HTC VIVE Pro 2 Virtual Reality System

Upgrade from a Vive Pro to the Vive Pro 2. Worked with my Gen 1 controllers and trackers. The difference in quality is significant. I use my VR for DCS World VR. I recently upgraded my PC from an Intel i9 Gen 9 to an AMD Ryzen 9950, 128 GB RAM, and kept my ZOTA RTX 4090. I decided to make the upgrade to the Pro 2 because the original Vive Pro worked like a champ and need to stay with PC based VR. It was not a plug and play upgrade. The new VR set uses a Display port plug vice the HDMI from the older Vive Pro. I had to adjust for that. My RTX 4090 has 3 DPorts and one HDMI port. Then I had to uninstall all previously installed VR drivers and Steam VR. I installed the new Vive VR Manager bridges between the VR headset and the Steam VR app. Then I reinstalled SteamVR. I run three monitors when not in VR. When I started the Vive Manager it told me it was unable to support more then 2 monitors. So before I start the VR manager I have to go into the NVidia app and disable one of my monitors to run it. I would think that I have enough compute to manage it all but the Vive manager does not think so. My GPU and CPU are running at about 10% at any given time. I still don't understand that. Overall I am satisfied with the VR upgrade the Vive Pro 2 gave me.

I'm upgrading from a Oculus Rift S and settled on the HTC Vive Pro 2 (Pro 2) because it offered the highest resolution available and I very much wanted to eliminate the so called "screen door effect" that really deprived me of a fuller sense of immersion with the Rift S. While I must admit that the Pro 2 display is a huge step up in a million ways, I have some serious gripes that I think will see me returning the Pro 2 for something else. 1. All VR headsets have lenses that will have halos or rings, but these are much more noticeable on the Pro 2. If an in game beam of light or an especially bright scene is displayed, these rings create glares and halos and all sorts of visual anomalies. 2. Those same rings and halos are visible whenever my eyes drift from the lenses sweet spot. Much more so than was the case with the Rift S. 3. The supposedly adjustable IDP doesn't seem to improve or make worse the quality of the image displayed. I can swing from 60mm to 73mm and fail to see or feel a difference All of the above issues make me wonder if I just got a defective headset or something. Alas, my issues don't end here. 1. SteamVR crashes a lot. Like I mean a whole F******* lot. If a game doesn't crash at least twice while trying to load a game or every time you pull up the SteamVR overlay in game, it's a precious miracle right up there with the conception of Christ himself. Super frustrating and I'm not sure if this falls on Steam, HTC, or is just an inherent compatibility issue. I'm running a Ryzen 7 5800x at 4.9 Ghz, RTX 3080Ti, and 64GB of RAM, so I'm sure I've got the chutzpah to run things just fine on the PC side. 2. The Pro 2 controllers suck more than a black hole. No game can escape just how awful these things are. Just about every game wants you to have a joystick and at least A and B buttons. HTC decided to do away with these altogether which makes some games incredibly difficult and unintuitive to play. In some instances I have utter failed to find a way to work around some of the wonkiness. It also appears to me that many games are designed with the superior Valve Index controllers in mind. At this point I am questioning my sanity and wondering if I should plunk down another $300 on a set of Index controllers, but when you are already $1500 in the hole, what's another $300 right? Yeah naw... I think I'm going to cut my losses, return the Pro 2, and forget that I even wanted to upgrade as this point. It's going to take a lot of effort and money to get back to a point of playability and even then, I'm going to be dealing with lense issues that just are unfixable. Honestly, the issues I seem to be having are inherent to the design of the headset and lenses themselves.

You're paying for picture quality, and this headset has it in spades. There is still a minute bit of frensal rings if you look for them, but as long as you are looking straight and at the sweet spot, you don't notice them at all (which is the case most of the time). I do recommend getting the smaller, breathable sponge mats to replace the sweat soaking native ones. They'll increase your horizontal and vertical field of view, while adding a more sanitary option. The headset does get fairly warm in graphics demanding games. You'll want to mod it with a small fan for air circulation, or have some form of fan blowing on you (which oddly adds to the immersion feel). However, the visual trade off is completely worth it. If you have the extra money, get the Vive wireless connector with it, and 2 spare batteries. Should give you 6 hours of cable free fun.

