The RAT 9 gaming mouse, 1 year later... I need to discuss potential replacements.

[senvae]

I recently worked up the budget to buy a new mouse. I've been using the Saitek Cyborg RAT 9 wireless gaming mouse for over a year now, and while I'm happy with it, it's not perfect. Furthermore, my current one is in bad shape due to various reasons, but some of the issues I have with it aren't from wear and tear.

So I would like to ask any other gaming mouse owners if they've encountered the same problems and if they can be fixed. Especially fellow RAT 9 owners.

1- Is it true that pale coloured mouse pads work better than dark ones? I have 2 gaming mouse pads at home and while using either the RAT 9 seems to have inconsistent tracking. It doesn't matter if the mouse pad has been wiped clean or not, or it the bottom of the mouse device has been cleaned as well. Speeds will suddenly reduce, as if I had lowered the DPI. But I check my settings and they are correct or unchanged.

2- Has anyone else ever had issues with the USB ports? It seems like I have to re-plug the USB cable to the receiver after changing the battery of the RAT 9. Sometimes I won't have to do it for a while, but other times (like right now), I have to do it every single time. At first I thought it was just one of the batteries that caused this, but now it doesn't matter which one I change. The mouse will not track unless I re-plug the USB cable after a battery change.

If either of those 2 problems could get fixed, I would without question buy another RAT 9 to replace my currently aesthetically broken one. (With badly worn pads).

Am I the only guy with these issues?

 

[ssddx]

i have seen quite a few issues arise with the r.a.t. mice from tracking issues as you said to them breaking because of their adjustable nature. personally i always suggest people to avoid them.

i never had issues on the laser or led mice that i've owned with dark or light mousepads. the only tracking issues i have found is when moving across high contrast areas with alot of detail. for instance if you have a mousepad with alot of bright white text on a black background you could have tracking issues. on solid mousepads i never have had any issues but keep in mind that if you lift up a laser mouse it will continue to track. if you would like an example see below

http://www.tekmat.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/800x526/17f82f742ffe127f42dca9de82fb58b1/1/7/17-1911_1.jpg

this is the mousepad i use. sure its not designed as one but its the same material. the complete right side never has tracking issues while on some mice the left side has issues. my current mouse, a razer deathadder, does not have any tracking issues on this particular surface.

my logitech m505 wireless laser mouse which i use for travel with my laptop does have more issues with busy surfaces. my old logitech mx1000 had much less issues and tracked on most surfaces fine.

a solid color mousepad should have zero issues with any mouse type. i have tested this and have not had any issues with any of the mice i own. again, a cloth mousepad.

---

i can say that using a mousepad greatly increase the lifespan of the teflon feet on mice. the razer mouse i am using is over three years old and still has much life left in its pads. of course, i use nothing but cloth pads and not the hard gaming pads which seem to be so popular (and a waste of money). my one logitech mouse is about 10 years old and still works although the pads are lower because i originally did not use a pad. it sounds as if your mouse has worse pads on a newer mouse.

i have heard that hard mousepads such as the common gaming models do eat away at your mouse teflon feet quite aggressively. another reason to avoid them in my opinion.

---

there should be a connect button on wireless mice. after changing the batteries it should autoconnect but if not you can press this button. i've never had much of an issue with this.

if it doesnt have a button or this does not work then i would have to chalk it up as another issue with the rat line of mice. provided of course that a regular usb mouse doesnt have issues on your system.

---

as far as what to buy?

logitech and razer seem to be the biggest contenders but you can very well make due with most other mice just do a review first. there are no perfect options.

my razer deathadder is a switch from the old wireless mx1000 and i can say that the cord really isnt much of an issue. the razer does attract dust like a magnet because of the surface texture but otherwise has had zero issues which is suprising for a razer product.

---

just a few things for you to ponder over.

 

[senvae]

I personally had 2 Razer mice simultaniously on 2 different computers. The first one "Mamba" stopped tracking dead after 3 months, got it RMA'd. Came back fine again. Second one "Naga" same issue, also in 3 months. The Mamba then also broke down after 3 months once again. I also met 2 different people who had the EXACT same issue with them. I will never buy Razer ever again, not in a million years.

