Manage VR Cable Chaos

If you’re building a gaming PC specifically for virtual reality the new MSI VR boost kit, kit from the video card manufacturer is worth a look.

The MSI VR Boost Kit helps you eliminate the perennial bane of the PC gamer – cable clutter and loose wires.

While this won’t help tidy the cable mess lurking out of sight beneth your desk, what it will do is make it easier for you to connect your VR headset of choice to the front of your PC case.

This means no more struggling to ‘find the hole’ and allows you to plug your Oculus Rift or HTC Vive directly into your video card via a 5.25 inch bay at the front of your PC. Handy.

This is not a new concept. Indeed, EVGA released a ‘VR-ready’ GTX 980Ti edition earlier in the year that came with its own drive bay.

I wrote about that kit here. What MSI has done is release the bay as a standalone kit that you can attach to any MSI video card.

I’m not sure if this would work with non-MSI video cards. My suspicion is yes, but I can’t confirm that.

This means if you’ve already invested in a MSI GTX 1070 or MSI GTX 1080 in a VR-ready PC build, you can use this kit to migrate your VR headset cables from the back of your PC to the front, making everything a bit easier to connect and disconnect.

Like what you’re reading? Sign up to the Newsletter!

Join The List

MSI VR Boost Kit – The Bay

The drive bay itself is crafted from a high-quality matte black plastic.

It will slot into any ATX or micro-ATX sized case that has a free 5.25 inch bay.

The bay features two USB 3.0 connectors, and one HDMI 2.0 connector, meeting the requirements of both the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive headsets.

The package also contains a bracket to allow you to guide the HDMI cable from the front of the PC to the video card’s connector at the back.

This is a little different to EVGA’s aforementioned VR-ready GTX 980Ti, which features a internal HDMI connector, but works in the same way.

Make sure to allow space for this extra cable inside your case – with most cases this shouldn’t be a problem.

The MSI VR Boost kit also features a silver cover for the bay for you to use if the black doesn’t match your case styling. A nice touch from MSI.

Have You Built One Yet?

Are you looking to build a VR-ready gaming PC, or have you already built one?

What components did you use, and have you used the MSI VR boost kit?

Let me know in the comments below or connect with me on social media.

Building a Gaming PC

If you’re looking to build a gaming PC to get into VR, and are a little unsure where you should start, take a look at the below video playlist.

It’s designed to be as simple and straightforward to follow as possible.

Click the menu box in the top left of the below window to cycle through all the videos from installing a CPU fan to adding a hard drive.

I deliberately made the videos short and clear, to help make the learning process as straightforward as possible.

If you need tips about putting all of these high-end components together for your custom gaming PC build, hit me up in the comments section, or tweet me directly.

Like my stuff? Sign up to the Newsletter!

Join The List

More from the Blog

If you’re interested in other PC systems please check out my other guides, or for the latest news and reviews head to the blog.

If you have any questions on the MSI VR boost kit, or would like recommendations on other components or hardware you could use, drop me a line on Twitter, send me a picture on Instagram, or join my community on Facebook.



