MORE reviews will be coming up to this channel as Pimax Crystal is CONTINUOUSLY improving! They will be linked in this video as I make them. If you've found this video useful and are thinking of ordering the next generation Pimax Crystal, you can order it for $20 off (affiliate) HERE: pimax.com/?ref=KRDI8M
When you get to the very high end then you have performance issues to tweek this is not *really* pimax's fault. It's like getting an 8k monitor and wondering why you have to change settings when you obviously will. And it's a bit unrealistic to expect an 'all possible problems for all possible PC configs and all possible games guides' to be produced by pimax either. PC gaming has always needed troubleshooting! Try adding a motion sim rig or full body tracking or haptic vests and VR injection game mods to the mix and the troubleshooting just becomes compounded more and more and more! This is why psvr2 and indeed quest 2 are refreshingly much easier to get into. I think these kinds of issues are a bigger problem for reviewers swapping between headsets but probably not so bad for regular users who only have one headset and one computer and maybe aren't even changing between games rapidly. Admittedly you have to know about steam VR overestimating what supersampling is possible! But I thought you could set this to default to 1.0 or whatever for all games by setting a checkmark? That issue in no man's sky is possibly caused by another X input device taking precedence. Like maybe a HOTAS controller where the stick position is not quite zero centred. There are a few games that I have to unplug my usb HOTAS or steering wheel for, or that device is treated as controller one and I'm just spinning! Or the in game menu just cycles down and down and down!
Great video, super clear! I'm the author of the 3rd party OpenXR tools you mentioned near the end of the video. Thanks for bringing those up for awareness! I'm open to hear your suggestions on ease of use if you have any!
Default render resolution is not a bug, it's a feature. To utilize available PPD and at the same time cover whole field of view means rendering at least 150% to accommodate barrel distortion. It's entirely incorrect to state that since your displays are 2880 then steamvr rendering should be 2880, it's simply not true, actually shocking to hear that from a VR reviewer with that size of a channel. If Pimax acknowledges this as a bug then the only reason is available hardware. We've actually seen this before with Reverb G1 vs G2 using the same displays and the same FOV but different render resolution because of the available hardware to the date.
@@mikebravo3527 right, only if they let me sell it afterwards and are OK with my crappy video editing 😁Crystal is too expensive for what it is and I don't need it.
@Fiztex553 In Soviet Russia Vee R's yoouuu haha Hope you get that joke bubs, no beef 🤘 And yeah, seems you can get 90% as good product for 1/3rd ze price
Thank you for taking the time to share your honest review with us. We truly appreciate your feedback and hope that Pimax support will take note of your valuable suggestions to enhance the consumer experience. Once again, thank you for your contribution.
As an MSFS enthusiast, the technical challenges of setting that sim up are inherent to the sim itself. Since its launch on VR in December 2020 I've had three PC's, five headsets and have spent thousands of hours tweaking it for better performance. That's the life of a VR flight simmer!
It's unfortunate these high end GPU are having issues with display ports since VR is one of the main reasons to own them. Great review. Hopefully Primax can continue to improve the experience.
hopefully it's only 3090Ti (annoying that I chose that particular GPU when choosing one), other SHOULD work fine but that DP repeater is a good insurance, it does help solve issues related to GPU performance.
I had the same problem with Reverb g2 HP said it was a common problem with all TI cards, something to do with the power/DP set up with all TI cards, they sent me a repeater and it worked. So if u have a TI card, well… be prepared
The problem is pushing more and more watts through the video port to ensure a reliable 4k DisplayPort signal is achieved through a length not typically recommended (> 2 meters). In this situation, VR headset makers should start looking into fiber optics for point-to-point so as to not overburden the graphics card power capabilities. OTOH, fiber optics would add to the overall cost of headsets, so there's always that con to consider.
That's exactly why I sold my 8KX. I don't have the desire or time to spend hours setting up a game to make it work. But some didn't work properly and I had to switch to the Pico 4 / Quest 2. Your video shows really great what to expect and hopefully shakes Pimax up to finally improve the software experience
Crystal's promise was that individual game setup would be much easier than on 8KX. At least that is their goal. I am glad that the initial setup has been improved since i made this video, but individual game performance is still a bit of a hit or miss. We'll see how much has changed in my round 2 review!
Brilliant review, and straight to the point. Pimax needs to do their homework better, as the average user doesn't want to fiddle around forever, to get it working, as it should out of the box !!
It's almost like an average user is not a target to begin with? Which is a shame, soooo much awesomeness this headset can bring to the VR community, if only it was a little bit easier to unlock!
@Disco-VR Hey, thanks for the review! It's seems that it was so frustrating to get set up that it was gonna make you have a baby! Wait you are😊!! Congrats🎉... Im glad to see you found solutions to your issues. Hopefully we won't have those problems when we get ours.
OMG, you made me cringe thinking back the the days of manually configuring dial up modems! I can't confirm this yet since I am still alive, but I suspect I'll die several years early due to all the stress and late nights working as PC tech back in the early days.
I'd love a brief look at VRAM usage and requirements for some common games while trying to run them using Pimax Crystal. If possible also: -Skyrim VR, or Skyrim (SE) -Forza 4 or 5 Horizon -Mothergunship (not Forge) -Horizon series -Final Fantasy 7 Remake -Kingdom Hearts series (PC) -Hogwarts Legacy -Batman Arkham series, mainly Arkham Knight & Gotham Knights -Saints Row 3rd Remaster -GTAV -Half-Life Alyx, apparently OmniWhatever got really close to 21Gb of Vram usage in their Pimax Crystal review video. Vorpx or Luke Ross, or with whatever if something else is more readily available for adding VR to games. Since obviously SBS through Dolphin Emulator wouldn't even need comparable amounts. Honestly not sure if all have VR or SBS mods yet.
I am confused, you want a headset that is optimized to your hardware in use? That is not how PC hardware works. You decide what you buy, you can not buy an 8K screen and expect games to run on your 3060 without you having to adjust the settings. People are doing this with EVERY headset, nothing concerning about it. Actually a lot of the things to tweak you mention is what you have to do with a G2 for MSFS all the time, making MSFS usable in VR.
thank you for the brutally honest review. my takeaway is that as usual, pimax is delivering a supercar headset, with a 5-speed manual transmission; Which is great, if you know how, and don't mind the jumping the skill gap of a manual. I'm reminded of my experience with Gentoo linux; finely tuned for max perfomance, with quite a bit of work most of the time. the problem is, Gentoo has something Pimax sorely needs. Pimax needs a handbook; a detailed guide to walk through all the settings that are known needs in getting Pimax headsets up and functional to a "i can forget about the hassle it used to be" level. additionally, the option to save a config, load a config would do wonders, even if the headset/app resets on each reconnection; a one-button solution to return to a selected config. that will do wonders that for user adoption.
