CPU's really necessary for VR

[Cardio]

I already have a VIVE and have a RIFT bundle on the way from Amazon Prime day bundle.

I was playing around with some older hardware, and just for fun, thought I would try VR using some stuff I had laying around.
Asrock Z87e ITX MB
Intel G3258 CPU 3.2 GHZ stock ($50 or so)
8GB DDR3 1600
GTX 970
Windows 10

I ran the Steam VR performance test with the G3258 running at 4.5 GHZ OC.

It passed the Steam test and rated "High" on the scale of Low, Medium, High, Very High.
I was more than surprised.

I connected my Vive and it worked fine. I may not have the most difficult to run apps but it is certainly usable.

It shows CPU speed as 3.2 rather than the OC
All frames over 90

Makes you wonder! I will try it on the RIFT when it arrives.

 

[Hagrid]

They don't seem to need much cpu, but mostly gpu.
I would run a 980ti/1070 for the minimum.(some titles will need it or more)

 

[Cardio]

I have a 980ti in my regular computer and an i7 7700K. This just seems to show that the minimum CPU requirement is a lot lower than they say. Even with the 970 all frames were above 90 which is surprising also.

 

[Ragenrok]

it depends on the game to, I think games like Elite Dangerous are very hard on the CPU for rift use.

 

[westrock2000]

I had the Pentium G CPU in our spare computer, and finally had to replace it because GTA5 just pegs a dual core at 100% all day. I kept the motherboard and upgraded to the Devils Canyon and everything has been fine.

I have been really surprised by the "mid range" requirements of VR so far. I'm sure the HMD resolution is the major factor. I was really worried my GTX 1060 would be questionable and so far it hasn't been an issue at all. Quite happy so far.

I didn't want to have to put the VR on my main computer because I do other more productive stuff with it, so having it work on the spare computer is great.

Just had to buy an expansion USB board. 3 sensors and HMD really gobble up the ports.