Am I the only person NOT playing with a TrackIr or OR?

[purf]

The Facetracking thing is alright but I wear glasses and prefer to not have my desklight on and then it becomes rather glitchy and sluggish. And in my experiments so far I found it rather immersion-breaking when just slightly glancing at the keyboard makes, say, the Navigation panel pop up... not to mention the effects from taking a sip from a glass.
However, I very much plan to get hold of some IRleds and do a proper DIY-TrackIR. (Because, imho, those ~150 moneys scream rip-off)

 

[halide]

Setup my ed tracker today. Nice piece of kit. U guys at ed put some clever software on this little device. It really adds to feeling of being in the space craft. I am saving for the oculus rift, consumer version as well and ed tracker fills the gap nicely

 

[Hexcaliber]

The Facetracking thing is alright but I wear glasses and prefer to not have my desklight on and then it becomes rather glitchy and sluggish. And in my experiments so far I found it rather immersion-breaking when just slightly glancing at the keyboard makes, say, the Navigation panel pop up... not to mention the effects from taking a sip from a glass.
However, I very much plan to get hold of some IRleds and do a proper DIY-TrackIR. (Because, imho, those ~150 moneys scream rip-off)

I did try several combinations of DIY hardware and software, as you point out, they are much cheaper than trackir, and it would be silly to ignore cheaper alternatives, however, this really is a case of getting what you paid for. The DIY units are inferior, while they work, they have nothing like the resolution and accuracy, and titles would visibly jump as I panned my view instead of panning smoothly; not to mention the superior software offered by trackir.

I cannot imagine using the DIY efforts in some of the flight Sims I have as they were next to worthless, but I no longer have them to compare in ED.

 

[Dubh]

I have both DK1 & 2. Do not buy OR yet. Wait for CV1. Yeah the experience is great and all, especially with VoiceAttack but its just not where it needs to be (and will be later this year). I throw the DK2 on every now and then and am blown away and its definitely on the list for people I'm introducing to the rift for the first time - it literally blows their freaking minds.

I always just go back to monitor, keyboard and mouse - I got wife and kids too so it's always good to be able to respond to a shout. Seriously though - when you're in there with the rift with headphones on YOU ARE THERE. It is truly an amazing experience that will get even better.

 

[Issmir]

Ive recently bought an EDTracker http://edtracker.org.uk/ and I can tell you it blows TrackIR (et al) out of the water plus its about a third of the cost. In combat it's so much more fun, I can't say for sure it gives any kind of advantage but I would think it does. OR is now something I will want to try out but for now this little gadget is the dogs!

Yeah, I've been using EDTracker for a couple of weeks now. It's pretty cool, though I've been having calibration problems with it. That being said, for the price it can't be beat. Once you've configured it to your tastes it feels very natural, though I think I need to play with FoV and other things - if I leave it on too long I get nauseous (which is odd, cos I've never had motion sickness before).

I do a lot more trading than combat, so the most use I've had with it is to have my pilot headbanging along with me while flying. But still - it's a cool piece of tech.

 

[Arda]

It seems like every video I see of people playing ED has them looking around in the cockpit with a TrackIR (or similar).
Since I am poor and "Married with Children", I wonder if I'm missing out on much, or whether I am handicapped in some way while playing for not having one...?
Is it worth the cost?

I've got some savings which I am holding onto for the Consumer release of OR (I ally debated whether to get the DK, then the DK2, but decided it would be best to wait for the actual thing instead).
Is there any point getting a TrackIR if I'm going to eventually get a Rift?

Check these guys out: http://edtracker.org.uk/
ED players that made a tracker system for the community just for the case of doing it. It works great and cost only a tenth of other commercial systems.

 

[StuPer]

Ok, first up this is a personal opinion, and so take it as such. ED is THE game that makes VR dreams come true, I have both the DK1 and DK2, I didnt play ED with DK1 simply because I had read the text was unreadable, and so I didnt see the point.
However in the DK2 the game is bloody glorious, I cannot and will not play the game on a monitor, ever... even 4k 8k whatever..... sure the detail on a scren maybe better, but its only a screen.
Here's the rub, in the DK2, yes the text maybe slightly blurry, yes the overall image has a look as though you are looking through some muslin. But I can lean forward and the text is clear, I can also track any ship in visual range while easily maintaining a different heading, I can get up out of the seat and look around the cockpit, I can look out of the window and see my ship from angles not possible from the seat alone. I can wear the Rift for hours with no discomfort, no nausea, and because I have X55, & Voice Attack I don't need a keyboard (though I honestly prefer typing star destinations rather than trying to spell them verbally), and I only use the mouse for the Station screen.
I cannot explain this sufficiently to non-rift/VR users, there is no measure or comparison I can give that will help get it across, all I can say is if you know anyone with a Rift ask for ANY demo, seeing really is believing. The ONLY caveat I would offer is that you need a fairly powerful PC to run the DK2 with decent graphics and no stutter, etc. Bear in mind the bare minimum fps is 75 with the equivalent of 2 x 1080p screens, lower than that and you run the risk of spoiling the VR experience and potentially making yourself sick.
Regards
StuPer

 

[teamkill]

Check these guys out: http://edtracker.org.uk/
ED players that made a tracker system for the community just for the case of doing it. It works great and cost only a tenth of other commercial systems.

