Recommended Specs.... for VR Upgrade?

[Videodrome]

I currently have a "VR Ready" ASUS gaming laptop running the old Oculus Rift S. I would like to upgrade this Summer.

I play a lot of VRChat mostly, but also some rythm music games like Synth Riders or Blade & Sorcery for the insane Mods. If I get a new rig, I'll probably get Half Life ALYX.

I'm leaning toward the Valve Index. Since I like social VR in VRChat, the hand / finger tracking might be nice and it seems to work well with other Full Body Trackers. I think I'll get this first just to see if things run better on my current laptop. I think the Rift S software is being kind of neglected.

I currently have the HaritoraX Full Body Tracker which kind of works, but requires SteamVR. The Rift S will not run without Oculus Home so running both that and SteamVR at the same time makes my VR tracking freakout sometimes. It would be great if using the Valve Index directly with Steam helps with this, but when upgrading, I might be open to investing in VIVE Tracker equipment.

Beyond that, sometimes VRChat holds large gatherings like DJ or Club events. Heavily populated worlds overwhelm my laptop. I"m curious about some ideal specs to deal with supporting intense VR experiences.

I'm also dabbling in creating 3D VR content making Avatars and eventually worlds for VRChat using Unity3D.

I would also like to be able to stream or just record VR sessions running OBS or similar software and still have good frames.

 

[wshowers]

I saw your thread I didn't want it to look like nobody saw it. I can't help you though. Have very limited experience with VR. All current headsets on the market are not glasses friendly and I can't wear contacts.

 

[karmakid]

I currently have a "VR Ready" ASUS gaming laptop running the old Oculus Rift S. I would like to upgrade this Summer.

I play a lot of VRChat mostly, but also some rythm music games like Synth Riders or Blade & Sorcery for the insane Mods. If I get a new rig, I'll probably get Half Life ALYX.

I'm leaning toward the Valve Index. Since I like social VR in VRChat, the hand / finger tracking might be nice and it seems to work well with other Full Body Trackers. I think I'll get this first just to see if things run better on my current laptop. I think the Rift S software is being kind of neglected.

I currently have the HaritoraX Full Body Tracker which kind of works, but requires SteamVR. The Rift S will not run without Oculus Home so running both that and SteamVR at the same time makes my VR tracking freakout sometimes. It would be great if using the Valve Index directly with Steam helps with this, but when upgrading, I might be open to investing in VIVE Tracker equipment.

Beyond that, sometimes VRChat holds large gatherings like DJ or Club events. Heavily populated worlds overwhelm my laptop. I"m curious about some ideal specs to deal with supporting intense VR experiences.

I'm also dabbling in creating 3D VR content making Avatars and eventually worlds for VRChat using Unity3D.

I would also like to be able to stream or just record VR sessions running OBS or similar software and still have good frames.

@Nervusbreakdown would know about streaming and playing on PC, from what been told it helps if you have another PC doing the the video streaming/rendering…. but if you go at it with one PC alone you may want to have one with a high thread count, I don’t know (highly doubt I’m exactly right) if I’m repeating what I was told correctly. May want to look at some vtubers info on what they use, as I’m sure what they do can be intensive, look up ironmouse, she done vrchat streams

 

[Videodrome]

@Nervusbreakdown would know about streaming and playing on PC, from what been told it helps if you have another PC doing the the video streaming/rendering…. but if you go at it with one PC alone you may want to have one with a high thread count, I don’t know (highly doubt I’m exactly right) if I’m repeating what I was told correctly. May want to look at some vtubers info on what they use, as I’m sure what they do can be intensive, look up ironmouse, she done vrchat streams

Okay, I thought that was the old way. Most info I've seen suggest just running OBS Studio. It's possible though that running something like VR makes things more complicated on system resources.

I have done okay records of regular gameplay like DooM or Mortal Kombat 11 even just using the Windows Game Bar. Some frame jitter happens when I record Blade & Sorcery VR though.

I also still wonder if some issue is with the Rift S software originally being Oculus than taken over by Meta. Maybe my laptop isn't even that bad and it's the old Oculus Home software.

 

[karmakid]

Sony's Mocopi avatar motion-capture system is coming to the US

Sony just announced North American availability for its unique Mocopi motion-tracking system. The tools allow you to control digital avatars in real-time using full body movement, thanks to six motion sensors and a proprietary smartphone app. In addition to real-time control, this translated...

www.engadget.com

 

[Videodrome]

Okay so...... I got the Valve Index. I really like it so far and the Knuckles controllers.

Also, from testing so far, it seems to perform better on my computer working directly with SteamVR. I'm wondering if my hunch that the Oculus / Meta software is going to sh;t was right. Especially if I want to use a game on Steam and forced to run Oculus home wasting resources or maybe creating conflicts.

