New CRT shader from Guest + CRT Guest Advanced updates

guest.r · 4 February 2023 21:56

Lol, it’s based on an older preset. A push of gamma can make everything more glowy though.

Standard version is to be used:

CS = "2.000000"
TNTC = "1.000000"
WP = "-65.000000"
wp_saturation = "1.200000"
GAMMA_INPUT = "3.200000"
m_glow = "1.000000"
SIZEH = "12.000000"
SIGMA_H = "3.499999"
SIZEV = "12.000000"
SIGMA_V = "3.499999"
SIGMA_VB = "0.750000"
glow = "0.600000"
bloom = "0.700000"
bloom_dist = "2.000000"
halation = "-0.250000"
gamma_c = "1.250000"
brightboost = "1.400001"
brightboost1 = "1.000000"
gsl = "-1.000000"
scanline1 = "5.500000"
scanline2 = "7.000000"
beam_min = "1.100000"
beam_max = "0.950000"
beam_size = "0.750000"
vertmask = "-0.600000"
scans = "1.150000"
scan_falloff = "0.650000"
spike = "1.400000"
h_sharp = "3.500001"
s_sharp = "0.700000"
sth = "0.300000"
warpX = "0.040000"
warpY = "0.050000"
csize = "0.115000"
bsize1 = "0.300000"
shadowMask = "9.000000"
maskstr = "1.000000"
mask_gamma = "2.399999"
slotmask = "0.800000"
slotmask1 = "1.000000"
slotwidth = "3.000000"
double_slot = "2.000000"
mclip = "0.350000"
gamma_out = "3.049999"
decons = "0.800000"
post_br = "0.950000"

sonkun · 4 February 2023 22:16

Nice, I saw you mention earlier that more gamma effects the glow, so that’s another way to tweak it. I’m curious about all the different ways this new magic glow can be used, adding that in got my presets looking like I’m playing on a brand new tv it’s crazy and I love it.

The more glowy look would probably look good on ntsc presets, ntsc shaders always look darker so that could be used for a nice boost in brightness.

guest.r · 5 February 2023 09:19

New Release Version (2023-02-05-r1):

Notable changes:

Gamma parameters now have their own menu section and the two parameters are grouped for easier and faster tweaking.
edit: slotmask alignment and BGR fix

Download link:

https://mega.nz/file/os5AGDAR#-d_m3Qm-cEpGPf16XFYPGLx7DDdF9msfg__aDO8kvA0

Cyber · 5 February 2023 15:17

I don’t like being the bearer of bad news but this adjustment to the BGR Layout seems to have broken the even subpixel alignment on my LG OLED E6P TV.

This is what it looks like now:

This is how it looked before:

Edit: It took me like forever to find this before pic.

guest.r · 5 February 2023 09:20

Should be fixed now. Can you try it out?

Cyber · 5 February 2023 15:19

Sure, will test it in ~~a few (hours/days?)~~ as soon as I get a chance then get back to you. I noticed it using Mega Bezel 1.10.0

I hope @HyperspaceMadness can also update Mega Bezel Reflection Shader to rectify this there as well.

Not sure if you had to revert all of the recent BGR changes but if you saw improvements using your newer implementation, would it have been possible to introduce a 3rd Mask Layout option in order to preserve those improvements, while also still allowing OLED users to experience somewhat proper RGB triads?

soqueroeu · 5 February 2023 15:01

Guys, this is going too fast!!

Since @guest.r presets are widely used and he is one of the most active shader authors with emulators today, maybe he can help me with this question. But it is a question that other authors may want to answer. Please, feel free to argue.

I’m sorry if I sound inelegant. I’ve been wondering: What criteria are being used by shader authors to improve their presets? What are we looking for? I fear we are in an endless race for perfection. Is anyone monitoring whether previously obtained results weren’t better than what we’re finding now?

guest.r · 5 February 2023 15:28

A good guide to follow is that if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. Some improvements also tend to blend in in a form on a new parameter option. With feature testing some combos can stand out negatively in a noticable way and sure we try to fix, improve or mitigate it. Community feedback is also very important and many shader improvements were driven by the ideas and by inspiration of the users. Last but not least is bringing it close to true crt features. A good example of this are stages of deconvergence implementations where i had to split the main shader in two parts to be able to implement it properly.

If i’m asked i would have personal problems if i had to live with the early versions of the shader though.

Cyber · 5 February 2023 15:36

Man, I understand exactly what you’re asking because, not being ungrateful for what these exciting tools bring to the table but after I reached a certain point in my Shader Preset Pack development, possibly most of the time when a new Mega Bezel and sometimes CRT-Guest-Advanced is released, I’m trying to get my presets to look the same as before.

This is because at the point in time before the update, they looked perfect and highly fine tuned to me.

As development progresses its becoming more and more difficult to keep up with the changes and I don’t really like “harassing” @guest.r or @HyperspaceMadness just to find a way to reverse their work.

The solution to this might be that maybe someone can start a preservation project for these Shaders the way we’re trying our best to preserve the look of a CRT.

This in and of itself may not be so simple as we may not only have to preserve the shaders, but the presets as well as RetroArch versions themselves if we are to ensure compatibility.

I’m really trying the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” but I can’t really do this well if the base changes so often and often in a direction that goes in the opposite way from what I’m trying to accomplish or where I was satisfied with up to that time.

Again, please don’t take my comments the wrong way devs. I’m truly grateful for the work that you put out and there would be no CyberLab Mega Bezel Death To Pixels Shader Preset Pack without HSM Mega Bezel Reflection Shader or CRT-GUEST-ADVANCE.

