VR headset vs Track IR - Which do you prefer?

[razorseal]

Hey guys,

 

So I wanted to make this post but i've been neglecting posting about.

 

I recently (well 6 months ago) got a Oculus headset... I've been wanting it for a while and wife finally got it as a christmas gift. First thing I did was to launch DCS to see this realism and the feel of "being there" most talked about.

 

They weren't lying. feeling inside the plane really makes you feel "cramped" and inside... you look over your shoulder like you really would to look down etc.

 

Then I started doing some "button pushing" and came to realize being able to read the radars, the hud etc in detail was fairly hard. I also couldn't zoom in like when I use my track IR, so I had to constantly lean in to take a "closer look" and also hover the mouse over buttons to see if it was the right one. I didn't even try the hand glove thingy cuz then I have no idea how I'm going to push the button and hold the HOTAS at the same time...

 

Then I tried some BFM. boy did my back get a work out! with my Track IR, I would just slightly turn my head and I could see behind me fairly well. Not alot of motion... with the VR headset, I have to actually LOOK behind me, so I'm constantly turning my back, leaning over etc (I have a obutto race cockpit). For AI maybe it's fine, but doing this in a multiplayer enviroment I would feel would put me at a disadvantage...

 

So I noticed lately I no longer use the VR headset and went back to the Track IR. It surprises me because most people have said once you go VR, you can't go back... and here I am..

 

What gives? What do you prefer? How do you deal with the problems I've dealt with?

[unlikely_spider]

Same as you. I have a headset, and use it for things like Half Life, but I much prefer TrackIR for flight sims.

[MacEwan]

I used TrackIR for many years but the switch to VR made a whole world of difference. I think one of my favorite things about it is the feeling of depth perception you get in VR

[Taz1004]

That means if you can use TrackIR in your real life, you would.

 

It depends on why you play simulation. To simulate the experience or to play competitively.

 

Mouse in VR issue is a problem ED needs to fix.

[MacEwan]

Mouse in VR issue is a problem ED needs to fix.

 

This is true. It takes A LOT of getting used to.

[unlikely_spider]

That means if you can use TrackIR in your real life, you would.

 

It depends on why you play simulation. To simulate the experience or to play competitively.

 

Mouse in VR issue is a problem ED needs to fix.

 

In real life, if you could look behind you while driving by only turning your head a few degrees... And if you could zoom in 10x to see something far away... You wouldn't want that? Of course you would.

Also I'm single-player only, and am not competitive.

[razorseal]

In real life, if you could look behind you while driving by only turning your head a few degrees... And if you could zoom in 10x to see something far away... You wouldn't want that? Of course you would.

Also I'm single-player only, and am not competitive.

 

yes, competitively track IR for sure. zooming in, little head movement to see behidn you.

 

with VR, you def lose that edge. but it sure feels more "real" (minus we need higher res headsets)

[Taz1004]

In real life, if you could look behind you while driving by only turning your head a few degrees... And if you could zoom in 10x to see something far away... You wouldn't want that? Of course you would.

Also I'm single-player only, and am not competitive.

 

Of course I would NOT. And you're only talking about what you think is advantage of TrackIR. If you have to see everything in 2D in real life, you would?

 

Besides, I was illustrating the difference between simulating real life versus just being effective at playing.

[unlikely_spider]

Of course I would NOT. And you're only talking about what you think is advantage of TrackIR. If you have to see everything in 2D in real life, you would?

 

Besides, I was illustrating the difference between simulating real life versus just being effective at playing.

 

Oh, I have to have all of the disadvantages too? Well never mind then! But I still prefer TrackIR in DCS.

We're all just simulating in different ways anyway. I don't walk around real life feeling like I'm wearing a scuba mask all day.

[Taz1004]

Oh, I have to have all of the disadvantages too? Well never mind then! But I still prefer TrackIR in DCS.

We're all just simulating in different ways anyway. I don't walk around real life feeling like I'm wearing a scuba mask all day.

 

That is also part of the immersion isn't it? Pilots/Racers also wears something on their head. But I'm sure they would take them off if they only wanted to be effective.

Edited June 3, 2020 by Taz1004

[unlikely_spider]

That is also part of the immersion isn't it? Pilots/Racers also wears something on their head. But I'm sure they would take them off if they only wanted to be effective.

 

Is it though? With the restricted FoV? The FoV on my ultrawide monitor better replicates what a real pilot would see vs any of the mainstream scuba goggles VR headsets. As is the ability to see my own hands. We each have pros/cons when it comes to replicating realism.

Edited June 3, 2020 by unlikely_spider

[Taz1004]

Is it though? With the restricted FoV? The FoV on my ultrawide monitor better replicates what a real pilot would see vs any of the mainstream scuba goggles VR headsets. As is the ability to see my own hands. We each have pros/cons when it comes to replicating realism.

 

Well, your ultra wide monitor has very limited vertical FOV. What's acceptable or not depends on the people.

 

But the point is the VR is more for people who want the experience and TrackIR is for people who want to be more effective. The OP clearly stated that in his post.

[unlikely_spider]

Well, your ultra wide monitor has very limited vertical FOV. What's acceptable or not depends on the people.

