Gunthrek Posted October 30, 2023 Posted October 30, 2023 Greetings, I can't seem to find information on whether it's possible to adjust headset resolution. My understanding is that the resolution in the game settings is just for your monitor, not for the headset, so does the software just use the headset's default resolution, or do I need to set it somewhere? I'm only able to get a certain amount of clarity with the in game settings. Also, does SteamVR already have OpenXR included, or do I still have to download a separate software to get the benefits of it? When I go the website and click on the SteamVR option, it just takes me to the Steam website. My prior research suggested avoiding SteamVR was best, but if that's no longer applicable then I'll look for other ways to make improvements. Thanks!
diego999 Posted October 30, 2023 Posted October 30, 2023 (edited) Yes. It is possible to adjust headset resolution. The software of your headset should let you do it. You can change it too in SteamVR options and in DCS itself. The option you're looking for within DCS is "Pixel Density". For example, 1.0 is "normal" resolution (not quite, but more on that later). 1.2 means 20% more pixels, 1.5 means 50% more pixels, and so on. Lower than 1 means downsampling and it should be avoided as it's going to look bad. The golden rule for this is to change resolution / pixel density in one place only, as these settings multiply each other and it can get complicated very fast. Plus, SteamVR measures it differently, in a "per eye" basis, so for example, setting 1.2 PD in DCS equals 144% resolution in SteamVR settings (1.2x1.2). Final resolution presented before your eyes is: headset's software configured resolution * steamVR resolution * DCS pixel density So, again, it's better to change only one of these and leave the others at 100% or 1.0. I can't answer your second question as I use DCS standalone with OpenXR Toolkit (and I'm loving it). Which headset are you using? If you have a Quest I can show you how to find the settings. Edited October 30, 2023 by diego999
Gunthrek Posted October 30, 2023 Author Posted October 30, 2023 Thanks for the reply! I wasn't sure if pixel density directly related to resolution. Is 1.0 supposed to be the native resolution of the headset, or does it correlate to something else? I'm using a Pimax 5k headset on Steam.
diego999 Posted October 30, 2023 Posted October 30, 2023 (edited) 13 minutes ago, Gunthrek said: Is 1.0 supposed to be the native resolution of the headset, or does it correlate to something else? Depends on where you're setting it: 1.0 in the Pimax software? Yes I think that's the native resolution (anyone with a Pimax correct me please) 1.0 in DCS? No, that's the multiplier applied to the resolution that's being fed to the game. If you've changed it in Pimax Software or SteamVR, that's not native resolution. It depends on those settings. First is the resolution you set in Pimax That resolution is modified by your SteamVR settings Then it is modified again by DCS Pixel Density setting DCS Pixel Density is just the final layer of the resolution's cake, so to speak. Sorry if I can't explain myself in a more clear way. In my case I leave DCS PD at 1.0. I've had better results changing the resolution in the first layer only: Oculus software. Edited October 30, 2023 by diego999
Gunthrek Posted October 30, 2023 Author Posted October 30, 2023 Yeah, that's what I've been doing. I can get decent results with the Pimax software set at 1.5 and SteamVR and DCS left at 1.0. I just didn't know if that was direct resolution manipulation, or was doing something else. I'm not sure what settings most affect visual clarity...nor do I really know what's possible with my headset. At the same time, I'm running an RTX 2060 Super, so I'm not expecting stunning visuals. Just trying to get as good as possible since the 2.9 update seems to have drastically improved performance from what I had before. I'll play around with 1.75 or 2 for the Pimax software and see what I can get up to before it becomes annoying.
diego999 Posted October 30, 2023 Posted October 30, 2023 Your GPU won't let you reach the max possibilities of your headset I'm afraid. But, with some compromises I think you can reach acceptable visual quality with decent fps. These are my DCS settings, running with 125% resolution from Oculus software. 3060ti - Quest 2.
Koziolek Posted October 30, 2023 Posted October 30, 2023 1 hour ago, diego999 said: Your GPU won't let you reach the max possibilities of your headset I'm afraid. But, with some compromises I think you can reach acceptable visual quality with decent fps. These are my DCS settings, running with 125% resolution from Oculus software. 3060ti - Quest 2. I wonder, why do you have Vsync ON? What does it do?
diego999 Posted October 30, 2023 Posted October 30, 2023 2 hours ago, Koziolek said: I wonder, why do you have Vsync ON? What does it do? Nothing in VR. I leave it on for playing in 2d sometimes.
Gunthrek Posted October 30, 2023 Author Posted October 30, 2023 So I tried the settings listed above and they work pretty well. Then I downloaded the PimaxXR tool and ran it with OpenXR, and the clarity improved quite a lot...at the expense of a nearly unplayable framerate. I definitely don't have the hardware to run VR at anywhere near a nice visual quality, but at least it runs at relatively acceptable levels through SteamVR with most of the settings turned up and the PD set to 1.5. I suppose at this point I just have to wait for a hardware upgrade to get any more out of it.
