I need TrackIR

[Gambit21]

 

I do the same thing regardless of Track IR or not.

I look at the instruments when I need to, outside when I need to.

[andyw248]

Makes sense. The way I look at it is that looking outside is easier with the TrackIR, so I do it more often. Before I had a TrackIR I found it complicated to look outside, so I tended to look at the instruments instead when I should have looked outside.

[Gambit21]

I get it - non-combat sim?

[andyw248]

Like flying a 747 into Kai Tak in FS9? Yes, absolutely...

[Gambit21]

Makes sense

[AstrixAU]

Never got mine to work properly.

You probably didn't turn on True view, it's what makes it possible to lean over and look behind you perfectly in fluid natural movement. It is a check box after the other check boxes like. Like turning around and checking both your elevators.

 

Actually if you look back then move close to your monitor it will do it correctly without true view it will kinda go bizerk as the feature reverses the movements when necessary.

 

Try again with true view if you still have it.

 

[wtornado]

I've gotten to the point where I feel I need head tracking in order to be more successful in a fighter. Using the coolie switch while trying to dogfight leads me to become uncoordinated at times and makes tracking enemies a pain. Anyone expierence an increase in their flying abilities by switching to TrackIR?

Once you have you won't start your game without it activated.

[=WH=PangolinWranglin]

I have a glass terrarium about 6-8 feet behind me while I play, will that cause issues if I get a TrackIR?

[PatrickAWlson]

When it  works I love it.  Problem is it works so infrequently for me.  Original clip broke.  Replacement is $40 (WTF!!!).  Picked up a hat clip instead for $20 - 10 for the clip and 10 for S&H (WTF!!!).  Now it works very rarely.

 

It's about lighting, but I can't bloody well reconfigure my house just to make TrackIR happy.  

 

Having said that there are people here who have had great success.  My issues are not with the experience, but with the quality and reliability of the product.

[Trooper117]

It's not about improving your ability just because you have trackir... it's about the immersion factor.

 

I won't play any flight sim game without it... I've never regretted buying it, it has always worked perfectly for me so far (touch wood) and I have bought every version which has just improved my experience for the better.

[1PL-Husar-1Esk]

When it  works I love it.  Problem is it works so infrequently for me.  Original clip broke.  Replacement is $40 (WTF!!!).  Picked up a hat clip instead for $20 - 10 for the clip and 10 for S&H (WTF!!!).  Now it works very rarely.

 

It's about lighting, but I can't bloody well reconfigure my house just to make TrackIR happy.  

 

Having said that there are people here who have had great success.  My issues are not with the experience, but with the quality and reliability of the product.

 

Strong build and strong diodes adn right dimensions.

http://www.delanengineering.com/

Edited November 22, 2016 by 307_Tomcat

[[TWB]80hd]

The biggest game-changers for me as far as flight sims go was, in order of least impact to most impact:

 

• Twist-axis stick to -> Rudder Pedals (I get super ham-fisted when the excrement hits the whirly bits, so this was huge)
• HOTAS-X to -> Thrustmaster Warthog (1% from the extra buttons, 99% from the refined precision)
• Snap-views to -> TrackIR.... by far and away the most important thing outside of smooth frames (I can't even taxi in IL-2 without consistent frame rate)

Now, your mileage may vary, but I played flight sims for years... tried to wrap my head around things that other enthusiasts probably understood the first time they heard it... but as soon as my vision was no longer locked into fixed points, or controlled by a slowwwww pan/zoom with my thumb and became attached to my natural head movements, things clicked for me that never before did so.

 

It's a definite A++ on immersion, as the 6DoF lean out to survey the battle damage on the wing is MONEY, and in IL-2 the blast of wind greeting you as you do so may elicit a tear or two of admiration, but for me personally, what it did for my SA and close quarters scrum fighting ability cannot easily be conveyed in words alone.

 

It took me awhile to get it into a sweet spot on my monitor, and YES you're going to have to monkey with it, and YES it will sometimes stop working (have backup hat views in case) but 96% of the time it works EVERY time.

 

[Gambit21]

My problem is that it likes to hang if I don't look over my shoulder in just the right way.

Other than that it's great.

[andyw248]

I can't bloody well reconfigure my house just to make TrackIR happy.  

 

Blinds in front of your window? Helped me when the sun caused the only outage of my TrackIR I ever had in 10 years...

[=EXPEND=CG_Justin]

I have been using TrackIR since around 2007-8(?). I usually never even turn it on when using FSX on VATSIM, but I find that for combat flight sims it is ESSENTIAL. One the simplest and most fundamental things for a fighter pilot with good situational awareness is the ability to move your head and do it quickly. The hat switch just cant do this efficiently enough and having a target padlock is marginally better. TrackIR had a small learning curve and took a little while to get used to, but now I cant do a combat sim without it.

