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Sesquashtoo

Orbx's Fsxg [Choices Of Size To Set Lights] Final Preference :)

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I spent the evening yesterday, and took a Dusk to Night flight out of Detroit, Mi, and in FSXG, have settled my default size to:

 

Very Small for the size of the light orb, and here's why.

 

After using, and testing all the sizes, over heavily-lit metropolises, like Greater Detroit, Greater Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, etc, and observing how life-like it was (each size to contribute) in the critical climb out zone, of just taking off, to a terminal cruise of 3,500-5,500 ft ASL---and then viewing the structures (along with  an orb size) upon the textures, like auto-gen buildings, houses, etc...I finally settled on the Very Small (the bottom and last choice from the top of the mask) and, with a light radiation of Low Intensity. Why?---------it looks very life-like in the light orb's proportion to the airport buildings at taxi,... and after climb out, to view the the houses, farm buildings, street sizes and widths, as you lifted off with a side view out of the cockpit,  and then,... to a climb of stated 3,500 to 5,500 ft.

 

 Above those altitudes, the difference between Small and Very Small,... was less significant. As I choose to cruise at around 3,500 ft for Orbx products (that allows you to maintain viewed; creation-of-detail, of the wonderful, and rich auto and custom 'gen' textures and buildings)  is why this tool was the reason mostly, that I posted my thread of 'These did--->'  in this forum. It was,... because as good as FSXG is...what seriously detracted from my relaxed mind set, was that the default orbs as delivered, were way too large in comparison to the buildings and landscape (farm house yards, urban and rural, etc) and..... their light intensity, way too bright to mimic the real world I fly over in travel.

 

The Small setting I initially set up with in first using the tool, was a god-send for this...but....after many Dusk to Night flights, and, in really...really, doing an A/B comparison between the Small and the Very Small orb size....it was the Very Small  that was that very, fine 'tuning' to the eye and mind. My gawd...but does this tool bring it all 'home'!  With the UTX/FSX light tool in play, the City of Detroit and all the 'burbs North, out to Oakland County, is TOTALLY believable. I mean...it really is!

 

As you climb out....with Bloom on (all under DX10 of course!!!)...at Dusk (my now favorite time of the 24 hour cycle), the sky is electrified with splashes of Rex 4 Direct color and cloud-scape, and with FSXG and UTX (with FSXG roadway lights) each doing each their own 'thang, it just assaults the senses!

 

Finally, as Dusk gives way to full-born Night, the colors of the urban and rural light night-scape  intensifies to that muted Low setting for orb brightness (the Low setting under Bloom gives 'electricity' to the atmosphere as you see a real diffusing effect around the light source---WOW---) ...and you settle into a coffee sipping PM wonderland....well, at least this guy does, LOL!

 

Man oh man...but is the FSX (DX10) virtual night life...such a sweet...sweet world to fly over....oh wow...this is the best flight simulating time of my life...and it's only getting better and better.

 

One final thought...and this is a great (only those that have XPX  can appreciate this...) compliment paid to FSX!   I would say that now...after that tool was released by ORBX, and after a user sets FSXG's lighting system to personal taste, FSX's night life is JUST AS GOOD to advance the PM hours-of-operation, and satisfying to fly over, as is what XPX brings to the plate.  In graphic 'busyness' FSX with  add-on's, eclipses XPX. I hope that changes with the release of XPX 10.30.  I love both sims..and fly both on a regular bases using the strengths each brings to the hobby. Not one, or the other.  Well...back to the paused flight I bunged up to post this thread.  I'm heading from Detroit at Dusk, up over the 'burbs...and plan on putting the wheels down on some spot in the U. P.  (for non-Michiganders...the Upper Peninsula).  

 

Post Edit:  I also wanted to state that while I had (before I could adjust the orb size/radiation size) of the FSXG lights) Bloom scaled back to 75 percent in Steve's DX10 Fixer software, I tried going back to 100 percent BLOOM, and man...let me tell ya....with the Very Small and Low Intensity settings, heading out of a major urban center, will ROCK YOUR WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!    Oh yeah....AC/DC quality.....now..back to the flight----------------------------------------------------------------->

 

signing off this post as:

 

One heck of a happy man

Cheers!

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I'll have to try these - hadn't got around to downloading the FTXG light configuration tool yet. Would your suggestions be the same even without bloom? (I've just never warmed up to bloom, even with DX10 Fixer). Out of curiosity, what various bloom settings are you using in the the fixer?

 

Cheers mate!


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I'll have to try these - hadn't got around to downloading the FTXG light configuration tool yet. Would your suggestions be the same even without bloom? (I've just never warmed up to bloom, even with DX10 Fixer). Out of curiosity, what various bloom settings are you using in the the fixer?

