flashing grey screen

[Vildan]

Well:

1. my manufacture date is 02.2017

2. The problems had started, I think, in May

3. About environment wrote before "I made a test. Firstly I started play in game (battle dome) before game temperature of front panel Vive (around the camera) was 28-32 Co, after 15 min it became 38-41, in that moment the flashing started. Then, I left Vive (without turning it off) close to cold accumulator for 30 min. After that the temperature was 23-26. I played the same game for 30 min (a little bit more, than last time, because the start temperature was lower) and flashing came back. I checked the temperature of the front panel, it was 38-41."

During this test nothing else around me changed, there wasn't any other impacts or something else, which can make the flashing.

 

[Operator Vive]

 

Hi all. We bought 2 helmets at the official website of HTC Vive https://www.vive.com/ru/ at different times (November 2016, January 2017), 2 helmets bought on sale, timed to the anniversary of Vive, https://www.dns-shop.ru/ in April 2017. Had the opportunity to preclude problems PC, location (transferred the system to another room), wires, reinstalled Windiws and Steam vr... the problem with the grey screen persisted after the inclusion of 20 minutes. It's hot 32-34 degrees Celsius. Then we decided to experiment. The cold air stream helmet cooled, and the image appeared in the position of the head in which included a gray screen. Then he sent a jet of hot air on the helmet, and the image began to fade into a gray screen. Now cooled helmet, but this treatment lasts for 10-15 minutes. The problems started from the beginning of June, the number 6 to 8, when we have established very hot weather. Very interesting, are the owners of the HTC Vive this problem with a gray screen right now who is in the room air and the temperature to a comfortable 24 degrees Celsius?

[Operator Vive]

similar branch deliberations in group HTC Vive https://vk.com/topic-71174511_34158582?offset=720 for Russian-speaking

[Aidarpro]

I totally agree with Echeva.
HTS Vive is a very cool thing and he has great prospects. But unfortunately for today though I am its owner, I can not experience pleasure, as gray flickers do not give me fun and enjoy. I ask Vive's team to pay more attention and power to this problem and to solve it in the shortest possible time, possibly with the help of Steam.
I (i think "we") try help you by testing on the own situation.

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wrote:

IMHO it seems more related to Temperature than to SteamVR.

 

Testing this should be really easy for HTC. It is true that we, final users, can help with the whole diversity of factors which may have influence: ddrivers, hardware... BUT, testing temperature conditions is something that HTC should do. 

 

We, some users, may be happy to do some tests, but testing environment should be HTC responsibility.

 

I don't really think it is so difficult for a company like HTC to get a bunch of testing helmets and try them monitoring the helmet temperature under different environment temperatures. In a couple of days we may have relevant results. 

 

Is HTC studying this problem, besides VIVE staff in this forum? Because VIVE staff here are doing their best, but that is not their job and I imagine they don't have necesary means.

 

Dear VIVE staff: may you please update us about whether and how is HTC dealing with this problem? I really think it should be studied and solved before yourTube and other social networks start getting more and more videos or posts and so damaging the VIVE brand.

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[MartinMarty]

---

wrote:

Moving forward, the following info will help us greatly:

1) The manufacture date of your Vive. This can be found by sliding off the 3-in-1 cable compartment cover.

2) The rough date that you started expericing problems

3) Any environmental factors you feel may be influencing the problem

4) Any workarounds you find that alieveates the issue, even if it's impractical

5) Threads from any other online communities that you find that describe similar issues

---

1) Mfg date = 11/2016

2) Bought end of Dec. Started playing in January. Problems started right about time as my Vive subscription, bought 4/30, started using about 5/10 probably. This is when problems started on two of my first subscription titles, Firebird - La Peri and Everest.

3) I have a couple of semi-shiny floor mats on the carpet but they did not bother anything at first, also I have covered them with sheets and it did not help. I have seen significant improvement by using the beta SteamVR code. HOWEVER, if these people are right about the temperature theory, it could still apply to me because the outdoor temperature has dropped drastically the last couple of days, from about 89 or 90ºF to (right now) 62.7º F. So now I haven't been using the air conditioning in the house.  Maybe when I resume AC, the problem will resume.

4) Though I thought my initial base station placement was nearly perfect by the book, because it was only about 1 foot under max range of 5m, I tried relocating base stations which did not help. Also tried using sync cable which did not help.

5) The only other thread I know of is the one in here titled "Overheating".

[Vildan]

There is an interesting way to temporary fix it in Russian forum.

Firstly , when the gray flashing start, you need to find the sensor, which overheated by closing one sensor after one, till the gray flashing over. After you find bad sensor, you must cover it by something (adhesive tape for example). that's all. People said, that with this lifehack you'll have some add time to play Vive :)

But, nevertheless, it terrible, that we have to do the things like this, to use so expensive gadget in almost normal way.

[Kuneg]

I have been following this threads for some time and it looks like there are more people with this exact problem
Loss of tracking in my case starts after 30-40min. First few jumpes if I turn in a specific direction, after next 10-40min it is completely unplayable.
This are my info to compare:

1) Manufacture date: 11/2016 (3-in-1 cable). Bought through vive.com and shipped from the Netherlands(to Poland).
2) Everything worked fine until ~15 June. I switched from the RX 480 to GTX 1080 with 1 mount brake between change.
3) Same as other cases: usually more than 25*C conditions, faceplate is very warm and if you cover some sensors in this area, "flashing" mostly stops(for a while).
4) You can cover some sensors that are responsible for errors(?), but more of them start to fail with time.
5) ---

[shenjo]

you describe exactly the problem that i have, i just bought a H60 water cooling, thinking that was the increase of the cpu temperature, but its just the same problem.

[shenjo]

i do the same  i cover this sensors and continue playing for like 10 minutes

 

then other sensors start failing and starts blinking on grey screen, making a real headache

[echeva]

1) Cannot find manufacture time, but my SN is: FA66GJJ02046 2016. On the 3in1 cover there is a very small print which says 160511B 0 74H... (I can't read it). maybe date is 11 May 2016? Model OPJT100. I bought in on August 23rd 2016 directly from HTC VIVE web site Europe.

 

2) The EXACT date I had the problem for the 1st time was MARCH 21, 2017. I do Know it because steam has registered the last time I played the game I was playing (Roomscale Tower) when the problem firts appeared. This makes the May SW update as culprit unlikely. 

 

3) Although it was March, Room Temperature was 28C (air conditioned controlled to 28C). I was sweating, as I was playing Roomscale Tower. I don't know the headset Temp. but I remember I was hot, due to phyical exercise needed by the game.

 

4) Any workarounds you find that alleviates the issue, even if it's impractical: I am not sure, but I think after aligning very very accurately the base stations, the problem takes longer to appear. And the blind area gets longer to increase size. In the end tracking is lost anyway. I have also noticed, when blocking some sensors traking returns. But I do not know what sensors are, just tried shadowing IR rays with my hand.

 

5) Other threads: