AV8R questions

[manintrees]

I know there are a bunch od posts regarding flight sticks but I have some questions regarding the AV8R that I hope some users can answer.

1. The deadzone on my AV8R is massive. I can move the top of the stick about 2 inches before any input is registered. Is this normal?

2. When at rest, my hat switch sits a little too the left. Because of this I have a greater range of motion when looking to the right. Is this normal?

3. The rudder control is terrible. I have to twist the stick almost all the way before anything happens and then the rudder goes all the way. There is no fine adjustments. This makes flying very jerky. Is this normal?

4. I cannot access the pause menu because all of the buttons are used by something else. This is incredibly annoying. Is this normal? How do I get to the pause screen?

FYI, I am using the "wireless controller (aviator)" configuration. Is this the problem. I tried others but this is the one that seems to work "the best".

Please help.

5.