The Valve Index Gets The iFixit Teardown Treatment!

We had so much fun tearing down the Meta Quest Pro that we decided to take a closer look at another popular VR headset — the Valve Index. The Index was released all the way back in 2019, so it’s not quite cutting edge tech — but now that VR and AR are part of the mainstream tech landscape, we thought it would be good to see how different companies find solutions to the complexities of VR.

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Need to repair your Valve Index headset? We've got guides for that!

Timestamps
00:00 Intro
00:20 Disclaimer
00:34 The Valve Index Lighthouse
01:07 Breaking the Valve Index Lighthouse
01:32 Valve Index Controller Disassembly
02:05 Breaking the Valve Index controller
02:30 Valve Index Controller tracking ring disassembly
02:50 Removing the Valve Index Controller mainboard
03:06 Removing the Valve Index Controller battery
03:24 Valve Index Headset repair guide
03:40 X-Rays of the Valve Index Headset
03:51 Removing the Valve Index head straps
04:28 Remove the Valve Index front Face
04:39 Removing the Valve Index Motherboard
04:43 Removing the Valve Index Lenses and Display
05:40 Final Thoughts

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[IsandJako]

1:01
The VR headset knows where it is at all times. It knows this because it knows where it isn't. By subtracting where it is from where it isn't, or where it isn't from where it is (whichever is greater), it obtains a difference, or deviation.

[cozycola]

You are actually able to replace the battery in the controllers without a full disassembly. You can remove the finger tracking plate (You don't even need to disconnect it fully) and simply undo the screws. There is a hidden T9 Torx screw on the circular part on the top of the controller, which keeps the two halves of the body together. Removing that allows you to move the two halves apart enough to remove the battery without a full disassembly and avoiding the nightmare of the IR sensor ring.

Not posting links to avoid issues but there are two easy to find videos by SneakyJoe that guides you through this process. Both with and without a sodering kit. (If you want to use a different type of battery.)
I highly suggest watching both videos.

I did this just the other day, my battery was no longer charging and upon removing it I discovered it was swollen to almost double the size of a replacement battery I got from a broken controller.
I'm surprised it didn't explode.
I swapped them out and disposed of the old battery safely. :)

[DerSolinski]

Yeah to my knowledge there the glue in the controller is a stop gap measure.
So this made the controller actually more reliable in the long run. I'm sure the next controllers will be taking into account everything learned with the index.
But I have no explanation for the Lighthouse V2s. I only can imagine they bunkered it down since they are VERY sensitive equipment.
I can't stress this enough, treat them with care! They are a marvel of modern technology and are pure high tech. Just exposing the rotor to the room will mess with the tracking.

[BOLL]

Love to see the insides of a device I've used for more than three years. And now it's acting up so maybe I will have to need these repair guides! Thanks for your efforts!

[elijahtheurer]

2:50 I'm pretty sure the valve index doesn't use a time of flight sensor. If you look at the lighthouse 1.0, it actually does a horizontal, vertical sweep, and then sync pulse. The vertical sweep allows each sensor to get it's vertical angle relative to each lighthouse based on the time from last sync pulse, and the same with horizontal.

If you combine both, you can get a bunch of lines pointing from each sensor, to the lighthouse in question, which can be used to track the devices

[ussul]

Interesting way to connect speakers. Ty for tear-down.

[invisio]

The cement in the controllers is for when the controllers go through the dry wall in your house

[rainwbowedcoffe]

1:02 “It know where it is because it knows where it wasn’t”

[williamjenks]

Now the real challenge put it all back together

[MaxspeedDude]

I wish he did a teardown of how the rear cushion was attached so I could clean mine.

[Nekotaku_TV]

5:20 Nooo don't cut! I'm trying to see how that flimsy rubber cover is attached!

[toastymann]

About time we got a teardown video lol.

[StubbyPhillips]

Oh yeah! Valve... They used to do killer VR stuff! I waited YEARS for them to come up with something new to replace my Index, but eventually I had to just give up on them.

[sultanofsick]

This helped me with getting the controller apart for getting the little f&(*D! spring that fell down inside it, but I could have used a lot more detail. You skipped over several key steps. I ended up ripping off the flip-down holder of the grip ribbon cable, not realizing it was a flip type and not just an insert like all the others. Gonna have to see if I can use glue to hold it back on I guess. Speaking of which, actually showing exactly where the glue was holding the sensor ring cover on could have saved me at least an hour getting mine off, not knowing if what was resisting me was clips or glue.

[joebloggs]

What happens if your index is bricked? Second damn index headset that has bricked on me. The decard will be great though. They will have wireless tech, repairability, modulation im sure.

[darkmatterrage]

I hope the Deckard and its controllers are more serviceable...

[Thor_the_wolf]

Anyone know how to find the wiring diagram of the valve index eye tube assembly? Its a 50 pin flatcable.

[sefin]

Hello everyone!
I would like to replace the face "shield" because the sweat took its tol and I would like to replace it with something which is easier to clean.

But here is the thing when I removed the old one I noticed that it holds on some glue double sided tape. But its really strong and feels like some "gum"

Any idea what it is? I was searching for it on the internal, but since I have no clue how it is called I failed misserably.
I tried several strong tapes, but it is nothing like what is used on original index.

Thank you!

[jinxterx]

Is that going to e-waste now that you destroyed it?

[parkerazz]

Why can't we have a VR set that dosen't have thoes stupid magnifying lenses? Why not just a big screen..