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[Arulan]

The amount of cables, power supplies and other requirements dooms this thing from the start.

It's a good thing then that the target audience isn't stumped by such things. Sometimes I have to wonder at the pitiful levels of competence that people place on others. Sure, elderly individuals may have some trouble, but we're talking about cables that can only go in one way, are color-coded, and there is even a manual.

The only requirements in my opinion that impede mass adoption are the PC requirements, the price, and the available space. Two of which will naturally go down, and the other is up to availability, but isn't required, and can scale down very well.

 

[mrklaw]

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1443154

Already some 3D printed stands for the controllers that you can plug USB cables into. Now for someone to mod a Sony move charging dock for quick release charging..

 

[arit]

What's the power rating on the controller chargers? I may be tempted to just get an Ikea Koppla and save an outlet if the packed in ones are not some uber powerful highspeed charges.

(Whenever wave 2 rolls out...)

 

[Durante]

I don't find the whole "mass adoption" discussion too interesting, especially since it happens so often, but I'd say that a somewhat comparable scenario are home theater setups. Both those and room-scale VR require you to dedicate some space, both require some setup.

Of course, the space (and things like light control) requirements for home theater use are actually more stringent than for VR. and the payoff is a better movie watching experience in one case and virtual reality in the other. Nonetheless, home theater manages to be a flourishing field of consumer electronics - as such, I really don't see how room-scale VR couldn't be.

 

[VlaudTheImpaler]

Seriously? What is the alternative? Solar charging?

Every console uses USB to charge their controllers.

This isn't true. The xbox one controllers use AA and boy am I glad they did. They last FOREVER with eneloops and I never have to stop to charge them because I just plop two more in from the charger and put the old ones on. This is probably the thing that will annoy me the most with these controllers to be honest.

 

[Arulan]

What's the power rating on the controller chargers? I may be tempted to just get an Ikea Koppla and save an outlet if the packed in ones are not some uber powerful highspeed charges.

INPUT: 100-240V ~200mA 50-60Hz
OUTPUT: 5V - 1A LPS

 

[IMACOMPUTA]

It's a good thing then that the target audience isn't stumped by such things. Sometimes I have to wonder at the pitiful levels of competence that people place on others. Sure, elderly individuals may have some trouble, but we're talking about cables that can only go in one way, are color-coded, and there is even a manual.

The only requirements in my opinion that impede mass adoption are the PC requirements, the price, and the available space. Two of which will naturally go down, and the other is up to availability, but isn't required, and can scale down very well.

It still would have been nice if the controllers charged on an included dock, or something a little more elegant than individual cables that plug into the wall.

 

[arit]

INPUT: 100-240V ~200mA 50-60Hz
OUTPUT: 5V - 1A LPS

Thanks, Ikea it is then.

 

[mrklaw]

What's the diameter of the base of each controller? Wonder if it'd fit in here with some adaptation

Edit: photo here shows there might be enough space to make a little adapter with flush surface connectors

And these prototype docks look great as a model to copy (circled in green)

 

[VlaudTheImpaler]

Oh, and someone posted an experimental pulley solution for the wires.

https://imgur.com/a/nqwCi#iiOOOUJ

I think something like this with the retractable keyrings might work well. Just need to find some that have enough length for my setup.

Also, I think that he should take the advice of that other guy who posted,

If you are going to do this you should try running the cable so that it sits at the top of the headset (At the very top of the skull) when coming away from the HMD instead of at the lower back. This would prevent the cable from wrapping around your head when you turn really fast.

You could use a really stiff wire or something to redirect it that way so that it is still pulling on the strap from a secure spot and would still allow you to fit headphones on.

 

[Arulan]

By the way, how is everyone putting away their Vive + accessories after use? Do you disconnect the headset or breakout box? I've noticed that the headset stays warm when connected, even on idle. In the meantime I've just been placing everything on the backside of the box's top, which has a nice foam cushion.

 

[Guardian Monkey]

The amount of room you need is a real obstacle. The whole set up complaint is a bit far fetched. It was pretty much intuitive if you have ever set things up. Hell is really any different than setting up a surround system?

 

[Guardian Monkey]

By the way, how is everyone putting away their Vive + accessories after use? Do you disconnect the headset or breakout box? I've noticed that the headset stays warm when connected, even on idle. In the meantime I've just been placing everything on the backside of the box's top, which has a nice foam cushion.

I leave it connected. Unplugging and plugging would wear more than just a stray current.

 

[FlyinJ]

One thing I'm noticing is lack of surround sound. Things like Vanishing Lands and Space Pirate Trainer would definitely benefit from localized sound.

How well do those 5.1 headphones work?

