Varjo Aero VR headset

Yep, thanks @Troll and disappointed on your behalf. Always good to try things though!

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Really wanted to like the Varjo Aero…
Youtubers are influencers. They do their thing.
What drove me towards the Aero was Varjos outstanding reputation amongst commercial users.
The Aero is not their first rodeo. This is what’s so puzzling about it…
Looking at the Varjo users discord channel I see a lot of users have distortion issues. Many of them say that you get used to it… I can believe that to be true, so I’ll give it a couple of days.
The smaller FoV is perhaps not a big issue. The clarity of the image sort of makes up for it. But the distortions are problematic. It’s almost as if I need to hold my head still, to enjoy that clarity, because if I look around the image curves and bends.

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Star Wars Reaction GIF by Disney+

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Perhaps try the OpenXR route with MSFS - maybe the barrel distortion will be a little less severe?

I wonder if the poor fit is not helping your FOV and how much of the edges you see?

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If you get used to visible distortion of the image, you could eventually also get used to some DIY custom fit mod.

C’mon. We are not talking 300 buck piece of kit :grinning:

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Will check.

Hard to put a number on it… I see more than in the G2. It’s not too bad and as several reviewers has mentioned, the larger sweet spot kind of makes up for the smaller FoV. Looking down at the side consoles, I had to turn my head more to see the details in the G2. With the Aero, I can glance down at it.

I tested DCS again and that picture clarity is really nice. There’s no denying it. I can read the text in the warninglights in the Viggen…!
So, the Varjo Aero has a lot going for it. The bad fit is partly my individual problem, even though the ergonomic design of the headset straps could be better.

I tried the cross eye tool, but didn’t quite know what to do with it… Will do some searching.

Will Varjo fix the distortion issues? Will they come up with some motion projection solution? My guess is yes… Last week I would’ve been sure about it :wink:

The tracking is very good! Even with just one base station.
I will find a better way to mount it… :slight_smile:

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I read on the Varjo discord (Day 2: They suspect nothing!) as well that for DCS you can help with distortion using the old WMR alignment tool:

Apparently, swapping top/bottom for each eye and letting the tool save out the file for DCS helps (regardless of if you have a WMR headset or not).

I’m not sure how useful that’ll be, but you could give it a go (and if it doesn’t work remove the DCS written config file etc). Discord link to that is here.

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Very good point :+1:

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it also depends on which cockpit you sit in I would say. whether it is tubeliner with restricted field of view or helicopter or fighter aircraft where you should constantly check your 6.

I mean this guy looked more than 45degs to the side only once before landing, otherwise it was ±30degs in any direction… in combat… you just trying to do weird movements with your head @Troll :wink:

just joking, but I actually returned my helmet as I realized that one to one head tracking sounded fine in theory but in simulated combat with helmet on all the other shortcomings got amplified like small sweetspot, restricted field of view and oc ergonomics of particular helmet. plus non-motion sickness caused by microstutters / low fps / etc.

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You know… A commuter pilot in uncontrolled airspace always has their head on a swivel. My bogies won’t always come with their backs to the sun! :wink:

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Doesn’t @BeachAV8R call it “Indian country” because of all the warriors, navajo and cherokees?
I remember laughing my arse off when I read it anyway

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Which headset did you have? For me, VR completely transformed flight simming. It seems you had a very different experience than I have had. The only headset I didn’t get along with was the Odyssey Plus, but the Rift, Rift-S and Reverb G2 were all excellent.

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Headset fit is weird and very personal for sure. Luckily most retailers allow returns within a month.
For me, the Odyssey was a great fit, but the Reverb G2 really hurt my forehead.

Luckily, I know someone with a 3D printer and found some “gasket” designs online, and a shorter extra wide face adapter means the G2 fits my head reasonably well now. Still not as comfortably as the Odyssey, but I do breathe better in this one, and the clarity is worth it.

I am so sorry that the mounting on this Varjo is so incompatible with your head @Troll . Doesn’t look like a face adapter can solve this :frowning: . Thanks for testing and sharing!

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New day, new thoughts…
The image clarity is phenomenal. I see details I didn’t know was there. And the performance is surprisingly good, even without motion reprojection.
It is really nice to be able to see everything without leaning in.
That’s a really big plus, with the Aero.
The minuses are image distortions and bad fit. I got a tip from a guy in the Varjo users discord channel. He added a counterweight on the neck strap. That may be a good idea, actually.
The smaller FoV is a minus, but the fact that the smaller view is so sharp and clear almost all the way to the edges makes the ’useable’ view larger than the G2 view. But the black ’borders’ are there. The feeling of looking through a ski mask or diving mask increases…

I am torn…
One minute I’m thinking that I’ll return it.
Next minute I’m all Stop whining! You call yourself a flightsimmer? Tinkering and adapting is what you do. Fix this! and I want to keep the Aero, just to see where this is going. I still have faith in Varjo.

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I I bought a counterweight for my G2 from this company:

I’m sure you could make something cheaper and just as effective. I also bought the “over the top” head strap from the same company. The result is a heavier, yet better balanced and supported headset.

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I think that’s the one he was referring to…

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The distortion is largely about software, so that should evolve.

The bad fit is not good, but then I am confident in your ability to fix it up, more than I would be able to. Example - here’s the 3D model of the headset for home modifications and printing:

Here’s the stp data file for the model:

https://share.varjo.com/index.php/s/SDKXjmxXjXzzg2R

This isn’t really an opinion to either keep it or not (e.g. is it $2000 better than the G2 etc.) but more that if you do then you have some options.

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@Troll if I understand you correctly you also own the G2.
In that case let me be your reasoning voice; from your reports about the Varjo there is no way in hell keeping it is worth it in relation to the price you paid for it.
Return the thing and be content with your G2. It’ll serve you well until the next true revelation in VR and you’ll have a lot of cash back in your hand.

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I have to agree with @Yassy here. I got my G1 thrown in when I bought my pc. The fit for me personally is absolutely shocking. It’s horrendously uncomfortable. The picture compared to my old rift is spectacular but of I had actually spent my money to buy it new I would of been very much on the fence about keeping it. It hurts that badly.

For the price you paid for yours it ought to feel like a rolls Royce seat pressed against your face. It kinds of needs to be perfect at that price point

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YES! I’m just recollecting when a business partner of mine took me out for a ride in his brand new Mercedes Benz sedan. I asked him, “Are we actually moving?”. :smiley: So smooth.

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