For people with RTX3090ti I’ve had problems with my card as well trying to set up mi pimax 8kx. The thing that worked and I have few friends that report the same. If you buy the newer longer cable (6m one I believe, the one with only 1 usb cable) it will work
This brought back my Reverb G2 trauma. I was hoping these issues would've been fixed years ago, the Crystal was my last hope for Pimax, I think I'm done expecting them to change. Thanks for the review.
If it's any consolation- for whatever it is worth-your Review is one of the most impassioned, relevant, and concise reviews that I have ever viewed. What a pleasant surprise... Wow! Just wow! (Thank you much! That said, I just subscribed.)
I think your review hits it on the head. These kinds of issues are why, even though I main a Pimax 8KX myself, I virtually never recommend Pimax to anyone I know. I think the fundamental problem is that everyone at the Pimax company appears to be a _HARDCORE VR TECH NERD_. And consequentially, they are completely disconnected from the average user. That shows up in all these silly technical issues that you faced. Issues like the resolution defaulting to a stupidly high value are so quickly and easily remedied by a tech nerd that _they don't even notice it as an issue_. Seriously! The mentality is that users will want to adjust all the myriad of settings to taste anyway, and so it's seen as unimportant or even pointless to have these set to reasonable values out of the box. If Pimax really considered these kinds of issues important, they would have been among the first issues they straightened out rather than being among the last or never being addressed at all. Most of these issues are low hanging fruit. But Pimax doesn't think these issues are important. And _that_ is fundamentally the problem. As you say, it is this more than anything else which keeps them confined to a very niche market share.
Thanks for your review, especially because you give all the solutions you found for the problems you encountered, it is incredibly useful information for those considering buying a Pimax Crystal 👍
After watching this review, this feels like climbing the everest in underwear while my Quest 2 is like laying on a white tropical beach with mojito in my hand. Damn…that set up process🥵
Nice and honest Video.I think i am not patient enough to do such stuff.I like the easiness of my Quest Pro which performs super in Wireless and cable without much knowledge.But i wish the Pimax users a fast Setting recovery🙂 and mindblown visuals.
I am not a gamer, not into VR, and don't watch your videos usually, this one I watched simply out of curiosity. First thing I want to say is that you seem to be a very thorough, dedicated, and honest reviewer, the VR/gaming community is lucky to have you. Second, the VR manufacturers are lucky to have you, yes you were critical of the Pimax Crystal, but not without cause and Pimax will benefit greatly from your recommendations if they listen and learn. That's it. Keep up the good work you are doing.
Thanks for this review. Your frankness and covering the facts very much appreciated. You provided great examples to back up what you're saying. One of the BEST reviews of this headset so far! Great job!
I listened to your comments about your experience with the Crystal on the Next Dimension podcast before watching this video. FWIW, I felt your negative experience wasn't treated seriously (at first). Although I like Sebastian and Steve, they were borderline rude, dismissive, and a bit sexist (e.g. Steve insinuating you weren't as tech-savvy). I don't even sub to your channel, but I think you handled yourself well on the podcast. And your honesty and candor regarding your experience with the Crystal is a true service to the podcast audience. Anyway, I found this video after listening to the podcast and just wanted to say that it's the most insightful Pimax Crystal video review I've seen to date (and that includes both Sebastian's & Steve's videos). :)
Exactly what I expected... too many issues for such expensive headset. Happy I just bought a pico 4 and I sell my vive pro 2. The pico is so much lighter and cooler than my pro 2. The crystal would be too heavy for me. Thanks for the review ❤
Same here. The pico 4 is really good at its price. I use it with my 3080ti laptop and 3090 desktop. Seems li,e diminished returns to spend $1,600 on a headset ($1,200 more than Pico 4) and still need to turn down visuals to low-medium for a halfway decent framerate. The Pimax crystal is nice, but it's for high end users with $ to burn
Wonderful review Tatiana. I was waiting for this after watching the Banter video and thank you for your persistence in doing this presentation. Keep smiling… you’re stunning.😊
I had the same problem with the 8KX (turning it off because of where the power button is). The fact that they haven't moved it or (provided a better solution) in the Crystal is very telling of a poor design ethos. It's not rocket science and easily determined to be a problem that needs to be fixed within a few minutes of user testing.
This is exactly the reason why VR struggles in the mainstream. I bet, that the Apple product (for consumers) won't have any of those problems. Especially PiMAX... its by far not their first product to lunch. I wonder why they still don't get things straight...
I am so glad I watched this review. Very informative and honest. I hate the fact that you have to use a battery when connected to a PC and switch it out when you could be in the middle of a game ( I like to do endurance racing in VR, and I am not gonna stop to switch out a battery) . Also, I am really happy you talked about all the steps you have to go through just to get it running as well as it should. Too much hassle for the average user who just wants to jump into a game and go. Having to reset the resolution every time you go into a game is a pain in the ass. Think I'll stick with my G2 for now. Thanks so much for this review.
Thank you so much for this very honest review! It seems that the Crystal is just not ready for a release! I think you have experiences with the Varjo Aero too, would you say the grafik in the Crystal is so much better, that it justifies all the downsides? I mean the Aero is pretty stable what I was reading and viewing in the last couple of months. I preordered the Crystal but last week I had this feeling that I'd be happier with the Aero and I ordered one......
It is very hard to go back to Varjo's FOV after you try Crystal. Also, the local dimming make colors really POP! And it's a big difference compared to Varjo. But Varjo is much lighter and, yes, the stability is important. Hmm... tough question. I'm a sucker for a wide FOV and if you plan on playing stationary games, like a flight sim, then a larger size won't matter that much. Pimax is actively working on improving the performance and fix lots of bugs daily. It is possible that if I make a new review a week from now it will be a completely different one. So I would say stick with your preorder, Pimax work very hard on addressing many of the bugs I communicated with them as well as dozens of beta testers. I did not review a final unit just yet.
@@DiscoVRTetianare you sure it’s the local dimming that’s making the colours pop and not the quantum dots used for much larger colour space? Local dimming should be making image better by increasing the contrast ratio by allowing for deeper localised blacks like OLED (except not as accurately as OLED that has per subpixel level light control).
