Control (because I play with a very low sens) and it just rox !

Edit: I've used the Razer eXactmat for over 3 years before, so I think I can say: eXactmat < Mantis !

I <3 razer.
My mouse pad is a Steel Qck though, and I've found it really nice for my copperhead...
I agree with svN... a Qck (heavy or + if you are a low sens user), or a 5L should work fine.
Never tried razer pads but those must be good too ;P

Razer eXactMat is really good, I've had it for over a year now and it still feels and looks good. There is also have a new version called destructor which is only single sided but has a larger surface area.

I used to just use my desk, then bought a razer mantis control pad, and my game got way better. go figure....

steel series sx a bit smaller than the razers i used b4 but very good
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... %20Surface

http://www.esl-shop.net/product_info.ph ... cts_id/383

i still got my dell mousepad i used at fios. i remember in the days before the finals, there was a topic on the fios forum which asked everyone what their equipment was. i said a dell mousepad, dekk quietkey keyboard and some 5 dollar junk headset from radioshack, which was the truth. i also remember dirk said he had a mousepad with a picture of a train on it lol

when chrism, the head admin guy, saw our setup at the tournament he said he thought dirk and i were joking

personally i feel "gaming mousepads" are a bunch of bs to rip gamers out of money. i'm probably wrong on this, but i'll never buy some special gaming mousepad

tlc wrote:personally i feel "gaming mousepads" are a bunch of bs to rip gamers out of money. i'm probably wrong on this, but i'll never buy some special gaming mousepad

This ^

Im still using a piece of blue canvas ($2.99) that i picked up 3 years ago at an office supply store, and the only complaints i have are that its too small, and needs replacing due to age. I tried a couple of gaming mousepads ($25-40 each iirc) and found they were even worse than the cardboard box that i use as a desk (generally too slick, meaning the xhair would jitter onscreen), which doesnt say much for the pads overall.

When i replace the box with a table in a week or so, ill also be upgrading my pad to a piece of canvas thats 4x larger ($19.95) but otherwise pretty much identical to the pad i have now.

I tested a couple of gaming keyboards instore as well ($75+ each), and not only were they just as unable to handle more than 3-4 specific simultaneous keystrokes as the generic logitech kb ($5.95) that came with my pc, their response wasnt any better either. Also, i use my gfs noise-isolating earbuds ($16.95 iirc) as headphones, and while they could be better, they give better sound than my old zalman 5.1 surround full cup headset ($69.95) or any of the other gaming headsets ive tried in stores.

Otoh, my mx518 mouse ($39.95) is leagues better than the generic optical model ($9.95) that came with the pc, so gaming-specific gear can pay off sometimes at least, though most of it seems to just be generic junk with a load of tacky gimmicks and an extra zero added to the price.

truth. I'm using a generic Belkin mousemat with wristrest and I don't see how it's any worse or better than a "gaming" mousemat.

the main difference between the Fatal1ty keyboard I've been using for the last few months and the stock Dell keyboard I was using before that is, lower profile keys, which are a little more comfortable to use for long periods of time. and, MAYBE marginally more responsive since they take a few nanoseconds less time to press --- not really enough to make a big difference though.

the mouse on the other hand... I went from a 800DPI stock Dell mouse to a Razer Deathadder (1800DPI) and wow, what a difference. I mean, a gaming mouse doesn't automatically make a person awesome overnight, but it helps a lot to have one.

U guys will be surprise how much a mouse pad can make a difference once i got my exaxtmat and was bhopping and pulling of shots on the move with out a sweat. But i guess everyone is different on what dpi or how they want their mouse to feel and move.
never harms to test different alternatives to find out what suits u.

I might agree with tlc.
I don't think you need to buy the "latest gaming mousepad with special material to balblablbal and blablalbal"
Get something decent of good quality and that's it... no need to pay for the best.
Maybe there really IS a difference, but whatever...

I am using a white plastic cutting board for a mouse surface only because I was wearing through the veneer on the top of the desk. Its textured a bit and seems to work fine. It was easy to obtain and cheap at Walmart.

its obviously a personal choice but i did find a big diff changing from a razor mantis to a steel series SX maybe somethin to do wi spillin cofee on the mantis

I agree with what L2K writes - also playing with both elbows resting at the desk. I'm currently using a Razer Mantis control and am happy (I didn't like the Copperhead mouse I tried though). For a long time I used a func1030, thinking it was really good. If I go back to that now, however, it seems like the friction is too low in that I glide around too easily, resulting in less control. I think I prefer the cloth type just because it's a good balance between stability (which needs some friction) and precision (ultimately no friction). Not to mention it's comfortable and doesn't cool you down during those long winter playing sessions I'm probably not too dependent on a big mousing surface, but I don't really see any drawback with it either.

Every time I end up without a pad I get frustrated because of too much friction or inconsistencies due to reflections.

I have an MX518 too and play at fairly low sensitivity.

rocketfish. just under $20 at bestbuy. made of steel. 2 sides, labeled control and speed. good investment. mx518 with a 1.3 in game sensitivity.

