Upgrade from ArtRage 4 to 6

[janderson]

Hi, am a newcomer to digital painting and enjoying the challenge using ArtRage4 with an Intuos Small tablet on a new iMac 27.

Have noticed there is an upgrade option to version 6. Is it noticably worth getting, or is 4 suitable for my beginner projects?

[markw]

Hello janderson and welcome to the ArtRage forums
Only you can really say which features would make AR6 a must have for you.
For me I’ve always eagerly upgraded to every new version. Not just for any new features but for the bug fixes too!
The Mac version of AR6 is better optimised for Retina screens now, which as a Mac user I found definitely sped up screen render times when zooming and panning the canvas around.
I have always loved the Watercolour brush and in AR6 it is slightly faster and slightly larger at 500%, than in AR4. And I do mean only slightly bigger and faster but every little helps!
The Warp filter tool is a life saver for nudging paint around to where you really wanted it in the first place!
The new Custom Brush will let you switch between painting and erasing with the same brush.
The oil brush now has controls for paint Depth and Gloss added to it.
And then the…

Well I could keep going but the things I’m liking might not be of any interest for your painting style.
So here there is a page where you can compare all of AR6 to other past versions: https://www.artrage.com/product-comparison/
And if you are still in doubt, why not try it out! You can get the demo version of AR6 here which is a completely separate instal and won’t interffear with your current copy: https://www.artrage.com/demos/
And finally and most importantly as an existing owner of a full desktop version of ArtRage you are eligible for a 50% upgrade discount at any time! See here for more details: https://www.artrage.com/upgrades/

[nekomata]

artrage 6 has custom brush tool, which now supports depth, and does a very beautiful textured wet paint experience that is different from the classic oil brush, with a somewhat different blending model.

you can open several documents starting with artrage 5, and performance is greatly optimized compared to ver. 4, certain tools also produce cleaner results now.

there's a liquify tool! - it works great.


the new UI is a bit different and some panels are now smaller with no possibility to scale them, this is the only downside of the upgrade since v. 4 for me.

[Somerset]

I definitly think that ArtRage 6 is worth upgrading. Especially the Custom Brush is a great new feature I don't want to miss anymore. It offers many opportunities to create your own brushes of verry different kinds. But it needs a powerful computer to work smoothly. Even the new perspective guidelines are a cool new feature. And you can adjust the direction and strength of the lighting now. The only thing I miss, compared to ArtRage 4, is the opportunity to scale the dockers. But that is not really a crucial loss.

[Enug]

Re Mark's advice - try the demo version.

"The ArtRage demo version does not allow you to save, export, or record scripts. All other features are fully functional, and any custom resources you create will be usable in the full program if you choose to purchase it. There is no time limit on the demo software, so you can take your time to explore the tools without worrying about a deadline!"