Pimax Crystal - status, updates and fixes (Part 2)

Uh controller tracking is controller tracking. Doesn’t matter the VR game. The Pimax Crystal controllers fail equally in all VR environments.

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Pimax got back to me: “​Our engineers have developed and optimized for this problem, and are now testing the new version. Please wait for OTA upgrade”.

So looks like they are quite aware.

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Controller tracking seems to be hit & miss with users. It is ashame they went with is it B&W cam tracking vs color or ir cam tracking.

We really need those with decent tracking xp to maybe post sone environment details as @CheezusCrisp mentioned tracking is affected by too bright environment and not bright enough it seems.

Unfortunately pimax has something messed up vs other xr2 hmds otherwise you would be able to use something like OpenVR Space calibration as per using inded controllers with the Quest, G2, puco etc…

Our xp differs here as they are quite usable save the sensitive triggers. What is sad is they still haven’t enabled the sense functions. I am also disappointed pimax side stepped releasing both types of controllers and that they only ended up releasing half of the controller that makes it just a reskinned Vive Wand with better formfactor and changeable battery.

I have played several games with both Sword and Index controllers. Both designs I find imho have ergonomic flaws. I am hoping this week coming perhaps I might be able to check out my etee controllers that I have had now for 3 weeks?

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This would be a good question for simmers whom have motion rigs.

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The lack of a thumbstick does it for me. I was so glad about the Touch controllers, being able to leave the Vive Wands behind me.

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Still one of the best designs for a Stick controller with buttons is the Razer Hydra for motion controllers.

I like both Stick and trackpads depending on the game. What is too bad is not being able to use mixed inputs. Much like the Steamcontroller.

Controller types are quite subjective with what one might prefer.

On firsr look at etee is very promising. However I would imagine there not your cup of tea due to preferring dual stick controllers?

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Collection of June impressions/reviews. Please feel free to sign up!

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I may possibly be the one and only guy in the world who stubborny remain strongly persisting that the best controller would be no controller - not for the future, but right now. :7

I read an opinion piece by Denny from Cloudhead games, the other day, speaking of the very deliberate, outright debilitating limitations Apple has imposed on their entry into the XR field proper (ARKit has long been a thing, but no HMD until now), where he extolled the importance of the tactility, haptics, and propriceptive familiarity with the constantly available control organs of a controller, for object interaction, but all I could think was: “Hell no!”; That physically restrictive, and clammy lump of fixed-shape matter impositioning itself in my hands, is exactly what extremely awkwardly gets between me and the objects in the virtual world - not least of all in Denny’s own first pair of game episodes. :7
-Interaction by servo-actuated tongs, which I am not allowed to drop. :stuck_out_tongue:

There is always somebody making fun of the notion of finger-guns in these discussion, but for me: “Yes please! DO give me finger guns”; I don’t need to hold and pull the trigger on a physical poor facsimilie of a real weapon, nor any other object, even poorer mimicked (EDIT: …I think there was some little game that made a fun take on the bizarre US obscession with guns, by making you try to perform every little everyday action using pistols :P), to make-believe; Nor a vibration poorly pretending to be recoil, and even if I did: With free hands, I could have the option to pick up some sort of better-resembling rubber pistol replica - inert or with I/O options, without having to put down something else first. :stuck_out_tongue: (…and no – I do not like thumbsticks either, any better than I do touchpads - there must be something better we can do, for perambulation.)

I’ve long had my eyes on Etee, as the least clumsy-looking controller option on show, but do wonder how much one of the things that makes it look “lighter” than others – its clipping over your fingers, between the first pair of knuckles – how akwardly that restricts motion for that first finger joint.

…not to go into how games are to this day often being hard-coded for the layouts etc. of certain controllers…

-I started one old game the other day, which I had held off on playing for years, intending to wait until I have arranged a larger playspace (…which I never seem to get around to), and it turned out to be made for Vive controllers, specifically… One of the actually pretty useful things about the design of those, is that they are symmetrical - unidextrous; No need for a separate SKU for each hand, aaand… Using any handed controller, it turns out the hands are swapped in this game, and its support ended ages ago, if the studio is even still around. Still looking for some way of remapping - SteamVRInput doesn’t seem to easily do it for me (some people could trick it in the past, by powering on the controllers in a certain order, but that does not seem to work anymore)… :stuck_out_tongue:

This isn’t by far the first game that has become rendered more or less unplayable (this particular one being a mild case), due to such lack of thinking ahead, with controller input – it started happening before the first commercial HMD launches.

