Ultimate Guide to Tune Up Pimax 5K+/8K (no more eye strain, glare and distortions)

Pimax 8K Series
, , , ,
1

Hi everybody! Long time working with my Pimax 5K+ & 8K, and yesterday… after 6 months, I finally used it to play Asgard’s Wrath.

Yes… 6 months to use it. Because… f***, I’m a f***ing perfectionist haha.

Well, as you know I was working on it a long time, in my mods, and calibrating everything. And I want to RESUME everything that I learn as fast as I can. Because now… My Pimax HMD is working perfect. But really… not a placebo.

Let me explain “perfect”. When I tried it the first time I said… “impressive!!!” but then… after the hype… problems. Glare, eye strain, lost of immersion, pain in my face… etc. Now I can say that the first “impressive” and the original standard configuration of my Pimax… was false.

I think that there are a lot of people that doesn’t know that theirs Pimax can run “perfect”, and simply continue in a “false” mode, because it’s still “impressive”. Well, I want to help perfectionist like me :slight_smile:

START WITH THE RESUME:

1- Software - IPD OFFSET.

When you move the IPD offset you can force it to low IPD o high, than normal. But there is another IMPORTANT effect. The 3D. Like with the 3DS, when you move the IPD OFFSET, you change the depth of the 3D.

For instance, when I use 0, I found that after 10 meters… everything is 2D. At first I didn’t notice that, after I change it to bigger numbers, and found that… with 2 I can see through a door and feel that this other room is 3D too. And the mountains, and everything feel realistic.

VERY IMPORTANT: You need to change the IPD hardware everytime to your NEAR IPD, to test it correctly. This is absolutely necessary. Don’t use other IPD, because it can be a false placebo.

I was using 0 in the last 6 month. Now… I tried several times to change to 0 again and I can’t use my Pimax for 10 minutes, because now my brain knows that all are bad. Now that I see the difference, I notice it and cause me massive eyestrain.

Change IPD Offset trying to find the best “depth” sensation for you (and IPD hardware to Near IPD)

2- Software - Screen Vertical Offset

That’s game changing for me, because my right eye is in different height than my left. Only 0.5 in my right eye changes all my eyestrain.

For my tests I tried to look to the big rock that is in the Pimax Home. And change the value with arrows in my keyboard.

Only for advanced (more) users: If you change both channels, then you change the virtual world vanishing point. If you increase it a lot, then you will feel like you are inside a bubble. If you reduce it a lot, then you will feel like you are on a little planet. You can try to find the perfect vanishing point value and sync virtual world vanishing point with the real world vanishing point… or sometimes you can feel better on a little planet… or on a flat earth :stuck_out_tongue:

3- Hardware - Tilt the Pimax

Well. I was the person who said that tilting the Pimax I get rid of all problems. And that was true in that moment… if you don’t know how work the rest of the “settings”.

Now, I can say that we need to have the screens in perpendicular with our sight. Because, if you tilt the HMD, then you force your sight across the lenses and produce eyestrain. You need to level the foam to tilt the HMD and make it right with your sight.

4- Hardware - Distance

This is very important… and difficult to assume.

Let me explain myself… the first time that I used my Pimax, I wanted MAXIMUM FOV. Ou yeah… lens touching my eyes… and then… all this arrrrghhh problems.

Now, I know that the distance are directly related with the glare (yes), eyestrain and distortions.

+Distance
-Glare
-Eyestrain
-Distortion
-FOV

We need to assume it. I want FULL FOV. But then… I found that using bigger foams, and more distance, everythink work MILLION OF TIMES better. Yes sorry… an exageration, but the first time I used Pimax the glare kills my soul. Now… I can’t see glare (seriusly, crystal clear vision like PSVR). And I can say it’s the HMD with less glare in the market (after PSVR).

But now, the Max Fov doesn’t exist for me. I had 170º in the ROV test in the past. Now I have 150º in Max Fov, and if I changed it to Normal, I continue having 150º. Is the same, but well… better to my gpu hehe.

If you want to know the distance that I use… well, when I stare to the border of the lens, I can see a bit of “blur” shadow. But it I look at the front, everything it perfect. This is the point, and the shadow is very subtle and don’t bother at all.

5- Hardware - Height of the HMD

It’s very important too. I notice that with only if a move a bit the height… the immersion changes. Because, now I found my perfect “sync sweet spot” (my eyes across the sweet spot).

To find it, I tried to get rid of the blur when I’m staring to the front and then… look at the ceiling and tried to get ride of the blur. But just in the moment that I remove the blur of my top vision, I inmediately stop. If I get it, with the perfect tilt and distance… It was perfect.

Everytime I use my Pimax I need to stick the strap again, because the Mod changes a bit too (DAS mod).

And this was all…

TL;DR
You need to change:
-IPD Offset: For 3D effect and eyestrain.
-Screen Vertical Offset: If you have eyes at different level and eyestrain. Only in one channel.
-Tilt: For eyestrain, 3D effect and correct sync sweet spot (not bigger… only correct)
-Distance: For eyestrain, glare and distortions.
-Height: To perfect all the previous points.

And most important advice!! Don’t try to keep FOV bigger… Because this is the biggest error. We need to assume that we need to lose FOV to correct all the rest. I didn’t want to add distance… and it only gives me a lot of headaches and lost 6 months hehe

Now at last I can use my Pimax 5K+ and 8K!!! And sell it in a month to buy the 8Kx xD What Irony… after 6 months learning how to achive the perfect vision with my HMDs, now I will change with the new version… But now! I know how to use it correctly the first day! @PimaxVR a manual will be perfect hehe specially for user that doesn’t use the forum and think that Pimax are a bad HMD (and it’s perfect if you know how to setup it… uf hehe) :stuck_out_tongue:

THANKS EVERYBODY! I return to Asgard… after months preparing this moment, I hope I deserve it hahah.

