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XTal VR


EvilBert VR

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Hey everyone.

 

I've been pretty busy the past weeks but I thought that it was time to give you a brief review of the XTal VR headset made by VRgineers that I had been using for quite some time now.

I know that the headset has been discussed here and there but no review has been put online on this forums. So here we go but without diving too deep into technical details.

 

I received the headset a couple months ago for testing purposes within my helicopter simpits. Thanks to Marek from VRgineers.com:thumbup:

 

The first impression was overwhelming! Just by the looks and the packaging you could tell that this is the real deal! The headset is high-quality and is made of very solid and rigid plastic. The version that I was given is called the C3 with a single virtuallink plug that snuggs into the USB Type-C port on my 2080Ti video card. Speakers are not built-in but there's a standard plug on the side of the headset.

 

(Two USB dongles are also utilized but I have not figured out the use of them so far)

 

And: That thing is massive!!!

 

Once plugged in you need to download a dedicated software for the headset named "VRG VR Tool". The software guides you through the installation process and once everything is set and done you're ready to go.

It took me quite some time to get all the settings adapted to my comfort and after a lot of struggling I finally figured out what the best settings were.

 

For using the headset with DCS you need to install some .dll into the bin directory of DCS and then you should be good to go. Here it gives you the option of either using static foveated rendering or not. The latter affects your systems efficiency so a lower resolution is recommended. More on this later.

 

 

 

Steam VR is mandatory to use the headset in most games. A guide of how to use the headset with Steam VR and how to set the system up for DCS is provided by VRgineers.

 

After setting everything up you're good to go.

 

My impressions so far:

 

- the image quality is the best I have ever seen in VR! I've never seen such a crisp and detailed cockpit and there are no grid lines visible!!!

 

 

 

- The FoW is somewhat smaller than the one of my Pimax but by far larger than on the other common headsets available. As you guys know: FoW is the key to immersion to me!

 

- The headset is pretty heavy and even with its very comfortable strapping system it gives me a pain on my nose after a while.

 

 

- It took me very long to get the best adjustments to my eyes (I guess the problem here was the grey part behind my eyes :megalol:)

 

... More to follow...

 

Cheers!

 

 

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My System: Full Scale Huey SimPit
 

-Pit Computer: i7-12700K | Gigabyte Z690 AORUS Pro | 64GB DDR5 RAM | Nvidia RTX3090FE | Kingston KC3000 NVme

- All day use: i7-4790K | 32GB DDR4 RAM | ASRock Z97 Killer | GeForce RTX 2080 Ti AMP! | Oculus Rift | Pimax8KX | Sensoryx VRFree Gloves | X-TAL VR

 

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What resolution does it come with these days. I know the claim to fame was that even with lower resolution, the lens design made it much more clear. (And demo video seem to bear that out). But which Pimax are you comparing it to?

hsb

HW Spec in Spoiler

---

 

i7-10700K Direct-To-Die/OC'ed to 5.1GHz, MSI Z490 MB, 32GB DDR4 3200MHz, EVGA 2080 Ti FTW3, NVMe+SSD, Win 10 x64 Pro, MFG, Warthog, TM MFDs, Komodo Huey set, Rverbe G1

 

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What resolution does it come with these days. I know the claim to fame was that even with lower resolution, the lens design made it much more clear. (And demo video seem to bear that out). But which Pimax are you comparing it to?

 

I am usually using the 5K so that's my comparison model.

With the XTal I am running on either 5K with 2x 2560x1440 at 120Hz or 8K with 2x 3840x2160 at 75Hz.

 

Cheers

My System: Full Scale Huey SimPit
 

-Pit Computer: i7-12700K | Gigabyte Z690 AORUS Pro | 64GB DDR5 RAM | Nvidia RTX3090FE | Kingston KC3000 NVme

- All day use: i7-4790K | 32GB DDR4 RAM | ASRock Z97 Killer | GeForce RTX 2080 Ti AMP! | Oculus Rift | Pimax8KX | Sensoryx VRFree Gloves | X-TAL VR

 

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I am usually using the 5K so that's my comparison model.

