Autodesk 3ds Max vs. Autodesk Civil 3D

I've used many 3d programs I've not found any more capable or well suited for about anything you throw at it. I've had scenes with over 20million polys that I can work in just fine. It's well suited to produce absolute photorealistic renders especially when you pair it with plugins like V-Ray Render. One area where is may not be as suitable is if you have to model something in a coordinate space that is a long way from 0,0,0. Max is not double precision, so when a model is very tiny or very large or a long way from the origin, odd things occur. But, this is easily mitigated by modeling near the origin or reducing or enlarging the scene by some factor to make it not too small or too large. Then, after you are finished, you can scale it up or down by that factor again and export a perfectly scaled model for use in some other program

Incentivized

Well suited:

1. Simple and self-explanatory user interface.
2. Inter usability between other software such as MicroDrainage and Bentley CivilStorm.
3. Autodesk customer service.
4. Easily customizable.

Not suitable: The software is still very resource intensive on the machines and often crashes when too much data is being shown. Though significant improvements have been made in other Autodesk software like Revit, older applications like AutoCAD and C3D seem to be stuck on old, inefficient source codes.

Incentivized

• 3ds Max includes some of the inbuild modifiers which can be very good in the case of beginners.
• 3rd party Rendering support makes 3ds Max a powerful software for rendering out realistic images.
• Autodesk 3ds max in comparison to its rivals is lightweight and fast, also the animation case also.

Incentivized

• Ease of functionality
• Templates make design and drawings easier to complete
• The ability to design and setup drawings simultaneously, where the drawings will be updated as the design is updated should there be changes

Incentivized

• working in 2d is very frustrating and unreliable. It just lacks the precision
• How scaling affects units (or doesn't) There needs to be a way for modifiers to address a change of scale in the object.
• Booleans are not intuitive. Especially for architecture, creating an opening and putting a door or a window is an incredibly cumbersome process.

Incentivized

• The processing of huge sized files in such in big projects, the delay of opening a sheet in Civil3D would burn time
• Sometimes, it crashes while opening or processing
• The vast number of tools and functions which make it difficult to use at times hence decent amount of training may be required

Incentivized

It satisfies 95% of my 3d visualization need. The left over 5% is handled by a few other programs. If Max just can't perform a specific task I can do that elsewhere and then bring it back to Max to finish up. But, it's rare that this occurs in my work

Incentivized

This is not a 3ds Max fault, it's like any powerful software, "you have to spend time to learn it." It, like most all others as powerful, have a "learning curve" that can be steep depending on your knowledgebase. I'm glad it's not "so simple a caveman can use it" or I'd be out of business. Everyone in the world would have it and my skills would not be needed. Having said that, it's as intuitive and any other software. If you understand 3d principles, 3ds Max will not be difficult to wrap your head around. It uses normal and expected conventions

Incentivized

I have contacted support many times and have had a good experience. They have always been helpful

Incentivized

They have a vast open community, which has helped us understand Autodesk Civil 3D from the beginning. They have provided many templates and tutorials videos to our team due to that we can learn every new feature from them. Autodesk Civil 3D has also helped us to interconnect all its software in an internal bridge, which helps us switch between software as we need.

Incentivized

In Autodesk 3ds Max you can do camera animation with ease, its complex in Cinema 4D. Even I think same with light setup. Setting up light is quite easy in Autodesk 3ds Max as compare to Cinema 4D. Overall Autodesk 3ds Max is less complex in compare to other 3D softwares.

Nothing compares to the ease of learning for Autodesk Civil 3D. It is very intuitive and easy to pick up. However, most DOTs require the use of MicroStation for roadway and transportation modeling. Autodesk Civil 3D does NOT integrate well with GIS or Bentley products. However, most aviation jobs and land development firms use the software and most students learn to model on a student trial of the software.

Incentivized

• Allows us to meet deadlines quickly - render times are minutes, not days.
• Digs into profits due to licensing fees - just a single seat can set us back thousands.

Incentivized

• Possibility to analyze different scenarios of underground infrastructure design
• Fast material volumes and quantities reports
• Easiest way to achieve BIM mandate's objectives

Incentivized