The RAT 9 is actually quite an impressive mouse which also offers more customizing options than my Razer mice did, software AND hardware. To be fair, the only reason the thumb rest portion of my mouse broke was because I dropped it while changing the battery. I also managed to solve my traction problem. Apparently the issue was related to Windows default mouse settings, which automatically enhances tracker precision. So if you go turn off that setting it will get rid of your problem. I also had to turn it off in my Logitech Set Point software since my keyboard is the Dinovo Edge, which also has a track pad on it. Had to turn off the track pad. Now I have near perfect traction (other than my clumsy hands lifting the mouse ever so slightly due to my tendency to over-clench my hand and prop up the right side of the mouse with my pinky finger).

Another problem I solved by consulting the RAT 9's FAQ was concerning the battery changing which forced me to re-plug my USB port. I've come to the conclusion that my motherboard must had dodgy USB ports in the back. The FAQ said USB 3.0 messes with the mouse's traction, and while I wasn't using one of my only 2 USB 3.0 ports, I was using the back I/O USB nonetheless. I tried to plug it into my tower's front I/O instead and the problem went away.

If this keeps up I might not have a problem with the RAT 9 after all. Which is good news for me since I got used to some of the unique features, such as the swappable battery packs.

Your information about the hard gaming mousepads is interesting. I've used my mouse heavily for a year, granted, but I was using it on a Steelseries pad of good quality. I like the pad, but you're right about it being too hard for the pads. Especially since I tend to put too much elbow grease on my controllers/mice/keyboards.

Edit: Just to add, the only thing broken about the mouse is the thumb rest which is an articulation. The thing isn't broken off, but there is a cracked piece on the inside, and the rest portion can shift a bit if held the wrong way. Everything else was sturdy enough. The plastics are good quality and there are some metal pieces. The birttle aspect of the mouse is due to some of the articulated parts, or swappable parts.

 

[ssddx]

i've never used a rat mouse but i've seen plenty of forum posts on them breaking hence why i listed it.

i know razer has a bad track history but my razer deathadder works perfectly (the mice you list come up far more often with issues it seems). logitech also makes some nice gaming mice to check out if you hate razer (personally i dont care for razer either but the mouse is solid)

i will never understand why people actually buy those overpriced hard gaming pads. i use nothing but cloth pads and they work equal or better than other surfaces for a fraction of the cost.

yes, due to the articulation. it is adjustable which could be nice but all those small parts mean more things to break.

again, your choice as always. i'm just throwing around some ideas.

 

[senvae]

i've never used a rat mouse but i've seen plenty of forum posts on them breaking hence why i listed it.

i know razer has a bad track history but my razer deathadder works perfectly (the mice you list come up far more often with issues it seems). logitech also makes some nice gaming mice to check out if you hate razer (personally i dont care for razer either but the mouse is solid)

i will never understand why people actually buy those overpriced hard gaming pads. i use nothing but cloth pads and they work equal or better than other surfaces for a fraction of the cost.

yes, due to the articulation. it is adjustable which could be nice but all those small parts mean more things to break.

again, your choice as always. i'm just throwing around some ideas.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed your input. I simply wanted to state my love for the RAT and my personal experience differs from the other forum posts you seem to have read. The only issues I had with it are solved, as far as 2 great days of usage without traction lost. But I am always shopping around for the next great mouse, just in case this one breaks and I would want something different. I guess I would need to make sure the RAT 9's USB 3.0 issue has been solved before buying a replacement. It obvious that future motherboards will probably make USB 3.0 standard, with time, and I might need to replace this one if more USB issues persist.

I think the Razer Deathadder might be that one mouse they totally nailed, every time some Razer fanboy tries to dig me a grave for talking ill of Razer, it's usually a Deathadder owner.

 

[nutcracker]

Battery life on my RAT9 reduced from 8 hrs of intense gaming to 4 hrs. I tried 3 different mouse pad, for me worked best without any, I have a laminated desk surface. I have to unplug it from USB once in a while when changing batteries. With all that, I am still impressed of the performance, comfort and does not show too much wear.

 

[TE_Donkey]

I recently worked up the budget to buy a new mouse. I've been using the Saitek Cyborg RAT 9 wireless gaming mouse for over a year now, and while I'm happy with it, it's not perfect. Furthermore, my current one is in bad shape due to various reasons, but some of the issues I have with it aren't from wear and tear.

So I would like to ask any other gaming mouse owners if they've encountered the same problems and if they can be fixed. Especially fellow RAT 9 owners.

1- Is it true that pale coloured mouse pads work better than dark ones? I have 2 gaming mouse pads at home and while using either the RAT 9 seems to have inconsistent tracking. It doesn't matter if the mouse pad has been wiped clean or not, or it the bottom of the mouse device has been cleaned as well. Speeds will suddenly reduce, as if I had lowered the DPI. But I check my settings and they are correct or unchanged.

