momix2000 Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 hello....maybe it's just my mistake , but i can only have black or withe clouds...no kind of red clouds during dawn or sunset?... hdr on or off it's the same...i'd like to have something like this ( the photo is without skymax installed..), but now it's not possible or...i don''t know how to do...thanks... :-).. Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 Just a heads up, SMP uses a different cloud shader then the default clouds so it will display differently.... Quote
Tsetsoh Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 Here's what is happening at sunset for me. The sky-terrain transition seems a bit abrupt. John, is this what I should expect? Using a Mac Pro 6-Core, 32 GB RAM, AMD Saphire HD 7950. Latest X-Plane HDR off. Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 That looks like a stratus or overcast layer. A few things to consider..... If it is a srtatus layer that is an expected result, I would suggest using a skycolor with less contrast to help with the transition. If it is an overcast layer I suggest sitching the overcast type in the UI to either Med or High(High is an FPS killer and experimental) Doing this will draw cloud puffs instead of the low flat overcast layer..... Hopefully that helps Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 Just saw your UI so it must be a stratus layer.....got ahead of myself.... Yeah a lower contrast sky color will look much more realistic..... Quote
Tsetsoh Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 Thanks John, and I should have mentioned in the previous post -- there were no clouds and no layers during that flight (in real life, and in real weather). The flight is over southern Arizona should be perfectly clear air. My question was primarily about the harsh transition at the horizon. I see that everywhere I fly, with or without clouds. Not a huge concern right now, more a question about whether this is normal for SMP. Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 I'm at work to be fair.....I am concerned enough to see if I can reproduce something similar tonight.....hang tight Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 27, 2013 Report Posted November 27, 2013 I cannot duplicate this to save my life and I have never seen this.... Something is a miss some quick suggestions..... Driver updates, system and GPU....Try removing plugins each time re-loading X-Plane.....Do you have any enhancements that affect shaders or lights in X-Plane.... It may be a good idea to do a second, raw install of X-Plane the demo should work fine also.....uninstall SkyMAXX on your normal install and apply it to the "test copy". Quote
Tsetsoh Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 (edited) I’ve now done a few tests, and here’s the report: • I’m using a Mac with OS 10.9, all updates are current (see specs in my signature). • I’ve tried these tests in my regular X-Plane (latest version) install, and in a new, clean install on a second (internal) hard drive. • I tested with X-Plane default plugins, and with all my normal add-on plugins • As a base-line I used the same settings in SMP each time (with the exception of trying different sky colors) • I have no enhancements effecting shaders or lights in X-Plane • The only other plugin I use that effects weather is the NOAA weather • I experimented with HDR on and HDR off • I tried it with clouds, and with no clouds • I normally use a three-moniter setup, but I also tested in single screenIn all cases in which I did not have HDR on I see the sharp transition line near the horizon. When I do turn on HDR the line disappears and I get a natural looking, smooth transition. Nothing else that I did had any effect at all.During daytime hours the line is less visible because the transition is from darker blue to lighter blue, but the sharp line is still there. However, it becomes extremely obvious near sun down when the sky turns to red sunset-colors.I’ve included some screenshots that show the differences when HDR is off, and when it is on. Shots of my settings are included.As has already been discussed and answered I take a significant frame-rate hit with HDR on, so that is not going to be an option for me. In fact when I have HDR on and clouds are very near the aircraft my frame-rate dives to low single-digits. With no clouds in the sky I can see more than 50 fps with HDR on, and sometimes 100 fps without HDR. That issue is not unique to SMP for me, I get a similar hit without using SMP. Edited November 28, 2013 by Tsetsoh Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 Can you try it having volumetric fog enabled just a shot in the dark while I am testing.... Quote
momix2000 Posted November 28, 2013 Author Report Posted November 28, 2013 Just a heads up, SMP uses a different cloud shader then the default clouds so it will display differently....Hmmm... So that means i will never have "red" clouds with your plugin?... Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 (edited) Hmmm... So that means i will never have "red" clouds with your plugin?...Hmmm.... Here is one from canox id like to share....... http://imgur.com/Riy7FmH Edited November 28, 2013 by JohnMAXX Quote
momix2000 Posted November 28, 2013 Author Report Posted November 28, 2013 Thanks John... Beautiful photo.. But my question is just about the color of the clouds not of the sky... Maybe cause my bad english but i didn't get your answer...:-(.. Sorry...Tapatalk Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 Clouds will change color depending on time of day but it will not be the same as the default shaders.... I provided that link so you can see the expected result of a dawn dusk transition... Quote