 

On a side note, I think TrackIR may have a run for its money with VR tech. A couple of weeks ago I tried a VR demo at Gamestop for the first time. Though it wasn't a flight sim, I could immediately and for the first time feel actual distance, size, and volume in a "game". It was incredible! I think this is the future for flight simming. I wont be investing in it until the resolution improves and prices come down though.

[Gambit21]

One the simplest and most fundamental things for a fighter pilot with good situational awareness is the ability to move your head and do it quickly. The hat switch just cant do this efficiently enough .

Like I said I did it successfully for years online, without using padlock no less, and could go back if I had to. It's the WWI crates that I can't fight in without Track IR because of the much more rapid changes of direction.

[LanzfeldOLD]

My biggest problem with track IR is the requirement to wear it on your head with either a hat or a headset. I don't like that.

 

Could someone recommend the next best alternative that doesn't require me to wear something?

[No_85_Gramps]

Could someone recommend the next best alternative that doesn't require me to wear something?

FacetrackNOIR has an option to just track your face, no clips or hat. http://facetracknoir.sourceforge.net/home/default.htm

 

Everyone has their favorite but I will tell you that it makes the sim more immersive. I started out with FacetrackNOIR, and then Freetrack, but I finally settled on Opentrack with a homemade 3 pt clip (I was too cheap to buy TrackIR).

Edited November 23, 2016 by Gramps

[1PL-Husar-1Esk]

TrackIR ? - of course but some skilled pilots used it together with hat switch for rapid checks. They also use predefine two or more stages for zoom in.

[Lusekofte]

I never fly without TrackIr, I would stop flying until I get a new one. But I know people preferring the track hat , because they spot planes easier. I probably will not get a VR, I decided that a proper pit is the way to go for me, maybe a combination at some point. 

[Potenz]

oh yes it's a must, i had built a freetrack years ago, but finally this year a friend traveled to USA and got me a trackir 4 (the price in Argentina it's x3 expensive) and it's way better. 

[gnomechompsky]

I am now on day 3 of using mine.  Not sure how I feel about it.

 

I don't feel it adds to the immersion much - I have the to set the sensitivity very high to prevent me straining my eyes looking at the centre of the screen (playing on a 30" 16:10 monitor) so it doesn't really feel like I am "looking" at something and its hard to keep the view in one place.  

 

I will keep trying to see whether I will grow on me.  The bottom line is whether it makes it easier to track another plane that a hat and at the moment I don't think it does.  

[konate]

I used facetracknoir for a while.  I just couldn't get it to do what I wanted it to, so I got trackir.  

 

I used the Trackclip on a baseball cap for a while, and had trouble with the range of motion when I looked up; so I bought the Trackclip pro and put it on a GoPro headstrap.  That was another big step forward in precision.

[=EXPEND=Tripwire]

I am now on day 3 of using mine.  Not sure how I feel about it.

 

I don't feel it adds to the immersion much - I have the to set the sensitivity very high to prevent me straining my eyes looking at the centre of the screen (playing on a 30" 16:10 monitor) so it doesn't really feel like I am "looking" at something and its hard to keep the view in one place.  

 

I will keep trying to see whether I will grow on me.  The bottom line is whether it makes it easier to track another plane that a hat and at the moment I don't think it does.  

 

I would say it takes around 2-3 weeks to get used to it. Keep at it.

 

Once you have spent time with it and get past the initial awkwardness, then I would be surprised if you didn't refuse to play the sim without it like almost everyone else.

Eventually your muscle memory will know exactly how much to turn your head to look in a certain direction, and you won't even be thinking about it. Becomes second nature.

Edited November 24, 2016 by Tripwire

[seafireliv]

I've gotten to the point where I feel I need head tracking in order to be more successful in a fighter. Using the coolie switch while trying to dogfight leads me to become uncoordinated at times and makes tracking enemies a pain. Anyone expierence an increase in their flying abilities by switching to TrackIR?

I do highly recommend TRACKIR.

 

Now it isn`t guaranteed to make you a better fighter. I`ve known guys who just use a hat switch kicking ass, though they are typicallly German fliers. However, it`ll give you great SA and immersion which is pretty good in itself.

[gnomechompsky]

Yeah thanks I will stay with it for the time being.  It seems no matter what I use I cannot keep tabs on other planes in dogfights with markers turned off.

[SharpeXB]

I never had to "get used to" TrackIR. It worked right out of the box and it's preset curves function perfectly with this game and RoF. Some other games need adjustment but not this one.

Although I never played any flight sim without it. TrackIR was the first thing I got for sims and I just left the game on the shelf until I got one.

Watching other people try my sim I realize a few things. First I'm completely average in height. And with my monitor at a normal distance there was no need to ever adjust anything. If you're shorter or taller you need to point the camera at your hat. There's a screen which shows the reflectors which helps center it. The other thing is to hold still. Like you're in a cockpit. If you like to move all over your chair you might want to reduce the sensitivity. For click pits hold your head still and move the mouse, not moving your head to the switch.

