Michael Limberger
Need me? Email mike@limberger.ca
AI
Model Family Tree
What "base model" means on CivitAI
When you browse CivitAI, models are labeled with a base model: SDXL 1.0, Pony, Illustrious, or NoobAI. Knowing what those names mean saves you headaches later.
SDXL 1.0, the foundation
Stability AI's original SDXL release. Jack of all trades, master of none. Handles lots of styles but does not nail any particular one. Some community models build directly on this.
Pony Diffusion
Started as a cartoon and MLP-style fine-tune and grew its own ecosystem.
Heads up: Pony-based models often spit out noise or static on Apple Silicon. If you are on a Mac, steer clear of Pony models.
Illustrious
Anime-focused fine-tune that became the backbone of tons of quality models. Trained heavily on Danbooru data, so it speaks booru tags natively.
This is our family. Bridgetoons, Cyberrealistic, Realism, Arthemy: all Illustrious-based. They share DNA. They understand Danbooru tags. They use clip_skip 2. They play nice with diffusers on Apple Silicon.
NoobAI
A merge that combines Illustrious with other tweaks. It usually works fine, though it might have quirks.
Apple Silicon compatibility
| Base model | Apple Silicon (MPS) |
|---|---|
| Illustrious | Solid. Generally works well |
| NoobAI | Usually fine |
| SDXL 1.0 | Hit or miss. Often black images |
| Pony | Nope. Often noise and artifacts |
Stick to Illustrious-based models and life gets easier.