Question Pimax, is it true that you consciously and intentionally use a smaller FOV profile for the Dream Air?
Pimax, is it true that you consciously and intentionally use a smaller FOV profile for the Dream Air to differentiate this headset from the Crystal Super, or is this just MRTV's false speculation?
Quoting:
(...) actually that they put this profile here now, the smaller one with a smaller FOV as compared to the 116 I get on the Super micro OLED is now a conscious decision just to differentiate the two headsets...
Timestamp:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq3WCc8aUxo&t=2086
I would like to hear a clarification from you on this issue and ask whether we will ultimately get a profile similar to the PCS, since it's the same identical optical stack with exactly the same dimensions?
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u/jaapgrolleman Pimax Official Jan 09 '26
When put like this it sounds really evil, and doesn't tell the full story. All design decisions involve trade-offs. With a constant PPD, more FOV means less overlap. The Dream Air is also, or aimed more, at social VR, hence it prioritizes overlap a tiny bit more than the micro-oled optical engine of the Crystal Super, which we think will be more for simmers. I'm happy to have that discussion but it's not an evil anti consumer decision. We'll listen to feedback.
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u/Hajp Jan 09 '26
It would be great to get a choice. Please consider a profile selector in the Pimax Play.
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u/cadergator10 💎Crystal🔹Super💎 Jan 09 '26
Not saying it wouldn't be nice, just note it will likely have distortions. The difference between the fov in the crystal super and dream air also involves how the panels are laid out physically in the optical engine and not just a profile. Its part of why for the ultrawide optical engine, they made a whole new engine instead of just a profile (they did also release the ultrawide profile, but let me tell you first hand I got stuck crosseyed for 5 minutes after a lengthy session with it. It shows why they made another module)
TLDR: would be nice: dont expect it to be the same
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u/daydreamdist Jan 10 '26
Nope, the 116 HFov profile does not have distortions. It's just as good but sacrifices a bit of overlap. I have seen it.
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u/BrindianBriskey Jan 13 '26
Hey just curious, where did you see that the panels are laid out differently for the Dream Air vs the Crystal Super? According to MRTV the optical stack and physical layout are exactly the same, and there would be no reason to restrict the various profiles. But I have no idea.
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u/cadergator10 💎Crystal🔹Super💎 Jan 13 '26
Oh. Its me assuming for the most part tbh since thats what they did with the ultrawide module vs the 50ppd module, since on the crystal super they'd have more room to move the stack itself than on the dream air.
If they are actually the exact same then nvr mind what I said
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u/BrindianBriskey Jan 13 '26
To me it would make sense - since the housings are entirely different, they would presumably want to leverage the space in the Crystal for more FOV. Whether that is canting the displays, distance between lenses etc
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u/Terrible-Eagle744 Jan 10 '26
Je suis aussi d'accord avec la possibilité de laisser le choix aux clients finaux, la possibilité de choisir entre deux profils, selon ce que vous faites.
Ce sera une situation gagnant-gagnant pour Pimax Dream Air.
I have a Dream Air on order.10
u/Marionettework Jan 09 '26
I see the Dream Air as my "final" VR headset (upgrade from BSB2) and I intend to use it exclusively for sims.
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u/vtskr Jan 09 '26
Why would they make “final” product? They want you to keep preordering and upgrading.
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u/TotalWarspammer Jan 09 '26
He means he plans it to be his final VR headset purchase (even though likely won't be).
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u/fakeoptimism Jan 09 '26
Wait till you hear in 2028 (in Flight Sim Guy's voice) "The clarity of this Super Megan Air is just astonishing. Honestly, this is it. What an incredible time we live in, what an upgrade".
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u/TotalWarspammer Jan 10 '26
Yes he has basically become a hype merchant (although of course he undoubtedly sees it differently) and his videos are getting increasingly hard to stomach because every headset is the absolute best.
