Jump to content
Sign in to follow this  
simmerhead

P3Dv2 + ORBX FTX Global Vector, first impressions?

Recommended Posts

Guest

Side Note: This is why I went with Photo Scenery in FSX ... the Autogen system was horrible (popping), the buildings trees where all over the place (houses perched on mountain tops) and didn't fit on any real location, not to mention huge FPS hit even with shadows off, etc. etc. ... so I just opt'd to go with Photo real since the only time it looked "not so good" was at low altitude and at dusk/dawn/night, but since most of my flying at low altitude was around airports (3rd party) with very nice surrounding areas with 3D objects - so it wasn't "so bad".

 

So I thought I'd try the other side of the fence with FTX Global, Vector, FS Global etc. in P3DV2 because the autogen system is considerably better and my fps doesn't take a huge hit and the shadows/lighting really help autogen objects (opposite for photo scenery where shadows conflict with what's being presented).

 

Sadly, because of AA (performance, SLi would help here but not utilized yet) in P3DV2 and the restricted LOD Radius, Photo Scenery doesn't look as good in P3DV2 and hence another reason to try the Autogen route.

 

But even with JV's unification vision, the underlying ground textures just don't match up at all and this is more noticeable in the more populated regions - it looks just a overwhelming mess of 3D objects and flat 2D images.  In the less populated areas JV's vision works much better and even better in snow/winter time ... like Norway for example.

 

But I've spent most of my FS'ing years turning a blind eye ... as has everyone else (whether they admit it or not) ... I think what's happening is that many are just getting tired of turning a blind eye -- perhaps we're all at a place where "best we can do" just isn't hacking it any more?  I just keep plugging away trying to make the most out of it in the hope continued development will bring "that day" where I don't have to pretend "it's not there" ;)

 

Orbx and others have obviously gone to a lot of work to make the best out of the product within it's restrictions and even gone outside of the SDK to make things happen.  But no matter how I slice it (repeating terrain tiles and autogen objects so as to keep unique instances down and not affect VAS as much) it becomes more obvious that my reality goals will never happen in a 32bit address space.


 

 


This adjustment of alpha channel could be possible only if .bmp files are DXT3.

 

Piere, I was thinking the exact same thing, but I can't locate the files.  Also don't know VAS implications having a Alpha.

Share this post


Link to post

Hi,

 

Seems like a lot of work for the end user for an expensive combination of addons, don't you think?.

 

1. FS Global Ultimate Bundle: $165.00

2. FS Global Base:................ $  89.00

3. FS Global Vector:.............. $  64.00

4. FS Global L/C................... $  ??.00

------------------------------------------------

                                    Total: $ 322.00

 

How much will FS Global L/C cost to complete the package?. The cost is over three hundred + dollars as it is, and its still not right?

 

 

Hi Mike !

 

In fact, airport wrong elevation is coded in FSX or P3D airport .bgl(s) , but if you have FS Global Ultimate, you have a Pilot's tool to correct this wrong elevation (it's named ASM) .

A good mesh reflects the Real World elevation, FSX or P3D airports have (almost every time ) a wrong elevation and they are flat (in real world, airports are not flat, slope runways are very frequent).

 

For the "skirting" and roads problem, it would be possible to modify the alpha channel of road skirting .bmp files and so, to have "transparent" encasements. The same adjustement could possibly erase all roads or specific small roads.

 

This adjustment of alpha channel could be possible only if .bmp files are DXT3.

 

Just my two cents

 

Pierre


Former Beta Tester - (for a few companies) - As well as provide Regional Voice Set Recordings

       Four-Intel I9/10900K | One-AMD-7950X3D | Three-Asus TUF 4090s | One-3090 | One-1080TI | Five-64GB DDR5 RAM 6000mhz | Five-Cosair 1300 P/S | Five-Pro900 2TB NVME        One-Eugenius ECS2512 / 2.5 GHz Switch | Five-Ice Giant Elite CPU Coolers | Three-75" 4K UHDTVs | One-24" 1080P Monitor | One-19" 1080P Monitor | One-Boeing 737NG Flight Deck

Share this post


Link to post

 

 


but I can't locate the files

 

Rob

 

I dont have Global....but I Have England/Wales/AU Blue and the Iceland Demo.

 

All of my "skirting" .bmp files are in the following folders:

 

D:\FSX\ORBX\FTXxxxx   (where xxx = _AU or _EU for my 2 regions or _OLC (specifically for the Iceland Demo)

 

The bmps in the D:\FSX\ORBX\FTX_OLC\OLC_EU9 (i.e. from the Iceland demo that contains Global, Vector & Landclass) are named as:

 

FTXG_V_road_xxxxxxxxxx_skirting_yy.bmp where xxxxxxx equates to the road type i.e. divided_rural_2L or rural_2L etc etc. and they yy equates to the 5 seasons i.e wi.bmp  hw.bmp  sp.bmp  su.bmp  fa.bmp - 

 

I would guess that these specific bmps will represent the FTXGlobal_Vector_road skirtings.

