Guides
The Xbox Adaptive Controller on a Mac
The Xbox Adaptive Controller is a hub: two large buttons on top, a D-pad, and nineteen 3.5 mm ports on the back, one for every button and stick direction on a standard Xbox controller, plus two USB ports for joysticks. On a Mac it pairs like an Xbox Wireless Controller, and every switch plugged into it is an Xbox button as far as InputConfig is concerned. That makes it a way to build a controller out of whatever switches a person can use.
Steps
- Pair the Adaptive Controller over Bluetooth by holding its pairing button until the Xbox button blinks, then connect in System Settings, Bluetooth. Or use a USB-C cable.
- Plug switches into the ports for the actions you want. The port labels (A, B, X, Y, LB, RB, and so on) are the button each switch becomes.
- Download the Adaptive Desktop preset from this page and open it with InputConfig.
- Activate it. The two large buttons are click and Return by default; every port is mapped to something sensible.
- Press Scan on any row and press a switch to move that job to it.
- Put Emergency Stop on a switch that is easy to reach.
How the ports map
Each port on the back is named after an Xbox control, and a switch in that port sends that control. The two big top buttons are A and B. The left and right USB ports take a joystick, which becomes the left or right stick. There is no analog trigger unless a trigger accessory is used; the LT and RT ports send the digital trigger presses. InputConfig sees the whole thing as one Xbox controller, so any preset built for an Xbox pad works, and Scan captures a switch the moment it is pressed.
The desktop layout
The Adaptive Desktop preset assumes a joystick in the left USB port and a handful of switches, and it uses holds and double presses so few switches go a long way.
| Port | Press | Hold | Double press |
|---|---|---|---|
| Left USB joystick | Pointer | ||
| A (large button) | Click | Right click | |
| B (large button) | Return | Escape | |
| X | Scroll up | Page Up | |
| Y | Scroll down | Page Down | |
| LB | Go back | Go forward | |
| RB | Tab | Shift Tab | |
| View | Start Dictation | Speak Selection | |
| Menu | Spotlight | Mission Control | |
| D-pad | Arrow keys | ||
| LS (stick click) | Toggle drag | ||
| RS | Emergency Stop |
Anything not plugged in simply never fires. If the person uses a right-hand joystick instead, convert the rows by scanning them onto the right stick.
No joystick at all
The pointer can be driven from switches. Bind four switches to Mouse Motion up, down, left, and right with a low speed and Variable Sensitivity off, and a fifth to click. It is slower than a stick but completely usable, and a hold on each direction switch at a higher speed gives a fast mode. The few-buttons guide covers scanning-style layouts for one or two switches.
Games
Any Smart Preset Maker layout for an Xbox controller works unchanged; the switches simply are those buttons. For driving, one-stick driving takes the USB joystick as the whole vehicle. The Adaptive Controller has no gyroscope and no haptics, so those rows are unavailable, but spoken feedback through the Mac works on every row.
Reliability
- The Adaptive Controller sleeps after a period of no input. Any switch wakes it; a USB-C cable keeps it awake and charged.
- If it pairs but sends nothing, check that the switches are firmly seated. A half-inserted 3.5 mm plug is the usual cause.
- Export Backup after setting it up; the file restores the whole layout on any Mac.
Download
- Adaptive Desktop presetThe table above, built for an Xbox-family controller so every port of the Adaptive Controller lands on the right row. 10 KB
Open a downloaded preset with InputConfig, or drag it onto the app icon. It lands in the sidebar, ready to activate or edit. Any launch target inside a preset file is cleared on import; add one yourself in the editor if you want it.
Questions
Can I use both an Xbox controller and the Adaptive Controller together?
Yes. Each gets its own slot. A common setup is a standard controller in one hand and switches for the actions the other hand cannot reach.
Does the Copilot feature work?
Copilot is an Xbox console feature. On the Mac, the same result comes from binding two controllers in one preset, which InputConfig does natively.
Do the two USB joystick ports support any joystick?
They take the joysticks made for the Adaptive Controller and most USB HID joysticks. On the Mac side they appear as the left and right stick.
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