Arnold for 3ds Max 2017 SP2 v0.5.198.2017
MAXtoA Features and Known Issues
This is the first Preview Release of the Arnold for 3ds Max (MAXtoA) plugin, and does not include support for all Arnold or 3ds Max features. See the online documentation for further details. 3ds Max 2017 Service Pack 2 is required, and provided in the MAXtoA installation
Render Settings
MAXtoA provides automatic image-based lighting based on 3ds Max’s Environment map. This can be controlled in the Arnold Settings tab, Environment & Background rollup
Deformation Motion Blur is not yet supported
3ds Max native lights are not supported in this release. Use the new “Arnold” light
Light Filters are not yet supported in the Arnold light
3ds Max Sun Positioner and Physical Sky are supported
There is limited light support in the viewport
Lights
3ds Max native lights are not supported in this release. Use the new “Arnold” light
Light Filters are not yet supported in the Arnold light
3ds Max Sun Positioner and Physical Sky are supported
There is limited light support in the viewport
Shaders
To use Arnold surface shaders on an object, add the shaders as inputs to the new “Arnold Material” and apply the material to the object
MAXtoA supports third-party shaders compiled for Windows and the current version of Arnold. Place shaders into 3ds Max’s “Plugins” folder
Legacy 3ds Max maps are optionally supported
To enable, add an environment variable to Windows with the variable name ARNOLD_SHADECONTEXT_SUPPORT with a value of 1
Restart Max and enable “Show Incompatible” in the Material/Map Browser to see the legacy 3ds Max maps
3ds Max shaders currently cannot be exported to an Arnold Scene Source file, and can only be rendered within 3ds Max
Arnold shaders cannot be used as an input to a 3ds Max shader
Multi/Sub-Object materials are limited to 255 materials by Arnold
No automatic mechanism for generating TX files is provided yet. Use the external maketx.exe application provided by Solid Angle, and the “image” shader on your material
Crash if rendering while an Arnold physical_sky map is in Environment slot with parameters: X = 0,0,0 Y = 1,0,1 Z = 0,1,0
AOVs
You must specify a file name in the Render Setup dialog box’s Common tab in order to save AOVs. This file name is used as a prefix for the AOV file names saved by Arnold. A warning is provided
AOVs do not get Exposure Control applied
You may crash Arnold if multiple direct_diffuse AOVs are specified with DeepEXR format AOVs
Cameras
Only basic features are supported by cameras
For best results use the Physical Camera
Basic Depth of Field is supported on Physical Camera
Procedural Object
The Procedural object is a work-in-progress
Create the Procedural object at position 0,0,0 then reposition after defining the object path
Object comes in rotates 90 degrees on X axis
Bounding Box is not automatically set
Download
150MB
*
This is the first Preview Release of the Arnold for 3ds Max (MAXtoA) plugin, and does not include support for all Arnold or 3ds Max features. See the online documentation for further details. 3ds Max 2017 Service Pack 2 is required, and provided in the MAXtoA installation
Render Settings
MAXtoA provides automatic image-based lighting based on 3ds Max’s Environment map. This can be controlled in the Arnold Settings tab, Environment & Background rollup
Deformation Motion Blur is not yet supported
3ds Max native lights are not supported in this release. Use the new “Arnold” light
Light Filters are not yet supported in the Arnold light
3ds Max Sun Positioner and Physical Sky are supported
There is limited light support in the viewport
Lights
3ds Max native lights are not supported in this release. Use the new “Arnold” light
Light Filters are not yet supported in the Arnold light
3ds Max Sun Positioner and Physical Sky are supported
There is limited light support in the viewport
Shaders
To use Arnold surface shaders on an object, add the shaders as inputs to the new “Arnold Material” and apply the material to the object
MAXtoA supports third-party shaders compiled for Windows and the current version of Arnold. Place shaders into 3ds Max’s “Plugins” folder
Legacy 3ds Max maps are optionally supported
To enable, add an environment variable to Windows with the variable name ARNOLD_SHADECONTEXT_SUPPORT with a value of 1
Restart Max and enable “Show Incompatible” in the Material/Map Browser to see the legacy 3ds Max maps
3ds Max shaders currently cannot be exported to an Arnold Scene Source file, and can only be rendered within 3ds Max
Arnold shaders cannot be used as an input to a 3ds Max shader
Multi/Sub-Object materials are limited to 255 materials by Arnold
No automatic mechanism for generating TX files is provided yet. Use the external maketx.exe application provided by Solid Angle, and the “image” shader on your material
Crash if rendering while an Arnold physical_sky map is in Environment slot with parameters: X = 0,0,0 Y = 1,0,1 Z = 0,1,0
AOVs
You must specify a file name in the Render Setup dialog box’s Common tab in order to save AOVs. This file name is used as a prefix for the AOV file names saved by Arnold. A warning is provided
AOVs do not get Exposure Control applied
You may crash Arnold if multiple direct_diffuse AOVs are specified with DeepEXR format AOVs
Cameras
Only basic features are supported by cameras
For best results use the Physical Camera
Basic Depth of Field is supported on Physical Camera
Procedural Object
The Procedural object is a work-in-progress
Create the Procedural object at position 0,0,0 then reposition after defining the object path
Object comes in rotates 90 degrees on X axis
Bounding Box is not automatically set
Download
150MB
*