3 weeks ago
This stream is for the PCVR users experiencing a screen blackout with the popup saying roughly "USB-C Charging Disabled, please clean charging port".
I have been Meta for about a week at this point. I have been following their every advice and spending my own money to try to resolve this.
The root cause of this issue is with how the device charges. Once the Q3 (any smart phones, basically anything new) gets to 70-80% charged, it lowers the current to better charge the battery and reduce heat. For some reason, Meta is using this current drop as a signal for when a "short" is occurring (I would imagine to protect against the risk of thermal events or overheating to the port) it disables the port and throws the popup.
The first issue is that its detecting something that IS NOT there. This is a "better safe than sorry" solution and they value preventing a lawsuit over customer experience. The headset works fine after acknowledging the popup usually, or just a removal/insertion of the cord resolves it temporarily.
The second issue is that the popup blocks out the ENTIRE SCREEN and its not just a small popup that goes away after 5 seconds, you have to manually acknowledge it (again, covering their butts). It says the USB is disabled, but my Link still works just fine, so its not the entire cable, just the power. If I didn't have to drive blind when Simracing when this popup appeared, I wouldn't even care. I can ignore a small popup, but not a black screen.
I have been using a 3rd party USB A to USB C cable with a PD input on the side, which works wonderfully by itself other than slowly dying over time. If i connect the cable PD port to a power brick, it will also would amazingly, and for eternity as it holds a charge, but this introduces the random popups that ruin my online races every day.
As stated above, I have been working with support and blindly following their directions, and even purchased the Official Link cable for 100 dollars just so they couldn't say that the cable was the issue. With the new cable, it works for Link amazingly well, yes, but it doesn't provide a charge. This is due to most onboard PC USB voltages being 3.3V limited so now playtime is 2.5 hours approximately, assuming I have a full charge at the start, rather than infinite on whatever charge I want.
This is what leads me to believe it has something to do with charging. Even if you use an external battery pack, once the pack is depleted, you will get this issue. If you plug a cable in with nothing on the other end, you might get this issue. Its not a debris issue, its a charging issue and poorly written software that detects this charging change as a hardware failure.
Now with the Meta cable, my issue is that the charging is non-existent, and I need to have a 30W PD as well as data on my USB C cable. My next attempt is to try a USB C pci-e card that has PD capabilities (up to 12V, 2 port at 2.4A (30W) and 2 ports at 3A (45W)) for another $40. I will be installing later this week to see if that fixes the issue or causes more issues. I suspect it will cause the debris issue just like my other cable when the charging current gets to that threshold, although I have been following their suggestions, so maybe this will help to find a more permanent solution. All in with new cables and parts, sitting at around $130 dollars for this.
Solved! Go to Solution.
3 weeks ago
Second card didn’t work either. So PD and USB is still not possible (on my build).
I now added a 3 port USB C and 2 port USB A 3.2 card to my pcie slot. This is the first time I have had a USB C port to use. Used alongside the Meta cable, I started at 60%, raced for four hours, no issues, and ended at 68%. This was seamless once I got the card installed and restarted my computer a few times to get the card to recognize. After testing it a few reboot cycles, it now comes up every time right away and works without question.
I still am upset that the fix was to get an 80 dollar cable and 40 dollar card. So I am also investigating the INIU cable as well. They are sending me a replacement and a label to ship my current one back for testing.
3 weeks ago
Yes let us know. Also doing sim racing here and its a disaster.
3 weeks ago
Alright, so I have a few more days of research, support, and investigation under my belt. Below are my updated findings. I am still working with support as well, but no breakthroughs yet.
Regarding non-Meta cables with "power injector" technology, I have discovered that the INIU cable that I frequently use has its own internal "battery management" logic built in. When the headset is charged enough, this cable uses this battery management to lower the charge voltage, which helps the battery charge and remain healthy (great option if you dont need PCVR), but the headset sees this as an issue due to the power dropping (same thing would happen if water/metal shorted two of the pins). Meta added logic to detect this "short" in software V62/V63, and I believe its added to actually protect against overheated ports on the headset that lead to fire and user harm. So although this doesn't actually require a short to occur to get this popup, it also works in a real case, and covers Meta in case of a lawsuit, so they will never remove this popup. Its too valuable for them to sacrifice poor device handling and people using bad cables just for the few PCVR players that are having issues.
So those "smart charging" or power injecting cables will NOT work if they have this smart charging built in. So either a dumb cable with power injecting (i dont think these exist) or a direct connection to a USB C port on the PC/MOBO directly. I do not believe there is going to be a solution to this issue when using the INIU cable, the charging capabilities and the Quest 3 sensing algorithms do not mix well.
Since I do not have USB C ports on my PC, I have been using a USB C to A converter, but USB A doesn't have the same charging capabilities as USB C does (even if its converted right after the MOBO, USB A voltages are 3.3 or 5V only, USB C can utilize 9V, 12V and 20V charging). First thing I need is to add USB C ports, which I will be doing tomorrow, though the board I am installing has a separate power connector to the PSU so it can push more than 5V if a PD device is detected. I will test this with and without the PD capabilities of the board to see how it works, using the Meta cable.