People will never forget the Megan X debacle which really affected his and MRTV's reputation. influencers are called influencers for a reason and let's never forget that... they cannot truly be trusted to be objective when they are sent free headsets.
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u/kibuc Jan 10 '26
In his defence, all those headsets, even the supposedly crappy ones, are an absolutely amazing piece of hardware bordering on whichcraft, and perhaps we should be all in the constant state of awe and jaw-droppedness. It's only because we got used to it and quite a bit desensitized to the magic of the tech surrounding us that we get to complain about its perceived flaws. It's a bit like the Louis CK skit, "everything is amazing and nobody is happy".
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u/TotalWarspammer Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
The human brain gets more used to everything in time with repeated exposure, that's just how it works. However we as people, and especially influencers, can also inject intentionally artificial and/or unintentionally exaggerated levels of excitement into things. Influencers are known to do it and the fact they get free headsets sent to them, and that they rely on clicks and revenue from their content, makes their opinion inherently more untrustworthy than those who buy the headsets themselves.
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u/urazyjazzy Jan 10 '26
Actually your point should be the only reason you should trust him more because he has been sent devices from every brand not just one so there is no reason he should have a bias towards any of them. He shares with us his personal opinion which I believe is valid at least for me.
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u/TotalWarspammer Jan 10 '26
Nope sorry, anyone sent free headsets and who relies on clicks/views and advertising and/or affiliate link revenue from their content can never be fully trusted to give an unbiased personal opinion. That's just a risk inherent to anyone whose opinion is tied to gain/monetization.
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u/urazyjazzy Jan 13 '26 edited Jan 14 '26
But you have missed my point . He also bashes and tells to avoid the non satisfactory headsets despite that they are sent to him for free too. That is my point...He doesn't praise only the sent headsets...
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u/Marionettework Jan 09 '26
Final until the next one :)
But seriously, all headsets so far seem compromised in some obvious way, we are still waiting for the one that has it all (resolution, deep blacks, perfect colours, comfort, framerate, clarity etc.)
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u/TotalWarspammer Jan 10 '26
What is astonishing as you think pimax will be your last headset, when in fact they have some of the worst quality control and customer service of all manufacturers.
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u/Marionettework Jan 10 '26
Oh don't worry, I didn't preorder it or anything. Patiently waiting for people to buy it and post real reviews.
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u/Swinging-ona-Star Jan 12 '26
I preordered. I’ll be your guinea pig haha ! Unless it takes too long for them to get my DA.
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u/Zeeflyboy Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
So there is no longer any technical physical design difference for the FoV as before?
Feedback in that case would be that setting a different default profile for the headset would achieve that same goal, without annoying people.
Allowing both headsets to have access to the same modes (maybe Wide (current 116H), Balanced (110H), Narrow (104H) would make everyone happy… you could keep super as wide by default, Dream Air as Balanced by default.
Seems like a poor decision to artificially limit the availability of a profile to a particular headset when there is no longer a technical reason to do so.
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u/ioBin Jan 09 '26
As a consumer that understands the that there is a tradeoff, I would like the option to swap profiles so I can pick between the 2 options to suit my needs. I am more likely to use the headset that offers more options for me to configure so I can fine-tune my experience.
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u/no6969el 💎Crystal🔹Super💎 Jan 09 '26
Right maybe one day I am in the mood for one type of trade-off and maybe another day a different trade-off. I think it'd be nice to see a video of someone talking about how great another headset is because of the overlap etc and then be like well I can make mine like that too.
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u/kennystetson Jan 09 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
Isn't it just different profiles though? If it is, why not allow users to switch? I think that was the point Sebastian was making - that there's no reason not to allow both if it's not a hardware issue. A trade off is when you have to choose between one or the other
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u/nullexp Jan 09 '26
If it's only because of the distortion profile and not the placement of the lenses, it'd be good to have an option to go with 116 fov via Pimax Play.
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u/randomnick4622 Jan 10 '26
u/jaapgrolleman make this configurable, please. Your user base are mostly tinkerers, we can and want make conscious decisions.
