Oculus Quest (Santa Cruz)

[silvagti]

I'd wait. You're in a goos position in thatr you have a device which doesn't require your PC anyway to have fun with.

I wouldn't upgrade GPU just for VR.

Yeah, that's kind of my thinking really. I mostly game on console these days or in VR however, as much as I enjoy it, I don't really want to spend ~£400 on my PC purely for VR gaming. I've had to drop the detail levels to low in some of the more demanding tites (like Asgards Wrath) but I can still at least play all the games so far.

I know there's always something better, faster and cheaper on the horizon in the world of technology but looking at what's coming up in the next year it feels like waiting makes sense. More than ever now I'd like to abandon my gaming PC and more to a laptop and console based setup.

Specfically, I'm wondering whether there will be any Playstation VR announcements this year alongside the Playstation 5 release?

 

[melmac]

I've been contemplating upgrading my geforce 980 and as others have said you really need to spend £300-400 to get something that's a worthwhile upgrade for VR. A RTX 2070 for £350 is what I've been considering. Though I'm wondering whether to wait another 3-4 months to see what the RTX 3000 series cards are like ?

How does the virtual desktop WiFi link compare to running it over USB using the official Oculus link app. Is there much difference?

The 2070 Super is much better for VR than the 2070. The 5700Xt is also better than the 2070. If neither of those cards appeal to you then you should wait.

 

[silvagti]

The 2070 Super is much better for VR than the 2070. The 5700Xt is also better than the 2070. If neither of those cards appeal to you then you should wait.

Is there something specific about the 2070 Super which benefits VR over the 2070. I've seen a few benchmarks which suggest it's only around 10-15% faster than a regular 2070. I can that for around £350 so spending another £100+ for a ~15% increase in performance on first impressions didn't seem like a good deal?

I'm kind of feeling that if I'm spending ~£400 it might make more sense to wait another 4 months and see what the RTX 3070 or equivalent brings to the table as that's likely to be around the £500 mark.

 

[melmac]

Is there something specific about the 2070 Super which benefits VR over the 2070. I've seen a few benchmarks which suggest it's only around 10-15% faster than a regular 2070. I can that for around £350 so spending another £100+ for a ~15% increase in performance on first impressions didn't seem like a good deal?

I'm kind of feeling that if I'm spending ~£400 it might make more sense to wait another 4 months and see what the RTX 3070 or equivalent brings to the table as that's likely to be around the £500 mark.

When the 2070s came out I considered getting one, but after comparing one that my friend had with my 1080ti in VR, I was disappointed. When the 2070Supers came out, I tested one against my 1080Ti and it was much better in VR, so I switched and have been very happy with the change. So it's just my personal experience with the two cards. Whatever that is worth to you.

About waiting, the latest rumour suggests that it will be the second half of 2020 before the new cards are out from Nvidia.

Maybe you should consider getting either the 2070Super or the 5070XT now and switch to the 3000 series when they come out.

Another option is to buy a cheap Pascal card second hand. A card like a 1070ti for around £200 would be quite a large jump in performance, especially for VR. (there is one on sale in the Members Market.) Then sell it on if you decide to upgrade to the 3000 series.

Sure, you can wait, but, VR is so much better when the graphics are better. It's not like pancake gaming. Everything gets better in VR with a faster GPU. Running on low settings and dropping down into AWS really takes the fun out of VR.

 

[SupraWez]

This ^ hence why I upgraded from 1080ti to RTX 2080 TI.

Depends if you are going to run the native VR res or apply some SS, I found with newer gen headsets there is less need for SS which has reduced GPU performance requirements.

 

[varkanoid]

How does the virtual desktop WiFi link compare to running it over USB using the official Oculus link app. Is there much difference?

Its subjective as it depends on your PC as basically all you are doing is streaming the game to your Quest via WIFI. So the gameplay you see on your PC will be the same you see on the Quest whether using the link or VD. There is some lag with VD sometimes (doesnt help when the kids are playing Youtube!) but then again it depends on what you find acceptable and put that against having no wires which is a massive bonus. There is no reason why you cant try it as the cost is miniscule for using Virtual Desktop and using link with both costing less than a tenner to get up and running then you can see for yourself. Being able to play VR games outside via VD or Quest games in the garden with a massive play area just takes it to another level.

maybe look into the modicap soundkit, it uses Sennheiser HD25s and mounts to the headset strap quite neatly.

I just bauk at paying £150+ whatever for this when the Quest audio is fine and it might give you a better audio experience but to me its not worth £150. £50 maybe.

 

[aoaaron]

modicap is a waste of money.

KSC75 with some pliers to bend the plastic is just insane value.