 

Browse to your FSX drive and simply search for "skirting".......the relevant .bmp's should show themselves.

 

FWIW....the skirting.bmp's that I have appear to be 512 x 512 DXT5 with Alpha Channel and 8 Mipmaps.....if that means anything to you.

 

HTH......and Happy New Year to all.

 

Steve

Share this post


Link to post
Guest

FTXG_V_road_xxxxxxxxxx_skirting_yy.bmp where xxxxxxx equates to the road type i.e. divided_rural_2L or rural_2L etc etc. and they yy equates to the 5 seasons i.e wi.bmp  hw.bmp  sp.bmp  su.bmp  fa.bmp - 

 

Thanks Steve, I went thru the Terrain.cfg and got all the roads sorted out to my liking, and as a plus I get much more Autogen trees/buildings back!!  There were A LOT of entries to change and I used a 25% of value rule which seems to have worked out very well.

 

Will post screenshots of difference in a little (night and day difference IMHO) ... I have NO IDEA why JV doesn't make this a configurable option for end users, he would sell more product if he did and the coding requirements will be 1-2 day job at most.

 

EDIT: Alpha would work well but it will keep autogen reduced ... I can see the alpha working a little better is some areas.

Share this post


Link to post

But that's just for Starters.   Then you get into Regional areas which do provide higher degrees of attention to details as well as Airports scenery etc.  :-)  Seems like much $$$ to be made and spent!

 

I agree the cost is a bit mounting, but these are Global products...and as such are simply broad brushed approaches to general scenery which surpasses the default but also falls short of absolute compared to the other localized packages.  Orbx has been consistent that the highest\best detail levels will always be in those other packages, so unless demand drops or an alternative competition steps in, that will be the tune of things for a while.  

 

 

Hi,

 

Seems like a lot of work for the end user for an expensive combination of addons, don't you think?.

 

1. FS Global Ultimate Bundle: $165.00

2. FS Global Base:................ $  89.00

3. FS Global Vector:.............. $  64.00

4. FS Global L/C................... $  ??.00

------------------------------------------------

                                    Total: $ 322.00

 

How much will FS Global L/C cost to complete the package?. The cost is over three hundred + dollars as it is, and its still not right?

Share this post


Link to post
Guest

 

 


I have NO IDEA why JV doesn't make this a configurable option for end users, he would sell more product if he did and the coding requirements will be 1-2 day job at most.

 

Yes, I am really curious why Orbx doesn't want to take care of this...! Seems to me a clever programmer can create an editor for this in no time. Very odd, specially because those encasements are so awful and unrealistic. As I posted over there: with better roads I might buy Vector, with a configurator I will for certain.

Share this post


Link to post

Thanks Steve, I went thru the Terrain.cfg and got all the roads sorted out to my liking, and as a plus I get much more Autogen trees/buildings back!!  There were A LOT of entries to change and I used a 25% of value rule which seems to have worked out very well.

 

Will post screenshots of difference in a little (night and day difference IMHO) ... I have NO IDEA why JV doesn't make this a configurable option for end users, he would sell more product if he did and the coding requirements will be 1-2 day job at most.

 

EDIT: Alpha would work well but it will keep autogen reduced ... I can see the alpha working a little better is some areas.

Rob

 

Glad you seem to have got it sorted - i agree, if John?orbx made all of this configurable it would only add to the product and not detract at all.

 

Will look forward to seeing the screenies with "new & improved" Vector!!

 

Happy New Year to you & yours.

 

Regards

 

Steve

Share this post


Link to post

Hi Mike !

 

In fact, airport wrong elevation is coded in FSX or P3D airport .bgl(s) , but if you have FS Global Ultimate, you have a Pilot's tool to correct this wrong elevation (it's named ASM) .

A good mesh reflects the Real World elevation, FSX or P3D airports have (almost every time ) a wrong elevation and they are flat (in real world, airports are not flat, slope runways are very frequent).

 

For the "skirting" and roads problem, it would be possible to modify the alpha channel of road skirting .bmp files and so, to have "transparent" encasements. The same adjustement could possibly erase all roads or specific small roads.

 

This adjustment of alpha channel could be possible only if .bmp files are DXT3.

 

Just my two cents

 

Pierre

I also have noted that on quite a few airports I have visited in real world that a lot of times there is a bit of an incline getting from runway to gates. KATL Atlanta is a good example.


Keith Guillory

Share this post


Link to post
Guest

 

 


Will look forward to seeing the screenies with "new & improved" Vector!!

 

Everyone will have their own preference, hence why I think providing options/configurations (ability).  I think I might use a 50% of value rather than doing a 75% reduction on some of the roads.  75% reduction on urban, and maybe 50% on rural.

 

cb1f5847bd0d306297d2881b2ca60d79.jpg

 

23953ce90b58982a4b0504eb76d337b6.jpg

 

Rome after adjustments:

 

b9e2dc962d71aaf09e7171209e7be783.jpg

Share this post


Link to post

Interesting bit of information for users of Vector in P3D 2.0: there seem to be a lot of black patches in the scenery when you use Vector with P3D 2.0, specially during summer and fall. Orbx and Pilot's officially announced that since those black patches can not be seen in FSX, it is a P3D 2.0 problem and they have notified LM asking them to fix it: Pilot's and Orbx won't do anything about it. It's officialy NOT a Vector problem.

