FBX Converter

[Emor D'ni Lap]

No big revelation here, I know.

But, in my experience, the FBX conversion route has proven to be the cleanest way to import to Max from other 3D applications. The only sticky point, for Max 7 & Max 8, is that modern programs may not output to the legacy version of FBX that the older versions of Max can handle.

So the easy way around that is to do the conversion using Autodesk's free FBX Converter application. It's simple and pretty much foolproof, very rarely have I ever seen a fouled-up output file come through.

You can get legacy versions of the convertor on that page, but the most recent version also contains the convertor necessary for a good Max 7 import. All you need to do is select the "2006" option in the "Destination Format" pulldown:


No, it won't convert from a .blend file!

[Emor D'ni Lap]

As an addendum, here's an Autodesk article on how to preserve your texture files through the .fbx export/import process:
https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/3...F-htm.html

[DemarcusB]

Is FBX Converter still the way to go for this type of stuff or has there been anything new on the market since then?

[Hub Goobley]

Hi Demarcus,

Problem is still that no new exporters or converters want to cater to the old versions of Max that run Plasma, 7 & 8.

You can try .obj export to import, you can try .dae, you can try .3ds.
I get results with these ranging from good to impossible, depending.
But yeah, .fbx out through the converter still seems to me the most reliable path.

[Emor D'ni Lap]

For some reason, conversions from the more recent versions of the freestanding FBX Converter are no longer importing nicely into my Max 7.

On that note, we're going to host a couple files right here.

Here's a legacy freestanding FBX converter that does work with Max 7 (you may have to use the last of the compatibility options, FBX 5.3; test a few to see):
FBX-Conv_2006.11.1.zip
...there's an excellent .pdf manual included in the folder; RTFM!

And here's a Max7-compatible FBX plug-in, again with installation instructions included:
fbx200602_3dsmax70_win.zip

No guarantees are hereby implied!!!

[Emor D'ni Lap]

ALSO!

Here's a link to Andy Legate's page on Blender-to-3DS Max fbx conversions.
(yes, many of the links on that page are now dead - but Andy's advice remains generally good!)