I love your honest reviews and the excitement you show doing reviews of VR headsets and games. I recently purchased the Oculus Pro (came from CV1, Rift S, and Quest 2 did try the Reverb G2 but the sweet spot was soooo small it wasn't for me). Anyway I did pre-order the Crystal well before I got the Pro. Question; how do the visuals compare between the Crystal and Pro in real life use and not just the differences in specs? I love a clear image and bright screen but am I really going to see a night and day difference between the two. Thanks for your awesome channel and enjoyment you bring to the VR community!
hello miss ! Amazing and complete detailed review which probably needed a lot of work ! i didn't know your channel even if i'm a VR enthousiast for years.1 i pre-ordered pimax Crystal and cancelled it some days ago because i've a 4090 and more interested by pimax 12K which seems to be a Crystal with large FOV. Your review is very useful to me, i was expecting a quality review like yours. Congratulations to have the honesty to say ALL bugs and problems on this headset. i keep stunned for future tests of this headset. Of course, i subscribe to your channel^^
Insightful review. Thanks. Seems that many of the criticisms leveled at Pimax in the past are still present. But at least when it works, it sounds amazing. I don't have the patience to make it work. I want pickup and play.
thanks for ur great and honest review! much more detailed and informative from mrtv's recent review which is mostly hype. customers need to know the stuff you pointed out
"Better clarity... at what cost?" is what I'm hearing. This review definitely outlines WAY more of the user experience, rather than a boilerplate 'it isn't plug and play, setup is painful' that I've heard before. God to know! Makes me wonder if the Varjo Aero at least has an easier setup, even if there is no mic or audio built in.
The crazy part is they never learn from reviewers who keep telling them its not user friendly. You'd think they'd learn. Sony is the current leader in the VR Industry, soon to hit 2 million sales of a modern headset.
Very informative review regarding the crystal 👍🏽 also surprised in a good way by the quality, you shouldn't limit yourself in VR content, but also in more generalist gaming hardware pc content because you're really on point, all the best, subscribed
With as many subscribers and views as you have, I am surprised you can't afford a 4090 and really see what that headset is capable of. The 4090 has been out a while, go get one =)
Ladies and gentlemen, it is always important to remember that when you buy any piece of tech when it's brand new you are essentially signing up to be a beta tester.
I'm in once i dont have to troubleshoot it for days. Regular consumers need it to be plug and play litterally. Until they can give this i'm happy to wait.
This is the same kind of experience I have with my 8kx. Except I'm just not willing to sacrifice so much time to appeasing it each time I want to play DCS. One time it wont find the base stations, the next it doesn't show up at all, another it wants my second monitor disconnected. I always forget the sound until I'm in the game and then remember I have to do another whole ritual to get the sound to work. And then 80% of the time when I exit pitool the whole thing blue screens. So I just use my HP Reverb G2.
To be fair, the Aircar demo doesn’t work with the G2 controllers either. I haven’t tried it in a while so I’m not sure if it’s fixed at this point, but it’s something to note. Seems like it might be more of an issue on the developer’s side. I think the eye tracking and the DFR would be game changers for a headset like this, and I’d probably only consider it if those features worked well. But with VR as a whole as it currently stands, I wouldn’t expect a plug-and-play experience from any headsets other than perhaps the Quest 2 or Index. I certainly haven’t experienced that with my G2. So I don’t think that would be a major factor in choosing a headset (unless it’s REALLY bad). I would have loved to hear more of your thoughts on the comfort of this headset given how large it is. The trade-off between FOV/display size and comfort is probably the biggest factor I’m considering for my next headset. I love the value proposition of the Bigscreen Beyond, or even something like the Arpara 5k, but I’m just not sure I’d like to give up FOV. I imagine that if I had the Pimax Crystal (or another Pimax or Varjo headset, etc) in front of me and it worked flawlessly, I would absolutely be able to look past the added bulkiness. But I’ll wait until more reviews are in.
Hello, this is the 1st video of yours that Ive seen! I liked and subscribed. I thought you did a great job reviewing this and very fair review! I'll be back for more! I'm glad you tell everyone this is no plug and play VR headet because it definitely is not! But everything sure does look great in it once you take the time to set it up the way it works best for yourself and depending on what your uses are i think theyll be happy! Ive only had mine 3 weeks approximately. This is my 3rd VR headset. The most recent was my Reverb G2. If youve owned other vr headsets, then you will be much better equiped to work with the settings to tune it to your own tastrs and it will be rewarding! If not then get a plug and play (and save money in the process by doing so!) headset. They've been improving alot too.
Very informative review. Looking to replace my VP2, and I'd largely pre-dismissed the Crystal, but this has given me some food for thought. Still leaning towards getting a Aero, but will need to seriously think it through now. And will also keep an eye on your channel. Always cool to find a new VR reviewer.
After trying Crystal's FOV and local dimming, it is very hard to go back to Varjo Aero and their ski-mask view - I wouldn't be able to unsee it. Colors pop a lot more on Crystal and the image in general is even sharper (plus eye tracking will allow foveated rendering - now fixed but in the future also dynamic. It's definitely a better value for money than Aero. Imma keep a close eye on future update sand bug fixes, more review are coming up
@@DiscoVRTetiana I can understand that. Went from a full color gamut IPS monitor to an HDR VPA panel and definitely missed the color representation. The thing that worries me about the Crystal though are the compatibility issues, losing the lighthouse tracking and not having a good timeline of dynamic foveated rendering. I remember having a lot more fun with the Rift CV1 than I did with the Reverb G1 because the start up friction was so much higher. Not an easy trade at all.
@@HarryVoyager The Somnium VR1 is supposed to launch this year. It is basically a Pimax Crystal without the battery, massive housing, and lighthouse tracking.
use and loading times of the batteries would be interesting. Also of the controllers. Also the build qualitiy of the buttons and the usb-c connectors. I find that on some of my devices usb-c tends to wear out over time. How long is the warrenty and can they get repaired locally/outside china? When preordering I noticed that warrenty is limited to the first buyer. Is that so? Would make it hard to sell them if you don't like them.
I think most people who buy such a headset don't necessarily expect it to work flawlessly right out of the box. Headsets at such a price are something that you put thought into, personalize, get a capable computer for, get the right space for. This is extreme enthusiast gear. The people that want this to be perfect right out of the box are the people to who 1600 dollars is nothing. And that's fine, but there's no problem in having to put some effort in. I just hope Pimax makes this configuration and personalization easily accessible. But the app looks pretty clean so far.
The fact that you've received a review copy, and still mentioned all the downsides is very honest. Will be looking forward to more reviews, and hopefully improvements, from Pimax leading up to getting to my turn in the queue. Most of these problems seems to be software issues, so it shouldn't be too hard for Pimax to fix, but they really need to.
@@khaledassaf6356 I didn't mention Bradley here and have never said Pimax is a bad company or that it is the worst headset ever. I actually think Pimax is a great company for letting people demo the headset.
