Since I have seen some decent interest (and had a few DM conversations with other ES members) around 3D conversions, I thought I would make a post outlining some of the basics for those who may want to try this themself or even just understand the process.
This will not be a fully comprehensive walkthrough like some others I have written in the past. I will assume you have basic knowledge of windows (or linux) terminal and can follow the instructions on the 3D conversion github in addition to my outline here.
Let’s get started!
What you will need
- A fairly powerful PC with an Nvidia GPU (Must be Nvidia for CUDA support) that has at least 6GB (ideally 8gb) VRAM.
- Knowledge of Windows/Linux terminal and related terms
Install Nunif
First, head over to the Nunif Github and download the latest release (GitHub - nagadomi/nunif: Misc; latest version of waifu2x; 2D video to stereo 3D video conversion)
Follow the instructions for Windows or Linux linked on the main github page to extract the files and run the appropriate install scripts (install.bat for windows).
Get new AI model for IW3
Follow the instructions on the IW3 subpage (nunif/iw3 at master · nagadomi/nunif · GitHub) to obtain the new “Distill” model (you will want the “L” version unless your video card has low VRAM, in which case try the “S” or “B” variants. Place it in the IW3 pretrained models folder and name it appropriately.
Setup IW3 and Start 3D Converting
Launch IW3 (iw3-gui.bat on windows) and use the following settings, leaving everything else at default:
- 3D Strength: 4.0*
- Depth Model: Distill_Any_L
- Depth Resolution: 512
- Edge Fix: 2 (Check the box as well)
- Flicker Reduction: 0.99 (Check the box as well)
- Max FPS: 1000
- Video Format: MP4 or MKV
- Video Codec: hevc_nvenc
- CRF: 24
- Preset: slow
*: Occasionally you may need to lower 3D strength in some content if there is excessive warping or exaggeration. 4.0 works for almost everything however and is a good baseline. If you get excessive warping you can also try increasing Foreground Scale to a positive value (around 2) which will have the model not try and create as much 3D effect in the background, which can help reduce distortions at the cost of a little realism.
Here is a screenshot of my full settings at time of writing:
What makes good 3D:
- POV - the effect is most convincing for POV videos, but you can use it on anything
- Clear/Sharp video - Anime/animation converts extremely well thanks to this. Use 4k sources when possible, or upscale your sources to a minimum 1440p before converting.
- Simple Backgrounds / Minimal Camera Movement/Effects - The newer (distill) model handles camera movement a lot better, but it can still make some distortion during panning/zooming. Simpler backgrounds help hide any warping effects from “popping out” the subject.
- Text, whether subtitles or UI elements for Fap Hero/etc. can be hit or miss with distortion. If it bothers you try and source “Raw” versions without subs/UI
As methods evolve I will try and keep this post updated. If you have any questions or want to talk about your experiences doing 3D conversions please feel free to drop a reply in thread!