Valve Index

So total noob in to VR, if I buy just the headset does that include head tracking?

I don't care about controllers or moving around the room, basically want to sit in a chair and use this as a display while playing flying/racing games, and have all the sticks/wheels already
 
So total noob in to VR, if I buy just the headset does that include head tracking?

I don't care about controllers or moving around the room, basically want to sit in a chair and use this as a display while playing flying/racing games, and have all the sticks/wheels already

The Valve Index uses outside in tracking, so you would have to also purchase the 2 Lighthouse basestations as that is what it uses for HMD tracking. If you are a total VR noob, I’d seriously give the controllers a go though for other things - you don’t necessarily have to go for full roomscale and move all that much to really enjoy other games/applications. Things like Google Earth VR and Universe Sandbox 2 in VR are utterly fantastic, but need the controllers.
 
The Valve Index uses outside in tracking, so you would have to also purchase the 2 Lighthouse basestations as that is what it uses for HMD tracking. If you are a total VR noob, I’d seriously give the controllers a go though for other things - you don’t necessarily have to go for full roomscale and move all that much to really enjoy other games/applications. Things like Google Earth VR and Universe Sandbox 2 in VR are utterly fantastic, but need the controllers.

If you're sitting, you can get away with a single lighthouse. That makes the index a little more palatable price wise.
 
So total noob in to VR, if I buy just the headset does that include head tracking?

I don't care about controllers or moving around the room, basically want to sit in a chair and use this as a display while playing flying/racing games, and have all the sticks/wheels already

That’s exactly what I use VR for. Have a nice hotas setup. Going to wait a bit and see who comes out on top between the Reverb and the Index for simming. No more preordering shit unseen like with the Rift. By the time that was completely functional it was a year later and 50% cheaper to buy than what the pre-orders were. Also going to wait until the prescription inserts are available.
 
That’s exactly what I use VR for. Have a nice hotas setup. Going to wait a bit and see who comes out on top between the Reverb and the Index for simming. No more preordering shit unseen like with the Rift. By the time that was completely functional it was a year later and 50% cheaper to buy than what the pre-orders were. Also going to wait until the prescription inserts are available.

Yea I'm done with preorders myself as well.
 
Yep. Gaming companies have absolutely destroyed pre-orders. Never doing that again. Buy it cheaper a year or more later when the bugs have been fixed.
 
Steam sending out email's for address verification.
were getting closer!

Ship date still says June 28, was hoping it would be at my door on the 28th :)
 
Yeah got my Index Controller email saying any shipping changes have to be done by the 14th. So I am hoping it'll ship on the release date of the 15th. :)
 
Alright, Boneworks looks pretty fun and I have to say I'm impressed with tracking on all the fingers on this controller. Hope this plays well on other sets because I held off on pre-ordering the Index.
 
Ok. Getting psyched for the arrival of the Index. This is next level VR as to design, comfort, sound, controllers and the incoming software to take advantage of it all. The physics in Boneworks is amazing.



Does look good, but, funnily enough the Dev on Boneworks prefers the Touch Controllers.
 
Shipping has begun. I am excited to get my controllers this week. Decided against the whole package since I have the Vive Pro with wireless kit so until they come out with a wireless solution for the Index I'll stick with the HTC. I hope Boneworks release is near, I feel like I can get lost for hours on that. In the mean time I'll just hack people up in Gorn or Blade and Sorcery, the improved dexterity of being able to let go completely should be noticeable.
 
just checked, status: shipped
mine on the 28th as well

EDIT
index, controller and base stations has steam discussion boards now
 
So is No Mans Sky VR launching with this or what? I dont care about the Valve Index mainly because its so damned expensive. I just want the damn patch so I can play VR NMS on my Rift woot woot

But congrats to those that got the index of course :) I hope you enjoy your far superior piece of immersion than the old rift.

That boneworks game looks bad to the ass!
 
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[H]ard as always had one of the larger VR crowds. Can't wait to hear from everyone on what they think as they start receiving them today.

Thanks Cagey for the post!
 
Valve should make an offer to invest in or hire the boneworks team, IMHO. A lot of the best Valve games have come from teams like them that were given resources and support at Valve and tbh I think Valve needs software for VR to succeed, games specifically, and these boneworks demos have that ineffable Valve look/feel to them.
 
