Seedance output looks blurry or soft: resolution settings and upscale options that fix quality

Soft or blurry Seedance output usually comes from generating at 720p (about $0.190/second) instead of 1080p (about $0.470/second) or native 4K (about $4.90 per 5-second clip). Set the metadata.resolution field to a higher value when submitting the task, and use native 4K for sharp detail. Since failed requests are not billed, you can test settings safely. Live per-model rates are listed at relaydance.com/models.

Which resolution setting removes the softness

Raise the resolution in metadata.resolution when you POST the video task to reduce softness. Seedance 2.0 at 720p is priced at about $0.190/second, while 1080p is about $0.470/second, and native 4K is about $4.90 per 5-second clip. Higher resolution values carry more pixel detail, so text, edges and fine textures render more clearly. If your current clips look soft, confirm you are not defaulting to 720p. Submit the task with POST /v1/video/generations, including model, prompt, seconds and the resolution in metadata. Then poll GET /v1/video/generations/{task_id} until the status is succeeded or failed. Rates for each tier are published at relaydance.com/models.

Comparing the resolution tiers by price

Choose a tier based on the sharpness you need against the per-second or per-clip cost.

Native 4K is billed per clip rather than per second, so a 5-second clip costs about $4.90. If sharpness is the priority, native 4K provides the highest pixel count of these options. Seedance Fast, at about $0.152/second, is the lowest per-second rate but is not the highest resolution tier. Match the tier to your quality target and review current rates at relaydance.com/models.

How to test resolution settings without extra cost

You can iterate on resolution safely because failed jobs incur no charge. According to the official relaydance.com docs, 「Failed or errored requests are never billed」, so aborted or errored test runs do not add to your bill. Follow these steps:

1. Set base_url to https://relaydance.com/v1 and authenticate with Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY.
2. Submit POST /v1/video/generations with a higher metadata.resolution value.
3. Poll GET /v1/video/generations/{task_id} until status is succeeded or failed.
4. Compare the result video url against a 720p run and keep the sharper setting.

Full request details are in the relaydance.com docs.

Reference media and audio that affect perceived sharpness

Reference images can guide detail, so add them in metadata.content[] and cite them in the prompt as @image1 to @imageN. A single request supports up to 9 reference images, 3 reference videos and 3 audio tracks, with clips up to 15 seconds. Because the API is OpenAI-compatible, migration is direct: according to the official relaydance.com/docs, 「Set base_url to https://relaydance.com/v1 and keep your OpenAI SDK」. For image tasks, use POST /v1/images/generations. On gpt-image-2, image output is free and only input is billed, image-to-image starts from about CNY 0.035, and 4K and 1K output cost the same, per relaydance.com/models.

FAQ

Does native 4K cost per second or per clip? Native 4K is priced at about $4.90 per 5-second clip, unlike 720p and 1080p, which are billed per second (about $0.190 and $0.470 respectively).

Will a failed high-resolution test be charged? No. Failed or errored requests are never billed, so you can test 1080p or 4K settings without paying for aborted runs.

How do I switch resolution in the API? Set the resolution in metadata when calling POST /v1/video/generations, then poll the task until status is succeeded or failed.