Shade, Hexagon or Amapi?

[frankly3d]

Which is the more qualified program to model vechicles (tracked & wheeled).
The models will end up being used in Bryce, Carrara (havn't used it yet) or Vue (havn't bought it yet)

Frank

[Wася]

Amapi. No doubts.

[juanmanuel]

As you don't plan on rendering inside Shade, I have to agree, Amapi for modeling cars is THE app.

[Wася]

Yeah, but after he'll buy Amapi, he will have Shade also.
And there will be the next question. Heheh.

[juanmanuel]

True enough. You're right. That way he'll get both apps.

[frankly3d]

Already have Shade 8, use if for clothes making practice, not enough hours in the day.

Frank

[E-Z]

what does Amapi have for polygon tools that are better for building mechanical parts that hexagon doesn't
and for the price different
would these extra polygon tools really make that big of a different

[bwtr]

As I understand it, Nurbs (as Amapi) are the proper way to go to have files saved that are useful/accurate in machine manufacture from those files.

Amapi does both well but one would choose which in relation to end use.

[Thomas]

Fort the polygonal features, Amapi 8 have the same kind of tools as Hexagon, but have more additions like dedicated copy onsupport, measures, layers, advanced selections, etc. As you may know, Hexagon comes from Amapi, and not the opposite

[macmiguel]

Amapi 8 will come anyway? I thought it was the end of amapi.

[Tunesy]

...Amapi Pro 7.52 is the most stable modeler I own. I'd recommend it in it's current form even if it never did get an update.

[Butch]

Realy
Dont know who would invest in a software that hasnt any future?!

[Jack Russel]

http://www.rhino3d.com/

[Butch]

Doesnt have any poly modeling!

[Tunesy]

If Amapi cost as much as Rhino then, yes, I wouldn't buy it either. But Amapi is cheap enough that I'm more than happy with it whether it sees further development or not, and I'd buy it again. By the way, I think it's premature to say it "doesn't have any future." Maybe yes, maybe no. But I think it's unlikely that e-frontier would buy the asset and then let it languish in perpetuity. Sooner or later I'd bet they do something with it.

[Wesgraphics]

Amapi Pro appears to be on sale now at E-Frontier.

amapi pro

on sale for efrontier users
List price: US $749.99

Sale price

US $149.99

Less cost than Silo 3D, if that's any consolation for Amapi Pro enthusiasts.

[reutmanx]

If you would like to model mechanical things Amapi is suberp. You can work nearly in the same manner like in CAD apps., I mean that you can give accurate measurments and can analyze area, volume and such things. Quite good if your modeled shampoo bottle should give space for 500 ml.

I hope Amapi will have a future. I don't get it why e-frontier bought Amapi when they have Shade, which has model capabilities as well but different. The beziercurved base is interesting but right now I cannot figure out if you can model as accurate as with NURBS and all rounds, chamfer and boolean functions. Maybe they will make a package out of it. Right now they state Shade is for architectural modeling and Amapi more mechanical (product design). Shade is for render as well. I use Carrara 5 it has a link for Amapi files. Carrara 6 hasn't.

[juanxer]

I'd say Amapi's main advantage is clean booleans. It is difficult to do those well in a poly modeler, although Hexagon's History feature helps there.

(Shade ought to be a winner for these kind of things, but I simply cannot find any English language-based advanced tutorial that covers conceptual design and such. It is very frustrating to see all those Japanese modelers' images and realize what Shade is capable of, with no instruction material to get to the next level)