Hardware Right Joycon keeps disconnecting only while docked

[Duo8]

So my Joycons, especially the right one, have trouble staying connected over Bluetooth. Not a rare issue I'm sure. But the weird thing is it only happens in docked mode. They work fine (enough) in tabletop mode, but once I put the switch in the dock the range dropped from 5-6m to less than a meter for the right joycon, and maybe 2-3m at best for the left one.
I worked around this by swapping the antenna in the right joycon with a 3rd party one that's larger, but it didn't really fix the problem, the range is still only a few meters at best, any further and it will start dropping inputs or disconnect.

I'm wondering if there's something in the dock that's causing problems, like maybe generating some kind of interference. It's so weird that they work just fine without the dock. Anyone tried making a makeshift EMI shield for the dock?

Also:

Is there any chance it might be USB3? I don't use any usb devices on the dock and the usb3 option is disabled in atmosphere config. But plugging the console into my computer it does show up as a usb3 device.

 

[Jayro]

Just replace the joycon rails, they're dirt cheap on AliExpress and take just a few minutes to do.

 

[Duo8]

Just replace the joycon rails, they're dirt cheap on AliExpress and take just a few minutes to do.

Docked as in the switch is docked in its dock, not joycons in wired mode. The issue is about joycon wireless connectivity.

 

[Hayato213]

So my Joycons, especially the right one, have trouble staying connected over Bluetooth. Not a rare issue I'm sure. But the weird thing is it only happens in docked mode. They work fine (enough) in tabletop mode, but once I put the switch in the dock the range dropped from 5-6m to less than a meter for the right joycon, and maybe 2-3m at best for the left one.
I worked around this by swapping the antenna in the right joycon with a 3rd party one that's larger, but it didn't really fix the problem, the range is still only a few meters at best, any further and it will start dropping inputs or disconnect.

I'm wondering if there's something in the dock that's causing problems, like maybe generating some kind of interference. It's so weird that they work just fine without the dock. Anyone tried making a makeshift EMI shield for the dock?

Does the joycon work in handheld mode not table top mode?

 

[Jayro]

Docked as in the switch is docked in its dock, not joycons in wired mode. The issue is about joycon wireless connectivity.

Ah, I missed the wireless part, sorry. I dock mine with the joycons still on it, and the right one dies sometimes because my pins are fucked on it thanks to the RCM jigs I used in the past.

I'm willing to bet your Bluetooth radio in your joycon is just defective.

 

[Duo8]

Does the joycon work in handheld mode not table top mode?

Works fine both handheld (connected to the switch) and tabletop (wireless). It's just docked mode where there are problems.

Ah, I missed the wireless part, sorry. I dock mine with the joycons still on it, and the right one dies sometimes because my pins are fucked on it thanks to the RCM jigs I used in the past.

I'm willing to bet your Bluetooth radio in your joycon is just defective.

Yeah I'm pretty sure there are hardware issues, but it's weird that the dock makes it so much worse.

 

[Hayato213]

Works fine both handheld (connected to the switch) and tabletop (wireless). It's just docked mode where there are problems.

So you are using the joycon when the tablet is docked correct?

 

[Duo8]

So you are using the joycon when the tablet is docked correct?

Yeah

 

[Hayato213]

Yeah

Some stuffs you can try , put back the original antenna, disconnect both joycon from the switch then resync. Try updating joycon firmware on both.

Worse case you might have to get a new right joycon. You can also try new antenna in the tablet.

 

[Duo8]

Some stuffs you can try , put back the original antenna, disconnect both joycon from the switch then resync. Try updating joycon firmware on both.

Worse case you might have to get a new right joycon. You can also try new antenna in the tablet.

Speaking of the tablet antenna I wonder which one is the 2.4Ghz one? One of them is easily accessible, the other requires removing the screen.

 

[Hayato213]

Speaking of the tablet antenna I wonder which one is the 2.4Ghz one? One of them is easily accessible, the other requires removing the screen.

My fault I meant the bcm4356 chip inside the tablet if you have v1/v2 instead of an oled.

 

[Duo8]

Is there any chance it might be USB3? I don't use any usb devices on the dock and the usb3 option is disabled in atmosphere config. But plugging the console into my computer it does show up as a usb3 device.

 

[Hayato213]

Is there any chance it might be USB3? I don't use any usb devices on the dock and the usb3 option is disabled in atmosphere config. But plugging the console into my computer it does show up as a usb3 device.

No

 

[Duo8]

Did a little mod to disable USB3 in the dock. May or may not have improved things, not sure. I noticed the right joycon worked a little better but it could be something else.

 

[Duo8]

I guess I can give this thread some closure, of sorts. I bought a pair of 3rd-party joycons and they work perfectly fine. So the issue is probably with the old pair of joycons I've been using for the past 7 years.