Which 3D software to use - Maya, Lightwave or 3D Studio Max?

electric ant

electric ant

electric ant

Associate
Joined
11 Aug 2004
Posts
1,050
Location
Notts
I'm already quite proficient with Photoshop, AutoCAD and Sketchup seeing as I use both at work everyday. I've also used Solidworks before.

The things I'll mainly be modelling would be buildings, and mechanical objects.

So... I was just wondering if anyone could offer recommendations of any of the three packages, Maya, Lightwave and 3D Studio Max and their advantages/disadvantages/ease of use/learning curve....things like that really.

Thanks:)
 
From the sound of it your not going to be animating... or doing anything involving dynamics unless of course you want to blow the buildings up. I would go for Blender, mainly because it's free, and is a good place to start. I use Maya and it has a hefty price tag just for modeling buildings and mechanical objects, same with Max or even Lightwave. Blender has animation, has dynamics, has fluid effects, has a whole bunch of neat stuff. And once you get used to it is pretty easy to use.

However by asking such a question you might find yourself getting into the age old war of which software is the best... best stay away from that cos there really isn`t a winner, its still between Max and Maya and one leans more towards games and the other... movies.

I just hope they improve blenders interface soon because it has always seemed rather illogical to me.
 
Thanks for the reply, I think eventually I'll be looking into basic animating, doing fly-bys of buildings for example. I'll look into Blender as well. The main reason I want to use these packages is for their photo realistic texturing and rendering of light shadow etc.

Just wonder, how is the learning curve for something like Maya? As I say I'm proficient with AutoCAD already and have some exp with ProDesktop and Solidworks.
 
Ive used most of the big animation packages; 3Dstudio max, Maya, Lightwave, XSI etc. And by far my favourite is 3D studio max. I love it due to its features, its layout and modelling system and its supported renderers. Having said that, a lot of what makes me like 3D studio max over the other, is that im used to it. Its the first one I learn't properly(Played around with Lightwave 5.5 first) so when I tried XSI for example, I found the controls akward. Maya is in many ways very similar to Max, both in terms of controls and the way its works.(Its also been bought out by Discreet, the makers of max) So the thing that decides wether a package is good or not, is wether you can get used to the controls quickly. Other than that, you are looking at features, which most of the top ones all have similar supported features(Fur, cloth, raytraced rendering, advanced shaders etc). 3D studio max does have a very large range of excellent third party plugins as well.

As for how easy they are to pick up; If you are proficient with AutoCad, then you shouldn't have too may problems picking up an animation package tbh. However there is a big difference between knowing the software, and really mastering the software. The top animation packages are so compex that you could spend a lifetime learning them, and you'd still not have seen or tried all the options.

So to sum it up; Most packages are just as good as each other, I however lean towards 3D Studio Max. And it shouldn't be too hard to learn as long as you do plenty of tutorials and play around for ages. :)
 
There are a few other products you may wish to consider. If you have no need for animation then you might want to have a look at Modo 202 from Luxology which has a very nice render engine. Maxon is just about to release v10 of Cinema 4D and there is also XSI Foundation which might well do all you require for about £350.

3DSMax is an awful lot of money as is Maya.

I keep trying Blender but I cannot get on with its interface which is a shame as there seems a lot in there.

My own personal choice for what its worth is Cinema 4D - I've used it for years and got used to it. Trying to justify the upgrade cost to v10 at the moment.
 
I'll do a bit of research into XSI, and cinema 4D. just downloaded Blender to try it out, although I've heard its a bit hard to get into with its many keyboard shortcuts and whatnot.

ATM I'm leaning towards 3d Studio, mainly because it's an AutoDesk product like autocad and I do know someone at work who uses it.

Quick Question, what are the main differences between Maya and 3D studio Max, seeing as they are now both owned by Autodesk.

Keep your comments and suggestions coming, thanks and much appreciated :)
 
I tried using the demo version of maya and then the demo version of 3DS max and i have to say despite the fact that there is a lot of crossover, i much prefer 3DS max

The material browser - for textures - for example is so much more logically laid out and seems more designed for the beginner, or at least the intermediate skill level to use. Maya on the other hand seems to solely be designed for the professional (reflected in the price difference). Also there are many many more tutorlals for 3DS max on the internet if you are willing to look around than there are for maya.

Summary: 3DS max is cheaper, and more intuitive but if you want that really professional look and feel and are willing to put the time into it then go for Maya
 
I would disagree in that the material browser, hypershade, is easy to use in maya just as easy as 3D Max. I also disagree about the tutorials as there is a more even amount. I started learning Max, then started learning Maya. I know how to use both about equally. Maya for me was easier to pick up so as a 'summary' try the free copies of both aswell as Blender and any free copy you can get you hands on for XSI or whatever is out there to try and see what fits you. As I said it's all about the interface... if one works for you and feels more logical then thats the one you need.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom