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V-Ray 6 for Maya, Update 2 - now available
We've officially released V-Ray 6 for Maya Update 1! 
Useful links:
This release adds a number of new and exciting features. Some highlights:
MaterialX and LookdevX - Introducing our MaterialX and LookdevX support for a more complete USD workflow and better exchange between platforms. V-Ray can now render MaterialX graphs and preview changes made in LookdevX dynamically with IPR. VRayMaterials are also available for creation and edits in LookdevX. We've also added a tool that would allow you to export VRayMaterials from native maya nodes to MaterialX file in order to transfer and preserve them more easily. Additionally we have a new VRayMaterialX node which allows users to load and render mtlx files outside of USD stages.
USD - we have added support for MayaUSD 0.26.0 for Maya 2024 and 0.24.0 for other versions. On top of that we have reworked our USD implementation to be Hydra compatible. This makes rendering USD in V-Ray for Maya the same as V-Ray for Houdini but it also allows for additional perks like initial IPR support. Some other workflow improvements include retained UVset names, improved geometry compilation with instanced USD, retained arbitrary graphs for dome lights and materials and many more.
Chaos Scatter - following its addition in our last release, the Chaos Scatter integration in Maya gained a few new additions:
Shadow Selects - to further improve V-Ray's Light Select render element we've added two new modes - Directs diffuse shadows and Directs specular shadows. These render elements will allow you to fine-tune shadows in post production and improve your shots. The addition of matte objects only for diffuse shadows will allow you to correct shadows cast onto matte surfaces and can further simplify post production workflows.
V-Ray Decal Cylindrical Projection - applying stickers and imperfections to curved surfaces is now easier and more precise. You can adjust the bend to match the surface you're applying the decal to so that there is no stretching of the image. Furthermore we've also added viewport preview for textures for easier adjusting before rendering.
Directionality Strength - control the spread of light when using directional strength to achieve more realistic results and eliminate the need for two directional light setups used to achieve those effects.
Chromatic aberration - allows you to create distinct and creative looks straight from the VFB without the need to use external software.
V-Ray GPU Improvements
Viewport improvements - blend material can now be visualized in the viewport and we’ve also improved the memory efficiency for alembic proxies
And many more!
Disclaimer:
The transition to the new Hydra compatible translation layer may lead to some rendering differences. It is recommended to re-export your scenes in such cases, as the new translator is Hydra compatible. However, the old behavior can be temporarily re-enabled with VRAY_USD_HYDRA_TRANSLATOR=0 environment variable.
A list of known issues:
Happy exploring and rendering!
Useful links:
This release adds a number of new and exciting features. Some highlights:
MaterialX and LookdevX - Introducing our MaterialX and LookdevX support for a more complete USD workflow and better exchange between platforms. V-Ray can now render MaterialX graphs and preview changes made in LookdevX dynamically with IPR. VRayMaterials are also available for creation and edits in LookdevX. We've also added a tool that would allow you to export VRayMaterials from native maya nodes to MaterialX file in order to transfer and preserve them more easily. Additionally we have a new VRayMaterialX node which allows users to load and render mtlx files outside of USD stages.
USD - we have added support for MayaUSD 0.26.0 for Maya 2024 and 0.24.0 for other versions. On top of that we have reworked our USD implementation to be Hydra compatible. This makes rendering USD in V-Ray for Maya the same as V-Ray for Houdini but it also allows for additional perks like initial IPR support. Some other workflow improvements include retained UVset names, improved geometry compilation with instanced USD, retained arbitrary graphs for dome lights and materials and many more.
Chaos Scatter - following its addition in our last release, the Chaos Scatter integration in Maya gained a few new additions:
- Areas Include and Exclude lists - allows for curves and meshes to constrict where the instances are scattered on the target geometry to create perfect paths in fields, bush hedges and more.
- Edge Trimming - Constricts Scattered models fully within the bounds of the target mesh. Scatterings of multi-objects models (e.g. grass patches, pebble sets etc) are now more precise thanks to this addition.
