HELP: Headset and monitor crash simultaneously while playing iRacing
TL;DR: During iRacing VR sessions, my monitor and PSVR2 headset both crash and go black - I am unable to get the screen back and have to hard-reboot. Extensive troubleshooting has been done and hasn't fixed it.
Setup
Windows 11
CPU: Intel Core i5-12500H
GPU: RTX 3080 (desktop) running 610.62
PSU: Corsair RM750 (750W)
Monitor: DisplayPort, 2560 x 1440 @ 164Hz
Wheel: Logitech RS50 + Pro Pedals via wheel base, USB connection
Using PSVR2 with the official Sony PC adaptor
Using PSVR2 controllers (mainly just to navigate off the Steam menu)
Symptom
- Monitor and headset go black simultaneously, mid-session
- PC stays running underneath - confirmed via Caps Lock LED still toggling, so the OS kernel is alive
- No recovery possible and requires a hard reboot (even tried remote desktop via phone)
- Timing and trigger is inconsistent: sometimes within minutes of starting, sometimes after multiple hours/several races. Generally happens when there is a screen state change, ie. not during a race, but when exiting the race or I press start to enter qualifying. But also seems to happen from something simple like a mouse click.
Confirmed root cause (via 4 separate diagnostic sources)
Root cause: DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG / DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_RESET — Nvidia GPU driver (nvlddmkm.sys) failing under DirectX 11 + SteamVR/OpenXR VR load
Windows kernel minidumps (C:\Windows\Minidump)
Two automatic BSOD dumps were generated during crashes:
Bugcheck: SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION (0x3B)
Faulting module: nvlddmkm.sys (Nvidia kernel display driver)
Triggering process: vrcompositor.exe (SteamVR's compositor)
Fault type: null pointer dereference inside the Nvidia driver while handling a compositor request
Apparently this is a known, documented crash signature appearing in multiple community reports (SteamVR forums, Nvidia support threads, GeForce forums) across different GPU models and driver versions going back ~2 years
Live monitoring (HWiNFO64)
Logged GPU sensors during a session that crashed. Data shows completely normal, stable GPU temp/power/clocks right up until the exact crash timestamp, at which point every GPU metric freezes simultaneously (temp, power, clock, memory clock, core load all lock to identical repeated values, with Hot Spot Temp dropping to an impossible 0.0°C - indicating the sensor just stopped being able to query the driver). This confirms an instantaneous driver hang, not a thermal or power-related gradual failure.
WER folder
The ReportArchive in the WER folder (C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WER\ReportArchive) has a goldmine of info - many folders of AppCrash_psvr2_overlay.ex_XXX. These folders however have been impossible to access - tried most things you could think of.
What I've tried (all unsuccessful at fully resolving it)
- Regular Nvidia driver update (Game Ready)
- Switching to Nvidia Studio driver branch
- DDU clean reinstall of latest driver
- DDU clean reinstall of driver version 561.09 (specifically community-recommended for this exact nvlddmkm/vrcompositor bug) — still crashed
- Nvidia Control Panel: Power Management Mode set to "Prefer Maximum Performance" specifically on the vrcompositor.exe profile
- Disabling Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling (PC setting under System>Display>Graphics)
- USB power management / selective suspend settings
- Tried SteamVR beta branch
- Confirmed SteamVR is set as the active system OpenXR runtime
- Disabling Discord overlay, Nvidia overlay, unnecessary G Hub (Logitech) background settings
General PSVR2 and iRacing Settings
- Refresh Rate 120Hz (also happens at 90Hz)
- Motion smoothing off
- Render resolution 100% @ 3400 x 3468
- Current OpenXR Runtime: Steam VR
- Tried low graphics settings (medium to high graphics settings still give me smooth gameplay).
Any help would be appreciated!!