 

Cheers mate!

Yes, you can certainly use it without Bloom.  I had Bloom (both Fixer sliders set to 75 percent), but with using Very Small and Low Intensity lighting, I have gone back to Bloom at 100 percent. With Bloom on, the light radiation casts a specular/scattered glow, and truly adds to the immersion. You will find (I'm sure) that the Very Small orb light fits in exactly with the yards they are in, buildings and houses they are in the vicinity of, and the highway and roadway lights are now attuned to the width of the lane ways. In all...a most satisfying event!   Odourboy, this was the one element that messed up the rest. No longer.....  Oh..a final afterthought,  with Bloom set to 100 percent, and the lights set to what is stated here....out-to-the-horizon city lights is dead on...spot...dead...on...AND...it is out to the horizon at 3,500 ft.  Reality, right there on the monitor.....  :)  With Bloom on...you get that spectral haze...as it should be, even out to the horizon,... and not lights looking all like traffic light lenses....that looks so fake...and merely light sprites in the graphic context.

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I'll give dx10 another try, let alone those lights :(


David Zambrano, CFII, CPL, IGI

I know there's a lot of money in aviation because I put it there. 

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I'll give dx10 another try, let alone those lights :(

Take off under DX10...(Steve's Fixer in action...), head out over GLIMMER water effects as set in REX 4 Direct...., head back inland at Dusk towards San Francisco...or Detroit...and get ready for some eye popping FSX.  You'll be kicking yourself for the next half hour in not having had all that in play for the last several months. That's what I think might be your reaction....Set FSXG to Very Small and Low Intensity for the light orbs. Pick your shading of each light set.  Have Bloom at 100 percent on both sliders in Steve's Fixer Upper.  Take in Detroit on the river...and then head North out towards the counties.  Look left and right....and keep remembering to control the airplane...LOLOLOL!  If you have it all set up right....you will be rubber-necking...HUGE!

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Take off under DX10...(Steve's Fixer in action...), head out over GLIMMER water effects as set in REX 4 Direct...., head back inland at Dusk towards San Francisco...or Detroit...and get ready for some eye popping FSX.  You'll be kicking yourself for the next half hour in not having had all that in play for the last several months. That's what I think might be your reaction....Set FSXG to Very Small and Low Intensity for the light orbs. Pick your shading of each light set.  Have Bloom at 100 percent on both sliders in Steve's Fixer Upper.  Take in Detroit on the river...and then head North out towards the counties.  Look left and right....and keep remembering to control the airplane...LOLOLOL!  If you have it all set up right....you will be rubber-necking...HUGE!

What I mean is, dx10 doesn't support the level of AA and AF as you can handle with DX9. My sim simply stutters heavily under overcast clouds, which it doesn't do in dx9, and AA/AF quality is something I can't give up.

 

If I were to use DX10, I'll have to see jaggedy cockpit displays.


David Zambrano, CFII, CPL, IGI

I know there's a lot of money in aviation because I put it there. 

BetaTeamD.png

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I will check this out tonight. thanks for posting.

 

Bob

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You've spurred me into action Sesquashtoo. Installed the Lights Configuator. Followed your settings suggestions and enabled some bloom in the Fixer. Not bad!

 

Just trying a few metropolitan areas I fly around now, but I do like the look so far. I'm going to have to stop calling it FTX Glo-Ball.  :P

 

Nice side effect is autogen lights 'popping' is less noticeable.


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Funny thing is that I'd just started tweaking my lights last night...going smaller and smaller.  I didn't see a 'dim' option but I was wishing for one.  Maybe I don't have the latest version?  I'll look again tomorrow. 


Gregg Seipp

"A good landing is when you can walk away from the airplane.  A great landing is when you can reuse it."
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I have Orbx FTXG and UTX. Not Orbx Vector. Having said that, can I use this light config tool and if so were do you get it? Thanks


Eric 

 

 

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Funny thing is that I'd just started tweaking my lights last night...going smaller and smaller.  I didn't see a 'dim' option but I was wishing for one.  Maybe I don't have the latest version?  I'll look again tomorrow. 

Gregg, it's the first mask to tweak the color of the lights.  Not 'Dim', but 'Brightness'. You set that to Low. That will be the same as your 'Dim'.

I have Orbx FTXG and UTX. Not Orbx Vector. Having said that, can I use this light config tool and if so were do you get it? Thanks

 

I have Orbx FTXG and UTX. Not Orbx Vector. Having said that, can I use this light config tool and if so were do you get it? Thanks

This tool IS for FTX-G and here is the link to download it:  http://www.orbxsystems.com/forum/topic/76904-orbx-ftxg-lights-configurator/

You've spurred me into action Sesquashtoo. Installed the Lights Configuator. Followed your settings suggestions and enabled some bloom in the Fixer. Not bad!

