If you consider pre-ordering a Pimax headset and you want to support my work, please use the affiliate link below! Thank you, it means a lot and keeps the channel running! Order Pimax Crystal Now: pimax.com/pages/crystal-light?ref=mrtv (Affiliate) Sincerely, Sebastian P.S.: Are you gonna get one?
A question for you Sebastian. I see that for the new Pimax Lite version it mentions the removal of fans etc for weight saving, are the fans in the standard version for cooling the hardware? or prevention of fogging the lenses? I have a reverb G2 from the original pre order days, my one dislike is when using fitness software or rhythm games is that the headset will fog up at certain times of year. Really wish it had a fan to cause airflow across the lenses.
I was skeptical that the Quest 3 could replace my G2 but it's doing everything I need really well. The PiMax has great stats but the form factor is what kills it for me. It's too big and bulky. It looks like those VR headset prototypes we saw demoed in the 90's.
Bear in mind that it doesn't matter what it looks like when you're using it. It is a bulky headset, but that really doesn't matter when you're in VR because you don't see the headset. You only see VR. Only the weight really matters, and it's much lighter than it looks.
Quest 3 is an awesome headset, don't underestimate it's standalone/wireless features. Less fidgeting compared to a Pimax headset and you can simply jump right in and enjoy VR content.
Sounds funny that "you have to act fast", like that lite version would be some limited version or it is so great that everyone will have one. I think acting fast might suit Pimax until much more opinions will be flooded with real units... You know Pimax track record.
I have the regular pimax crystal ans it's a good headset but the battery annoyed the living daylights out of me as I play long sim games. Anyways I placed a pre-order for the pimax crystal super because I think that extended FOV, local timing, and resolution will be worth it.
Thanks for the video. Hoping you can include iRacing when you do your review in May. Looking to replace my G2 which is on the last cable I’m getting for it. I do have the Quest 3 for wireless gaming and such, and have used it with iRacing and it’s okay…but prefer running through Steam VR or OpenXR. Anyway, was looking today to see if I would buy the Crystal and saw the announcement from a few days ago…and here I am…thinking good timing and pretty convinced the Light is the way to go. Just not sure if I want with or without local dimming. Pre-ordered without but may change it. Anyway, if you could include some sim racing in your comments/review would be very helpful…and a comparison with and without the dimming would be amazing.
I never thought that i would be saying that, but: I ditched my Pimax 8KX and the Crystal (borrowed from a friend) for my Quest 3 and will probably never be looking back. The reason is simple: The Quest 3 works, always. You turn it on, click on AirLink, start your game and its good to go. Whereas the Pimax Headsets needs to be restarted multiple times, PiTools needs some tweaking, the cable wants to be connected to a different port, yada yada yada............Being a PC nerd i never thought that it would really bother me, i like tweaking. However at some point i noticed that i stopped playing PCVR Games because of these issues. Out of curiosity i attached my Quest 3 and used it for my PCVR Games (Mainly for SimRacing). Since doing so my Playtime has drastically improved again. Yes, i do miss the high FOV (Cant see other cars now through the side window...) and the clarity of the Pimax Headsets, but what is it worth if i am not even turning the headset on? And in all honesty: While playing it doesnt make a difference, im focused on the game and the gameplay. Of course thats just me, but i think its still important to note: Pimax Headsets are like cats - they decide when you can play with them, not the other way round.
Actually, I was stressed because of pitool when using 8KX... but I never had a software problem while using Crystal... Crystal can be used by connecting to PCVR much more conveniently than connecting Quest 3 wirelessly. If you're simply focusing on the game, it's much more convenient to just use a monitor. Using VR is to have a better experience and feel a better sense of reality... good picture quality is essential... The only downside to crystal is its weight and price... Light solved both weight and price... What is certain is that when using Crystal since last year, there has not been a single software problem...
