Our Crystal initial thoughts + DCS gameplay is up - on a RTX 3080ti!
Australia Player1Simgear
Summary: They had some minor issues getting it recognized by the PC with 3080ti, had to unplug an extra monitor, but worked fine after that. They seemed ok with the comfort, face gasket wasn’t the best for them. Were pleased with the headset build quality, weight, audio, and battery life. They felt it was a huge step up in visual quality from Reverb G2 and will absolutly be their go to headset from now on.
So I just received my Crystal and wanted to share some first impressions:
Positives:
The Image Quality is really great. And this is the main reason you probably get this
It is way more comfortable than the 8KX.
Got a free fibre optics cable, as it was an early badge.
Even though automatic IPD adjustment is not available yet you can set a specific value in the software and have it adjust to that value.
Headset has solid tracking using inside out
Controllers feel way better than what was shown on first roadshow. I was really surprised by the quality. The only thing that could be better would be the joystick, that has a springy sound to it when moving and the grip button having to little resistance.
Pimax took some time after providing the tracking number to do som QA and make sure to include the glass lenses
Problems during setup:
At first I had connectivity issues with the headset stuck in a boot loop. After some trouble shooting it turned out to be caused by my extension cords. Those worked fine with index and 8KX, but caused problems with the crystal. After connecting directly to the PC I was able to install a firmware update, that resolved that problem.
I still need to figure out how to set up the playspace properly. For the moment I resolved to use standing mode and playspace mover. The setup both in pimax software and steamvr don’t seem to properly work with the inside out tracking / headset going to sleep when not wearing it.
Negative:
Tracking works most of the time, but controllers seem to fly off into the distance ever so often making rythm games like synthraiders and beatsaber unplayable at the moment.
The headset is not really compatible with glasses. I kinda need to wait for lense adapters to be available for this headset to enjoy it to its fullest. Even with those you probably need a thicker interface to have enough space. Funnily enough the lenses shown at the rode show in berlin were nearly perfect for my prescription but not in focus for everyone else
The pre installed face interface material does not feel good in my opinion. But the other included one feels really great.
As already announced the standalone mode is not ready yet. You can start it and are spawned into a room with a message stating as much.
Batteries are really hard to insert / remove making hot swapping a little difficult. I guess this is a mixed bag, as you don’t want them to come loose, but still a little annoying.
Weird Stuff:
Lighthouse Tracking seems to be the default setting for the crystal in the pimax software. It still works fine.
To really get to using it I really need the Lighthouse faceplate in order to use my Index knuckles and vive trackers, as well as some lense adapters.
If you have any questions about the headset I would be happy to give you my opinion
Pimax Crystal: My thoughts on the plastic lenses + confirmed: glass lenses have shipped
Posted by player1simgearon r/pimax
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1st Impressions
I’ve been using the plastic lenses now for about a week in my Crystal, and received confirmation just now that my glass lenses have been shipped (full credit to Pimax for such a rapid turn around on that). Note I didn’t have to do anything, they proactively arranged for the express post of the glass lenses.
I have to say though, I have been really impressed with the plastic lenses - the clarity with them was a huge step forward from the HP Reverb G2.
I’m definitely looking forward to comparing the glass lenses to the plastic, but overall, I’m really impressed with the stability and the clarity across the plastic ones - the whole FOV is much clearer than with the G2. I was getting a bit of distortion around the edge of the image till I checked the ‘plastic lens’ option in the Cntrl-Q menu which fixed it.
What do you all think? Have you received plastic lenses too? How did you find yours compared to other headsets? Have your replacement lenses arrived yet? Whats the main difference for you? We’ll post a detailed comparison vid in a week or so once we’ve had a chance to compare.
After owning over 10 VR Headsets here are my rankings in visuals
Posted by NumberWilling4285 on r/pimax
1st Impressions
I just wanted to share my experience after receiving Crystal with all other headsets I owned over time in visual quality overall by ranking them from top to bottom, all headsets running at 150% SS as that will give maximum usable visual clarity. Note: I didn’t test them back to back, I’m just using what I remember so it might not be very accurate.
