VR Headset for Sim Racing

[GMac11]

I’m thinking of finally getting into VR, partly because I plan to get rid of my UW monitor and clear some space and mostly because the new F1 title is set to support it.

The whole VR thing is a minefield for me as I have absolutely no experience with it.

All I need/want is a good headset (don’t need audio) for my various racing titles. Ideally something with high refresh and good resolution (no screen door etc).

It’s just difficult to start looking particularly since it seems a few of the earlier models have all now been discontinued.

I don’t really have a budget. That doesn’t necessarily mean I need/want the best of the best, but am prepared to pay what I have to for a good unit.

Any advice/help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Ravenger]

Reverb G2 seems to be the current best choice for Sim Racing. Not the best all-rounder as the controllers aren't amazing, but it seems to have the best combinaton of resolution, lenses, comfort and audio at a reasonable price.

If you want to do more active VR then the Quest 2 is the best, as it can be used wirelessly.

It's hard to reccommend the Index now, despite it being a quality headset with excellent controllers, as the resolution isn't the best, it's expensive and requires fixed base stations.

BTW, Audio is important with VR, as it needs to be decent 3D to tie the audio with the direction you're looking, plus you don't want to be faffing around with separate headphones. The G2's audio is excellent. You can still use a subwoofer if you have one, along with the VR built in audio.

 

[GMac11]

I know it may seem utter madness but I have actually started using my AirPods as my gaming audio. I find them more comfortable than over ear options plus the Dolby Atmos support is pretty good with them - hence why I said audio isn't all that important although I'm absolutely open to suggestions in case my plan is totally silly.

I was thinking about picking up a Quest 2 just because it seems to be on offer at £299 right now - I may well discover that VR isn't for me so it perhaps makes sense to go with the more budget end of things to get started, I don't know.
I can't envisage wireless being important as I will only ever be using it with my Sim Racing Rig anyway so it's highly unlikely I'll be going walkabout with the headset.

 

[Ravenger]

Quest 2 is a good choice to put your toe in the water, but for sim racing you'll need a better headstrap, and a decent USB3 cable, which probably bumps up the price another £50+

You can use the Q2 wirelessly playing sims, but it can look blocky due to video compression. It's best in this case to use a USB3 link cable, as you get better visual quality.

Oh, and what is the audio latency like on the Airpods? For VR that's hugely important.

 

[Unseul]

I know it may seem utter madness but I have actually started using my AirPods as my gaming audio. I find them more comfortable than over ear options plus the Dolby Atmos support is pretty good with them - hence why I said audio isn't all that important although I'm absolutely open to suggestions in case my plan is totally silly.

I was thinking about picking up a Quest 2 just because it seems to be on offer at £299 right now - I may well discover that VR isn't for me so it perhaps makes sense to go with the more budget end of things to get started, I don't know.
I can't envisage wireless being important as I will only ever be using it with my Sim Racing Rig anyway so it's highly unlikely I'll be going walkabout with the headset.

£299 is the regular price for the quest 2 128gb model.

It's a very capable headset, you'll want to get a good usb cable to connect it to a usb 3.1/3.2 socket in your machine. It won't give you as good visuals as the G2 but is a cheaper way to dip your toes in, and also gives fantastic standalone capabilities. Will probably want to improve the strap in some ways at least, but that can be done fairly cheaply to get you started.

 

[Housey]

I have been debating this for sometime now....

I keep looking at that Vario but then the price makes me look away.....but it's so damn good.

Anyone using a G2 with specs?

 

[Unseul]

The new pico neo could be of interest to you as well actually, it has a display port, so overcomes the biggest issue with the quest 2 and PCVR, the fact you want it for simming means you avoid potential poor tracking too.

 

[GMac11]

Quest 2 is a good choice to put your toe in the water, but for sim racing you'll need a better headstrap, and a decent USB3 cable, which probably bumps up the price another £50+

You can use the Q2 wirelessly playing sims, but it can look blocky due to video compression. It's best in this case to use a USB3 link cable, as you get better visual quality.

Oh, and what is the audio latency like on the Airpods? For VR that's hugely important.

Thanks for that, I think I could try and live with the standard strap for a while - having a little one in the house my sessions rarely last more than an hour at a time anyway
Is there any particular USB3 cable you would recommend?

I have found the latency with the AirPods absolutely fine however it is not something I’m particularly sensitive to (I don’t think). I have used Bluetooth audio for years and I think the over ears I currently have are Bluetooth 4.0 AT BEST so the 5.0 on the AirPods should be better still. Again, as I only play racing titles I’m guessing audio latency isn’t high on the list compared to other genres?

 

[GMac11]

The new pico neo could be of interest to you as well actually, it has a display port, so overcomes the biggest issue with the quest 2 and PCVR, the fact you want it for simming means you avoid potential poor tracking too.

I had a quick Google for it there, is there actually any retail outlets in the UK it can actually be purchased from?