@@hcson5091 Im happy for you, that the crystal is working :) for me however it was still causing issues. Not as much as with the 8kx, but I had still enough issues to stop me from playing. As for the comparison to flat screens I hope you are just making a joke, but in case you are not: It's not like the crystal is miles ahaed of the quest 3. Yes, it's more crisp, but for me personally it does not increase the immersion, that's what I meant with I focus on the gameplay. Of course I still need the VR experience when playing Sims, but when racing I am so focused on the racing line/breaking points/ other drivers that I simply do not notice the little differences. Both are providing a very nice VR experience. But again: each to there own, I understand that there are others that are using vr simply for the graphics and that's OK. For those people the pimax headsets might be more worth it
It could technically be done right now. Tech wise, I'd bet we could match RP1 within now to 2030. Commercially sold setup at a reasonable price tho... Possibly 2040 to never. And by reasonable I mean like 10k
You do for the Crystal Super but not the Crystal Light. You will get $400 off on the Super, which if you get the QLED model, which is the one worth getting if specs hold true, will be $1399 for current Crystal owners which is INSANE.
Hy Sebastian ! Thank for this review ! Can you tell us if the Pimax crystal "LIGHT" can be used easily on stand up position, particulary about weight, stability and cable longer plz ? 🤔😁
I bought a Q3 for £450 and a Kiwi design headset for £45 with battery. So for £200 less than than the Pimax I can wirelessly play PCVR games for 3+ hours via steam link which connects without issue. Honestly I'd pay £200 more not to have to deal with Pimax BS and using me like a QA/QC tester. There's a reason companies like Pimax avoid selling on Amazon and it's down to shite customer service. I never thought I'd give up my wide FoV and 3 base station setup but this has turned VR into much more of a pick up and play affair compared to the mainly hit but often waste an hour to get everything working it could be.
They sell at Amazon nowadays and they are not as shitty as they were before. It's fine to change your mind from time to time. Things evolve. Give them a chance.
@@Valkron11 exactly - but that's my issue though. it makes the relatively inexpensive headset almost $900 which pushes it out of the realm of inexpensive and accessible
If you're coming from Quest 2/3, Index, Reverb G2, etc... all of these popular headsets also do not have local dimming, and so you will not miss it. If you're coming from one of the very few OLED headsets out there or the Quest Pro, then the local dimming version would be nice to keep more of the deeper blacks you're used to. But really, this is not a required feature. It's just nice to have. Very few VR headsets even have it. If you're price conscious, the $699 model is definitely the one to get.
Thanks for the video and information. QUESTION: Whenever you get this PIMAX Crystal Lite for review - how is the Sweet Spot compared to the Quest 3??? I have the Quest 3 and agree this headset does everything that I need. The clarity and wide Sweet Spot are great in the Quest 3. I do connect via a USB link cable for PCVR SIM racing games. Plus I run most of my games in Oculus VR mode - don't need to go through STEAM VR. I guess at the end of the video you say the PIMAX does not need Base Stations. So you answered my only question. If I also decide to get one of these new PIMAX Crystal headsets as a backup, I will wait for a while and see how the release reviews go on how well these work. Also will the pricing stay the same after release dates. I am not a person who buys stuff on day one of product release far as are there any problems with them. Thanks for the video.
I watched this video one more time and thank you for the review. My MAIN QUESTION for the PIMAX Crystal Light ( this is when you get one for review) - How is the Sweet Spot on the Crystal Light compared to my Quest 3 which I have right now???? I like the Quest 3 for viewing the games and has a good large sweet spot for me and I do many SIm racing games. I Don't have to continue to adjust the Quest 3 headset like I did with other VR headsets and these older headsets are now retired and sitting on the shelf. Thanks again for the video and take care..
Is it possible to run Pimax Crystal with PC, but without touching the monitor? I know that with pico 4 it was possible (using virtual deaktop), so probably with quest 3 as well. I travel a lot and the space in my suitcase is limited. That's why this question :) I will also add that this will be the last argument deciding which headset I will choose.
Hardly. No eye tracking, local dimming and ability to do wireless. But you can sell yours and downgrade if you don't want those features. But just so you know... everything comes out with another version. It's not a slap in the face. It's how the world works.
Nice meeting you on Showdown. We dropped in to the nuclear factory and I landed into a squad of 3. You managed to fight them off but one guy dropped in shooting you with a parachute land. ha
I thought you said Pimax never had good binocular overlap. So is this one way better than other Pimax headsets in the past? Color and blacks only better in the local dimming version or the non local dimming as well? I think the Quest 3 has great blacks and colors because a higher resolution than Quest 2.