Great video, not every reviewer talk about many drawbacks that should be considered for future buyers. This review is very detailed and informative, and i know now that i would rather stick to my g2.
i can only get one toy this year. As someone who spends ALLOT of time in VRC. would i be better of waiting for the bigscrean or possibly another alternative. I can handle the tech requirements but what concerns me is the bulk of the headset. currently using the G2 and the clarity of the crystal is why i have already pre-ordered but the comfort and neck strain (yes Im getting old) has me a bit concerned. whats it like strapping a 1ltr carton of milk to your face?.. oh yeah. great review..
I would love to see the Crystal at its best when running with your 3080. I would think most people own these gpu's and not 4090's that so far all UA-cam Crystal testers are using. More MSFS2020, as well as some modded pc flat to VR games would be interesting to see how fps and visuals stands up in performance compared to the best of the best home pc's that ALL crystal testers are using. Thx.
I thought so! I’ll definitely be testing it more on 3080 to squeeze the most out of its performance. I’m sure it’ll be relevant to more VR gamers than 4090. More reviews are coming!
Thank you so much for all the hard work and reporting on this significant headset! I would love to see more through the lens video, like for half life alyx and other titles :)
Glad to see you chose to be so honest in this review. If one could even call it that. I mean with all the missing features and all the technical problems. No automatic ipd adjustment, no standalone games to play, no eye tracking etc. Seems to me like all you VR-UA-camrs are the Pimax testers.
A lot of the issues you had easily related to my Pimax 5K Super. I have a RTX 2070 Super Moble. Games run way better on Meta Quest 2 and 3's third party link cable.
I don't mind paying big bucks for a better headset that could use the power of my 4090. But I don't have the time to troubleshoot anymore. The little free time that I have, I want to play games. That's why I'm sticking with PSVR2 for now, it's the best quality plug and play experience for now. Looking forward for an Index 2.
Tetiana, thank you for the great review and important information that we may not hear from others. Good grief. As if coming straight from China and costing nearly $2000 wasn't enough, you also have to mess around with a ton of settings and extra OpenXR software. So many reasons to wait for something better from Valve - even if it takes them another two years.
Pimax (especially before Crystal) is sure not for plug´n´players. But you can get all the necessary info in their forum, and tune your unit to the best possible. I sure love my Pimax 8kx more because I can tune and mod it in a many ways :)
I had the same DP connection issues when I tried to get my G2 working with my 3090 Ti. HP tech support knew about the issue, and also recommended a DP v2.1 repeater. I bought one for around $40, and it solved the problem. Despite the other issues you spoke about, I will keep the Crystal on my radar. One of my purchasing decisions is based on inside-out tracking. I'd look at the 8K, but it doesn't have that feature. Thanks for the great review. Subscribed.
Thanks for pointing out the software challenges. If the people that left VR because of stuff like that still would be there I guess it would be a way bigger market with all the benefits this bring to consumers.
About performance, it is not reasonable to ever consider running any of these high end VR headsets on a 3080. It just flat out doesn’t have enough VRAM. The 3090ti absolutely does, and is the only choice here besides a 3090 or 4090. I own a Varjo Aero myself and attempted to run it on a 3080 while my 3090ti was on the way. It just doesn’t work. On the 3090ti I saw the highest VRAM usage I’ve ever seen. 19GB of VRAM called by the game. Even with 24GB of VRAM the game still gave me a pop-up saying I had low VRAM. So yeah, just an unrealistic target to run the Crystal on a 3080 at all. Personally I had no idea the 3090ti had issues with certain headsets before this video, so thanks for that
MORE reviews will be coming up to this channel as Pimax Crystal is CONTINUOUSLY improving! They will be linked in this video as I make them.
If you've found this video useful and are thinking of ordering the next generation Pimax Crystal, you can order it for $20 off (affiliate) HERE: pimax.com/?ref=KRDI8M
When you get to the very high end then you have performance issues to tweek this is not *really* pimax's fault. It's like getting an 8k monitor and wondering why you have to change settings when you obviously will. And it's a bit unrealistic to expect an 'all possible problems for all possible PC configs and all possible games guides' to be produced by pimax either. PC gaming has always needed troubleshooting!
Try adding a motion sim rig or full body tracking or haptic vests and VR injection game mods to the mix and the troubleshooting just becomes compounded more and more and more!
This is why psvr2 and indeed quest 2 are refreshingly much easier to get into.
I think these kinds of issues are a bigger problem for reviewers swapping between headsets but probably not so bad for regular users who only have one headset and one computer and maybe aren't even changing between games rapidly.
Admittedly you have to know about steam VR overestimating what supersampling is possible! But I thought you could set this to default to 1.0 or whatever for all games by setting a checkmark?
That issue in no man's sky is possibly caused by another X input device taking precedence. Like maybe a HOTAS controller where the stick position is not quite zero centred. There are a few games that I have to unplug my usb HOTAS or steering wheel for, or that device is treated as controller one and I'm just spinning! Or the in game menu just cycles down and down and down!
Great video, super clear! I'm the author of the 3rd party OpenXR tools you mentioned near the end of the video. Thanks for bringing those up for awareness!
I'm open to hear your suggestions on ease of use if you have any!
Thanks so much for commenting and for making this awesome tool! I gave you a big shoutout in my recent video posted today 💪 keep up the great work!
Thank you for maintaining OpenXR !!
Great tool, Must use for DCS MSFS ACC!
What an excellent review, one of the best I've probably ever seen for any headset. Thanks a lot for the honesty, it is much appreciated.
You're very kind for saying that, thank you so much! Made my day ☺
@@DiscoVRTetiana yep SUPER review, congratulations, really ! You rocks !
This was a really good review, often people get hung up on the specs and forget about user experience
This is not a good review as it didn't mention the sweet spot which is quite small on this headset.
@@dtz1000 well with awesome edge to edge clarity the sweet spot is huge
Default render resolution is not a bug, it's a feature. To utilize available PPD and at the same time cover whole field of view means rendering at least 150% to accommodate barrel distortion. It's entirely incorrect to state that since your displays are 2880 then steamvr rendering should be 2880, it's simply not true, actually shocking to hear that from a VR reviewer with that size of a channel. If Pimax acknowledges this as a bug then the only reason is available hardware. We've actually seen this before with Reverb G1 vs G2 using the same displays and the same FOV but different render resolution because of the available hardware to the date.
Sounds like they should have sent you one instead hah!
@@mikebravo3527 right, only if they let me sell it afterwards and are OK with my crappy video editing 😁Crystal is too expensive for what it is and I don't need it.