 

[ShiWarrior]

I'm going to bite a bullet here
Get either a second hand Quest 2 (depending on price) and save money for the next gen headsets coming later this year (Metas Cumbria, and Apples first dip into VR)

i think with the price of the G2 isn't worth it right now due to new headsets on the horizon

 

[GMac11]

Thanks all. I think I’m going to pop into Argos tomorrow or Wednesday and pick up the Quest 2.
I appreciate I could go used for slightly less but I figure I may as well go somewhere I can return it in case it really just doesn’t work out for me.
I’ll also pick one of these cables up which came recommended on one of the YouTube videos I watched:

KIWI design Link Cable 10 Feet (3 Meters) Compatible with Oculus Quest 2, High Speed Data Transfer USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C Cable Compatible for Oculus Quest 1 and Quest 2 to a Gaming PC, Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08BPDV...i_i_3SE5QCRR66G3N3BGSTJN?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Unseul]

That should be fine for the cable. Make sure your motherboard has a suitable socket though! Or a proper usb card.

 

[GMac11]

That should be fine for the cable. Make sure your motherboard has a suitable socket though! Or a proper usb card.

I have an MSI Z-370 A Pro which according to the manual anyway has 3.1 Gen 1 Ports - so that I assume that should be fine?

 

[Haze]

Thanks all. I think I’m going to pop into Argos tomorrow or Wednesday and pick up the Quest 2.
I appreciate I could go used for slightly less but I figure I may as well go somewhere I can return it in case it really just doesn’t work out for me.
I’ll also pick one of these cables up which came recommended on one of the YouTube videos I watched:

KIWI design Link Cable 10 Feet (3 Meters) Compatible with Oculus Quest 2, High Speed Data Transfer USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C Cable Compatible for Oculus Quest 1 and Quest 2 to a Gaming PC, Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08BPDV...i_i_3SE5QCRR66G3N3BGSTJN?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

You shouldn't need a link cable, if you have strong WiFi

 

[Unseul]

You shouldn't need a link cable, if you have strong WiFi

Link cable can still give a better image than wifi in my experience, and seeing as he wants it for simming, the cable isn't really that big a deal.

 

[GMac11]

Well I plan to pick up the Quest 2 today and the cable won’t be arriving until tomorrow so I may just give it a spin over WiFi and see.
The concern is the Mesh network I use which I read somewhere in the product information that mesh WiFi was not recommended - although one of the nodes is hardwired to my PC so it may just be enough to get by? It’s only a Deco M4 mind you which is AC1200, not WiFi6.

 

[ShiWarrior]

Don't go straight into sim racing, you will be sick
Take it gently first!!!

 

[Haze]

Made me feel rough, not tried it since

 

[glenimp617]

If you are going the Quest2 route, I would spend some time learning the ODT (oculus debug tool) to fine tune the settings. It makes the world of difference.

@GMac11 can you list your PC specs and your simracing games, as I should be able to start you off with some basic settings.

Using the cable and a decent GPU you want to be looking at native res through the oculus software (1.7, all the way to the right) and then in the ODT something along the lines of 1.2 (helps with shimmering in the distance like grandstands), ASW disabled, link sharpening on and bitrate set to 300mbs (if you have the cable). Then switch on the performance HUD and check where the performance graph is. You want to be going no lower than the middle of amber ideally. If you are in the red, start by dialing back the fps (72, 80, 90, 120), then the pixels per display to 1.0, then the native res.

Unfortunately even with a 3090, you can't do 1.7 at 120hz with 1.4 SS. Even though I tried it, and it looked absolutely sensational the performance dropped through the floor. That said, you can get something very acceptable, and VR is all about the immersion. It's really quite something hammering an F1 car around silverstone, although my favourite is the Ferrari 488 around red bull ring. Can spend hours doing laps around that track.

C:\Program Files\Oculus\Support\oculus-diagnostics\OculusDebugTool.exe

You need to launch this each and everytime and keep it running whilst you game

 

[GMac11]

If you are going the Quest2 route, I would spend some time learning the ODT (oculus debug tool) to fine tune the settings. It makes the world of difference.

@GMac11 can you list your PC specs and your simracing games, as I should be able to start you off with some basic settings.

Using the cable and a decent GPU you want to be looking at native res through the oculus software (1.7, all the way to the right) and then in the ODT something along the lines of 1.2 (helps with shimmering in the distance like grandstands), ASW disabled, link sharpening on and bitrate set to 300mbs (if you have the cable). Then switch on the performance HUD and check where the performance graph is. You want to be going no lower than the middle of amber ideally. If you are in the red, start by dialing back the fps (72, 80, 90, 120), then the pixels per display to 1.0, then the native res.

Unfortunately even with a 3090, you can't do 1.7 at 120hz with 1.4 SS. Even though I tried it, and it looked absolutely sensational the performance dropped through the floor. That said, you can get something very acceptable, and VR is all about the immersion. It's really quite something hammering an F1 car around silverstone, although my favourite is the Ferrari 488 around red bull ring. Can spend hours doing laps around that track.

C:\Program Files\Oculus\Support\oculus-diagnostics\OculusDebugTool.exe

You need to launch this each and everytime and keep it running whilst you game

Thanks for all that!
Currently running i5 8600k and GTX 1080 (neither are currently overclocked). I do fully intend a rebuild as soon as I can get a 3xxx series card without having to re-mortgage the house.
As for titles, it’s really just Dirt Rally and F1 these days. I dabble in Project Cars now and again.
Perhaps even with these slightly less resource hungry titles I’m being optimistic with my current hardware?