V-Ray Tip: Convert Textures to .tx for Faster, More Stable V-Ray Rendering

Converting your texture library to .tx (tiled, mip‑mapped) can noticeably speed up scene loading and rendering in V-Ray, reduce memory pressure, and make animations more stable. It’s a low-risk, high-impact optimization for both CPU and GPU workflows.

Why .tx helps:

• Mip-mapping: V-Ray samples only the appropriate resolution, reducing aliasing and cutting texture lookup cost at distance and in glossy reflections.
• Tiled I/O: Streams just the tiles V-Ray needs, improving IPR responsiveness and reducing disk thrashing on render farms.
• Lower memory footprint: Smaller working sets in RAM/VRAM; fewer out-of-core hits on large scenes.
• More stable animation: Less texture shimmer, cleaner detail transitions over camera moves.
• Deterministic results across machines: Consistent texture filtering and footprint on distributed renders.

How to convert:

• Use OpenImageIO’s maketx (cross‑platform, common in production). Example:
  maketx -v -u --filter lanczos3 --wrap clamp -o wood_diffuse.tx wood_diffuse.png
• Honor color management:
  • Albedo/basecolor typically: maketx -v -u --colorconvert sRGB linear -o albedo.tx albedo.png
  • Data maps (normal, roughness, metallic, ao): do not color convert; keep linear/raw.
• HDRIs: convert high‑dynamic‑range sources to .tx to accelerate dome/environment lighting while preserving highlight detail.
• UDIMs: maintain UDIM naming (e.g., myTex_1001.tx, 1002.tx, …). Most V-Ray hosts resolve UDIM sets automatically when the file node is pointed to the pattern.

Integrate in V-Ray:

• Point your VRayBitmap/File nodes to the .tx files (many hosts load .tx natively). If your DCC offers a “use existing .tx” or “read .tx” option, enable it.
• Keep originals in a “src” folder and mirror .tx in a “tx” folder to simplify asset tracking and versioning.
• Update texture paths for farm nodes; verify with your asset tracker so all machines resolve the .tx location.

Best practices and gotchas:

• Displacement/height maps: start from 16‑bit or 32‑bit linear sources to avoid banding before converting to .tx.
• Normal maps: never apply sRGB/gamma; import as Raw/Linear in your file node.
• Alpha workflows: if your source is premultiplied, unpremultiply before color converting; premultiply again after if needed.
• Rebuild .tx whenever the source changes, your color pipeline updates, or you rotate/replace HDRIs.
• Archive both source and .tx; re‑generate .tx on the farm as part of preflight to guarantee parity.

Verification:

• Compare texture memory and I/O stalls in V-Ray’s logs or Profiler; .tx should reduce peak usage and wait times.
• Scrub an animation: look for reduced aliasing/shimmer on distant textures and smoother IPR start/updates.
• Measure scene open and first‑pixel times before/after conversion on a representative shot.

Pipeline tip: bake .tx generation into your DCC publish or CI step so artists never think about it, and ensure farm nodes don’t waste time creating duplicates.

Need help standardizing a .tx pipeline across teams or choosing the right V-Ray setup? Reach out to NOVEDGE for licensing, deployment guidance, and workflow optimization. You can also explore V-Ray options and upgrades directly with NOVEDGE to keep your studio’s rendering stack current and efficient.

You can find all the V-Ray products on the NOVEDGE web site at this page.