 

But the point is the VR is more for people who want the experience and TrackIR is for people who want to be more effective. The OP clearly stated that in his post.

 

Oh, yes, the vertical FoV is a thing. That explains why I had to ratchet up the pitch axis curve in the TrackIR software vs the other axes.

[HornetPaul]

 

I also couldn't zoom in like when I use my track IR, so I had to constantly lean in to take a "closer look" and also hover the mouse over buttons to see if it was the right one.

 

You can bind a button for it under "UI layer", or something. You can also bind buttons for the mouse functions and have the cursor follow your vision.

 

I feel you get much better spatial awareness in VR compared to TrackIR, which makes up for the extra work needed to move your head around.

[Cake]

I use VR, but I think one of the issues with VR is the headset doesn’t allow you to look as far back over your shoulder as you could realistically. This is because IRL you can angle your neck x degrees plus roll your eyes in the same direction. The same Eye angle with a headset and your not looking at the lenses, but rather the interior housing of the headset. This creates a bigger blind spot than is realistic. DCS should take the idea of scaling the head turn from Track IR and apply it to VR.

 

Track IR is completely unrealistic, because you can set it to easily look directly behind you with a small turn of the head, which makes for a huge advantage in SA. I used this before VR and may try it again soon just for kicks.

 

I’m still on gen 1 VR, and I think spotting is still nearly impossible at anything but the closest range, but don’t want to give up the realistic flight feeling of VR.

Edited June 4, 2020 by Cake

[GunSlingerAUS]

I have the fastest PC available ATM, so thought I'd have good performance with the Reverb. I did not. It was terrible, so I instead now use a huge 55" OLED display (the C9, which is basically a giant gaming monitor ) with TrqckIR. For me, this is monumentally more immersive.

[Aviators]

TIR

[jaguara5]

Oh, yes, the vertical FoV is a thing. .

 

43 inch monitor and problem solved. Best hardware upgrade i've ever made.

I'm also on trackir. Besides the reasons stated in the first post, i 'm suffering from very serious motions sickness the few times i 've tried vr.

[dburne]

I went VR originally with a Rift CV1 back in Jan 2017 and have never looked back. Track IR been permanently retired since then. Upgraded to Rift S in May 2019 and loving it, as I use it daily.

Tried monitor again once or twice and it just was not the same.

[Revvin]

I've used TrackIR and other options such as EDTracker and TrackHat but for me personally nothing comes close to the immersion in VR. Its truly transformed my flight sims, I find I spend more time flying now because of VR. I went through so many iteration of head tracking as mentioned above because I never found the perfect device, I don't want to have to play in a darkened room because the TrackIR gets thrown off and I hate the way the trackers lose their tracking even after you've spent time tweaking and trying to find the sweet spot so they don't go crazy if you move too far out of range.Then you just have the immersion breakers of seeing everything around you, the keyboard and mouse, the flat monitor in front of you, the wallpaper behind your monitor, the cat sat on the window sill who pops up and distracts you etc

 

VR isn't perfect but for me its far far better than TrackIR etc

[Andrew u.k.]

That means if you can use TrackIR in your real life, you would.

 

It depends on why you play simulation. To simulate the experience or to play competitively.

 

Mouse in VR issue is a problem ED needs to fix.

Honestly, get Pointctrl. It's absolutely amazing in vr.

I couldn't go back to trackir after Vr.

 

Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk

[webweaver40]

It really depends on which VR as VR quality is on a pretty big spectrum right now. I chose Track IR over VR for quite a while. Running top spec machine with 2080ti and very large monitor. Got Rift S, finally thought VR was good enough to play in it sometimes, but still preferred my TrackIr. Got the HP Reverb and now I'm 100% VR.

 

I totally agree that the head turning is a pain (literally) compared to track ir, but I've accepted that disadvantage for the benefits I gain in VR, which I should clarify by saying the level of VR I've been able to attain.

 

If I did not have the HP reverb and a machine to run the HP reverb at 188 super sampling and most settings on high, then I would probably answer your post on the TrackIR side.

 

Bottom line: top end VR outweighs track IR.

 

*I should mention that I have the pimax 8kx on order which I was able to test at CES 2020 and with the very wide Fov (like 200) the neck strain will be much less as I will be able to see a lot further back when turning head.

Edited June 6, 2020 by webweaver40

[Lespaul23]

VR for me. I was flying a couple days ago, sun was coming in the cockpit behind me and I couldn't see if my guns were in high or low so I actually put my hand up to try and block the sun.... It didn't work..... But I laughed and that's why I pick VR. You just can't get faked out like that while looking at a TV screen.

[Motomouse]

The VR spectrum is not so big. My Reverb just died and I went back to the Rift. Not bad at all. (Lower Resolution, but much higher settings and better tracking while turning the head, 1080Ti)

[dburne]

The VR spectrum is not so big. My Reverb just died and I went back to the Rift. Not bad at all. (Lower Resolution, but much higher settings and better tracking while turning the head, 1080Ti)

 

That is one reason why I like my Rift S so much, I get very good image clarity yet can still run pretty high settings. What good would higher resolution be if one has to crank the settings way down in order to run it. Perhaps by the time I am ready for much better resolution the headsets and hardware will be able to run it with some high settings. Till then I am quite happy.