Don't buy a Stream Deck — turn your old Xbox controller into one instead

• I turned an old wireless controller into a cheap Stream Deck-style macro pad.

• I used reWASD to map buttons to hotkeys, combos, and media.

• The Elgato Stream Deck is still worth it for the dedicated screens and software support.

I've always wanted a Stream Deck to create custom buttons, speed up my workflow, and make functions more accessible while gaming, but I could never justify the price. That's when I realized I could just turn my old controller, sitting on my desk gathering dust, into a macro pad instead.

Why an old controller can become the perfect Stream Deck

In case you're not familiar, the Stream Deck is a macro-pad-like device made by Elgato, mainly for streamers to program custom actions on its buttons. Over time, the term has become shorthand for any similar device, which is why I'm referring to my makeshift controller as a Stream Deck.

The only "problem" with the Elgato Stream Deck is that it's relatively expensive. The cheapest one is the Elgato Stream Deck Mini , but it only has six buttons. Even Stream Deck clones like the AJAZZ AKP153 and Fifine AmpliGame can set you back a pretty penny. And while the buttons having screens is undoubtedly a nice feature, the cost is a bit too high for some.

A much cheaper alternative would be to get a dedicated number pad like the EPOMAKER EK21 . This works pretty well, especially if your keyboard doesn't already have a number pad—plus dedicated models often have an Fn button to make accessing the function layer (a second set of keys) easier. You can even use relegendable keycaps to make custom keys not too dissimilar to the tiny screens on the Stream Deck.

However, a number pad also costs money to obtain, and why spend money when there's an even better option that's free—a controller.

By the way, you can use an old phone as a stream deck with the Stream Deck Mobile app . I don't have one lying around, and I don't want to use my primary phone for this because it'd be annoying.

After I upgraded to the GameSir Cyclone 2 earlier this year, my Xbox One controller has been doing nothing but collecting dust on my desk. Aside from the once-in-a-blue-moon occasion when I play couch co-op with someone , I just have no use for it anymore.

That's when I realized I could put it to good use as a Stream Deck-style macro pad instead. It has plenty of buttons that Windows treats as separate inputs, so they won't clash with my mouse and keyboard driver-wise.

Plus, the buttons are all fairly distinct, meaning it's not the end of the world that I can't have visual cues to remind me what they do—I could just memorize them.

Another nice benefit is that the controller is wireless, so I can place it wherever I want on my desk and even use it from bed to control my media ( I use my PC as my central media hub ). I've equipped the controller with two rechargeable AA batteries, but I can also always just plug it in and use it wired if it runs out of juice.

How to turn a controller into a Stream Deck

There are several programs you can use to create custom bindings and macros on your controller. Surprisingly, one of them is Steam with its Desktop Configuration, though I found it somewhat confusing and limited in functionality.

Third-party apps tend to be a much better solution. A free-ish (shareware) option you could try is JoyToKey , but I found reWASD to be the most versatile and easiest to use. For my purposes here, I'll be using the trial version of reWASD.

After installing reWASD, setting up custom actions was fairly straightforward. I select an input on the controller, and then choose what action I want the button to perform from the dropdown menu.

It's surprising how much functionality this unlocks. A single button can perform multiple actions if set up properly.

For example, I set the Y button to copy (Ctrl+C) if I press it once, and paste (Ctrl+V) if I press it twice. My B button is set to open Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc). It's easier and more comfortable than doing finger gymnastics to press complicated keyboard hotkeys.

Another cool use case I found is inserting special symbols that my keyboard can't output otherwise. Some I use all the time are the en dash (–), em dash (—), and degree (º). I did this using their respective Unicode inputs and the Combo option.

For instance, to send an em dash, I created a combo that outputs Alt+0151 and then moved the upstroke of the Alt button to the end of the combo—you have to do this for every combo you create with the virtual keyboard instead of your physical one.

I even set one of the buttons in place of Print Screen, as some of my keyboards don't have a dedicated key, and I want to continue using the available navigation keys instead of rebinding them to Print Screen.

In addition to productivity hotkeys, I also used reWASD for media controls. This was perhaps the easiest setup, as media players largely share the same controls. I could just use keyboard inputs—space for play/pause, the D-pad for the arrow keys, M for mute, F for fullscreen, V for subtitles, and so on.

reWASD actually allows you to set up multiple configurations simultaneously, but I personally find it's easier to memorize a single profile instead, even with multiple layers enabled.

This DIY solution works great, but a dedicated Stream Deck is still worth buying

Although reWASD works really well, there's one major drawback—it's not entirely free. Right now, the lifetime access plan is on sale for $40, but the regular price is $100. I've seen posts online indicating that it's frequently discounted even further, but still, the price isn't too far off from one of those Stream Deck clones.

The drawback of those Stream Deck clones is their poor software, though, which is typically much worse than reWASD.

Ultimately, if you want the best solution with custom per-button screens and doesn't cut any corners, you might want to get the original Elgato Stream Deck. If price is a concern, you could always try JoyToKey and pay the $7.50 license if you like it, which is something I'll probably end up doing.