I've had mixed experiences importing from Revit, and it partly depends on the workflow with whoever is providing the Revit files. Two recent examples from my personal experience (take with a pinch of salt...):
- if the Revit model is likely to change (e.g. if the architect is still working on them, but you need to start working in 3DS Max), then linking as RVT or FBX is a good route. This saves deleting and re-importing as the project evolves, but also has some limitations with what you can do with the geometry (e.g. objects will default back to their Linked co-ordinates, so you have to use Xforms to move things around).
- if the Revit files provided are 'complete', then importing as RVT or FBX is a better route as you have full freedom to work in Max - I've found the Revit (RVT) import slightly better than FBX as it retains things like instances - but this could also depend on the architect and how organised their Revit files are in the first place! One architect I'm working with currently has amazing Revit models, while others in the past have been much less skilled!
Fingers crossed, it has been getting better overall... one of Autodesk's minor achievements.