FSX-MS Bojote's Shader 3.0 mod for FSX

[bojote 20]

Anyone can tell me the default values of fWaveBumpUVScale ( FSX root , WaterConstants.xml )?I accidentely deleted the default one and now only have the modified one. Thanks in advance.

The 'default' one, doesn't have any fWaveBumpUVScale for the Shader2/3 values... compare the 'default' WaterConstants.XML with the one I modified and you'll see what I mean. Also, remember that fWaveBumpUVScale set to 9.5 will provide you with a 'calm' looking ocean water. If you reduce that, then you'll start seeing a more 'active' ocean. HIGH values (such as 9.5) are great for LOW LEVEL flying, at altitude (which you can Change in the WaterConstants.xml file in the MID and HIGH sections) lower values seem to work better, and they also help with the 'sand' effect... the 'calmer' the ocean, the more you'll see this 'sand/particles'One more thing... In my last post I directed a user to change Terrain.fxh to reduce the sand effect in the water... this information is INCORRECT, for WATER you don't need to touch terrain.fhx! (sorry, don't know what I was thinking) for Water the correct file is Water20.fhx and look for the line where the LOD bias is set to -1 and change it to 0 that should do the trick. (however, IF you want to change the sand/particles effect for TERRAIN then, the information I provided previously is valid)Be warned, that this 'NEGATIVE" lod bias settings DO provide sharper textures!!! they are SPECIALLY important for terrain to see sharp textures EVEN beyond your LOD radius, this terrain shaders come (by default) with LINEAR Filters, I changed them to ANISOTROPIC to reduce the shimmering caused when LOD bias is set to negative numbers, the 'side effect' of this, is the 'sanding/particles' you see.I will release an 'alternate' version of the shaders.. I definitely love the one with 'particles' because I really don't see any :) it is probably because I set Aniso to 16x but in the meantime, and for those who like to 'change/tweak' settings I can asnwer any questions you might have regarding the shader mod to suit your particular needs, you can probably change anything you want as long as you understand what you are doing, and HLSL is fairly easy if you have some C or basic programming background, so.. feel free to experiment (or ask) if there is a particular thing you would like to see done via shaders (sorry, no Could shadows, there is a commercial vendor working on that already)

<fWaveBumpUVScale1> 3.847 </fWaveBumpUVScale1><fWaveBumpUVScale2> 3.563 </fWaveBumpUVScale2><fWaveBumpUVScale3> 1.822 </fWaveBumpUVScale3>Gerhard,Can you confirm that these are the default settings as my default settings where way lower as far as I remember ( 08.-1.8 )

Those are DX10 (shader 4.0) values.. NOT DX9, the 'default' WaterConstants.XML does NOT include WaveBumpUVScale for DX9! so, the file Gerard posted IS the correct 'Default' one, which is unfortunately USELESS because there are no values/options to tweak there, the one I provided with the latest version of the shader mod contains the relevant values you can change to tweak the water.

[bojote 20]

Hmmm, you got me thinking now....It's the file I backed up before I started out with the shader mods. I do have REX installed and if REX changes that file, it would have been changed from a virgin FSX install... do you have REX installed? If so, it might be a matter of setting the theme you had before changing the files.

There is not a single Add-on I know of that 'changes' that file... (yet, you can tweak water ANYWAY YOU WANT) if you know what the values do and what they affect. Its an XML document, divided into 'sections'LOW MID HIGHeach section contains Shader2, 3 and 4 values.For my Shader mod (even though it uses version 3 of Shaders) the values that are relevant are those INSIDE the Shader20 sections (the Shader30 sections are COMPLETELY IGNORED and never used, this is probably hardcoded in the FSX programming)LOW MID HIGH refer to 'transition' altitudes... it means, you can change how the water looks, moves or reflects the sun at different altitudes. So, this allows for GREAT customization, so feel free to 'tweak' this waterconstants.xml any way you like.. you can change the speed of the waves, direction of moving water, reflection power, wave height etc etc. The only thing you need to know, is that EVERYTIME you change this WaterConstants.XML you need to recompile the shaders, because they read the values at compile time.

