I’ve seen enough similar reports that this may be a common issue. If anyone has actually solved it, I’d love to know how- especially since I need to decide whether I’m keeping this headset before my return window closes.
The attached video is an extreme example (I don't normally have a 3rd lighthouse right in front of it) but it demonstrates the same jitter I experience at varying intensities and seemingly at random. It happens whether the headset is on my head or resting on a table, using my normal two high-mounted base stations or the additional third station positioned directly in front of it for testing.
I bought the Lighthouse version of the Dream Air to use with my existing Index base stations. I genuinely missed the Lighthouse ecosystem and was excited to return to it. Initially everything seemed pretty good, but over the last couple of weeks, it has developed, or I have at least started noticing, a very visible and extremely annoying positional micro-jitter. Its severity seems to change randomly, but it’s never completely absent.
I have a motion simulator, force-feedback peripherals, and a dozen pieces of software calibrated to work together. Somehow, this $2,000 headset has become the part of my setup with the most friction. And no, before mentions of EMI, it doesn't seem to care whether not any of my hardware is plugged in or powered on.
So far, I have:
- Covered reflective surfaces
- Tested with the motion platform and direct-drive motors completely unplugged
- Tested the headset completely stationary on a solid table
- Tried different base-station combinations and positions
- Bought a brand-new third Base Station 2.0 and positioned it directly in front of the headset as an additional test
The jitter remains. In the attached video, the headset is resting motionless on a solid table with the brand-new base station directly facing it. It isn’t always quite this severe, but it is never genuinely stable.
To be clear, I don’t normally have a third base station sitting directly in front of the headset. My usual setup has two base stations mounted near the ceiling on opposite ends of the room, angled approximately 45 degrees toward the center. I used my Valve Index with this arrangement for years without tracking problems.
Is this the same micro-jitter other Dream Air Lighthouse owners have reported? Has Pimax acknowledged a tracking or factory-calibration problem, or does this indicate that my particular unit is defective?
If anyone has found a real fix I’d greatly appreciate the details.... Thanks.
Edit: to comply with automod -
- Steps to Reproduce: start the headset
- How Frequent: more often than not
- System Info: RTX 5090, i9 13900kf, 64gb ddr5, windows 11, latest drivers and everything is up to date
- Pimax Info: latest version of pimax play and sboys (happens with both drivers)
- Game(s): doesnt matter, I notice it even in steam home.