Best current VR

[Harlikwin]

For a PC. Cordless, with built in headphones. Best resolution possible. Price range max $600 US.

 

 

Cheers.:pilotfly:

 

Best at your price point is gonna be the HP reverb IMO. Or second best RiftS. Neither are cordless, given the absurd amount of bandwith you need to move that much data at rates of 60-90x per second.

[Harlikwin]

Interesting. I wonder if you could teak it by using the the "force IPD" setting in DCS. That should allow you to adjust the cockpit scale.

 

At a guess they aren't DCS experts.

[Chivas]

Interesting. I wonder if you could teak it by using the the "force IPD" setting in DCS. That should allow you to adjust the cockpit scale.

 

I didn't mean to suggest that the IPD had anything to do with the small scaling of the XTAL headset. I just require a wide IPD setting that I know the Pimax headset has. MRTV mentioned to XTAL that the cockpit appeared to be too small, so I would think that the XTAL developers can fix the issue, and/or have setting options to correct the issue that some users might have.

[Steel Jaw]

Looks like stock is down everywhere.

[Chaz]

Having just migrated from the Rift S to the Reverb Pro, IMO both are the best for price/performance. It's just a matter of, will you spend $400 USD or $650?

 

I was looking to sell my Rift S on eBay and saw people are paying full price for used sets! Is supply that low these days?

[dburne]

Having just migrated from the Rift S to the Reverb Pro, IMO both are the best for price/performance. It's just a matter of, will you spend $400 USD or $650?

 

I was looking to sell my Rift S on eBay and saw people are paying full price for used sets! Is supply that low these days?

 

Yes supply is almost nil due to Corona.

[Pikey]

My Reverb arrived on time last week, which was 2-3 days in the south of England. I expect the locality of distribution centres is an important part of this, but certainly didnt have an issue. I know a friend of mine in Belgium got his Index yesterday and they only opened sales of Indexes on that Monday a week ago due to limited stock. Possibly a lot of local variation.

 

Anyone want a full priced stinky CV1 that smells of me? :D

[Pikey]

Oh, on headsets I did a lot of research before going Reverb and I got better than expectations.

 

The best single point clarity headset is the Reverb. It has the higest detail at the centre of vision and sits at 2/3rds of the Price of the Index.

 

The reason anyone questions Reverb are because it has very clear limitations and downsides. If you want 'seat only' simulations and not interested in controllers, it's your go-to. From a vision perspective, doing a personal like for like on a CV1 versus a Reverb the difference is massive. The F-14 is the easiest to compare visual definition on. In CV1 most of the lettering is unreadable in the pit. The best part is the Ammo counter on the right. It is unreadable in CV1. If you zoom, it's actually still very hard to make out. On Reverb, you can just read the numbers without zoom, but you do need to look and stare at it. It's equivalent to a CV1 zoomed in, basically.

Another good test is in the Viper. The radar scope bricks and altitudes are unreadable in the CV1, which is why I upgraded. You could just make out a hollow or full brick, you can't see the radar altitude (same as the Hornet) without zoom. On the Viper, you cannot discern close bricks together in RWS. Perfectly readable even at a glance in Reverb.

As far as I know, the close definition isn't quite that level on the Index which costs another 3rd of the price. Given the price of 600 for Reverb and 450 for a new CV1 at launch, and 950 for Index, you can see that price per pixel definition, the Reverb smashes 2nd gen VR.

 

Now the bad stuff, because there is, you can never have it all. The controllers... are awful. But they do actually do what you want. But the CV1 controllers were better and by all accounts all the others are better.

 

The cord at the back is very stiff and to the point of being detracting. CV1 beat that. I'm sure it's not as uncomfortable as wearing a full flight suit etc, but it's just a comparison, I hate the cord.

 

 

Lastly WMR. WMR is reasonable as long as you have good lighting, but the tracking is not as good as the CV1 which was crystal smooth - in fact the second editions came with dual cameras. Their head tracking was spot on, never one blip. The WMR on the Reverb though is subpar and can occasionally blip, even after the initial stutter of load. It is VERY load sensitive, so if you launch something, tab, look sharply on unloaded textures you will get an out of body experience for a short period. It's not godawful, but every now and then. [EDIT] Need to explain more on this. Low frames in CV1 still keeps 1:1 head tracking, if the low frames are caused by the app being bad or the GFX card not keeping up. Low frames in the WMR world can be caused by the app or generic load on the CPU and easily can knock into the head tracking depending on the cause. This basically means, that most of the time in CV1 you can look round smoothly even in a low frame environment because the tracking is decoupled. In WMR though, you can get your tracking knocked around during high load and THAT is a problem, so you must make sure you are not overextending the card and going over what can be performed on the CPU. It's way more fragile and can be a bit raw.[\EDIT]

 

 

 

Lastly the WMR software. I find it less annoying than Occulus whom I hated with a passion at their silly music everytime the headset woke up and unhideable window. Steam VR is much better. It's unobtrusive, doesn't kill your headset to update, updates quickly and often without you knowing, using Steams servers, has sensible settings to configure and so far has never killed the service or stoped working yet (which the Rift regularly did). It also has OpenVR accessibility and more people writing tools for it, like addons to streamers and OBS plugins and the non DCS mirror window is more configurable. I like it anyway. Oculus... I used to run it as admin so the thing didnt come up and annoy me it was that bad. I did prefer Oculus' reaction to load though, with the egg timer. The tracking continued mostly but the display didnt stop tracking, just the application. Whereas WMR just completely falls over. Dependent on the cause of course.

