Jump to content
Sign in to follow this  
mattyshigh

Seriously considering going VR?

Recommended Posts

I have my finger hovering on "complete purchase" for a HTC Vive. It has just become available in the country in which I live (South Africa) and it costs R12500 which is around 885 USD. Does anyone have one? Is it worth it at this stage?

I have the rig to run it (i9x, 1080ti, 32G 3400mhz), so I already have this investment.

I am just very curious to see P3D in VR, is it really as immersive as everyone describes? I am very interested in your experiences.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm not using VR but I did test it. I ended up returning my Rift actually. You feel as if you're sitting in that cockpit which is simply breathtaking, especially when taking off and leaving earth behind.

The reason I stopped using VR, though, is the resolution which is, in my opinion, terrible. I couldn't make out numbers on instruments unless I leaned forward quite a bit. And, worse, at that point on approach where you would normally see the runway you won't see it in VR because of the low resolution. You can literally see every pixel in front you which killed the immersion for me.

Just my two cents from my own experience. I'm gonna pass on VR until it's available in full HD (provided there will be systems that can handle it).

  • Like 1
  • Upvote 3

Microsoft Flight Simulator | PMDG 737 for MSFS | Fenix A320 | www.united-virtual.com | www.virtual-aal.com | Ryzen 9 7950X3D | Kingston Fury Renegade 32 GB | RTX 3090 MSI Suprim X | Windows 11 Pro | HP Reverb G2 VR HMD

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
16 minutes ago, threegreen said:

I'm not using VR but I did test it. I ended up returning my Rift actually. You feel as if you're sitting in that cockpit which is simply breathtaking, especially when taking off and leaving earth behind.

The reason I stopped using VR, though, is the resolution which is, in my opinion, terrible. I couldn't make out numbers on instruments unless I leaned forward quite a bit. And, worse, at that point on approach where you would normally see the runway you won't see it in VR because of the low resolution. You can literally see every pixel in front you which killed the immersion for me.

Just my two cents from my own experience. I'm gonna pass on VR until it's available in full HD (provided there will be systems that can handle it).

Exactly why I returned my Rift. 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I have an Oculus Rift, and I must say a flight I made with P3D 4.1 and the PMDG 747, was one of the most fun flight sim experiences I ever had in years.

As a developer, I rarely have the luxury to find the time enjoy the sim like an user and, reminding of some past experience with a FFS (Full Flight Sim), I was always frustrated by how limited a video screen is compared to the real thing. Building an real Home Cockpit might be considered a separate hobby too, but I wouldn't know how to find the time/space/money to do it.

VR changes all of this, up to a point that it might be considered a real alternative to building an Home Cockpit. It's not there yet, but it's getting close, and there's no comparison when factoring the price/effort ratio. Plus, if you build an Home Cockpit, you will be mostly stuck with a single airplane type, while with VR you can use every airplane out there that has a VC, even across different simulators.

However, as all things, you must know what to expect and how to overcome some issues:

1) You REALLY need to buy FlyInside. It's basically mandatory, because the default VR implementation is very sparse, but FlyInside changes it entirely, up to a point that you really cannot do VR without it. The 64 bit version has been just released, and it's very reasonably priced so, don't be without it.

2) Take some time to configure your settings, especially graphics, because there are some crucial settings that affect clarity of the instruments/resolution. Again, FlyInside is really required to controls these settings more easily.

3) The Leap Motion controller will improve the experience quite a bit. You attach it in front of the VR headset, and it will detect the position of your hands in the air, letting you operate the VC entirely, without using the Hand Controllers. Without it, you'll have to continue  juggle between keeping your hand on the joystick or picking up the hand controllers.

With the right settings (resolution, antialiasing, etc.), I haven't found the resolution to be an impediment to use the sim fully, even with a complex airliner with a glass cockpit like the PMDG 747.

