VR Setup suggestion for my friend

[AskForAFriend]

Hey hey forum,

Story:
Lately my good old friend (usually a Consolero) told me, he plans to buy a pre-build (4090) setup to play DCS in VR. (4090 + Intel @3.300€ // 4080 Super @3.000€)
As an old custom-builder that I am, I told him, that he should contact me, when it is getting serious and I will probably find him a better deal.

So during the last weeks I did some research on this topic, trying to figure out the actual hardware requirements. If my research is somewhat reasonable, he can easily save hundreds of € (compared to usual 4090 pre-build setups). I would built the machine for him and get it up and running.

Sidefacts I noted:
- 20+ GB vram should be available vor VR - so even a 4080 might have too little vram (Reddit)
- Radeon 7900 XTX serves well in VR (Reddit)
- CPU is mainly used singlethreaded and Ryzen 7800 X3D does just fine (can't find the source atm) and therefor would win efficiencywise (powerdraw and price/perf) to Intel CPUs. This page here also suggests the 7800 X3D.

TLDR:

• Will the following configuration serve my friend's needs to play DCS in VR?

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7800X3D
GPU: Sapphire Nitro+ 7900 XTX
Mainboard: ASUS TUF Gaming B650M-Plus
Ram: Corsair Vengeance 64 GB (CL30-36-36-76)
SSD: Crucial T700 1TB NVME 11.700/9.500 MB/s Read/Write
PSU: Seasonic Focus SGX 1000W

• Which VR headset would you suggest? I've read, that the Meta Quest 3 would be pretty much the best deal at the moment?
• I know, that in the past, the AMD drivers did drive people crazy, but most Tech-Youtubers and another friend of mine confirm, that AMD got their <profanity> together by now (regarding windows drivers). @Amd users, what is your take on stability of the current drivers for DCS? (personally I'd love to stick to AMD idealogywise, but for this setup it would simply mean to save hundreds of €)
• Or would you definitively suggest to go for a 4090 and increase the build's price by like 800€?

I am up for any suggestions, experiences and improvements!

Edited April 15, 2024 by AskForAFriend

[Hassle]

I built mine a long while ago now, but I play DCS in VR, and my rather modest spec runs it all fine. On initial loading, it is a little choppy with a drop in framerate, but after 5 minutes or so it seems to smooth itself out. I'm new to DCS, but play on XPlane11 too. Flew 3 hours straight in DCS today. That spec is waaaay above mine!

Motherboard - Gigabyte A320M-S2H
Processor - AMD Ryzen 7 1700 + Wraith Cooler
Video Card - Zotac Nvidia GTX 1080
Drives - 120GB SSD for Windows, but DCS runs from an ordinary 2TB HDD (WD Blue)

16GB Corsair LPX RAM

With a cheap Dell WMR headset

 

Ps. Don't ask me to justify it, but I would only use AMD processors. I've never had much luck with Intel.

Edited April 15, 2024 by Hassle

[Phantom711]

vor 31 Minuten schrieb AskForAFriend:

Or would you definitively suggest to go for a 4090 and increase the build's price by like 800€?

Yes.

The 4090 simply is the best GPU out there at the moment. If he is actually willing to pay that money, then don‘t talk him into a lesser GPU. He will always have that „I wonder how much better this would run with a 4090?!“-feeling.

7800x3d is probably a good choice as well as the Quest3. Note, that today Pimax also announced some new versions of the Crystal.

[Hassle]

29 minutes ago, Phantom711 said:

7800x3d is probably a good choice as well as the Quest3. Note, that today Pimax also announced some new versions of the Crystal.

 

I've started window shopping for the Quest 3. It looks good for the money, and I like the idea of being free of wires!

[wormeaten]

51 minutes ago, Hassle said:

I've started window shopping for the Quest 3. It looks good for the money, and I like the idea of being free of wires!

Q3 is 550€ but you have to count additional 150€ for better strap with battery expansion and new front mask for better comfort. 
This addition is must have for Quest or Pico4. Don't spend on some cables if you going for Q3. Q3 got better WiFi speed so it is good for it but you need WiFi 6 to use it in full potential. Check if your MB got one on board. Just create Hot spot on your MB then and you will get speed from 1700Mbps min to 2400Mbps what is more than good for VR in WiFi. Q2 and Pico4 max speed is 1200Mbps. 

Also Virtual Desktop is must have app. 7900XTX work same good as Nvidia on it even Quest software is not optimized for it. GPU is good, problem is on Meta side but in VD works flawlessly. VD also have VDXR so you start DCS without any problem directly in openXR. Also got support for AV1 200Mbps bitrate for best picture.

4090 is the best no doubt, but in my opinion this 1000€ is not worth this difference in performance. 7900XTX is kicking ass as well in DCS. It is better invest that difference in additional accessories for better VR experience as I mention it before and maybe in some WiFi6E router or something for best VR performance true WiFi.

[Qcumber]

Might be worth looking at the new crystal light for $600. 

[Hassle]

On 4/15/2024 at 11:09 PM, Qcumber said:

Might be worth looking at the new crystal light for $600. 