 

Just trying a few metropolitan areas I fly around now, but I do like the look so far. I'm going to have to stop calling it FTX Glo-Ball.  :P

 

Nice side effect is autogen lights 'popping' is less noticeable.

Glad it is to your taste :)   I noticed almost no further light popping as far as out to the horizon myself!

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Sesquashtoo, thanks for the link. When you say both sliders in the Fixer, which two? There is five I think under the General tab. Also one last thing, you have UTX lights disabled right?


Eric 

 

 

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Sesquashtoo, thanks for the link. When you say both sliders in the Fixer, which two? There is five I think under the General tab. Also one last thing, you have UTX lights disabled right?

 

 

You're most welcome;

 

To answer you, the first two Reflective and Lights (emmisive) Have those two set to 100 percent (or whatever you personally prefer) The rest to your liking.

 

Yes, I have UTX lights off (that are enabled in the UTX program setup), but that is not what we are talking about.  This tool (the one at the end of the link) is for adjusting the FSG Global lights...their size, intensity, and color 'radiation'. The other tool I speak of, can be found at/on the support forum for UTX products, and is published by the creator of UTX.  It is free for download and this tool will allow you to have whatever type of light you set up with the FSX Global tool upon FSX-G graphics...to be ALSO used and seen on every UTX road that it is set up for. The effect is stunning, and completes the 'real world mind set' for the PM hours.  So...set up whatever lights you like with the ORBX tool, then run and set up whatever you like with the UTX for FSX lights tool, and then you should Disable, and then Enable the DX10 Compatible Lights mask on Steve's Fixer Program. You only have to do this once, if you never change the other two tool settings. The reason that you need to always last cycle the mask on Steve's program, is that whenever you change anything in the other tools, you write over the converted files from what Steve's program does. That might make your lights disappear.  Cycling that switch, so Steve's program is forced to reconvert the lights and effects does no harm, and ensures you that the lights all have once more been properly converted for running under DX10.

 

Have fun...and light up the night..... 

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I, too, ended up setting the FTX lights to very small as I think that looks most realistic.

 

I don't have the intensity set to low, though, so I'll have to try that.  My bloom is set to 75%, like you used to have.  I'm anxious to try setting the intensity to low and then 100% bloom as you suggest.

 

Thanks!

 

Dave


Simulator: P3Dv5.4

System Specs: Intel i7 13700K CPU, MSI Mag Z790 Tomahawk Motherboard, 32GB DDR5 6000MHz RAM, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Video Card, 3x 1TB Samsung 980 Pro M.2 2280 SSDs, Windows 11 Home OS

 

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I, too, ended up setting the FTX lights to very small as I think that looks most realistic.

 

I don't have the intensity set to low, though, so I'll have to try that.  My bloom is set to 75%, like you used to have.  I'm anxious to try setting the intensity to low and then 100% bloom as you suggest.

 

Thanks!

 

Dave

You're most welcome, Dave!   Another thing you will find....that with the settings I have suggested (and you can even go to 100 percent on both the first two sliders of BLOOM in Steve's software), all light popping in as you approach texture tiles... has 'gone with the wind....!  Not only that...but (with the small orb setting...and with the UTX roadways lit up with FSXG lighting) not only will you have no further, or at the worst, very, very limited light popping into the scene....but that your lights will have the most realistic single pole light display near your position, but as you view out to the horizon...and YES...they are now lit out to the horizon at 3,500 ft ASL, the lights under bloom will start de-focusing...and then form a collage of yellow or orange color, as befits viewing them from 10 to infinity miles out!!!!   You should see Greater Detroit...as I fly just over the water on the West shore of Lake St.Clair...heading north to Mackinaw Island.  It is the most real depiction of the world at Dusk to Night..that I have ever seen in a sim to date. This now includes XPX!!!   I'd have to say that my FSX at Dusk and Night is superior at the moment.  I NEVER thought in a million years that I would be posting that...and not with FSX as the subject.   FSX can learn new tricks....as well as the User to appreciate them!

 

For this effect to show itself, it is most important that you have the lights as Very Small, and the light intensity as LOW on all of them! For the horizon collage to be viewed and set up by FSX, you DO need the first two sliders on Steve's Bloom slider under General Shader to be set to 100 percent, or no less than 75 percent. That will give you what I see on my screen....as I boogie up the West coast of Lake St.Clair, at 3,500 ft.....

 

What a BLAST I am having with FSX since getting it set to what it is now....what ....a.....BLAST!  :)

 

Cheers,

 

Mitch 

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