@Fiztex553 In Soviet Russia Vee R's yoouuu haha
Hope you get that joke bubs, no beef 🤘
And yeah, seems you can get 90% as good product for 1/3rd ze price
Thank you for taking the time to share your honest review with us. We truly appreciate your feedback and hope that Pimax support will take note of your valuable suggestions to enhance the consumer experience. Once again, thank you for your contribution.
As an MSFS enthusiast, the technical challenges of setting that sim up are inherent to the sim itself. Since its launch on VR in December 2020 I've had three PC's, five headsets and have spent thousands of hours tweaking it for better performance. That's the life of a VR flight simmer!
Thats the life of a microsoft user!
Thats extensible for other software of them starting with windows :P
It's unfortunate these high end GPU are having issues with display ports since VR is one of the main reasons to own them. Great review. Hopefully Primax can continue to improve the experience.
hopefully it's only 3090Ti (annoying that I chose that particular GPU when choosing one), other SHOULD work fine but that DP repeater is a good insurance, it does help solve issues related to GPU performance.
I had the same problem with Reverb g2 HP said it was a common problem with all TI cards, something to do with the power/DP set up with all TI cards, they sent me a repeater and it worked. So if u have a TI card, well… be prepared
The problem is pushing more and more watts through the video port to ensure a reliable 4k DisplayPort signal is achieved through a length not typically recommended (> 2 meters).
In this situation, VR headset makers should start looking into fiber optics for point-to-point so as to not overburden the graphics card power capabilities. OTOH, fiber optics would add to the overall cost of headsets, so there's always that con to consider.
I hope that they can DP2.1 get to work for longer cords. Unfortunately, this only works for short distance connections right now.
That's exactly why I sold my 8KX. I don't have the desire or time to spend hours setting up a game to make it work. But some didn't work properly and I had to switch to the Pico 4 / Quest 2. Your video shows really great what to expect and hopefully shakes Pimax up to finally improve the software experience
Sure.....sure you did.....
@@FreeOpenTruth 💯
Crystal's promise was that individual game setup would be much easier than on 8KX. At least that is their goal. I am glad that the initial setup has been improved since i made this video, but individual game performance is still a bit of a hit or miss. We'll see how much has changed in my round 2 review!
@@FreeOpenTruth what's so unbelievable about that story?
@@mandasity - Had 8KX but sold it....🤣🤣🤣
Brilliant review, and straight to the point. Pimax needs to do their homework better, as the average user doesn't want to fiddle around forever, to get it working, as it should out of the box !!
It's almost like an average user is not a target to begin with? Which is a shame, soooo much awesomeness this headset can bring to the VR community, if only it was a little bit easier to unlock!
Agreed, sounds like typical pimax product. I wont be upgrading my Aero for that.
Too much fiddling, i usually end up not using it. I might just cancell the preorder since i hate getting frustrate
@Disco-VR Hey, thanks for the review! It's seems that it was so frustrating to get set up that it was gonna make you have a baby! Wait you are😊!! Congrats🎉... Im glad to see you found solutions to your issues. Hopefully we won't have those problems when we get ours.
@@ji3200 Don't do it.
All of these issues are exactly why I want VR on consoles, like PSVR2, instead of PC. I'm not trying to mess with drivers like I had to in the 90s!
OMG, you made me cringe thinking back the the days of manually configuring dial up modems! I can't confirm this yet since I am still alive, but I suspect I'll die several years early due to all the stress and late nights working as PC tech back in the early days.
I'd love a brief look at VRAM usage and requirements for some common games while trying to run them using Pimax Crystal.
If possible also:
-Skyrim VR, or Skyrim (SE)
-Forza 4 or 5 Horizon
-Mothergunship (not Forge)
-Horizon series
-Final Fantasy 7 Remake
-Kingdom Hearts series (PC)
-Hogwarts Legacy
-Batman Arkham series, mainly Arkham Knight & Gotham Knights
-Saints Row 3rd Remaster
-GTAV
-Half-Life Alyx, apparently OmniWhatever got really close to 21Gb of Vram usage in their Pimax Crystal review video.
Vorpx or Luke Ross, or with whatever if something else is more readily available for adding VR to games.
Since obviously SBS through Dolphin Emulator wouldn't even need comparable amounts. Honestly not sure if all have VR or SBS mods yet.
It seems like the normal "Pimax", as always
I love things that make put in work for them to function great. This headset seems perfect for me!
I am confused, you want a headset that is optimized to your hardware in use? That is not how PC hardware works. You decide what you buy, you can not buy an 8K screen and expect games to run on your 3060 without you having to adjust the settings. People are doing this with EVERY headset, nothing concerning about it. Actually a lot of the things to tweak you mention is what you have to do with a G2 for MSFS all the time, making MSFS usable in VR.
thank you for the brutally honest review. my takeaway is that as usual, pimax is delivering a supercar headset, with a 5-speed manual transmission; Which is great, if you know how, and don't mind the jumping the skill gap of a manual. I'm reminded of my experience with Gentoo linux; finely tuned for max perfomance, with quite a bit of work most of the time. the problem is, Gentoo has something Pimax sorely needs. Pimax needs a handbook; a detailed guide to walk through all the settings that are known needs in getting Pimax headsets up and functional to a "i can forget about the hassle it used to be" level. additionally, the option to save a config, load a config would do wonders, even if the headset/app resets on each reconnection; a one-button solution to return to a selected config. that will do wonders that for user adoption.
That’s such a cool analogy about supercars! I might use it in one of my next videos! 😜
For people with RTX3090ti I’ve had problems with my card as well trying to set up mi pimax 8kx. The thing that worked and I have few friends that report the same. If you buy the newer longer cable (6m one I believe, the one with only 1 usb cable) it will work
It affects a bunch of headsets, not just pimax stuff
This brought back my Reverb G2 trauma. I was hoping these issues would've been fixed years ago, the Crystal was my last hope for Pimax, I think I'm done expecting them to change. Thanks for the review.
What is the best vr headset for pc ?
@@gurugamer8632 It depends on what you want, there isn't a 'best' headset, but there are many great ones.
If it's any consolation- for whatever it is worth-your Review is one of the most impassioned, relevant, and concise reviews that I have ever viewed. What a pleasant surprise... Wow! Just wow! (Thank you much! That said, I just subscribed.)
Glad you’ve found me ☺️ thanks for your kind words!
I think your review hits it on the head. These kinds of issues are why, even though I main a Pimax 8KX myself, I virtually never recommend Pimax to anyone I know. I think the fundamental problem is that everyone at the Pimax company appears to be a _HARDCORE VR TECH NERD_. And consequentially, they are completely disconnected from the average user. That shows up in all these silly technical issues that you faced. Issues like the resolution defaulting to a stupidly high value are so quickly and easily remedied by a tech nerd that _they don't even notice it as an issue_. Seriously! The mentality is that users will want to adjust all the myriad of settings to taste anyway, and so it's seen as unimportant or even pointless to have these set to reasonable values out of the box.
