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iRacing FOV - Field Of View
Share an easy link to this page: edracing.com/fov
Related pages:
Set the correct FOV (below) then adjust the seating position
See CAMERA section of Camera-UI page to adjust driving seat position - adjust cockpit camera
3monitors - my 3 monitor configuration notes
"3 screens, Side monitor angle" iRacing thread (running since 2010) is loaded with good information
Timely reminder, hidden features in iRacing's app.ini:
DriverHeadHorizon (roll) setting, thread.
DriverRotateHead (yaw) setting, thread.
DriverHeadNoPitch setting to detect elevation changes and DriverHeadWobble setting.
Content below: Calculators. Notes. Videos
Note graphic's option no longer says "render each screen separately"
- FOV CALCULATORS - with thanks to David Tucker.
- Calculators work in cm or mm or inches.
- Enter your monitors horizontal width and the distance from your eyes to the monitor to calculate the correct field of view for your seating position.
- Reducing the distance form your monitor to your eyes will increase the field of view.
- On games that use a vertical FOV instead of a horizontal one, enter the monitors height to calculate the correct FOV.
- If you have triple monitors configured to render as if they were one large monitor then line the monitors up in a flat row and use the total width of all three monitors to calculate the FOV.
- If you are rendering a separate image to each monitor, then use the triple monitor calculator below.
- On a single monitor you want to use the width of the viewable part of the monitor.
- On a triple monitor, single renderer, setup you want to use the width of the viewable image as well, but include the center bezels.
That is treat it like one large monitor with some annoying black lines on it.
Then in your video card you want to enable bezel correction so the central bezels are taken into account when rendering the image.
- If you choose to render each monitor separately (which I do)
then only measure the viewable width on the center monitor and don't apply any bezel correction in your graphics card.
Typically your graphics card will provide two resolutions to you, one with bezel correction turned on and one without it. The smaller horizontal width is the one without bezel correction.
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Triple Monitor separate renderer FOV:
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Single Monitor FOV:
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- VIEWING DISTANCE CALCULATORS - with thanks to David Tucker.
- David's calculators work in cm or mm or inches.
- Enter your monitors horizontal width and the desired field of view (not over 179) to calculate the correct viewing distance for your seating position.
- Reducing the field of view will increase the seating distance.
- On games that use a vertical FOV instead of a horizontal one, enter the monitors height to calculate the correct distance.
- If you have triple monitors configured to render as if they were one large monitor then line the monitors up in a flat row and use the total desired FOV of all three monitors to calculate the distance.
- If you are rendering a separate image to each monitor, then use the triple monitor calculator below.
- On a single monitor you want to use the width of the viewable part of the monitor
- On a triple monitor, single renderer, setup you want to use the width of the viewable image as well, but include the center bezels
That is treat it like one large monitor with some annoying black lines on it.
Then in your video card you want to enable bezel correction so the central bezels are taken into account when rendering the image.
- If you choose to render each monitor seperately (which I do)
then only measure the viewable width on the center monitor and don't apply any bezel correction in your graphics card.
Typically your graphics card will provide two resolutions to you, one with bezel correction turned on and one without it. The smaller horizontal width is the one without bezel correction.
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Triple Monitor seperate renderer
Viewing Distance:
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Single Monitor Viewing Distance:
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- BEZEL OVERLAP, post by DT:
If you overlap the bezels, then just cut the overall width by the width of one bezel.
Technically overlapping the bezels creates another problem where the side monitors are slightly out of true, but that may be a small enough issue that you don't care about it.
- SIM IS CAPPED AT 179, post by DT:
"The optimal monitor angle is always 1/3 of your final FOV, so if you are aiming for 179 degrees of FOV you want a 60 degree monitor angle (59.667 deg).
Actually that optimizes the viewing angle between your head and the monitor, to maximize the FOV you need to push things in just a bit from there, but the gain is small and I don't consider it worth it.
Also keep in mind that our calculator caps out at 179 degrees, no matter what numbers you enter.
You may be better off using the FOV calculator at EdRacing since it can let you know when you have things too close http://www.edracing.com/edr/FOV.php Plus it is simpler"
- MY FOV NOTES -
- On 3 monitors, using the correct FOV should provide a 1:1 representation allowing better car placement for corners etc.
(In the past when I had 1 monitor with a calculated FOV of 45, I set it much higher, I didn't suffer from fish-eye).
- Adjust FOV (field of view): [ or ] key. [ or ] and Shift key.
Incorrect FOV setting will distort your view / perspective.
Also see TWEAKS section on home page for head movement settings etc.
My preferred FOV isn't always technically correct - I question the relevance of an individual's vision.
- View larger image.
- Related post | screenshot.
