Should I buy V-ray
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V-Ray is Sketchup 2 isn't due soon. They haven't even begun the beta stages.
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Thanks for every ones input.
Pete
My problem is that I have 2 large Arch projects which are on hold. These could start anytime. But at present I have little work on. So I have free time to learn right now. That free time could disappear shortly.
I'm abit disillusioned when it comes to waiting for new software to be released. It seems we have been waiting for Podium2 for ever (No disrespect on the development team, I know good things take time). As for your other suggestions Vue7/7.5 looks stunning, but alittle out of my price bracket in these down times. Thea, looks also promising but its full release is still months away.Stinkie/Pete
Modo is the other piece of software I have had my eyes on. I like the fact it has good animation options. Its differently value for money compared to V-ray. On the modeling Achitecture side I really only need what sketchup can offer. So I'm really only after a renderer. I'm not convinced that its Achviz capabilities are better than V-Ray's but that's personal opinion.But ohhhh is value for money.
Arrrrrr why is V-Ray so expensive for a pluggin.
Pete
I'm a bit over Designing houses. Changing rules, bad workmanship, co ordinating many different sub consultants, rule changes. It seems in Architecture the goal keeps moving within the game. I'm looking into more of the presentation side of the industry. Anyway, my question is, if you were heading in that direction what software would you want. Im asking you since you seem to have dabbled into so many areas. I work at the moment with Autocad, sketchup, podium, Photoshop
This is all just a thought.Thanks for any reply.
Jonathan
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Pete
Sorry for the very vague questions. I would need the software to, many do exterior and interior renders, with the capability to do small animations. And of course money is tight.Cheer Pete.
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@holmes1977 said:
Arrrrrr why is V-Ray so expensive for a pluggin.
It's not a small application just because it's a plugin. It's a very complicated piece of software. The fact that it's a plugin available on multiple platforms just makes it more versatile.
I preference to V-Ray is due to it's speed. But there's more fiddling with the controls to get it working. But once you learned to important tricks the setups are verui quick as well.
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Jonathan.
I will assume that Sketchup will be your primary modeling app.
Unfortunately money will always be a factor and the tools one needs for quality work will cost a substantial amount, and keep costing if one wants to stay current.
I believe in having as many tools for a job as possible and I also do not believe there is a one tool for every job, however I once had a contractor that could pretty much do anything with a hammer, two screwdrivers, an adjustable wrench and duct tape.
So I'd say that a good interior render solution like Vray will eventually need to be in your toolbox, there really is no getting away from it as it truly is an amazing app. I would also look at Vue 'complete' (around the $600 mark) as it can do so many cool things besides awesome exterior renders and now interiors with it's new radiosity engine and if you use Max at all then Vue can use Vray within its Vue to Max work-flow as well as XSI and C4D. Vue also has great animation tools, my primary animation app.
I cannot comment on Thea right now, but I do have very high expectations and I certainly will give the demo a good try as it seems to have a lot of cool bells and whistles.
As far as Modo goes, I'm not sure about it's architectural abilities but can say that '402' looks like a fantastic update to an already very powerful app.
I too am waiting for Podium 2, and yes it's been a very long time in the making (around two years) lets hope that with all the new apps coming out soon it lights a fire in the Podium camp to get it out sooner.You know what? lets make it easier, get Vray! you will not regret it and with the precious little time you have to master it in order to do your upcoming projects it will be the best solution. Vray is also very capable of achieving awesome exterior renders, see Freeagent and Silvershadows work for example.
I would also suggest using the time to master your Photo-shop skills, as every great render needs a little tweak. -
Thank you thank you thank you.
Pete
You really are a fantastic guy. I'm quite over whelmed with your lengthy response. Very well explained. You have been very helpful. The reason I'm looking into V-Ray is because of such artists as Free Agent, Silver Shadow, nomeradona and yourself who's work I got to know through Podium.Did you end up buying V-Ray? You have so many wonderful renders on your site, which would suggest you have had it longer than the 30day trial. But for some reason I'm sure I read here that you hadn't.
To the V-Ray Crew give Solo a free copy (If he does not already have one). Its people like him which influence so many of us here in the SketchUcation forums.
ThomTom
You are right. V-Ray is hardly a pluggin. I meant not to be-Little it. Its just I have very shallow pockets at the moment. Thanks for you input. -
I'm doing a trial of V-Ray and a trial of Modo right now so let me comment a bit on them - but keep in mind that these comments are from someone who's experience is limited to about 2 weeks of use.
V-Ray has immediately become a part of my daily work flow. I can't really afford it but now I can't imagine working without it. It is complicated but if you go through the user manual and follow their suggestions you'll be able to get out basic renders in no time. I just learned today how to do bumps and displacements. I modeled a simple plank of wood using a wood grain pattern I got on this forum and it looks fantastic.