[Cheeso 0]

Thank you once more *******!It's talking about and sharing thoughts that deepens one's understanding of FS. Thank you for keeping the ball rolling!I'll revisit neg lod -8. Running it with AF 16x the shimmering still shows and the only way for me to eliminate the shimmering is to run it with MIN_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL=21 MAX_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL=21. I'll run it with that for a couple of days in different scenario's to check performance and report back

[bojote 20]

Thank you once more *******!It's talking about and sharing thoughts that deepens one's understanding of FS. Thank you for keeping the ball rolling!

No prob :)I think there are a lot of improvements that can be applied via the Shader Mod, I guess we can see reactions from users to see what they like and what they don't so we change it accordingly... so far, it seems people DON'T LIKE water, I particularly LOVE it (specially when set to 2.0 HIGH) so, your feedback is important. I already explained how to revert LOD bias back to 0 for water, yet.. PERSONALLY I love the effect when set to -1 so I'm a bit unsure of what setting to use for the next release.

[Cheeso 0]

Personally, I like the water and would therefore vote for it to part of your next version as well. It was the shimmering that I got on the land textures hat concerned me. I'll revisit neg lod -8. Running it with AF 16x the shimmering still shows and the only way for me to eliminate the shimmering is to run it with MIN_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL=21 MAX_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL=21. I'll run it with that for a couple of days in different scenario's to check performance and report back

[bojote 20]

Personally, I like the water and would therefore vote for it to part of your next version as well. It was the shimmering that I got on the land textures hat concerned me. I'll revisit neg lod -8. Running it with AF 16x the shimmering still shows and the only way for me to eliminate the shimmering is to run it with MIN_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL=21 MAX_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL=21. I'll run it with that for a couple of days in different scenario's to check performance and report back

Perfect Gerhard, let me know how it goes with MIN_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL and MAX_DETAIL_TEXTURE_LEVEL and fly a couple of days, let me know what you like and what you don't and lets see what others suggest so I can make it part of the next release.Cheers,

[MrSpeaker 122]

I think I might have a problem, I just starting using your shader tweak, Im using REX, I have my water set to 2x low, Im using the bp=0 tweak aswell and have my fps locked at 30, Every time I approach a large body of water my fps go down to 5-10 fps, if I look away from the water they go back up to a rock solid 30 fps. Im going to set the shaders back to normal and see if it happens again, I thought I would ask if anyone else has experienced anything like this. If someone has any ideas what could be causing this massive drop in frames let me know.

[jjjallen 37]

Not wishing to reduce *******'s mojo in any way (this is a great mod, keep up the good work) but I'm not quite sold on the new water in 1.3. I tried it, and then backed it straight out.

It sounds like a huge tweaking project. Kind of like any artistic venture.jja

[GSalden 4,657]

The 'default' one, doesn't have any fWaveBumpUVScale for the Shader2/3 values... compare the 'default' WaterConstants.XML with the one I modified and you'll see what I mean. Also, remember that fWaveBumpUVScale set to 9.5 will provide you with a 'calm' looking ocean water. If you reduce that, then you'll start seeing a more 'active' ocean. HIGH values (such as 9.5) are great for LOW LEVEL flying, at altitude (which you can Change in the WaterConstants.xml file in the MID and HIGH sections) lower values seem to work better, and they also help with the 'sand' effect... the 'calmer' the ocean, the more you'll see this 'sand/particles'*******, is it so that the distance between 2 waves is the fWaveBumpUVScale and the height of the waves can be set in the MID and HIGH sections ?I remarked that with higher values there is more sparkling in the water and with lower values it is more "one" reflection.And if that is so , does this do manually the same as what REX does when I choose a more calmer/active ocean in the Wave animation part ? BTW : I set the Bias to 0, fWaveBumpUVScale to 8.5 and this is what it looks than. Most of the sandy effect is gone and the twinkling of the water is amazing. Way better now.

[bojote 20]

the height of the waves can be set in the MID and HIGH sections ?