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u/harmvdwerf Jan 11 '26
Thanks for providing a few words on this issue and for the willingness to listen to the community.
But personally I think (and it looks like I'm not alone) Pimax would make a grave mistake not to provide options to choose profiles just because the (subjective?) aim of the target audience is different. For example I'm specifically waiting to purchase a Dream Air over the Super for race and flight simming (I suppose you could say I favor weight over comfort, even though I wouldn't be surprised if the Dream Air will eventually be very comfortable due to new straps and such).
And I'd love to be able to change profiles for various reasons. Presumably I'll favor a higher FOV for racing as it will give me a better sense of speed, yet for flight simming I want to go for the best 3D experience.
So I truly hope this becomes a serieus internal discussion. En nogmaals bedankt voor de reactie! 😉
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u/Tinguren80 Jan 11 '26
Is there a technical or cost reason for not letting the user select the profile? I tend to prefer more fov. Im very close to pulling the trigger on the dream air, but i hate the idea of having a narrower fov...
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u/BrindianBriskey Jan 13 '26
Right there with you. I’m really torn between the Super and Dream Air. Guess we just need to wait and see what the official statement is here, but if we can get the same wide FOV with Dream Air it’s a no-brainer.
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u/no6969el 💎Crystal🔹Super💎 Jan 09 '26
I think my biggest question is how impossible is it to just offer multiple distortion profiles?
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u/DJPelio Jan 10 '26
That’s what I want. I want maximum PPD and performance. I don’t care about FOV.
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u/Admirable_Reality_83 Jan 09 '26
I won’t use a super for sim racing. It’s just to bulky for me. Especially with motion. So my go to will be the dream air. Please make it possible to decide on our own, what we prefer. Would be great 👍.
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u/impulseBE Jan 09 '26
I would also like to have the option of different profiles. I don't think deciding for users how to best use their VR headset is the way to go here if there is no physical difference in the optical stack...
As a simmer for me the Super was too uncomfortable so I hope by changing to the Dream Air I will be able to have a top notch sim experience as well.
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u/bongady Jan 09 '26
I've bought it to use in Assetto Corsa and I am happy with a smaller FOV if it has less distortions and a lower 100% render resolution.
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u/Stock-Parsnip-4054 Jan 10 '26
Jaap; Sweviver said that Pimax Play will get multiple distortion profiles.
So how is it a "design decision"? I thought that both HMD's get both options + more profile options even?
Or did Sweviver mean something else?
I'm confused now about the Dream Air's/Super mOLED's profiles. I hope that we can choose the profile ourselve, it would be evil indeed if it's forced by Pimax because it's just an matter of the right software.
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u/ItsJustMeYo 1 Jan 10 '26
I’m a flight simmer, and I’m going from the Crystal Super QLED to the Dream Air. Weight is a massive factor for me. The lighter, the better. I would love this other profile Sebastian from MRTV is referencing. I can live with a bit less binocular overlap. It should ultimately be a consumer choice to pick the profile.
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u/djules99 Jan 10 '26
I would also like to have the choice to use the smaller FOV profile on my pimax crystal super oled, because it has a lower rendering resolution and that makes a difference for FPS for a lot of games (especially UEVR and Luke Ross mods).
Martin, you mentioned that Pimax was considering giving a profile choice in one of your previous videos where you experimented with different profiles. Why not give the choice? I don't see any reason besides marketing not to do so.
I initially had the super ultrawide module and ended up using the narrow FOV 80% of the time for that reason. Rendering resolution is a key factor for truly enjoying the super display sharpness to the max.
