Over-dimensioned runway/PAPI lights. Fix?

[Fi5kuS 57]

Has anyone else noticed that runway lights change size and appearance on approach? Meaning they are large, bloomy and over-dimensioned (almost melted into each other) right until landing, then they change to a normal size. It doesn't matter if I change runway light settings in either REX OD or REX4 TD, they all look the same right until you are near them - then they change into whatever texture you have set in REX.

 

I remember I didn't have this problem in previous versions of P3D like 2.2 or 2.3. Also, I have tried cycling between different Nvidia Drivers, but that doesn't seem to help either. However, airports that use their own sets of lightning such as FlyTampa airports are unaffected by REX textures, but all Aerosoft Airports have PAPI lighting which (I think) looks horrible.

 

Until now, I thought that this was an issue with this version of P3D. Then I saw this recent video from Rob landing in ORBX Sedona...

 

 

...here, PAPI lights looks normal and incredibly good. How can we achieve this?

 

 

[virtualstuff 758]

Has anyone else noticed that runway lights change size and appearance on approach? Meaning they are large, bloomy and over-dimensioned (almost melted into each other) right until landing, then they change to a normal size. It doesn't matter if I change runway light settings in either REX OD or REX4 TD, they all look the same right until you are near them - then they change into whatever texture you have set in REX.

 

I remember I didn't have this problem in previous versions of P3D like 2.2 or 2.3. Also, I have tried cycling between different Nvidia Drivers, but that doesn't seem to help either. However, airports that use their own sets of lightning such as FlyTampa airports are unaffected by REX textures, but all Aerosoft Airports have PAPI lighting which (I think) looks horrible.

 

Until now, I thought that this was an issue with this version of P3D. Then I saw this recent video from Rob landing in ORBX Sedona...

 

 

...here, PAPI lights looks normal and incredibly good. How can we achieve this?

 

add this to the prepar3d .cfg file the display section ;-)

 

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_SURFACE_SCALAR=0.75

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_VASI_SCALAR=0.5

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_APPROACH_SCALAR=0.65

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_STROBE_SCALAR=0.7

 

[Fi5kuS 57]

add this to the prepar3d .cfg file the display section ;-)

 

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_SURFACE_SCALAR=0.75

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_VASI_SCALAR=0.5

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_APPROACH_SCALAR=0.65

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_STROBE_SCALAR=0.7

 

 

Hey Andrè, I don't think this will change the phenomenon of PAPI lights switching textures right until you approach them? It seems like when you get in a certain distance, they change to normal looking PAPI lights. When far away however, they bloom up the simulator like fireworks.

[autogyro 18]

I've also noticed this... not sure how to fix, maybe related to HDR changes.

[gmoneyprs 2]

OT but you can definitely tell that Rob took that video by his flying. Ouch, what a landing!

[Fi5kuS 57]

add this to the prepar3d .cfg file the display section ;-)

 

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_SURFACE_SCALAR=0.75

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_VASI_SCALAR=0.5

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_APPROACH_SCALAR=0.65

RUNWAY_LIGHTS_STROBE_SCALAR=0.7

 

 

 

I've also noticed this... not sure how to fix, maybe related to HDR changes.

 

I actually think adding this to the P3D.cfg did something good. Seems like they still change textures/apperance on approach, but it is much less obvious now. So thanks!

[tremor595 20]

I want to jump in hear again as i have the same abnormalities with runway lights on non-ORBX or default airports. 

Close to and around my aircraft i can see my desired rex lights. But at certain distance they disappear and instead i have generic lights showing up.

Then with HDR turned off in game settings all lights show up correctly, rex lights all over the place.

So for my simple knowledge it seems as if a specific HDR or fx file or value limits how far the rex lights are visible. Of course this value may have a global function and so is intentional set low by default?

 

Can any expert out here explain which value causes this strange behavior or where is the relation? 

 

Or at least tell me i'm on the complete wrong approach... :-)

[jbcallender 53]

I am also looking at the environment lights around the airport as Rob taxis and they are much more realistic, whereas I seem to have these large glowing orbs.  I have experimented with the bloom variables and some others but have yet to have much impact.

[jaydor 233]

Nobody has mentioned what scenery they are using.  If it is FTX global then you can adjust the light's. 

 

The config add above is a great help for the PAPI in FSX/P3D and if you use REX there is a setting in the "create section" for subduing the light sizes..

[tremor595 20]

Nobody has mentioned what scenery they are using.  If it is FTX global then you can adjust the light's. 

 

I want to jump in hear again as i have the same abnormalities with runway lights on non-ORBX or default airports. 