31 Likes
2

Me too, but I’ve got mine set to +5.5 and +8.0. I now see the 3D effect much better (better than real life, actually).

A word of caution: Setting the vertical offsets to different values can affect your real-life vision! I never noticed a problem in real-life, in 50+ years, but I now notice that my eyes “don’t quite line up”, especially if I’m tired.

Also, I never had any eyestrain (once I got my IPD set correctly), even before the Vertical Offset option was added.

4 Likes
3

Yeah!

Screen Vertical, when you change both channels, change the vanishing Point of the Virtual World. It’s very very difficult… but the ideal is to change it to sync with the real world vanishing point.

I will add it to the manual.

3 Likes
4

Sounds to me you should stop visiting reality and stay virtual where you can see correctly without any problems! :dizzy_face::laughing::wink:

8 Likes
5

IPD offset = World Scale adjustment.

Screen Vertical Offset - that can help people who experience blurriness with Pimax headsets. I run +1.5 - +2 both eyes but I have large brow to deal with. Neanderthal Head. :grinning:

4 Likes
6

Hahaha hopefully we have a lot of options to improve… but it’s a pity for general users to have to do all of this tests.

1 Like
7

I’ve been using the Odyssey+ VRCover since the beggining (day2), and that solved all my problems (with DAS).
This VRCover is very thick, not like the others, but very very soft and spongy, so you can adjust very easy the distance, and height of the headset.
Zero distortions, Zero eyestrain, Zero glare, good 3D and super comfortable. Yes, a bit less FOV but way better, it simply works.

2 Likes
8

I also had to adjust the vertical and horizontal offset a bit and use a thicker pad. If the eyes are too close, there will be glare. Since then no more problems with distortions or bad 3D effect or wrong worldscale.

According to your instructions in the other thread I optimized the vertical offset with an elongated lying object and for the horizontal offset an elongated standing object at a distance of 3m on the ground. Adjusted until I had no more double images.

4 Likes
9

That’s amazing!! Glad to know that my other post helped you :slight_smile:

4 Likes
10

One more thing. I think that with a good Pimax DAS and the comfort kit… if it is well done… it can solve the tilt and distance problem.

I want to try it!

3 Likes
11

Yeah - I found using IPD offset of +2 really helped world scale for me in Il2 which then has made killing aircraft that much easier.

I must did up my brothers few Spitfire instruments to compare scale but it seems about right with trees, buildings and other objects in the world. Not sure why the default World Scale was half size.

Love that sim. :grin:

3 Likes
12

I know my IPD (measured by my optician), but how do you measure the Near IPD?

3 Likes
13

My optician gave mine. Ask about it… and there is apps to measure IPD that gives you both too :slight_smile:

1 Like
14

This was my problem before Pimax introduced IPD offset. Then with your other >guide< after I tried many IPD offsets I set it to -0.5 and the 3D effect was better.
Now you set the offset to +2.0 and say it is even better for you, that…

Can you desribe it a little bit more ?
I thought that human eyes are supposed to see proper 3D within 10 m and then it is just how our brain interprets the visual cues (size of objects, shadows, …) and combines it with our past experience and then tells us how far the objects are >link<. And with the current posibilities of computer graphic rendering some information in the image is missing and the far objects are not properly seen as far (our brain does not tell us they are not as far as they should be). Maybe with better resolution it could get better (certainly going from ViveOG to 5K+ helped in my case.)
This brings another question: your offset settings - does it make far objects (mountains) more like models ?

1 Like
15

I found this formula:
Near PD = [Distance PD mm * (10 * Reading Distance cm)] / [(10 * Reading Distance cm) + 27]

It seems to be accurate but what reading distance should we use, that is the question.

3 Likes
16

Well - I guess you could try what distance is most comfortable while reading from a typical document (like 12pt size letters) - this can be different (remember darkly talking to an “Optiker” (Optician?) about that). For me ist like About cm 44 and I remember a rule of thumb that says ist near the distance from youre Armpit ( NO the elbow Unnerside - sorry lag of sleep) to the Hand/fingertip.
I will try it in PiTool - havent managed a lot of gaming - lots of work. What App did you use? I kind of tried araound figuring it out.

17

Yes. For instance, when I’m using Asgard’s wrath with 0, and there is a open door at 10 meters… I see the other room like a poster over the door, in 2D.

But with 2.0 I can see depth through the door and the real distance to the next wall.

I think that it’s relative to your ipd. Exponential. That’s the reason some body need -1 and others +2. The world scale changes.

I know how the visual effects work… is something about the distance between the stereoscopic objects and the far distance you have. But it’s difficult for me explain it… hehe but your eyes “cross far object distance” must be in more or less 100 meters. With 0 I have it in 10 meters.

1 Like
18

Well my ipd is 61 and near ipd is 58 (I used an app). 58 is below what the pimax hardware ipd can do. Any pointers on how to do step 1 in that case?

19

There’s a reason that valve spent all this time to develop every part of their HMD. It’s because the some of it’s parts are more than just a screen and lenses.

I’m thinking this is why the VR just looks correct in the index and it’s next to impossible for me to get it to look right on my pimax

20

good post, but it raises so many questions.

  1. What did I just read?
  2. I’ve been just throwing the headset on and everything just seems to work. Can/Should I be changing things to look better? How to tell.
  3. Is there some quantitative way measure using standardized scenes (like real-o-virtual) so that we can tell if our vertical offsets, etc are off other than just feelings?
1 Like