And, you shouldn't feel "diminished" if you have to turn down the graphic settings a bit, in order to keep the fps up. The immersion and the stereo view fully compensate having to tone down things like autogen or scenery complexity. Note that, I'm still running on a vanilla nVidia GTX 980, which is the bare minimum to support VR, so I guess a better card like a 1080, should be much better.

Note that, I bought the Rift for US$399 including the Touch Controllers on amazon.com, the day they lowered the price. I'm not sure if my comments would have been the same if I had to pay double of that, probably not. Never fully understood with the HTC Vive is still today 200$ more than the Rift, the main difference with the Vive, it's a better room tracking, which is basically useless for Flight simulation, since you are always sitting.

  • Upvote 6

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Flyinside with Oculus Rift but also P3Dv4.1 has made VR very functional and easy to use with its native implementation. Flyinside allows you to bring in windows, charts etc. into the cockpit which makes it way more functional.

 

AeroFly2 though has the absolute best implementation of its native VR. Clear, and the cockpit is very accessible in terms of flipping switches etc.

Right now I use P3Dv4.1 VR for the walk-around and some start up procedures and then when flying.

Don't let the naysayers regarding resolution effect you. It is particularly good in GA flying and fun.


 Ryzen 7 5800x, 32gb, RX 6900XT 16gb

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I’ll second on the resolution problem. I did the same with the rift + flyinside last year in P3D, and fortunately I was able to returned it after 2 weeks. The immersion is real but the low resolution kills it, especially if you fly seriously and need to monitor your instruments. Also even in VFR you can’t make details in the distance so I’d advise you to keep your money for something else maybe. Just my opinion of course. 

  • Like 1

Simulators: Prepar3D v5 Academic | X-Plane 1111.50+ | DCS  World  Open Beta MSFS 2020 Premium Deluxe | 
PC Hardware: Dell U3417W Intel i9 10900K | msi RTX 2080 Ti  Gaming X Trio msi MPG Z490 Gaming Edge Wifi | G.Skill 32GB 3600Mhz CL16 | Samsung 970 EVO Plus+860 EVO+850 EVO x 1TB, Western Digital Black Caviar Black x 6 TB Corsair RM1000i Corsair H115i Platinum Fractal Design Define S2 Gunmetal |
Flight Controls: Fulcrum One Yoke Virpil VPC WarBRD Base Virpil VPC MongoosT-50CM Grip, Thrustmaster Warthog+F/A-18C Grip Thrustmaster TPR Rudder Pedals | Virtual Fly TQ6+Throttle Quadrant | Sismo B737 Max Gear Lever | TrackIR 5Monsterteck Desk Mounts |
My fleet catalog: Link                                                                                                                                                       

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I use the rift as well currently only with the pmdg 737 (not a ga guy) and I wouldn't fly without anymore. Yes not everything in the cockpit is easy to read but I already know the cockpit well enough that I know the knobs I need. But the feel of being in the cockpit is worth it. 

Also with barley seeing the runway is not true. 

Tipp on the side. Always use a company route, the window in window function from flyinside does not work as nice as expected and it is just too much work within vr filling up the fmc with data.  

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

You really have to try it to see if it is for you. Last year I tried the Rift and did not like the resolution. This year I tried it again and got used to the lower resolution so I use VR most of the time. If you can buy it at a place where you can return it if you don't like it, then go for it. And the comment about not being able to see the runway at the point in the approach where you should is not true. 

  • Upvote 1

spacer.png

REX AccuSeason Developer

REX Simulations

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

As Mike infers, it takes a while for your brain to adjust to the resolution, and also to get past the motion sickness. 

You need to be clever with your sliders, and also need to learn what supersampling is.

its possible that some can't adjust, but I think that it's more common for simmers to throw in the towel too early. 

Buy a rift rather than a vive for Flightsim.

i disagree with one thing virtuali said - FlyInside is certainly no mandatory. Native VR in 4.1 is good - I own flyinside, but I don't really use it, I prefer 4.1 native.

i now use vr in all of my flights. Couldn't go back to 2d!