Note: I will add Nreal (Xreal) Air to the list since it can do VR (even though unusable thanks to small FOV) but it’s interesting to know where this XR tech heading to.
Best Comfort so far for me: Upgraded Quest 2 (and 8KX was most impressive considering the size)
Best Tracking so far for me: any Base stations 2.0 running headset best inside out is PSVR 2 (I didn’t have time to try it but Quest Pro should be best inside out tracking)
Not on the list is Valve Index, which i didn’t own but did try however my time was limited so I can’t remember much about it, from what I remember in FOV it will be 2nd place and clarity about 11th
I’m a seasoned VR vet at this point, the Crystal being my 9th headset. Running a 4090 on a top end pc. After about 8 hours with the crystal here are my initial impressions
Didn’t have any problems getting it to connect. A little user error on my part at first but quickly worked it out. Played Alyx mostly. The first hour I was getting multiple disconnects. Removed the little usb extend thing they sent with it and plugged the usb directly into the pc. That solved that issue.
The controllers need a lot of work. Tracking is very poor. Looking down the site of the gun and the barrel drifts back and forth. Using the Joystick for locomotion was also a pain. At least 5 times it lost tracking completely and the PC has to be rebooted to fix it. I assume this will be improved by software updates.
To me its very comfortable. The weight didnt bother me at all. Wore it for hours with zero issues.
Best picture of all my headsets. Not perfect though. Still a slight bit fisheyed and things in the distance can be more blurry than I would like. Can still see where improvements will be made with future headsets.
Overall, happy with my purchase. Picture clarity is my number one priority in a headset and it is far better than anything else I have. I dont see myself going back to my quest pro. Even with the issues the Pimax picture makes it worth the jank.
If you buy it just understand you are paying to beta test a product. If you are patient and willing to work through things in order to be on the cutting edge of VR this headset might be a good fit for you.
Just loaded up Subnautica. Absolutely breathtaking in this headset. The minor Fisheye thing I was seeing in Alyx wasn’t noticeable in any other game. Loaded up Skyrim and the tracking seemed a bit better. Loaded up Fallout 4 and the controllers didnt work at all. Loaded up Half Life 2 VR mod and seemed to track okay. Looks WAY better than Quest pro. Audio is great. Headset is still very comfortable to me. Big upgrade
EyeTrack8ng, DFR & Auto-IPD working on pimax Crystal[GERMAN]
Posted on r/pimax by derpauflee
I’ve access to the newest beta of the firmware PC client for Pimax Crystal in order to use eye-tracking, auto-ipd adjustment and Dynamic Foveated Rendering. In my video you can see the result of the new features. It’s still in beta and here and there are issues, but in general the DFR on driver level works just fine.
Top 5 Things You Need To Consider Before Deciding on the Pimax Crystal - Our Initial Review
Posted on r/pimax by player1simgear
Our review of the Pimax Crystal is up - we tackle the 5 most common issues other reviewers are saying about the Crystal, and give our opinion on the things you need to consider, from a Flight Sim and Sim Racing perspective
Let us know what you think, have you received your Crystal? Any issues?
Pimax Crystal Review From a Sim Racer - after a month. - 4090 & i13900k
Posted on r/pinax by Imgame1
1st Impressions?
I’ve been using VR headsets since dk2, and my last one before the crystal was the pimax 8k (not 8kx).
I’ve used both the plastic and the glass lenses on the crystal, so here are my thoughts.
Lets start with good things:
Visual clarity - as others have mentioned, it really is great. Probably best in business. With the plastic lenses it was still ok, but with the glass lenses its great. There is no screen door effect and you cant see a pixel if your life depended on it.
Headset tracking - really good pretty much no problems when playing sims.
Weight - I dont really have a problem with the weight I think its distributed okay.
The problems:
Sound - I think the sound is quite okay, but there is a noticeable delay, so when you upshift or downshift there is probably a 0,5 second delay, which is also quite annoying.
Battery - I didnt have the hub until last week and without it it was really bad. I had to swap the battery every 2-3 hours. With the hub its much better, but my hub or the cable is quite broken and the cable doesn’t fit correctly and falls out by itself so currently I have it taped together for it to work without randomly losing the connection.