3 weeks ago
Test one using the Meta cable, a USB C to A adapter, fully charged Q3 before starting.
After 2 hours, 80% battery. So essentially full charge since that is all it will allow.
USB C card gets here tomorrow and will try again to check charge. But no issues with debris pop up. I need to try to run it harder for longer, but I think that Meta is going to win and make it so their cable will be the only one without issues.
3 weeks ago
It's terrible. Even if the pop up was over the screen I could cope but to go to black screen in the middle of online races is a joke.
Usually once the pop up has appeared mine won't do it again until the cable is unplugged but once you plug it back in you're on a ticking clock waiting for it to cut out.
I've bought countless cables and chargers, no difference.
It was fixed for me at one of the updates v66 maybe? But came back with later ones.
If I hadn't heard horror stories about the Pimax Crystal light I'd already have switched headsets.
3 weeks ago
Hi @itsGreg,
We would love to look into this issue for you. Could you please send us a private message.
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We look forward to hearing from you. Have a great day!
3 weeks ago
I had the most issues when using the INIU Cable with Power Injector. I reached out to their customer service and they are going to ship me a replacement and take mine in for some tear down and see if there is an issue. I suspect they made updates but the stock that was out in the world from the Quest 3 days dont work anymore so now they are replacing them "as needed" rather than creating scrap cables.
The best thing you can do is disable all the USB port power saving options, and try to play without charging the headset. It is a hassle but it works. My INIU cable and the Meta cable both work without charging. Havent had issues with either. Once I plug the power into my INIU cable, who knows when but it WILL cause the error.
New PCIe USB C card comes tonight, and league race tomorrow. So we will see if anything changes between now and then.
3 weeks ago
Received my USB C card, DOA. Had power, no comms. I have a replacement coming so will try again when that is received.
Instead, I tested the Meta Cable again. This time on my motherboard, since I removed my old USB 3.0 card. I had issues finding a port that would accept Link, but I think that was due to my attempt to get the new PCIe card working. I had no popups over the 1.5 hours, but battery went from 100% to 60% in that time. I do have every single USB port on my motherboard used, so I think when I had my other USB 3.0 Card with only one or two devices on it (one being the Q3) there was enough power to keep it charged a little more.
Summary of findings:
- Meta Cable with USB C to USB A converter to PCIe 3.0 - no issues with popups, 100% to 80% in 1.5 hours
- Meta Cable with USB C to USB A converter to MOBO USB 3.1 - no issues with popups, 100% to 60% in 1.5 hours
- INIU Cable, Meta wall charger to power port - popups randomly ruining my race and others, will charge and hold at 75-80%
- INIU Cable, PD wall charger to power port - Not Tested Yet
- INIU Cable, nothing plugged in to power port - Not Tested Yet (did this in the past and similar results to case 2 of Meta to MOBO, but didnt take any notes)
If anyone has ideas for other things to try, let me know. So far its worth the exchange of less battery life to be able to finish races and not leave angry.
3 weeks ago
@TheTjeezY So, if the headset is reducing the power when the battery gets to 80%, and sensing the power reduction is causing the warning flags. Would a smart charger that gradually reduces the power when the battery is at 75% stop the warning flags, or a rotary dial on the charger to manually turn down the power at 75% so the headset doesn't flag the warning.
3 weeks ago
@oculusness I think that would cause more issues, due to the control of the charge current being something OTHER than the headset itself.
To break it down, the headset is constantly MONITORING the power input. When plugged into a standard (non-smart) power brick or standard USB port, the headset will take in charge until it reaches ~80%. The HEADSET itself then will throttle the charge current down appropriately as the headset software sees fit.
When connected to a smart charger or a cable with a built in smart charging, the BRICK/CABLE is the one controlling the power reduction. So from the headset's POV, it is monitoring the charge current and when it drops without the headset commanding it, it would throw the error/popup. Its the "unknown" drop in charge current that is the issue, not the drop itself.
I think the only way is to maintain a constant power input to the headset, and let the headset manage it. This is fine, if your USB port (or cable) has the juice to keep it charged. So the options are to plug into the USB port directly without a power injector (slow charging, but all i have seen is slow or normal rate of discharging during PCVR), or buy a "power injector" cable that separates the data (to PC) and power lines (to charging brick). The problem is that the "power injector" cables that are available all have a smart charging brick built-in, which works on the earlier Quests and the Q3 original software pre-V62.
Honestly, the Meta cable is really good, has faster speeds that I had on other cables, and mainly my favorite thing is that I can finish a race without the black screen and wrecking my friends. The only problem on that front is that is doesnt charge at all, and doesnt seem to slow the discharging at all.
As stated in my previous post, I have a few more tests to run once all my new components get here. I have been able to return most of my purchases thus far and recoup some money, but I cant get rid of my Meta branded cable until I find an alternate solution, so I am out that $80 bucks.
Should have listened to the old addage "Buy once, cry once" and bought this cable to start with and I never would have fallen into this deep rabbit hole...
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