Prepar3D Tweak Assistant (PTA)

[Richard Sennett 2,499]

Forgive my ignorance if this has been covered already. I'm currently running P3D 3.4.9.  I use REX Texture Direct with Soft Clouds, I have backed up my shaders files in both the root P3D directory and the one in C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Lockheed Martin\Prepar3D v3.

 

I have downloaded PTA 1.61 and am doing research until I'm comfortable tweaking the sim.

 

Are there any drawbacks in using REX TD w/SC and PTA?

 

No its life changing - glad you made backups but you really need to copy your entire ShadersHLSL folder this is the only thing I have had to backup - any issues this entire folder copied back will fix your problem - that said the only probelm I have had is when updating PTA I had to copy ShadersHLSL folder back in - and its located in your main P3D folder

[garrett_frank 150]

Hey Yuri. I have two suggestions, one's quick and one may not be (but I can go ahead and give you the code).

 

First, on the HDR & Post Processing tab, you have a typo @ "Contrast tunung."

 

Secondly, once I started getting knee-deep into tweaking, especially when also tuning HDR and ReShade settings, I noticed that my clouds became almost pitch black at night. I had gotten everything perfect, even matching lots of scenarios with random aviation photos I was finding on the internet (yeah, I've been getting that involved). But as it stands now, and with earlier versions of PTA, the cloud brightness at night setting was merely binary (checked or unchecked). It might be a good idea to give folks a slider to darken or lighten the clouds in order to coincide with the rest of their HDR and ReShade settings. You probably already know this (I'm assuming you wrote the code for the tweak in the first place) but for the line:

 

    float kk = X + saturate(fGreen/(cb_mFogColor.g + 0.00001) - 2);

 

Where X=1 is the standard tweak, raise X, perhaps in 0.25 increments, to darken, or lower down to 0, also in 0.25 increments in order to brighten clouds.

 

Just a thought. Again, awesome work.

[KNOSSOS 122]

Hello, Garrett!

 

 

First, on the HDR & Post Processing tab, you have a typo @ "Contrast tunung."

Done. Corrected and deployed to site. Thanks!

 

 

It might be a good idea to give folks a slider to darken or lighten the clouds in order to coincide with the rest of their HDR and ReShade settings. You probably already know this (I'm assuming you wrote the code for the tweak in the first place) but for the line:

Have you tried "Light factor" parameter in "Cloud lighting tuning" tweak to get the required lighting? It seems to be the same result?

[garrett_frank 150]

 

 

Have you tried "Light factor" parameter in "Cloud lighting tuning" tweak to get the required lighting? It seems to be the same result?

 

Oh yeah, I've tried all of that. I've even played around with the night tonemap exposure in the Prepar3D.cfg.

 

I do need to backtrack on that code though; raising the value over 1 seems to make the clouds darker even during the day. Shucks!

[KNOSSOS 122]

 

 

I do need to backtrack on that code though; raising the value over 1 seems to make the clouds darker even during the day. Shucks!

try to adjust 

float kk = 1 + saturate(fGreen/(cb_mFogColor.g + 0.00001) - X);

[ErichB 3,651]

 

 

Will make a donation asap - the work you have put in is amazing - transforms P3D - difference is day and night - thanks 

 

I'll second that

[KNOSSOS 122]

 

Bugfix for Rayleigh scattering tweak (issue with sky color) released.

 

To install delete old PTA.exe from your PTA directory, unzip PTA.exe from new distribution archive. Then apply your preset.

 

Cheers!

[SAS443 1,729]

Thanks for you hard work Yuri!

 

However with the latest version of PTA the sky color may be fixed, but I have a weird mismatch with the haze color of the horizon...I'm quite sure this was not happening before. Maybe it's a setting from my end that is missing. But this is really an immersion killer.

Using AS16 btw with URP 0.95 and its sky textures.

[garrett_frank 150]

 

 

float kk = 1 + saturate(fGreen/(cb_mFogColor.g + 0.00001) - X);

 

Will give it a shot. Thanks so much. PTA has really breathed new life into P3D.

[Richard Sennett 2,499]

Thanks for you hard work Yuri!

 

However with the latest version of PTA the sky color may be fixed, but I have a weird mismatch with the haze color of the horizon...I'm quite sure this was not happening before. Maybe it's a setting from my end that is missing. But this is really an immersion killer.

Using AS16 btw with URP 0.95 and its sky textures.

 

 

Looks like a sky texture issue - seems that PTA is not gertting along with those textures for some reason - dont think its PTA - prove it out put in different sky textures such as REX4 if you have them and re-apply pta profile which will clear your shaders for you start sim if problem is solved theres your answer - I have tried tons of sky textures and REX4 versions are the only ones that work properly in P3D - the problems I've seen mostly is banding with other sky textures - none of that with REX4 textures

[KNOSSOS 122]

However with the latest version of PTA the sky color may be fixed, but I have a weird mismatch with the haze color of the horizon...I'm quite sure this was not happening before. Maybe it's a setting from my end that is missing. But this is really an immersion killer.

Using AS16 btw with URP 0.95 and its sky textures.

Thanks for feedback!

 

 

Looks like a sky texture issue - seems that PTA is not gertting along with those textures for some reason - dont think its PTA - prove it out put in different sky textures such as REX4 if you have them and re-apply pta profile which will clear your shaders for you start sim if problem is solved theres your answer - I have tried tons of sky textures and REX4 versions are the only ones that work properly in P3D - the problems I've seen mostly is banding with other sky textures - none of that with REX4 textures

I've made some testing. It seems a PTA 1.61 incompatibility with last AS2016 ver. 6118 (released 3 October). Default P3D, Active Sky Next and last beta AS2016 for P3D 3.4 don't have this issue.

 

EDIT later: I reinstall AS2016 6118 from scratch no thick fog now.

 

Well...Rayleigh tweak needs patches to provide compatibility with AS2016 v.6118.

It takes some time to release PTA 1.62. 

[KNOSSOS 122]

05 October 2016. PTA 1.62 for Prepar3D 3.1-3.4

 

Release notes:

 

1. ActiveSky 2016 ver. 6118 compatibility release.

To install delete old PTA.exe from your PTA directory, unzip PTA.exe from new distribution archive. Then apply your preset.

[pablo636 3]

Hi Yuri!
Thanks for this fast update...at the end it took only 4h! 

[ErichB 3,651]

 

 

PTA has really breathed new life into P3D.

 

Totally.  It's almost like a new sim.  

[robkingutah1 0]

Hi, All

 

Is there any chance I could get a link to the old PTA v1.5 ? I just want to go back to the old one and deleted it before I tested the new one that's giving me a bunch of issues with the haze atmospheric and sky colors from URP. This would be much appreciated and I'll be back to using my sim.

 

Thanks,

 

Robert