Get your nerd rage on; anyone know anything about VR headsets for PC?

[TheGerman]

I'll admit I know very little about them, but I do have a gaming PC where I'd love to be able to see shit around me by just moving my head.

I do know that I am NOT interested in Oculus anything as it now all requires you to literally be logged into a faggot fucking facebook account to even use. Fuck all of that.

This would be 100% tethered to a PC. Anyone know anything about the HRC/Samsung units or any of the others?

Basically looking for one that take handle alot of shit going on at once (GPU wise) and just...works, without all sorts of bullshit.

 

[IrishWind]

Need FB to use an Oculus? Seems like an odd choice for a video game device. But I have noticed FB is trying to create their own version of Twitch. Maybe that is the tie in..

I was looking at Valve/Steam's set back when Alyx was released. But 1,000 for a set was a bit of a sticker shock.

Steam VR Hardware

A landing page for some of the SteamVR supported hardware, including headsets, controllers, and base stations.

store.steampowered.com

Another item to consider that I have not researched is your graphics card. I just bought a gaming laptop for travel, and it claims to be VR ready. Some of the other models did not have that box checked on the website comparison. And I was also looking at those super wide angle monitors, a salesperson mentioned that unless you have a newer card, you will get a sideways letterbox view on that monitor.

 

[Bender]

I know nothing about them, but it would be cool stuff! I play a little MW, looking for a PS5 soon although I have 2 fours so I can play with my kid.

 

[IrishWind]

I wish I could find it, but a few years ago there was a youtuber that bought a Smartphone to VR kit. The kit was a cheap cardboard box with a thin elastic strap. The YouTuber was spending more time mocking the cheap kit, at one point he even had to put a pair of his tighty whities on his head to help hold it in place, he never did get to evaluate if the smartphone worked ask a VR screen...

 

[W54/XM-388]

If it's for gaming, hooked up to a PC and you Don't want the FB owned Oculus, then your choice kind of becomes this:

Find the right high-end VR system for you | VIVE™

 

[W54/XM-388]

I wish I could find it, but a few years ago there was a youtuber that bought a Smartphone to VR kit. The kit was a cheap cardboard box with a thin elastic strap. The YouTuber was spending more time mocking the cheap kit, at one point he even had to put a pair of his tighty whities on his head to help hold it in place, he never did get to evaluate if the smartphone worked ask a VR screen...

There are 2 main versions of that.
The Best one in my opinion was the Samsung Gear VR, however that was done in partnership with Oculus which is now FB owned so, to use it, you have to agree to let FB know every possible thing you are doing... so nope. But it was good while it lasted, it was about $130 and worked very well.
Samsung Gear VR with Controller - The Official Samsung Galaxy Site
That being said, if you are already enslaved by FB and don't care, it's actually a pretty nifty device.

The other option was "Google Cardboard" which was a similar idea but doesn't have all the motion sensors the Samsung one had, so it relies only on your phone which makes for a less optimal experience.
Google Cardboard – Google VR
It is however super cheap, so it's almost like a no brainer to try it. But the experience will fall far short of optimal.

 

[Franko]

I am going to assume that your gaming machine is new enough to be adequate for everything but video. You will want one of the new video cards (GTX 3080 or AMD 6800x) because higher framerates make motion sickness less likely. The two best headset contenders appear to be the Valve Index or HP Reverb G2.

My plan is to build a new computer and buy one of the two headsets mentioned above once I can source all the parts. I am leaning towards the HP because I won't be doing room scale VR.

 

[TheGerman]

It almost looks like I'd need the Valve one from Steam but I'm a bit cautious about it as its basically the most expensive one (for my first one) and Im still not even sure how good it is.

Oculus is definetly out. Fuck facebook. Would be interested when there's a jailbreak hack for it.

The other units from HTC/HP/Samsung, etc all have alot of bad reviews about horrible tracking (the exact thing I need it for) as well as some have low refresh rates and screen door effect.

The Steam/Valve one is months out even if ordered now. Curious if theres an after Christmas sale as its not coming by then anyways. Im also a little concerned that someone is going to do some bullshit like Playstation and XBOX do in regards to having certain big name games stuck to a specific headset (i.e. New Game only works with the Oculus or whatever).

I'm also under the impression that this is going to set up an arms race for me where I finally end up with an even newer GPU, different seat that works with a HOTAS and all sorts of shit. Is the Steam VR 'new' or is there like a newer gen coming out in January?

I basically want this for shit like Star Wars Squadrons, Star Citizen and bigger named stuff like if a new Witcher ever comes out.

 

[Franko]

Right now I'd say VR is only barely good enough and that's with the newest video cards (3080 and 6800x).

Other headsets: Other makes and models (e.g., HTC) don't do anything better than the Reverb and are markedly worse in many ways.

Tracking: The Index should be better as it's outside in (external sensors are placed around where you play) so it's faster and more accurate. The premium is cost and space (you need to have the lighthouses set up properly in your playspace). The Reverb might be the "good enough" solution as it has lower FOV and maximum refresh than the Index but it has better resolution and maybe if we are lucky the inside out tracking will be workable.

Availability: The Index has been out since 2018 and the Reverb is brand new. Demand for both is so high you have to get on a wait list. I can't imagine that Valve would come out with a new headset until sales for the current one slow or somebody else comes out with something better.

Interoperability: I don't expect PC titles to have interoperability issues due to the nature of the ecosystem. I don't believe console based VR will be anything but a gimmick for a while as the systems just don't have the power needed to run VR well. A console costs $500 and a PC for VR costs $2000.

I can't comment on whether you games of choice will work well in VR other than that by the time Star Citizen comes out the questions on the hide will be about whether Mil or MOA scopes work best on phasers...

 

[Huskydriver]

I'll admit I know very little about them, but I do have a gaming PC where I'd love to be able to see shit around me by just moving my head.

I do know that I am NOT interested in Oculus anything as it now all requires you to literally be logged into a faggot fucking facebook account to even use. Fuck all of that.

This would be 100% tethered to a PC. Anyone know anything about the HRC/Samsung units or any of the others?

Basically looking for one that take handle alot of shit going on at once (GPU wise) and just...works, without all sorts of bullshit.

What are you playing arma3? Lol can see you screaming in german at the 13yo's now you muppets!

 

[Franko]

One more thing. You can purchase prescription lenses for your headset so you don't need to wear glasses while playing. They are supposedly a game changer for us old folks...

 

[TheGerman]

What are you playing arma3? Lol can see you screaming in german at the 13yo's now you muppets!

I tried, just couldnt get into it.

99% of the time it was laggy/had like .5 sec lag no matter what CPU/GPU you ran, and everyone is just running around randomly or sitting in a tank and doing nothing.

 

[netranger6]

I'll admit I know very little about them, but I do have a gaming PC where I'd love to be able to see shit around me by just moving my head.

I do know that I am NOT interested in Oculus anything as it now all requires you to literally be logged into a faggot fucking facebook account to even use. Fuck all of that.

This would be 100% tethered to a PC. Anyone know anything about the HRC/Samsung units or any of the others?

Basically looking for one that take handle alot of shit going on at once (GPU wise) and just...works, without all sorts of bullshit.

Yep, Fuck Oculus, they just ruined my sons' Christmas. Guess what fat fuck is not coming down the chimney with an Oculus...So stupid.