The Pimax binocular overlap issues are from the wide FOV headsets. Specifically, their binocular overlap is larger, by degrees, than any other headset, so it's actually very good. But as a percentage, it's maybe only 50% of the FOV because they cover such a wider area. So you go from depth perception to flatscreen at about the midpoint of each screen. The reduced FOV modes on these units brings in the peripheral vision and improves the coverage % as a result. The crystal is a lower FOV headset out of the gate, so automatically roughly equivalent to low fov mode of the wide fov headsets.
Something I never hear anyone mention about the Quest 3 is how small it is for some people. I bought one for my son's birthday. While he seems to find it comfortable enough (despite the clunky stock head strap, which he'll replace by an aftermarket one), for me it doesn't work at all. I think the reason is that the curvature of the face pad is smaller than that of my forehead by just a little bit. This tiny difference puts a lot of pressure on my temples to the point where it becomes painful after only a few minutes. Do you know if aftermarket face pads solve this issue?
Definitely, try the VRCover or AMVR ones. they usually come with pads in different thicknesses as well. Much more comfortable and the first thing to do.
All this goodness is... What? What is this goodness doing? Making a sandwich? Going to the store to buy some milk? Clipping its toenails? ALL THIS GOODNESS IS....COMING UP!!!
Dont sleep on the G2. Everything is just now finally catching up to the G2's resolution...G2 users were enjoying sharp 2160p per eye years ago. Added to that, I use this hack on an AMD GPU to turn up the color saturation a bit, and I get brighter 'OLED-like' colors: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-L3RAqjKGVT0.htmlsi=l_1CS5ScjiHXu535
Also there is a distortion sweetspot with the Crystal lenses. If you move your head even a little while wearing it you see distortions. Half the reviewers don't even mention it. But for this price it's not going to be a deal breaker.
@@mixedrealityTV i have pico 4 right now and am very happy with it.. i scale up the resolution to 180% in steam through virtual desktop.. so it looks like 4k per eye..
Just two stupid questions: 1. I have a DPVR E4 powered by rx 6950xt, 7800x3d and 32GB Ram. My friend has a quest 2 (only used in pcvr) powewred by rx 6700xt, intel 12600k and also 32gb ram. How well does/will the Pimax Crystal work with these setups? I know that the two GPUs are quiet diffrent and not that well suited for VR, since they are AMD GPUs, but when we watched the video it sounds like that I and my friend can both easily run the Crystal Light and there would be nothing to worry about. 2. How far do the visuals suffer if you choose a lower render target something like 90/80/70%?
The visuals on the Crystal are still very good at lower render targets. It's very reasonable to run it even at 50%. The very same render resolution as you're using on your current E4 will look better on the Crystal due to its lenses and higher resolution panels, even if you're not rendering at higher resolution.
The biggest pity is the form factor. They could've taken this opportunity to make that big bulky uncomfortable headset into a truly lite version. Missed opportunity IMO. Therefore quest 3 is the winner for me. I have a racing simulator so I'm now looking for a dedicate high quality PC headset for my seated racing. META has stirred things up which is a good thing. Hopefully some more competitors start to introduce some interesting products. I will wait a year. I raced 20 hrs in one weekend on the Quest 3 and had no comfort issues.
Hi! Glad to hear from you! Tracking is surprisingly good! At the beginning of Crystal it was not so great but they managed to improve every update. Nowadays it's on Qurst/Pico level.
IMO absolutely. The local dimming of the Crystal paired with the QLED and aspherical lenses offer the best overall visuals in VR currently. Combined it’s closer to OLED colors and contrast ratios than not without the OLED issues.
PCVR users mostly don't care about AR. It's personal preference. And the Crystal Light does feature a monochrome passthrough mode via the tracking cameras.
I actually don't know what I should do with AR of Q3, it was nice to have but nothing more, also their pass through was not that good quality, that I wanted to bother with it at all.
Why is Pimax still in business? It's the biggest headset on the market and does nothing special. They should spend every dollar they have increasing FOV (real and peripheral light effects), and marketting that....