 

So here we go again... should the addon developer make their product P3D compatible or should LM do that...?

When I run FSX with day time settings I get black shapes in the exact location where lights posts are along my roads. I also notice during my tweak-EX that if I turn off DX10 Preview my FSX goes CTD. I am going back through all earlier posts to make sure I am not missing any tips. I have yet to go Global on P3D V2. Perhaps I will have better luck?

 

Keith


Keith Guillory

Share this post


Link to post

Hi,

 

Very Nice, I'll have to look into this for my friend. If it looks that good on his system, he is going to freak. 8-)

 

Everyone will have their own preference, hence why I think providing options/configurations (ability).  I think I might use a 50% of value rather than doing a 75% reduction on some of the roads.  75% reduction on urban, and maybe 50% on rural.

 

Rome after adjustments:

 

 


Former Beta Tester - (for a few companies) - As well as provide Regional Voice Set Recordings

       Four-Intel I9/10900K | One-AMD-7950X3D | Three-Asus TUF 4090s | One-3090 | One-1080TI | Five-64GB DDR5 RAM 6000mhz | Five-Cosair 1300 P/S | Five-Pro900 2TB NVME        One-Eugenius ECS2512 / 2.5 GHz Switch | Five-Ice Giant Elite CPU Coolers | Three-75" 4K UHDTVs | One-24" 1080P Monitor | One-19" 1080P Monitor | One-Boeing 737NG Flight Deck

Share this post


Link to post

Hi,

 

I thought a good quality mesh would get rid of the elevation problems, Since someone posted Aspen, I thought I'd try there first... I guess not.

 

Installed: FS Global Ultimate The Americas, FS Global Base, FS Global Vector

 

ORBX.jpg

 

Almost every airport in Colorado is on a plateau when using Mesh. Also after applying Vector, there are huge 50 mile+ trenches around the state, look for them and its quite comical. According to Bernd there is a new method to fix the airports and will be released in 1.10.


Intel i7 10700K | Asus Maximus XII Hero | Asus TUF RTX 3090 | 32GB HyperX Fury 3200 DDR4 | 1TB Samsung M.2 (W11) | 2TB Samsung M.2 (MSFS2020) | Arctic Liquid Freezer II 280mm AIO | 43" Samsung Q90B | 27" Asus Monitor

Share this post


Link to post

Some pics (very compressed JPEGs - low quality), first shot I'll embed from my site, the other shots will be links as I don't want to fill this thread with too many pictures:

 

83e1a501a2b417bdefbe1dd07f3dbd09.jpg

 

 

Rob

 

Just can't get used to those awful roads - I have to say this is a step backwards and for the odd road you may be gaining - you are losing way to much with the immersion of FTX Global with the MS roads. I think at the end of the day 1. MS found the best compromise, 2. Orbx enhanced it substantially with Global, 3. Vector kills the cities.

 

Here is the stock standard P3Dv2 with FTX Global only. It is a good illusion of reality.

Share this post


Link to post

I think you made the changes inside the Terrain.cfg, and did not resize the bitmaps, right?  Thank you and a happy new Year! 

Everyone will have their own preference, hence why I think providing options/configurations (ability).  I think I might use a 50% of value rather than doing a 75% reduction on some of the roads.  75% reduction on urban, and maybe 50% on rural.

 

cb1f5847bd0d306297d2881b2ca60d79.jpg

 

23953ce90b58982a4b0504eb76d337b6.jpg

 

Rome after adjustments:

 

b9e2dc962d71aaf09e7171209e7be783.jpg

Share this post


Link to post

Hi,

 

Just set my friend up with a 50% reduction. He loves it...

 

New York Just outside KJFK.

 

ORBX50.jpg


Former Beta Tester - (for a few companies) - As well as provide Regional Voice Set Recordings

       Four-Intel I9/10900K | One-AMD-7950X3D | Three-Asus TUF 4090s | One-3090 | One-1080TI | Five-64GB DDR5 RAM 6000mhz | Five-Cosair 1300 P/S | Five-Pro900 2TB NVME        One-Eugenius ECS2512 / 2.5 GHz Switch | Five-Ice Giant Elite CPU Coolers | Three-75" 4K UHDTVs | One-24" 1080P Monitor | One-19" 1080P Monitor | One-Boeing 737NG Flight Deck

Share this post


Link to post

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  
  • Tom Allensworth,
    Founder of AVSIM Online


  • Flight Simulation's Premier Resource!

    AVSIM is a free service to the flight simulation community. AVSIM is staffed completely by volunteers and all funds donated to AVSIM go directly back to supporting the community. Your donation here helps to pay our bandwidth costs, emergency funding, and other general costs that crop up from time to time. Thank you for your support!

    Click here for more information and to see all donations year to date.
×
×
  • Create New...