If Pimax really considered these kinds of issues important, they would have been among the first issues they straightened out rather than being among the last or never being addressed at all. Most of these issues are low hanging fruit. But Pimax doesn't think these issues are important. And _that_ is fundamentally the problem.
As you say, it is this more than anything else which keeps them confined to a very niche market share.
Splendid review summing up what it REALLY feels like. This totally reminds me of my 8Kx experience.
Awsome honest review, good job keeping the enthusiasts well informed👍
Just Pimax being Pimax
Good review. Thank you.
I would like to see you test the Pimax Crystal running DCS World open beta multi thread .
Will give it a go!
VR Flight Sim Guy did that recently.
Thanks for your review, especially because you give all the solutions you found for the problems you encountered, it is incredibly useful information for those considering buying a Pimax Crystal 👍
After watching this review, this feels like climbing the everest in underwear while my Quest 2 is like laying on a white tropical beach with mojito in my hand.
Damn…that set up process🥵
Again. Such a great review that leaves me with no questions left to ask. Well done. It's always a little present when you upload a video
simp...
Very very high quality reviews on your channel. We appreciate that a lot
Nice and honest Video.I think i am not patient enough to do such stuff.I like the easiness of my Quest Pro which performs super in Wireless and cable without much knowledge.But i wish the Pimax users a fast Setting recovery🙂 and mindblown visuals.
I completely understand, this level of complexity is definitely not for everyone. You gotta work to get those jaw-dropping visuals!
I am not a gamer, not into VR, and don't watch your videos usually, this one I watched simply out of curiosity. First thing I want to say is that you seem to be a very thorough, dedicated, and honest reviewer, the VR/gaming community is lucky to have you. Second, the VR manufacturers are lucky to have you, yes you were critical of the Pimax Crystal, but not without cause and Pimax will benefit greatly from your recommendations if they listen and learn. That's it. Keep up the good work you are doing.
Thank you so much! ☺️ yeah it was a tough one… Pimax has made some good progress since then
Thanks for this review. Your frankness and covering the facts very much appreciated. You provided great examples to back up what you're saying.
One of the BEST reviews of this headset so far!
Great job!
Thanks for watching! 🤗
From what I've heard over the years this is a pretty standard experience with Pimax hardware and software.
I listened to your comments about your experience with the Crystal on the Next Dimension podcast before watching this video. FWIW, I felt your negative experience wasn't treated seriously (at first). Although I like Sebastian and Steve, they were borderline rude, dismissive, and a bit sexist (e.g. Steve insinuating you weren't as tech-savvy). I don't even sub to your channel, but I think you handled yourself well on the podcast. And your honesty and candor regarding your experience with the Crystal is a true service to the podcast audience. Anyway, I found this video after listening to the podcast and just wanted to say that it's the most insightful Pimax Crystal video review I've seen to date (and that includes both Sebastian's & Steve's videos). :)
Exactly what I expected... too many issues for such expensive headset. Happy I just bought a pico 4 and I sell my vive pro 2. The pico is so much lighter and cooler than my pro 2. The crystal would be too heavy for me.
Thanks for the review ❤
Same here. The pico 4 is really good at its price. I use it with my 3080ti laptop and 3090 desktop. Seems li,e diminished returns to spend $1,600 on a headset ($1,200 more than Pico 4) and still need to turn down visuals to low-medium for a halfway decent framerate. The Pimax crystal is nice, but it's for high end users with $ to burn
@@Valkron11 “but it’s for high end users with $ to burn” says you with a 3090 in your PC and 3080 Ti in your laptop. 😂
@@DrR1pper Don't forget my 3tb RoG Ally. Can't play everything on my Steamdeck 🤓
@@Valkron11 hahaha. How do you rate the Ally vs. the Steamdeck?
The difficulty optimizing settings is why the Pimax Community is so tight knit.
I met my wife on a Pimax Support forum ! 😅
Thanks for your review! I just ordered a Crystal and I really appreciate seeing what I need to be aware of. This should be very useful to me.
I know this was such a tough video for you to make and decide to release. You did good! Thank you
Wonderful review Tatiana. I was waiting for this after watching the Banter video and thank you for your persistence in doing this presentation. Keep smiling… you’re stunning.😊
simp...
I had the same problem with the 8KX (turning it off because of where the power button is). The fact that they haven't moved it or (provided a better solution) in the Crystal is very telling of a poor design ethos. It's not rocket science and easily determined to be a problem that needs to be fixed within a few minutes of user testing.
This is exactly the reason why VR struggles in the mainstream. I bet, that the Apple product (for consumers) won't have any of those problems.
Especially PiMAX... its by far not their first product to lunch. I wonder why they still don't get things straight...
I am so glad I watched this review. Very informative and honest. I hate the fact that you have to use a battery when connected to a PC and switch it out when you could be in the middle of a game ( I like to do endurance racing in VR, and I am not gonna stop to switch out a battery) . Also, I am really happy you talked about all the steps you have to go through just to get it running as well as it should. Too much hassle for the average user who just wants to jump into a game and go. Having to reset the resolution every time you go into a game is a pain in the ass. Think I'll stick with my G2 for now. Thanks so much for this review.
I mean it's either that or melt the PC if it isn't beast enough to handle it
Thank you so much for this very honest review! It seems that the Crystal is just not ready for a release!
I think you have experiences with the Varjo Aero too, would you say the grafik in the Crystal is so much better, that it justifies all the downsides? I mean the Aero is pretty stable what I was reading and viewing in the last couple of months. I preordered the Crystal but last week I had this feeling that I'd be happier with the Aero and I ordered one......
It is very hard to go back to Varjo's FOV after you try Crystal. Also, the local dimming make colors really POP! And it's a big difference compared to Varjo. But Varjo is much lighter and, yes, the stability is important. Hmm... tough question. I'm a sucker for a wide FOV and if you plan on playing stationary games, like a flight sim, then a larger size won't matter that much. Pimax is actively working on improving the performance and fix lots of bugs daily. It is possible that if I make a new review a week from now it will be a completely different one. So I would say stick with your preorder, Pimax work very hard on addressing many of the bugs I communicated with them as well as dozens of beta testers. I did not review a final unit just yet.
Aero currently has 20% off 👀
@@SURG3NT15%
@@DiscoVRTetianare you sure it’s the local dimming that’s making the colours pop and not the quantum dots used for much larger colour space? Local dimming should be making image better by increasing the contrast ratio by allowing for deeper localised blacks like OLED (except not as accurately as OLED that has per subpixel level light control).
