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SkyMaxx Pro v4 coming tomorrow

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Let's hope that soon or later x-Plane and addon developers will be able to achieve things like this, visually.

 

 

Quality looking engine these guys have.

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Wasn't that the engine to be used in the vaporware "Next Generation Flight SImulator"?

 


"The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it is hard to verify their authenticity." [Abraham Lincoln]

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Wasn't that the engine to be used in the vaporware "Next Generation Flight SImulator"?

 

 

That was Outerra I think, although I've never seen those UNigiNE vids, which seem to offer similar. I've used their benchmark before, and I think these vids shows with a modern engine and the necessary backing ($$$) we could have something truly amazing in the simulation world. Those clouds and atmospherics are really stunning, and make me even more despondent about what we have here.

 

 

 

What do you mean by "riff raff"?

 

 

“people, or a group of people, regarded as disreputable or worthless”  or anyone who doesn't like their product :P

 

There are some nice screens coming out now, that make me feel slightly warmer towards SMP. I think for lowish, slowish VFR flying its makes a huge improvment. It does lack atmosphere though.

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Glad you like it!

 

I also thought these two screenshots from another user were pretty cool. Not sure why I like them, but I do! :)

 

a320neo_6.thumb.png.0dd499477803c501d5a8

 

a320neo_5.png.69c8016fc5b3d96acf0daa0d4e

 

 

Now this is what i want to see. But all i get ist this:

 

Even at the highest settings. As you can see in the map, there should be clouds to the horizon, but all i get is a "circle" of clouds around my plane. And this is at 25k feet.

 

27766146px.png

27766148kd.png

27766153nb.png


X-Plane%20banner1.jpg

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But all i get ist this

 

Ya, and unfortunately the reasoning would be XP 11 and the haze. What it's doing is cutting off the visibility line so you can't see beyond that what SMP 4 is wanting to draw.

 

Laminar (from my conversations with Supnik) plans to adjust quite a number of things for v11, so while it's fun to use it, I would recommend using 10 if you want full moments of visibility fun.

 

To be clear, this is not a code issue on our end to fix. SkyMaxx Pro v4 is already ready to work with it whenever Laminar adjusts.

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Founder of X-Aviation

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I was griping before about repeating bitmaps, but I have to say, this is a very good rendition of what flying up here in the Pacific Northwest looks like, when you're scud running (SkyMax Pro v4):

 

S-76C_9.png

 

Wow, that does look good. 

 

You're getting 67fps in XP11?  That's literally triple what I get with I guarantee much lower settings.  Shoot, I'm thrilled when I get 35 in XP10 ha.

 

What video card are you running?

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Ya, and unfortunately the reasoning would be XP 11 and the haze. What it's doing is cutting off the visibility line so you can't see beyond that what SMP 4 is wanting to draw.

 

Laminar (from my conversations with Supnik) plans to adjust quite a number of things for v11, so while it's fun to use it, I would recommend using 10 if you want full moments of visibility fun.

 

To be clear, this is not a code issue on our end to fix. SkyMaxx Pro v4 is already ready to work with it whenever Laminar adjusts.

 

Hey Cameron, good to hear this is only a current XP11 bug, I mostly fly XP10 so shouldn't be affected if I did upgrade.

 

So, as a SMPv2 guy that went to the dark side (P3D) for the last couple years but dipping my toes back in the X-Plane water but torn between this and Xenviro, any discount codes for us? :dance: 

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First impressions of SMP 4.0.1

 

in conjuction with Real Weather 1.1 update.

 

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

 

If you are running a ported over SMP v3.x...you are NOT seeing what XP11 can produce visually.  Your haze...your cloud depictions...are wrong...wrong density, wrong color, wrong everything!  You are NOT seeing the sim as it can render.  Oh yeah...H.S.!

 

The first few things in the first 15 minutes of my XP11/SMP 4.0.1 was that:

 

The haze..is 3D...you can see haze 'out there'. upon the horizon, but...you can SEE the horizon, you can see 50 miles out from your plane..and folks...if you have the OBJECTS and detail slider full right...wow...in the day, and especially in the night.  SMP 3.x (which was written for XP10), hacks the view. You get clouds that should not be there...clouds the wrong size. The same clouds...cumulus predominately, and with SMP 4.0.1. that is not so. You DO get mixed visual output..and at different bases...above, below.

 

You get a sunrise and sunset that shines and glances off the volumetric cloud heights...and in one of my sunsets, it was fabulous to see some with a orange, to fushia , to red pallete upon the cloud body.  Not the whole body...and that is a great effect..but that which is facing the setting sun, or rising sun.  The clouds no longer have either a white, or darkened edge to them. 

 

I must say, that X-Aviation and FKane of Sundog, has been showing a very classy 'restraint' in not 'defending' their product, but staying quiet, and letting a consumer decide what they wish for...volumetric, or 2D visuals.

 

I haven't had time to see rain or snow shower effects, but as far as what I have seen...my personal recommendation is this;

 

If you have already bought into the SMP eco-system...then going from v3.x to a properly integrated for XP11 SMP 4.0.1, is the BEST BANG for your $20.00 that you can make.   Yes folks...it is NOT v3.'3'.   It is a new version, for sure.  So...lay your money down, or not...and yes...I was influenced by some vids, whereby they said that the clouds look basically like the SMP 3.x clouds.   Well...and I'm now laughing about that...THEY WOULD.....they are volumetric, and you can only change so much within the XP code interact.   It is the OTHER stuff updated with SMP 4.0.1 that you are paying the 20 bucks for.  Better rain depiction, better snow depiction, smoother FPS, greater FPS with higher cloud coverage. That is what I am experiencing in the first half hour.  So the clouds look somewhat like the volumetric v3?  So what?  They looked good to me then...and look good to me now.  The other updates and perks of v4?   I now have 'em...and the money was well invested.   Cameron....good strategy...don't come into  defend the product.  Vocal enthusiates, like myself, will do that for you, if there IS something to pound the drum over.  

