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Autodesk 3ds Max Reviews and Ratings

Rating: 8.8 out of 10
Score
8.8 out of 10

Community insights

TrustRadius Insights for Autodesk 3ds Max are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, third party data sources.

Pros

Lightweight and Fast: Many users have praised Autodesk 3ds Max for its lightweight nature and fast performance. They find the software efficient in various tasks such as hardsurface modeling, lighting, material creation, and importing/exporting common formats.

Artist-Friendly Interface: Several reviewers appreciate the user-friendly interface of 3ds Max, which caters to both beginners and experienced users. Its intuitive design makes it easy to navigate and utilize the software's features effectively.

Fast Render Times: Users consistently highlight the impressive render times of 3ds Max. The software allows for quick and efficient rendering of highly realistic images. Overall, these positive attributes contribute to a smooth workflow and enhance productivity for artists using Autodesk 3ds Max.

Reviews

13 Reviews

Autodesk 3ds Max the original ground-breaking software

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I create 3D illustrations and animations for a living. I use Autodesk 3ds Max almost daily. I use it from modeling for concept and final design, to final render quality finished images and animations.

Pros

  • Quick polygonal modeling mock-ups and easy edits with non-destructive stacks
  • Endless plug-ins and scripting to automate some and complete other tasks faster
  • Capable render engine, and plenty of third-party options
  • Incredible interface that I think most programs adopted from

Cons

  • Rotations have some math errors, and sometimes skew an object because of transform errors.
  • The programming error that never allowed it to be ported to Mac computers.
  • The subscription based model for the little guy, sole-proprietor is really a hardship.

Likelihood to Recommend

Autodesk 3ds Max is well-suited to handle modeling, animation, and materials for numerous real-time programming environments, thanks to its FBX import/export capabilities.

Character animation becomes tedious with rotation and bone errors. And less singular control over exact bone-affected vertices.

Great Modeling Tool

Rating: 9 out of 10
Incentivized

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Our engineers use it for animation, modeling, and rendering. It has wide variety of animations. Results are very realistic. It takes awhile to get use to it but all worth the time and effort. The evolution of the software is constant and it adapts to the different needs that we use it for.

Pros

  • Rendering
  • Modeling
  • Animation

Cons

  • Ease of use

Likelihood to Recommend

Our engineers use it more for modeling. Our company creates scenarios for simulators.

Vetted Review

Autodesk 3ds Max has come a long way since it was Discreet's 3D Studio MAX but it is still the same great program!

Rating: 9 out of 10
Incentivized

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I began using 3ds Max when it was on Windows NT as 3D Studio MAX. I used to make 3d animations for web and advertising for a Graduate Program in Computer Animation & Graphics Design back in 2000. I use it today to help the Marketing Group at the University I work for to create 3D images for Print and Marketing Campaigns. I use it to create 3d animations and graphics for web sites and recruiting web spots and tv ads we run in local markets to attract students to new programs of study we have coming to the University. I also create ads for local evens for web and tv with it. The business problems it addresses are the need for flashy and snappy graphics and ads that attract attention and gain "word of mouth" on the ads to help drive the message we are trying to get out there, like an upcoming event, is on the horizon and you should get info NOW. We use it in tv ads to help get those prospective students who don't spend every second on their phone/internet. It works good for our needs.

Pros

  • Creates 3D images for print
  • Creates 3D animations/graphics for web and media
  • Makes Photo-realistic images and animations

Cons

  • Adding AI to images and animations could be easier to create/begin
  • The learning curve for the product is steep, it could be easier.
  • The price is high, it could be cheaper

Likelihood to Recommend

For print media for marketing and for 3d animations for web spots and TV ads/movies/programs. It is less suited for quick 3d graphics or images that you get from AI image programs, but it is much more powerful than most AI image programs.

3ds Max is as capable of a 3d software package as you can find.

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

When a client seeking 3d visual assets asks, "can you...." I can interrupt them before they finish the sentence and answer, "yes" before I even know what they need. 3ds Max allows me to do that with confidence. It's amazingly powerful and mature. Like all powerful software, to get the most from it you need to drive it with better than average hardware and there is a learning curve, but all powerful things require some knowldege to get the most out of them. I use it everyday in my business.

Pros

  • Hardsurface modeling
  • 3d Lighting
  • Material creation
  • Import and export of common formats
  • Animation and particle simulation

Cons

  • Some interface windows don't expand large enough requiring unnecessary scrolling
  • Some processes are not multi threaded
  • Backup of customized user interface is not handled well

Likelihood to Recommend

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.

Great 3D Modeling & Rendering Software for Industry

Rating: 10 out of 10

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

1. Best software to make 3D Model of products and render high quality visuals.

2. We have been using 3ds Max for more than 3 years in the organization and helped us quickly create 3D models with infinite modifiers that help us to build the 3D Model.

3. It has lots of options to help us in increasing efficiency. for e.g. FFD.

Pros

  • Efficient in Modeling assets using Image Plane
  • Efficient in 3D Model creation using modifiers.
  • Helpful in rendering using 3rd Part render engines.

