[quote name='asianxcore']A physical modification. Basically opening up the joystick, then replacing the joystick and buttons with better parts.
There are very few joysticks that are great out of the box, and a lot of people mod them to make them better overall.
Yes, Ubichu you can mod joysticks. Some are easier than others, but just take a look at the mod for the Street Fighter Anniversary Stick[/quote]
Thanks, asianxcore and Pookymeister for answering my questions.
Given that these modifications don't change the functionality but replace parts with better ones, it sounds like modding the Hori arcade stick should be unnecessary because people say it's already of very good quality. In other words, the people who rave about this stick are talking about it as it comes out of the package and not talking about a modded version, right?
The SFA stick mod looks so involved. I couldn't handle it myself (if I had one). So all I care is that the Hori joystick is good out of the box, and it sounds like that's the case.