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Rift or Rift S?

Niurkioks
Sightseer
Hello. I am super new to vr. I have never had or tried a vr headset, but im thinking about buying one now that i saved up some money.
The question is should i buy Rift cv1 or Rift S? In my country a used Rift cv1 is about 300 euro and Rift S is about 500.
So my question. Is Rift S really that much better to justify the price increase. Im afraid my room will be too small for the Rift cv1 sensors, but ive heard the tracking is much better. I heard that cv1 has more godrays but i dont know what that means. Basically i have been researching this question but i cant really find a real answer, so im hoping you can help me.
Thank you in advance and im sorry if i posted this in the wrong section 🙂
20 REPLIES 20

kojack
MVP
MVP
Yeah, the Rift-S audio is like listening to music on a mobile phone using its internal speaker, compared to listening with good headphones. It's usable, but not enjoyable.

Rift-S pros:
- much better image quality
- reduced screen door
- reduced god rays
- easy to set up
- double tap home to see passthrough
- only needs 1 usb port

Rift CV1 pros:
- much better black levels
- higher framerate (90 vs 80)
- can wear on your forehead (I do that while testing things I write)
- better controllers (more durable, more comfortable, less issues)
- better tracking system (I own both headsets, in my experience the Rift-S tracking is crap compared to the CV1. Still usable, but CV1 is better)
- much better audio
- seems less sensitive to usb power issues (spreading the load over multiple usb ports compared to trying to power 5 cameras and a screen on one usb)
- thinner lighter cable, less annoying

Could go either way:
- CV1 uses HDMI, Rift-S uses Display Port. This is good or bad depending on what your PC has or you are already using.


A used Rift CV1 is risky, it could have the right headphone failure about to happen (the connection in the headband can get stressed and fail) and you get no warranty. The Rift-S has its share of potential problems too, but at least you can return it for repair/replacement.
Author: Oculus Monitor,  Auto Oculus Touch,  Forum Dark Mode, Phantom Touch Remover,  X-Plane Fixer
Hardware: Threadripper 1950x, MSI Gaming Trio 2080TI, Asrock X399 Taich
Headsets: Wrap 1200VR, DK1, DK2, CV1, Rift-S, GearVR, Go, Quest, Quest 2, Reverb G2

Niurkioks
Sightseer
Thanks guys for the replies!
Im thinking to test out a cv1 tomorrow and if the display is not sharp enough then ill look into the rift s
Im leaning towards the cv1 still because it just seems better apart from the display upgrade, and im used to using a phone with a chinese headset so i think the display is gonna be amazing compared to that. Also ive heard that the godrays and screen door effect depends on people and what you are doing, since im just gonna be playing games, and im gonna test out the headset before buying, i think i can make a call at that point

SkScotchegg
Expert Trustee
Rift CV1 was amazing, perfect tracking, perfect controllers, really reliable, I had no issues with it.

Rift S for me has a much better screen and optics with almost no god rays but the tracking is not on par with CV1.

It's improved a lot recently though since the latest patches and if you've never tried VR before you probably wouldn't even notice so I'd probably recommend Rift S to you as it has the best visual quality experience between the two.

If you have any issues with tracking just refund it within first 30 days.
UK: England - Leeds - - RTX 2080 - Rift CV1 & Rift S - Make love, not war - See you in the Oasis!

korgen63
Protege
Guys, don't give bad advices!!!
You must NOT suggest Rift S without warning about IPD. First thing to do is to measure your IPD and if 60<your ipd<68, go for Rift S. If your IPD is under or above this range, it'll cause blurred vision and eye strain in the best case.

SkScotchegg
Expert Trustee
I didn't mention it because it's already mentioned above in this thread so didn't think there was a need to mention it again.
UK: England - Leeds - - RTX 2080 - Rift CV1 & Rift S - Make love, not war - See you in the Oasis!

rednekcowboy77
Adventurer
go with the Rift-S without question.  I can't comment on IPD, but I've had a dozen people test out my Rift-S and never had one complaint about blury vision.  Compared to the OG Rift, it is much easier to setup and tracking is unbelievably better, hands down.

MPires
Heroic Explorer


korgen63 said:

Guys, don't give bad advices!!!
You must NOT suggest Rift S without warning about IPD. First thing to do is to measure your IPD and if 60<your ipd<68, go for Rift S. If your IPD is under or above this range, it'll cause blurred vision and eye strain in the best case.

Don't be so sure.
I had CV1 for 3 years and I really liked it. I now have Rift S for 2 months now and still like it more.
My IPD = 58 and had no problem on any of the HMD's.
My advice is: if you can afford the Rift S it is better to buy this one. If you buy CV1 you don't make any mistakes either. Hardware requirements are similar except for ports.
The sound of the CV1 is better but the connections are quickly damaged. The sound of the Rift S is sufficient without being good but it is much more comfortable.
Go ahead, VR is the way 🙂

Anonymous
Not applicable
I would highly encourage to buy from Amazon if you can, or say a local Best Buy.
I know with Amazon I can send anything back within 30 days for money back or replacement, I am a Prime Member so not sure if that applies the same with non-Prime members. I think Best Buy may have similar.

Niurkioks
Sightseer
Final update. I ended up buying a cv1 and so far i am very pleased. This is unlike anything ive experienced and i only had like 2 hours to play with it. Rift S was a little too expensive and i think for my first ever vr headset, a cv1 is really good. Thanks for all the help and advice guys 🙂

korgen63
Protege

MPires said:
Don't be so sure.
I had CV1 for 3 years and I really liked it. I now have Rift S for 2 months now and still like it more.
My IPD = 58 and had no problem on any of the HMD's.



It's maybe less annoying below the range. My IPD is 72 and I can tell it's a real problem ^^