renderer

Note: This documentation is for the old 1.0.0 version of A-Frame. Check out the documentation for the current 1.6.0 version

The renderer system configures a scene’s THREE.WebGLRenderer instance. It also configures presentation attributes when entering WebVR/WebXR.

Example

<a-scene renderer="antialias: true;
                   colorManagement: true;
                   sortObjects: true;
                   physicallyCorrectLights: true;
                   maxCanvasWidth: 1920;
                   maxCanvasHeight: 1920;"></a-scene>

Properties

Property	Description	Default Value
antialias	Whether to perform antialiasing. If `auto`, antialiasing is disabled on mobile.	auto
colorManagement	Whether to use a color-managed linear workflow.	false
highRefreshRate	Toggles 72hz mode on Oculus Browser. Defaults to 60hz.	false
foveationLevel	Enables foveation in VR to improve perf. 0 none, 1 low, 2 medium, 3 high	0
sortObjects	Whether to sort objects before rendering.	false
physicallyCorrectLights	Whether to use physically-correct light attenuation.	false
maxCanvasWidth	Maximum canvas width. Uses the size multiplied by device pixel ratio. Does not limit canvas width if set to -1.	1920
maxCanvasHeight	Maximum canvas height. Behaves the same as maxCanvasWidth.	1920
logarithmicDepthBuffer	Whether to use a logarithmic depth buffer.	auto
precision	Fragment shader precision : low, medium or high.	high
alpha	Whether the canvas should contain an alpha buffer.	true

NOTE: Once the scene is initialized, these properties may no longer be changed.

antialias

When enabled, smooths jagged edges on curved lines and diagonals at moderate performance cost. By default, antialiasing is disabled on mobile devices.

colorManagement

Color management provides more accurate rendering and reduces the likelihood that scenes will appear overlit or “washed out.” Enabling color management is recommended for precisely matching colors from texturing and modeling tools, but unofficial components may not always respond to color management properly at this time.

Managed and unmanaged color modes are similar to linear and gamma workflows, respectively, in other engines and tools.

NOTE: In three.js, and previous versions of A-Frame, a gammaOutput: true property was available. This is applied automatically when color management is enabled.

highRefreshRate

Toggles on the highest refresh rate for the given device. Currently this is supported on the Oculus Browser in Oculus Go and switches rendering from 60hz to 72hz.

foveationLevel

Sets the level of requested foveation which renders fewer pixels around the edges of the viewport when in stereo rendering mode on certain systems. This is currently supported by the Oculus Browser on the Oculus Go with values ranging from 0 (none) to 3 (high).

sortObjects

Sorting is used to attempt to properly render objects that have some degree of transparency. Due to various limitations, proper transparency often requires some amount of careful setup. By default, objects are not sorted, and the order of elements in the DOM determines order of rendering. Re-ordering DOM elements provides one way of forcing a consistent behavior, whereas use of renderer="sortObjects: true" may cause unwanted changes as the camera moves.

physicallyCorrectLights

By default, point and spot lights attenuate (or, appear dimmer as they become farther away) according to a model that is classically common, but physically inaccurate. For more realistic light attenuation, set renderer="physicallyCorrectLights: true". Light intensities may need to be adjusted when making this change. Performance is not significantly affected in either mode.

NOTE: When glTF models contain lights, use the physically-correct lighting mode to match the results in the original modeling tool.

logarithmicDepthBuffer

A logarithmic depth buffer may provide better sorting and rendering in scenes containing very large differences of scale and distance.

Precision

Set precision in fragment shaders. Main use is to address issues in older hardware / drivers. Adreno 300 series GPU based phones are particularly problematic. You can set to mediump as a workaround. It will improve performance, in mobile in particular but be aware that might cause visual artifacts in shaders / textures.

alpha

Whether the canvas should contain an alpha buffer. If this is true the renderer will have a transparent backbuffer and the canvas can be composited with the rest of the webpage. See here for more info.