The Crystals all seem to require the addition of the wireless link, whereas the Q3 comes ready for it.

[Qcumber]

29 minutes ago, Hassle said:

The Crystals all seem to require the addition of the wireless link, whereas the Q3 comes ready for it.

It is a PCVR only headset which uses a display port cable. This is better than a WiFi headset as it avoids data compression and has less latency.

[Hassle]

1 hour ago, Qcumber said:

It is a PCVR only headset which uses a display port cable. This is better than a WiFi headset as it avoids data compression and has less latency.

Cable is preferable, but I've had enough of feeling tethered, and feeling the cable whenever I turn to look around.

[NAM]

Don't forget Sony PSVR2.. Sony will port to PC later this year...

it has potential to be PCVR headset with eye tracking. It could be a good replacement for HP G2

I think it is retailed at $499.

However, we do not know how it is port to PC.. Many believes that will be via cable not wireless

 

[Aapje]

The PSVR2 has fairly mediocre optics. Not really happy with the choices they made there. And if you buy one, I would scour the 2nd hand market, since you can probably find good deals there. 

[NAM]

Depend on how good to PC port turn out to be.

In comparison to HPG2.. PCVR2 has eye tracking and OLED display that is good for night flying with deep black.

However, it not recommended for someone new to VR.

I think for OP friend, crystal light is better option.

It is a no brainer for someone already has PS5 console to get PCVR2.

I defintely interested if there is a cheap second hand.

 

Edited April 20, 2024 by NAM

[AskForAFriend]

On 4/15/2024 at 9:54 PM, Hassle said:

I built mine a long while ago now, but I play DCS in VR, and my rather modest spec runs it all fine. On initial loading, it is a little choppy with a drop in framerate, but after 5 minutes or so it seems to smooth itself out. I'm new to DCS, but play on XPlane11 too. Flew 3 hours straight in DCS today. That spec is waaaay above mine!

Thank you for your input. I guess the chosen hardware will be absolutely capable to play DCS VR in high settings.

On 4/15/2024 at 10:16 PM, Phantom711 said:

Yes.

The 4090 simply is the best GPU out there at the moment. If he is actually willing to pay that money, then don‘t talk him into a lesser GPU. He will always have that „I wonder how much better this would run with a 4090?!“-feeling.

Actually I guess, that he is not that kind of guy, as he is not super nerdy. He's only gaming on console atm and has a family and stuff. Playing DCS in VR was a longterm desire for him, but he has no idea of computer hardware. As I by now have some more opinions, that the 7900XTX will run DCS on high settings in VR just fine, I guess, I'll simply let my friend choose. He might want to spend the saved money into nice peripherals.

On 4/16/2024 at 12:00 AM, wormeaten said:

Also Virtual Desktop is must have app. 7900XTX work same good as Nvidia on it even Quest software is not optimized for it. GPU is good, problem is on Meta side but in VD works flawlessly. VD also have VDXR so you start DCS without any problem directly in openXR. Also got support for AV1 200Mbps bitrate for best picture.

4090 is the best no doubt, but in my opinion this 1000€ is not worth this difference in performance. 7900XTX is kicking ass as well in DCS. It is better invest that difference in additional accessories for better VR experience as I mention it before and maybe in some WiFi6E router or something for best VR performance true WiFi.

Thank you for your input here. I know, that the 4090 is simply king of the hill, but as you exactly described, I'm not sure, if this huge extra € is worth it at all. I guess, I'll get him two or three different configuration options, where one will include the 4090. Then he can choose, what budget he is willing to spend or better to say to actually see the different prices in numbers to compare them.

Edited April 20, 2024 by AskForAFriend

[Aapje]

5 hours ago, NAM said:

In comparison to HPG2.. PCVR2 has eye tracking and OLED display that is good for night flying with deep black.

It also has mura and doesn't turn off the screen in the right way when you turn the brightness up, causing people to get sick.

[wormeaten]

On 4/20/2024 at 7:52 PM, AskForAFriend said:

Thank you for your input. I guess the chosen hardware will be absolutely capable to play DCS VR in high settings.

Actually I guess, that he is not that kind of guy, as he is not super nerdy. He's only gaming on console atm and has a family and stuff. Playing DCS in VR was a longterm desire for him, but he has no idea of computer hardware. As I by now have some more opinions, that the 7900XTX will run DCS on high settings in VR just fine, I guess, I'll simply let my friend choose. He might want to spend the saved money into nice peripherals.

Thank you for your input here. I know, that the 4090 is simply king of the hill, but as you exactly described, I'm not sure, if this huge extra € is worth it at all. I guess, I'll get him two or three different configuration options, where one will include the 4090. Then he can choose, what budget he is willing to spend or better to say to actually see the different prices in numbers to compare them.

 

In new light with latest developing in VR. Looks like difference between 4080S and 7900XTX is reducing maybe you should go to Nvidia. If difference is 100€ and above 7900XTX is better choice. Diference between 4080/7900XTX is actually completely new Pimax Crystal Light.
4090 = 7900XTX + Crystal Light in €uros and that is the killer combo.