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Material Settings

When importing GLTF/GLB files, you can configure various material settings to control how materials and geometry are processed.

Screenshot

Shader Type

Controls which shader system is used for imported materials:

Standard Surface (Default)

  • Uses Maya's Standard Surface shader for imported materials

  • Provides physically-based rendering capabilities

  • Compatible with Arnold and other modern renderers

Arnold

  • Uses Arnold-specific shaders for material import

  • Optimized for Arnold renderer workflows

  • Best choice when primarily using Arnold for rendering

OpenPBR (Maya 2025+ only)

  • Uses OpenPBR (Open Physically Based Rendering) shaders

  • Industry-standard for physically-based materials

  • Provides cross-platform material compatibility

  • Note: OpenPBR is not fully implemented in all renderers. Arnold may not render some material properties correctly, and some features may be approximated or unsupported. Consider using Standard Surface or Arnold shaders for production workflows requiring full compatibility.

Stingray

  • Uses Stingray PBS (Physically Based Shader) materials

  • Legacy option for older Maya workflows

  • Maintained for backward compatibility

  • Note: Stingray works only with basic material properties such as BaseColor, ORM (Occlusion/Roughness/Metallic), Normal, and Emission. Advanced material features may not be supported.

Shading Option

Controls how normals and shading are handled during import:

Use Normal Data (Default)

  • Preserves the original normal data from the GLTF/GLB file

  • Maintains the intended shading as authored in the original model

Hard edge

  • Converts to Maya's hard edge shading

  • Creates sharp edges between faces

  • Useful for mechanical or architectural models

Soften edge

  • Applies Maya's soft edge shading

  • Creates smooth transitions between faces

  • Better for organic or character models

Import Ambient Occlusion (AO)

Controls whether ambient occlusion map is imported from the GLTF/GLB file:

  • When enabled, ambient occlusion textures are imported and applied to materials

  • AO will be multiplied with base color texture

  • Useful for adding depth and shadow detail to imported models

  • When disabled, ambient occlusion data is ignored during import

Import materials

Controls whether materials are created during import:

  • When disabled, no materials are created for the imported geometry

  • Geometry is imported without any material assignments

  • Useful when you want to manually assign materials or use existing materials in your scene

  • When enabled (default), materials are automatically created based on the GLTF/GLB file data

Viewing Advanced Material Properties

To see advanced material properties like sheen, iridescence, clearcoat, transmission, and other PBR features, you need to:

  • Start Arnold in the viewport renderer, or
  • Take a render using Arnold

Maya's default viewport renderer may not display all advanced material properties correctly, so using Arnold is necessary to visualize these effects. This applies to materials imported with Standard Surface, Arnold, and OpenPBR shader types.