Maybe my English didn't explain it clearly. I was meaning on non-ORBX airports or in other words on default airports. As many ORBX airports have custom build in lights sure they look great and are not affected by REX or whatever.

And i don't think FTX Global (which i have installed) has something to do with the issue i was talking about.

The cfg add from above i also have included since a long time. But sadly this doesn't change anything with the distance issue i talked about. With this cfg add it's possible to make the standard airport lights in the distance a little smaller for example, so you don't recognize the difference too much compared to the REX lights around your aircraft.

As a temporary solution this is okay.

But as i said, only with HDR turned off the REX lights show up correctly. So probably something else is responsible for this mismatch.

 

Or maybe i should have started this as another topic as we are maybe talking about two different situations...

If you like (and i hope it's okay to post this) here is a link to p3d forum which clearly shows my issue

http://www.prepar3d.com/forum-5/topic/blurry-runway-lights-at-a-distance/

[bonchie 2,305]

One of the most unrealistic things in FSX/P3D is runway lights. Especially at GA airports. 

In real life, runway lights are freaking hard to see unless it's in the middle of nowhere. In FSX/P3D, they stand out like a sore thumb 10 miles away. 
 

I wish there was a way to really fix it, but there's not. I just use a smaller, less bloomy REX texture set for runway lights.

[DarkstarF16 72]

Are you sure? Granted, I only have one experience to fall back on but when my instructor radioed the airport, Manchester (EGCC) lit up like a Christmas tree and I was in no doubt where the runway was. It was early afternoon on a bright but cloudy day. We weren't 10 miles out but I'd be surprised if on an average night you couldn't see them from at least that distance give or take a miles or two.

[bonchie 2,305]

Are you sure? Granted, I only have one experience to fall back on but when my instructor radioed the airport, Manchester (EGCC) lit up like a Christmas tree and I was in no doubt where the runway was. It was early afternoon on a bright but cloudy day. We weren't 10 miles out but I'd be surprised if on an average night you couldn't see them from at least that distance give or take a miles or two.

 

When I take off from VKX and look down the river, DCA is pretty dim or I can't see it clearly at all depending on visibility (if it's really clear you can see all the way past the monuments), but it's about 7 miles away at that point. It's not that I can't see them at all, but that they don't start as super bright glowing orbs and things are much dimmer the farther you get out. Regardless, most airports aren't major hubs with extremely bright light environments. A lot of GA airports have medium intensity lights and those can look like street lights for a long time until you get close. Those are more of what I'm talking about. 

 

I've had to come within 3 miles of some airports in urban areas where there's tons of surrounding lights blending in. In FSX, the lights are so easy to distinguish and don't blend at all. In real life, I've mistaken a roadway many times until I got closer. Going into GAI at night for the first time, I was straining to finally find the runway. I think I found it about 3 miles out. 

 

The problem with FSX isn't that you can see them 10 miles out (or whatever) but how bright and big the look. So the surrounding textures are a blurry mess, the autogen lights haven't even populated yet, but you see this huge, bright glowing runway environment. 

 

Meaning they are large, bloomy and over-dimensioned (almost melted into each other) right until landing, then they change to a normal size. 

 

That's my experience further out as well. Instead of the lights being so overly-bloomy and blending together further out, they should simply appear dimmer and smaller. That's why I try to select the smallest REX textures I can. 

 

Here's a video that may kind of describe what I mean. That is about a 2 mile final shown at the beginning.

 

 

Now imagine approaching that runway from the side, 5 miles further out, with all the other lights surrounding it. It'd be pretty hard to see wouldn't it? That kind of blending is what I'd like to see from a simulator one day. 

[Kyprianos Biris 12]

Or maybe i should have started this as another topic as we are maybe talking about two different situations...

If you like (and i hope it's okay to post this) here is a link to p3d forum which clearly shows my issue

http://www.prepar3d.com/forum-5/topic/blurry-runway-lights-at-a-distance/

 

I tried to look for this thread above but it does not exist any more.

 

I also find PAPI lights halo light oversized (even up to P3D 3.2.3) and it indeed it is independent from REX4 settings.

 

I will try the tweak.

[vbazillio 2,234]

Thank to all that participate to this thread. I'm also facing the oversize PAPI lights and sudden change at short distance. First, as previously stated by Tremor595 in this post, HDR ON or OFF seems to have an impact. Second, the P3D.CFG mod and the 4 lines to add in the [Display] section seems to be a kind of workaround.

 

I wanted to show the differences and results with this video, but you'll have to look precisely and watch in HD. Hard to see on a video. Thanks again to all