Advice on new Occulus purchase

adriancal · 27 Oct 2017 at 17:02

Hi All

I am now seriously considering picking up a Rift. I only have a small room to use it in with some space to move backward and forwards but only a few feet to move side to side. So I may end up playing a lot of games sat down.
I was thinking of placing the two sensors above the top left and right corners of my 55" wall mounted tv
so the sensors would be approx 6 feet off the ground. I cannot mount them in the top corners of the room and will not be able to mount a sensor behind me.

I have been hearing lots of stories about people having setup issues and having to keep going back and re-setup their Oculus. I'm not particularly interested in buying a system that requires constant maintenance and pampering in order to work. If the Rift is that fussy I may go for a Windows mixed reality headset instead.

I would appreciate any advise re setting up the two Oculus sensors just above the top corners of my TV and if it will give me an accurate experience with the sensors? My seated position is approx 8 feet from the TV so if standing it will be around 6 feet.

Born2BSlow · 27 Oct 2017 at 19:11

I have 2 sensors with my rift and even though I move them about a bit I have no problem with head tracking and if it's not centred a simple recentre does the trick...the sensors and tracking for the Rift work fine...the one to my left is 2ft sitting/4ft standing distance from me and about 1ft in front, the right one vice versa as I move to the right of my chair when standing, and that's about 3ft in front of me. They are not equal height either. Ignore the complicated setup instructions after you've run through it once just to get everything recognised. In my experience it just works fine, and as i said even if there's an issue I just recentre in the HMD. I play mostly sitting for information.

I would advise you look into the Pimax headsets (discussions here/reddit and other places)and form your own conclusions on it before purchasing a rift though. There is a very real possibility that the improved resolution that the Pimax seems to be bringing early next year will leave the current headsets standing in terms of tech, and at Kickstarter pledge money levels it's pricing is strong vs rift/vive.

I've got an 8k ordered, but it might not be for you...I can recommend the Rift but I'm ready for a visual upgrade.

Dano · 27 Oct 2017 at 20:04

Mine are currently about a meter apart and only a foot or two above head height when sitting down due to desk constraints and my procrastination on ordering some USB extensions and wall mounts, I've had zero issues whatsoever.

Shiari · 27 Oct 2017 at 20:47

My front two sensors are at approx eye height, about 2 meters apart on either side of the window and that works just perfectly fine for a 180 or sitting set up (there's a bit of occlusion from our large desks when reaching for the floor, not avoidable due to the size of the desk). I added a 3rd sensor for 360 tracking though, and that helps with the occlusion and 360 tracking. So yeah, will work great.

adriancal · 27 Oct 2017 at 21:27

Hi All

Many thanks for all your feedback it's extremely helpful. I have been looking at the new Pimax HMD for a while but isn't that going to require me to spend large amounts on a GPU to drive it?

Currently have a 1060 6GB on the system I'll be using this headset with.

Thanks again

Wrinkly · 27 Oct 2017 at 22:36

adriancal said:
Hi All

Many thanks for all your feedback it's extremely helpful. I have been looking at the new Pimax HMD for a while but isn't that going to require me to spend large amounts on a GPU to drive it?

Currently have a 1060 6GB on the system I'll be using this headset with.

Thanks again

Get and enjoy the Rift now. If you feel the urge, sell it in a year when the Pimax is proven. That's my plan.

Currently the Pimax 8k is using LCD, I would prefer OLED. And with a 1080Ti, I am worried about performance.

Born2BSlow · 27 Oct 2017 at 23:00

I'm planning a 1080Ti build, but will try it on my current 980Ti build and report back when I've got the Pimax...I'm hoping better screens on lower settings will still be better than current HMD resolution, they have some clever software to help with performance anyway.

Dicehunter · 27 Oct 2017 at 23:48

Wrinkly said:
Get and enjoy the Rift now. If you feel the urge, sell it in a year when the Pimax is proven. That's my plan.

Currently the Pimax 8k is using LCD, I would prefer OLED. And with a 1080Ti, I am worried about performance.

This !

While the idea behind the Pimax is good, As a company I doubt they will be much good at handling faulty hardware and returns from all over the globe.

Get the Rift, Have a great time with it and then maybe wait for Oculus to come out with the CV2 which will no doubtedly have similar specs to the Pimax but with a properly supported library, Software and a proper customer service and warranty.

DONOHUE07 · 28 Oct 2017 at 00:47

I currently have my 2 Rift sensors, roughly 4ft of the ground in front of me and 5ft apart. They work great for 180 front facing games. But if your wanting to play games that are best suited to 360 movement your going to want a a 3rd sensor behind you.

Get the Rift and enjoy!

DONOHUE07 · 28 Oct 2017 at 01:01

Dicehunter said:
This !

While the idea behind the Pimax is good, As a company I doubt they will be much good at handling faulty hardware and returns from all over the globe.

Get the Rift, Have a great time with it and then maybe wait for Oculus to come out with the CV2 which will no doubtedly have similar specs to the Pimax but with a properly supported library, Software and a proper customer service and warranty.

Well said, I can’t believe people are even suggesting the pimax, sure it’s looking great on paper and the crowd funding has been an amazing success, but come on, the product isn’t even out yet

FlukeRogi · 28 Oct 2017 at 05:39

Keep an eye out for a bundle that also includes some Oculus store credit.