Edited November 25, 2016 by SharpeXB

[gnomechompsky]

I just tried using it in CloD and it feels MUCH better than BoS.  I am not really sure why, maybe the turning is slightly slower which makes it feel smoother, maybe its because it doesn't feel like there is as much of a dead zone in the centre of the view (which I am sure is a game-thing rather than a trackir profile-thing).  Also the trackIR starts centred, so you don't have to go through the BoS rigmarole of adjusting the custom view just so you can look 180 degrees in both directions.  

 

Would be interested in other peoples thoughts.

[=EXPEND=Tripwire]

Perhaps it is loading a different profile when you start the two games? I set a profile as exclusive so that it is not switching around. I find that I don't really need a per game profile anyway.

 

Once a profile is set, that's it. I jump in to the game sit in the right spot, hit TrackIR reset or centre view button (whatever it is called) and then I am ready to go.

[andyw248]

Perhaps it is loading a different profile when you start the two games? I set a profile as exclusive so that it is not switching around. I find that I don't really need a per game profile anyway.

 

Once a profile is set, that's it. I jump in to the game sit in the right spot, hit TrackIR reset or centre view button (whatever it is called) and then I am ready to go.

 

Same here - in the TrackIR app I have mapped BOS to Requiem's profile (which I linked in an earlier post above), so I always get it automatically when I start a mission, and just need to hit F12 to center the view, and I'm all set.

[ElPerk]

Delanclip set with PS3Eye camera looks good. I currently use DIY PS3mod and TrackClip Pro I got for cheap. PS3Eye camera is completely good enough, and TrackClip Pro is easier to use than my DIY setup. Both could be solved with Delanclip setup, which is also quite cheap. There's no significant difference in quality or endurance between those small projects and TrackClip.

[Gambit21]

Thanks, I'll experiment with moving the camera around.

[gnomechompsky]

Perhaps it is loading a different profile when you start the two games? I set a profile as exclusive so that it is not switching around. I find that I don't really need a per game profile anyway.

 

Once a profile is set, that's it. I jump in to the game sit in the right spot, hit TrackIR reset or centre view button (whatever it is called) and then I am ready to go.

No its the same profile for both games.  I have played both a bit more and TrackIR definitely feels a lot better in CloD.

 

The MASSIVE dead zone along the centre of the vertical and horizontal axes in BOS doesn't help - does anyone know if you can reduce it? Perhaps through an .ini file?

[Gambit21]

I don't have a dead-zone problem in BoS - it seems to reflect closely my setting in the Track IR program.

[[CPT]Pike*HarryM]

I love TrackIR. I've been using since the very first one came out without the built in support (if you went past the limits you'd have to recenter it constantly). One thing that is apparent watching someone using snap view is that since it is literally snapping you can lose the target visually and have to reaquire after each snap, so it's a bit of a hindrance and looks odd as well. Like a bird snapping it's head around.

[SharpeXB]

No its the same profile for both games.  I have played both a bit more and TrackIR definitely feels a lot better in CloD.

 

The MASSIVE dead zone along the centre of the vertical and horizontal axes in BOS doesn't help - does anyone know if you can reduce it? Perhaps through an .ini file?

Have you tried the preset "Smooth" in TrackIR? Sounds like you might be getting "Default" which does indeed have dead zones.

[Gambit21]

I love TrackIR. I've been using since the very first one came out without the built in support (if you went past the limits you'd have to recenter it constantly). One thing that is apparent watching someone using snap view is that since it is literally snapping you can lose the target visually and have to reaquire after each snap, so it's a bit of a hindrance and looks odd as well. Like a bird snapping it's head around.

I did very well using pan view, and snap to center.

[OhhhhChihuahua]

Does TrackIR look like it was cut out of Coca - Cola plastic bottle? Yes.

 

Can TrackIR TrackClip Pro break just from looking at it? Yes. 

 

Is it absolutely amazing, enhancing the game, making it immersive, fun and easier? Yes. Could never go back to flying without it. 

[gnomechompsky]

Have you tried the preset "Smooth" in TrackIR? Sounds like you might be getting "Default" which does indeed have dead zones.

 

 

No the trackir deadzone is an implementation of the game rather than the profile.  I have done some more investigating and it turns out Il2 BoS requires an trackIR to register a 45 degree turn (pitch or yaw) before it even starts moving from the default view.  If you were panning from left-to-right that is a full 90 degrees where the view doesn't move.  The rest of the rotation is then compressed because of this and feels overly sensitive (this is relative to CloD).  

 

Now that I have worked out this is the issue I think I have created a profile to get round it, but on the whole its a bit of a pain to set up.

[Gambit21]

  I have done some more investigating and it turns out Il2 BoS requires an trackIR to register a 45 degree turn (pitch or yaw) before it even starts moving from the default view.

 

Not sure what's going on, but mine has never behaved that way.