Cons

  • Easy navigation needs to be added like how maya have for efficient interaction
  • On screen tool to easily change the interaction of mouse and keyboard as per other software's like Maya or Marvelous Designer

Likelihood to Recommend

1. Helpful in rendering high quality visuals.

2. Helpful in creating walkthroughs on interior designs or virtual apartments.

3. Helpful to render high quality exteriors for marketers.

4. Its not helpful in interaction for creating quad of a mesh, it needs improvement here.

5. Retopology is efficient.

6. Can be used as base 3D package to learn, Even student version is also officially available by Autodesk.

Perfect 3D solution

Rating: 10 out of 10

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I am using it for motion graphics. I make montages, channel promo, channel Ident and use it for 3d typography. It helps to create beautiful 3D graphics and animations. In broadcast industry its highly used to make opening of any programme. I am using this software from past 14 yrs and I dont find any other 3D software that virtuous. Its a overall 3D package whether its texturing modelling rendering or animation. We can make complex dynamic animation with ease with the help of this software. Its a good 3D package one can have.

Pros

  • animation
  • modelling
  • texturing
  • rendering
  • motion graphics
  • dynamics
  • Particles

Cons

  • uv map

Likelihood to Recommend

Autodesk 3ds Max works well in character animation, motion graphics and making dynamic animation. Its a wonder software for 3D animation. I like its rendering. Its great for interior designing as well. Gives realistic material outcome. Its render outcome is very realistic. I have designed many characters and have not faced any issue in this software so far.

Great modelling program

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

3ds max is used to block in proportion models. it is a fast and easy-to-use modeling program. I also use it to animate and show off models for design purposes. the fact it can do all of this and is widely used makes it invaluable for us as a team.

Pros

  • Modelling polly
  • Rendering
  • Import 3d data and convert

Cons

  • could do with Nurbs modelling functions
  • have a plugin to make controls like Alias

Likelihood to Recommend

3ds max is great for animation and quick modeling. It is not great for Engineering info or technical specifications.

Vetted Review
Autodesk 3ds Max
10 years of experience

Autodesk 3ds Max Overview

Rating: 8 out of 10

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

In my company [Autodesk] 3ds Max [is used] for modeling, texturing, rigging, lighting, and rendering. [Also,] sometimes [for] making cool fx things and particles but mostly we use it for modeling characters, building, and some other objects like table chair [and] much more. It is used for texturing also in [a] big scale for rendering purposes.

Pros

  • Modeling
  • Texturing
  • Rendering
  • Rigging
  • Lightning
  • Architect modeling

Cons

  • Easy modeling
  • [Takes] less time for rendering
  • Making a good fx effect

Likelihood to Recommend

[Autodesk] 3ds Max is very good for hard surface modeling, there are many things to do for such as texturing or rendering. It has a great support of plugings like vray, fumefx, thinking particle, rayfire , phonix fd, and much more. But this software has some limitations for fx work for [a] big scale.

Excellence rendering and animation software

Rating: 8 out of 10
Incentivized

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Autodesk 3ds Max is used to render the images and to make the models with high quality and graphics. It also provides so many built-in functions that help a lot to design the model with high accuracy coordinates. I basically use it to make my gaming models to make my game attractive.

Pros

  • it renders the images so nicely
  • it provides good animations to the models
  • it provides good shading and lighting effects

Cons

  • you can improve its UI
  • the controls of Autodesk 3ds Max are quite difficult and need improvement
  • need some extra plugins and tools to make all possible models for game

Likelihood to Recommend

Autodesk is basically used to create models and animations, generally. The automobile industry and the gaming industry use it more as they provide better rendering outputs with better animation quality. It is also used in the AR/VR industry to make 3D objects, and similarly by the civil industry. And it provides good texturing effects, too.

Autodesk 3ds Max - A simple yet Powerful tool for creating 3d Contents

Rating: 6 out of 10
Incentivized

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

My Institute teaches Civil Engineering to the incoming students and in that case, we use Autodesk 3dsMax for 3d Modelling of Buildings, Towers, Trusses, Terrains etc. Also, we are currently working on introducing Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality to the students, as it is the technology of the future. In regards to that, we use Unity with Autodesk 3ds Max to model the scene/objects and add interaction to it. Our Institute is currently working on an app in collaboration with JioGlass ( A Reliance Jio Initiative) under Jio Tesseract program. In this, our students with the help of 3ds Max are modeling all the historic architectures present in the Rajasthan state of India. With 3ds Max it is quite easy to model complex geometries too. Also within the Autodesk Umbrella, Max is quite helpful in interoperability. It is easy and useful for beginners in the case of animation and rendering also.

Pros

  • 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.

Cons

  • Autodesk 3ds Max can't be used on old or low-end PC's, this kind of results in very low performance when we use i3 or low processors.
  • Inbuilt rendering of the software is not up to the mark and Keeping in mind the size of the software on the disk, it must have something great in it to create good renders.

Likelihood to Recommend

Scenarios where Autodesk 3ds Max is well suited:

1. Modeling less complex geometries.

2. For beginners it is good, meshes, poly's, vertexes etc can be easily understood.

3. Easy UI and interoperability.

Scenarios where it is less appropriate:

1. Inbuild Rendering (Scanline) can be made better.

2. Performance over low end/Old Pc's need refinement.

3. Bulky Size on disk.

4. Animation is the area which can be made better also.