I am struggling mightily with Modo. It's rendering and painting abilities make me want to own the program - but I'm not sure it's well oriented towards the architectural profession. It's really more about making complex shapes than it is about making accurately dimensioned 3D models. I've had no success with bringing a SketchUp model into the program - the models come in with hundreds of stray lines and many lost polygons. There's a SketchUp importer but the importer isn't part of the trial package so I can't comment on it but the comments on their forum and the forum at PushPull suggest that it doesn't work very well.
I like Modo, I like the idea of being able to paint on the surface of a 3D model and I like the real time rendering capability. But it hasn't become useful to me in any obvious way. V-Ray, on the other hand, has already become an essential part of my day.
Hope these comments are helpful in some way.
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Hi Arail1
Thanks for your time. I downloaded the 30day trial and am about half way through the manual. I'm really enjoying it.
I haven't touched Modo at all, so your comments on it, were very helpful. It looks a wonderful piece of software but maybe geared more towards options I may never use. Its just such a good price.I think I'm off to ASGviz now to get V-Ray
Cheers for every ones help. This forum RULZ
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did they ever release a mac version of VRay for SUp? i looked it up in their site and could find any mention of it, although in 2008 there was an announcement of a coming mac version.
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@edson said:
did they ever release a mac version of VRay for SUp? i looked it up in their site and could find any mention of it, although in 2008 there was an announcement of a coming mac version.
They are working on that now.
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REcent blog post about the OSX version: http://asgvisdev.blogspot.com/2009/05/development-update-5-15-2009.html
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Thanks for the link Thomthom. It looks like there might be a new version "pretty" soon.
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@holmes1977 said:
Modo is the other piece of software I have had my eyes on. I like the fact it has good animation options. Its differently value for money compared to V-ray. On the modeling Achitecture side I really only need what sketchup can offer. So I'm really only after a renderer. I'm not convinced that its Achviz capabilities are better than V-Ray's but that's personal opinion.
I agree: Vray produces better architectural renders than Modo does. So far, at least. Lux seems to be putting a lot of work in Modo's renderer.
Me, I pre-ordered Modo 401. I need it - SU doesn't cut it for me anymore. If you don't need anything more than SU - well, Vray most certainly is an excellent addition to your tool set.
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New Vray version will be rewrite of the core only. It will not have any new features AFAIK.
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They are planning on making the UI more user friendly, though. Good thing, user friendly UI's. I remember this one app ... really user friendly. They were gonna add lots of new features ... What's that app called again? Modiup? Podmiu? Nice blokes, too. Wonder what happened to them.
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@sepo said:
New Vray version will be rewrite of the core only. It will not have any new features AFAIK.
VfSU2 will have new features. However, they have rewritten the core so they can release for Mac. The last I heard they will release a PC version with the rewritten core before VfSU2 comes out. It is this pre-v2 release that won't have any new features, I'm guessing some bug fixes maybe. But VfSU2 will have lots of really nice features.
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Yes, I was reffering to pre V2 version.
Stinkie
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I'm not really going to "weigh in" here as my opinion is obviously biased, but I'll just try to clear up some version/update questions that seam to be floating around.
Right now the development team has been completely rewriting the core of VfSU so that it will run on a Mac. There are a number of added benefits to this; some of which will be apparent now, some of which will be apparent later. In the short term, we'll be releasing the Mac version, along with a update for the windows side as well, in a few months time. The actual dates depend largely on how things work out during the testing period (which should be starting with a few weeks...I'll make an announcement here). Obviously if there's a lot of bugs/issues that pop up, we'll have to work those out before its officially released. As Thomas said, the Mac version and the update for the windows side of things will have minimal additional features. That being said, we have taken a closer look at parsing, so at this point that is looking better.
In regards to the long term picture of VfSU 2, that is too far off for me to give much specifics. I will say that there is a lot that is on the boards for getting attention during the vfSU2 development process. Among them are Proxies, significant UI changes, additional materials/textures, and a number of other smaller features. As we move on from working on the core to adding these features, we'll let you know more.
Upgrade/pricing wise, that $100 off coupon is only good for just a few more days, so if you're thinking about it, nows the time. For those of you that already have VfSU, the update corresponding with the Mac version will be free, but VfSU 2 will have an upgrade cost associated with it. That upgrade from VfSU 1 to VfSU 2 hasn't been finalized, but will be a significantly lower cost than the program out right.
Lastly, (and this is more on a personal note) I think that Modo is a great program and does a lot of things very well. From what I've seen of it, and the limited experience I have with it, I can tell you that it does amazing work and is a lot of fun to use. I'm personally one who is likes using tools "in addition to" rather than "in place of", and Modo is tool that I think makes a good addition to a number of workflows. I will say that I have yet to render in Modo
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Thanks for the info.
I really appreciate when a company gives the users some info on whats ahead.
It makes it so much easier to wait when you have a approximation of the time until next update.P.S. Please dont forget render region. I've been asking for this since version 1.0.
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dalomar -
Thanks for the informative post.
I've registered on the ASGVIS forum, sent emails to support (twice) but still haven't received an activation email. I'm coming to the end of my trial period and would like to ask some questions on the forum over there.
Any advice on how to get through this logjam?TIA
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