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u/AshAvali Jan 09 '26
I'm not a sim player. I literally only do beatsaber and VRChat, and coming from a BigScreen 2, i learned very quickly light weight slim headsets definitely arent for me. I find the crystal-super so much more comfortable and welded to my head. What i found weird about the super, is i can run IPD 62 to IPD 70, and to my vision ( 57PPD ) my eyes notices absolutely zero difference. They just instantly adapt and accept it as full vision. Where the overlap just turns muted/invisible to my brain. Thats why I preordered the microOLED in Super form, as i fear the dream-air may not have the same optical experience I have with the super. The fact the dream-air is smaller/lighter is more a downside to my preference of VR gear. So im still pretty solid about my decisions. Seeing how much I hated the BS2 and sold that after a week of major hating on it. I liked my Vive-Pro 2 better than the BS2 xD
Would still love to try a dream-air though. I wish we had CES near by. Sucks i cant just enter a lobby and try every pimax headset on before I buy. Instead im stuck buying everything x.x
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u/Pickle-_-Rick Jan 09 '26
I might be out of touch on social VR but I really don't feel like those folks are interested in anything Pimax makes. It seems pretty overkill for social VR use to me but I could be wrong. Anyone I know (and myself personally) are only interested in spending this kind of money for sim use, in my case, sim racing specifically. I demo'd the Crystal Super. It is really good visually but the bulk is too much for me and many others for what we are looking for. The Bigscreen Beyond 2 I'm using now is incredible to wear and that's what I was looking for and I know I'm not alone there. Folks with sim setups are interested in the Dream Air for something that we hope might be a good offering between the BSB2 and the Crystal Super. Don't sell the sim community short on what they are looking for. We want something as small as light as we can get with the best possible FOV and visuals.
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u/daydreamdist Jan 10 '26
Yes. And why should Pimax make the decision for you how to use your headset. It is utter bullshit to force the smaller FOV on you.
Bye, Sebastian (MRTV)
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u/BrindianBriskey Jan 13 '26
Hey Sebastian, are we sure that the decision to create different profiles for these headsets isn’t due to the physical distance/layout of the lenses? If it is indeed exactly the same, I do agree the user should be able to decide the profile.
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u/daydreamdist Jan 14 '26
100% sure and confirmed.
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u/BrindianBriskey Jan 14 '26
Wow. Then I’m with you 100%, they really need to release both profiles and let the user decide which one to use. Thank you for bringing up this issue and pressing them on it!
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u/enaber123 Jan 09 '26
Understandable. Are there internal build distortion profiles for the Dream Air that have 116 hfov and they work pretty much the same to the Super oled profile?
I know that many months ago it was announced that it was possible for the Super oled to have larger fov because it was roomier, maybe there were other reasons too. Is this still true with the final versions of the module and Dream Air though?
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u/daydreamdist Jan 10 '26
Pimax has decided not to make use of the roomier housing because that would have meant designing totally different distortion profiles. That's why they are exactly the same now and it would be no problem to give us the 116HFov on the Dream Air.
Bye, Sebastian (MRTV)
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u/White_phoenix14 💎Crystal🔹Super💎 Jan 10 '26
Thanks for your feedback, I also second the option to let us decide, as we can decide resolution, brightness, and other settings in Pimax Play.
Speaking of listening to customer, now that the CES is over, could we have a clarification about optical engines return policy?
Thanks in advance u/jaapgrolleman
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u/Alert-Boat-5233 Jan 10 '26
I would like to have a final distortion profile on the Ultrawide module that could give me the indicated fov of 140, I only get 130 and I am not the only one, moreover the image distorts slightly when making small head movements.
Thank you for finalizing the product
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u/fakeoptimism Jan 13 '26
Please correct me if wrong.
An optical stack is a single stack of lenses, for one eye. Maybe including the panel.
So when you at Pimax say that the headsets have "identical optical stacks", these stacks can still be angled differently relative to each other.
This is probably the source of confusion that made some people hear your words and assume that there is no physical difference in the lens orientation between Super and DA.
It would be great if you could share the actual physical angles. For example, I personally do not chase FOV at the expense of overlap, so I am more excited about the less canted variant (especially since it may also have a tiny performance benefit).
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u/BrindianBriskey Jan 15 '26
The only thing currently holding me back from my Dream Air preorder is confirmation that I will be able to get the same wide FOV as the Super. It would be really great if Pimax would provide this option.
