Issue with banding in normal map using xnormal

Noobz

So I'm using xnormal to bake my normal map at 4k with 4x AA sampling in xnormal.

The files attacked are how it looks on my object and a version in photoshop with the levels crushed so you can see the banding easier.

Why does this happen and how can I avoid it?

slosh

Are your mesh normals softened?

Noobz

Yup, I tried softening them in maya and blender. Still got banding.

Noobz

Ive also rendered to every file format xnormal has and at every resolution with and without aa. Nothing makes a difference. This issue is ruining my project.

slosh

what does the hires look like?

Joost

Are you baking in 16 bit? Also try setting the marmoset tangent space to Mikktspace.
Or try Handplane.

EarthQuake

Give this thread a read: http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=148303

Noobz

I came across your thread late last night but I didn't understand how to bake a 16 bit map. I tried exporting as a tiff and every other file format but it didnt make a difference. Then I found the plug in manager and was able to set tiff to 16 bits. Also 16 bit seems to be default in the newest version of xnormal.

Thanks for your help everyone!