2- Has anyone else ever had issues with the USB ports? It seems like I have to re-plug the USB cable to the receiver after changing the battery of the RAT 9. Sometimes I won't have to do it for a while, but other times (like right now), I have to do it every single time. At first I thought it was just one of the batteries that caused this, but now it doesn't matter which one I change. The mouse will not track unless I re-plug the USB cable after a battery change.

If either of those 2 problems could get fixed, I would without question buy another RAT 9 to replace my currently aesthetically broken one. (With badly worn pads).

Am I the only guy with these issues?

 

[JPegasusKnight]

I've Had my RAT ( for about 3 months now and I've found it to be a wonderful product. Like Most things made nowadays though, much of the product IS PLASTIC, but I like the fact that I can change just about everything about it's shape AND Weight. Depending on what game I'm running I find that changing the weight for me makes a difference. The RAT( is solidly made, but like most plastic things these days drop checks with the floor tend to break most things. I love the swappable batteries. I've owned and quite a few systems for others when working as a tech. I do think its a bit overpriced, yet that comes down to supply and demand. if more people liked and bought high end mide the price would come down. that's just simple economics.
To answer your two questions.
1. I used a mouse pad made by 3M which is plastic and rubber, with a highly reflective surface. I tend to keep my mouse setting with high response and little travel area. Turn off your windows generic driver options and only use the drivers and software that comes with the RAT 9. This solved my tracking problems. I went ahead and bought the razor mouse pad to test it out and I've been happy with it. I found I prefer to have/use a solid and stiff mouse pad.

2. Yes I've had to use the front usb ports (any that are 2.0) and that solves all conflicts I had when installing. I can get over using one of my four USB ports.

Hope my coments have helped.

 

[Danny Chan]

i have seen quite a few issues arise with the r.a.t. mice from tracking issues as you said to them breaking because of their adjustable nature. personally i always suggest people to avoid them.

i never had issues on the laser or led mice that i've owned with dark or light mousepads. the only tracking issues i have found is when moving across high contrast areas with alot of detail. for instance if you have a mousepad with alot of bright white text on a black background you could have tracking issues. on solid mousepads i never have had any issues but keep in mind that if you lift up a laser mouse it will continue to track. if you would like an example see below

http://www.tekmat.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/800x526/17f82f742ffe127f42dca9de82fb58b1/1/7/17-1911_1.jpg

this is the mousepad i use. sure its not designed as one but its the same material. the complete right side never has tracking issues while on some mice the left side has issues. my current mouse, a razer deathadder, does not have any tracking issues on this particular surface.

my logitech m505 wireless laser mouse which i use for travel with my laptop does have more issues with busy surfaces. my old logitech mx1000 had much less issues and tracked on most surfaces fine.

a solid color mousepad should have zero issues with any mouse type. i have tested this and have not had any issues with any of the mice i own. again, a cloth mousepad.

---

i can say that using a mousepad greatly increase the lifespan of the teflon feet on mice. the razer mouse i am using is over three years old and still has much life left in its pads. of course, i use nothing but cloth pads and not the hard gaming pads which seem to be so popular (and a waste of money). my one logitech mouse is about 10 years old and still works although the pads are lower because i originally did not use a pad. it sounds as if your mouse has worse pads on a newer mouse.

i have heard that hard mousepads such as the common gaming models do eat away at your mouse teflon feet quite aggressively. another reason to avoid them in my opinion.

---

there should be a connect button on wireless mice. after changing the batteries it should autoconnect but if not you can press this button. i've never had much of an issue with this.

if it doesnt have a button or this does not work then i would have to chalk it up as another issue with the rat line of mice. provided of course that a regular usb mouse doesnt have issues on your system.

---

as far as what to buy?

logitech and razer seem to be the biggest contenders but you can very well make due with most other mice just do a review first. there are no perfect options.

my razer deathadder is a switch from the old wireless mx1000 and i can say that the cord really isnt much of an issue. the razer does attract dust like a magnet because of the surface texture but otherwise has had zero issues which is suprising for a razer product.

---

just a few things for you to ponder over.

omg I have the same mat I thought it was one of a kind when I picked it up at the gun store. . .lol thanks for the insight I would have never thought that the whites could degrade my accuracy while playing games(smacks forehead) just crossed my mind maybe I could black it all out with a marker but then the uniqueness of the mat would be gone. Damn choices noooooo