Advice please (G2/Index)

[ACG_Orb]

Hi all.

 

Ive used VR for a few years now (2018 O+) so ihis isn't my first rodeo.  HP are refunding my G1 after a year of problems, blackouts and new cables. Loved it while it worked, but it was a case of waiting until the next failure. 

 

My choice for a replacement is to wait for new G2 stock in the UK, which may not even be the Rev2 now on sale in the US, or spend a bit more on an Index.  Pimax too expensive.

 

If I was to wait for the G2, I wouldn't be running it at 100% resolution as my system still isn't fast enough stop it taking a shit (i7 8700k/3080ti).  Those who have experience with both HMD's, do you have any advice on which system performs better in use, not just stats on paper?

 

Ta.

[dburne]

Index would be a step back in image quality.

Back when I had both I would use Index for VR games and Reverb G2 for flight sims.

Some like the extra FOV in both horizontal and vertical of the Index better than the higher resolution of the G2.

For me I am all about image quality first. Reverb G2 hard to beat in that department.

 

Edited November 2, 2021 by dburne

[Slo-Mo]

12 hours ago, ACG_Orb said:

Hi all.

 

Ive used VR for a few years now (2018 O+) so ihis isn't my first rodeo.  HP are refunding my G1 after a year of problems, blackouts and new cables. Loved it while it worked, but it was a case of waiting until the next failure. 

 

My choice for a replacement is to wait for new G2 stock in the UK, which may not even be the Rev2 now on sale in the US, or spend a bit more on an Index.  Pimax too expensive.

 

If I was to wait for the G2, I wouldn't be running it at 100% resolution as my system still isn't fast enough stop it taking a shit (i7 8700k/3080ti).  Those who have experience with both HMD's, do you have any advice on which system performs better in use, not just stats on paper?

 

Ta.

 

I second dburne, go for the HP Reverb G2 if it is image quality that are your main thing. But, be sure to get the new cable version with it. After I got the new cable to my G2 it has worked flawlessly every time and the image quality is even better than before.

 

Cheers

[chiliwili69]

I was on the same point than you about one year ago, the only difference is that I had both devices and had to decide which one would I keep.

 

 

One of the beauty of the Index is how well it works (hardware and software). Zero faults so far. No intermediate software in between (No WMR, no Vive Console, no Oculus software or OpenComposite, etc), just SteamVR.

Also, the 80Hz mode is really helpfull since it allows better performance for a given hardware.

 

But this is just my personal view of that. Your view could be different. If you were already a G1 user you would be already acomodated to that high resolution (and lower FOV). So, perhaps the lower resolution of the Index would be a downgrade for you.

[Hoots]

Useful thread as I've had a Rift S for a couple of years and really like it but am thinking about what would be a good next headset. I have an RTX2070 and an Intel i7-9700 @3.6Ghz overclocked to c4.7. I can have GB on pretty high settings, DCS less so but still good. Do you think those specs would be enough to get a reasonable level of detail with either the index or G2?

[ACG_Orb]

The prob is there's no ETA on G2 Rev2 in the UK.  I spoke with HP's sales team its not even on their local product list yet.... they don't have the G2 Rev1 (with controller) in stock either.

 

Many of my fellow squad members use the G2 and sing its praises.  However, I feel a little burned by my G1 experience

[NiiranenVR]

If you G1 are still working my opinion is to not go for the G2 

I did it , but I don't think it's worth the money .....and I have a 3090 GPU and I can not play with highest settings 

One way , maybe better the G1 and then have a GPU that it's powerfully for that one 

[ACG_Orb]

18 hours ago, J5_NiiranenVR-Gfr said:

If you G1 are still working my opinion is to not go for the G2 

I did it , but I don't think it's worth the money .....and I have a 3090 GPU and I can not play with highest settings 

One way , maybe better the G1 and then have a GPU that it's powerfully for that one 

Under normal circumstances i would agree 100% as i was happy with the performance of my G1.  However, after a significant period of technical problems with that HMD, HP are taking it back leaving me open for a new model.   However, I feel a little burned by HP (not their customer support as they've been brilliant), so was looking for viable alternatives.  There are few!

[chiliwili69]

On 11/3/2021 at 10:53 AM, Hoots said:

Useful thread as I've had a Rift S for a couple of years and really like it but am thinking about what would be a good next headset. I have an RTX2070 and an Intel i7-9700 @3.6Ghz overclocked to c4.7. I can have GB on pretty high settings, DCS less so but still good. Do you think those specs would be enough to get a reasonable level of detail with either the index or G2?