Try the following:Slew from sea level to 30.000 Feet.as you slew up, look at the water. Notice how it changes progresively as you move upwards.the MID/HIGH sections control how the water looks at altitude :) so it allows for greater control (for example, you can make water VERY calm OR very active when flying very high) so you can tweak it any way you like it.

[GSalden 4,657]

Try the following:Slew from sea level to 30.000 Feet.as you slew up, look at the water. Notice how it changes progresively as you move upwards.the MID/HIGH sections control how the water looks at altitude :) so it allows for greater control (for example, you can make water VERY calm OR very active when flying very high) so you can tweak it any way you like it.

Thanks !I now am at the point of tweaking at higher altitude. A bit more reflection would be nice.First screenshot is from the IN ( no SM3 mod ) .Second screenshot is mine using the mods.Third screenshot is picture taken out of a window from an aircraft.Do you happen to know the values for changing the reflection of the sun/moon and at what altitudes MID and HIGH begin?

[bojote 20]

Thanks !I now am at the point of tweaking at higher altitude. A bit more reflection would be nice.First screenshot is from the IN ( no SM3 mod ) .Second screenshot is mine using the mods.Third screenshot is picture taken out of a window from an aircraft.Do you happen to know the values for changing the reflection of the sun/moon and at what altitudes MID and HIGH begin?

Reflections also depend on the 'bump' factor of the texture. So, if you 'lower' the BumpUVScale (try 2.000) or 1.000 you will see increased reflections.If you want to increase the POWER (light) of the actual reflection for either moon or sunlight, you need to tweak the value called fSpecularBoost 1.500 is the 'normal' value try something like 1.700 or 1.800Don't forget that after changing values in WaterConstants.xml you need to re-compile the shaders.

[GSalden 4,657]

Reflections also depend on the 'bump' factor of the texture. So, if you 'lower' the BumpUVScale (try 2.000) or 1.000 you will see increased reflections.If you want to increase the POWER (light) of the actual reflection for either moon or sunlight, you need to tweak the value called fSpecularBoost 1.500 is the 'normal' value try something like 1.700 or 1.800Don't forget that after changing values in WaterConstants.xml you need to re-compile the shaders.

Changing the fSpecularBoost , even up to 8.5 did not make any noticable difference.I also tried increasing the Power to 75 and no difference either.( Each time I recompiled the Shaders )Finally I found out that modifying MID and HIGH levels did the trick.Can it be that the Shader20 levels at the top of the XML file are only for ground level up to several hunderds of feet and then first Shader 20 MID and later Shader 20 HIGH take over ? Anyway :

[bojote 20]

Can it be that the Shader20 levels at the top of the XML file are only for ground level up to several hunderds of feet and then first Shader 20 MID and later Shader 20 HIGH take over ? Anyway :

In fact, they are... the top at the XML file corresponds to the 'LOW' level... thats why you only see MID and HIGH :)make sure you SLEW up and down and that you like ALL three levels (LOW, MID and HIGH) and once you have a WaterConstants.xml file you think is ready share it with others so they can see if they like it.

[GSalden 4,657]

In fact, they are... the top at the XML file corresponds to the 'LOW' level... thats why you only see MID and HIGH :)make sure you SLEW up and down and that you like ALL three levels (LOW, MID and HIGH) and once you have a WaterConstants.xml file you think is ready share it with others so they can see if they like it.

