3d gaming on LG 4K TV vs 3d gaming in VR headset with virtual desktop

[SubjectBucko]

Hello. I am thinking about getting a Pimax Crystal. I am currently playing on a 4K LG TV with Depth3d reshade and geo-11. This is the best 3d experience I have had thusfar including having a 1080p 3d vision surround setup, as well as a 1440p single monitor before Nvidia abandoned 3d vision. However, I would be interested in the communities opinion on how 4K 3D TV's compare to virtual desktop 3d in a high quality VR headset. I have tried VR but the image clarity does not compare with my 4K TV setup. Curious to know if anyone has the Pimax Crystal or other experience? Thank you

[Dark_saiyens]

I think the main issue with Pimax and 3D is the performance to run it... I could be very bad.
Image quality is great but i think it is lower than 65/55C6V for 3D.

But i don't have Pimax Crystal to help you for that, juste personnal thinking. Would be great to have someone with Pimax Cystal playing it in 3D flat games to tell us performances.

[VR3D]

I also have a 55" LG 4K OLED that does 3d. The best 3d for me is my Xreal Air. For me it looks like a 120" inch screen. Plus there is no ghosting at all. The 1080p looks really good an the OLED contrast and colors are amazing. Also using Phoenix Head Tracking app, I can use head tracking for lots of games. Plus it's easy to run because it's only 1080p. Of course you don't get the FOV of a VR headset but it still is very immersive. These are my personal impressions because some people feel it looks like a tiny image. Also there is little to no glare that I can see. Every VR headset that I've owned has glare (HTC Vive, Valve Index, BigScreen Beyond).

I tried 3d games with Virtual Desktop on my Index. It was cool but performance really wasn't great (RTX 3080). I tried it a little with the Beyond but can't really get it to work right.

Some of the 3d games I've played with the Xreal Air are Days Gone, Jedi Fallen Order, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Stray, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, GTA V, and Psychonauts. I was consistently blown away by the picture quality. Kind of amazing for something under $400.

[SubjectBucko]

Thank you both for the helpful replies. I took the plunge and got the Pimax Crystal. Been testing it non stop for almost 2 days now. My last headset was the Pimax 8KX (which I last used probably around 2 years ago) which I still have and compared this to the Pimax Crystal. It was quite a learning curve trying to get the best out of the Pimax and getting use to the Pimax software, etc.

Despite initial disappointment (and initially thinkiing I may return the Pimax to Amazon), I can tell you the Pimax Crystal is incredible. A big step up from the Pimax 8KX apart from the superwide FOV of the 8KX but you don't really notice this in the Pimax Crystal as it is good enough in my opinion. In Kayake VR: Mirage for example the image is approaching photo realism. I have played Half Life: Alyx, Star Wars Squadrons, Elite Dangerous and all of these are my best VR experience thusfar. I am definitely keeping the Pimax Crystal. The built in eye tracking works but I have not got any games that support it natively.

To get the best image in the above VR games you have to use supersampling but it is not too bad depending on the title. Anywhere from (150% to 500%) works well in most titles. You can go higher with supersampling if you have the grunt to drive it. The visual can be amazing in VR. Near objects can have the same image crispness as a 4k TV but you loose out on distance objects and terrain.

I have tried Virtual Desktop to run games in 3D (top and bottom and Half side by side) and I found getting this set up was a pain. I was able to play Gotham Knight, Spider Man Miles Morales, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Dragons Dogma 2 - all with Depth3D Reshade. Even with crazy high supersampling up to 2500% the picture quality does not approach a 4k TV in my opinion. Performance becomes an issue with this level of supersampling even on my 13900ks and 4090 system. I have gotten for example Gotham Knights running with decent image quality. It is really immersive playing on a big screen in VR. Infact, when I switched back to my TV after hours in the headset I found the TV small and felt a desire to sit closer to my TV.

Here are my questions:
1. Is there a way to stop the image rendering on my TV at the same time as running in my HMD/Pimax Crystal in Virtual Desktop to help with performance?
2. Is there any other applications apart from Virtual Desktop that may work better?

Also, regarding the Xreal Air (I am realy excited to explore this - I have never consider AR before)
1. Does it support Geo-11 and Depth 3d (I assume it does)?

Apologies for the long post and thank you for your feedback.

[SubjectBucko]

I think the main issue with Pimax and 3D is the performance to run it... I could be very bad.
Image quality is great but i think it is lower than 65/55C6V for 3D.

But i don't have Pimax Crystal to help you for that, juste personal thinking. Would be great to have someone with Pimax Cystal playing it in 3D flat games to tell us performances.