A friend of mine has an Oculus Quest so that's unfortunately the only standard of comparison I have, but between the two, my friend and I regard the Vive as providing a higher framerate, less motion sickness, and a better ability to read print in VR. The only downside to the Vive is the cable, which does sometimes interfere in games that require a lot of looking around

Every VR headset has major flaws and shortcomings, but all things considered I believe the HTC Vive Pro 2 is the best consumer VR gaming headset there is. I upgraded to it from the Valve Index, I'd do it again but there are many things wrong with the Vive Pro 2 as well. Pros: - The fact that it's a SteamVR headset with outside-in tracking and Valve Index controller compatibility - The 4896 x 2448 combined resolution which not only looks far better than 2880 x 1600 screens, it enables you to play games more effectively. This was one of the two main reasons I upgraded to the Vive Pro 2. - Aftermarket addons - from new pads and cushions (which I need) to the HTC Vive Tracker 3.0 for full body tracking (be warned about unreliability and inconsistency with these devices though), Vive Wireless Adapter, Vive Facial Tracker, and hopefully the Droolon F2 soon. The other main reason I purchased this. - Mildly improved FOV compared to the outgoing model - Easily available replacement parts from authorized dealers unlike Valve - Fairly breathable design, doesn't make you sweat profusely. Big improvement over the Index here. Cons: - Poorly calibrated with too much brightness and too little gamma correction. Probably calibrated for 1.8 gamma, and because the overwhelming majority of VR "games" lack adjustments for this, I'm stuck with it. Valve Index appears calibrated for the proper 2.2 gamma. - Very expensive, especially considering it doesn't even come with eye tracking despite the fact that the Vive Pro Eye does, and considering it doesn't come with the wireless adapter which still hasn't been updated to support a larger resolution - Very narrow focal sweet spot - Screen uses out of date LCD technology with poor contrast which cannot deliver true blacks - FOV still lower than ideal - Inferior headphone solution compared to the Valve Index - Poor microphone quality - Cable sleeving quality isn't great, seems like it will undergo the same kinking and wear and tear that my Index did, for which the cable is damaged enough to occasionally lose video signal entirely after just 1 year of use. For $799 you'd expect quality sleeving. - Headset cable is prone to being accidentally disconnected from the Link Box very easily - Comfort issues - creates relatively small concentrated pressure points on your head that build discomfort over time - Comfort issues - creates relatively small concentrated pressure points on your head that build discomfort over time. Also, I can't get an ideal fit, which results in the headset being prone to moving around during intense gameplay in games such as Blade & Sorcery (thus losing the focal sweet spot). - Not a weakness of the headset, but HTC has yet to come up with a competitor to the Valve Index controller which themselves are far from perfect Despite all the flaws, this is still my most recommended VR headset for the clarity, addons, and because I only recommend SteamVR headsets due to Valve Index controller compatibility and SteamVR base stations which are as good as tracking gets right now. Also, despite all the flaws, I still consider VR gaming to be a must-have, and it is the way I'd want to play most of my favorite games if it were possible. A lower price could have resulted in a 4 star rating from me.

