Viewport Transparency issues with 3DS Max 2017 SP2

[dave]

Hi all,

I've noticed that my viewport will invert transparency if I set it to "High Quality" and "Realistic Materials with Maps". 

However, If I set the viewport back to "Standard" and "Shaded Materials with Maps"; or in "DX Mode" with Realistic Materials with Maps" the alpha/transparency appears correct.

(the lighting options make no difference in either setting)

I am using Nitrous D3D 11.0 with an Nvidia GeForce GTX780 on latest drivers.

Has anyone else had this issue, and if so have you found a solution to it?

Hope you can help,

Cheers!

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello @dave,

I'd like to help you with your issue with viewport transparency problems in 3ds Max.  I've been testing this based on your feedback and I am unable to reproduce it, but all that really means is that we can safely start this process by looking at driver and display solutions for your problem. Which OS are you using?

There are a couple things we could try to fix this.

First, let's test the display mode in 3ds Max.  If you follow the directions here, we can see if the problem persists in DX9.  

Second, you might want to downgrade your drivers to the previous WHQL version available on NVIDIA.com  Occasionally a driver update will cause some problems in 3ds Max or other 3D apps.  Sometimes loading older drivers works quite well with fixing these issues, so you may want to try to clean uninstall and then try an older version or two to see if the problem resolves.

Third we should probably try to reset your user preferences in case the were corrupted somehow.  You can find information here on how to do that.  Let's start with these three and see if they help you with your problem.  Thank you!

Please hit the "Accept as Solution" button if my post fully solves your issue or answers your question. This lets me know that I was effective in helping you, and thank you for doing so.

Best Regards, 

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello @dave,

Just following up, any progress?  

Best Regards,

[dave]

Hey Alfred,

thanks for the suggestions, I ended up having to try everything.. in the order you suggested and still no success.

In the end the only way I found how to make sure the alpha was displayed correctly was to check the "alpha as gray" in the "RGB Channel Output" of the opacity channel of the material.

I don't know if this is a Max 2017 thing or an issue with my system, because I didn't have to do that for Max 2015. - any ideas about that?

thanks again,

Dave

[spacefrog_]

Could you post the scene + maps ?  What you describe is usually the other way arround:

Realistic/High Quality  mode should do correct alpha depth sorting ( stochastic) , while the simple shaded mode has depth sorting issues ( it sorts only on an object base ).

BTW: i have a 780GTX here to, so that would be a comparable setup, i'm still on W7 though. Whats your OS ?

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello @dave,

 Thank you for trying those items in the previous message.  I know it's a bit of work to do all that, and I appreciate you going through those steps.  

This is a bit strange though, and it's not a problem I have any notes in my tracker about.  What is the texture format you are using? As Spacefrog suggested, a scene file plus one of the maps that is acting up would be great. (Even if that scene is just that map on a plane.)  I think it would be best to take a closer look.  I have 2014-2017 installed and I can test on each of them and I would be happy to do so.

Best Regards,

[dave]

Hey Alfred, Spacefrog
Thanks for getting back in touch! I'm keen to get this properly resolved but I'm now on holiday for the next couple of weeks, so if it's ok with you all can we pick this back up when I'm back in the office?

Many thanks,
Dave

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello @dave,

No problem at all, enjoy your holiday!  Beautiful time of year for it.  I'll be here when you get back and I'm happy to help!

Best Regards,

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello @dave,

I hope the vacation was good!  I just wanted to follow up here and see if there was anything I could do to help.

Best Regards,