Max to Modo

[CB3D]

You already know the main differences like lack of construction history etc, so I´ll comment on your specific intended use.

Modo works very well for retopo work.

Good Backgroundconstraints, good layertools and solid mesh construction tools. You can manually lay out your new mesh on top of the scan and do all the work while always seeing the original scan.

In older versions of Modo I had some trouble loading very dense scans, so I had to break them up in another program and load them separately. Once loaded in I had to reduce the meshes a bit (Modo´s meshreduction tool works very well, too;) to be able to smoothly navigate and work with them in the bg. Can´t comment for now if 401 handles highres meshes better.

So yeah, Modo´s a good choice for what you need to do.



First wanted to say, I tried doing a search but it doesn't seem to want to work on my computer, so I apologize for any redundancies!

So, I've been asked by my employer to explore the feasibility for using Modo in our work flow. I won't get into the things I've noticed, I'm much more interested in what everyone thinks who has gone from using Max and then learned Modo and vis-versa. Strenghts, weaknesses, etc..

We're not going to completely replace Max, just find a place where Modo might be more useful.

Fyi, we do car models from hand scanned data (not laser) for game a print.

So.....thoughts?

[Burritoh]

Modo is a fantastic addition to any pipeline. It's very versatile and is sort of a swiss-army-knife of sorts.

I respectfully disagree with CB3D on the topic of modo's retopology tools, however. In theory, they should be awesome, but in practice, I find that modo gets confused about what part of the background to constrain too. I have retopologized several models in modo, and although I enjoy modo for many reasons, that specific process was flaky and not enjoyable. I would occasionally put a point down and it would snap not the surface I click on, but the "backfacing" surface on the far side if the model. I'd say the retopo was reliable about 75% of the time, but that's use the curve or pen tool. The background constraint as a whole works well. It's just with certain tools that it gets a little wonky.

Modo does not support smoothing groups, so check on sites like Polycount for tips on how to integrate Modo with Max and dealing with smoothing groups.

Also, modo's default OBJ exporter may or may not give you predictable results, so someone in the modo community wrote a handy OBJ-to-Max exporter script (http://forums.luxology.com/discussion/topic.aspx?id=36075&show=export%20OBJ) for modo that works much better.

All in all, if you're willing to keep an open mind about learning modo (because it is quite different from other apps you might be used to) it can be a great addition to just about any pipeline. Incredibly versatile.

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