[GUIDE] Finding the Mathematically Correct FOV & Multimon Settings For ANY Monitor Setup

[a1337cookie]

@j0k3r - First of all, apologies for the late response, I didn't get notified for some reason.

You must have been following that youtube tutorial by Trauma Team Racing. For some reason, he tells you to change the multimon mode to 2 after using my calculator, which means all the values you entered are ignored. It must be set to 4 in order to use the calculated values.

Some people brought it up in the comments, but he told them they were wrong instead. I also recently left a comment about it, but it doesn't show up, it seems to have been deleted.

So yeah, just follow the written guide here for now. I've been working on some video guides about FOV, but I got busy and sidetracked IRL. There are 3D animations, so it's been taking a while. Hopefully it'll be ready soonish.

[a1337cookie]

Major Update: New Simple Calculator added, replacing the previous Basic Calculator. Using this should be much more streamlined, only requiring 4-7 inputs depending on your setup. It does lose the capability to handle mismatched monitors, but the Hybrid Calculator is still available and more suited for the job anyways.

A major improvement is the new Multimon Config File Output, available for both Simple Calculator and Hybrid Calculator. It provides a full multimon file for you to copy paste, no need to copy individual values anymore. The raw output and helper values are now grouped and hidden by default in Simple Calculator, leaving a clean view of just the essentials.

New QOL features have also been added. You can now switch the side angle measurement to a diagonal distance measurement instead, allowing you to conveniently get the angle between monitors without a protractor. As well, choosing Midpoint for the FOV Adjustment Method will auto calculate the eye distance where all monitors will face you straight on.

There's also a shortcut button available that copies your current settings in Simple Calculator over to Hybrid Calculator, saving you time when switching calculators. It's written in Apps Script, and requires special permission to run, so it's not enabled by default. Instructions to enable it are in the calculator.

Notes were also added to cell labels, describing what each value means directly in the calculator. You shouldn't need to do as much flipping between pages to refer to the guide. The guide has been further streamlined because of this.

And that FOV guide video I talked about months ago is finally finished. Hopefully it helps answer peoples' common questions about mathematically correct FOV in a nice visual way. It is linked at the top of the guide and on the landing page of the calculator.

I'm still looking to make a video guide on using my calculator, basically a visual version of this written guide. It'll have 3D animations showing what each measurement is referring to and stuff. Who knows when that might happen though.

Anyways, enough rambling. If you have any issues with these new changes, please let me know. Have fun!

[JasonStewart]

Hello :)

Firstly thanks a lot for this awesome guide!
I think I have done everything in this guide, except the script.txt part. When I use that command in the game, it say's this file does not exist, but it is.

Also I can't understand the difference between multimode 2 and 4. When I type multimon 4, the multimon config does not change even when I try to 'reload multimon' It say's that it has been reloaded but nothing changes.
But when I change the multimon mode as 2, the screen changes but it's not changing as the way I like.

Here you can see the attached visuals, I would like to see the inner part of the left door in my left monitor, but I cannot make the arrangements like that. And also the FOV option in my game doesn't working. (N - M buttons in interior)
In the config, what should be my ideal FOV value?

https://prnt.sc/tqd7kDzsp4pE


This is my setup looks like;
https://prnt.sc/6HFLfGisE6Ir

https://prnt.sc/QoWn2KWgIFqX
https://prnt.sc/jNIclrKVzmn1

[

Please check the attached likns of visuals, I cannot just change the location and I don't want to see the full cabin in my right monitor, but I just need to feel that distance to my right mirror when I check.
Can you kindly help me?

I think I just need to turn the whole looking inside the interrior from the red arrow aspect to blue arrow aspect. Please check the screenshot below;
https://prnt.sc/K-jdzYCwa3wq

Appreciated.

[a1337cookie]

@JasonStewart - I think I replied to your youtube comment already, but I'll repeat what I wrote here.

If you change multimon mode while the game is open, it will not update right away. Maybe that's what you're seeing. So while the game is closed, copy the settings to multimon_config.sii, hit save, and set multimon mode to 4. When you next start the game, the calculated settings should be applied.

If you make changes to the multimon file, running the "multimon reload" console command should update the view. But for subsequent changes, you need to run "multimon save" first, then edit the file, then "multimon reload" again. This is noted in the guide.

