In this tutorial, we’ll explore how to use MatBox’s ready-made materials in V-Ray For 3DsMAX. MatBox is a professional material pack that lets you enhance your projects faster and with higher quality, eliminating the need to create materials from scratch.

Key Features of MatBox Materials:

✅ Scale Adjustment – Control texture size proportionally or independently.
✅ Color Correction – Modify hue, saturation, brightness, and contrast.
✅ Surface Refinement – Adjust roughness, specular, and normal maps for realistic detail.
✅ Tile & Dirt Effects – Add realistic wear, grime, and tiling with a single click.

Try MatBox for free, click HERE.

Vray Material Controls

This guide includes text, images, and video instructions to help you import, customize, and optimize MatBox materials in V-Ray For 3DsMAX—boosting both workflow speed and creative control.

 Enabling V-Ray in 3ds Max

To use V-Ray materials, first activate V-Ray as your renderer:

1. Press F10 or go to Render Setup → Common tab.

2. Under Assign Renderer, set both Production and Material Editor to V-Ray or V-Ray GPU.

3. Close the window.

 Opening the Material Editor

• Use the Compact Material Editor (no need for Slate Editor).

• Navigate: Rendering > Material Editor > Compact Material Editor (or press M).

 Applying Materials to 3D Models

1. In the Material Editor, pick a material slot.

2. Click Pick Material from Object () and select your MatBox material sphere.

3. Drag & drop the material onto any object to apply it.

 

MatBox Material in V-Ray Settings & Features

Diffuse Settings

To access:

1. Open the Material Editor (Shortcut: M)

2. Navigate to the Diffuse Map section

Activating Dirt Effects for Materials

1. Click on “Select Mode Dirt”

2. Disable the “Disable Dirt” checkbox

3. Enable the “Active Dirty” checkbox

Customizing Dirt Effects

Now that dirt is activated, you can customize:

• Color • Intensity • Type • Scale

How to Adjust:

1. Click “Active Dirty” (shown in image above)

2. Available parameters will appear:

To change dirt COLOR:

• Click “Color Dirt”

Configuring Dirt Color Options

After clicking “Color Dirt”, you’ll see two options:

1. Solid Color

2. Texture

How to Set Up:

🔹 For Texture-Based Dirt:

1. Disable the “Color” checkbox

2. Enable the “Texture” checkbox

3. Click the texture slot and specify your desired texture in the Bitmap section

🔹 For Solid Color Dirt:

1. Keep the “Color Dirt” checkbox enabled

2. Click on the color swatch to select your preferred color

⚠️ Important Notice:

• Always keep only one option active (either Color OR Texture)

• Never enable/disable both checkboxes simultaneously

To go back one step:
Simply click the at any time.

Fine-Tuning Dirt Intensity

Step-by-Step Adjustment:

1. Click on “Intensity Dirt (VrayColor)”

2. In the color picker:

   • White (RGB 255,255,255) → Reduces dirt visibility (subtle effect)

   • Black (RGB 0,0,0) → Increases dirt prominence (strong contrast)

   • Gray Values → Intermediate intensity levels

Pro Tip: For natural weathering:

• Use 85-95% black for aged surfaces

• 20-40% gray works best for mild surface dust

Changing Dirt Texture Type

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Click on “Texture Dirt (VRayBitmap)” in the Material Editor.

2. Switch to AfterBox:

   • Navigate to: MatBox > Texture > Dirt

   • Locate and download your preferred dirt texture.

3. Apply in 3ds Max:

   • Drag & drop the downloaded texture onto the Bitmap slot in the Material Editor.

   • Release to update the dirt pattern.

Adjusting Dirt Scale

Quick Guide:

1. Locate the “Triplanar Dirt (VrayTriplanarTex)” parameter

2. Modify the “Size” value:

   • Lower numbers = Smaller, more frequent dirt details

   • Higher numbers = Larger, more spread-out weathering

Important Note: Viewing Dirt Effects

Visibility Requirements:

• Changes to dirt settings will only display in:

  • High Quality Viewport Mode

  • Final Render Output

How to Check in Viewport:

1. Set viewport shading to:

   • “High Quality” (3ds Max)

   • “Realistic + Materials” (V-Ray Interactive)

2. Press Shift+Z to refresh the view

Activating Tile Effects for Materials

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Navigate to Diffuse Map

   • In the Material Editor, locate and click on “Diffuse Map”

2. Toggle Tile Mode

   • Disable the Select Mode Dirt checkbox

   • Enable the Active Tile checkbox

💡 Important Note:

• Enabling tiles won’t disable existing dirt effects (both can work simultaneously)

• Dirt settings remain fully adjustable

Customizing Tile Effects

1. Changing Tile Color

• Click “Color Tile (VRayColor)”

• Select any color from the palette

2. Adjusting Tile Intensity

1. Click “Intensity Color Tile (Mix)”

2. In the new panel, click the parameter again

3. Use the black-to-white gradient:

   • Black (0,0,0) = Maximum tile visibility

   • White (255,255,255) = Minimum visibility

3. Modifying Tile Pattern

1. After step 2 above, locate “Texture Tile”

2. In AfterBox:

   • Go to: MatBox > Texture > Tile

   • Download your preferred tile texture

3. In 3ds Max:

   • Drag & drop the texture onto the Bitmap slot

4. Resizing Tiles

• Click “Triplanar Tile”

• Adjust the Size parameter

Color Correction Settings

Step-by-Step Access:

1. Navigate to:
   Diffuse Map → Select Mode Dirt → Disable Dirt

2. Click on the Layer 1 thumbnail

3. Adjust parameters under the Color section

---

Color Adjustment Parameters

Adjusting Material Scale (UV Tiling)

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Navigate through:

   Diffuse Map → Select Mode Dirt → Disable Dirt → Layer 1

2. Access:
   Diffuse Texture (VRayBitmap) → Triplanar (VRayTriplanarTex) → Randomizer

3. In Coordinates:

   • Modify Tiling U (Horizontal scale)

   • Modify Tiling V (Vertical scale)
     

Bump Map Settings

Controlling Surface Detail

1. Locate Bump Map

   • In Material Editor, navigate to the Bump Map section

2. Adjust Intensity

   • Change the numeric value (typically 0-100%):

     • Lower values (5-30): Subtle texture

     • Medium values (30-70): Noticeable detail

     • Higher values (70-100): Dramatic depth

3. Advanced Settings

   • Click the “Map” button for additional controls:

     • Texture tiling/offset

     • Blur adjustments

     • Normal map conversion

Activating Bump Effects for Tiles

Step-by-Step Setup

1. Prerequisite

   • Ensure tile effects are already enabled in Diffuse Map

2. Enable Tile Bump

   • Check the “Active Tile Normal” checkbox

   • Click the parameter to access controls

Adjusting Bump Properties

1. Intensity Control

   • Click “Intensity Normal Tile”

   • Modify the Normal Map value:

     • *0.1-0.3*: Subtle grout lines

     • *0.5-0.8*: Pronounced tile edges

     • *1.0+*: Extreme 3D separation

2. Custom Textures

   • Download tile-normal textures from:
     MatBox > Texture > Tile

   • Drag & drop onto the Bitmap slot

Pro Tips:
✔ Use 16-bit normal maps for smoother gradients
✔ Match bump intensity to real-world tile thickness
✔ Combine with displacement for physical geometry

Configuring Reflection & Roughness for Dirt Effects

1. Accessing Reflection Controls

1. Navigate to:
   Material Editor → Reflection Map

2. Enabling Dirt Reflections

• ✅ Enable: “Active Dirt” checkbox

• ❌ Disable: “Disable Dirt” checkbox
  (Note: Only ONE of these must be active at a time)

3. Adjusting Reflection Intensity

1. Click “Intensity Dirt”

2. Use the color picker:

   • White (255,255,255): Maximum reflectivity

   • Black (0,0,0): No reflection

   • Gray Values: Intermediate levels

.

4. Controlling Roughness

• Follow identical steps as reflections

• White = Matte surface (high roughness)

• Black = Glossy surface (low roughness)

 

Displacement Map Controls

Key Settings

1. Access Path:
   Material Editor → Maps → Displace

2. Intensity Adjustment:

   • Increase value for stronger geometric deformation

   • Decrease value for subtler effects
     *(Typical range: 0.5-5.0 cm for architectural materials)*

Technical Comparison: Bump vs Displacement

Pro Usage Tips

✔ Optimization:

• Use adaptive subdivision (Render Setup → Displacement)

• Start with 0.5-1.0cm values, increase gradually

✔ Texture Pairing:

• Combine with displacement mask in alpha channel

• Match resolution to bump maps (2K-4K recommended)

✔ Viewport Preview:

• Enable “Use Global Settings” for consistent display

 

Closing Note

Thank you for following this guide! We’ve covered:

• V-Ray material setup

• Dirt/tile customization

• Advanced bump/displacement techniques

Need help?
✉️ Leave comments below for:

• Troubleshooting specific materials

• Requests for advanced tutorials

• Feature suggestions

(Next tutorial: MatBox Materials in Corona Renderer (3ds Max) – coming soon!)