Combustion with Oxygen
The Fire model within FumeFX adds oxygen to the equation. This component brings forth new ways to creatively control the burn process.
GPU fire, smoke & explosions
Create high quality simulations quickly with the powerful FumeFX GPU simulation system.
Fire & Smoke
The FumeFX simulation core has been continuously refined to deliver highly realistic fire, smoke and explosion behavior while keeping simulation times to a minimum. Since the FumeFX 7.5 update, artists have powerful NVIDIA® CUDA acceleration, delivering on average 2× to 5× faster simulation performance compared to CPU, and FumeFX 7.6 adds a Multigrid PCG pressure solver on CPU and GPU — up to twice the GPU speed of the previous solver.
FumeFX GPU simulation also avoids typical GPU memory limits — once memory is exceeded, the simulation automatically falls back to CPU mode, so even the most complex simulations complete without interruption. Version 7.5 also added two-way coupling between fluids and rigid bodies, and native OpenVDB support lets you import volumetric caches from tools such as SideFX Houdini and EmberGen directly into 3ds Max scenes for rendering, lighting and further effects work.
01 Fire & Smoke
GPU Simulation
FumeFX GPU provides artists with powerful NVIDIA® CUDA acceleration for dramatically faster simulations, while preserving the realistic fire and smoke behavior that FumeFX is known for. Where many sparse fluid solvers struggle to maintain believable detail and motion, FumeFX GPU excels — delivering both performance and high-end visual quality.
Vorticity
Choose from several vorticity models with visually different curl types, giving your simulations a more unique look and feel.
Effectors
Gain creative control over almost every simulation parameter and field. Control vorticity by velocity or generate smoke based on any other channel value.
02 Fire & Smoke
Two-Way Coupling
Fluid simulation now interacts with scene objects in both directions — objects influence the fluid flow, and the fluid pushes back, affecting motion and behavior. Powered by NodeWorks’ fully node-based framework and built-in PhysX rigid body simulation, this connection creates physically accurate results.
N-Sim
A great time saver: simulate multiple overlapping grids simultaneously while all fields propagate between the overlapping grid boundaries automatically.
Wavelet Turbulence
It has never been easier to add detail to an existing simulation. A fast, memory-efficient and predictable way to increase grid resolution.
Post Processing
Retime caches, bake Render Warps, convert between formats, or drop unneeded channels. Since 7.6, Fast Up-Res and retiming also work on load, without re-simulating.
03 Fire & Smoke
Rendering
FumeFX offers direct rendering support for Arnold CPU and Redshift, including cache sharpening for enhanced detail. Its Explosion Preprocess tools fully support Arnold CPU, enabling highly realistic, cinematic fire and explosion effects.
GPU Viewport
A multiview GPU viewport with proper blending against scene geometry and direct PNG export during simulation. FumeFX 7.6 makes it 10–20% faster and adds multiple scattering.
Render Warps
Apply Bend, Twist, FFD and other space warps to deform cached simulations, with results visible directly in the 3ds Max viewport or in rendered images.
Pricing
Simple, transparent licensing
Subscriptions include continuous development with regular updates, refinements and new tools.
Educational license: $95 for a one-year subscription — contact us.Volume discounts available.Prefer a local partner? Find a reseller.
FAQ
Licensing
What happens when my subscription expires?
Make sure to extend your subscription on time, as we do not automatically charge credit cards to extend a subscription.
Once your FumeFX 7 subscription expires you will be able to load and render caches, but you cannot run a simulation or access and change any parameter inside the user interface. The same rules apply for FumeFX and NodeWorks, while ISurf requires a license for rendering.
What will happen to my perpetual FumeFX 5 license when I buy a FumeFX 7 subscription?
Your FumeFX 5 perpetual license remains valid regardless of the FumeFX 7 subscription and you may continue to use it. However, FumeFX 5 is now an obsolete version and will not be updated.
Do you offer an educational license?
We do offer an educational license at $95 for a one-year subscription. It is available for high school or college students, staff members, schools and other educational or non-profit organisations.
Contact us if you wish to order an educational license. Volume discounts are available.
Try FumeFX free for 30 days
Download a trial for 3ds Max or Maya and see what FumeFX can do in your own scenes. Free access to the online documentation helps you get started.