Zman you summed it up right there... everyone says a desktop, wierd scrap pieces of plastic, or the backside of a placemat is just fine, but I'm telling every one of you... once you get a gaming mouse pad, especially with a high dpi mouse you will never accept anything else. My mouse movement smoothed out so well when I got it I was able to decrease my sensitivity from like 0.8 to 0.36... (4000dpi mind you).

Rachkir, I'm glad you got a rocketfish dude... lol. Like he said, it's about the only gaming mousepad you will find in a retail store. Bestbuy... $20.00 Razor is a good one and Steelpadz as well, but I've heard some horror stories with how they chew up the feet. My Lachesis is going on 6 months with this mat.

got a razer deathadder and a goliathus (control edition, large)
Playing with 0.54 @ 1800 dpi
Lovin' it :]

0nti wrote:got a razer deathadder and a goliathus (control edition, large)
Playing with 0.54 @ 1800 dpi
Lovin' it :]

Same, I've got the oversized goliathus and the death adder, playing with 0.630 @ 1800 dpi, I'd same the eXactmat was smoother and has better tracking but it's simply too small for my liking. I guess you can't have the best of both worlds!

Jelly Fox wrote:

0nti wrote:got a razer deathadder and a goliathus (control edition, large)
Playing with 0.54 @ 1800 dpi
Lovin' it :]

Same, I've got the oversized goliathus and the death adder, playing with 0.630 @ 1800 dpi, I'd same the eXactmat was smoother and has better tracking but it's simply too small for my liking. I guess you can't have the best of both worlds!

I'm also now using the oversized goliathus control pad and death adder using 0.75 @1800 dpi. It's miles better then the logitech G5 I was using in regards to accuracy, I do miss the the extra buttons and the tilt wheel on the G5 tho.

FOOK in hell, you low sens players.
I do need a buger mat though, my sens has gradually dropped from 15 to 0.61 since 2005 of course high DPI mice have a part in this.

I was thinking of buying a new mouse pad. Just a bigger one though.

keefy wrote:FOOK in hell, you low sens players.
I do need a buger mat though, my sens has gradually dropped from 15 to 0.61 since 2005 of course high DPI mice have a part in this.

At only £12 you can't go wrong with the Goliathus and can't get much bigger than 444mm x 355mm x 4.3mm

Control version:
http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/5985589/R ... oduct.html

Speed version:
http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/5985737/R ... oduct.html

Well, mouse pads is not helpful for me, because my mouse doesn't work on a smooth surface...and cause trouble when I play.

I recommend to buy a optical mouse, good with ''hard Surface''

Uh, I have this cheap-o deapo mouse pad. It's all nasty but I am pretty used to it now.

I just bought a mouse surface from SteelSeries. I saw them at the vid game show in Philly this weekend. Figured I would try them out.

LOL at Libby's post. I still rock my choo-choo mousepad, not saying its better, it's just preference, or actually, laziness and the unwillingness to go spend $10 on a pretty one with stars and planets on it I saw at Officemax the other day. I did almost break down and buy the one with kitties and puppies too.....but on a serious note, I do prefer foam for some reason, could just never get used to that "slick'' feel of some of the higher end pads.

I use a cheap Allsop white and silver thing. My only complaints is that it is a little too thick.

Ya I had a white plastic cutting board that has a similar texture to the steel series mouse surface. It was about 1/4 of an inch thick and I was always hitting my knuckles on the desk above the keyboard shelf. The steel series is about 1/3 the thickness and the surface seems to run the mouse much better.

BUMP

Oh... woops ;P looking into gaming mice mats right now and considering on getting 1 but pretty sure its pointless atm I'm using a USAF recruiters free mat that was being handed out and looking to see if it really is any difference on how the mouse tracks rather than how well it moves using a razer abyssus 0.75 sens @ 3500 d.p.i. lol roughly 2x higher than the other players out there thats right I'm a tw1tchy mother

1.6 @ 3500 dpi for me.

I use this mousepad.

Rocketfish sounds like a bad 4th of July.

i use this big mofo mat: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1214/4/

I had a Steelseries S&S mouse pad, liked that one, but I accidentally rubbed off the coating on the plastic while cleaning it (ironically 2 hours before the CU championships) and it was unusable after that.

I use one of these now http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/4 ... -Desk-Pad/ and I love it.

o_0 What did you clean it with!??

Goats blood.

Paradox wrote:o_0 What did you clean it with!??

Lol well I just used a dish rag like usual to wipe it off beforehand but I got frustrated because a few spots weren't coming off so I scrubbed really, really hard to get them off and I guess I actually took the coating off :/

i use some random 38 by 27 cm mousepad with the name of the shop i bought it from printed on...
i really like it cuz it has a metal canister for storage while going between lans. makes a nice weapon

SteelSeries QcK Heavy (its really big).
I got this one cause i got a low sens.

Link