considering you could software render quake and tombraider etc at a useable speed on a 300mhz P2
But thats not what you are doing in Bmax. As I said if you could find a 2d renderer (ion2d for example), you too could software render. Bmax is on the other hand "EMULATING". That is the softwere is now emulating the 3d card, and it isnt falling back on the 2d card to emulate the 3d commands, its emulating them all in CPU sofware.
So, quake and Tomeraier have there own Software engine, they are NOT using DX 3D commands that the system is then folling in software.
I found when in you situation of having a spare dev machine that the IrrB3D(Irrlicht wrapper) by Gman is very usful. Irrlicht has two software engines, (and three hardwaer ones), and IrrB3d has the B3D commandset. (Which for some reason I didnt mention at all in my first reply)