[Delineator]

I know, wrong forum, but until the Revit forum gets up and running I didn't know where else to place.

I've run across a few bugs, mostly with materials, a few misspellings, and a weird issue choosing pre-existing views. However it seems to work.

I'm not a huge Revit person, but the biggest problem I see right now is assigning MXM materials (located on a shared library server). For some reason, Revit is changing the location of the material files and subsequently the rendering fails because the files can't be found.

edit: ok, maybe it doesn't work. I can't figure out why the "render" button is sometimes greyed out and sometimes not. So far elevations, sections, and camera views don't work, however the overall axon {3D} seems to work. I don't know if this is a glitch or a necessary feature because of how Revit handles cameras.

[Delineator]

I see the how-to's just got updated:

http://support.nextlimit.com/display/ma ... bbon+Panel

Due to a limitation in Revit itself, this panel is only active in the main view. Moving to an alternate view created via a camera or a walkthrough will disable the plugin bar and you won't be able to access any feature until you press the Default 3D View button in the Revit View tab.

So.....not great

[Mihai]

Maybe a misunderstanding but this does NOT mean you can't use your regular cameras as your render view in Maxwell. You can choose which camera in your scene is the active camera from the Maxwell render options found in the ribbon tool bar. The only...peculiarity of Revit is that it greys out that ribbon menu unless you're in the default 3D view.

http://support.nextlimit.com/display/ma ... er+Options

[Mihai]

Btw, Revit plugin forum is there now.

[JTB]

I am a Revit user but I always thought that Maxwell plugin for Revit is a waste of time... Actually, Rendering in Revit is a BIG waste of time...
For example, Revit accepts only RPC content for trees but Maxwell can't render RPC...
It seems a little funny to
Revit has an ancient way of assigning materials and there is no way to adjust UVs...
Also, the import/export ability of Revit simply doesn't exist... I mean, there is no way to import/export 3ds, obj, mxs... and even fbx from revit is nothing like fbx from other apps... even sat import (for masses) can't recognize materials... it handles everything as one object...

Revit is good for building modeling but not for general modeling... Some limitations exist to maintain parametric design but when you want Maxwell quality, you need freedom... and Revit doesn't give you freedom...

You will need 100s of mouse clicks for a simple scene... The fact that you see nothing on screen while assigning materials is enough to make you forget using Revit with Maxwell...

I make exterior arch renderings so Revit without MAX (I use ForestPack) is useless.

[thaBadfish]

-I am running into the same issue with assigning MXM materials and Maxwell Render not being able to locate dependencies.
-Workaround: If I use windows explorer to browse to location, open the .mxm file, and click save the dependencies are found. 3ds max plugin did not need this step working with the same materials. It seems the dependencies' locations defaulted back to that of the original .mxm creator.

-Similar to 3ds max plugin, the "Low Priority" checkbox doesn't do anything.
-For the maxwell grass button, it would be nice if pressing TAB skipped to the next value box for easier input. Also, as with the 3ds max plugin, it would be nice if we could save grass settings.

Other than the minor issue with material assigning, everything seems to be working nicely. The other issues are just feature requests. I'll be testing this more tonight, I was just messing around with a new, very basic, revit project. Tonight I'll try retro-fitting an older, larger project that I used exported to 3ds Max to render with Maxwell.

I agree with JTB about Revit's limitations with 3d visualization and model manipulation, however I'll definitely be using this plugin for quicker iterative visualization when exporting to 3ds max either isn't necessary due to scope, or not practical due to time constraints.

It's nice to finally see a Revit plugin, and it will be interesting to see the plugin and program grow with one another.

[Delineator]

Maybe a misunderstanding but this does NOT mean you can't use your regular cameras as your render view in Maxwell. You can choose which camera in your scene is the active camera from the Maxwell render options found in the ribbon tool bar. The only...peculiarity of Revit is that it greys out that ribbon menu unless you're in the default 3D view.

http://support.nextlimit.com/display/ma ... er+Options

Confirmed. I was just assuming that meant I could not render that view. A bit wonky, but it works.

I agree that Revit is probably the last program to complete renderings in, however, we have some people that work exclusively in Revit and sometimes time and availability demand cranking out an image within Revit.

[Bubbaloo]

Also, the import/export ability of Revit simply doesn't exist... I mean, there is no way to import/export 3ds, obj, mxs... and even fbx from revit is nothing like fbx from other apps... even sat import (for masses) can't recognize materials... it handles everything as one object..

Max 2013 can import Revit files (or link to them) directly.

But I agree with your other points.

Rendering a Revit model with Maxwell is like putting jet fuel into a Ford Pinto.

[GMcDowellJr]

Rendering a Revit model with Maxwell is like putting jet fuel into a Ford Pinto.

Aside from the apparent modeling limitations (and I say apparent because I've seen some pretty detailed and organic models made in Revit... not easily mind you), and lack of UV controls (there are basic controls in Revit but I doubt they translate well to MR) what are the issues you see with creating renderings from Revit?

My current workflow is to export from Revit to DWG, import that into SketchUp, apply materials and go. I don't get the quality I've seen here but I assume that has more to do with artistry than engine. I'm hoping to skip the SUP step with this plugin.

[Bubbaloo]

what are the issues you see with creating renderings from Revit?

[/quote]

It IS all about the geometry detail. Maxwell loves detailed geometry, unlike unbiased render engines that will sample only a fraction of the surface and interpolate the rest.

Perfect CAD-like surfaces with 0 radius edges, horrid curved surface topology that can't be properly smoothed, overlapping faces, coplanar faces, extra verts, unwelded verts, the list goes on and on.

Garbage in, garbage out.

[BeeCee]

Maxwell for Revit is good for getting studies out quickly and in the same "style" that the folks in management expect since they see it in our more time consuming renderings.

What's the benefit of assuming that everyone uses maxwell for the same output (finished polished renderings) and in the same capacity?

[JTB]

Ok, let's not try to imagine the problems... Let's try some scenes...

Some examples I would like to see...
1. A nice hill with a road, a small house and some trees and flowers... (Topo surfaces in Revit are a real pain...)
2. A nice interior with some furniture...Revit families...
3. A house with a pool (with waves) with people... and cars...
4. A wall in a store...Shelves with books... or fruits... or clothes...

You know... something like Evermotion or Dosch3d or AXYZ or.... all the great models we can use with Max...
All the great models that give meaning to the waiting for a clean image from Maxwell...

If you can't use all these... then better stay with Mental Ray for quick renderings....

[BeeCee]

I won't go through the steps to repost my previous statement, but please go back and reread it.

[JTB]

I was not answering to your post...
I just wrote some examples. Trying these situations will be a big disappointment for Revit/Maxwell users...

The only hope I see is to export to MXS and then use MAX or studio for further improvement...
But then, FBX or Revit model can be linked in Max so no need for a new plugin...

[Delineator]

If you can't use all these... then better stay with Mental Ray for quick renderings....

Unfortunately the built in mental ray with revit seems different than the one in Max (I've done side by side experiments). It is also terribly inefficient: I remember med res still images that chugged for days until finished.

To be honest, most of the time if we need a rendering from Revit, we will go through the FBX output/input process and straight render it in Max without doing any additional work. The process requires some hand holding, but the results are superior AND quite a bit faster too.

I agree, the Maxwell plugin is great for maintaining visual continuity: the same look and feel, no matter where the model is coming from.