Also, are the built in headphones on the Rift surround sound?

 

[mrklaw]

One thing I'm noticing is lack of surround sound. Things like Vanishing Lands and Space Pirate Trainer would definitely benefit from localized sound.

How well do those 5.1 headphones work?

Also, are the built in headphones on the Rift surround sound?

Does steam VR lack binaural audio support? I think that's included in both oculus and PSVR as standard and it is important. Hopefully something they'll add soon.

 

[Durante]

One thing I'm noticing is lack of surround sound. Things like Vanishing Lands and Space Pirate Trainer would definitely benefit from localized sound.

How well do those 5.1 headphones work?

Also, are the built in headphones on the Rift surround sound?

"Surround sound" headphones with more than one driver per ear are shit. You only have two ears, so you only need two sources of sound at your ears and some processing in order to create any directional information.

If a particular game doesn't have good directional sound it's a problem with its programming.

(The Rift headphones are also stereo)

 

[Arulan]

One thing I'm noticing is lack of surround sound. Things like Vanishing Lands and Space Pirate Trainer would definitely benefit from localized sound.

How well do those 5.1 headphones work?

Also, are the built in headphones on the Rift surround sound?

You don't want 5.1 headphones for anything. Stereo headphones, ideally open-back, and HRTF processing in order to create binaural audio is the best solution. The Rift uses stereo headphone as well.

I'd love to get more information on the capabilities of both the Vive (SteamVR and OpenVR) and Rift's audio SDK.

 

[| Praxis |]

Oh, and someone posted an experimental pulley solution for the wires.

https://imgur.com/a/nqwCi#iiOOOUJ

I think something like this with the retractable keyrings might work well. Just need to find some that have enough length for my setup.

Also, I think that he should take the advice of that other guy who posted,

The Matrix consumed him.

You don't want 5.1 headphones for anything. Stereo headphones, ideally open-back, and HRTF processing in order to create binaural audio is the best solution. The Rift uses stereo headphone as well.

I'd love to get more information on the capabilities of both the Vive (SteamVR and OpenVR) and Rift's audio SDK.

Listen to this person. Do not waste your money on shitty 5.1 headphones. They all sound like garbage compared to a decent set of stereo headphones.

GARBAGE!

 

[Sky Chief]

Help. The lighthouses won't see my controllers! WTF. Just started happening. They're not syncing to the software or headset. They just show as not...discoverable


Anyone??

This happened to me after I set the lighthouses to automatically turn off in the settings. Took a lot of tweaking to get them to work again.

 

[Durante]

By the way, how is everyone putting away their Vive + accessories after use?

Putting... away?

This happened to me after I set the lighthouses to automatically turn off in the settings. Took a lot of tweaking to get them to work again.

Hmm, this has been working for me without issues. The lighthouses take a minute or so to spin up when I turn on SteamVR but that's the only drawback.

 

[Sky Chief]

Putting... away?



Hmm, this has been working for me without issues. The lighthouses take a minute or so to spin up when I turn on SteamVR but that's the only drawback.

It worked fine for me until I paired my phone by the Vive app. And then no matter what I did I couldn't get the lighthouses to wake up. I just feel like it doesn't work well with two Bluetooth connections.

 

[Bruno]

Between reddit and neogaf I've read a lot of complaints on the bluetooth messing up tracking after a while. When I end up getting my Vive I'm thinking about leaving it all disabled.

 

[Durante]

It worked fine for me until I paired my phone by the Vive app. And then no matter what I did I couldn't get the lighthouses to wake up. I just feel like it doesn't work well with two Bluetooth connections.

Hmm, that might be it. I haven't touched (and don't intend to touch) the cell phone stuff.

 

[FlyinJ]

Between reddit and neogaf I've read a lot of complaints on the bluetooth messing up tracking after a while. When I end up getting my Vive I'm thinking about leaving it all disabled.

I'm sure Valve will get it sorted soon.

They just added bluetooth power off/on to lighthouses about a week before launch. Also, the Pre kits' lighthouses don't have bluetooth so the new functionality couldn't be thoroughly tested.

 

[VlaudTheImpaler]

Hmm, that might be it. I haven't touched (and don't intend to touch) the cell phone stuff.

So my wife and I use Skype for communication when at work. Is there any Skype integration or has anyone tried using it through the virtual desktop?

 

[wwm0nkey]

Just saw that Cincinnati MS store is getting a demo this month, going to try it out and then order it there since I'll have money by then

 

[FlyinJ]

So my wife and I use Skype for communication when at work. Is there any Skype integration or has anyone tried using it through the virtual desktop?

You can just run skype in your browser and use it in the Vive virtual desktop it ships with.