 

 

 

So given those pros and cons, the choice for me was spot on. I dont use hand controllers, I sit and play one game in VR, it gives me the best resolution for combat in DCS. An Index is very deluxe and better all rounder, especially for full room play, but I'd hate to mess with those camera boxes in a rented accommondation on the walls and the price for less resolution, albeit slight, is not worth it for me, to trade for a bit of uncomfort

Edited March 14, 2020 by Pikey

[Notso]

 

Anyone want a full priced stinky CV1 that smells of me? :D

 

I have a 6 month old Vive Pro full kit with hand controllers and 2x base stations (that smell new), if anyone is interested? I just got my replacement Reverb, so the Vive is just sitting in the original box waiting for me to get off my lazy @ss and advertise it on Craig's list or Ebay.

[grifo]

Ehi Pikey thanks so much for your review, it's very helpful! I'm interested to buy my fist VR device too, my use will be DCS only, so your conclusions fits perfecly what I need. I have a question: You talked about good instrumental reading with Reverb. Are you also talking for HUD? And how It works with target spotting? I'm hearing my squadron mates using oculus having problems spotting same targets I normally see with my 2d monitor...and this makes me scary for switching to a VR device..

[Notso]

Ehi Pikey thanks so much for your review, it's very helpful! I'm interested to buy my fist VR device too, my use will be DCS only, so your conclusions fits perfecly what I need. I have a question: You talked about good instrumental reading with Reverb. Are you also talking for HUD? And how It works with target spotting? I'm hearing my squadron mates using oculus having problems spotting same targets I normally see with my 2d monitor...and this makes me scary for switching to a VR device..

 

My Reverb is new and I'm just starting to use it with DCS, but everything about it is clearer and crisper. The cockpit is much easier to read the dials, switch labels on the consoles, the MFDs are easier (not perfect) to read, the HUD is super clear. I haven't done a test to see what range I'm seeing objects or other aircraft, but from some general flights looking at both airborne aircraft and ground objects, it seems I'm picking them up at what I would consider normal ranges. Once I get my big computer unpacked today, I'll be able to crank the settings all the way up and then I'll see how the Reverb is really doing. I'm running on a slightly less powerful laptop in the interim.

 

But so far, the Reverb is all that and a bag of chips. :lol:

[BMGZ06]

Ehi Pikey thanks so much for your review, it's very helpful! I'm interested to buy my fist VR device too, my use will be DCS only, so your conclusions fits perfecly what I need. I have a question: You talked about good instrumental reading with Reverb. Are you also talking for HUD? And how It works with target spotting? I'm hearing my squadron mates using oculus having problems spotting same targets I normally see with my 2d monitor...and this makes me scary for switching to a VR device..

 

The reverb is nice but there are some issues with the earphones. I just got two pairs from different vendors. Both had issues with earphones. One was broken off and the other set had one of the screws jammed and couldnt be removed. Plus it had more screen door effect in it. I sent that one back.

 

The image is pretty nice for the most part though the FOV is narrow. I think overall you will like it.

Edited March 20, 2020 by BMGZ06

[Notso]

The reverb is nice but there are some issues with the earphones. I just got two pairs from different vendors. Both had issues with earphones. One was broken off and the other set had one of the screws jammed and couldnt be removed. Plus it had more screen door effect in it. I sent that one back.

 

The image is pretty nice for the most part though the FOV is narrow. I think overall you will like it.

 

I got a really nice pair of Bose ear buds to plug into the Reverb and I just flip up the worthless earphones out of the way. The sound quality with the Bose are light years above the Reverb's sound. My first set also had a broken earphone on delivery. The replacement was fine, but the sound quality sucked.

 

$40 at Best Buy. https://www.bestbuy.com/site/bose-soundsport-wired-in-ear-headphones-ios-energy-green/4387700.p?skuId=4387700

[BMGZ06]

I got a really nice pair of Bose ear buds to plug into the Reverb and I just flip up the worthless earphones out of the way. The sound quality with the Bose are light years above the Reverb's sound. My first set also had a broken earphone on delivery. The replacement was fine, but the sound quality sucked.

