3ds Max comes with several materials created specifically for use with the mental ray renderer. These materials are visible in the Material/Map Browser when mental ray or the Quicksilver hardware renderer is the active renderer.
Autodesk Materials are mental ray materials that model materials commonly used in construction, design, and the environment. They correspond to Autodesk Revit materials, as well as materials in AutoCAD and Autodesk Inventor, so they provide a way to share surface and material information if you also use those applications.
The mental ray Arch (architectural) & Design material improves the image quality of architectural renderings. It improves workflow and performance in general, and performance for glossy surfaces (such as floors) in particular.
The mental ray materials described in this section have more specialized uses than Autodesk Materials or the Arch & Design material.
