Feedback wanted for Rift S

UMC 22 · Feb 28, 2020

Greetings all,

After two and a half years of use my Rift is having a few issues. Chief among them is that I lost audio in the right earphone yesterday. Given the importance of audio for situational awareness in simulations, this constitutes a game-breaking problem. It's actually a known flaw with the Rift, and if you're willing to jump through a few hoops you can get a workaround/fix for free. However, given my headset's other minor issues I think it's time to bite the bullet and get a new one. I'm looking at the Rift S for two reasons, the price and the fact that half the VR games I own are via the Oculus store.

I realise there's plenty of sources for info out there but I prefer opinions from a community I know, especially since sims account for the bulk of my VR use. So to those who own one already, what do you think of it? How does it compare to the previous Rift? How is the tracking in movement-heavy games (eg, Beat Sabre) since it no longer uses external sensors? Are the old motion controllers compatible? Any noticeable drop in performance? (I'm on a i7 and 1060.) How are the lenses with an IPD of ~60mm?

Note that I'm only looking for feedback on the Rift S, so please don't suggest other headsets. I can neither afford them, nor do I want to lose my current library of games.

Thanks in advance!

Edit 03/03/20:

In case anyone else is looking for feedback, here is mine having now bought a Rift S.

So far I've tried BeatSaber, IL-2 Sturmovik, and R3E. There's plenty of full reviews out there, so I'll stick with the pros/cons as I see them:

Pro: Graphics. The S only has a slightly higher overall resolution than the CV1, but the difference in sharpness and clarity is like night and day. I was genuinely surprised by the massive improvement!
Pro: Tracking. No more constantly resetting my VR position, and no more weird hand movements. An indication of how much better the tracking is is that I beat nearly all of my old highscores in BeatSabre on my first go with the S.
Pro: Comfort. The S may look bulkier than the CV1 but it doesn't feel it. The "halo" system is superior to the old headstraps, as well as being instantly adjustable for any user.
Pro: One cable, one USB port. No more wires all over my walls and ceiling to achieve room-scale gameplay!
Pro: No misting! For whatever reason the lenses didn't mist up once, unlike the CV1 who's lenses would mist the moment I put the thing on my head.

Con: Audio. The built-in speakers are absolutely terrible. Oculus clearly knew this, which is why they've provided a headphone jack built into the headset. Using it with your own headphones is a must.
Con: No mechanical IPD adjustment. With an IPD of 60mm I'm inside the "compatible" zone, but by deliberately mis-adjusting the headset I can see how terrible it would look to anyone who falls outside.
Con: Controllers. Compared to the CV1 they feel light, somewhat flimsy, and are probably easily broken if accidentally slammed into a wall... something my old controllers have miraculously survived many times without issue.
Con: Colour. The colours aren't quite as deep and vivid as in the CV1, though if you'd never used a CV1 you probably wouldn't even notice.
Con: Audio. The built-in speakers are absolutely terrible. Worth mentioning twice because they're really that bad for anyone who wants any semblance of bass in their audio experience.

Overall the S is a definite upgrade over the CV1, and I'm perfectly happy with it. The graphics are better than expected, and the audio is as bad as expected, so there were no negative surprises. Given the easy fix to the audio by using your own or doing this, I don't consider it a reason not to buy one. A tiny part of me is glad my CV1 decided to become defective, despite the cost.

BrunoBæ · Feb 28, 2020

I understand you only want feedback on the S model.
But in the HW forum people has agreed that it looks like Oculus/Facebook are leaving the S conserning upd/development in favour of the more "future proof" Quest model.
Just saying and sorry Im talking about another Oculus model.

UMC 22 · Feb 28, 2020

The Oculus Quest is not an option because:

It's too expensive.
It is currently unavailable for purchase from Oculus or anywhere else I trust and have an account.
With just 128GB of memory, my games library won't fit on it.
2 hours max of game time on one charge is nowhere near enough.
Scaled resolution so the inferior onboard hardware can cope is no good to me.
No direct connection to a PC, meaning no streaming and no way for others to watch from outside.
The other half of my VR game library is on Steam, which is not supported by the Quest. So, no R3E and no BoX, my two most-played VR games.

