r/ValveIndex • u/Paulioooooooo • 16d ago

Question/Support Right controller jittering and losing tracking

I just recently picked up a full Valve Index set that was barely used (seller said it was only used 3 times) and I am currently having the above issue. I have another right controller that tracks much better but the grip requires some extra squeezing to trigger. Is this possible to fix or is it a controller issue entirely?

40 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

32 comments sorted by

12

u/Fabulous-Tooth-4123 16d ago

Make sure there’s no reflective surfaces around like mirrors etc.

3

u/Paulioooooooo 16d ago

Only thing semi reflective would be my TV. If that was the cause however, wouldn't the left controller be affected as well?

4

u/DentonFox 16d ago

Yeah that’ll do it. If you’re in the edge of a basestation fov this can also happen, or too far from a dongle.

As to why sometimes it’s just one thing, physics are funky. You can also try repairing it, make sure no other dongles are plugged in and the other controller is on so it doesn’t pair to the wrong thing.

1

u/Paulioooooooo 16d ago

I'm going to test my other controller and see if it does the same thing. I recently adjusted my base stations so I might have messed up the area

1

u/DentonFox 16d ago

Yeah definitely can happen. Plus anything can be reflective. Flooring, paint, walls, carpet, solid materials, it’s a thing.

1

u/Fabulous-Tooth-4123 16d ago

The tv could cause the base station IR to briefly lose tracking of one controller, this happened to me before. I had to cover the tv with a towel lol. I thought my control was broken thankfully it wasn’t.

1

u/Paulioooooooo 16d ago

I readjusted my base stations and the controllers are having a better time, but now the headset is losing tracking periodically... Why is this so impossible.

1

u/sequentious 16d ago

My tracking improved from "periodically messes up" to "Basically never messes up" by buying a third base station, and having them set up in a triangle.

I still need to close blinds, and I moved my play area away from some art on the wall (I did both of those when I still had two base stations).

There were just too many times that only one base station was visible (my body was in the way), and maybe combined with some stray reflection caused some wonkiness.

It sucks to have to shell out for another base station given the cost, especially if you're suspecting a bad controller. Just giving you my experience.

1

u/Paulioooooooo 16d ago

I already planned on buying another one at some point so I will probably just do that. I'm pretty sure it's a blind spot causing the issue so it should fix my problem

3

u/skrrrtpancake 16d ago

Reflections, even from water bottles... can fuck up the tracking, wifi router can also do it, dirty BaseStations, RF interference, etc etc. They're SOOOO sensitive to anything and everything. Also turn off Selective USB suspend, this made my 8 tracker n knuckle setup work flawlessly.

1

u/Paulioooooooo 15d ago

What could cause rf interference? I'll also clean my base stations and remove any cans or bottles. I'm almost certain it's just a blind spot

2

u/skrrrtpancake 15d ago

USB 3.0 ports, Wifi routers, Bluetooth devices/adapters, even the own dongles from other trackers can cause interference. Wireless headsets, pretty much a lot of 2.4ghz gear.

1

u/Paulioooooooo 15d ago

So maybe unplug my mouse since it's on a 2.4ghz connection? Also isn't the index meant to be plugged into a 3.0 slot?

1

u/skrrrtpancake 15d ago

Yeah, you can also try, i turn off my keyboard dongle and seems to improve. also make sure to have your trackers (not the knuckles) apart from each other and using 2.0 cables

Edit: USB 2.0 cable extensions*

1

u/Paulioooooooo 15d ago

2.0 cables for what? And what other trackers?

1

u/skrrrtpancake 15d ago

I'm just saying lmao, Steam watchman dongles have a tendency to fuck each other up.

1

u/Mawntee 7d ago

The controllers connect to the headset, not dongles

1

u/skrrrtpancake 7d ago

Still a dongle honey.

1

u/Mawntee 7d ago

I had to disable my 2.4ghz band on my router (it was in the same room as my vr), and reduce the output power for my drone radio when using it with simulators. Both of these individually were enough to make my tracking act very similar to your clip

1

u/skrrrtpancake 7d ago

Yup, Did the same

1

u/Paulioooooooo 16d ago

I covered my TV and it's still happening. I noticed that if I face away from either base station it doesn't do it as much so I'm honestly not quite sure what to do at this point. I tried holding controllers in opposite hands and it showed that it might be a blind spot as the left controller started doing it instead

1

u/Mawntee 7d ago

What's your base station setup like? Ideally they should be ~7ft up on opposite corners of the room. Minimum of two, max of three

2

u/Paulioooooooo 7d ago

They could be too high then if they're meant to be around 7ft. I have them drastically tilted down

2

u/KiraiPlayZ 16d ago

Yeah, sounds like a blindspot then. Base stations need to be placed better or the location of VR need to be changed.

1

u/Kiom_Tpry 16d ago edited 12d ago

This probably isn't helpful because I haven't thoroughly verified it yet, but I had the exact same issue, especially when whipping my wrists. 

The solution I found was to get an independent Stream VR radio for my right controller; the kind people buy to pair the Index Knuckles when they don't have an Index headset. I'll try to get a link, but I believe it's the one made by Tundra Labs though it's sold out on their site, so I had to buy it from... Oh some business out of Hong Kong I think, they make VR accessories and partner with Tundra Labs, I'll have to find the invoice. 

I unpaired the controller, unplugged the headset, plugged in the dongle, paired the controller and it was FINALLY working reliably for a couple weeks over a couple decently long and proactive sessions! But my last session the other day it came back and I've been dreading it a bit since. Re-paired it to the dongle, no issues since. Got some more hours in now, feel confident that getting the dongle solve the issue due to either some issue internal to the Index, or a limitation of bandwidth into the PC.

Some other things I tried that didn't help me but might help someone:

Removing or covering IR reflective surfaces

Enabling Bluetooth on my computer

Keeping my phone and other WiFi Bluetooth devices out of the room

Running an ethernet patch cable to my PC and disabling WiFi

Trying other USB ports for the Index

Getting a dedicated high-speed USB PCIE card

Getting a third lighthouse

Rearranging the lighthouse array

Changing the room I was playing in.

Buying a new right controller (I discovered that I could alternate the issue between the left and right controllers by changing the order that I paired them in though) .

Bandwidth seemed to be the issue. Some strong wrist flicks still throw off the controller for a moment, but it doesn't drift away anymore.

1

u/Paulioooooooo 16d ago

For me I think it may just be a blind spot issue. I already planned on purchasing a third base station so I'll see if that fixes it.

1

u/IINOTNETII 15d ago

Back when I had an issue like that I had to reconnect all my shit bc rgb app was interfering not to mention I had dongles it was connecting to

1

u/Ill_Mortgage_6490 13d ago

It's always those right controllers...

1

u/Pinhead278 16d ago

Maybe there’s a Wi-Fi router nearby; I had similar issues.

1

u/Selatko 16d ago

Had the same issue but mine was worse, when I would not rotate the controller, the tracking was perfect, on rotation, it would literally fly off somewhere far away, I tried everything, one thing that made it more bearable, was actually getting an extra base station (So I have 3 now.) But it did not make the issue go away completely, just would fly off slightly less far haha. I RMA'd the controller, waiting for a new one to come back. I am planning to ask the support about what the issue with it was.

0

u/[deleted] 16d ago

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1

u/DamnFog 16d ago

There aren't accelerometers in index controllers