 

[VlaudTheImpaler]

You can just run skype in your browser and use it in the Vive virtual desktop it ships with.

Can you select things with the motion controls in virtual desktop? I only ask this because on the giantbomb stream he said that he couldn't and they needed to use the mouse.

 

[Durante]

I'm sure Valve will get it sorted soon.

They just added bluetooth power off/on to lighthouses about a week before launch. Also, the Pre kits' lighthouses don't have bluetooth so the new functionality couldn't be thoroughly tested.

Yeah, if the Steam controller was any indication I'm expecting rapid iteration and genuine improvement in the software over the next few weeks. (Though it's already a lot more usable IMHO than the Steam controller was at its launch)

 

[Arulan]

On the subject of audio, in Windows two new entries appear under audio playback devices HTC-VIVE-4 (the number may be different for you) as HDMI, and Speakers as a USB device. Both will reproduce audio through the Vive's 3.5mm input, but it appears to me that the audio quality for the USB device is significantly worse than the HDMI one. Can someone test this as well?

Also, and as a general rule for headphones plugged into your PC, right-click the device -> configure speakers -> Stereo -> Full-range speakers checked. Under device properties you also want Disable all enhancements checked even if nothing is checked below.

Putting... away?

Haha, nice dedicated VR room.

I was mostly referring to where do you put everything after use, such as on a stand, or the floor.

Here is my temporary setup:

 

[Durante]

On the subject of audio, in Windows two new entries appear under audio playback devices HTC-VIVE-4 (the number may be different for you) as HDMI, and Speakers as a USB device. Both will reproduce audio through the Vive's 3.5mm input, but it appears to me that the audio quality for the USB device is significantly worse than the HDMI one. Can someone test this as well?

They do suggest using the HDMI audio device over the USB one, but I found the latter more reliable as a target for auto-switching with SteamVR. Hopefully another thing which gets iterated on quickly, I'd prefer to use the HDMI audio option.

 

[Melon Husk]

Tip: If you have a soundcard that can do environmental effects (like Realtek HD), enable them by following these steps:

-Set Speakers as default in Playback
-Set Stereo Mix as default in Recording
-Tick the box in second tab "Listen to this device" by using HTC-VIVE-C
-The audio now comes via the soundcard instead of direct HDMI.

 

[wanderingprostheyltite]

On the subject of audio, in Windows two new entries appear under audio playback devices HTC-VIVE-4 (the number may be different for you) as HDMI, and Speakers as a USB device. Both will reproduce audio through the Vive's 3.5mm input, but it appears to me that the audio quality for the USB device is significantly worse than the HDMI one. Can someone test this as well?

Also, and as a general rule for headphones plugged into your PC, right-click the device -> configure speakers -> Stereo -> Full-range speakers checked. Under device properties you also want Disable all enhancements checked even if nothing is checked below.



Haha, nice dedicated VR room.

I was mostly referring to where do you put everything after use, such as on a stand, or the floor.

Here is my temporary setup:

I put my hmd on a home depot box lol, controllers just on a countertop overlooking the kitchen area. I really love the long cord the Vive has, so easy and comfy slipping it on and off whenever. Feels like nirvana compared to DK2 cord length

Also thx for the audio tips, it shows up as "HTC-Vive 8" on mine though. I did think the audio sounded a bit tinny when I was using it earlier, will switch to that one.

 

[FlyinJ]

Can you select things with the motion controls in virtual desktop? I only ask this because on the giantbomb stream he said that he couldn't and they needed to use the mouse.

Yeah, you can, but at the moment it's kind of difficult. You have a laser pointing off a controller, and you press the trigger to click. This many times causes the controller to move slightly, making the OS think you are clicking and dragging.

 

[CaLe]

Yeah, you can, but at the moment it's kind of difficult. You have a laser pointing off a controller, and you press the trigger to click. This many times causes the controller to move slightly, making the OS think you are clicking and dragging.

Seems like a max delta between multiple jittering would easy differentiate between dragging and clicking. Man I wish my vive was here.

 

[VlaudTheImpaler]

Yeah, you can, but at the moment it's kind of difficult. You have a laser pointing off a controller, and you press the trigger to click. This many times causes the controller to move slightly, making the OS think you are clicking and dragging.

Hmm, ok this sounds like it will improve over time. I just need to be able to click on the Skype notification when it comes up without taking the headset off and I will be pleased.

 

[Melon Husk]

Yeah, you can, but at the moment it's kind of difficult. You have a laser pointing off a controller, and you press the trigger to click. This many times causes the controller to move slightly, making the OS think you are clicking and dragging.

That's odd, for me they're just dummy controllers that don't even mimic the button presses.

 

[Dreamwriter]

The amount of room you need is a real obstacle. The whole set up complaint is a bit far fetched. It was pretty much intuitive if you have ever set things up. Hell is really any different than setting up a surround system?

Not different if you mount your speakers to the walls, but most people don't do that. Most people put their speakers on the floor or on shelves, and don't even bother with the rear surrounds (or set them up on the floor/shelves as well with wires following the walls in the corner). The requirement to put the lighthouses higher than the users, angled down, isn't easy for most people who don't want to (or can't) mount them to the wall, especially with the need to do it near power outlets.

I agree that it's not difficult, and as a couple reviews I read said, the entire setup process can take less than a half hour. But it's definitely not far fetched for people to find it intimidating when they read about it.

 

[FlyinJ]

Not different if you mount your speakers to the walls, but most people don't do that. Most people put their speakers on the floor or on shelves, and don't even bother with the rear surrounds (or set them up on the floor/shelves as well with wires following the walls in the corner). The requirement to put the lighthouses higher than the users, angled down, isn't easy for most people who don't want to (or can't) mount them to the wall, especially with the need to do it near power outlets.

I agree that it's not difficult, and as a couple reviews I read said, the entire setup process can take less than a half hour. But it's definitely not far fetched for people to find it intimidating when they read about it.

My current setup is one lighthouse on top of a bookshelf with a small prop behind it to angle it down, and opposite a lighthouse sitting on a couch about 3 feet off the ground facing the other.

I have zero tracking issues with this setup.

 

[Bunta]

My current setup is one lighthouse on top of a bookshelf with a small prop behind it to angle it down, and opposite a lighthouse sitting on a couch about 3 feet off the ground facing the other.

I have zero tracking issues with this setup.

That's good to know, I'll be trying something similar to start out. I can't drill holes so basically my only options for mounting will be those poles or tripods.

 

[IMACOMPUTA]

.

Damn, this is deep.

 

[wanderingprostheyltite]

So I just learned about the master-slave states on the basestations, mine weren't being picked up in steamvr due to accidentally hitting the button on the back of one of them, you can see a digital readout of a, b, or c in the basestation pane towards the back, they must be set to "b" and "c" for master and slave, "a" is for wired, assuming that's what I set one of them to. So if you ever have trouble with a basestation showing up in steamvr make sure one of them is b and the other c.

 

[Melon Husk]

I thought they were tracking issues at first but they were frame drops. Toggle "Notify in Headset" in the Performance tab of SteamVR settings to see if you get any.

edit: Sometimes the camera throws the tracking to hell, sometimes it doesn't... Feels like beta software to me.

 

[wanderingprostheyltite]

I thought they were tracking issues at first but they were frame drops. Toggle "Notify in Headset" in the Performance tab of SteamVR settings to see if you get any.

edit: Sometimes the camera throws the tracking to hell, sometimes it doesn't... Feels like beta software to me.

What are your specs? I get drops in The Lab hub, Budget Cuts, and Irrational Exuberance, everything IN The Lab runs fine though.

 

[Dusktildawn48]

Who's played The Gallery? Looks to be incredible but idk if I can pay $30 for a 2 hour episode

 

[Bboy AJ]

Can I set this thing up in a separate room with just the PC and the Vive? I ask because my PC is hooked up to comfy couch gaming. I could move my tiny PC into another area with a little more room.

 

[Guardian Monkey]

First friend is coming over for a demo tonight. I imagine his pockets are going to be at least a couple thousand dollars lighter after tonight. He texted already, "This is going to make me built a new pc isn't?"

I replied, "Yup."

 

[Durante]

Audioshield is absolutely incredible. Dylan Fitterer is a genius.
He made the only 2008 game I still play regularly, and he may have made the only VR launch game I'll still play regularly in 2020.

He's even kind enough to make it crash every ~8 songs or so for health reasons.

 

[Guardian Monkey]

Who's played The Gallery? Looks to be incredible but idk if I can pay $30 for a 2 hour episode

Alot of people swear by it. I am holding off for awhile as there are some other things I may get first. I would think as more games come out this will get cheaper. Or I may just say screw it and get it anyway.

 

[Guardian Monkey]

Audioshield is absolutely incredible. Dylan Fitterer is a genius.
He made the only 2008 game I still play regularly, and he may have made the only VR launch game I'll still play regularly in 2020.

He's even kind enough to make it crash every ~8 songs or so for health reasons.

8? I am lucky if I get by 3-4 before having to shut down steam and restart. The game is so good though I dont care. Probably my favorite so far. Can you load music from anywhere else though like from amazon or somewhere else or is it just sound cloud?

Edit:besides mp3s