With the XTal I am running on either 5K with 2x 2560x1440 at 120Hz or 8K with 2x 3840x2160 at 75Hz.

 

Cheers

 

 

Thanks. I'm thinking the 4790K is going to have a hard time keeping up with the XTal resolutions (either one). If you can share some performance stats, that'd be great.

hsb

HW Spec in Spoiler

---

 

i7-10700K Direct-To-Die/OC'ed to 5.1GHz, MSI Z490 MB, 32GB DDR4 3200MHz, EVGA 2080 Ti FTW3, NVMe+SSD, Win 10 x64 Pro, MFG, Warthog, TM MFDs, Komodo Huey set, Rverbe G1

 

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Have you tried a reverb, I Think the last Xtal guy claimed that the reverb had similar clarity, but less FOV obviously.

New hotness: I7 9700k 4.8ghz, 32gb ddr4, 2080ti, :joystick: TM Warthog. TrackIR, HP Reverb (formermly CV1)

Old-N-busted: i7 4720HQ ~3.5GHZ, +32GB DDR3 + Nvidia GTX980m (4GB VRAM) :joystick: TM Warthog. TrackIR, Rift CV1 (yes really).

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Thanks. I'm thinking the 4790K is going to have a hard time keeping up with the XTal resolutions (either one). If you can share some performance stats, that'd be great.

 

Based on my experience, the limiting factor at higher resolutions is the GPU. The CPU only starts to really limit performance once you get into very high refresh rates (frame rates). Think 144hz+. We get nowhere near those FPS in DCS with VR.

 

FYI. I'm still using a i7 5960X with a 2080ti GPU. I game on a 2K ultrawide Gsync panel that maxes out at 120 fps and an Oculus Rift. The GPU is still the limiting factor on my system especially with VR.

 

PS. Instead of Nvidia getting rid of SLI, wish they would try to implement it with VR headsets. Imagine the jump in resolution and framerate of the headsets if we had a single 2080 or 3080 rendering for EACH EYE in the VR headsets. The GPU's are already synced up to run in SLI anyways, why not utilize a separate SLI GPU for each eye? It would be an insane jump in VR fidelity and performance.


Edited by dadunn1700
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Based on my experience, the limiting factor at higher resolutions is the GPU. The CPU only starts to really limit performance once you get into very high refresh rates (frame rates). Think 144hz+. We get nowhere near those FPS in DCS with VR.

 

FYI. I'm still using a i7 5960X with a 2080ti GPU. I game on a 2K ultrawide Gsync panel that maxes out at 120 fps and an Oculus Rift. The GPU is still the limiting factor on my system especially with VR.

 

PS. Instead of Nvidia getting rid of SLI, wish they would try to implement it with VR headsets. Imagine the jump in resolution and framerate of the headsets if we had a single 2080 or 3080 rendering for EACH EYE in the VR headsets. The GPU's are already synced up to run in SLI anyways, why not utilize a separate SLI GPU for each eye? It would be an insane jump in VR fidelity and performance.

 

 

Yeah that would be nice but don't think Nvidia will ever do it. They are already getting away from SLI it seems, and SLI for VR - talk about a niche in a niche in a niche.

 

Heck Nvidia already dropped the Virtual Link port on the GPU's they introduced with the 20x line.

That worked quite well with my Rift S.

Don B

EVGA Z390 Dark MB | i9 9900k CPU @ 5.1 GHz | Gigabyte 4090 OC | 64 GB Corsair Vengeance 3200 MHz CL16 | Corsair H150i Pro Cooler |Virpil CM3 Stick w/ Alpha Prime Grip 200mm ext| Virpil CM3 Throttle | VPC Rotor TCS Base w/ Alpha-L Grip| Point Control V2|Varjo Aero|

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