 

$40 at Best Buy. https://www.bestbuy.com/site/bose-soundsport-wired-in-ear-headphones-ios-energy-green/4387700.p?skuId=4387700

 

Ya i removed the earphones and use my Philips open back headphones and the sound is great. Not expensive either.

 

Side note I had a good friend try VR out for the first time. he has never played games before either. He was really skeptical when I told him to try it out thinking it was a waste of time and money. After about 10 seconds he was sold. He then puked 5 minutes later.lol VR virgins

 

He wanted to go back and do it more though. He couldn't understand how it tricked his brain into thinking he was in the plane.

Edited March 20, 2020 by BMGZ06

[Steel Jaw]

Has anyone seen RiftS on sale ANYWHERE lately? It seems to NEVER go on sale.

 

 

Alternatively, is anyone here selling a RiftS?

[javelina1]

Has anyone seen RiftS on sale ANYWHERE lately? It seems to NEVER go on sale.

 

 

Alternatively, is anyone here selling a RiftS?

 

 

I know this doesn't help you. But I checked craigslist here in Phoenix, and one guy is selling a user Rift S for $300. There's also another guy selling a Reverb for $395. maybe you have something like that nearby for you?

[VC]

The Vive Pro is one that isn't talked about much and a lot of people just dismiss, but it's also a great choice and generally in stock (if a bit expensive). Its main trump card and the reason I'm keeping mine is the OLED screens deliver a contrast and depth of colour that just blow all the LCD competition out of the sky.

[dburne]

Has anyone seen RiftS on sale ANYWHERE lately? It seems to NEVER go on sale.

 

 

Alternatively, is anyone here selling a RiftS?

 

To the best of my knowledge no one has ever ran a sale yet on a new Rift S device.

They still have trouble keeping up with demand and only at full price of $399.00. Higher from third party scalpers.

[Taz1004]

The Vive Pro is one that isn't talked about much and a lot of people just dismiss, but it's also a great choice and generally in stock (if a bit expensive). Its main trump card and the reason I'm keeping mine is the OLED screens deliver a contrast and depth of colour that just blow all the LCD competition out of the sky.

 

Vive discussion thread hasn't had a post for 4 months. Either nobody's using it or nobody's having issues I guess. :music_whistling:

 

I use Vive Pro with lens mod and VR cover for wider FOV. It works great with no issues whatsoever. But even tho device itself is great, the pricing is not for regular consumer as you stated. I wouldn't recommend it at this time.

 

One great thing about Vive line is that if you started out with original Vive, you can just continue to upgrade HMD only. That's what I did and now you can buy Pimax or Index or Cosmos Elite HMD only which is way cheaper.

 

And you don't have to throw away old HMD either. Multiple HMD's work with just 2 Lighthouse so you can have multiple family member using VR in same space. Of course you'd need multiple computers but we still have great fun interacting within VR with my daughter.

Edited July 24, 2020 by Taz1004

[imacken]

I had a Vive Pro, and although it’s a solid piece of kit, the res and the horrible SDE are way outdated now.

[MacEwan]

Mower, if you can wait until September the HP Reverb G2 is looking very good and at a decent price.

Alternatively, I'll also be selling my Rift S when the Reverb G2 releases if Mower or anyone else is interested.

[Taz1004]

Vive Pro has 1440x1600 which is same as Index. And Rift S has 1280x1440. It's not top of the line but I'd hardly categorize it as outdated.

And SDE of OLED and faded black of LCD has been trade off between two technology and up to personal preference. Not better or worse.

Edited July 25, 2020 by Taz1004

[Bob_Bushman]

Vive Pro has 1440x1600 which is same as Index. And Rift S has 1280x1440. It's not top of the line but I'd hardly categorize it as outdated.

And SDE of OLED and faded black of LCD has been trade off between two technology and up to personal preference. Not better or worse.

 

You forget the lenses, the lenses on the vive, and thus the vive pro are atrocious, even when compared to the CV1 at the time, and just comically bad compared to newer HMD's.

 

And I'm sure it has been mentioned, the pentile nature of the screens means that resolution is practically half of what is advertised.

[Taz1004]

You forget the lenses, the lenses on the vive, and thus the vive pro are atrocious, even when compared to the CV1 at the time, and just comically bad compared to newer HMD's.

 

And I'm sure it has been mentioned, the pentile nature of the screens means that resolution is practically half of what is advertised.

 

Can't argue with you there. I don't know why they use such cheap crappy fresnel lenses on $1,000 device. But I modified with GearVR lenses and it's absolutely stunning difference. Samsung offered GearVR for free with Galaxy S8 launch so I had two laying around collecting dust.

 

And I didn't say it was best. I even said I wouldn't recommend it today. But it's hardly outdated.

Edited July 25, 2020 by Taz1004

[Steel Jaw]

Mower...I'll also be selling my Rift S when the Reverb G2 releases if Mower or anyone else is interested.

 

 

Cheers.