 

[silvagti]

There is some lag with VD sometimes (doesnt help when the kids are playing Youtube!) but then again it depends on what you find acceptable and put that against having no wires which is a massive bonus. There is no reason why you cant try it as the cost is miniscule for using Virtual Desktop and using link with both costing less than a tenner to get up and running then you can see for yourself.

Yeah, that's true and I should probably give it a try given it's only a tenner for the app. I have my PC connected via PoE to my router and a 5Ghz AC only a few metres from where I'd be using my Quest downstairs in the largest room in the house so it should work reasonably well.

I know what you mean regarding the freedom of using it wirelessly. Having used the Quest for a while you soon take for granted what it offers and it's incredibly frustrating having to go back to being tethered by a cable in a small room when I use the USB Oculus Link!

 

[fantasticCG]

I purchased a quest on New years eve, I'm so impressed with the experience of this headset and the games.


I last tried VR 4 years ago its come so far since then!

I feel this is a great first step into the VR world and will be trying out the quest cable once its available in the UK.

Very happy with the purchase.

 

[varkanoid]

I purchased a quest on New years eve, I'm so impressed with the experience of this headset and the games.


I last tried VR 4 years ago its come so far since then!

I feel this is a great first step into the VR world and will be trying out the quest cable once its available in the UK.

Very happy with the purchase.

You dont need to wait for the Quest official cable just get a cheap USB C 3.1 off Amazon see few pages back for recommendation. When the "official" cable arrives it will be overpriced for what it is.

 

[Ravenger]

When the "official" cable arrives it will be overpriced for what it is.

It's expensive, yes, but actually not overpriced as it's an active fibre optic cable, which is why it's much thinner, longer and flexible than the available copper USB 3.1 cables.

Other equivalent fibre optic cables can be even more expensive.

 

[varkanoid]

Overpriced in that the USB copper equivalent will do the same job.

 

[melmac]

Overpriced in that the USB copper equivalent will do the same job.

Yes, but a thinner, lighter and more flexible cable means a lot when you have a VR headset on.

Also, I wonder is there a difference in latency between the official cable and a using a USB cable.

 

[adey]

The only cable i could find of at 10ft was a USB A to C, it doesn't seem to work.

Does it have to to be USB 3?

 

[ivrytwr3]

The only cable i could find of at 10ft was a USB A to C, it doesn't seem to work.

Does it have to to be USB 3?

JOTO USB Type C Cable Extra Long 10ft, USB-C 3.1 Type-C to USB 3.0 Type A Charging Data Cable [Heavy Duty Nylon Braided] for Galaxy S9 S8+ Note 9 Tab S4 S3 Nintendo Switch Type C Devices (Black, 10ft)

that's the one i use and yes it had to be USB3

 

[varkanoid]

modicap is a waste of money.

KSC75 with some pliers to bend the plastic is just insane value.

Might try these they are very cheap on the rain forest and get good audio reviews. How do you use them, the plastic over the ear bit goes over the headband each side ? Are they not uncomfortable like that ? How do you plug them in also as the quest has a headphone port either side ?

Update - okay I did a bit of googling.

The mod with pictures for these is here https://imgur.com/gallery/V7zKoN9 (apparently you can get black ones) and then some people have changed the wires to a "two connecting mod" so basically got two 3.5mm jacks and soldered the left/right wires to them to create the separate leads. This also cleans it up a bit as you can make the leads really short so I've ordered some KSC75's to try.

 

[adey]

JOTO USB Type C Cable Extra Long 10ft, USB-C 3.1 Type-C to USB 3.0 Type A Charging Data Cable [Heavy Duty Nylon Braided] for Galaxy S9 S8+ Note 9 Tab S4 S3 Nintendo Switch Type C Devices (Black, 10ft)

that's the one i use and yes it had to be USB3

Brilliant! thanks!

 

[jubei]

I've been looking into this and cant quite find anything concrete. If i were to get this instead of the S and then use the link cable, is it using the full power of my pc just like an s would, or am i still limited by the mobile processor in the quest? I've watched a couple reviews that talked about seeing some artifacts or stutter on the quest that they havent seen on the S?

In the market to get one or the other and although i don't really need it to be mobile; its a nice to have if it can do everything the S does when it is connected up with a wire.

 

[varkanoid]

It uses the power of your PC, its basically just streaming the game to your PC, like you would with the Nvidia Shield, or the Steam one or even the Google streaming service.
Dont forget this is still in Beta so it wont be the finished article and Oculus have not released their offical fibre cable yet. Also the Quest has just got hand tracking and I have noticed
some early apps/games are appearing on the Sidequest store. Quite freaky at first seeing your actual "hands" in VR.

I would say wireless is more than "a nice to have". Its a game changer.

 

[Ravenger]

The official link cable is now available for £89(!)

https://www.oculus.com/quest/accessories/