However, I'm concerned by the design as it seems like it would be susceptible to scratching from glasses. I've decided to slow down and be patient while trying to get an updated eye exam ( which I'm overdue for anyway ) to order prescription lens covers.

Ultimately, this could be really cool, but again trying to be patient.

I was curious if anyone else got the Index and had similar concerns or did you go ahead playing with glasses?

 

[karmakid]

Doesn’t it allow you to slip in prescription lenses? Coulda swore there’s a headset that allows it

 

[Videodrome]

Doesn’t it allow you to slip in prescription lenses? Coulda swore there’s a headset that allows it

Well, some 3rd Party companies make prescription lenses, but they're covers that fit over the factor ones they don't replace them.

 

[GordoSan]

Okay so...... I got the Valve Index. I really like it so far and the Knuckles controllers.

Also, from testing so far, it seems to perform better on my computer working directly with SteamVR. I'm wondering if my hunch that the Oculus / Meta software is going to sh;t was right. Especially if I want to use a game on Steam and forced to run Oculus home wasting resources or maybe creating conflicts.

However, I'm concerned by the design as it seems like it would be susceptible to scratching from glasses. I've decided to slow down and be patient while trying to get an updated eye exam ( which I'm overdue for anyway ) to order prescription lens covers.

Ultimately, this could be really cool, but again trying to be patient.

I was curious if anyone else got the Index and had similar concerns or did you go ahead playing with glasses?

Surprised you didn't just wait for the Quest 3, and go with Virtual Desktop to Steam. May I ask what the Valve Index is going for?

I've got myopia, and my distance vision is deteriorating beyond roughly 2 meters. However, that's also about the same focal distance as most VR displays, and I think that my lenses may have become a little bit scratched from wearing the spacer and glasses, so I've decided to ditch wearing glasses at all, as there's little to no difference, for me. Just something to think about, depending on your prescription.

 

[Videodrome]

Surprised you didn't just wait for the Quest 3, and go with Virtual Desktop to Steam. May I ask what the Valve Index is going for?

I've got myopia, and my distance vision is deteriorating beyond roughly 2 meters. However, that's also about the same focal distance as most VR displays, and I think that my lenses may have become a little bit scratched from wearing the spacer and glasses, so I've decided to ditch wearing glasses at all, as there's little to no difference, for me. Just something to think about, depending on your prescription.

My understanding is the Valve Index working more directly with Steam would be good if using other devices like additional body trackers wich depend on SteamVR running. It's been my experience on my gaming laptop that running Oculus Home + SteamVR causes frame jitters. I currently have the HaritoraX, but might consider trying Vive trackers in the future. Kind of related to tracking, I do think the Knuckles controllers are really cool.

I also have some limited experience with the Valve Index. I used to go to a kind of VR Lounge place that you could pay per hour to play and they had the Index. Maybe I felt more comfortable with this having actually used it.

I guess I could have been more patient waiting for Quest 3 or even the Valve Deckard, but I'm getting impatient with my Rift S issues.

As for vision, I'm near sighted, but without glasses my vision in the Index is still blurry. Maybe I could try it again doing more adjusting to the lens distance.

 

[GordoSan]

My understanding is the Valve Index working more directly with Steam would be good if using other devices like additional body trackers wich depend on SteamVR running. It's been my experience on my gaming laptop that running Oculus Home + SteamVR causes frame jitters. I currently have the HaritoraX, but might consider trying Vive trackers in the future. Kind of related to tracking, I do think the Knuckles controllers are really cool.

I also have some limited experience with the Valve Index. I used to go to a kind of VR Lounge place that you could pay per hour to play and they had the Index. Maybe I felt more comfortable with this having actually used it.

I guess I could have been more patient waiting for Quest 3 or even the Valve Deckard, but I'm getting impatient with my Rift S issues.

As for vision, I'm near sighted, but without glasses my vision in the Index is still blurry. Maybe I could try it again doing more adjusting to the lens distance.

Not to beat a dead horse, but SteamLink for Meta Quest was just announced for the Quest store today, and wireless streaming is now possible without any 3rd party software in between the games and the headset, while the Quest device maintains all of the simultaneous head, controller, hand, and soon upper body tracking.



Also, I cannot recommend Quest 3 enough, due to the sheer comfort of the lenses, and passthrough somehow makes putting on the headset a mostly frictionless experience.

I recently ordered a gaming laptop with 4070 (hope it's enough) and WiFi 6E. I can't freaking wait to try it out. The standalone games are getting pretty freaking impressive, like Red Matter 2 & Assassin's Creed Nexus. I'm stoked to finally get to also play VR games from the Steam library!