Ok Got the index controllers and they are nice. Not much that I have supports it natively. H3VR mainly that I tried. Beat saber though for some reason makes my hands feel more tired than with the wands. Maybe it's the way the controllers squeeze your hands to not fly off that makes it feel that way. It takes a bit of getting use to. I like that I can't accidentally hit the system button now in beat saber, that is one thing I do a lot with the wands. The free Aperture Hands demo is good for playing around with precise finger movements. Sometimes it's incredibly accurate and sometimes a finger (usually the middle one) is slightly raised even though your hand is closed on the controller. Maybe a collision thing.

In H3VR the bolt action rifles now feel right when using the index controllers. Though the magazine eject (left on the right track pad) seems to sometimes not work as well as the wands. Maybe due to not being use to it and the track pad being so much smaller.

I still attached the lanyards as a secondary safety measure, but I really couldn't fling off the controllers from my hand when I was trying to.

Now the only con I have with these is it's a bit harder to adjust your glasses if they shift in the headset (also a good reason for me to attach the lanyards). It's now a two step process, loosen the hand grip, then let the controller hang from my wrist adjust my glasses then grab the controller tighten the hand grip and continue.

One last thing to take note of it does NOT include a power wall wart but does include a USB A -> mini USB-C cable. For the price of the stand alone controllers I kind of expected them to include a wall wart. Yeah I have on that came with my Vive that I can use, but that means I can't keep both the wands and index controllers charging at the same time if I wanted to use the wands for something. Just a minor nitpick, but still valve gets those wall warts at a bulk discount so I think they should have included it and it wouldn't have even costed them $1 each.
 
I got my controllers yesterday and turns out one of my Vive base stations is defective and out of warranty. Kind of stupid considering they've been sitting on my wall untouched for over 2 years now. They want $90 to fix it so I told them no thanks the other one will probably end up dying soon anyway so I ordered 2 new Valve lighthouses and have to wait for those. Horrible timing :(
 
Anyone experiencing glitching with Steam VR and Index? There's a post on Polygon today praising the experience "when it works". Personally, I've had problems like the ones they describe with Vive and SteamVR in the past, so I recognize what they're talking about, but assume it's teething problems.
 
Thanks for your input so far, everyone. My ordering window just came up and I have until July 5th to lock in a purchase of the whole package if desired. I'm very tempted, but I am curious of the potential for an eye-tracking/FOViated rendering hardware mod and other "expansions" planned. Right now the higher end competition seems to be The Vive Pro Eye (which of course adds eye tracking) , possibly the Pimax models (though I hear some not so great things about the reality/quality of the experience, vs what look like great specs on paper), and the Vive Cosmos. Seeing more reviews, especially from owners of existing higher end VR/AR gear will certainly be helpful..
 
Thanks for your input so far, everyone. My ordering window just came up and I have until July 5th to lock in a purchase of the whole package if desired. I'm very tempted, but I am curious of the potential for an eye-tracking/FOViated rendering hardware mod and other "expansions" planned. Right now the higher end competition seems to be The Vive Pro Eye (which of course adds eye tracking) , possibly the Pimax models (though I hear some not so great things about the reality/quality of the experience, vs what look like great specs on paper), and the Vive Cosmos. Seeing more reviews, especially from owners of existing higher end VR/AR gear will certainly be helpful..

Good eye tracking using foveated rendering in a commercial HMD product that is done right with fully baked software that works well is still at least a good year out. Get the Index. You will not be disappointed.
 
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Early impressions: I got my Index and the Knuckles controllers on Friday. I'm using them with my OG Vive lighthouses. First and foremost, for me, I gotta say the audio is great. I love the "off-the-ears" concept. While no audiophile, I feel it just sounds terrific and makes for a more complete and full soundstage. And being able to hear someone talking to me (should the need arise, although hubby knows not to bother me needlessly when I'm under the headset) is a bonus for me.

The comfort factor is also greatly improved. I'm a small girl with a small head and had been unable to wear the Vive (with the deluxe audio strap) for more than 30 minutes or so. The Index has so many adjustments; I still haven't dialed it in perfectly yet, but it just plain feels more comfortable and doesn't weigh heavily on my head or forehead. I still get indentations on my face, but I know it's because I'm cinching it in too tightly. I'll get it right eventually. I have been wearing it with glasses (can't wait for prescription VR lenses to become available) and I know I tend to anchor the headset too tightly because of them. And having the slider for your IPD is also a nice--and necessary--touch.