 

If your system were running well with the Rift-S (which run at 80Hz) would be also OK for the Index (which run at 80Hz) with some more resolution than the Rift-S (25% more pixels) but much better FOV horizontally and vertically. The 2070 would be probably OK for the Index (depending on how much SS you put).

 

The G2 is 153% more pixels than the Rift-S and definetly you will need a better GPU. The G2 run at 90Hz, which is also more depanding for CPU and GPU. There is a 60Hz mode as well but I am not sure about how well it works. 

 

 

[dburne]

2 hours ago, chiliwili69 said:

 

If your system were running well with the Rift-S (which run at 80Hz) would be also OK for the Index (which run at 80Hz) with some more resolution than the Rift-S (25% more pixels) but much better FOV horizontally and vertically. The 2070 would be probably OK for the Index (depending on how much SS you put).

 

The G2 is 153% more pixels than the Rift-S and definetly you will need a better GPU. The G2 run at 90Hz, which is also more depanding for CPU and GPU. There is a 60Hz mode as well but I am not sure about how well it works. 

 

 

 

Some folks run 60 Hz and like it and others not so much. I fell into the latter, 60 Hz just felt a little "swimmy" to me about best I can describe it.

[J2_Steve]

I'm going to vote for the Index. It may not have the same clarity as the G2 but does have a better FOV and larger sweetspot.

Plus it's a Valve product and "just works" with Steam VR, no faffing.

The headset can be got at a reasonable price in the UK and lighthouses are not hard to find second hand if money is the object here (what I did)

Got my headset from Valve and lighthouse off ebay, cost me a little over £500

[dburne]

I have been using my Index some the last few days due to a current issue I am having with the Vive Pro 2 I am working with HTC on.

I will say I am very much enjoying it, the build quality of the Index is just so dang solid. And needing only Steam VR software running is nice.

Yeah it is somewhat lower res than some of the current crop but you can SS it also and it looks pretty decent.

[Dagwoodyt]

I'm using the Index, 5900x, 32g RAM and 3080ti. In DCS Marianas map gpu frametimes are horrendous, up to 25ms but overall (to me) smooth image and enjoying great detail on the free map. Two lighthouses mounted on top my monitor and none of the gyrations needed at WMR start up to get full 6DoF. The Index is by no means obsolete and likely will not be obsolete for a while unless Valve updates with higher res screens. Even paying 2-3k $ for higher res HMD won't make the Index obsolete because majority of VR users won't likely want to spend that much for something that is of unknown dependability and may have glitches relative to specific game applications. Beauty of the Index is that it does just about everything acceptably well.
 

Edited November 5, 2021 by Dagwoodyt

[A_radek]

19 hours ago, chiliwili69 said:

The 2070 would be probably OK for the Index

Barely with current il2 version. Was on an oc:d 2070super rog strix with my index til a week ago. (80hz, high, 2xfxaa, 100%steam ss and still dipping to reprojection when close to clouds) Bought a 3080 and now run 1.7 scaling with fsr and 4x msaa without repro in clouds, great improvement to image clarity without compromising spotting. Index deserves it.

[Hoots]

Quick question, do I need the base stations and controllers to use the index for Il2 and DCS?

[dburne]

1 minute ago, Hoots said:

Quick question, do I need the base stations and controllers to use the index for Il2 and DCS?

 

You will absolutely need at minimum one base station.

For the complete Index experience with other VR games you should have two along with the controllers.

For only a flight sim and never anything else you can get by with just one base station.

[Dagwoodyt]

Unless things have changed base stations are frequently out of stock for extended time periods. It might be best to buy two if that wouldn't break the bank ?

[chiliwili69]

18 hours ago, Hoots said:

Quick question, do I need the base stations and controllers to use the index for Il2 and DCS?

 

For IL-2 and DCS (seated experiences) you only will need one basestation. I have not controllers (don´t need them for IL-2)

 

I have just one and I have been playing all these years to IL-2 without problems. My base station is v1. For the Index, both (v1 and v2) works well.

 

I bought my basestation in ebay about 3 years ago. Zero problems so far.

 

You can find v1 basestations for 120-150$ each in ebay.

 

 

Edited November 9, 2021 by chiliwili69