According to the SCS documentation post, multimon mode 2 should ignore the multimon_config.sii file, instead using the multimon parameters inside config.cfg. It creates a triple monitor config where the side monitors are angled according to the horizontal FOV setting.

This can look mathematically correct if you sit directly in the middle between all monitors, and you set the FOV equal to the side monitor angle. You can create a very similar view in my Simple Calculator by choosing "Midpoint" for FOV Adjustment Method. The monitor angle you set will roughly equal the horizontal FOV.

For your case, if you want to fine tune the view more, multimon mode 2 will be quite limiting. So try to get multimon mode 4 working so you can use the calculator. See if what I said before solves your issue.

[JasonStewart]

@JasonStewart - I think I replied to your youtube comment already, but I'll repeat what I wrote here.

If you change multimon mode while the game is open, it will not update right away. Maybe that's what you're seeing. So while the game is closed, copy the settings to multimon_config.sii, hit save, and set multimon mode to 4. When you next start the game, the calculated settings should be applied.

If you make changes to the multimon file, running the "multimon reload" console command should update the view. But for subsequent changes, you need to run "multimon save" first, then edit the file, then "multimon reload" again. This is noted in the guide.

According to the SCS documentation post, multimon mode 2 should ignore the multimon_config.sii file, instead using the multimon parameters inside config.cfg. It creates a triple monitor config where the side monitors are angled according to the horizontal FOV setting.

This can look mathematically correct if you sit directly in the middle between all monitors, and you set the FOV equal to the side monitor angle. You can create a very similar view in my Simple Calculator by choosing "Midpoint" for FOV Adjustment Method. The monitor angle you set will roughly equal the horizontal FOV.

For your case, if you want to fine tune the view more, multimon mode 2 will be quite limiting. So try to get multimon mode 4 working so you can use the calculator. See if what I said before solves your issue.

I am extremelly grateful for your help! Specially the hybrid calculator is a wonderful thing!
I think I have managed now in ETS 2. Only weird thing is, when I edit config in ATS, as "4", and run the game, I try to do multimon reload but it says it can only be done on multimon mode 4. Strangely, it is at 4 already, and doesn't work. But when I change it as multimon 2, without reloading it seems as it is working.
What could be the reason for this? In config it is 4 already but game does not sees it. I edit config while the game is closed but strange. But let me show you my visuals, I think i have managed to do it, can you check the visuals and let me know about your opinion?

https://prnt.sc/CbCOol0XudUa
https://prnt.sc/ovCQpN1FiiTk
You helped me a lot, I am really grateful.

[a1337cookie]

@JasonStewart - Hmm, it should work the same between ATS and ETS2. If you type "r_multimon_mode" in console, it should print out what your current mode is. If it's not 4, try running "r_multimon_mode 4", then type "r_multimon_mode" again to make sure it changed. Restart the game and see if that fixes it.

Your current view looks pretty good, could maybe improve the bezel correction by increasing the bezel widths a bit. And I'm glad you find it helpful, hearing this is always very motivating for me!

[JasonStewart]

@JasonStewart - Hmm, it should work the same between ATS and ETS2. If you type "r_multimon_mode" in console, it should print out what your current mode is. If it's not 4, try running "r_multimon_mode 4", then type "r_multimon_mode" again to make sure it changed. Restart the game and see if that fixes it.

Your current view looks pretty good, could maybe improve the bezel correction by increasing the bezel widths a bit. And I'm glad you find it helpful, hearing this is always very motivating for me!

I will try it out, maybe typing in game console will help me to understand the issue. I will also re calculate the bezel windths, when I increase the bezel windths mostlikely it can fix it.
You were extremelly helpful, game changer! without your help I would be struggling about this for months :)

Specially your table is one of the most convenient and helpful things in internet!
Also one more question, there is a settings like fov details in config file, some people are suggesting to make an edit from there for triple monitors, what is the difference between those options and multimon config options?

With my best regards
Jason

[a1337cookie]

@JasonStewart - The multimon adjustments in config.cfg, like r_multimon_fov_horizontal, are not used when multimon mode is set to 4. According to the documentation, they are for modes 2 and 3 only. So if you are using the calculator, those values can be ignored.