I'm not particularly bothered if Oculus have stopped development of the Rift S, as long as it works.

BrunoBæ · Feb 28, 2020

OK thanks for the content filled feedback.

I dont own the Quest but are trying to figure out if I maybe should buy.
As I understand it then one of the things Oculus has upd on the Quest is that its now the only VR set that is both a stand alone and PC connected set.

UMC 22 · Feb 28, 2020

BrunoB said:
As I understand it then one of the things Oculus has upd on the Quest is that its now the only VR set that is both a stand alone and PC connected set.

As far as I'm aware, yes, though I haven't done a lot of research into non-Oculus sets for the reasons I mentioned.

The Quest does trump the S on resolution and of course on mobility since it can run standalone. Thing is, when running on it's own it supposedly can't handle the most intensive games because it's own hardware is obviously not up to gaming PC standards. Given that my main use is detailed simulations it would have to stay plugged in all the time, thereby rendering it's untethered functionality useless. I also already have fittings in place for my old Rift, to run wires from my PC to the ceiling and then to the headset, so I already have complete freedom of movement in my playspace. So for me at least, the extra £100 (which I can't afford anyway) just isn't worth it.

I can definitely see it's features being worth it to more general users though, as most VR games are far less demanding than sims.

BrunoBæ · Feb 28, 2020

Good thinking

And maybe I should reconsider myself if the standalone mode isnt to much use.

Calvyn White · Feb 29, 2020

Oculus Rift S VR Gaming Headset System with Touch Controllers

Buy from Scan - Oculus Rift S Virtual Reality Headset & Touch Controllers for Mind-Blowing PC VR Gaming

www.scan.co.uk

UMC 22 · Feb 29, 2020

The Rift S is available direct from Oculus too. It's the Quest that seems to be out of stock everywhere, including Oculus themselves. Perhaps that's a good thing though... if they're selling so many they can't keep up with demand, that means many more VR gamers... and that can only be a good for the health of VR gaming in general.

Calvyn White · Feb 29, 2020

Well, @Ross Garland I have been thinking and now I've got a headache.

I think I've got the same version of the Oculus Rift as you it's not the S version but I don't use it that often. And I'm wondering if you're interested in buying that from me. Two controllers two senses one remote and headset. I would like to keep the Xbox controller. You can have it for £100 plus posting if you're interested?
But I'm also thinking you'll probably rather upgrade a little.

Calvyn White · Mar 2, 2020

Well @Ross Garland as I have not heard from you in any shape or form tut tut. I can only surmise that you're not interested on which I thought was a reasonable deal. So I withdraw my special ish offer to you. Just in case anybody else is looking at this my Oculus Rift is not for sale.
I hope you can find and get what you're looking for.

I think I might set it all up and give it a try again with the new lenses.

UMC 22 · Mar 2, 2020

Hey @Calvyn White, really sorry I didn't get back to you mate. I did see your offer but was on my phone at the time which is pain to post on.

I really appreciate the offer, and definitely would have taken you up on it if I hadn't ordered the Rift S about an hour before I read it!

Thanks anyway bud, it was very good of you.

I'd definitely give VR another go, once it's working right it adds so much immersion. Do you mean you have new standard lenses or that you've got prescription lenses for it?

BrunoBæ · Mar 2, 2020

Ross Garland said:
Do you mean you have new standard lenses or that you've got prescription lenses for it?

Yeah Calvyn Im also interrested in what you mean.
Because I use pretty strong glasses (like the bottom of beer bottles) - and understand that its difficult with glasses inside VR kits.

