3DS Max updates (when no longer on maintenance) - should I pay $1300 just for a couple more updates ?

[JezUK]

I'm pondering whether to pay for one more last maintenance plan for my perpetual licence of 3DS Max (I'm on 2020).

I've already got Update 1, and in my experience there'll most likely be at least one, possibly two more updates from AutoDesk before 3DS Max 2021 comes out.

If I no longer pay for my maintenance, I'm pretty sure, knowing AD the way they work, that I won't be entitled to any further updates (i.e. no access to 2020 Update 2, Update 3 etc).

Is my understanding correct ?

$1300 is a lot to gamble with just for one, maybe two updates.....

Any advice to help me make my decision please ?

My renewal expires in exactly a week from today.

The way it works though, 2020 would have to be my last purchase so that $1300 will be just for the 2020 updates......

[Vizioen]

In my opinion, I haven't seen any noteworthy updates in like forever that justifies that price, not in the last 2 years that is. So I'm still stuck with 2018.

[JezUK]

Well I do have to say, that I am happy with 2020, and I don't suffer any unusual crashes (just the one when editing splines usually catches me out). So that $1300 is just for any potential updates to 2020...... I think I'm going to stop paying. It simply doesn't make any sense.

[Morne]

You could probably cover things with the Indie version for at least the next year. If anything drastic happen, you should be able to just fall back to your perpetual license. You'll probably have to remove update 2 and 3 if they came out already. Well that's my logic anyway. Speak to somebody DIRECTLY at Autodesk about it. I find resellers dont always give the correct answers

[JezUK]

Thanks Guys,

Good advice Morne, I tend to believe anything anyone tells me, so it'd be good for once if AD surprise me

(other companies normally allow you all the updates for that version you've got, but we are talking AD here......)

[glorybound]

If their software wasn't so buggy you could have stopped years ago and not missed much. The bug thing is a scam! Why pay for bug fixes when you pay for software that should work? Patches should come with an apology, not a bill. Try selling incomplete renderings, leaving things out on purpose so you can charge more for corrections.

When they released a patch in 2017 they gloated about fixing over 800 bugs. Why admit that? I mean, what went so bad that your software had over 800 bugs to fix?

[joconnell]

I was talking to an ad demo guy recently and he mentioned about their old release method that if a feature didn't make the main release deadline, they'd have to wait another 12 months to get it in so they put in a lot of features that were nearly there but would need a service pack to get stable. With their new method of releasing things as they're ready and not at an arbitrary 1 release per year cycle, they can test things better and put out better functioning features.

[gandhics]

Thanks Guys,

Good advice Morne, I tend to believe anything anyone tells me, so it'd be good for once if AD surprise me

(other companies normally allow you all the updates for that version you've got, but we are talking AD here......)

If you don't have maintenance for Houdini, you can not use daily build which means no access to bug fix because they always version up without SP or fix release.
So, if you stop maintenance at H17. Then, that's the last version you would use.

[Morne]

Part of what I do is also being a developer myself, I want to put out the best code I can in the time and budget given. I wouldn't purposefully mess up my code, because that just means more work to fix it. I would want to fix things as soon I can, so I can add other cool new features.

Just like nobody in their right mind would purposefully mess up a client render, so they can work till the end of time on it to make it "perfect". You want to make it best possible render in the given time and budget

And a little off topic:
But do you realize Doctors call what they do "Practise"!

[flino2004]

I paid 1400 for the whole thing..Autocad, revit, 3ds max, etc ..why you pay 1300 for only 3ds max?

[JezUK]

I paid 1400 for the whole thing..Autocad, revit, 3ds max, etc ..why you pay 1300 for only 3ds max?

You pay 1400 for *perpetual* AutoCAD, Revit and 3DS Max etc ?

[flino2004]

Yes, $1,420 to be exact for Building Design Suite Premium Renewal Maintenance Plan

[JezUK]

Yes, $1,420 to be exact for Building Design Suite Premium Renewal Maintenance Plan

I have no idea how you're paying so little for all of that on perpetual. The nearest suite I can see AD offering all of that on subscription costs £3258 per year ($4000) ...

3DS Max alone is £1750 on sub paid annually (or £2400 when paid monthly !!!).

Mine is £845 + VAT = £1014, approx $1250 USD.

Perpetual is being phased out as you know, and has been steadily increasing to match the subscription.

[flino2004]

Last year I paid 1,200 and two years ago a little bit over 1000 but I'm not going to ever switch to subscription... if I get to the point that I can't afford it or the payment very high I would switch to Archicad and maybe Cinema4d, I'm ok using SketchUp and Vray as well since all my work start in Sketchup....I'm hoping the market change and Autodesk realizes how much business they are loosing doing what they are doing with the subscription plan.... I'm paying to much already in my opinion for not much improvements and the pain in the ass to install a new version every year...I would be very upset paying $4000 per license for what we get once a year.

[JezUK]

Last year I paid 1,200 and two years ago a little bit over 1000 but I'm not going to ever switch to subscription... I got to the point that I can't afford it or the payment very high I would switch to Archicad and maybe Cinema4d, I'm ok using SketchUp and Vray as well since all my work start in Sketchup....I'm hoping the market change and Autodesk realizes how much business they are loosing doing what they are doing with the subscription plan.... I'm paying to much already in my opinion for not much improvements and the pain in the ass to install a new version every year...I would be very upset paying $4000 per license for what we get once a year.

Be aware that AD have introduced (as a pilot scheme) an Indie version of 3DS Max, for just $295. *THOUGH* it'll auto-renew at the full-subscription price after year one (unless you switch auto-renew off).

I am quietly optimistic that in 3 years time (around the time I expect to be 'needing' to upgrade my no-longer maintained version of 3DS Max 2020) AD will have made that Indie version a permanent addition to their software portfolio. Fingers crossed !