Born2BSlow · 28 Oct 2017 at 11:33

Born2BSlow said:
I would advise you look into the Pimax headsets (discussions here/reddit and other places)and form your own conclusions on it before purchasing a rift though. There is a very real possibility that the improved resolution that the Pimax seems to be bringing early next year will leave the current headsets standing in terms of tech, and at Kickstarter pledge money levels it's pricing is strong vs rift/vive.

I've got an 8k ordered, but it might not be for you...I can recommend the Rift but I'm ready for a visual upgrade.

DONOHUE07 said:
Well said, I can’t believe people are even suggesting the pimax, sure it’s looking great on paper and the crowd funding has been an amazing success, but come on, the product isn’t even out yet

I just suggested he check it out and make his own mind up...what's wrong with that?

All the concerns about the company etc. are valid as discussed here, but after 6 months with the rift I'm ready for an upgrade already. Spending on tech isn't an entirely logical process, there is some man-logic thrown in...

DONOHUE07 · 28 Oct 2017 at 12:24

Born2BSlow said:
I just suggested he check it out and make his own mind up...what's wrong with that?

All the concerns about the company etc. are valid as discussed here, but after 6 months with the rift I'm ready for an upgrade already. Spending on tech isn't an entirely logical process, there is some man-logic thrown in...

I skimmed your post and jumped the gun a little. However I have a 1st hand experience with there previous product, the pimax4k, and I can tell you, it’s far from a product from a company I would put any trust in whatsoever. The build quality is poor, the drivers are incredibley flaky, even a simple GPU driver upgrade can mean a complete reinstall of the pimax, I bought it directly from them and I asked about extra delivery charges (as I read about it on reddit), I was told it wasn’t nessesery, I then had to pay an extra £90 just to recive the product. The actual screen and resolution on the pimax4k is lovely, when it works, it makes for a good headset for driving games.
I wouldn’t buy a ‘cheap’ headset over brands such as Oculus and HTC again. Each to there own mate, and do hope the new pimax is as good as does sound on paper, because it would be amazing to experience VR in higher resolution, but pimax have a lot improve on from there last headset. I’m looking forward to reading the reviews when it’s in consumers hands.

Born2BSlow · 28 Oct 2017 at 13:27

DONOHUE07 said:
I skimmed your post and jumped the gun a little. However I have a 1st hand experience with there previous product, the pimax4k, and I can tell you, it’s far from a product from a company I would put any trust in whatsoever. The build quality is poor, the drivers are incredibley flaky, even a simple GPU driver upgrade can mean a complete reinstall of the pimax, I bought it directly from them and I asked about extra delivery charges (as I read about it on reddit), I was told it wasn’t nessesery, I then had to pay an extra £90 just to recive the product. The actual screen and resolution on the pimax4k is lovely, when it works, it makes for a good headset for driving games.
I wouldn’t buy a ‘cheap’ headset over brands such as Oculus and HTC again. Each to there own mate, and do hope the new pimax is as good as does sound on paper, because it would be amazing to experience VR in higher resolution, but pimax have a lot improve on from there last headset. I’m looking forward to reading the reviews when it’s in consumers hands.

That's good info thanks for sharing your experience. I do admit I'm a bit nervous, but as I only play racing games I'm hoping it will do the trick. I have read some 4K reviews and wasn't entirely unconcerned about it...

I'm hoping the 4K was their equivalent of the DK2, and the 8k will be CV1 standard...if it is I'll be pretty chuffed because I'm fairly impressed with that. I do know it's a bit of a gamble though.

smilertoo · 28 Oct 2017 at 13:48

my sensors are either side of a 40" tv about 4.5 feet high.

Bishie · 28 Oct 2017 at 15:48

If you want a decent consumer product right now, the Rift is the way to go. It's a fantastic piece of kit!
The presentation and build quality is decent, and the integrated headphones are very respectable. The touch controllers are second to none! You also have the best of both worlds with Oculus and SteamVR compatibility.

No HMD is without it's drawbacks, but the Rift offers the most complete experience, especially when you consider it's price point.

TallPaul1878 · 28 Oct 2017 at 15:52

I was fortunate enough to to have a play around with the Oculus Rift whilst on holiday in Florida. I was tempted to buy one there and then but I did notice, almost immediately, the pixelation.

It was a shame that I was not able to try some of the racing gamesor flight sims with the Rift because that's what I'd want it for.

I think the smart move might be to wait for a Rift 2.0 or the Pimax that has a pair of 4k screens to eliminate the pixelation on screen.

Bishie · 28 Oct 2017 at 16:03

I should also mention that I've played Dirt Rally, Elite Dangerous and Project Cars 2 in VR. I've found that the issues mentioned above have a minimal impact on immersion. You soon forget the minor imperfections.

Born2BSlow · 28 Oct 2017 at 16:27

Bishie said:
I should also mention that I've played Dirt Rally, Elite Dangerous and Project Cars 2 in VR. I've found that the issues mentioned above have a minimal impact on immersion. You soon forget the minor imperfections.

I have Rift and all 3 and initially yes I'd say I agree, but after 6 months you do kind of notice it more, at least I do...especially when you take off the headset and watch the same race replayed on the monitor. You realise exactly what you are missing visually...

melmac · 28 Oct 2017 at 17:33

I find that within a minute I completely forget about the resolution and just start playing the game. Would I like a better resolution headset? Sure, but, increased resolution hasn't really changed my enjoyment of PC games.