I love your honest reviews and the excitement you show doing reviews of VR headsets and games. I recently purchased the Oculus Pro (came from CV1, Rift S, and Quest 2 did try the Reverb G2 but the sweet spot was soooo small it wasn't for me). Anyway I did pre-order the Crystal well before I got the Pro. Question; how do the visuals compare between the Crystal and Pro in real life use and not just the differences in specs? I love a clear image and bright screen but am I really going to see a night and day difference between the two. Thanks for your awesome channel and enjoyment you bring to the VR community!
hello miss ! Amazing and complete detailed review which probably needed a lot of work ! i didn't know your channel even if i'm a VR enthousiast for years.1 i pre-ordered pimax Crystal and cancelled it some days ago because i've a 4090 and more interested by pimax 12K which seems to be a Crystal with large FOV. Your review is very useful to me, i was expecting a quality review like yours. Congratulations to have the honesty to say ALL bugs and problems on this headset. i keep stunned for future tests of this headset. Of course, i subscribe to your channel^^
Pimax 12k doesn't use the crystal panels, the crystal is a separate line
You've got a new sub! Great content, thank you!
Insightful review. Thanks. Seems that many of the criticisms leveled at Pimax in the past are still present. But at least when it works, it sounds amazing. I don't have the patience to make it work. I want pickup and play.
thanks for ur great and honest review! much more detailed and informative from mrtv's recent review which is mostly hype. customers need to know the stuff you pointed out
"Better clarity... at what cost?" is what I'm hearing. This review definitely outlines WAY more of the user experience, rather than a boilerplate 'it isn't plug and play, setup is painful' that I've heard before. God to know!
Makes me wonder if the Varjo Aero at least has an easier setup, even if there is no mic or audio built in.
year later, and i want to say, the backwards slide was likely due to steam VR bugs, its patched out now but it was a pain with the reverb
Thank you for your excellent and honest review! You made my day!
The crazy part is they never learn from reviewers who keep telling them its not user friendly. You'd think they'd learn. Sony is the current leader in the VR Industry, soon to hit 2 million sales of a modern headset.
great honest review thanks, i will postpone my purchase to 2 years to get the bugs ironed out
It's really the ultimate device, but I don't have enough money!
Great honest review. Thank You. I am going to sit back and wait and wait and wait for the Valve Index 2
Thanks for the honesty, I know it can be hard with such much pressure to join the it’s “brilliant and easy” gang. I bet Pimax thought u had a 4090 lol
Very informative review regarding the crystal 👍🏽 also surprised in a good way by the quality, you shouldn't limit yourself in VR content, but also in more generalist gaming hardware pc content because you're really on point, all the best, subscribed
I do not own a VR Head Set but this review was awesome. 👍
thank you for so much important information...your awesome girl!
Excellent review, thanks!
How many of these issues have now been resolved?
With as many subscribers and views as you have, I am surprised you can't afford a 4090 and really see what that headset is capable of. The 4090 has been out a while, go get one =)
Ladies and gentlemen, it is always important to remember that when you buy any piece of tech when it's brand new you are essentially signing up to be a beta tester.
Did you try increasing the dead zone for No Mans sky creeping backward?
If Pimax can overhaul their software and make the user side easier to use out of the box, they will have huge success.
I'm in once i dont have to troubleshoot it for days. Regular consumers need it to be plug and play litterally. Until they can give this i'm happy to wait.
Wow, one of the best reviews I've ever seen for a VR headset 👏great work... but I'm happy with my Quest Pro... 😊
This is the same kind of experience I have with my 8kx. Except I'm just not willing to sacrifice so much time to appeasing it each time I want to play DCS. One time it wont find the base stations, the next it doesn't show up at all, another it wants my second monitor disconnected. I always forget the sound until I'm in the game and then remember I have to do another whole ritual to get the sound to work. And then 80% of the time when I exit pitool the whole thing blue screens. So I just use my HP Reverb G2.
To be fair, the Aircar demo doesn’t work with the G2 controllers either. I haven’t tried it in a while so I’m not sure if it’s fixed at this point, but it’s something to note. Seems like it might be more of an issue on the developer’s side.
I think the eye tracking and the DFR would be game changers for a headset like this, and I’d probably only consider it if those features worked well. But with VR as a whole as it currently stands, I wouldn’t expect a plug-and-play experience from any headsets other than perhaps the Quest 2 or Index. I certainly haven’t experienced that with my G2. So I don’t think that would be a major factor in choosing a headset (unless it’s REALLY bad).
I would have loved to hear more of your thoughts on the comfort of this headset given how large it is. The trade-off between FOV/display size and comfort is probably the biggest factor I’m considering for my next headset. I love the value proposition of the Bigscreen Beyond, or even something like the Arpara 5k, but I’m just not sure I’d like to give up FOV. I imagine that if I had the Pimax Crystal (or another Pimax or Varjo headset, etc) in front of me and it worked flawlessly, I would absolutely be able to look past the added bulkiness. But I’ll wait until more reviews are in.
Hello, this is the 1st video of yours that Ive seen! I liked and subscribed. I thought you did a great job reviewing this and very fair review! I'll be back for more!
I'm glad you tell everyone this is no plug and play VR headet because it definitely is not!
But everything sure does look great in it once you take the time to set it up the way it works best for yourself and depending on what your uses are i think theyll be happy!
Ive only had mine 3 weeks approximately.
This is my 3rd VR headset. The most recent was my Reverb G2. If youve owned other vr headsets, then you will be much better equiped to work with the settings to tune it to your own tastrs and it will be rewarding!
If not then get a plug and play (and save money in the process by doing so!) headset. They've been improving alot too.
that battery is so pimax like headset made for star citizen
Very informative review. Looking to replace my VP2, and I'd largely pre-dismissed the Crystal, but this has given me some food for thought.
Still leaning towards getting a Aero, but will need to seriously think it through now. And will also keep an eye on your channel. Always cool to find a new VR reviewer.
After trying Crystal's FOV and local dimming, it is very hard to go back to Varjo Aero and their ski-mask view - I wouldn't be able to unsee it. Colors pop a lot more on Crystal and the image in general is even sharper (plus eye tracking will allow foveated rendering - now fixed but in the future also dynamic. It's definitely a better value for money than Aero. Imma keep a close eye on future update sand bug fixes, more review are coming up
@@DiscoVRTetiana I can understand that. Went from a full color gamut IPS monitor to an HDR VPA panel and definitely missed the color representation.