Within recent months I’ve even been thinking about if it was possible to fork HSM Mega Bezel Reflection Shader in order to slow things down a bit and maybe update when necessary. Things move so quickly that it would have been nice to have an LTS version as well as a standard version of these great works of art.

At the same time things do need to move forward and it’s also possible sometimes that it’s due to my lack of understanding that I may think that something does not work as well or as it should after an update.

soqueroeu · 5 February 2023 15:35

Thanks for you feedback!

soqueroeu · 5 February 2023 15:49

New features are always welcome and I am very grateful to people like @HyperspaceMadness and @guest.r and all the other shader authors. I even think we’ve advanced absurdly from the starting point, and I’m want always updating my presets.

For those who create magical presets, based on the fantastic work of shader authors, yes, perhaps for them, it is ideal to trace their own versioning route.

sonkun · 5 February 2023 16:07

Interesting question. My criteria is very simple: a shader that’s fun to use. What I’m looking for is a shader with vibrant colors that pop out at you, a bright image that uses a nice looking Slot Mask, the “grittier” the mask the better.

I don’t think any shader will be perfect but it doesn’t hurt to try and reach for it as close as you can get, and that doesn’t just mean in terms of accuracy that could also mean in terms whichever direction each shader author is taking their presets in. Like mines, are my presets “crt accurate”? Not at all, they’re more a mix of basic crt attributes that invokes a nostalgic vibe with a modern twist.

As far as previous works being better, there’s not a single one of my past presets I would go back to after my last posting above. I don’t even save past presets because I’m all about moving forward never backwards. Of course there may be someone who may like a previous preset over the latest for whatever reason but that’s on the user to save them if they like them, plus I rarely came across a user that told me they liked a previous preset over the latest. It wouldn’t hurt to archive my past works but I’m simply not interested at the moment. I also love that guest brings in new features every now and then like the recent magic glow, it keeps things exciting and fresh.

This is also very important and has helped my presets become what they are today and also helped guest improve the shader which in turn helps us improve our presets, it’s like we both need each other lol. For example I’m pretty much the main reason there’s now a “grade” folder within the guest shader folder because I requested it. I like using grade in my presets and instead of constantly having to add the grade shader in separately so that I could make my different “white point” presets I figured it would be easier to just integrate it into the guest shader.

Besides everything I mentioned above sometimes it’s good to just chill out and just play some games after tweaking for hours and days, that’s why when guest doesn’t post an update for a while that’s the best time to get my presets at a level I like, put out a new pack and then just let it do its thing for a bit before looking for something to tweak again.

guest.r · 5 February 2023 15:54

@Cyber you are very welcome to comment on the changes involved with the recent updates, because they can also be very useful.

I don’t like being the bearer of bad news…

It’s rather good news lol, because a bug was found. Slotmask wasn’t alligned with mask 6 if you used slotmask sizes greater than 1.0. It was fine with my testings now, but your feedback is also important. It had less to do with the mask layout, but i still reverted the change to RBG (slotmask relative) and it should look like on your pic.

The summary of recent development can be also found in the first post of the thread.

hunterk · 5 February 2023 15:57

This is already covered by git history and forking. If you want to go back to an older revision, you can just ‘git checkout [revision hash]’. If you want to keep using that older version forever, just fork at that point or use a git submodule in your own repo that points to that specific revision.

Anyway, I updated the guest-advanced shaders in the slang repo.

Cyber · 5 February 2023 18:12

Looks like it’s fixed to me.

This layout seems to be the Holy Grail for LG OLED TVs to be able to display RGB Triads properly.

nfp0 · 5 February 2023 23:52

Sorry if I asked this before, but which is this mask again?
Also, what slotmask sizes are you using?

Cyber · 7 February 2023 02:02

No problem.

Mask 12, Size 1, Mask Layout 1 for Aperture Grill.

Plus width 7 for Slot_Mask (Because this mask is 7 subpixels wide and Slot_Mask width needs to match.

Height is any height you desire but in this case it’s 3.

Slot_Mask Size is 1.

guest.r · 7 February 2023 16:21

Let’s rather continue here, since it has less to do with nice @sonkun’s presets.

Good size 1 1080p masks are: 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
Good size 1 1440p masks are: 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 10,11.
Good size 1 4k masks are: 11, 12, 13.

You can increase mask size for 4k, but not advisable for 1080p.

guest.r · 7 February 2023 16:52

Hey @Duimon, here is the current mask list. If there are any uncertainties, just ask.

-1.0: no mask
0.0: a dense magenta-green mask
1.0: Lottes RGB mask with a some sort of slotmask
2.0: Lottes RGB mask
3.0: Lottes - a bit enlarged and shifted RGB mask
4.0: Lottes - 2x enlarged and shifted RGB mask, looks nicer with 4k+
5.0: a dense magenta green mask (trinitron mask controls)
6.0: RGB mask (trinitron mask controls)
7.0: Black-White mask (trinitron mask controls)
8.0: Black-White-White mask (trinitron mask controls)
9.0: magenta-green-black mask (trinitron mask controls)
10.0: RGBX mask (trinitron mask controls)
11.0: Red-Yellow-Cyan-Blue mask (nice for 1440p+) (trinitron mask controls)
12.0:RRGGBBX mask (looks nice with 4k+) (width 7.0) (trinitron mask controls)
13.0: Red-Yellow-White-Magenta-Blue-Black 4k mask (width 6.0) (trinitron mask controls)

Jamirus · 7 February 2023 16:56

With Mask Shift, you can also use masks that are by default suited only to higher res displays. E.g. mask 13 looks nice with shift 3 on my 1200p monitor, I assume it would still be suitable on a 1080p one also.