I thought you were referring to the Unity game engine and its VR support. Many games are developed with that software. I can not help you, I don’t know those games. But it is worth saying that if only the VR controllers are supported, I would not risk buying HMDs that do not currently have that native technology. If you can use the traditional controller, it is worth using Pimax 4K (for me). On Steam I often look for titles of vr games with the filter to display the support for normal controllers.
I’ll answer what I can, hopefully confirming some of what others have said.
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You might want to upgrade your gpu. I use a Gtx 1060 with an AMD Fx-8350. It runs quite well in vr, though frame drops are quite common. The 60fps cap is quite reachable and often stable, but anything with 70 or 90 fps might be hard to reach without frame drops, which is fine because the headset doesn’t go that high.
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The gpu upgrade might be worth it, but costs will come into play. I’ll touch on this further down.
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I don’t know if its is 110° (I think so), but it is definitely around there.
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Personally I have no issues, so I cannot comment on this.
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Yes, and if you use a Razer Hydra it will be worse. Its isn’t all that bad for me, but some have really bad drift.
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Things I hate… oh yeah. For one, every update since I got the headset back in February has taken steps back, with the exception of the latest (1.2.75), the clip near the back of the head sling snapped within a few days of light use. The software is a nightmare sometimes in that SteamVr won’t start, SteamVr crashes, Piplay searches ages for a headset… yeah, good luck trying to change IPD or headset resolution without a computer restart. In a nutshell, perhaps the biggest problem I have with the headset is the lack of consistent functionality abroad.
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Eh, latency for me has been strange. when using actual Vr games, it definitely seems worse than 18ms, which itself shouldn’t even be a thing for any headset in 2017. When using Reshade and SuperDepth 3d for non-vr games to get a SBS image, I don’t tend to notice it too much actually.
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Okay, now this is something that really may be a deal breaker for you. Had I known what I do now, I would have never bought this system. There is no positional tracking for the Pimax 4k as of right now. None. The psmove service allows hand tracking with positional data, but not for the head. Its also kinda bad and twitchy. Just about every shooting game will not work because of this. Supposedly, NoloVr supports the 4k at launch, though as of now that is nothing but false advertising. An update is dated for next week, but with Pimax’s record lately I don’t how it will turn out.
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I honestly don’t think the headset feels cheap, except the terrible facial lining they use. I quite like the design and material of everything else. Though, the biggest part where they cut corners was the LCD screen… not a wise move. The closest part where they didn’t cut enough was the nose housing as many people have the headset putting slightly painful pressure around the bridge of the nose.
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I personally don’t own horror games (yet… someday though), but if you are interested give it a try, especially Alien Isolation! Now, the xbox controller won’t take away from the experience, but once you rig up a super custom Razer Hydra motion control config, you will not want to go back. For instance (though not exactly horror games), games like Halo and Dead Space are amazing when you have to throw a punch to melee or reach down to reload. I strap one to a belt loop on my pants, that way if I jump or crouch, the character jumps or crouches, etc. Bottom line, some games are totally worth it, even with a controller, especially non-vr games!
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Based on shear hardware specs, grr this is hard knowing what I do now. I like the headphones, the feel (except the nose) the volume buttons on the top… hmm. I guess it comes down to my computer hardware too. OSVR might be better supported, but I don’t think I could consistently get the 90fps mark on all my vr and non-vr games, so Pimax wins there. The screen isn’t the most color vibrant, but this is my first headset so I honestly can’t see an issue here. Its like using a joystick for the first time after playing a flight simulator with only your mouse or controller. For my current setup, I still think the Pimax 4k is the best option from a hardware standing. Hardware only, and from that perspective I would get it again as a first headset to be introduced to virtual reality. Software needs work oh so badly, but a decent driver is already out (1.1.92).
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Things to consider…
Your last paragraph really hits home on two of the biggest issues with VR as a whole: Price and Hardware. I mentioned earlier about a gpu upgrade. The thing is, Vr is in its infancy, and as time goes on, games will be more demanding. Even if you leap out for, say, a 1060, it might not be able to run those games. But hey, if you already have games, you might not even care about upgrading. Either way, you are looking at a gpu upgrade (either new or crossfire) for any Vr headset you settle with. The $250 mark sounds about right.
