HP Reverb G2 not working with new gaming laptop

[Metafan]

I recently obtained a brand new gaming laptop and tried to connect my HP Reverb G2 headset to it using 2 separate USB-C to DisplayPort adapters. It is a pretty fantastic machine, it recognizes the Reverb G2 headset and WMR setup completes, this is about as far as I get.

Depending on which adapter I use, either both displays show a striped image, vaguely recognizable as the cliff house, or the left display is striped and the tight display is relatively normal. Neither works very well for gaming.

One note I have is that, during setup, Windows Mixed Reality performs the compatibility check and puts an exclamation point next to the the GPUs (Intel Iris XE and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti) and says "Supports some features"

Does anyone have any tips on how to get my new laptop and the Reverb properly working together?

Thanks for any information that may help.

[MikeG2V2]

I just looked at the requirements and it say DisplayPort™ 1.3. Is that provided through a USB C port?

[Metafan]

It is. The manufacturer specifies the port as Thunderbolt 4/DP 1.4 capable.

[MikeG2V2]

Can you disable the Intel Iris XE either in device manager or preferably the BIOS/UEFI? Maybe that's a conflict which is also the reason for the WMR warning.

[Metafan]

I have tried that, via the BIOS, but that only results in a error code 1-4 from the WMR portal. The NVIDIA control center then shows the RTX 3070 Ti as connected to HDMI and what looks like a USB-A port (the USB-C no longer shows in the control center).

By the way, both adapters I have tried are advertized as DP 1.4 as well (in addition to the USB-C port) and rated at 8K/60Hz.

I also noticed that when I connect a monitor to the HDMI port, which is connected to the NVIDIA GPU, the Iris instantly gets disabled as well.

[MikeG2V2]

Error 1-4 is a cable error code, maybe a bad cable? I saw a workaround where you have the Reverb connected and powered but WMR closed, unplug the power to the G2 and then start WMR and once it starts then apply power again to the G2.

If its not the cable, it just may have issues with USB-C video.

[Metafan]

I think the 1-4 is caused by the Iris GPU being disabled, and not an issue with the cable. The Reverb works just fine with my older laptop (which has a mini DP, so no need to convert a port on that one), where I used it less than 24 hours ago. Also, when I re-enable the Iris, the error goes away.

I have read posts, including on other sites, suggesting the USB-C/Thunderbolt/DP port needs to be wired to the NVIDIA GPU, rather than the Iris. However Dell tech support thought that which GPU the port is wired to should not make any difference.

After I noticed the switching that occurred when I connected an HDMI monitor, I decided to go out on a limb and order an adapter type that HP says won't work due to bandwidth problems (HDMI male to DP female, rated as 4K /60Hz capable) hoping that improvements HDMI technology may have made that type of connection possible after all. Just a bit of a gamble I'm taking on that. Unfortunately, it could be two weeks or more before that arrives.

[2muchFun]

Hi Metafan,

Did you ever resolve this issue?  I have a similar spec Lenovo Legion 5i laptop (USBC 3.2 Gen2 Display Port 1.4 and a USBC Thunderbolt 4 port, RTX 3070 TI) that has the ability to disable the internal MCU graphics via Lenovo software, but I'm unsure if I would ever get a G2 v2 Reverb working properly.

I'm hoping you resolved your issue because I'm not excited about possibly wasting $400.

Thanks!

[Metafan]

Hi 2muchFun,

Sadly, I never managed to solve the problem. I have been in contact with HP support, who have been great in helping me analyze the problem. Ultimately, by connecting the 3 different USB-C to DP adapters to another computer, I demonstrated that all 3 were compatible with the HP Reverb G2. The problem turned out to be that the USC-C/Thunderbolt 4/DP 1.4 port on the laptop could not support the Reverb G2.

It appears that very few modern laptops support VR using headsets that require a DisplayPort connector. Many multi-mode USB-C ports just do not seem up to the task and there is very little (if any) manufacturer documentation available on the subject.

I have since replaced the laptop with a desktop model from the same manufacturer that has multiple proper DisplayPorts provided by the GPU. It was a lot more expensive than the laptop was and a desktop was not my first choice, but at least this configuration works for me.

[2muchFun]

Hey Metafan,

All parts finally came in and I can report that the Reverb G2 v2 is up and running on the laptop.  The trick on this machine was identifying which USB-C had a direct connection to the nVidia 3070 TI dGPU via DP 1.4.  After that, the Cable Matters 201086  "USB-C to 8K DisplayPort Adapter - Thunderbolt 3 Compatible" adapter let me connect the Reverb's DisplayPort cable directly to the laptop's 3070 TI.  I then used the laptop's Optimus software to completely disable the Intel iGPU and the Reverb G2 v2 VR was up and running.  Completely disabling the Intel iGPU was the required final step.

I appreciate you taking the time to start this support thread.  It had the core info that put me on the trail to learning about 'VR Ready' laptops and their often poorly documented options for direct connectivity to their internal discrete graphics.  In this case the manufacturer's docs didn't ID the dGPU USB-C port, and it took hours of web surfing before I ran across a reviewer that covered the topic in detail for my specific laptop.