Wood Noise*

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Wood Noise is a procedural wood shader that recreates realistic rings, fibers, and aged patina without requiring any external bitmaps. It combines multiple noise techniques—Fractional Brownian Motion (FBM), Musgrave fractals, and domain warping—into a single analytic function. This allows for infinite resolution and seamless texturing of organic wood, bark, or cork-like materials, complete with customizable dirt and grain structures.

Performance Cost 🟡 Medium
Space 2D/3D - UV/World/Object
Implementation Native Compiled C++
Devices (Cycles) CPU / GPU (1:1)

Usage & Behavior

Default values
High patina values
High detail with grain and dirt
High compression for wood-like panels
Close-up

This node is a "material-in-a-box." Instead of just outputting black and white noise, it outputs a full color signal complete with lighting-independent details like dirt and grain. The Compression parameter is key—it squeezes the noise domain to create the characteristic elongated rings of cut timber.

Best Used For: Furniture, floorboards, tree bark, driftwood, cork, and stylized organic matter.

Key Features

  • Randomnesss: Infinite variations with a single random parameter.
  • Integrated Aging: Built-in controls for dirt, patina, and grain.
  • Color Grading: Native saturation, brightness, and gamma adjustments.

Parameters

Coords Vector
The input texture coordinates.
Scale Vector (default: 2.0, 2.0, 2.0)
Overall scale of the wood pattern.
Random (default: 1)
Random seed integer. Change this to generate a completely different wood grain variation without changing other parameters.

Color Grading

Color 1 / 2 Color
The primary (darker) and secondary (lighter) wood tones.
Saturation (default: -0.2)
Adjusts the final color intensity.
- -1.0: Grayscale/Desaturated.
- 1.0: Oversaturated colors.
Brightness (default: 0.0)
Global brightness offset.
Gamma (default: 0.45)
Power-law gamma correction. Adjust this to shift the midtones without clipping the blacks or whites.

Pattern Structure

Compression (default: 0.0)
Stretches the noise domain along the primary axis.
- 0.0: Looser, more swirling pattern (burls).
- 1.0: Tight, straight, parallel grain lines (quarter-sawn).
Detail (default: 0.75)
Controls the fractal roughness of the rings. Higher values make the boundaries between rings more jagged and natural.

Aging & Surface

Patina (default: 0.1)
Adds a general "aged" look, slightly darkening and blending the rings to simulate oxidation or wear.
Dirt (default: 0.4)
Adds a secondary Musgrave noise layer that creates dark, grime-like patches in the crevices of the wood.
Grain (default: 0.2)
Controls the visibility of fine, high-frequency fibers running parallel to the rings.
Noise (default: 0.25)
Adds a subtle high-frequency white noise overlay to break up perfectly smooth gradients, simulating the microscopic texture of wood cells.

Quick Recipes

Use these settings for different wood species.

Old Oak

Compression: 0.2
Dirt: 0.8
Patina: 0.5
Detail: 0.9
High dirt and patina create the darkened, weathered look of antique oak.

Polished Mahogany

Compression: 0.8
Dirt: 0.1
Grain: 0.1
Saturation: 0.2
High compression makes tight lines; increased saturation brings out the reddish hues.

Driftwood

Colors: Grey/Beige
Saturation: -0.8
Detail: 0.3
Grain: 0.8
Desaturated colors and high grain simulate sun-bleached, rough wood.
Technical Note: The wood pattern is generated by stacking three distinct noise layers: 1) A domain-distorted FBM for the main rings, 2) A Musgrave fractal for the dirt/grime mask, and 3) A high-frequency wave-modulated FBM for the grain fibers.
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