Here to try for other. Only what has been modified has been made bold : WaterConstants.Xml file from the SM3v1.3 package<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><SimBase.Document Type="WaterConstantFile" version="1,0"> <Descr>AceXML Document</Descr> <WaterConsts.ConstantSets> <ConstantSet> <Shader20> <fWaveFresnelFactorMin>0.475</fWaveFresnelFactorMin> <fWaveFresnelFactorMax>0.588</fWaveFresnelFactorMax> <fSpecularPower>53.384</fSpecularPower> <fSpecularBoost>1.490</fSpecularBoost> <fSpecularBlend>0.605</fSpecularBlend> <fWaveBumpUVScale>6.500</fWaveBumpUVScale> <fWaterBumpRotation>535.392</fWaterBumpRotation> <fTimeX1>-1.283</fTimeX1> <fTimeY1>1.004</fTimeY1> <fTimeX2>-1.423</fTimeX2> <fTimeY2>1.838</fTimeY2> </Shader20> <Shader30> </Shader30> <Wave> </Wave> <Shader40WaterClassSet> <Shader40> <fWaveFresnelFactorMin>0.000</fWaveFresnelFactorMin> <fWaveFresnelFactorMax>1.000</fWaveFresnelFactorMax> <fSpecularPower>53.384</fSpecularPower> <fSpecularBoost>1.005</fSpecularBoost> <fSpecularBlend>0.605</fSpecularBlend> <fWhiteCapPower>0.844</fWhiteCapPower> <fWaveBumpUVScale1>3.847</fWaveBumpUVScale1> <fWaveBumpUVScale2>3.563</fWaveBumpUVScale2> <fWaveBumpUVScale3>1.822</fWaveBumpUVScale3> <fWaveBumpUVScaleDetail>4.217</fWaveBumpUVScaleDetail> <fWaterBumpRotation1>141.516</fWaterBumpRotation1> <fWaterBumpRotation2>331.488</fWaterBumpRotation2> <fWaterBumpRotation3>62.388</fWaterBumpRotation3> <fWaterBumpBlend1>0.757</fWaterBumpBlend1> <fWaterBumpBlend2>0.751</fWaterBumpBlend2> <fWaterBumpBlend3>0.567</fWaterBumpBlend3> <fWaterBumpBlendDetail>0.616</fWaterBumpBlendDetail> <fWaterBumpWind3>0.599</fWaterBumpWind3> <fWaterBumpWindDetail>0.497</fWaterBumpWindDetail> <fTimeX1>-1.283</fTimeX1> <fTimeX2>-1.423</fTimeX2> <fTimeX3>1.074</fTimeX3> <fTimeXDetail>-2.882</fTimeXDetail> <fTimeY1>1.004</fTimeY1> <fTimeY2>1.838</fTimeY2> <fTimeY3>-0.036</fTimeY3> <fTimeYDetail>2.740</fTimeYDetail> </Shader40> </Shader40WaterClassSet> </ConstantSet> <ConstantSet> <Elevation>MID</Elevation> <Shader20> <fWaveFresnelFactorMin>0.475</fWaveFresnelFactorMin> <fWaveFresnelFactorMax>0.588</fWaveFresnelFactorMax> <fSpecularPower>69.513</fSpecularPower> <fSpecularBoost>1.464</fSpecularBoost> <fSpecularBlend>0.719</fSpecularBlend> <fWaveBumpUVScale>7.000</fWaveBumpUVScale> <fWaterBumpRotation>534.708</fWaterBumpRotation> <fTimeX1>-0.869</fTimeX1> <fTimeY1>0.727</fTimeY1> <fTimeX2>-1.006</fTimeX2> <fTimeY2>1.214</fTimeY2> </Shader20> <Shader30> </Shader30> <Wave> </Wave> <Shader40WaterClassSet> <Shader40> <fWaveFresnelFactorMin>0.000</fWaveFresnelFactorMin> <fWaveFresnelFactorMax>1.000</fWaveFresnelFactorMax> <fSpecularPower>69.513</fSpecularPower> <fSpecularBoost>1.004</fSpecularBoost> <fSpecularBlend>0.719</fSpecularBlend> <fWhiteCapPower>0.838</fWhiteCapPower> <fWaveBumpUVScale1>2.405</fWaveBumpUVScale1> <fWaveBumpUVScale2>2.405</fWaveBumpUVScale2> <fWaveBumpUVScale3>1.352</fWaveBumpUVScale3> <fWaveBumpUVScaleDetail>16.527</fWaveBumpUVScaleDetail> <fWaterBumpRotation1>141.516</fWaterBumpRotation1> <fWaterBumpRotation2>330.804</fWaterBumpRotation2> <fWaterBumpRotation3>62.388</fWaterBumpRotation3> <fWaterBumpRotationDetail>156.024</fWaterBumpRotationDetail> <fWaterBumpBlend1>0.751</fWaterBumpBlend1> <fWaterBumpBlend2>0.746</fWaterBumpBlend2> <fWaterBumpBlend3>0.723</fWaterBumpBlend3> <fWaterBumpBlendDetail>0.000</fWaterBumpBlendDetail> <fWaterBumpWind3>0.595</fWaterBumpWind3> <fWaterBumpWindDetail>0.000</fWaterBumpWindDetail> <fTimeX1>-0.869</fTimeX1> <fTimeX2>-1.006</fTimeX2> <fTimeX3>0.727</fTimeX3> <fTimeXDetail>0.659</fTimeXDetail> <fTimeY1>0.727</fTimeY1> <fTimeY2>1.214</fTimeY2> <fTimeY3>-0.036</fTimeY3> <fTimeYDetail>-2.185</fTimeYDetail> </Shader40> </Shader40WaterClassSet> </ConstantSet> <ConstantSet> <Elevation>HIGH</Elevation> <Shader20> <fWaveFresnelFactorMin>0.475</fWaveFresnelFactorMin> <fWaveFresnelFactorMax>0.588</fWaveFresnelFactorMax> <fSpecularPower>69.513</fSpecularPower> <fSpecularBoost>1.464</fSpecularBoost> <fSpecularBlend>0.719</fSpecularBlend> <fWaveBumpUVScale>3.500</fWaveBumpUVScale> <fWaterBumpRotation>532.656</fWaterBumpRotation> <fTimeX1>-0.728</fTimeX1> <fTimeY1>0.312</fTimeY1> <fTimeX2>-0.798</fTimeX2> <fTimeY2>0.935</fTimeY2> </Shader20> <Shader30> </Shader30> <Wave> </Wave> <Shader40WaterClassSet> <Shader40> <fWaveFresnelFactorMin>0.000</fWaveFresnelFactorMin> <fWaveFresnelFactorMax>1.000</fWaveFresnelFactorMax> <fSpecularPower>69.513</fSpecularPower> <fSpecularBoost>1.004</fSpecularBoost> <fSpecularBlend>0.719</fSpecularBlend> <fWhiteCapPower>0.844</fWhiteCapPower> <fWaveBumpUVScale1>1.248</fWaveBumpUVScale1> <fWaveBumpUVScale2>1.248</fWaveBumpUVScale2> <fWaveBumpUVScale3>0.674</fWaveBumpUVScale3> <fWaveBumpUVScaleDetail>0.100</fWaveBumpUVScaleDetail> <fWaterBumpRotation1>141.516</fWaterBumpRotation1> <fWaterBumpRotation2>328.752</fWaterBumpRotation2> <fWaterBumpRotation3>62.388</fWaterBumpRotation3> <fWaterBumpRotationDetail>0.000</fWaterBumpRotationDetail> <fWaterBumpBlend1>0.746</fWaterBumpBlend1> <fWaterBumpBlend2>0.746</fWaterBumpBlend2> <fWaterBumpBlend3>0.682</fWaterBumpBlend3> <fWaterBumpBlendDetail>0.000</fWaterBumpBlendDetail> <fWaterBumpWind3>0.595</fWaterBumpWind3> <fWaterBumpWindDetail>0.023</fWaterBumpWindDetail> <fTimeX1>-0.728</fTimeX1> <fTimeX2>-0.798</fTimeX2> <fTimeX3>0.589</fTimeX3> <fTimeXDetail>-1.000</fTimeXDetail> <fTimeY1>0.312</fTimeY1> <fTimeY2>0.935</fTimeY2> <fTimeY3>-0.036</fTimeY3> <fTimeYDetail>1.000</fTimeYDetail> </Shader40> </Shader40WaterClassSet> </ConstantSet> </WaterConsts.ConstantSets></SimBase.Document>And the Waterf20.fxh file ( SahdersHLSL/Terrain) ://---------------------------------------------------------------------------// Flight Simulator X - Shader Effect Files// Copyright