 

  • Upvote 1

Oz

 xdQCeNi.jpg   puHyX98.jpg

Sim Rig: MSI RTX3090 Suprim, an old, partly-melted Intel 9900K @ 5GHz+, Honeycomb Alpha, Thrustmaster TPR Rudder, Warthog HOTAS, Reverb G2, Prosim 737 cockpit. 

Currently flying: MSFS: PMDG 737-700, Fenix A320, Leonardo MD-82, MIlviz C310, Flysimware C414AW, DC Concorde, Carenado C337. Prepar3d v5: PMDG 737/747/777.

"There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are."

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I love this topic. A very good discussion, and I think both the weaker and stronger points of VR are getting through.

Just a question: I have p3d v3 with flyinside and htc vive. I am forced to use opus FSI for cameras because chaseplane isnt compatible with flyinside. How does chaseplane work with p3d v4 with native vr?


Andreas Stangenes

http://www.youtube.com/user/krsans78
Add me on gamertag: Bullhorns78

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Well, some famous person once said 'For once you have tasted Virtual Reality flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return'.
Well, I am not sure weather was it Leonardo Da Vinci or Abraham Lincoln, but one is sure - since I have my Oculus Rift I have never made single flight without it.

Buy it.

 

  • Upvote 1

Lukasz Kulasek

i7-8700k, RTX 2080 TI, 32 GB RAM, ASUS TUF Z370-PRO Gaming, Oculus Rift CV1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Guest

It's a mixed bag. I have used the Rift for over half a year with Aerofly FS 2 and sort of loved it. I stopped using P3D completely and only flew with the Rift. But the low resolution kept bugging me. And also the fact that I felt locked in the sim and couldn't do anything else while flying (because Aerofly doesn't have an option to call up windows in the sim). So I stopped using Aerofly and VR. The main reason I stopped using Aerofly however was the lack of simming options. I did however not really miss VR.

Last weekend I reinstalled the Rift and tried default P3D VR: performance was very bad compared to the super smooth Aerofly so I decided to install Aerofly again and did a VR flight. And well, it's nice to have the option but the low resolution is a real pity. It kills the immersion for me. I understand what's being said about not seeing the runway during approach: you DO see it but everything is pixelated. I think some poeple are bothered with this and some aren't. To me things don't look real because of this. I am constantly aware of the fact I am inside a virtual world. The immersion is great but not complete.

I remember that the first time I used the Rift I was expecting to be completely scared of the approach like I certainly would be in real life, the idea alone gives me shivers, but I wasn't. Not at all. I was clearly flying a simulated plane in a pixelated world and I never got rid of that feeling. Yes, it can be very immersive but don't expect a real life experience. I never got that. It can come close for some brief moments but not during the entire flight.

Another thing I noticed during my half year with Aerofly is that, obviously, you get used to it. Okay, the feeling of being there is quite nice but the idea of seeing everything in 3D you get used to. Just as you got used to it in real life. :wink: During my first flights I was in total awe of all the 3D knobs and switches but honestly, after some time I sometimes wondered if those knobs and switches were actually 3D. 

So for now I use VR with Aerofly whenever I feel like it, mainly for short (and usually incomplete) flights to get my VR kicks. But for serious simming I use P3D on my 2D monitor. 

In short: YMMV and you have to try it yourself (for a while) to see if it is something for you or not. 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I’m nearsighted, so I wear glasses for distance in the real world. I have to use my glasses when I fly in VR. I never fly without VR. If you can’t read something lean in. Just like the real world. After awhile you learn where everything is at. It’s especially good in dcs world. Fly inside is a must. I haven’t flown without VR in years. I started with dk1 and now use the cv1. It brought me back into flying without blowing things up. Since I have spent thousands on aircraft airports scenery. Totally rekindled my love for airplanes and flying.

buy it. But it takes a little time, but worth it. And it will only get better as developers realize how important it is.