- Scattering Lights and groups - Groups will now be scattered as a singular instance as opposed to a list of objects. This eliminates the need to merge objects into one mesh and allows for a cleaner hierarchy. We've also added support for Lights as instance models so you can freely create star filled galaxies, concert halls, lighting systems in halls and more.
- Converting Chaos Scatter instances to Maya geometry - All the scattering scenarios created with Chaos Scatter can now be converted into Maya geometry. One note here is that if you convert instanced lights they will not show up in the viewport but will render correctly.
- Axis for Transformation Step and Map - You can now choose on which axis to apply Transformation Step and Map for greater control.
- Better viewport representation - a faster and closer to render viewport representation allows for better adjustments and previsualization without the need to render.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/22BO7uTbbx8
- Edge Trimming - Constricts Scattered models fully within the bounds of the target mesh. Scatterings of multi-objects models (e.g. grass patches, pebble sets etc) are now more precise thanks to this addition.
- Scattering Lights and groups - Groups will now be scattered as a singular instance as opposed to a list of objects. This eliminates the need to merge objects into one mesh and allows for a cleaner hierarchy. We've also added support for Lights as instance models so you can freely create star filled galaxies, concert halls, lighting systems in halls and more.
- Converting Chaos Scatter instances to Maya geometry - All the scattering scenarios created with Chaos Scatter can now be converted into Maya geometry. One note here is that if you convert instanced lights they will not show up in the viewport but will render correctly.
- Axis for Transformation Step and Map - You can now choose on which axis to apply Transformation Step and Map for greater control.
- Better viewport representation - a faster and closer to render viewport representation allows for better adjustments and previsualization without the need to render.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/22BO7uTbbx8
Shadow Selects - to further improve V-Ray's Light Select render element we've added two new modes - Directs diffuse shadows and Directs specular shadows. These render elements will allow you to fine-tune shadows in post production and improve your shots. The addition of matte objects only for diffuse shadows will allow you to correct shadows cast onto matte surfaces and can further simplify post production workflows.
V-Ray Decal Cylindrical Projection - applying stickers and imperfections to curved surfaces is now easier and more precise. You can adjust the bend to match the surface you're applying the decal to so that there is no stretching of the image. Furthermore we've also added viewport preview for textures for easier adjusting before rendering.
Directionality Strength - control the spread of light when using directional strength to achieve more realistic results and eliminate the need for two directional light setups used to achieve those effects.
Chromatic aberration - allows you to create distinct and creative looks straight from the VFB without the need to use external software.
V-Ray GPU Improvements
- Use system memory for textures - a new option in render settings which allows you to utilize your machine's system memory for loading textures while rendering. This would allow users to render with large numbers of high resolution textures without worrying about running out of GPU memory
- Texture caching between frames when rendering Animation - textures are no longer reloaded between animation frames which gives an overall animation rendering speed increase of up to 4 times.
- Added support for Enmesh, Image Planes, and raw render elements.
- Texture caching between frames when rendering Animation - textures are no longer reloaded between animation frames which gives an overall animation rendering speed increase of up to 4 times.
- Added support for Enmesh, Image Planes, and raw render elements.
Viewport improvements - blend material can now be visualized in the viewport and we’ve also improved the memory efficiency for alembic proxies
And many more!
Disclaimer:
The transition to the new Hydra compatible translation layer may lead to some rendering differences. It is recommended to re-export your scenes in such cases, as the new translator is Hydra compatible. However, the old behavior can be temporarily re-enabled with VRAY_USD_HYDRA_TRANSLATOR=0 environment variable.
A list of known issues:
Crash when material in USD stage is deleted while IPR is running
Some USD features not supported on MacOS
Difference between IPR and Production rendering with distance tex/bercon noise in Chaos Scatter
Fatal error when rendering VRayMtl exported to .mtlx with the new export tool on Linux
The new tool for exporting materials to USD not working in selected materials mode
Some USD features not supported on MacOS
Difference between IPR and Production rendering with distance tex/bercon noise in Chaos Scatter
Fatal error when rendering VRayMtl exported to .mtlx with the new export tool on Linux
The new tool for exporting materials to USD not working in selected materials mode
Happy exploring and rendering!
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