I can get between 45fps to 60fps with 3d Virtual Desktop. Resolution from supersampling is variable depending on the title but I often go up to the max of 2500% supersampling (Steam VR supersampling 500% and Per-application supersampling 500%). The resolution can vary but usually 10 000 to 20 000 by 10 000 to 20 000. The highest I went to was 43 000 by 50 000 in Gotham Knights and with this I managed to get 45 fps (half of the Pimax Crystal 90 Hz mode). The Pimax uses smart smoothening which makes the 45 fps feel smooth like 60fps gaming. 60fps buttery smooth gaming with the Pimax Crystal 120 Hz mode is achievable. You have to use supersampling to get an acceptable image in my opinion and at these levels you need a high end rig. My GPU VRAM can be anything from 16gb to 20.5gb and my GPU is running in the high 90th percentile.

I do not think this current generation of VR and desktop hardware supports high fidelity VR gaming in 3D using Virtual Desktop. Maybe with higher resolution VR headsets and future generations of GPU's this may be a viable alternative to monitor/tv gaming. However you also have to take into account the comfort issues of using a HMD for long gaming sessions etc.

[petermg]

I also have a 55" LG 4K OLED that does 3d. The best 3d for me is my Xreal Air. For me it looks like a 120" inch screen. Plus there is no ghosting at all. The 1080p looks really good an the OLED contrast and colors are amazing. Also using Phoenix Head Tracking app, I can use head tracking for lots of games. Plus it's easy to run because it's only 1080p. Of course you don't get the FOV of a VR headset but it still is very immersive. These are my personal impressions because some people feel it looks like a tiny image. Also there is little to no glare that I can see. Every VR headset that I've owned has glare (HTC Vive, Valve Index, BigScreen Beyond).

I tried 3d games with Virtual Desktop on my Index. It was cool but performance really wasn't great (RTX 3080). I tried it a little with the Beyond but can't really get it to work right.

Some of the 3d games I've played with the Xreal Air are Days Gone, Jedi Fallen Order, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Stray, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, GTA V, and Psychonauts. I was consistently blown away by the picture quality. Kind of amazing for something under $400.

I want to hear more about your Xreal Air 3D gaming! Is there any screen door effect that you can see? Is using it for 3D gaming something it does natively or does it require a hack? Is it as easy as pressing a "3D" button or? Is there a page or post that details all of this? I just noticed they came out with the Xreal Air 2 glasses. Will those also work for 3D gaming? I'm very interested in this as a 3D gaming option.

[VR3D]

I also have a 55" LG 4K OLED that does 3d. The best 3d for me is my Xreal Air. For me it looks like a 120" inch screen. Plus there is no ghosting at all. The 1080p looks really good an the OLED contrast and colors are amazing. Also using Phoenix Head Tracking app, I can use head tracking for lots of games. Plus it's easy to run because it's only 1080p. Of course you don't get the FOV of a VR headset but it still is very immersive. These are my personal impressions because some people feel it looks like a tiny image. Also there is little to no glare that I can see. Every VR headset that I've owned has glare (HTC Vive, Valve Index, BigScreen Beyond).

I tried 3d games with Virtual Desktop on my Index. It was cool but performance really wasn't great (RTX 3080). I tried it a little with the Beyond but can't really get it to work right.

Some of the 3d games I've played with the Xreal Air are Days Gone, Jedi Fallen Order, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Stray, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, GTA V, and Psychonauts. I was consistently blown away by the picture quality. Kind of amazing for something under $400.

I want to hear more about your Xreal Air 3D gaming! Is there any screen door effect that you can see? Is using it for 3D gaming something it does natively or does it require a hack? Is it as easy as pressing a "3D" button or? Is there a page or post that details all of this? I just noticed they came out with the Xreal Air 2 glasses. Will those also work for 3D gaming? I'm very interested in this as a 3D gaming option.

I don't see screen door effect. It's very good for 1080p. To enable side by side 3d mode you hold one of the brightness buttons for 3 seconds. You have to run the games in 3840x1080 resolution for the 3d to be correct. Not sure if the newer models require this. There's also a 120hz mode but not with 3d.

[bearkoolboy]

Hello. I am thinking about getting a Pimax Crystal. I am currently playing on a 4K LG TV with Depth3d reshade and geo-11. This is the best 3d experience I have had thusfar including having a 1080p 3d vision surround setup, as well as a 1440p single monitor before Nvidia abandoned 3d vision. However, I would be interested in the communities opinion on how 4K 3D TV's compare to virtual desktop 3d in a high quality VR headset. I have tried VR but the image clarity does not compare with my 4K TV setup. Curious to know if anyone has the Pimax Crystal or other experience? Thank you

I don't have VR, I'm using GOOVIS (G3/ART), and in HSBS mode, their two products have great one click 3D effects! I also have AR XReal, and ultimately GOOVIS (G3/ART) can fully screen all games in HSBS mode, while AR can only partially full screen.