Let me be clear, the psmove service does not work with head positional tracking, something almost every Vr game now utilizes from Steam. Ps Eye cameras are rather cheap, but the controllers are what will cost you. Not to mention you need the usb active extension cables to even reach you computer after you mount them. Let’s say you get the Move controllers from ebay on a deal at $20 a piece and $6 for two cameras as some places practically give them to you for free. The active 16.4 ft cable I use is $16 on amazon, but you will need two to four, depending on how many cameras you use. This brings you to ~$78, a basic setup of two psmove controllers and two ps eye controllers).
Perhaps one day Pimax will allow freetrack input, or the psmove service greatly improves to allow head positional tracking as well. Add another $39 for the controller, camera, and extra camera’s active usb cable. For ideal room tracking you would want four pseyes, though. A four camera setup with these low deals adds up to ~136.
Nolo is I think $200 vs the ~$136 of the psmove setup. Yeah, quite a price different, but realize the psmove setup could be up another $10-15 per controller if you can’t get them on a deal, and shipping costs will come into play. If you get a Psmove controller with the magnetometer disabled or just not even in the thing, expect terrible drift and constant reentering. I had this problem with all three controllers that I bought, and ultimately returned them. Or buy a razer hydra, though I would recommend against it for VR motion controllers.
Comparing the costs of the rift/vive with Pimax and Motion controls, you should still end up saving, but with downsides of course. If you want the full Vr experience without a lot of hand-to-head combat with drivers and custom cable setup. the Pimax might not be worth that savings from the rift. Weigh your options as to which controller setup you want to pursue.
Due to the lack true head positional tracking options as of yet, I can’t advise between the Nolo or the Psmove setup yet, though I lean strongly towards NoloVr. I’ll edit next week when/if Nolo gets compatibility and the set arrives.
For roomscale (waiting for Nolo to come in), I made a breakout cable out of a HMDI repeater and cable, usb active cable, electrical tape and zip ties. Costs me about $40.
Now, the makers of the Vive solved all of this by including every vive with controllers. Then they asked for $800, to which I kindly showed them the door.
In short, yes the Pimax has issues. Thankfully, just about issue with the headset, especially with software hiccups or driver problems, is tackled quickly here on the forums leading solutions (perhaps this is Pimax’s secret social VR experiment). It isn’t perfect and falls short in some areas, but stands strong as an introduction to vr. Motion controls are suggested to complete the experience, as others have said.
Thanks for asking @20kevin20, and welcome to the forums! If you have other questions, feel free to ask around, someone is bound to lend a hand!
One thing has become clear to me: VR is more than just a headset. You really need controllers for that submersive VR experience…
Sorry to disagree.
I totally do not need those VR controllers to immerse
There are countles examples for immersed VR experiences without VR controllers, just think about all those 360 and 3D movies.
I use my PIMAX to watch 3D movies and thus saved a lot of money I would have otherwise spent on a 3D capable screen.
The awesome image quality is the main advantage of the PIMAX over all the other headsets,
They should make use of this rather than try to compete in positional tracking and VR controllers.
When I play VR I like to sit comfortably in a chair and use a “mouse” rather than swinging and holding my arm or tripping over cables, but thats just me
Well, it all comes down to the content one wishes to view inside the HMD but really, @ end of day, it’s best to have an well rounded setup.
What happens when so and so wishes to try something other than Media/Content that requires the controllers, etc?
In that case you currently should stay most definitely certainly with sureness stay away for the PIMAX for sure…
There are many ppl trying to get those controllers and gadgets for positional tracking to work on the PIMAX 4k… and even the company itself is currently working on a device with tracking and controllers.
Seeming the 4K is not fit for those ppl wanting to stand in a room while swinging their arms.
Upgrading the Pimax 4K to work with those features too would cost the same as buying the Rift CV2
In truth no current vr pc headset is ideal for room scale. While rift/vive have good positional control systems the tether is still a big problem (as mentioned in many reviews).
As for tracked controllers a bit of hit n miss on 3rd party options.
Options though for tether free options there still i think in te works. Though at present best option imho for best results; would be things like msi vr backpack pc(get out your gold card lol)
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11: I just bought one, just got it to work. The screen is very hires. Given that when I tried the Rift and the Vive they both had the feel of 1980’s video, I’d say that was a good thing. There is some screen door, (at least for me, near-sighted) bit it’s no different that you get looking at a HD TV very close.