I think you should mention that you are wearing glasses and got used to move your head more than move your eyes, so you kinda look into the center more. For me who does not wearing glasses, I more move my eyes, so for me it is crucial to have a great picture quality everywhere. Because of that i returned my hp reverb g2 after two days. Worse headset ever on my opinion. But of you ok yo always look to the center only and kove your head, then yeah it is great. The question is how good or bad the quality looks on the sidessince it is statis foveated rendering there. And can you just disable it? And of course how it is in comparison with Quest 3
Edge 2 Edge clarity is very good on both devices. Problem with the Reverb G2 got you was probably that you did not get close enough to the lenses. That was solved in V2 of the headset.
@@mixedrealityTV I've seen your video very long time ago when you been talking about the issues with picture quality in reverb and how to fix it. I tried all those methods plus advices from other vloggers, then forums... Found a lot of people with the same complains and nothing could fix it. As I remember you even ask some people to give you their "bad" headset and it worked good for you. I'm just saying that the way people look at the objects and expectations are different. I cannot say a lot of good about Quest 3. Yes it is better then Quest 2, but for me the picture quality is not that good. I've never used pimax just because I didn't see yet great version for me. With Light, according to their picture it is about 35ppd in the center and 15 on the sides. 15 is kinda low if the picture is correct. Did you get a device already to actually see how it is really looks like? I just did not see the review of actual device yet. For me Super version looks good, but I hate cables and wondering why they not using WiFi 7 which technically can get the speed almost like Display port. And second part is a content issue. Unfortunately Quest is beating everything just because of the content. Not so many PC VR games available. I mean good quality games with good graphics. Half life only pretty much. All the rest is back to 2000 🙂 mix of pimax and quest but with wifi 7 probably would be the best, but at this moment they all quite not there yet
The rates you're quoting are not accurate, at least not in Europe. The Pimax is priced at $699, but without taxes. You need to add 21% to this amount, which in euro conversion is around €800. In Europe, you'll find the Quest 3 at €550, tax included. Finally, to make the Pimax work to its full potential, you'll need a high-performance GPU, which means an additional cost.
Hi, yes I mention that in the video. That's the point of it right, needing a gaming PC versus Standalone. The Quest 3 512 GB which I would recommend is what? 700€ and then you need a good strap...
All these PCVR headsets feel like what PC gaming felt like in the 90s before steam and windows updates.. a burden. Quest vs PCVR reminds me of the late 2000s console vs PC debates.. plug and play always wins even if PCVR is technically better in the end. Comfort uber alles! I personally only own the Index but kinda hate it and i am waiting for PCVR to evolve with hopefully the Index2 or whoever does it first. My vision for PCVR is something like the Bigscreen beyond form factor but wireless simple enough right? Quest3 PRO sounds kinda neat as well just the Q3 but higher resolution and passthrough for $1000.
Hi. Great video. Will the Crystal light run as well as my G2 with 90fps in Asseto Corsa with a i9 12900k with 32gb ram and a 4090. Want to upgrade but not loose performance. Many thanks.
Bro even if it will be necessary to lower some settings it will looks x10 from G2, I had g2 before my quest 3 and it's night and day. Especially about sweetspot in G2 it was horrible. So if crystal better then q3 you will be happy with it 100%
And one more thing, check test of 7800x3d in acc, this sim receive incredible boost with 7800x3d. I believe it's something about 40% fps boost compared to Intel 13 or 14 gen I'm into iracing but most likely I will replace my 11700k with this amd
4090 has only DP1.4 ...Which use compression, it's impossible to have a native signal without DSC, with a DP1.4a We have flow compression with a 3:1 ratio without visual loss, for G2 which has only a total of 9.3Mp, to manage so if you computer only succeed to have 90fps on AssetoCorsa, it ll struggle a little bit to have 2x9Mp at 90hz ....you'll probably loose some performance... With a Dp1.4, which requires bigger compression... You need DP2.0 and an AMD graphic card at least for a Pimax light without compression.