I will never forgive Oculus for launching with an X-Box controller, and enforcing developers’ targetting it and nothing else, until they could get Touch out of the door (… a limitation that effectively continued long past that point) – I’ll probably never play The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, because of it – the developer even tore out mouse-and-keyboard controls from the game, to make it gamepad-only. :frowning:

Just my personal opinion, of course - each of us will have their own. :7

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Since we’re in a Pimax forum, I don’t think this is going too far off-topic: I was a Kickstarter backer, and I’ve now received my Etee. I can get the controllers to work, but not the controller trackers. TG0 says that there is a known issue with Etee and PiTool (both runtimes are each trying to hijack SteamVR), and they have a set of manual workaround steps for me to follow until they have a fix, but I’m following the workaround to the letter and it’s not working. I have no idea if the same problem will be with the new runtime software for Pimax Crystal, but it is not unlikely. So that was a heads-up to any other Pimax owners who are considering the Etee.

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I presume these steps I copied from there member.

Etee Cintrollers

I did that :

  1. On steam got to “manage trackers” and set the two hands to “Disabled”
  1. Right click on the two controllers and clic turn off
  1. Turn off the trackers
  1. Restart steam
  1. Turn on the controllers
  1. Turn on the trackers
  1. Go to “manager trackers” on steam
  1. Set both to “in hands” and set it to your trackers to the correct hand.

That must work.

I need to do this everytime I start steam. (steam must start with trackers to “Disabled”)

I also copied the directory Programs (x86)Steam/steamapp/commun/eteeConnect to Programs/Pimax/runtimes/drivers/eteeConnect but I didn’t think that change something.

I also enabled allowMultipleDrivers in my vrsettings (I did it with the steam extension OVR Advanced Settings` and checked that the settings was applied in the file. Idk if this step is needed though


I will give tjos a go if have free time this week.

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Crystal has to run a MASSSSSIIIVVEEE inverse distortion compensation resolution of 3232x3824 per eye, or over 12 megapixels. Meaning your PC has to drive over 24 megapixels at 90 FPS or higher to get that clarity. Basically means even with an overclocked 4090 you have to run your games on potato graphics.

This is the biggest problem I’m running into, is always having to play at 45 FPS with motion interpilation which sucks.

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It will get worse once the wide FOV lenses are released.

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I assume those will be plastic and hence unusable.

Interesting Video.

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Interesting. Also funny to see him mention that he considered himself a wide FoV deciple but when forced to chose between wider FoV vs. better resolution, he goes for the latter.

Essentially what I did at the time when I compared the 8KX and the G2 (and Index): I chose the G2 as my daily driver, because the picture just seemed a tad crisper, perhaps calmer (possibly simply due to the greater wealth of GPU resources per pixel on the G2), and that made me lean towards the better picture over the wider FoV too.

Which is why I would have been very happy for a new hi-res headset to target a FoV of say 120° horizontal. But no, Pimax chose 200° for the 12K and 104° for the Crystal… :laughing:

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So that’s the res for 100% in steamvr for example?

There’s certainly some subjective value being applied here as well.
I think for a simmer, especially flying fighter jets in combat, the value of a wider FoV is plainly an advantage IMO.
I’m sure the picture quality of the Crystal is very nice.
The FoV may be acceptable for many.
Though, I guess for me, the whole mystery around the FoV numbers and which to believe, coupled with rumors of a greater FoV lens etc etc. Just didn’t make me confident enough to want to bite on this HMD yet.
I’m not yet sold on FoV as well as other features and their maturity just yet.
Gonna sit the sidelines and see how things go.

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I run the crystal at max setting on every game I play with a 4090, often at above 100% SS. Rock solid 90fps, 120 often.

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Varjo strike back. 2 Free Base Stations.

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