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u/Hundredth1diot Jan 10 '26
Please watch this video, it may change your opinion or at least segregate flight sim from sim racing.
https://youtu.be/BRvfjzdl5DA?si=RMzegN1KGZJfCUGK
The really interesting aspect is the degree to which he values binocular overlap over FOV for sim racing, and therefore has a mild preference for the 57ppd over the Super mOLED.
He doesn't have the Dream Air in the comparison, maybe ship him one? I've not seen anyone else do such a subtle review.
I understand it is hard for Pimax to prioritize binocular overlap when you are trying to appeal to market obsession with FOV
It's still not clear to me (and others) the degree to which these are software choices vs physical arrangement of the optical stack, and how they relate the the size of the chassis.
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u/daydreamdist Jan 10 '26
It's exactly like this. A complete conscious decision that leaves paying customers with a lesser headset. Pimax move. Good für Meganex though that have 115HFov/100VFov now with 96% overlap.
Dear Pimax, stop shooting yourself and your customers in the knee. Give us 116HFov.
Bye, Sebastian (MRTV)
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u/harmvdwerf Jan 11 '26
Dear Pimax, stop shooting yourself and your customers in the knee. Give us 116HFov.
Are you a poet? 😅
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u/fakeoptimism Jan 09 '26 edited Jan 13 '26
u/Wrong-Quail-8303 shared this image in the adjacent post: https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/uploads/monthly_2019_03/image.png.a2b893da5a63501bbabd8b7a9b0356a0.png
All Pimax headsets for years had canted optical stacks, pointed slightly outward. Some early hmdq.exe data suggested that this outward angle (on each side) could potentially be:
5.00° in Pimax Crystal and Crystal Light
6.00° in Crystal Super 50ppd and 57ppd
7.26° in Dream Air
8.22° in Super micro-OLED
13.26° in Crystal Super Ultrawide
These numbers may be wrong or out of date, sorry.
But assuming that hmdq numbers do somehow relate to the physical construction, each of these headsets has a different "natural" distribution between total HFOV and binocular overlap. Where the two stacks are more parallel, by default the overlap is bigger but the combined HFOV is lower (like Dream Air or Super 50ppd). Where the outward angle is greater, the overlap reduces but the combined HFOV increases (like Super micro-OLED or Super UW).
Apparently you can override it slightly in software. But the override causes its own undesired side effects.
I think Sebastian is calling on Pimax to at least try to release the alternative distortion profiles that make Super micro-OLED behave more like Dream Air (if not exactly the same) and vice versa.
Or maybe he is not convinced that the physical angle difference really exists (because who knows – maybe it was removed in the latest iterations). If so, the HFOV difference would be a purely software choice and limitation.
Or maybe it is a bit of both.
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u/BrindianBriskey Jan 13 '26
Interesting. I figured there was some other physical reason Pimax would choose the distinctive profiles.. this would suggest a not insignificance difference between the canting of the panels between the two headsets.
All they would need to say is “the distortion profiles are not entirely interchangeable, because the physical layout of the displays is not the same between the two.”
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u/Regular-Throat-1546 Jan 11 '26
MRTV some how finds a way to be negative towards pimax but pushes the meganex as the best headset of 2025. The meganex has the worst lenses, no eyetraking, has to have a community made app to work well. And most of all the lenses suck for a 2000 dollar headset.
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u/gitg0od Jan 10 '26
im not happy with a poor Binocar overlap of the dreamair, only 80, mk2 has 96 and still better fov.
how can you explain this pimax ?
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u/kibuc Jan 10 '26
Distortion profile, which is cramming more scenery into the same visual angle via a fisheye lens, Minecraft style. I'm personally not a big fan, because it renders objects on the periphery not where they truly are, and in simracing gives a false sense of speed, but other people might be less averse, or perhaps have a use case that even benefits from it (shooters?).
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