Sharing my first impression of my 8k+ which arrived today.
First I will start by saying that there is definitely more attention to the small details from Pimax in regards to packaging and the quality of the unit itself. Packaging, and the general feel of things are an upgrade from both the original 8k and 5k plus.
I will start by stating that I don’t use my headset for anything other than iracing. It’s the only sim and experience I’m interested in so this will be to a limited audience. First I will say that all noticeable SDE is gone, which wasn’t a huge problem for me with the 5k plus anyway. But there is certainly an improvement here. I haven’t messed about with settings a ton to this point, however I can say that there is a difference here with how steam and pitool function together, which to this point seems to provide a bit more head room and an overall smoother experience. As many have pointed out on this forum the newest versions of pitool are not very cooperative with iracing and the judders are still an issue with the 8k+ as well, so it’s definitely a software issue for the 5k+ users fighting those same problems . Alpha 254 does eliminate the stutters for me but had random crashes with extended use, so I’m currently using version .132 which seems to be most favorable for me.
In regards to the question of being worth the upgrade for iracing in particular, I have to say it’s not a huge step up to this point from my 5k+. I think it speaks for the quality of IRacing’s VR experience, and how well the sim already performs in VR. There is less SDE for sure, and it does seem to run smoother overall, but the last little bit I’m looking for with this sim is clearing up the jaggies and blur in the distance, which doesn’t seem to be any better with the 8k+.
The comfort kit is a very nice addition and feels much better than the 8k and 5k+. Not sure if it’s the spacing, but my IPD setting in much smaller than what I used for the 5k+. I settled at this point on 62, where I was at 66 with my 5k. I will play with things a bit over the next week and add some additional thoughts later on.
I’ve tried it a few different ways but doesn’t seem to be much gain no matter what I do. Open to suggestions obviously .
Right now I’m just running it at pitool 1.0 and steam at 100%. I tried both 1.5 in pitool and steam at 50 and steam at 125 and pitool at .75. Didn’t seem to make much difference and it seems what I’m running is most stable.
Also tried bumping the resolution scale percentage in steam default settings and that didn’t seem to make a difference either. This is all done with normal FOV. Never felt a need for large FOV. Tried it briefly and for me it’s just a waste of resources in iracing
I would say the colors are better and a bit more vibrant and bright as a whole but not massively. But as I said this is just with iracing, and I never felt there was any problems with the colors and this particular sim with the 5k plus. I had a Oculus rift and also a vive and the 5k plus was equal to or better than both of those headsets IMO in that department.
Did you notice much of a difference in sensation of speed between normal FOV mode and wide mode? And did you notice much of a difference in sense of speed going from your other headsets to your first pimax headset? I’m pumped about the increased fov pimax has over my index, but just want to be sure my expectations are realistic in hoping for greater sense of speed, since I do mostly sim racing and flying with my headsets.
I mostly play Elite D, but I’ve played Assetto Corsa. I don’t really see much of a difference between Wide and Normal FOV. I find that Normal only cuts off a minor border at the edges of my vision, much like a racing (or space) helmet would. I find the feeling of speed to be believable.
Mostly what I find annoying about my 8K (non-plus) is the noticeable SDE and the lack of detail in the far distance. That’s why I’ve opted for the 8KX, which I think will be significantly better than the 8K+ for driving games, due to the 50% increase in resolution over the other 5K and 8K models.
I never really processed the speed aspect, but these headsets are a must have IMO for a sim racer. The FOV is so important to know where competitors are around you, and these headsets provide that.
After my first week of use I will add a few more things to my thoughts.
Clarity- Certainly an upgrade here as far as SDE and sharpness. Colors are a little better than the 5k+ but not vastly different
Comfort- the comfort kit is one of the best additions and I would recommend it to 5k+ owners. Much better feel and fit when wearing the headset even without the MAS. I always noticed with my 5k+ that if I pulled away from my eyes slightly, it made the image more clear, so the additional spacing the comfort kit adds is nice.
Functionality and settings- After a week of use I have pretty much settled on all the same settings I’ve used for my 5k+ for the past year. FPS is pretty much identical, so the 8k+ is no less, or more demanding.
Cons- For the most part I’m pretty happy with the headset, but it wasn’t as big of an upgrade from the 5k+ as I had hoped. There is still about the same amount of distortion and aliasing in the distance, as there was with my 5k. Biggest issue I have with it right now is that it seems to act like the OG 8k in terms of the scene moving around with fast head movement which is kind of annoying. Not sure if it’s something that can be corrected with software or not? I had forgotten about this issue as the 5k didn’t have it like the 8k did.
Currently using pitool version 144. I have wanted to possibly roll back to 132 to but the ability to download links off this forum board has changed for me for some reason. Not sure if my latest windows update added security settings or what’s going on there. Most of the links @Heliosurge posted won’t work for me anymore. Perhaps I can get a little help here from @Heliosurge
. Alpha 254 does eliminate the stutters for me but had random crashes with extended use, so I’m currently using version .132 which seems to be most favorable for me.