I'm loving my Quest 3. I've got no desire to fork out for this Pimax headset. Unless they can reduce the weight considerably and make it smaller than the Quest 3 which we know will be impossible because of the spheric lenses. No doubt the Pimax light will pack a punch, but it will also take too much space on my desk. Quest 3 is simply a more accessible headset and I'm enjoying dipping me toes in all sorts of games all wirelessly to boot.
@mixedrealityTV haha but the part I'm confused about is how it's better? It's lighter sure, but does that now make it better when you lose eye tracking, local dimming, interchangeable lenses, Wigig compatibility, standalone mode etc?
"you natively get the visuals from your computer, they don't have to be compressed"....False... DP1.4 use compression, it's impossible to have a native signal without DSC We have flow compression with a 3:1 ratio without visual loss 2x9Mp at 90hz ? with a Dp1.4? It requires compression...You need DP2.0 at least for a Pimax light without compression. We have to stop with this idea of superiority of the DisplayPort cable...especially with a Nvidia Graphic Cards... It's just that Meta, Pico, settled for 5gbps... To please as many computers as possible. USB 3.2, and even better 4.0, are just as interesting, if not more so... You need a USB to DisplayPort 1.4 anyway...to work While USB has a virtual display port mode... By the way, it's impossible for the Crystal Super if it have only DP1.4 to display 2x15Mp at 90Hz natively....And Nvidia still have only DP1.4 even on a 4090... Better to use a RX7900XTX which has DP2.1
DSC is something completely different as compared to the compression that you have via USB / wifi. Human eye cannot see DSC. But the human eye can see compression artefacts and color banding when using the compression for usb abs wifi streaming. You should know better.
@@mixedrealityTV You are right, and i clearly wrote :"We have flow compression with a 3:1 ratio without visual loss" for DP1.4 😉 But do you know the rate of compression of USB 3 with a Pico 4 or Quest 3? I didn't find the value...20:1 may be? No matter in fact, because the limitation is ...android and XR2... For a PCVR headset with USB3.2 or 4 , the ratio could be lower and identical to the DP's one, thanks to the better bandwidth That's my point. Bandwidth and ratio of compression values are required to judge. Bandwidth: USB 3.1 Gen 1 = 5 Gbits/s (Quest3 Pico 4 but limited by Android ) DP1.4a =32,4 Gbit/s but USB necessary. and DSC rate of 3:1 802.11ax(Wi-Fi 6 et 6E) =8 Mbit/s à 10,5 Gbit/s 802.11ad(WiGig) =6,75 Gbit/s 802.11ay (WiGig2) = 20-40Gbit/s(...176 Gbit/s !) USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 = 20 Gbits/s USB4.0 = 40/80 Gbits/s DP2.1 =80 Gbit/s. Japanese broadcaster NHK has developed a real-time HEVC encoder capable of encoding 60 fps video in 7680 x 4320 (8K) (Pimax Super equivalent) at 85 Mbps compression ratio of 350:1 4320p240fps(! top for VR) stereoscopic video would require around 366 Mbps=0.366Gbit/s Not so much indeed but.... Assuming a compression ratio of 200:1 ....200:1 ! in VR....the DSC of the DP1.4a is 3:1.... The Quest 3 uses 200 Mbps when streaming the signal in a good USB, bottlenecked by XR2. A Pimax Super would need at least 4/5 times more...1000Mbps or 1Gbit/s with the same average compression rate used in a headset Android/USB streaming with bad ratio and bottlenecked system... Or at least 3/4Gbit/s for a DP quality or a USB 3.2 quality with 3.0 ratio.... Same for Wifi... WiGig 1 reaches a maximum of 7 Gbit/s. Which is good for 1 Gbit/s real and average ratio...in practical conditions. Yes, we must take into account the numerous interferences... Hence the need for WiGig2, if you want a good ratio And unlike TV which doesn't care about latency in its broadcast, and can have 1" delay in its live broadcast, provided by cameras, VR must calculate visual feedback to your action and stay under 12 ms, and in more with more images per second than TV! And there, that increases greatly the necessary flow rate!!! and so require WiGig2....or wired USB4/DP2...40Gbit/s with a GOOD ratio of compression For me the Pimax Crystal range doesn't worth the hype....its VR is bottlenecked ...a 4090 not enough powerful with DP1.4