Red color shift - there is a problem with the red color being slightly shifted, so if a car is painted red or has red patterns it almost seems like the red paint is sticking out, its annoying when watching replays, not really noticable when driving.
Dark scenes - there is some blooming, and in very dark scenes, eg. Driving at night, your driver or the arms will be very blurred or smudged, if there isnt enough light there.
Fish eye - I cant notice it in game actually, but all menus(flat planes) for me are slightly fisheyed, so like watching through a glass sphere its kind of curved in the middle. Like I said in game it looks normal. But I didnt get this with the plastic lenses.
Chromatic aberration - with the plastic lenses it was there alot, with the glass lenses its pretty much gone, I can still sometimes see it more at the edges of the sweetspot, with some yellow shift, but really not a big thing.
The bad:
Connectivity - the pimax software will not detect my headset about 70% of the time, so every-time I want to use it, I have to turn it on/off several times and then it randomly works. I think since I have the hub this has been somewhat better but still having issues.
Refresh rate - I have the fiber optic cable and no matter what I do so far I can not get it to run on 120hz.
Compatibility - Having some problems with Assetto corsa being unplayable if the game is running even a few frames below 90 with the open composite, it starts stuttering like crazy probably drops down to like 30hz or something, works well with steamvr - so might be a computer specific problem. This isnt a problem in ACC or Iracing.
Controlers - I know they aren’t part of the sim racing experience, but they are really bad, I dont mean the actual pyhsical device, they are bare minimum in build quality but I really wouldnt mind it. However the experience with them is infuriating. At least mine are borderline unusable. You still sometimes need to use them, eg. To change reshade settings and when trying to move sliders its like mission impossible, the tracking of the controllers goes left right everywhere you can not change anything. I tried Alyx and my controllers just randomly lose tracking after 2 minutes and that is that, no more controllers until I restart the pimax software, they just keep blinking as if they arent trackable. So exit game restart everyhing then maybe it works for 10 minutes if Im lucky. Btw Im on latest firmware and I did try resetting the controllers themselves.
Tldr: when I started writing this review I wasnt expecting to have that many problems and bad things to say about the headset. Dont get me wrong I am still happy with the purchase and I love the headset, but be prepared to have many problems. If you dont mind tweaking and losing your mind for a few hours to get everything working, you will enjoy it.
Good points: - insane resolution, no SDE at all, even if you try looking for it - display clarity, kind of edge to edge clarity - colors and local dimming - very good battery life, the battery is really no problem at all with the included USB-Hub - great software and tweaking possibilities for performance and quality, especially in combination with PimaxXR Control and OpenXR Toolkit Companion - good, flexible, light and long cable - good HMD tracking - good accessories, though additional lenses were not included
Problems:
HMD: - loud little fan which you can hear at all time even in gaming and which spins up when you put the HMD on - almost sounds a bit like coil whine from a GPU (but isn’t, comes definitively out of the headset); it’s not that bad that I would refund but it’s nasty - diffucult to find the sweetspot due to weight and only average/ok strap - uncomfortable due to extreme weight
Audio (PLEASE FIX): - High audio latency, very noticeable when shooting etc - crackling and constant static noise when audio is played, like in a game - audio-quality compared to my Vive Deluxe Audio Strap or Rift CV1 audio is much worse; I give it a 6/10
Controllers (compared to a Quest 1 controller and therefore Rift controller which I used before): - wow they are super bad, i mean really, they are completely barebones - bad haptics of trigger- and grip-buttons - tracking is a mess when pointing at something, very hard to hit something properly, can’t imagine that you can play shooters properly - not tested the tracking volume yet, only used it sitting for basic stuff - very lightweight, which may be good but also feels cheap - have rechargeable, not interchangeable battery, which is dumb imho
Display: - there are in fact visible cromatic aberations at the edges - the FOV is not impressive, but sufficient and higher than in a Quest
Conclusion: It’s a good headset all in all but some stuff needs to be fixed and we need the missing features ASAP. First of all fix the audio. Second enable eyetracking/DFR. And Non-Simmers need the Lighthouse faceplate soon. (I play DCS so it’s not that big of a deal for me but it would be important for stuff like Alyx.)
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