I am using EDTracker, works very well and worth every penny of the £8.50 is spent on it

Built it myself from the Hobby Components kit

 

[bassman]

It seems like every video I see of people playing ED has them looking around in the cockpit with a TrackIR (or similar).
Since I am poor and "Married with Children", I wonder if I'm missing out on much, or whether I am handicapped in some way while playing for not having one...?
Is it worth the cost?

I've got some savings which I am holding onto for the Consumer release of OR (I ally debated whether to get the DK, then the DK2, but decided it would be best to wait for the actual thing instead).
Is there any point getting a TrackIR if I'm going to eventually get a Rift?

I went as far as making myself a pretty decent IR headtracker but found that after the initial wow factor it was just too fiddly to bother with. Its certainly not any real advantage in combat once you learn to read the scanner and target orientation panel properly.

 

[WolfMonster]

I'm a TrackIR user. I got my TrackIR 4 for rFactor and FS2004 originally, it really changed them both. For rFactor being able to look into the turns before turning the wheel really changes the game.

I got the TrackIR 5 and the X55 at the same time, I don't need to touch the keyboard at all. I'm currently using the hat clip, but that's only because my housemate comes in and watches me play sometimes, so I'm on speakers.

The only thing I need to do is adjust my curves, at least until the DK2 shows up. It's been two weeks and still hasn't shipped.

 

[Zeeman]

Been running my TrackIR 5 for a few weeks now, I can't play without it anymore. It makes everything better - even docking. I even turn it on if I am just doing a single stop 10 minute stint in ED to get to the next rares hub before going back to work/out.

As I've said before, make the effort to find one second hand, and you'll probably find one for $50 or less.

Z...

 

[DAYLEET]

FaceTrackNoIR cost nothing and use a webcam you already own. It's very useful to access side panel or when you approach a station to dock so you can look at it, it's nice to look at stuff, i like stuff=), the only key left on my keyboard now is the activation of Frameshift Drive and i would have it somewhere else if i could.

Huge drawback for me is that you can't play in complete darkness as the webcam needs to track your face. But you can use it with ps3 eye or xbox whatchacallIT.

It does make a huge difference in gameplay for me, It won't make you better at dogfight(at least not me lol), learning to be efficient with the radar and thruster will but not head tracking.

 

[Aggraxis]

I wanted to follow up on FaceTrackNoIR. I tried it with two different webcams (an ultra cheap one that came in a LearningTree kit and a Logitech C525 ~$35). It works reaosnably well with some light tweaking. You can also run two cameras at once, but I didn't get that 100% ironed out. I recorded one of my twitch streams where I overlayed the face tracking widget so you can see it at work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH7kEP9EzVg

Anyhow, you don't have to watch much of the video to see how things go. It's pretty neat.

 

[DAYLEET]

but I didn't get that 100% ironed out.

Me either, there's a moment in the night where i have to stop it and start it again but at this point i closed most light and only have a small one behind the monitor and that makes the noIR do weird stuff. In any case i do enjoy playing with it. I also had to enable vsync and lock it at 60. I have a 144hz monitor and i was doing above 120 easy in ED but the hud keep flickering, that's not a noIR problem though it's ED :/

 

[Mr_Blastman]

Yes, you are missing out. Go buy a Track IR, it will be the best thing you ever buy for gaming.

 

[Gunpowder jack]

I play with trackIR5 and I couldn't imagine playing ED without it. Two reason I got trackIR was price and I can use it on other games that use TrackIR, but not Occulus.

 

[DJ]

Since I am poor and "Married with Children", I wonder if I'm missing out on much, or whether I am handicapped in some way while playing for not having one...?

I wonder too after months of gamepad/notebook use, but the wallet moths have the final say on my ageing gaming equipment...

 

[Pib_Juju]

I'm waiting for the consumer oculus rift as well (though it's getting more and more difficult to hold out). In the mean time, I'm using an xbox 360 controller and using the right analog stick to look around works great!

I think that's smart, honestly. I have an Oculus myself, and while my first time playing Elite with the Oculus was literally the most jaw-dropping moment I've ever had playing a game, I still think the smart move at this point is to wait for the commercial release. With the way mobile screens are advancing every season, who knows-- maybe the Oculus will be 4k by that time. That, along with streamlining the unit as a whole, will make it ten times more appealing.

It really is cool, though. The first time I leaned around my chair to look behind me and saw all the little scars on my ship's seat, and the doorway into the cockpit, I squeed.

 

[Trixi]

I don't have any, I don't usually play sim games and I'm not rich enough to buy gadgets for one single game. Mouse is OK for looking around.

 

[Balsbigbrother]

I just use an Xbox controller and voice attack and will be sticking with just that. Won't be able to use a rift due to eye sight and I don't really see the point of trackIR on a single monitor.