Tsetsoh Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 Can you try it having volumetric fog enabled just a shot in the dark while I am testing.... That solves the sharp sky-horizon transition problem! I did not know that volumetric fog could effect that transition. As a long-time private pilot I very much appreciate what SMP does for my X-Plane flying. Weather (and clouds) is such an important part of general aviation. Thank you for the assist John. I am a big SkyMaxx fan. Here's my morning flight around Tucson. 2 Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 Great! I am glad we were able to find a solution...... 1 Quote
malombroso Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 (edited) Hi... I just bought it and even if my graphic card is the latest Nvidia on the market (GTX TITAN) I have a HUGE impact on framerate. And I also noticed that could at dawn or sunset are completely BLACK. Why is this happening? There is no transition in color for the clouds.I am a bit disappointed cause I have read that there would have been a framerate improvement compared to the default clouds, but I had the opposite result. And the black clouds are so unreal, above all if you look at the sky and you see the yellow/red color and completely black clouds!Please let me know if it is the way it is supposed to be or if I am doing something wrong.Thanks Edited November 28, 2013 by malombroso 1 Quote
JohnMAXX Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 (edited) Hi... I just bought it and even if my graphic card is the latest Nvidia on the market (GTX TITAN) I have a HUGE impact on framerate. And I also noticed that could at dawn or sunset are completely BLACK. Why is this happening? There is no transition in color for the clouds.I am a bit disappointed cause I have read that there would have been a framerate improvement compared to the default clouds, but I had the opposite result. And the black clouds are so unreal, above all if you look at the sky and you see the yellow/red color and completely black clouds!Please let me know if it is the way it is supposed to be or if I am doing something wrong.Thanks Have you made adjustments in the UI in regards, especially in these areas: Cloud DetailCloud Draw DistanceCloud size Also as noted in numerous other posts Crepuscular rays are an expensive feature and to maintain constant frames you may want to turn them off... Additionally for more performance you can choose different texture sizes for the cirrus layers and overcast layers.... We included these variables and with a variety of hardware determined that you could attain better frames....... Additionally you need to take into account outside resources like custom scenery/aircraft and mesh all these factors have an impact on performance with or without SkyMAXX Pro.... Edited November 28, 2013 by JohnMAXX Quote
Cameron Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 Hi... I just bought it and even if my graphic card is the latest Nvidia on the market (GTX TITAN) I have a HUGE impact on framerate. And I also noticed that could at dawn or sunset are completely BLACK. Why is this happening? There is no transition in color for the clouds.I am a bit disappointed cause I have read that there would have been a framerate improvement compared to the default clouds, but I had the opposite result. And the black clouds are so unreal, above all if you look at the sky and you see the yellow/red color and completely black clouds!Please let me know if it is the way it is supposed to be or if I am doing something wrong.ThanksThe shader for the clouds is different than that of X-Plane, thus the dusk colors are different. You are seeing correct behavior, and we have noted some folks do not like this so we will be looking into how far we can go with this within X-Plane's SDK functionality. Until further research I can't yet promise what will change here.As for FPS, we've seen a number of things improve it:1. Some folks have found conflicting plug-ins or global related add-ons. Removing these and testing one by one, or making a second demo install to test has shown drastic FPS improvements in some systems.2. It's necessary to spend time adjusting the SkyMaxx menu to find your sweet spot. See John's post right above mine here.3. HDR is a heavy hitter out the gate. Run a test and see if you still get low FPS with it off vs on. Lower shadows or even AA setting to figure what may be the culprit in HDR mode, and if problems still persist go back to step 1. Quote
malombroso Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 (edited) Hi. Thanks for quick reply. I will test different options.Thanks again. PS BTW, is the Gizmo64 folder created when installing your plugin or it is something coming from another installations??? Edited November 28, 2013 by malombroso 1 Quote
Cameron Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 Gizmo64 is a part of the SkyMaxx install and is required to work. Quote
flydav Posted December 3, 2013 Report Posted December 3, 2013 I like sunset colored sky and like Mad Mat I wish Skymaxx could show them as well. I put the default shaders back (had Sabach's) and noticed no difference at all, as a matter of fact Skymaxx has its own shaders.Nevertheless I REALLY love this product but there is one thing that bothers me a lot and, maybe I already said that in another post, the clouds have a very black color during sunset, very unnatural. I hope that some real efforts will made to address this issue. Thanks. Quote
Cameron Posted December 3, 2013 Report Posted December 3, 2013 I hope that some real efforts will made to address this issue. Thanks.Already been addressed. See my thread in the SkyMaxx screenshot forum. 1 Quote
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