What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?
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I do have to say, as a Varjo Aero user, I am quite impressed with the Quest 3’s mixed reality possibilities for those of us with physical MFDs/ICPs/etc… Saw the BMS video, then
explaining how to set it up, has me thinking about it. Just being to easily see the KB would be a great help! -
@Icer said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
Yes, and reality is there is (AFAIK) a hefty annual subscription fee for all the XR series headsets. They are not intended for general gaming/consumer use.
No subscription for the XR4 AFAIK.
@charlesray said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
Well, okay, I guess $4000 is probably way too much.
I’m waiting for the reviews to see. $4K is a lot of money but if they make it worth the money…
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@Atlas said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
No subscription for the XR4 AFAIK.
I’m waiting for the reviews to see. $4K is a lot of money but if they make it worth the money…I’ve put myself on the waitlist and they list nothing about a subscription, but the XR4 is also not available for consumers yet. If they don’t require a subscription €4k is still nuts IMO… just to play games anyway. I love my Aero’s clarity but the one drawback is (if I wasn’t already invested it wouldn’t matter) I lose the use of all my physical cockpit equipment (and keyboard). This is why I play BMS 2D only, at least until my two year wait for a Point Control setup is shipped and BMS supports it (and OpenXR)…
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@Icer said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
@Atlas said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
No subscription for the XR4 AFAIK.
I’m waiting for the reviews to see. $4K is a lot of money but if they make it worth the money…@Atlas - You are correct! I dug a bit deeper and saw this:
XR-4
Superlative Immersion
Starting at 3,990 €/$.
No subscription required.
No Outside tracking needed (no more need for Lighthouses)
Controllers includedI’ve put myself on the waitlist as the XR4 is not available for consumers yet. But in reality €4k is still nuts IMO… just to play games anyway. I love my Aero’s clarity but the one drawback is (if I wasn’t already invested it wouldn’t matter) I lose the use of all my physical cockpit equipment (and keyboard). This is why I play BMS 2D only, at least until my two year wait for a Point Control setup is shipped and BMS supports it (and OpenXR)…
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Varjo website says they’re available for checkout now. But auto focus passthrough (for your cockpit) actually costs $10,000.
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@Screenfacer said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
@Icer
Varjo website says they’re available for checkout now. But auto focus passthrough (for your cockpit) actually costs $10,000.Don’t believe you need the 51 PPD Auto Focus Passthrough of the Focal Edition, The standard XR4 comes with 33 PPD passthrough, would guess (Considering the Q3’S VR itself is only 25PPD vs. 39PPD max of the Aero) that it is significantly better than the Q3 but really no idea what the Q3 color passthough is (haven’t looked).
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@Icer said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
I use two, but if your VR use is just sitting for flight/racing sims I believe you can just use one centered/45degrees up in front of you. I purchased one with the Varjo (paid too much) and one direct from Steam (Valve Index Base Station 2.0). Not sure what current Varjo price is for the base station, but would just buy from Steam (if still less) if I was to do it over.
I suppose I could try just one at first to save some money. And possibly system resources?
@Icer said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
I do have to say, as a Varjo Aero user, I am quite impressed with the Quest 3’s mixed reality possibilities for those of us with physical MFDs/ICPs/etc… Saw the BMS video, then [this one] explaining how to set it up, has me thinking about it. Just being to easily see the KB would be a great help!
Interesting! Though come to think of it, I’m not sure if I’d actually have much use for mixed reality myself. Don’t own an ICP or MFDs as I don’t really have room for them, plus the Winwing F16EX I use has so many extra buttons I already mapped most of the ICP (and more commonly hit OSBs/key callbacks) to the HOTAS. In fact, I don’t really touch the keyboard much either (aside from the 10-key) since fully clickable cockpits came around…and to think, I started simming in Falcon 3 flying the whole jet with nothing but a keyboard.
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@Icer On my makeshift pit, I was able to manipulate the ICP somewhat reliably and while my physical GEAR panel was about 2 inches higher than where it is shown in VR, I was able to mentally adjust where I was reaching in order to be in the vicinity of the switch I wanted. I’m building a replica cockpit now and while passthrough would be great, I may be able to have enough muscle memory that I could find switches more easily as the physical item would be within millimeters of what I see in VR.
I have PointCTRL now and while I just use it as extra buttons, I doubt that even if BMS supports it that it would beat having physical items to manipulate and get that tactile/audible feedback. For sure it is better than having to use a trackball or mouse, but it’s also not as good as having an actual switch/dial/knob/button to interact with.
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@Atlas when OpenXR is supported in 4.37.4 sometime around Q1 2024, we should have a way to use PointCTRL using @fredemmott’s MSFS workaround.
I would use PointCTRL and switch box of key switches. I think even with 1:1 MFD, ICP under non-passthrough/cut facial interface, I’m faster with PointCTRL because I get the visual feedback of where my hands are at and PointCTRL is still pretty tactile to feel very similar to flipping a switch or turning a dial.
l would keep my switch box and landing gear panel for common switches that I need to operate without looking at in VR (master arm, landing gear, etc.) but not really needing my ICP, MFDs, and my things I use for ramp starts: X56 throttle, G13, and Saitek switch panel. These even with drawer bumpers and different shape switch covers are still slower than PointCTRL/feel less realistic without 1:1.
Also as BMS branches out into more aircraft, it allows for a much more realistic feeling out of the gate with other aircraft (or even currently with different blocks of Vipers).1:1 is closer and better than this cobbled together setup but the work of building 1:1 stopped being fun for me over a decade ago when adulting got harder But your solution is still great!!! I just think PointCTRL/passthrough is going to be poorman’s/multiple aircraft answer for lots of people.
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I can barely run my headset comfortably in VR (bms fs2020)
Don’t buy to fancy stuff. Vr is very demanding.I have 5900x, 32gb RAM, 3080 10GB and a Quest 3
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@b0bl00i said in What would be the best VR headset for BMS my hardware could handle?:
I can barely run my headset comfortably in VR (bms fs2020)
Don’t buy to fancy stuff. Vr is very demanding.I have 5900x, 32gb RAM, 3080 10GB and a Quest 3
That sounds weird… you have pretty strong HW for BMS (I’d say your system is over what’s needed to run 4.37 with good FPS in VR)
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@Snake122 I’m currently building a 1:1 but even though I’m doing a Viper pit, there are quite a few variations on some panels and layouts which I would expect would limit my aircraft selection later on. For some of the panels, I can just do different versions and then swap them over should I need/want to.
However, I’m not writing off any other option. Passthrough would be great, but how it really affects things and what it brings for immersion would need to be evaluated once it is available.
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@I-Hawk Yeah it’s weird indeed. Falcon is the most stable but low fps on ground… Fs2020 works great 1 out of 5 times. Can’t pinpoint why I don’t have a stable experience.
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@b0bl00i Same for me, Quest 3 resolution is already too much for my system to handle.
RTX2080 TI
I9 9900 @5.2
32GO ramif I run the quest 3 at 100% resolution, everything is perfectly readable so I don’t really care about an headset that would provide a bigger res.
If I want the experience to be fluid on the ground I would need to turn everything down and have a steam resolution around 60-70% which makes the game awfull and unreadable.I have no issue on an empty airfield, but add a few units and simply looking in their direction tanks the fps, looking low inside of the cockpit seems to be very demanding too. Bad weather seems to severly impact the fps also.
I could make more precise benchmark in the TE benchmark if that can help people to make a more educated choice about potential config.