The thing that worries me about the Crystal though are the compatibility issues, losing the lighthouse tracking and not having a good timeline of dynamic foveated rendering.
I remember having a lot more fun with the Rift CV1 than I did with the Reverb G1 because the start up friction was so much higher.
Not an easy trade at all.
@@HarryVoyager The Somnium VR1 is supposed to launch this year. It is basically a Pimax Crystal without the battery, massive housing, and lighthouse tracking.
The problems that all add up and the honesty that no one else is brave enough to talk about - fantastic stuff 👍
sounds like all software issues which I imagine will be fixed. nice review!
Extremely detailed and unwaveringly honest. Thank you!
use and loading times of the batteries would be interesting. Also of the controllers. Also the build qualitiy of the buttons and the usb-c connectors. I find that on some of my devices usb-c tends to wear out over time.
How long is the warrenty and can they get repaired locally/outside china? When preordering I noticed that warrenty is limited to the first buyer. Is that so? Would make it hard to sell them if you don't like them.
I think most people who buy such a headset don't necessarily expect it to work flawlessly right out of the box. Headsets at such a price are something that you put thought into, personalize, get a capable computer for, get the right space for. This is extreme enthusiast gear. The people that want this to be perfect right out of the box are the people to who 1600 dollars is nothing. And that's fine, but there's no problem in having to put some effort in. I just hope Pimax makes this configuration and personalization easily accessible. But the app looks pretty clean so far.
Just amazing how useful this review is. Thank you! Subscribed.
The fact that you've received a review copy, and still mentioned all the downsides is very honest. Will be looking forward to more reviews, and hopefully improvements, from Pimax leading up to getting to my turn in the queue.
Most of these problems seems to be software issues, so it shouldn't be too hard for Pimax to fix, but they really need to.
Not all downsides were mentioned. There was no mention of the small sweet spot, as well as a few other issues this headset has.
@@dtz1000 Yes yes, we get it, worst headset ever, Pimax bad, Bradley great.
@@khaledassaf6356 I didn't mention Bradley here and have never said Pimax is a bad company or that it is the worst headset ever. I actually think Pimax is a great company for letting people demo the headset.
Honest and very detailed review!! Appreciated.
Great video, not every reviewer talk about many drawbacks that should be considered for future buyers. This review is very detailed and informative, and i know now that i would rather stick to my g2.
Great review all around. Thank you!
Thanks for showing various apps helping to setup. Few reviewers do this.
i can only get one toy this year. As someone who spends ALLOT of time in VRC. would i be better of waiting for the bigscrean or possibly another alternative. I can handle the tech requirements but what concerns me is the bulk of the headset. currently using the G2 and the clarity of the crystal is why i have already pre-ordered but the comfort and neck strain (yes Im getting old) has me a bit concerned. whats it like strapping a 1ltr carton of milk to your face?.. oh yeah. great review..
I would love to see the Crystal at its best when running with your 3080. I would think most people own these gpu's and not 4090's that so far all UA-cam Crystal testers are using. More MSFS2020, as well as some modded pc flat to VR games would be interesting to see how fps and visuals stands up in performance compared to the best of the best home pc's that ALL crystal testers are using. Thx.
I thought so! I’ll definitely be testing it more on 3080 to squeeze the most out of its performance. I’m sure it’ll be relevant to more VR gamers than 4090. More reviews are coming!
@@DiscoVRTetiana You ROCK! Wait Wait I mean you Diso.
Thank you so much for all the hard work and reporting on this significant headset! I would love to see more through the lens video, like for half life alyx and other titles :)
Will do more through the lens! Thanks for watching 😊
Glad to see you chose to be so honest in this review. If one could even call it that. I mean with all the missing features and all the technical problems. No automatic ipd adjustment, no standalone games to play, no eye tracking etc.
Seems to me like all you VR-UA-camrs are the Pimax testers.
i love the thumnail.. it explained everything so well , i can even decide not to buy it even before watching😂
Thanks a lot for an honnest review. Very enlighting. I'm not sure if I will get one, but at least if I do I'll know what I'm getting into.
A lot of the issues you had easily related to my Pimax 5K Super. I have a RTX 2070 Super Moble. Games run way better on Meta Quest 2 and 3's third party link cable.
What a great review! It makes me think they are still months away from shipping to the public.
Very informative and honest review. Thank you!
I don't mind paying big bucks for a better headset that could use the power of my 4090. But I don't have the time to troubleshoot anymore. The little free time that I have, I want to play games. That's why I'm sticking with PSVR2 for now, it's the best quality plug and play experience for now. Looking forward for an Index 2.
Awesome review, honest and detailed ❤
Hi Tetiana - the Quest Pro looks so much more comfortable for you, than the very bulky Crystal...
Tetiana, thank you for the great review and important information that we may not hear from others.
Good grief. As if coming straight from China and costing nearly $2000 wasn't enough, you also have to mess around with a ton of settings and extra OpenXR software. So many reasons to wait for something better from Valve - even if it takes them another two years.
Pimax (especially before Crystal) is sure not for plug´n´players. But you can get all the necessary info in their forum, and tune your unit to the best possible. I sure love my Pimax 8kx more because I can tune and mod it in a many ways :)
I had the same DP connection issues when I tried to get my G2 working with my 3090 Ti.
HP tech support knew about the issue, and also recommended a DP v2.1 repeater. I bought one for around $40, and it solved the problem. Despite the other issues you spoke about, I will keep the Crystal on my radar. One of my purchasing decisions is based on inside-out tracking. I'd look at the 8K, but it doesn't have that feature.
Thanks for the great review. Subscribed.
Such a Good review!!!!! Pimax headsets always seem to have some sort of problem, that's a shame I was really looking forward to this
It’s not a final review yet, like I said it’s an early unit and many bugs are being fixed as we speak. I’ll be updating this review soon!
Thanks for pointing out the software challenges.
If the people that left VR because of stuff like that still would be there I guess it would be a way bigger market with all the benefits this bring to consumers.
what i really wonder about is how the eye tracking and face tracking will work and how good it is.
About performance, it is not reasonable to ever consider running any of these high end VR headsets on a 3080. It just flat out doesn’t have enough VRAM. The 3090ti absolutely does, and is the only choice here besides a 3090 or 4090. I own a Varjo Aero myself and attempted to run it on a 3080 while my 3090ti was on the way. It just doesn’t work. On the 3090ti I saw the highest VRAM usage I’ve ever seen. 19GB of VRAM called by the game. Even with 24GB of VRAM the game still gave me a pop-up saying I had low VRAM. So yeah, just an unrealistic target to run the Crystal on a 3080 at all. Personally I had no idea the 3090ti had issues with certain headsets before this video, so thanks for that