[Max vs Maya] Object aligning and Placements features comparison
polycounter lvl 8
Both of these software seems to have a decent set of features for aligning objects together and placing objects on other objects. But what are both similarities and differences between them ? I dont use aligning too much so I recently went in more depth and test some out and I was not little surprised to see Maya can not only stay toe to toe with Max but also has unique cool features that can tip the balance. Ofc I will ask here for the opinions of more experienced users that can do a better analysis than mine
MAYA FEATURES
Mash nodes (Curve, Distribute, Placer etc)
Maya Easy and flexible Working with the Pivot
MAX FEATURES
Select and Place tool with Options
3ds Max Scatter Compound Object
CONCLUSIONS
Maya Advantages
Maya seems to have a significant edge on Max with regards to flexibility, speed and better visual helpers for different aligning and placement actions.
The Align Tool in Maya is more refined. In comparisons to 3ds Max counterpart, it acts as a actual tool with great visual helpers. As Far as I know Max doesnt have 2 point to 2 point and 3 point to 3 point Object snapping (pls correct me if Im wrong) and thats big difference in precision on Mayas part.
Maya has access to the full power of Mash for Placing and distribute objects with a lot of controls. Max Scatter Compound object has a similar use as the Maya Mash Distribute node but it is old and has serious limits and inconveniences. I would say Maya has slight more control here. For ex in Max Scatter All Face Centers distribution Places a duplicate object at the center of each triangular face on the distribution object. Basically Max is triangulating each face and places two objects there- Why someone would want that!
The Max Spacing tool isnt that refined as the Mayas Mash Curve Node and doesnt give always right results ( for example when you pick a path the distributed objects dont preserve their orientation along that path and need manual tweaking work). The Clone and align tool seems a handy tool but cant beat Mash for that. Both software have at least one tool to interactively paint objects onto the surface of another objects but Mayas Mash Placer node is again way more refined.
Maya's far easier and more flexible easy laid back Pivot manipulation and snapping is just awesome and can very well increase even more the gap in this comparisons.
Maya has additional Aligning options inside the very Align Objects window: Distribute and Stack.
Max advantages
Max has very conveniently the Align Rotation, Match Scale and Align Pivots placed inside their Align tool while Maya has them separated in Match Transform Submenu.
Max Select and Place tool is a bit more robust than Mayas Snap together. You can also Move the object and slide on the surface of another object while in Maya you can only place it so yeah max can have that too. Havent played with the other options there like Pillow but Mayas doesnt seem to have that too (again waiting for comments).
So for now Maya seems to be the winner and its kinda ridiculous since Max is far more heavily focused on modeling and its set to work with precision but this ground total is telling otherwise.
MAYA FEATURES
Mash nodes (Curve, Distribute, Placer etc)
Maya Easy and flexible Working with the Pivot
MAX FEATURES
Select and Place tool with Options
3ds Max Scatter Compound Object
CONCLUSIONS
Maya Advantages
Maya seems to have a significant edge on Max with regards to flexibility, speed and better visual helpers for different aligning and placement actions.
The Align Tool in Maya is more refined. In comparisons to 3ds Max counterpart, it acts as a actual tool with great visual helpers. As Far as I know Max doesnt have 2 point to 2 point and 3 point to 3 point Object snapping (pls correct me if Im wrong) and thats big difference in precision on Mayas part.
Maya has access to the full power of Mash for Placing and distribute objects with a lot of controls. Max Scatter Compound object has a similar use as the Maya Mash Distribute node but it is old and has serious limits and inconveniences. I would say Maya has slight more control here. For ex in Max Scatter All Face Centers distribution Places a duplicate object at the center of each triangular face on the distribution object. Basically Max is triangulating each face and places two objects there- Why someone would want that!
The Max Spacing tool isnt that refined as the Mayas Mash Curve Node and doesnt give always right results ( for example when you pick a path the distributed objects dont preserve their orientation along that path and need manual tweaking work). The Clone and align tool seems a handy tool but cant beat Mash for that. Both software have at least one tool to interactively paint objects onto the surface of another objects but Mayas Mash Placer node is again way more refined.
Maya's far easier and more flexible easy laid back Pivot manipulation and snapping is just awesome and can very well increase even more the gap in this comparisons.
Maya has additional Aligning options inside the very Align Objects window: Distribute and Stack.
Max advantages
Max has very conveniently the Align Rotation, Match Scale and Align Pivots placed inside their Align tool while Maya has them separated in Match Transform Submenu.
Max Select and Place tool is a bit more robust than Mayas Snap together. You can also Move the object and slide on the surface of another object while in Maya you can only place it so yeah max can have that too. Havent played with the other options there like Pillow but Mayas doesnt seem to have that too (again waiting for comments).
So for now Maya seems to be the winner and its kinda ridiculous since Max is far more heavily focused on modeling and its set to work with precision but this ground total is telling otherwise.
Replies
Obviously it does.
its the same as Pivot point to Pivot point alignment ? In that case Ill edit my OP accordingly. Thanks !
Do you happen to know if there is smth similar to Mayas Distribute and stack in other Max align tools ?
http://scriptspot.com
But you know, fanbois are gonna be.
I'm practical though. I use Max and Maya, the align tool I use the most between the two is Max's simple Align Selection dialog.