- In some cases adjusting Vanish-Y will correct your view - informative post by Jason (iRacing member).
 
The above image illustrates a skewed horizon with incorrect tilt/height.
You can see the difference by slouching in your seat.
VanishY [ or ] and Shift key set correctly once should be correct in all cars.
Fence lines and horizons should then be level across 3 monitors without warping.
Once you set VanishY correctly, you might want to change your seat view (Ctrl+F12, see Camera-UI).
From what I've seen, ideally the top of your real wheel will match up with your virtual wheel.
On a single monitor, it's been suggested VanishY is only a novelty.
Also important to set the correct angle between monitors (physically and in sim).
Example below achieves 179 FOV which isn't necessarily the best setting for realism.
- Vanish-Y:
click for larger image
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This image shows that Vanish-Y isn't moving the camera up and down.
It's moving the center of the rendered image relative to the center of your monitor.
The animation consists of 3 images:
Top: VanishY set at 50%
Bottom: VanishY set at -50%
Middle: VanishY set at -6% (my setting at time). |
- FOV Comparison
From page 11 of iRacing's Field Of View Explained pdf.
click for larger image
- Aspect Ratio - another DT post.
Aspect ratio determines what you can see.
With a realistic FOV, A 64" monitor won't magically give you better view.
You will get the same view as someone with 19" monitors (mounted 6" from there eyes).
All a bigger monitor does for you is allow you to sit further back from the displays.
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Original image attached to forum post (copied for my reference).
It shows centre monitor (of 3) at 179°.
DT marked vertical view with different aspect ratios.
User interface (virtual mirror etc) would be squished down to fit.
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- Monitor size
David T comments from thread:
Spend time playing with FOV calculator and run iRacing in a window to replicate the screen ration your prospective monitor for a sense of what you will or won't see.
It is also a nice way to test out what it would be like to use one ultra wide monitor vs 3 monitors, so you can get a sense of how much more you can see in one direction or the other.
Monitor size mostly plays into how big of a FOV you can use, while aspect ratio tells you how much you can see vertically or horizontally.
Ideally you would hit 179 degrees of horizontal FOV, that is the max we support in the sim, but that is basically impossible to do without going to triple monitors.
Another thread "Monitor size for most realistic scale" (May 2016) may be of interest to you.
- Correct eye level thread.
"60% up from the bottom of the viewable area as Cary stated".
Note: Reference is made to MCV; seat adjustments can be with cockpit cam instead (Camera-UI).
- High resolution screenshots on Keyboards page.
- iRacing's Field of View Explained pdf. I can't find the original source.
- A very informative FOV post by David Tucker. Screenshot (2014s2).
- 3 screens, Side monitor angle thread (running since 2010) is loaded with good information.
- FOV guide by Total Spanish Simulator thread.
- There are many discussions about FOV, one thread I've read.
- Visible width image from Derek's post.
Enter the values for monitors and distance and angle.
Visible width excluding bezel - measure horizontal width of monitor viewing area.
Monitor width including bezel - measure width of monitor from edge to edge.
Viewing distance - measure distance from center screen to your eyeballs.
To measure angle, I bought a 50c protractor from a local shop.
Google protractor to print one out.
- Another FOV related post by David Tucker. Excerpt:
The
actual equation for hitting 179 deg FOV with triple monitors is
viewDist = width * 0.872, and a side monitor angle of 60 deg.
No
other combination will let you maximize the view as well (but other
side angles and distances will work, the monitors will just end up
closer than this).
As a rule of thumb, your center monitor should be about 10% closer to your face than the monitor is wide
(if you have a 50 cm wide monitor, then put it 45 cm from your face).
- The old way before calculators above: 3 screens - angle of side monitors -
- David Tucker posted a fast way to calculate 3 screen FOV and monitor angles using google.
Replace width with your monitor width, and dist with your viewing distance.
You can divide the answer by 3 to get the monitor angles.
https://www.google.com/#q=6+*+atan(+0.5+*+width+%2F+dist+)+in+degrees
Example: a 25" monitor viewed from 30" away
https://www.google.com/#q=6+*+atan(+0.5+*+25+%2F+30+)+in+degrees
Google's answer = 135.71919 degrees (FOV)
135 divided by 3 = 45 degrees (monitor angle)
- Previous to David's above method, I used a method posted in thread '3 screens, Side monitor angle'.
Sebastien provides a file to calculate using 'geogebra' app.
For my reference: geogebra download | Sebastien's file.
- VIDEOS -
Sim Racing 101 : Field of View - Seeing is Believing (Ep7). Uploaded by Empty Box.
Sim-Racing Monitor Placement and Field-of-View. Uploaded by tbhausen. Forum thread.
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