Calvyn White · Mar 2, 2020

Oculus Rift S Prescription Lens Adapters | WIDMOvr

widmovr.com

Calvyn White · Mar 2, 2020

Rift Prescription Lenses Adapter | WIDMOvr

widmovr.com

Rory Wetherington · Mar 2, 2020

I had the same issue with my original rift accept it was the left side. So I finally bought the rift S, however the sound issue was frustrating until I found this and I might add it's been working very well.

https://imgur.com/a/qnDMBHg

UMC 22 · Mar 2, 2020

Calvyn White said:
Oculus Rift S Prescription Lens Adapters | WIDMOvr

widmovr.com

Thanks Calv, that's helpful. I have a mate looking into VR who would likely need something like that to make it usable.

Rory Wetherington said:
I had the same issue with my original rift accept it was the left side. So I finally bought the rift S, however the sound issue was frustrating until I found this and I might add it's been working very well.

Fantastic, thanks! The crappy audio is the one thing that was really putting me off the Rift S. This looks like an excellent solution.

Rory Wetherington · Mar 2, 2020

It's really easy too, you just need a little patience and a set of pliers and a couple of small wire ties to tidy it up.

BrunoBæ · Mar 2, 2020

Thanks for the link to the Lens Adapters Calvyn.

They looks pretty cool for the Rift.
Hehe I saw the price in the lower part of the site €29 and thought oh thats pretty reasonable.
But then I saw the real price.

But ok compared to the price of a pair of qualy glasses then its still ok.

I can see people are allready discussing Lens Adapters for the comming Pimax 8Kx - which I hope to be able to buy some sunny day

UMC 22 · Mar 3, 2020

@Calvyn White, when the lenses are fit, is there much room left between them and your eyes? I ask because I find that with no extra lenses my eyelashes already brush the lenses sometimes which can be quite irritating. (Yes, I have rather long girly eyelashes compared to most men!) I can't speak of the length of my mate's eyelashes because we generally don't get that close to each other, but it might be something he needs to be aware of.

UMC 22 · Mar 3, 2020

My Rift S arrived a day earlier than expected, so I've spent the last few hours trying it out. So far I've tried BeatSaber, IL-2 Sturmovik, and R3E. There's plenty of full reviews out there, so I'll stick with the pros/cons as I see them:

Pro: Graphics. The S only has a slightly higher overall resolution than the CV1, but the difference in sharpness and clarity is like night and day. I was genuinely surprised by the massive improvement!
Pro: Tracking. No more constantly resetting my VR position, and no more weird hand movements. An indication of how much better the tracking is is that I beat nearly all of my old highscores in BeatSabre on my first go with the S.
Pro: Comfort. The S may look bulkier than the CV1 but it doesn't feel it. The "halo" system is superior to the old headstraps, as well as being instantly adjustable for any user.
Pro: One cable, one USB port. No more wires all over my walls and ceiling to achieve room-scale gameplay!
Pro: No misting! For whatever reason the lenses didn't mist up once, unlike the CV1 who's lenses would mist the moment I put the thing on my head.

Con: Audio. The built-in speakers are absolutely terrible. Oculus clearly knew this, which is why they've provided a headphone jack built into the headset. Using it with your own headphones is a must.
Con: No mechanical IPD adjustment. With an IPD of 60mm I'm inside the "compatible" zone, but by deliberately mis-adjusting the headset I can see how terrible it would look to anyone who falls outside.
Con: Controllers. Compared to the CV1 they feel light, somewhat flimsy, and are probably easily broken if accidentally slammed into a wall... something my old controllers have miraculously survived many times without issue.
Con: Colour. The colours aren't quite as deep and vivid as in the CV1, though if you'd never used a CV1 you probably wouldn't even notice.
Con: Audio. The built-in speakers are absolutely terrible. Worth mentioning twice because they're really that bad for anyone who wants any semblance of bass in their audio experience.

Overall the S is a definite upgrade over the CV1, and I'm perfectly happy with it. The graphics are better than expected, and the audio is as bad as expected, so there were no negative surprises. Given the easy fix to the audio by using your own or doing this, I don't consider it a reason not to buy one. A tiny part of me is glad my CV1 decided to become defective, despite the cost.