The LCD display is clearer and sharper to me. It's not an "OMG" night and day difference but is a readily noticeable difference. And the increased FOV accentuates the immersion factor. While the colors really are fine, black is the exception; it is indeed more of a dark gray than black. I'm pretty forgiving of that; seems a small tradeoff for being able to clearly read text.

The controllers still feel a little flaky...not tracking wise; I've had no problem with tracking in games with my 3-year-old lighthouses. But the finger movements don't always work, even with the programs that are specifically designed to showcase them. Playing "rock-paper-scissors" was a bit of a struggle! Gotta think that will improve with time, software, and my becoming more familiar with them. As controllers, they work fine for me and fit snugly and securely on my hand without my having to grip them. I know a lot of people on Reddit have been complaining about an issue with clicking the joystick. I haven't been through all my games to know if this is an issue for me. Right now, with the type of games I've been checking out, everything has been working and tracking just fine. It's a keeper for me.
 
I got my controllers yesterday and turns out one of my Vive base stations is defective and out of warranty.
If they are the originals, I was told (after mine died) that you should not keep them plugged in all the time. Upon replacing them, i put them on a switch and turn them on only when using them.

My controllers came in as well. Been super busy and have not even cracked the box open yet. Hope to play around this week while I'm off.
 
Early impressions: I got my Index and the Knuckles controllers on Friday. I'm using them with my OG Vive lighthouses. First and foremost, for me, I gotta say the audio is great. I love the "off-the-ears" concept. While no audiophile, I feel it just sounds terrific and makes for a more complete and full soundstage. And being able to hear someone talking to me (should the need arise, although hubby knows not to bother me needlessly when I'm under the headset) is a bonus for me.

The comfort factor is also greatly improved. I'm a small girl with a small head and had been unable to wear the Vive (with the deluxe audio strap) for more than 30 minutes or so. The Index has so many adjustments; I still haven't dialed it in perfectly yet, but it just plain feels more comfortable and doesn't weigh heavily on my head or forehead. I still get indentations on my face, but I know it's because I'm cinching it in too tightly. I'll get it right eventually. I have been wearing it with glasses (can't wait for prescription VR lenses to become available) and I know I tend to anchor the headset too tightly because of them. And having the slider for your IPD is also a nice--and necessary--touch.

The LCD display is clearer and sharper to me. It's not an "OMG" night and day difference but is a readily noticeable difference. And the increased FOV accentuates the immersion factor. While the colors really are fine, black is the exception; it is indeed more of a dark gray than black. I'm pretty forgiving of that; seems a small tradeoff for being able to clearly read text.

The controllers still feel a little flaky...not tracking wise; I've had no problem with tracking in games with my 3-year-old lighthouses. But the finger movements don't always work, even with the programs that are specifically designed to showcase them. Playing "rock-paper-scissors" was a bit of a struggle! Gotta think that will improve with time, software, and my becoming more familiar with them. As controllers, they work fine for me and fit snugly and securely on my hand without my having to grip them. I know a lot of people on Reddit have been complaining about an issue with clicking the joystick. I haven't been through all my games to know if this is an issue for me. Right now, with the type of games I've been checking out, everything has been working and tracking just fine. It's a keeper for me.

Thanks for the review! Clarity of text/details and less of the scuba mask FOV are the two big improvements I am most looking forward to. The comfort and adjustability features are a close second. Valve seems to have definitely spent a lot of time/effort in ensuring that the design ergonomics are first class which will allow for much more comfortable/longer VR sessions. I'm somewhat surprised though that they still haven't spilled the beans as to the 3 VR titles they have supposedly been working on for *well* over a year now... was really expecting them to either bundle or at least announce one of them with the release of the Index to help further drive sales and the VR hype. Guess it really isn't needed given that every Index they produce will sell out to the VR enthusiast crowd for at least the next 3-4 months, still would have been nice. Perhaps by late fall/early winter we'll see a big push that rolls out their games and perhaps a small price break to further push sales during the holiday rush.

As with all new products just out the door, it seems that Valve is no exception in having to further refine/fine-tune drivers. Somewhat surprising to me that they aren't in better shape software wise though given that Valve has been mucking about with the Knuckle prototypes for quite some time. Odds are they'll work out the issues/kinks relatively fast though now that they have released hardware out the door and product reviews to worry about.

