USD for 3ds Max 0.5 Release Notes
USD for Autodesk 3ds Max version 0.5 is the latest release available. For important legal information about this version, please refer to the following: About USD for 3ds Max.
Download USD for Autodesk 3ds Max from your Autodesk account. USD for Autodesk 3ds Max is supported on systems capable of running 3ds Max 2022 and higher. See also: Install USD for 3ds Max.
Important:
3ds Max USD 0.5 and MaxtoA 5.6.1 both use a version of USD that provides important security enhancements. It is recommended that you upgrade to these versions of 3ds Max USD and MaxtoA or higher. 3ds Max USD 0.5 is available for download from your Autodesk account and MaxtoA is available for download from the Arnold downloads page.
What's New
Latest Features
USD for 3ds Max version 0.5 is built with USD version 22.11. The following features are available with this release:
- Updated USD Exporter:
- Skin/Morpher export to USDSkel and USD BlendShapes
- MaterialX Material support in the USD Exporter and MaterialX Material in Slate
- Updates to the Max USD SDK that allows 3rd-party developers to extend the USD Exporter. SDK available in a separate download from the Autodesk developer network.
What's Fixed
| Fixed Issues |
|---|
| USD - Animation - Source Start and Source End do not match Custom config |
| USD - Animation - Unable to supply negative values for Frame Range |
| USD Export - USDZ Exporter does not generate archive |
| The USD export dialog does not appear centered with the 3ds Max application |
| USD - Exporter - The two Exporter states inconsistently share settings and values |
| USD Stage - 'Icon' display toggle is non functional |
| USD Exporter - Export and Cancel Button Behavior inconsistent |
| USD Exporter - Certain UI States are not retained during a 3ds Max session |
| USD - Sub Material assignments are not starting at 0 |
| MAXtoA - USD - Render silently aborts with USD content |
| USD Tools - Command strings using spaces creates an error |
| Stage Object : Buttons Icons and size not scaling properly |
Known Issues and Current Limitations
| USD Exporter and USD Importer Limitations |
|---|
| Texture graphs are not supported, only direct bitmap inputs are supported in the USD Exporter, Importer and Stage. |
| Motion Blur data is unsupported. |
| USD Importer does not import animations. |
| When importing a USD file containing Normal Map data into 3ds Max 2024, the object's surface may look facetted/ the UV seams become apparent. Workaround: Ensure that gamma correction is enabled. Open the bitmaptexture node in slate, click the file browse button and explicitly set the gamma to 1.0. |
| USD Blend Shapes Limitations |
|---|
| Morph targets export with USD blendshapes, but skinning information may not properly display in USDView. If you use 3ds Max 2023 or below, this issue presents in USDView. Workaround: Set the Windows Environment variable to: USDSKELIMAGING_FORCE_CPU_COMPUTE=1. |
| USD cannot resolve the modifier stack like morphers. Any morpher modifier is expected to be below the Skin modifier when they both are present in a 3ds Max node. A warning presents when this hierarchy is incorrect. |
| USD Stage Object Limitations |
|---|
| The USD Stage Object will not display lights, cameras or shapes in the viewport. |
| Most modifiers will have no effect on a USD Stage Object. |
| Rendering support for the stage is dependent on each renderer. See the rendering section for more information. |
| Display of baked bitmaps can cause blurriness of scenes even in high quality mode in the Viewport. Baked bitmaps (ie. with Uberbitmap) are unsupported even in high quality mode in the viewport. |
| A 2024 OpenGL Import error is reported relating to the Numpy module. This warning is expected but won't affect the usage of USDView with 3ds Max 2024. |
| USD Skel does not support faceVarying Normals. This extends to Morpher, as well. This is a USD limitation, and not specific to USD for 3ds Max tools. |
| MaterialX Limitations |
|---|
| 3ds Max 2022: MaterialX materials on a USD Stage reference cannot be displayed in Nitrous (Viewport) nor using Arnold as a renderer. |
| For USDView bundled with 3ds Max 2022 and 2023: when exporting or viewing an existing .usd file with MaterialX data present, the viewport in USDView will be black and unusable. |
| Loss of parameters when exporting MaterialX material. In maps, for example: subsurface_scale value is lost. |
| MaterialX samples have unexpected UV stretching. For example at the equator of a sphere prim. Workaround: Edit the MaterialX file's UVs manually using 'Explode Permanently'. However, in this technique, the material becomes an OSL composite representing the MaterialX file rather than a true MaterialX sample. |
| Importing USD files when MaterialX is present in the data can result in a failure to import all Materials (like USD Preview Surface). |
| USDZ format cannot export MaterialX data as part of the USDZ framework. See USDZ specifications. |