Why VR Ruined My Triple-Screen Setup (And I’m Not Even Mad)

Disclaimer: I am a partner of Pimax, and they have supplied me with a Crystal Light test unit, but the opinions and recommendations are my own. The article does contain affiliate links.

I've been sim racing for the past five years now, and for the better part of this time, I've been using monitors.

For the first two years, I used a single 32" AOC CQ32G1 Curved QHD 144Hz, which is still in use as my fourth monitor. After that, I moved to a triple-screen setup with 3x Samsung 32" Odyssey G5's (QHD VA Curved 165Hz)—which are still the ones I use today.

Clearly, the winning setup goes to the triples. The immersion is next-level; being able to physically look left or right is just amazing. I don’t think I could go back to a single monitor, even one of those new super-ultra-wide ones. With triples, you get a better seating position—you can place your head within the monitor setup. Unbeatable.

But there was one more setup I had yet to try: VR headsets. I’ve been extremely happy with my triples, but the extra immersion from VR intrigued me. Triples are immersive by nature, no doubt, but they still display a flat 2D image in front of you.

That’s why my partnership with Pimax had one goal: to explore VR immersion and compare it to what I was already used to—and share my thoughts on it.

I’ve now had the Pimax Crystal Light for over two months, and in that time, I’ve attempted to livestream and share recordings with you. But mostly, I’ve been doing offline AI sessions, pushing the headset to its limits—and I think I’ve succeeded.

I’m breaking down my findings and feelings about VR into sections that make sense based on my experience. Here they are…

Immersion

Hands down, VR is by far the most immersive experience I’ve had on my PC—not just in sim racing (Google Maps fly mode is just WOW). In sim racing, though, it takes you to another level—almost literally. The depth and presence you feel inside the car are unmatched. I recall leaning forward and staring at the windshield wiper one day, amazed that it existed as a full 3D object.

The physical act of turning your head to see cars left and right exists in triples as well, but in VR, you can also lean forward or backward to get a better view of the mirrors. Everything reacts naturally, and you truly get lost in this newfound world.

No, there’s no comparison between the two. VR is an absolutely mind-bending experience… which leads me to the next section.

Comfort

There’s a huge debate on this, but I think it boils down to personal preference and the device itself. Comfort can be broken down into two subcategories: Physical Comfort and Mental Comfort.

Physical Comfort – This is, I think, the biggest downside to VR in its current state. We’re on the cusp of super lightweight headsets, so this might just be me griping about soon-to-be-obsolete tech, but it’s my experience with the Crystal Light. The device itself is fairly light and comfortable on your face—but after 15 minutes, you begin to feel it, as if something is hanging off the front of your head. Personally, living in Greece, no AC can cool my forehead fast enough. I didn’t notice any strain on my neck, which I thought would be an issue. My biggest pain points are the bulk in front of my face and the lack of fresh airflow—this is a clear advantage of having screens at a distance rather than stuck a few centimeters from your eyeballs. That said, I still go back to VR for immersion—I just crank the AC higher and hope I don’t have a stressful race. ;)

Mental Comfort – This depends as much on your hardware as your ability to detach from the physical world. My wife can’t even look at triples without getting dizzy, much less VR. I, on the other hand, felt at home in VR—no dizziness or nausea, as some others report. It’s been smooth sailing for me—but only when the tech works well (more on that later). If you’ve never gotten dizzy in front of triples, chances are you’ll feel at home in VR too.

Technology

Following up on comfort, your PC build matters a lot in VR. I run an RTX 3080, AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, and 32GB RAM—a setup that should, in theory, handle even the most demanding sims, like ACC. On default low VR settings, though, I’ve found that during a full grid lineup, it occasionally has hiccups. My experience wasn’t consistent—maybe 2 out of 5 races had lag, but not always—which might just be my system or environment. Once the race started and fewer cars were on-screen, everything smoothed out, as expected.

My gaming PC is 3-4 years old by now, which in sim racing years is like 40. VR has me eyeing upgrades because I want to increase visual effects and consistency. Yeah, that’s how I feel about VR—I want to use it more. It’s almost like magic when it works smoothly.

But when it does hiccup, I just want to rip the headset off and puke in a bucket. (No, that’s never happened, but lag can really kill the experience.) Thankfully, this doesn’t happen often—especially when racing offline and not trying to livestream at the same time… which I have attempted.

Setup

If you’re not like me, setting up a VR headset is straightforward. I run a rather complicated dual-PC rig with studio lighting optimized for cameras—not VR—which creates tracking issues (evident in my livestreams). But for normal usage, VR is practically plug-and-play. The real adjustment is the UI: suddenly, it’s your entire field of view, which can feel overwhelming at first. Once you get past that initial shock, though, you’re set to fire up any sim and dive into the immersion.

Cost

I’m confident VR costs will drop as the tech becomes more ubiquitous. But as it stands today, VR is already more cost-competitive than triples. You can get a headset like the Pimax Crystal Light for less than three monitors—so it’s a good deal. I don’t see cost as a barrier anymore… unless you need your sim rig for other tasks. If not, you might not even need monitors at all.

Conclusion

I’ll keep this as simple as possible.

If you’re already considering VR—do it. Don’t hesitate. It’s worth it.

If you’re on the fence—try it first. Visit a local sim center or a friend who has one. Chances are, you’ll be blown away instantly.

If you’re an old-school sim racer who prefers triples/single—still try it. It might not work for you, and that’s okay. But give it a chance.

If you’re just starting on a budget—VR is a double-edged sword. I’d suggest starting with a single screen, then deciding on VR later. Don’t do everything at once.