diego999 Posted October 31, 2023 Posted October 31, 2023 (edited) There are some tricks you can try, but they come at the expense of visual quality. - If you're struggling with VRAM, set Terrain Textures to low. - Reduce PD a bit. I think 1.5 is too much, too many pixels to render. If you can read mfds and the HUD with 1.4 or 1.3, don't go any higher ( I play at 1.25). - Are you using motion reprojection (or whatever name Pimax uses for it)? It can make the game playable, but there's going to be artifacts with fast moving objects or rapid head movement. In nvidia control panel, set "Low Latency Mode" to Off, and "Virtual Reality Pre-rendered frames" to 1. Then find the option to activate Motion Reprojection in Pimax software. - There's a program called OpenXR Toolkit. I don't know if it works with your headset, but it has the option to activate foveated rendering. This renders only the center at full resolution and the edges at lower resolution. For me, this brings a 3-5% better performance. - Reduced fov. This option is the worse when it comes down to visuals, but it is what made DCS playable in VR for me back then when I struggled with a regular 2060. What this does is simply cutting the edges. You lose immersion but can gain a lot of performance. It depends on the headset obviously, but in my case with 0.90 (90% of the total size of the image, you're cutting 10% of the most external pixels) I can't even see the edges, and that's 10% less pixels your GPU has to render all the time. Once you start to see the black square limiting your view, you've gone too far. Yes, it's horrendous for immersion, but it's worth to try if you're on the edge of playability, as it seems to be your case. Edited October 31, 2023 by diego999
Gunthrek Posted October 31, 2023 Author Posted October 31, 2023 Still trying to play around with OpenXR, mostly because it's the only way to get relatively clear visuals out of the MFD's without having to zoom. - I don't have diagnostic tools, so I'm not sure where the bottleneck is. I've never been able to afford to buy the latest generation of parts, so I'm usually a generation or two behind even when building a brand new system. Obviously more money would solve a lot my problems, lol. - The Pimax software only has increments of .25, so I ended up at 1.25 while on OpenXR and it runs at fairly ok frames. You can just tell it's stuttering and the screen sometimes struggles to keep up if I turn my head too quickly, but it's definitely playable. The MFD at 1.25 is barely readable without zooming in, and 1.5 isn't really noticeably better. At 1.0 it's about the same blurriness as SteamVR, though SteamVR is generally much more blurry all around. At least with OpenXR I can read the switch labels pretty clearly without zooming. - I've gone back and forth with Motion Reprojection and haven't really had any noticeable difference either way. Low latency and Pre-rendered frames were already set to what you suggest from previous attempts to optimize prior to the 2.9 release. - The Pimax software includes foveated rendering, and I have it set to max. I'm also running PimaxXR Control Center, which is supposedly the program I'm supposed to use for OpenXR implementation on my headset. Not sure if it has all the same options as the toolkit, since it doesn't include a toggle for foveated rendering, but I figure the Pimax software covers it. - My FOV is currently set to small on my Pimax software, which basically does the same thing. A large portion on the sides of my headset screen are blacked out. So with my PD set at 1.25 using OpenXR, Motion Reprojection on, and Foveated Rendering set to max, I get a reasonably playable experience. It's just not very smooth, though I certainly don't expect any better with the hardware I have. Switching to OpenXR answered my original question about visual clarity, as it provides quite a bit more visual clarity than SteamVR, even with the PD turned all the way up to 2 (which I can do on SteamVR and still get no stuttering even with relatively high settings). It's clear OpenXR is doing something different, but it's a noticeable performance hit.
diego999 Posted October 31, 2023 Posted October 31, 2023 I'm out of ideas. I can only mention a couple of benchmarking tools that might help you locate where the bottleneck Is. fpsVR - I've used it back when I played IL2. Very nice, lots of data. Available on steam. OpenVR benchmark - never used it but it comes recommended and it's free. On Steam too.
jurinko Posted October 31, 2023 Posted October 31, 2023 When I have res in openxr toolkit 3168 x something and in-game PD 1.5 and want to have in-game PD 1.0 and set just the toolkit res, what will it be? 3168*1.5 or *1.22 (assuming PD means percentage against the original pixel count and toolkit res a size of the pixel count). PS insanely high res with dlss quality gives awesome picture quality and smoothness for my 4080, reprojection on.
Gunthrek Posted October 31, 2023 Author Posted October 31, 2023 I think I've discovered a rather interesting quandary for my specific situation. My monitor is an ultrawide 1080p that I bought for work purposes that just happens to be pretty good for gaming. I've been gaming for more than 20 years, but I've never bought a monitor that had a higher resolution that 1080p, which I'm sure is causing me to miss out on a lot. On the other hand, most of the games I play don't really benefit from super high resolution, so I'm not sure if that's even true at all. At any rate, maybe it's just a trick of my mind or my older eyes or whatever, but I'm actually not able to make out enough details to ID ground targets any further away on my 2D monitor at max graphics than I am on my VR headset at a playable resolution. They still just look like little squares (even zoomed all the way in) until I'm basically right on top of them. I'm sure this is a product of my relatively low monitor resolution, but it's kind of weird that, from a tactical perspective at least, I get absolutely no benefit from switching to 2D, even though the overall visual clarity is much better. The only real benefit is that everything close up is much sharper and cleaner on my monitor than in VR, which means the MFDs and cockpit labels are nice and crisp, while in VR it's barely readable without zooming in on it. So it's kind of a choice between a nice, clean cockpit or the feeling of actually being in the aircraft. Kind of weird how specific situations can create parity in what should be completely different spheres.
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