Daniel Rosso: ATP Single and Multi-Engine: B757 B767 BAE-ATP DA-50 DA-20 CE-650 CE-560-XL CE-525S DO-228: Flight Instructor Single and Multiengine Airplane Gold Seal:  Ground Instructor Advanced and Instrument: Remote Pilot SUAS

 

 

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

2 weeks with the Oculus Rift, I'm very disappointed about the low resolution, it is almost impossible to fly in a normal VFR. Also you are "isolated" in a dark world without knowing what's happening for real around you. Also while in VR I can't smoke my pipe. I cannot think to fly in VR for more than 1 hour, at this moment only VFR flights, no PMDG 737 yet. Generally P3d4.1 works good in VR, but sometimes it stutters heavily, or other glitches and flashes, then I deactivate and reactivate the VR and it seems to work better.

Anyway I found that IL2 Battle of Stalingrad and DCS, that have a very good implementation of the VR, are really stunning and absolutely smooth, and you are stunned by checking your fire through the "real" tracers (and you can forget temporay that ridicolous low resolution problem). Also a normal combat session lasts normally in about half an hour, so you are not closed in the darkroom for a long time. The low resolution is the main problem of the VR headset, but you have to consider the lens aberrations (purple and blu fringing), the lens flares, also my Oculs view is tilting on the left. 

Anyway the VR is a new beautiful toy that makes you shortsighted when in a flight sim world.


Missing the PMDG DC6 in MSFS 2020 (she's here, but...).

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
12 minutes ago, rampa said:

2 weeks with the Oculus Rift, I'm very disappointed about the low resolution, it is almost impossible to fly in a normal VFR. Also you are "isolated" in a dark world without knowing what's happening for real around you. Also while in VR I can't smoke my pipe. I cannot think to fly in VR for more than 1 hour, at this moment only VFR flights, no PMDG 737 yet. Generally P3d4.1 works good in VR, but sometimes it stutters heavily, or other glitches and flashes, then I deactivate and reactivate the VR and it seems to work better.

Anyway I found that IL2 Battle of Stalingrad and DCS, that have a very good implementation of the VR, are really stunning and absolutely smooth, and you are stunned by checking your fire through the "real" tracers (and you can forget temporay that ridicolous low resolution problem). Also a normal combat session lasts normally in about half an hour, so you are not closed in the darkroom for a long time. The low resolution is the main problem of the VR headset, but you have to consider the lens aberrations (purple and blu fringing), the lens flares, also my Oculs view is tilting on the left. 

Anyway the VR is a new beautiful toy that makes you shortsighted when in a flight sim world.

I would assume that this is feeling when you are flying in the real world, where pilots rely mostly on their instruments, radios and visual contact in order to fly?


PC1: AMD Ryzen 7800X3D | Zotac RTX 4090 Trinity | Asus TUF X670E-Plus | G.SKILL Trident Z5 NEO 32GB DDR5 PC 6000 CL30 | 4TB NVMe  | Noctua NH-D15 | Asus TUF 1000W Gold | be quiet! Pure Base 500DX | Noctua NH-D15S | LG OLED CX 48"

PC2: AMD Ryzen 7700X | PowerColor Radeon RX 6800 XT Red Dragon | MSI MPG B650I EDGE  ITX | G.SKILL Flare Expo X5 32GB DDR5 PC 6000 CL32 | 2TB NVMe  | Cooler Master Hyper | Lian Li 750W SFX Gold | Lian Li TU150 | SAMSUNG Odyssey G9 49"

GoFlight GF-PRO NG 737 Yoke System - Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog - Honeycomb Bravo Throttle - MFG Crosswind Rudder Pedals - TrackIR - Stream Deck XL + Stream Deck Plus
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  

  • Tom Allensworth,
    Founder of AVSIM Online


  • Flight Simulation's Premier Resource!

    AVSIM is a free service to the flight simulation community. AVSIM is staffed completely by volunteers and all funds donated to AVSIM go directly back to supporting the community. Your donation here helps to pay our bandwidth costs, emergency funding, and other general costs that crop up from time to time. Thank you for your support!

    Click here for more information and to see all donations year to date.
×
×
  • Create New...