All in all, I'm thinking the Index is going to be the VR enthusiast crowd's "go to" premium device for some time to come given how well it does everything. There simply are no other VR HMDs out there that tick off all of the boxes so thoroughly when it comes to quality/features/performance/design and brings them all together in one complete system. Definitely sets the VR bar much higher and will hopefully have other companies working that much harder to further push the envelop.
 
If they are the originals, I was told (after mine died) that you should not keep them plugged in all the time. Upon replacing them, i put them on a switch and turn them on only when using them.

My controllers came in as well. Been super busy and have not even cracked the box open yet. Hope to play around this week while I'm off.

Yep learned that the hard way. The stupid base stations stay on all the time and the only to turn them off is to unplug them because the Bluetooth method was always unreliable. Inconvenient little shits.
 
I put on the Index headset just intending to check on something....and 90 minutes later I had to force myself to stop playing. This is pretty unheard of for me. I've never been able to play that long at one sitting.

But I wanted to clarify about the black levels. I am actually indeed seeing black--or at least what I perceive as a level of blackness--along with the various shades of gray. I was playing Fallout 4 and there was good contrast to my eye in the underground vault. It seems the more I check out different titles the more excited I'm getting. I don't know how long the controllers will run on a charge, but I did plug them into the charger after this session and it didn't need anything.

As far as lighthouses are concerned, I don't unplug mine. I've always used the Bluetooth on/off, which has always worked reliably for me. When we occasionally lose power, the lighthouses will automatically default to on, and I have to sort that. But otherwise I've never unplugged them except for vacations.
 
I put on the Index headset just intending to check on something....and 90 minutes later I had to force myself to stop playing. This is pretty unheard of for me. I've never been able to play that long at one sitting.

But I wanted to clarify about the black levels. I am actually indeed seeing black--or at least what I perceive as a level of blackness--along with the various shades of gray. I was playing Fallout 4 and there was good contrast to my eye in the underground vault. It seems the more I check out different titles the more excited I'm getting. I don't know how long the controllers will run on a charge, but I did plug them into the charger after this session and it didn't need anything.

As far as lighthouses are concerned, I don't unplug mine. I've always used the Bluetooth on/off, which has always worked reliably for me. When we occasionally lose power, the lighthouses will automatically default to on, and I have to sort that. But otherwise I've never unplugged them except for vacations.

Ditto here on the lighthouses. I do check them from time to time to be sure they deactivated properly following a VR session - pretty easy to do visually. They seem pretty reliable for me as to shutting down when they are supposed to. I've read somewhere that the rotating motor hubs they use are HD spindle motors, so they should be fairly reliable and last a while... but there probably are exceptions, especially if they are accidentally dropped or knocked around. The version 1 lighthouses used 2 spindle motors in each unit, the newer version 2 units just use a single motor, so probably a bit more reliable in that there's one less part to fail.
 
Yep learned that the hard way. The stupid base stations stay on all the time and the only to turn them off is to unplug them because the Bluetooth method was always unreliable. Inconvenient little shits.
I had this problem with my Vive Pro, too, but the latest iterations of the software seem to have fixed it.
 
I use to do the BT power down but it was unreliable because as stated any power flux seems to auto turn them on. My power also doesn't fluctuate much but it does more so in the summer months when my AC is on and the compressor clicks on. So I bought this remote and it becomes real easy to just switch it on when I need it.
 
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Yep learned that the hard way. The stupid base stations stay on all the time and the only to turn them off is to unplug them because the Bluetooth method was always unreliable. Inconvenient little shits.

Mine did that at first (OG Vive), but they've been working correctly for me for a long time now.
 
I use to do the BT power down but it was unreliable because as stated any power flux seems to auto turn them on. My power also doesn't fluctuate much but it does more so in the summer months when my AC is on and the compressor clicks on. So I bought this remote and it becomes real easy to just switch it on when I need it.

Thanks for the link, picked up the 5 pack one. (I get worried when the 13 year old wants to plug in the base stations :eek: )
 
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Man, I'm still waiting to be able to purchase a Valve Index + Valve Index Controllers. People are getting emails regarding these and are being able to order new ones, so you guys should watch your emails.
 
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