Before I had gotten the Vive Pro 2 headset, I had used an Oculus Rift CV1 before it. The Vive Pro 2 has some of the best screens on the market. Screen door effect is almost entirely non-existent. If you were born with some magical ability to see things with amazing clarity, or essentially have superhuman 20/20, you may be able to see screen door. But for the most part, I could not see it. It's basically non-existent to me. The picture quality is similar to that of a 2K gaming monitor, but a little better as each eye is 2448x2448. Because the screens use liquid crystal displays, or LCD, blacks aren't as good as they would appear on my Oculus Rift CV1; The CV1 uses AMOLED displays, which display accurate colors with great blacks. On the Vive Pro 2, however, blacks are washed out. But bright colors remain prevalent. There is also a quirk on the screens. If you were to point the headset straight and move your eyes only, other parts of the screen becomes blurry and only detail within your paracentral and near-peripheral vision are the main selling points of this headset. I do enjoy other features of the headset, such as being able to move the front of the headset forwards or backwards to either let more air circulate within the face area (as there are vents at the bottom), or fit prescription glasses inside. I would be careful of the Fresnel lenses, though. There is also a button at the side that can act as a temporary controller whenever your VR controllers die and don't feel like taking it off. Speaking of taking off the headset, the headset strap does not move forwards or backwards unless you're turning the knob at the back. It does a little bit because of foam padding, but it's not much. The strap is very bulky and its stock foam padding are horrendous. I would advise buying new foam replacements from VR Cover for both the front face cover and strap paddings, which would be an extra $60. The headset does come with two cameras at the front, similar to the Valve Index headset where it could used for developing purposes. But also as a pass-through camera whenever you need to see what's outside your headset without having to take it off. There are rubber covers around the nose bridge area that blocks all light from entering into the face area. The vents I had mentioned earlier provide some air flow within that small space, so it's fine. The headset radiates lots of heat when in use. I use a program called Vive Console, which is necessary to power on the Vive Pro 2 headset, that has settings for which display preset I'd want to choose. I chose Extreme, which boasts 4896x2448 @ 120 Hz. Not only the heat from my headset makes my face hot, but also my computer. Think of it as having two heaters for your room. That's not good. Its headphones are removable. Its microphone is sub-par and sounds awful. The Valve Index and HP Reverb G2's microphones are far more superior in microphone quality. The headset strap can be removed as well, but it's very difficult to find a different compatible strap for it, so modding would probably be best if you're fine with voiding warranty. It comes with a 12-month warranty. Overall, the headset's main selling point are the screens. Its strap is pretty bulky and isn't ideal for someone who's comfortable in their bed or couch. Its microphone should ought to be changed out for a lapel or mod mic, and its headphones can be left on or changed out for a headphone or pair of earphones. Although it radiates lots of heat and its stock paddings are terrible, it has one of the most amazing screens I have seen. No screen door effect, but lacks black color depth and you could see most detail within the paracentral vision. If your computer can run this headset at 4896x2448 @ 120 Hz and you have an old headset that you still use to this day, such as the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, this headset is a worthy upgrade. If you wish to get a more comfortable headset with better overall features, the Valve Index is a better choice. Otherwise, if you're in it for the screens, get the Vive Pro 2.

So purchase this and received a new headset, not sent a used one or anything. The headset worked exactly one time and then never again. Called the help desk to get help either with what I am doing wrong or with getting the headset replaced. The guy with the help line walked me through all the normal steps of uninstall turn off unhook yada yada yada and when it was determined that the headset was infact the issue I was told the only option was to return the device to Amazon. All I wanted was a reply or for it to be fixed, and instead I was forced to get a refund. So I give the headset one star for working one time, and I give HTC negative stars for not standing by their products. I will not be buying this company's products in the future

I am deeply disappointed in the Vive Pro 2. When doing my research to decide on a VR headset to replace my Valve Index with, I settled on this because it seemed it would be the most logical upgrade. Especially with its price- "It can't possibly be worse than the Index, can it?" I thought... I thought wrong. It's inferior to the Index in almost every way. It's heavier, harder to get fitting right on my head, and has a lower FOV even when I purchased a slim face cover. It also somehow heats up worse the original Vive and only stopped fogging up once I RIPPED OUT the rubber light shields under the lenses that block airflow. It also somehow has more glare than the Index. The cable is also heavier and the Vive Console must be running alongside SteamVR. The only way the Vive Pro 2 is superior to the Index is with its resolution... And that's only after I fumbled around in resolution settings for two hours to finally be able to get a stable 90 FPS. However, the resolution increase is barely noticeable due to the ridiculously small "sweet spot": everything more than a few degrees out from the center of the lenses is outrageously blurry to the point that I feel like I need glasses, which I do not. Furthermore, the microphone has to be one of the worst choices for a VR headset- it has no noise cancellation and sounds like the Quest 1 microphone ffs. The software-based noise cancellation that comes in the Vive Console does nothing to fix this. Furthermore, it seems to drift in and out of "too quiet to hear" and "geez turn your mic sensitivity down bro" so much it's almost impossible to play social VR with. And yes, I have tweaked as many settings as possible and bought a fuzzy sound filter, and even then it sounds worse than the Index. Lastly, the over-ear speakers are made of quite possibly the hottest material to make earphones out of which causes my ears to drip sweat when exerting myself in the slightest. And the "popped out" way of wearing the earphones causes all audio to sound very quiet, even when turned up to the max. I bought an Asurion protection plan, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to get a return just because the equipment is cruddy by default. If you're buying a PCVR headset, do not purchase the Vive Pro 2. Go for the Index like I should have stuck with in the first place.