 

If I was dissapointed, by usage, and not merely looking at some other person's vid or screen capture...believe me...I'd 'vocalize' that as well.

 

XP11 atmospheric metrics now driven by SMP 4.0.1/RW1.1 has given me a new XP11 experience.   Before...visually, it was choking to death...and I in visual ignorance, didn't even realize it....

 

Cheers,

 

A very satisfied SMP 4'er....

 

Let the flights...begin....

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Wow, that does look good. 

 

You're getting 67fps in XP11?  That's literally triple what I get with I guarantee much lower settings.  Shoot, I'm thrilled when I get 35 in XP10 ha.

 

What video card are you running?

 

GTX 970 video card, the computer is i7 6700 4.0 GHz, 32 Gig RAM. X-Plane 11 beta set to "High (HDR)" on the graphics slider.

 

That 67 fps frame rate is a little misleading though. It was actually that fast, but for that test I was running XP11 in a window on my 1920x1200 monitor, so the image size is the actual X-Plane window (1521x910). Fewer pixels to crunch than full screen. Also, there isn't much going on in that scenery. It is using the free HD terrain mesh, but there are no roads with car traffic, and just a couple of 3D buildings at that airfield. Terrain like that doesn't hit the video card very hard, although it's nice to see that the SkyMaxx Pro v4 clouds didn't hit it much either.

 

When I run a full screen and fly over an urban environment, I get lower frame rates but it almost never dips below 40 fps. I think it's because I don't max out the eye candy in X-Plane (although this does look pretty great to me), and I'm running a 1920x1200 screen off this GTX 970 video card. It's one reason I haven't upgraded to a larger or 4K monitor. That will have to wait a while, and with a stronger video card. I really like flying with these high frame rates. I don't need to hit 60 fps, but 40 fps as a minimum is a nice sweet spot.


X-Plane and Microsoft Flight Simulator on Windows 10 
i7 6700 4.0 GHz, 32 GB RAM, GTX 1660 ti, 1920x1200 monitor

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767-300ER_39b7c0.jpgIn the middle of this picture, looking down from such a height that my FF767 is only a dot, is my 767. From this distance, you can see the reaches of the clouds using SkyMaxx_Pro v 4.  I had just been skimming along the tops of these clouds at FL160, just off the east coast of Virginia.  At a cloud draw distance determined by about 1/2 the slider reach, I feel that it gives a pretty good representation of the reach and, if you look closely, I was getting 30FPS. This with XP-11. Good job Cameron and team!


John Wingold

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767-300ER_39b7c0.jpgIn the middle of this picture, looking down from such a height that my FF767 is only a dot, is my 767. From this distance, you can see the reaches of the clouds using SkyMaxx_Pro v 4.  I had just been skimming along the tops of these clouds at FL160, just off the east coast of Virginia.  At a cloud draw distance determined by about 1/2 the slider reach, I feel that it gives a pretty good representation of the reach and, if you look closely, I was getting 30FPS.  Good job Cameron and team!

I'm now on-board as well. Having a blast with it...and yes...it eclipses v3.x in XP11.  Will try it out in XP10 tomorrow.

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GTX 970 video card, the computer is i7 6700 4.0 GHz, 32 Gig RAM. X-Plane 11 beta set to "High (HDR)" on the graphics slider.

 

That 67 fps frame rate is a little misleading though. It was actually that fast, but for that test I was running XP11 in a window on my 1920x1200 monitor, so the image size is the actual X-Plane window (1521x910). Fewer pixels to crunch than full screen. Also, there isn't much going on in that scenery. It is using the free HD terrain mesh, but there are no roads with car traffic, and just a couple of 3D buildings at that airfield. Terrain like that doesn't hit the video card very hard, although it's nice to see that the SkyMaxx Pro v4 clouds didn't hit it much either.

 

When I run a full screen and fly over an urban environment, I get lower frame rates but it almost never dips below 40 fps. I think it's because I don't max out the eye candy in X-Plane (although this does look pretty great to me), and I'm running a 1920x1200 screen off this GTX 970 video card. It's one reason I haven't upgraded to a larger or 4K monitor. That will have to wait a while, and with a stronger video card. I really like flying with these high frame rates. I don't need to hit 60 fps, but 40 fps as a minimum is a nice sweet spot.

 

Wow, that just shows how broken both XP10 and XP11 really are when running on AMD video cards.  I've got an I7-6700K @ 4.6, 16GB RAM, and an AMD 390X 8GB video card and with all sliders on low and in the smallest window I can shrink it to and I'm lucky to break 25fps...

 

2016-12-19%202_1.png

 

Seems weather engines and optimization both need to be top of the list for Laminar at this point ha

 

Luckily XP10 runs a bit better.  Tempted by both weather options.

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Very nice video. Curious, at take off there's nothing but blue sky ahead when sitting on the runway, yet in the flight he's  through and then over the clouds.... Why is the horizon on the runway show nothing but blue sky clear flying?

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