The positional tracking is very good, very responsive. No drift from my limited testing. The feel isn’t cheap, at least no cheaper than the Rift of the Vive. It’s not a premium product, by any means, it’s simple, light and functional. The cables are cables, I’ve seen some people complain, but people will complain about anything. Is it worth the money? Definitely. It’s a solid product, it works. But then I only bought it to play Skyrim, so most of VR is likely not going to matter to me, I doubt I’ll be playing anything else, other than Elite:Dangerous. Which I already own.
As an experience, I’d say it was punching above it’s weight. The software is tweaky, and I had to install the latest version after I couldn’t get 1.1.92 to work, but the latest drivers seem fairly competent it works for the most part and the way to get it to rescan is to restart the PiService.exe service with PiPlay open. I also had to run off a display port as the DVI didn’t want to work. If you’re going to do display port you want an active cable connector. I’m running it off a Sapphire R9 390 Nitro 8Gb, which again I bought in service of Skyrim.
Over all nice bit of kit, you can even wear glasses at a push, a bit of a squeeze but workable. The nose bridge is a bit of an issue, and the video playback is not the strongest, but these are niggles, and you can probably work around them. But worth the money? Definitely.:
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With the nose issue. There is simplified fix. Goto a hardware/discount store & buy peal n stick weather stripping foam.
As for the factory headset foam a couple of users have used after market Vive foam. The foam on the headset is attached with velcro.
As for cost? I agree with sale or coupon code for $300 headset good value & truthfully Oculus would have been able to price at $350(which was originally projected price point); but with the cost of developing positional tracking effectively doubled the price.
As with anything always better if you can try a before buying. Which is where Vive/Oculus/psvr currently have an edge.
I myself live in Canada about an hour from Toronto, Ontario.
one thing to mention that no one has spoken about. There is no mic on the headset as some of the original sales material said there was, so if you are planning on recording, or using teamspeak/discord/skype or anything else for in game chat, then you will need to arrange an alternative mic.
Eno
Someone was laying out a photo and there was a microphone.
I’m afraid not. PIMAX confirmed that it does not have a mic and the website advertisements had it wrong
I said that the
guy disassembled his helmet and I can not understand what it is
installed, he carefully studied and it turned out that there was a
microphone.
Hi Not exactly a work around, but a mod.
See my post on
http://community.openmr.ai/t/a-mod-to-change-the-focus-of-the-pimax-lenses/2101
It’s made a huge difference to my Pimax.
The mod make a well focused image for my vision while wearing my reading glasses.
If one is careful, it’s not too difficult a mod, but absolute care must be taken to not get any dust etc in the unit.
I have a couple of tiny specs but they’re small enough to ignore.
Cheers, Luke
Has anyone else managed to get the mic working or even get detected in any version of windows? Currently I am using my Logitech headset with the pimax because PIMAX support told me there was no mic but the post above seems to indicate these is a MIC? Anyone else who have opened their unit confirm this mic is connected to the vents?
Thanks
Eno
Ah cool. I thought i remember you had said they sent you an alternative lenses and installed them not long ago. My bad too much reading must have blended some of what i read.
Your vision sounds like mine. Did they just send you the additional set of lenses at no cost? I’m considering buying the Pimax today. Just want to make sure that support is in place.
Great video BTW
Thanks. Yeah it’s a pain having to wear glasses.
Yes, Pimax did send the new lenses for free, but I suspect that the original ones are identical so don’t worry too much about getting replacements. They won’t fix the problem without the mod to the unit.
There wouldn’t be an issue if the focus could be mechanically adjusted by default. I would have preferred to not have had to go down that path because there is always a risk of damage.
So if you get the Pimax and then decide to do the mod. Be very careful. It’s not difficult, but their won’t be any warranty if something goes wrong.
Oh yes, Don’t bother removing the blue filter/shutters. You’ll only have to put them back again.
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take note of what Heliosurge tells you. he “knows his stuff” 
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@Skunkyfi Thanks for the vote of confidence. 
@20kevin20. I have done some recent testing. I disabled my cf. Unfortunate in steamvr test i got red result in gpu.
Further testing games & 360 videos crashed.
So if on a tight budget grab a 2nd 7950 used. On Game debate if compare 7950 cf vs r9 390 8gig they compare well for strength.
But if budget allows better to have 1 strong gpu then 2 weaker ones.
With the 1060 while 3gig clearly works i still rec the 6gig option since no sli option 4 later upgrade.
Hi guys, I think You should buy 144Hz monitor rather than 4K monitor. It is more reliable, cheap, fast. It provides unique and amazing performance of gaming.