Pimax Crystal VR and No Spotting Dots in Multiplayer Servers

[rosteven1]

Pimax Crystal VR and No Spotting Dots in Multiplayer Servers

Looking to see if anyone might have an answer to this issue - I fly/fight in Multiplayer servers using my OG Crystal VR Headset and I have been unable to find a setting that allows me to see spotting dots.

I have two systems one with a 14900K CPU, RTX 4090 GPU, 64GB Ram, and the other system has a 9800X3D CPU, RTX 5090 GPU, 64GB Ram. Running Win 11, latest drivers, and the most recent version of DCS.

I have Dots set to 2 and have tried every possible DCS setting and still can't see spotting dots with any consistency.

I'm looking for examples of DCS/PIMAX/Nvida settings that folks are using that work (allows you to see the dots) with their systems. I should add that I can see great spotting dots in Instant Action F-16 Ready on the Ramp, planes transition from airframes to dots at about 2nm and are clearly visible out to around 9nm.

Thanks,

[Panny]

Hi @rosteven1,

Am away from my desktop so can't share settings, but also have same headset and very similar specs to you.

Multiplayer server hosts can force spotting dots to be off for clients, so it's best to do your testing in singeplayer first and I suspect this is the issue you're facting.

In my experience your anti-aliasing affects spotting dots the most. MSAA is the best by far, while others such as DLAA or TAA can smudge them and even make them seem invisible. Other settings don't seem to factor as much.

Hope that helps.

[rosteven1]

Hi,

I wish the problem resolution was as easy as "The server has the spotting dots turned off", my Wingman uses a HP Reverb G2 in the two servers that we normally fly in (Contention Cold War / Heatblur Cold War) and his sees the spotting dots great whereas I see nothing using my Pimax Crystal OG.  I think the issue is related to High-Res headsets and finding the right settings.

 

Thanks for the input...

[Panny]

Reverb G2 in general has incredibly permissive spotting of aircraft, even if they disable spotting dots. High res headsets don't have the same gameplay benefit and consequently are more reliant on an artificial spotting dot being superimposed over the aircraft itself.

[rosteven1]

That is true, the problem is that even with artificial spotting dot being superimposed over the aircraft itself in the Pimax Crystal that still results in pretty much no dots being visible in MP servers (even with 2x Dots Size enabled).

[Panny]

On 5/25/2025 at 7:40 PM, rosteven1 said:

That is true, the problem is that even with artificial spotting dot being superimposed over the aircraft itself in the Pimax Crystal that still results in pretty much no dots being visible in MP servers (even with 2x Dots Size enabled).

You're getting two things confused  - 

In the mission maker you can force settings that override the client's dot spotting. This is much the same as labels. So if you play SP missions with labels on but then go onto a server that is running a mission that disables it, you don't get the labels. This is the same with dot spotting. So what you're describing in MP servers is that there are no dots being visible because it's not being rendered.

Just because your friend is using a Reverb G2 doesn't mean he's getting a dot. He isn't. It's just because the pixel density is much lower in the Reverb G2 meaning the target is being rendered from a further distance (even if it looks like a dot). 

Try a different MP server which is not enforcing dot spotting to be off and you'll find it should be the same as singleplayer

[rosteven1]

Wish what you are saying is true, but it is not the case. There are folks on the same server in 2d and VR (headset dependent) who are complaining in the forums about how the spotting dots are too big and not good for game play or immersion. There are also others using the Pimax Crystal on these two servers who are experiencing the same lack of spotting dots as I am. 
 

BTW:  I posted this question on both DCS and Reddit forums, a few of the responses advocated reducing the headset resolution, the pixel density in DCS, and removing all anti-aliasing.  Running with DCS pixel density reduced to .8, the Pimax headset resolution set to 80 percent, spotting dots set to 2, and no anti-aliasing (DLSS, MSAA, etc.) I can now see spotting dots almost as well as my wingman. The downside to these settings is that the outside of the cockpit visuals look really bad, but they are good enough to at least for me to maneuver and enter the fight with better situational awareness.

It also important to note that when flying in this configuration with Spotting Dots disabled, I do lose the spotting dots. 

Edited June 1 by rosteven1

[RedShield]

I'm having the same problem, if the mission is not enabled, the 2 pixels in the dots, or it is in auto, it is horrible to maintain visual, without using the zoom, and I find it extremely uncomfortable!

Edited June 24 by RedShield